And the winner is...

The winner of the referral game is my dear friend, Cynthia, who guessed the latest date in December. There was no referral by the end of the year, so I will post an all-new contest here soon. Cynthia said I could pick the donation recipient, so the winner is.... The Smith Family Adoption! The Smiths have a son adopted through my agency's Taiwan program, and they are in the process of adopting a sibling set from Africa. You can read about them at: www.livingtolove.com

Congratulations to Cynthia and The Smiths! And don't worry...my time is coming! New game soon!

Getting ready for Christmas

As always, in search of one, great Christmas photo!


AiChun is really into Christmas this year. I think she is as exciting about GIVING presents as she is about receiving them, which is a new milestone in her development that is so fun to see.

She also has really understood the Christmas story this year. She has been so interested in all the parties - Mary, Joseph, the angels, the shepherds, the wise men. She was so disturbed by the emperor's order that all the babies in Bethlehem should be killed. But the biggest issue has been the actual birth. She is very interested in knowing who was there when Jesus was born. Was Mary alone? Did Joseph pull Jesus out? Did the innkeeper's wife volunteer to help? Who cut the cord? REALLY?!??! I mean, not to be graphic, but she has never seen a birth - how does she even know about cutting the cord? Sometimes, she is just too much.

We hope you have a very blessed Christmas as we celebrate the birth of our Savior.

Amy

It's Mama Time

I am one very blessed mom. My Chunie-bug LOVES Mama time. She can never have too many hugs or snuggles. She climbs into my lap often. She still wants me to rock her at night. She asks for "a thousand kisses, Mom!" Admittedly, there are times when I want to say (and have said), "A little personal space, please!" However, every mom I know tells me to treasure it now because the days pass so quickly. I know they are right, so I am trying to memorize the feel of her little arms around my neck, savoring the snuggles for the days when she is grown.

Amelia's First Art Exhibition

Amelia's class had its first art exhibition. She was happy to show off her creations!

An Update Without Photos

I know...you come here to see my precious Chun-bug! However, since I have not taken the time to get the photos off the camera an onto the computer in awhile, is it okay if I promise that the last 3 months will be updated in photos at another time?

Amelia update: My girl is 6. It happened before I knew it. One day I had a baby, and now I have a big girl. Being a big girl includes thinking that your Kindergarten teacher knows wayyyy more than Mommy, becoming Mom instead of Mommy (most of the time), wanting Mom to drop you off in the car line at school (as opposed to walking you in every day like she did in Pre-K), trying out certain tones of voice that Mom finds unacceptable, and losing the first tooth. It also means asking Jesus into your heart. That's the best part about being a big girl - making big girl decisions that affect your whole life from here to eternity, literally!

This fall, Amelia has been on a soccer team (notice, I don't say "playing soccer" because that implies making actual contact with the soccer ball in a way that is meaningful to the team), she is taking ballet, she has been participating in Awana and choir, and she has been generally enjoying herself. We made the difficult decision to stop private Chinese lessons for a season. It was really hard for us to keep up with the homework and the lessons, and Amelia was not enjoying it at all. I really didn't want language lessons to become something she resented, and when I asked her which activity she wanted to stop, that was the one thing she immediately wanted to sacrifice. It did break the mama-heart in me just a little, because I don't want to be the mom that fails to give her every tool and every opportunity to embrace her Chinese heritage, but the truth is, she just isn't interested right now. I have to be okay with that.

Baby Er (that's the number two in Chinese for those who don't know) is still somewhere on the horizon. Some days that horizon seems farther away than others. Several days ago, I moved into the #1 slot on the waitlist, so that is exciting news. We could spend a week or several months in that spot. It's up to the Lord! My cyber-friend, Shanda, says the referral is coming October 21. So we shall see! I hope she's right!

Hope you are having a blessed and bountiful fall season. I love Fall...I sort of feel like God shows off in Fall...everything is just so beautiful in the fall - perfect sights, perfect sounds, perfect weather.

Amy

Happy 6th Birthday, Amelia!

What fun we had celebrating Amelia's 6th birthday! As it turned out, her classmate and good friend, Katie, had scheduled a party on the same date at the same place. The two moms decided this was too much pressure on the rest of the parents in the class, so we opted to combine the party for one big celebration. The girls were thrilled with this plan. This year was Amelia's first to depart from a 'character' party - she opted for a pink leopard print party theme at a pottery painting shop. I can't believe my baby is six. WHERE does the time go?

Amy

Fall Fun

Good times at the pumpkin patch. I went with the Kindergarten class as a sponsor as they explored the corn maze and pumpkin patch. Have I mentioned lately that I love being AiChun's mom?

Amy