Thursday, December 21, 2006

Up and about




Sophia is a joy. She is up and about all the time. Once she started walking full time (on Thanksgiving) she has not stopped. She is a little helper. She helps us load (or should I say unload) the dishwasher, she closes doors for us unless it is the refrigerator door. When the refrigerator is open, she picks out what she wants to eat and brings it to us. Now that she can reach the snack draw she grabs the goldfish or animal crackers and brings them to us signing "more cookie."

Speaking of signing, this girl has quite the vocabulary. She signs a new word every day. The one that has surprised us the most is sleep. She will cry and sign sleep when she is tired. It is amazing. She doesn't miss a thing. She is like a sponge. She has a favorite book called "Moo, Baa, La La La" She hands us the book so we can read it to her. She makes the sounds of the sheep, cow, and dog as we read it to her. She also signs the words cat and duck when she reads that book.

Every day with Sophia is a joy. We can not wait until Christmas so the whole family could be together. Nick and Katie will both be with us this Christmas. We are really looking forward to some great family time.

Thanksgiving
























We had a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. We are thankful to have Sophia home with us. We are thankful for our family and friends who have supported us through the whole adoption process. We are thankful for our health and the health of our family.

We spent a wonderful Thanksgiving day with Grandma Beadle, Grandma Bev and Grandpa Skip. We shared in the cooking so we were all able to sit down to a wonderful dinner without being totally worn out.

Welcome Home Party in Connecticut





Anne's mother had a wonderful welcome home party for Sophia on November 5th. Sophia made her long awaited debut. She was welcomed by Anne's extended family and friends. She won everyone's hearts as she greeted guests with big smiles and lots of hugs. She settled right into the family and rested comfortably on cousin Paul's shoulder. She received many wonderful gifts. It was so nice to see everyone and share our joy with our family and friends.

Monday, December 04, 2006

1st Birthday Celebration















Time certainly flies by when you are having fun. I still remember those very long days and months of waiting. The time to finally meet Sophia seemed as if would never arrive. Now that she is in our arms we are having so much fun the time goes TOO quickly.

Sophia turned one on November 1. We celebrated her birthday a few days early by having a small party with her grandparents. She enjoyed opening her gifts. She also enjoyed playing in her cake. She never did taste it but enjoyed having her hands in the frosting. She made quite the mess as you can see. This year's gift from China was a doll. Sophia loves dolls. She signs and says baby and then kisses all her dolls. It is very cute to see.

She also had a present for us on her birthday, as if just being with us wasn't enough!! She took her first real steps on November 1st. She was so proud of herself.

We have been blessed. Our dreams have come true. Sophia is doing so well. She is really picking up both English and American Sign Language. She is adjusting so well. She is always happy. She has bonded with all of us and knows we are her forever family.