Remember me...

Sorry for the hiatus. I can't promise that I am back for good...two babies and an addiction to facebook creates no time to blog.

The kids are growing! Teegen is 26 months and full of herself. I simply cannot keep up with her language development. She told her teddy bear tonight "Don't worry George, I come get you."It seems like yesterday, she was saying her first word. She is so much fun...strongwilled and sassy, but so much fun.

Xander is the sweetest soul. He is laidback and so very Zen. I often think that he and Teegen are yin and yang. They interact so well and laugh whenever the other is around. I am sure that soon they will start trading blows!

Here are a few recent pictures.

Worn out from all our recent travels

Xander enjoying the sun

Taking it easy on a Sunday morning

Doesn't every girl need a RUN DMC shirt?

On our recent trip out west, as we were traveling over a very big dam, I looked back to see this. So sweet!

The adoption community has been rocked by the actions of one adoptive mother. JCIS has asked families to share the truth about adoption; domestic or international, as a part of their "We are the Truth" campaign.

Here is our story:

Throughout my life, one of the steadfast truths I've known as been that I would one day be a mother. My career path changed many times, but I always knew the ultimate job would be as someone's mom. Larry and I decided before we were married that children would be a part of our lives; we just didn't know how they would get here. Diagnosed with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome at 18, I had been told when I was ready to get pregnant all I would need would be a few fertility pills and 9 months later, parenthood would be a reality. I was told wrong!

Three rounds of Clomid wreaked havoc on my emotions and had the potential to do the same to our marriage. As I pulled the covers over my head, sinking into a deep depression during the third try of Clomid, I realized that I didn't need to physically give birth to become a parent. Somewhere, there was a child meant to be ours. Thus began our journey on the roller coaster of adoption.

In March of 2007, Larry and I officially began our adoption journey, hoping that at the end of the line, we would become parents to a beautiful child from Vietnam. But the universe had other plans. A series of problems, catastrophes and the closing of Vietnam adoptions in the United States set us on a course towards domestic adoption, an idea that I had initially shunned without question.

The road of domestic adoption was not smooth either. But in May 2008, we found the agency that was a perfect fit for us. And six weeks later, we walked into a neonatal ICU and laid eyes on the most beautiful creature ever. I had worried that I wouldn't feel a connection to her, but the minute I laid eyes on that small bundle with a red bow glued on her head, I was hopelessly in love. Without a doubt, I was her mother and she was my child. In that instant, Teegen became the center of our world.

Just when I thought our hearts couldn't hold any more love, I found myself in a paper gown outside of an operating room in Las Vegas, listening to my son take his first breath, screaming loud enough to let the tourists on the strip know of his arrival. Once again, Larry and I had been entrusted to care for an amazingly beautiful soul.

We have had our share of difficulties throughout the journey. But in the end, we're blessed with two miracles who bring an amazing amount of love, light and smiles into our world.

Here is our truth:

Teegen at 4 days, minutes after we met

Xander, only minutes old

Teegen at 21 months

Xander at 6 months

The Dynamic Duo

Enjoying the snow

I was trying to teach her how to catch snowflakes on her tounge. This is what I got!

Like father, like daughter

When Potatos have a bad day...

This is what I saw when I got home today. Apparently they upset Teegen at some point today...and Mr. Potato Head is wearing Mrs. Potato Head's shoes.

Texting at a young age


Poor sick girl

Not much to write tonight. T's been pretty sick with an upper respiratory infection that could be pneumonia. X has had some tummy troubles but they should resolve soon. Hopefully I will be able to write more soon. Got lots of posts rolling around in my head.

2009 in review

Wow! What a year we have had! This time last year, we were settling in as a family of three. Early in January, we travelled out West to finalize T's adoption and have a short family vacation as well. By the time we headed home, I was tired of travelling, rental cars and snow. Very soon after we return, we found out that we would grow to a family of four much quicker than we had imagined. Here's a bit of a recap in pictures:

January 2009

Teegen's adoption is final!

And even at 6 months, we can already see a glimpse of the sassy girl.

February 2009

We learn that Teegen might become a big sister by the end of the year. She looks excited doesn't she?

March 2009

Teegen starts to stand and cruise on the furniture.

April 2009

Spending time with our good friend Thorn. A few weeks after this picture was taken, Thorn became a big brother to baby Cash.

May 2009

Teegen's first time on the beach. What a bathing beauty!

June 2009

Happy Birthday Teegen. Don't you love her outfit?

July 2009

Celebrating July 4th with Aunt Julie at the Park

August 2009

Teegen had to have tubes in her ears. She continued to become more mobile and more verbal.

September 2009

The day we waited for throughout the year...William Michael Alexander arrives. Xander weighed in at 9 lbs. For Teegen, it was love at first sight. She loved her baby brother from the get-go.

October 2009

We are adjusting to life as a family of four and adjusting to our new schedule that has Larry running Daddy Day Care during the week. Teegen dresses as a Penguin for Halloween and Xander dresses as a baby. We also welcomed our new nephew, Dylan this month. He and Xander are only one week apart.

November 2009

We still are pretty sleep deprived.

December 31, 2009

What an incredible year! Finally, a picture of them together.

What a truly incredible year! This time last year, I would never imagine that we would have been blessed with another child. And never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined that being a mother would be such an amazing job. I'm so fortunate to be their mother.

Last night, I reflected back on the last decade...what a rollercoaster ride. In that time period, I finished graduate school, met Larry, bought a house, got married, lost my stepmother, change jobs three times, welcome a new niece and nephew, start an international adoption, cry a million tears when that international adoption was no longer an option, pick up the pieces and decide that we should try domestic adoption, fall madly in love with my gorgeous daughter and cry like baby as I heard my son take his first breath. What an amazing ten years.

As I look forward to 2010, I've tried not to make any resolutions, but know that there are areas in my life that I would like to work on. Larry and I are trying very hard to work on budgeting and finances...two adoptions in 18 months can take its toll. I'm also tring to work on writing more. I would really like to develop something concerning domestic adoption. Having been on both sides of the adoption fence, meaning international versus domestion, I feel that at times, domestic adoption gets a bad rap. I think that there is a certain stigma that needs to be tackled head on. I would like to help educate others on the miracle of domestic adoption. And I also think that putting our story on paper will be so so so beneficial to my children in the future.

But my biggest goal this year is to not sweat the small stuff, enjoy my children and husband and enjoy life. It is too short not to.

Happy New Year!