Happy "Gotcha Day" Girls

Well Hannah and Megan today is the one year anniversary of the day you finally became ours. Long before we even met you, you were born in our hearts, everyone fell in love with you, and the day couldn't come soon enough for us to hold you in our arms. I always knew we would be wrapped around your fingers but I had no idea how famous you would be in town. Every time we go out I feel as though I am traveling with a group of movies stars and complete strangers fall in love with your smiles and waves, as we have.

This year has been a whirlwind for all of us. You journeyed around the world at just five months to a whole new place, family, friends, smells, sights. You gave up everything you ever knew to make us a family of four! I'll be honest about those first couple of months when I didn't know what I was doing and if I could handle twins- but how could I not? I would just look at your beautiful, darling and quiet sleeping faces and know that it was all worth it. It also helped to have a ton of people willing to give up their own time to help us all out. We couldn't have done it without the meals, the extra hands, the encouragement and prayers of everyone who loved you!

Girls you make every day new for me and your daddy. We look forward to seeing your faces in the morning and can't wait to find out what you'll teach us during the day. You are growing so fast and learning so much, We are amazed by your ability to catch on! You don't just light up a room, you light up our lives every day. You came at the perfect time and I can't wait to see how the Lord will continue to use you in His world to light up the lives of others!

Love,
Mommy and Daddy

Our Weekend

This past weekend we were able to attend the Bethany Christian Services Multicultural Festival. There were a ton of people and it was so well done. We met a couple of other Korean adoptive families that I correspond with via email and it is always nice to put faces with names. There was a darling petting zoo that allowed you to pet and pick up the animals. There was even a 6 day old goat (in a kennel). Hannah liked to pet the animals but Meg just enjoyed them from Grandma's arms. At one point I did catch her petting the rooster when she thought we weren't looking, it was so cute. I wasn't going anywhere near the rooster. It reaffirmed my anxiety towards birds or anything with wings. The chickens running loose about put me over the edge, kind of like men on stilts, if you know what I mean.


Checking out the baby bunnies.

















The rooster Meg dared to touch!

















We also enjoyed a quiet Father's Day at home, just doing whatever Charlie wanted. The girls were full of kisses for their daddy on his special day and of course he couldn't get enough of them.

Yesterday we went out to breakfast with Grandma and Aunt Sydney. The girls really enjoyed their time with the ladies and their visit with Aunt Sydney was very exciting.

Randomly, last night as I was finishing up a study for this morning, I was laying on my stomach and felt the baby move for the very first time. I'm pretty sure I've felt it before but always thought it was something else. Now I know it was our little baby girl moving around in there.

Hannah was pretty sure that ducks were suppose to be yellow but thought she'd touch it just to make sure it really was a duck!

















Even though this one was yellow, Meg still wasn't so sure about it.
















The big black sheep was a big hit!

Baby Zucchini- 19 Weeks

Our baby weighs about 8 1/2 ounces, and she measures 6 inches, head to bottom — about the length of a small zucchini. Her arms and legs are in the right proportions to each other and the rest of her body now. Her kidneys continue to make urine, and the hair on her scalp is sprouting. This is a crucial time for sensory development: Our baby's brain is designating specialized areas for smell, taste, hearing, vision, and touch. Since our baby is a girl, she has an astonishing 6 million eggs in her ovaries. They'll dwindle to fewer than two million by the time she's born.

After another routine doctor's appt. this past week, all is still going very well. Until Charlie can come up with a name we will still be referring to her as a vegetable. How very nice.

Tomorrow we are going to the Bethany Christian Services Multicultural Festival. It is a huge event with all different games, petting animals, face painting, ethnic foods and it will hopefully be a lot of fun. We are meeting several other Korean adoptive families there and the weather is suppose to be perfect!

Another random side note: If you have a link to our blog on your blog, would you kindly remove us. We are trying to keep any personal information and extra access to our blog minimal! Thanks!!!

A short update

The girls pointing to their favorite animal-Ducks in the channel!

Sorry for the lack of posting lately. I haven't been taking as many pictures and we are outside a ton during our free time. These pictures were taken last week. We went from the low 60's one day to the 80's the next. Hence the sweaters/jeans to the swimsuits/hats.

