Sunday showcase

I've been following an adoption blog recently (nihaoyall.com) and she showcases a photo each Sunday. What a great idea! This is the best photo of the month, aside from the previous ultrasound. One of my dearest friends here is in the foreground, and her husband is in the pool. This event has been a request for a year and we were both there to see it come to pass.

By the way, it really is Sunday here, even though the blog recognizes it as Saturday since Blogger is in the USA.

a rainbow after the storm

My disappearance from the blogging world directly corresponds to the death of our unborn child. We found out we were pregnant last February. On the last day of March, we had reason to suspect something was wrong and it was confirmed at the hospital that our baby no longer had a heartbeat. I had heard that little heart on a sonogram three weeks before, but our baby was gone.

Every family processes things differently. Every community processes things differently. Both we and our community failed to be helpful at times. Fallen people; fallen world.

Anyway, here we are five and a half months later. It has been seven months since my last blog... I wanted to wait to give some good news before writing again. 

I want to introduce you to baby #3, our Little Baby, as we've been referring to him/her. We are 15.5 weeks along today (Saturday)! How exciting to be in the second trimester! 

Our little baby is due on March 10, 2015, allegedly. Hopefully, (s)he will be a week early, like Emma was! 

14 Months!

This month, we went to the zoo and Emma is beginning to really enjoy animals, especially the cages of tropical birds!

Emma now can climb onto the table, open the window screens to point at pigeons outside, and RUNS QUICKLY without falling much!

She also gives sweet kisses to Mommy n Daddy on the mouth and is becoming very snuggly! 

She has had two upper molars grow in fully since last month.  What will she do next?!!

Enjoying Lent Readings

 I've been really absorbing these readings each week using a simple study system we learned back in VA during training called "SPECKA":

In this/these passage(s), is there a...

S: Sin to confess?

P: Promise to claim?

E: Example to follow?

C: Command to obey?

K: Knowledge newly gained (about myself, people, Christ/God/Spirit)?

A: An Application that I can apply to my life?

I've been enjoying how each week circles around a theme in the readings, too.  If you like them, there ya go! :)

Emma at 13 Months

Guess which of us is a morning person...

She can climb onto the couch and onto a bed by herself and get down from them, too. 

She went up the stairs to the slide by herself and down the slide, too, giggling all the way down... Of course with Mommy in arms reach just in case.

Waves bye-bye now with fingers going up and down and hand held still... And sometimes says, "Bah!" while doing that, which means "bye" of course.

Enjoys getting into confined spaces and making new friends.

Says "No!" With the head or hand movement for no/finished. 

Enjoys making silly sounds and faces to make her parents laugh... Pictured above is the 'mean sniffing face'.

Snuggles and gives long hugs that sometimes incorporate patting Mommy or Daddy on the back, too.

Can break down in an instant if something isn't going her way (above she didn't like the veil on her head).

Indian princess bride

Emma is ONE!

Emma's Stats:

21lbs, 30"  **She is 14lbs heavier and 10" taller than this time last year!**

Activities: walking like a big girl, reaching on tippy toes to reach the counter/sink, over-handed ball toss, dances to music, eats finger foods, waves bye-bye, says "mama" and "da-ee" (daddy), at times says "no" and "ba" (bye), shakes head to say "no".

A few of her favorite things: pigeons, snuggling mama and daddy, nursing, tickle games, climbing onto furniture/chairs.

Fears: mechanical stuffed animals that quack/bark and move, strangers, men (well, all others who aren't Daddy, or the Granddad's).

BIRTHDAY PIX!