Spring has SPRUNG!

Happy Spring! It is my most favorite time of the year. I am just so giddy it's crazy. I love getting out of bed in the morning, love wearing sun glasses, driving with the windows down, shopping for new bright colored clothes for the kids, grilling, staying out late playing the driveway, and planting our garden. Even a Spring rain is nice. It's all just so wonderful. As you can tell, I have been wishing for Spring since January, so it couldn't come soon enough. Enjoy this Spring and get outside.

The pictures of the kids are at a Gymnastics place we go to during Open Gym time. It's great. They have trampolines, a foam block pit, swinging ropes, enough room to run, balance beams, bars, hoola-hoops, balls, slides....you name it...they have it....and we LOVE it. Jacob climbs this little maze up to about 5 feet off this wall and then he jumps in the pit (aka - the sock eater). Then there is Isabella, she has NO FEAR - she climbed up it the other day, then turned around to jump off ever so gracefully. I thought the other moms were going to jump in after her. She just giggled, and giggled. Her favorite part, waiting in the pit for her brother to come get her. She would wait there all day, instead of having to do the work trying to get out herself. It's so much fun. I have been known to jump in a time or two myself. I don't know what it is, but there is just something about a 5 foot pit of foam blocks that makes you want to jump on in. We LOVE it.

Happy SPRING!

"The Call" Anniversary!

One year ago today we received one of the most exciting phone calls of our lives. It was a sunny day on March 2, 2006 at 2:04 PM our adoption agency called to tell us, “It’s a girl” (also known as Referral Day)! We couldn’t have been more thrilled.

The phone call went something like this:

“Ring”, “Ring” OMG - This is it….look read the caller ID. Our dear friend Kathryn, even took a photo of the phone to show it was them calling with the time and date.

Us on Speaker Phone: “Hello”

Agency: It’s *** agency calling to tell you – this is it “the Call” – Your referral is here…It’s a girl!

US: Screaming, hooting, hollering, hugging, and then we all calm down enough to hear….

Agency: She is a cutie (you see we got a phone call first, and then the next day we wait for our UPS delivery person (aka – the Brown stork) to bring us a packet of information on her along with photos). His name is Roger and we have photos of him as well.

US: Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

Agency: Her name is Liang, Xiao Yan (was then named Isabella Ruby Xiao Yan). She is from Chongqing, China (central China) and was born on June 4, 2005. She is little and has hair.

US: We tried to get as much information as we could, but they too did not have much to give us at they are the local office and the main office was getting our packages ready to mail.

Phone hangs up; we laugh, we cry, we high five on another, we hug…and just sit as it seems so surreal!

Above are some photos from last year on this day we thought we would share yet again. The first one is us sitting at the table with the speaker phone on and taking notes as we got “The Call”. The second one is us waiting for the UPS man to deliver her packet of information and photos to us (friends sent flowers, balloons, decorated, and even had a banner made and hung). Then alas, this is one of the photos we got of Isabella at about 6 months old. Last but not least, a current photo of Isabella at the gym playing. It’s was a great day for us and we hope you have a great day as well.