The girls amaze us daily with their new abilities and funny little personalities. However, we are also having to learn about this thing called discipline very quickly. And being new parents we are trying to find out what works. I just started a Bible Study called Shepherding A Child's Heart! It is an awesome book that explains the importance of molding their heart and not just their actions/behavior. However, sometimes we have to change behavior very quickly like when I walked out of the laundry room and found Megan sitting on the table opening mail. The girls are truly the light of our lives and we laugh a ton at the end of the day just recollecting what happened that day.

Both H and M are speaking more and more. "Please" is now a staple, as is more, baby, banana, milk, up, bee, eye, ear and nose. They still love to read, have tea parties, play with their baby dolls, and talk on the phone. Hannah is still my "little mommy" and has to do everything I do or something I might forget to do. Megan is my little cuddle bug and stays close to me these days, unless her daddy is home and then there is no prying her out of his arms.

We look forward to celebrating Father's Day this year and the wonderful daddy that Charlie is. His girls think he hung the moon and they can't be stopped if they see him pulling into the driveway. Tomorrow is also the anniversary of my dad's death and while this year has been amazing it has also been the hardest year of my life. I am so glad to have my mom here but sometimes I still expect my dad to open the door when I walk in her house. He would absolutely love my girls and he would be so proud of Charlie and the daddy he is. Sometimes I watch Hannah's little eyebrows and she has my dad's scowl, not in a bad way, just inquisitively. She also has his very dry sense of humor, hmmmm...wonder where she learned that? And I know my little Megan would love to snuggle on her Grandpa Bob's lap. However, all that said. I wouldn't wish him back from where he is right now for anything. He is doing what God created him to do, worshipping his Lord in a place with no pain, no sense of time, and greater then I could ever imagine it would be. I love and miss you-dad! Happy Father's day!



Hannah and Charlie after rolling down the hill.

















Meg thought it looked like fun too!
















Hannah later released all of her cherrios into the pool! Mulligan loved that!

















Don't you dare get in the way of Meg and her cherrios!

Baby Sweet Potato-Week 18 and AMNIO RESULTS!

We didn't expect our amnio results for another week but they knew the suspense was killing us. So, the three options for our little girl were: 1. Totally normal 46 chromosomes. 2. A balanced Trans location like I have. Very live able but with the possibility to pass it on to her children. 3. An unbalanced Trans location that would most likely end in miscarriage or moderate to severe birth defects.

The geneticists called yesterday afternoon to confirm that we are indeed having a little girl and that she is completely healthy and doesn't even have the balanced trans location. She has 46 normal chromosomes. PTL and thank you so much for all of your prayers for our little nameless girl. Charlie said he would have a name picked out by the end of August. Thanks darling! This was all great news and made our anniversary celebration much sweeter. We have now been married for the same length of time that we dated before we got married! I always knew that Charlie loved kids but I had no idea what an incredible, loving, gentle, and thoughtful daddy he would be. He can't wait to spend time with his little ladies and he still has enough love for his big lady and furry girls too! Happy Anniversary, Charlie!


Head to bottom, our baby is approximately 5 1/2 inches long (about the length of a large sweet potato) and she weighs almost 7 ounces. She's busy flexing her arms and legs — movements that I'll likely start noticing more and more. Her blood vessels are visible through her thin skin and her ears are now in position and stand out from her head. Myelin (a protective covering) is beginning to form around her nerves, a process that will continue for a year after she's born. Her uterus and Fallopian tubes are formed and in place.

Update on Hannah

For the last couple of months we've been to the pediatrician for one reason or another, nothing big. However, for three straight visits Hannah's tympanogram came back flat. It is a device that they put in the ear that measures sound waves and normally it should go through the eardrum. I don't understand it all but the Dr. was worried that there would be fluid behind her eardrum causing this flat result. So yesterday Hannah and I went to an ENT (ear, nose and throat) Dr. to get further testing done. They have a stronger and more sensitive machine to measure this same thing and her results weren't flat but they weren't what they should be. The specialists did say that there was a peak and it peaked in the correct place, so this could just be normal for her. We then got to go into a little sound booth that put out different decibels on either side of her. The goal was for her to turn and look every time sound came out. My little monkey scored 100% and amazed the Dr. We determined that her hearing was great and her levels are normally just flatter then the average person.

All that to say it was good news, no need to worry!