Yo! Yo!

I bet you didn't know my boys were rappers!
Jib Jab is so funny, check it out!

Watermelon Fun!

I gave the boys a quarter of a watermelon today and they LOVED it! I didn't think Jadon would get into it like he did since he dislikes being messy but he sure had fun!=)

Busy Boys

And boy are we busy! This summer has flown by! I can't believe it's already August!!
We spend a lot of time outdoors as the boys would have it no other way. Although recently our times spent outside have been cut much shorter due to excessive heat (today was 97)! The pool and hose sure does help though!;)
Everyone asks "How are the boys adjusting?" My answer is always "Great!" which is true but I wonder how I would answer if people asked "How are you adjusting?". Honestly, it has been a very tough adjustment for me. I just told my friend that I didn't realize how selfish I was until we brought the boys home. Each day gets better and easier as we fall into synch with each other but it sure has been a struggle. I am so thankful for the struggle though, it has challenged me to be a better wife, mother and child of God.
Anyway, here are some pics of the boys spending their summer days outside.

Here's Roman in our backyard holding the letter we wrote for "N".

Here he is with a picture he drew for her.

At the park on the friendly dinosaur.=)

Peek-a-boo Jadon!

Jadon LOVES cars, which he calls "cais".=)

We are usually so busy that this is how the boys end up at some point in the day. Zzzzzzzzzzzz!

Have a wonderful day!

Finding "N"

A few weeks ago I posted a video of Roman dancing with his friend "N". We inquired with our agency about her status since our son asks about her and prays for her everyday and is now calling her his "sister".
Today we found out. She is still at the orphanage and is currently not available for adoption as her birthmother has not relinquished her rights. I was sad to hear this because I hate to think that this beautiful little girl is going to grow up in an orphanage without a loving family. We are praying for her and the situation and I'm asking all of you to pray as well. We want God's best for her.
Our fc said we could send her a letter and some pics so we're going to do that real soon.
Thanks for your prayers!

Birthday Pics

Okay, as promised, here are some pics from the party. We went to a hotel near by and had the party there. We played in the pool and at the beach and had cake and presents. The best part, no clean up!!!

Here we are singing "Happy Birthday" to Jadon. He was a little embarrassed when we sang to him, just like my little sister used to be.;)


Blowing out the candles on the completely organic cake I made. It was delicious!


I wish you could see his face better here. It was hilarious! The boy is crazy for cars and trucks!=)


I think he was pretty excited about his bathtub pirate boat here!


Roman is having a blast with Grampy on the pool water slide!


Thanks Totya for taking such wonderful pictures!

Happy Birthday Jadon!

My baby boy turned 2 years old today! I can't believe how much he has grown since he came home in March! We love you Jadon Paul!
Pictures of the party will be coming soon!=)

Forth of July Fun!

We had a great Independence Day with Chris' family. We ate a lot of yummy food and swam in the pool and played Guitar Hero and flew a kite! It was so much fun!

Daddy is teaching Roman how to fly a kite while Jadon cheers them on.

Roman is flying a kite for the first time...

...and having a blast!!

The boys love riding their Radio Flyer bikes at Granny's!

Big brother is helping little brother ride his bike through the grass.

Little brother has had enough "help". ;)

Roman and his first Independence Day cake!

Happy 4th everyone!

It's still so surreal to me that our boys were born half-way around the world and now they are home with their family, celebrating their new country's Independence Day. God is so good!

Family Reunion

Last week my grandmother passed away. She was sick and in a lot of pain so it wasn't a shock to anyone but it was still sad to not have her here anymore. She is with Jesus now so we rejoice in that.
Her funeral was yesterday up in Jacksonville so I went along with my mother-in-law while Chris stayed home with the boys. It was so nice to see my extended family. I hadn't seen my cousins in 10 years or more so we had a good time catching up. It's so weird to see all of them as adults, married and with children. I hope to see them all again in the fall for my cousin's wedding.
Anyway, here is a picture of all of my grandmother's grandchildren (yes, all girls) at her funeral.

