Waiting for Graham...

Amelia can hardly contain her excitement when we go to pick Graham up from pre-school. She marches down the hall with authority, purpose, and speed. She knows exactly which classroom he's in and has figured out that if she crawls under the table that stands next to the door, she has a perfect view of Graham as he wraps up his class for the day. Amelia has also established that she must be the first one through the door when the teacher ends class. Forget about the Mom's and Dad's who patiently wait for class to end, Miss Amelia charges through the door first and RUNS to Graham. The sweet hug and excited reunion that happens each and every time is almost too cute for words. Because all the other parents are witness to this little reunion each time, they happily stand back and allow Amelia to enter the room first each and every single time!

As Amelia resumed her position at pre-school this morning, I snapped this picture with my phone...

Ready for pictures??

We spent this past weekend at an amazing cabin perched high on the shore of Lake Superior. It was an absolutely scenic location, which means we have a LOT of amazing photos! Enjoy!

Amelia sleeps very late when she's in her own crib, but when we're away, she's an early riser. She and Miles both woke each morning with the sun, so they enjoyed a leisurely breakfast with a view each morning!

Relaxing with Baby

Graham would live out the rest of his life in the woods if we let him! He's one happy kid when he's loose in nature.

Even at 2 years old, Amelia still LOVES to go in the baby backpack

How is it even remotely possible, that she was comfortable enough to fall asleep like this?!?!

Happy nature boy

A rare family photo although I probably shouldn't count it as such since only Amelia's leg is visible. She was snoozing away on Daddy's back.

What a Grandma to carry her little guy like this! A 5.5 mile hike through the woods with two toddlers meant we all did our fair share helping the little toddler legs take a rest.

Graham was very interested in the moss

We now had two sleeping toddlers at this point. Only 3 miles to go at this point, and yes, I'm completely serious!

Amelia woke up and was happy to snuggle up with Grandma

Amelia loves all things pretty!

Animal crackers on the shore for the little ones

Graham admiring the lake

Grandpa and Amelia taking in the view

My Dancing Du0

Even bright and early in the morning, my two kiddies are as happy as can be. Graham is a morning person, so this isn't surprising, but on Tuesdays and Thursdays we have to be out the door by 8:45 so I have to wake Amelia up instead of letting her sleep until 10ish. This morning at 8:30 I caught them mid performance and I sure am glad I did. Towards the end of the clip, I love how Graham coaches Amelia in proper bowing technique because well, after all, he is almost 4 years old, and he does know almost everything! :)

It's Gotcha Day!

September 20, 2007-Just off the plane at the Minneapolis airport

Today is a day for celebration-it's Gotcha Day in our house! Growing our family has been challenging on so many levels so when we hit certain days on the calendar, we celebrate! We celebrate being blessed with an amazing son, we celebrate the fact that three years ago on this day, we finally got to walk through our front door with our baby, we celebrate the miracle of adoption, and we celebrate the blessing of just being a family. I am so filled with gratitude for each individual who played any role, large or small, in allowing me the privilege of being Graham's Mommy. I wish I could personally thank each of those people, but I know I can't. So, I will continue to devote myself each and every day to raising Graham to the best of my ability. Graham will without a doubt grow up knowing that he is supported unconditionally and loved beyond measure. Being a Mommy is the best job in the world. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine this stage of my life could be so rewarding, but it is, and a big part of that has to do with Graham. So, thank you Graham, for being you! You mean the world to us!

September 20, 2010-Nice costume, right? Someday, when I look back on a 3 year old Graham, I will do so and laugh with fond memories because Graham currently spends 99% of his day in some sort of costume.

Amelia's First Day of School

Today was Amelia's first day of school. Her class is "mommy and me" style. For the first 30 minutes or so, we're together, then the Mommies leave the classroom to have a "grown-up meeting" and the children stay with the teachers for an hour. I was prepared for tears and screaming at separation time. I was prepared for so much screaming, that Amelia's face would be bright red and sweat would be dripping down her cheeks. Yes, Amelia's crying is often that dramatic. So dramatic in fact, that I offered a heads up to the teachers so they wouldn't be surprised when the sounds coming from Amelia compared to those of a child being tortured.

Separation time came. I sat Amelia down at the table with her snack. I told her that I loved her, that I was going to a meeting but that I would always come back. I gave her a kiss and slowly started to back away. She looked at me and I braced myself for her quivering lower lip to come out. Instead, Miss Amelia looked right at me and said "Good-bye Mama!" And with that, I left the classroom and knew that she was going to be just fine. An hour later, I returned to get her and she ran towards me with open arms and I scooped her up into a great big hug. Success!

First Day of Preschool

We had a milestone in our family today-Graham attended his first day of preschool! He seemed nervous yesterday and didn't really want to talk about it so I was a little concerned about how this morning would go. Thankfully, Graham decided that school (snacks, stories, play-doh, and a play ground) didn't sound all that bad. At the last minute, he did ask if I would stay with him and when I said that I couldn't, he tried to convince Amelia to stick around. I'm proud to say that neither Graham or I shed a single tear! I knew that if Graham could hold it together, I would be able to do the same. Amelia on the other hand, was an absolute mess as we drove away without her "Am". They've been driving each other crazy lately so I was a bit surprised by her display of extreme emotion.

When we returned 2.5 hours later (yes I watched the clock the entire time and couldn't wait for the school day to end!) Amelia couldn't contain her excitement. As we walked down the hall, she screamed "We're coming Am!" at the top of her lungs! The poor thing was acting like we left Graham against his will to be tortured or something! Graham was very excited to see both of us and gave me the tightest, longest hug ever! Graham did say that school was "fun" and when I asked him if he'd like to go back he said "Sure!". I asked the teacher how Graham did and I was told that he did a nice job and that he is one independent kid. Yep, that's our Graham!

It's been a while...

I have been a bad blogging Mama the past few weeks....We enjoyed every last minute that summer had to offer and before I knew it, September was upon us. The next few weeks are going to be weeks of adjustment for our family. Graham starts pre-school at his new school next week and Amelia starts school again as well. Both classes are going to be learning experiences for all three of us. Graham has never been to an actual 'drop off' school before, and although I will attend class with Amelia, the parents and children separate which I know is going to be quite challenging for her. I will have updates on both kids and their classes next week!

Since I have been neglecting the blog for so long, here are a handful of pictures from our past few weeks....

24 hours a day Amelia and her baby have to be touching!

Enjoying a quiet evening on the lake

Graham LOVES the Minnesota State Fair!

Note to self...Amelia does NOT love sheep

After a busy morning exploring the fair, like clockwork, Graham fell asleep in his stroller at nap time

Amelia fell asleep in her stroller too-a VERY rare occurance we were thankful for on this day

Riding the train with Daddy!

Graham's exact words were "Don't worry Daddy, I'm a doctor!"

Daddy's Girl! Amelia is always up for a good cuddle!