China Travel buddies coming for a visit!

Our friends, Phil, Julie and Dora are coming the week of the fourth to visit!! We can't wait!! They are coming all the way from Madison Wisconson. We met them in the Beijing airport and all though that was our first meeting; we "new" each other well. We were meeting a couple who had been through the "adoption ringer" for the last two years exactly as we had. This is the couple with whom we ventured into the city to see REAL China. Julie is the brave one who ate chicken feet..Yummy! Dora is precious and we can't wait to see how she has progressed as well. Follow their story: http://www.ourdogsnewowner.com/

Happy 1st Father's Day Daddy!!

Yesterday was David's first father's day and Emily and I wanted to make it special. We prepared him a very special breakfast at home with all of his favorites. We made nutmeg and cinnamon french toast sprinkled with powdered sugar, mixed berries and drizzled with real maple syrup. Yum! We also had mimosa with strawberries and a bowl of mixed tropical fruit. He has also been waiting for the "University of Georgia vault" to be published. It finally has but it is on back order every where so now he has one coming in July. Emily also picked out a father's day card for him. It was a lot harder to take a walking toddler into a card store than I thought it would be. She wanted to pull EVERY card out of its slot. Just due to sheer exhaustion and confusion, I ended up buying a David a cheesy father's day card and he laughed and laughed. Oh well. Life with a toddler is never boring. We celebrated with David's parents on Saturday. It was really nice and my parents are out of town AGAIN. Must be nice to be retired!!

A REAL Emily Grace update

Wow! We have been so busy just enjoying our daughter that we haven't really updated the blog. We have been home for two months now and our little angel has progressed so quickly that she isn't even the same baby whom we met in China. She has so much personality that I am entertained all day with her. She smiles, laughs and sings constantly. She is ever so busy too. She NEVER stops. She literally moves from one thing to the next. She, however, will stay focused on one item for a matter of time before moving on. I began baby sign language with her in China, but it was a while before I saw her use it, but THE DAY that she decided to use her signs, she began to use ALL of them (sometimes, she would use two at a time) I was shocked and so impressed. She knows and uses signs for the following: milk, more, eat, finished, wait, cracker, change my diaper, water, drink, please and thank you. It is so helpful to actually be able to communicate with her and know what she wants. Also, Emily had never had any "floor time" before we got her, but in no time, she was crawling on her feet and hands (too cute) then, she moved onto pulling herself up and walking along edges. Soon, she was walking a few steps at at time, but this week, she decided that she was just going to walk and she is walking EVERY WHERE. I am so proud of her, but I cried and cried. We just received our BABY and now she is a toddler. I just want this time to slow down a bit. Of course, the same day that Emily began walking ever where was the same day that she decided that she wanted to run. It all happens so quickly. HERE ARE PICS OF EMILY STAGES FROM HER CRAWL TO WALKING! So fast.

More Pics at the beach

Here are a few more pics of us all at the beach!