The cutest video!

I've been wanting to post this video for all of you for a long time now but only now have we gotten around to it. Hey, I'm a busy mommy now!;)
Anyway, our oldest son turned 4 while we were in Russia. We were able to celebrate it with him at the orphanage. His birthday was also the Russian holiday "Men's Day" and they were practicing a little show that the children were going to perform later that day. I don't know what they were singing in Russian but the dance that Roman and his little girlfriend did was so adorable. He has been asking about her every day now, especially after seeing this video. We have inquired about her with our agency. I hope and pray that she is being adopted but if not, we might just have to go back for her.;)
Enjoy!

Happy Father's Day!

You are the best Daddy in the whole world! We love you so much!

Post Placement Blues

I can't believe it's time for this already! Our 6 month post placement report is due in August. Our social worker needs to come to evaluate us in the beginning of July in order for it to be done in time. So now I am filling out paperwork once again. Arghh! I was so enjoying not having to do paperwork. I've been so lazy with it, I haven't even gotten the boys' social security cards yet! And of course the whole thing needs to be apostilled! I hate apostilles!!!!
The boys also have their first colds so we're all cranky. :{

Fun in the sun!

The boys love to be outdoors and busy at play. The days when we stay home are generally not fun and there are many time-outs. So, we go out every day for a little bit. We recently had a play date with some friends at the water park. Boy are our kiddos loving the water! Roman is doing so well with swimming, a few more weeks and he'll be swimming laps on his own.=)

Daddy and Jadon had a blast going down the water slide!=)

Jadon has been doing much better in the pool as well.

We recently purchased a very small boat. It's been one of Chris' dreams to raise his boys on the water. Needless to say they have fun!=)

I leave you with 2 more pictures of my goofballs!=)

A nice visit.

My sister and her husband came to visit us over the weekend. They had never met the boys before and we had not seen her new baby boy before. It was too short of a visit but we had fun. The kids were so cute together. We went to the zoo Saturday morning and then my sis-in-law met up with us and took some fabulous photos. I love my little sister so much, I wish she lived closer.=(


Roman and baby G!


Aren't they a beautiful family?


Jadon and MJ. Kissing Cousins!;)


Our family photo.=)

Happy Mother's Day!

I am so blessed to be the mother of these two beautiful boys!

What a difference!

I wanted to show you the change in Jadon since he's been home. It really is amazing! Roman has changed as well but not as dramatically as JJ. So here goes...


This picture was taken in October of '07 during our first trip. He made no eye contact with us and never laughed or smiled. He was 15 months old.


This picture was taken in February of '08 during our second trip. He eventually warmed up to us a bit and we did get him to laugh but he was mostly a very serious baby. He was 19 months here.


This picture was taken shortly after we picked the boys up from the orphanage in Kras. Notice the blank stare. We got those a lot.


This picture was taken in Moscow. He got a little more brave and interacted more but mostly screamed and cried. He was a very sad baby.


This picture was taken the first week we were home in March. It was their first trip to the beach.


Again at the beach. He is smiling more now and is getting more comfortable with us. Notice how bloated his face is. All of us had bloated faces when we came home. Either it was all of the sodium in the food in Russia or lack of sleep. Maybe a combo of the two.=)


Here we are at Friendly's in April. Jadon LOVES to eat and is much happier (except at nap/bed time).


Here he is on their John Deer truck at Granny's house. What a cutie!


It's May and this is the face I see on my baby boy all the time now.


He laughs all the time and I have to restrain myself from biting those cheeks off!=) He's got a nice tan and the sun has lightened his hair a lot.


I love this picture! He is 22 months now and losing the baby look.=(

It's an amazing transformation in just 3 months. We brought home a scared, sad and angry baby and now we have a happy, funny and attached toddler. We still have a lot of growing to do but I am so thrilled by how much we have grown together as a family.