Why is it...

...that you always seem to manage to take the perfect Christmas card picture after you have already mailed out your Christmas cards? :-)

2 Years Old!

Today was Mary Joyce's second birthday. We had a good day at church, and she took a very long nap this afternoon. She was wired last night after her party, so she didn't want to sleep. Therefore, she was a very tired little girl when nap time rolled around.

The quilt in the picture was a birthday gift, handmade by one of our church members. The detail is pretty amazing.

We can hardly believe that she is already 2. Mary Joyce brings such joy to our lives every day. She truly is a gift from God.

Happy Birthday, Little Bit! :-) Mama and Daddy and Sister love you very much!

Mary Joyce's 2nd Birthday Party

Tomorrow is Mary Joyce's second birthday. Since a party on Sunday for us would be a big challenge, we had her party today. We had an Elmo party at home with a few friends, and Mary Joyce really seemed to enjoy herself. It was a good day. :-)

The Santa Photo

Here is this year's Santa photo. It turned out pretty cute, except that Mary Joyce is going through the phase of being all smiles until it is time to get her picture made--then she's all serious. She was very intent on pointing out "Bay-bee" and "Mama" to Santa, who she calls "Ho Ho Ho." :-) Katherine was being a little cutie and grinning and smiling for everyone.

FFFF: Christmas Card Outtakes

The theme for FFFF at Loving Lydia is those attempts at holiday cards that just didn't quite come off as planned. I had this mental picture of an adorable shot of our two girls in their Christmas shirts on the beach--very Florida. Also, not very bright, considering that Katherine can't even sit up on her own yet. We made a valiant effort, and even got some cute pictures, just not what we wanted for our card. (For those who get our Christmas cards in the mail, there is a totally different picture on them. We went with a family shot from Thanksgiving instead.) So, here are our very best Christmas card outtakes (and I left out the one where Katherine was spitting up...)

Here, Kitty, Kitty...

As I've mentioned before, prior to having children, we were constantly making pictures of our cats. Occasionally, they pose for us even now. Here are some recent shots of Samson and Chloe. Saphirah was not feeling very photogenic that day. These two are SO patient with the girls. It is pretty remarkable.

4 Months Old!

Little Miss Katherine (or "Not So Little" Miss Katherine) turned 4 months old on Thursday. She is really growing, and has already outgrown her 0-3 month and 3 month sized clothes. She is in 3-6 month and 6 month sizes now, which is what Mary Joyce was wearing when she came home at 9 months. She is smiling lots, and has started keeping her head straight most of the time, instead of leaning it to the right. Her physical therapist said she will be releasing her from PT before too much longer. :-) She is starting to turn over a little more, and she lifts her head when she is on her tummy. Katherine always wants to be where the action is. She gets very upset if she is left alone in her bouncy seat in a room, even for the briefest moment. She is still such a happy, quiet baby--very little fussing, and if she does, there is a reason for it. She is such a little blessing from God!

Assorted Photos

Here is yet another of my random photo posts with pictures from this past week. :-)

Mary Joyce on the way to the park to see Mrs. Claus. Her Bass Pro Shop ball cap was in the car, and she insisted on putting it on. Like the ball cap and Christmas dress look?


Katherine in her car seat when we arrived at the park last Saturday. It is amazing that her dress was not a wrinkled mess from the seat belt, but it was fine.


Our Christmas Tree


"I'm not going to smile for the camera, no matter what..."


"This is my baby sister, who is almost as big as I am."


Pretending to nap in the recliner:

Congratulations!!!

Our friends Mike and Jen live close to where we used to use in south Georgia. We met because we were all going through the China adoption process around the same time and became very good friends. We were logged in in China in July of 2005. They were logged in in December of 2005. Because of the slowdown with the China process, they have been waiting almost 2 years since their LID for their referral. Finally, yesterday, they heard from our agency that they had a little girl from Jiangxi (Mary Joyce's home province). Today, they saw her face for the first time.

Congratulations, Jen, Mike, Nathan, Charlie, and Madi! We love you, and are SO thrilled that Mei is finally coming home!

Mei's Adoption Voyages Site

Jen's Blog

Uppa Bubba

What, you may ask, is an "Uppa Bubba"? The picture should clue you in. Are you confused yet? Mary Joyce's vocabulary has been growing by leaps and bounds lately. One of her favorite words is "moon." However, she was generalizing "moon" as not just the actual moon, but also "stars." Logical conclusion for a not-quite-two year old mind. When she would point at a star and say "moon," I would say "star," and very often would sing "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star." So, last night she pointed at the star on the Christmas tree on her stocking and said, "Uppa Bubba."

Can you figure out why?

"Twinkle, twinkle little star,
How I wonder what you are.
UP ABOVE THE world so high,
Like a diamond in the sky.
Twinkle, twinkle little star,
How I wonder what you are."

Leave it to Mary Joyce to zero in on "up above the" (also known as "uppa bubba"). These moments are priceless... :-)