It's Christmas Eve...!

Today we baked, cooked, hiked, visited friends, went to church- Sam and Liam were in the children's choir singing up front- watched 'Miracle on 34th Street' and played games together. Perfect!
The 3 inches of snow that fell the day before made it all the more special. Nothing like a white Christmas!
Merry Christmas to all our friends and family!

Family time

Well, we have been very busy catching up with my parents, hanging out, preparing for Christmas, attending school parties etc etc that I have little down time to blog!

Ruby is enjoying Nana and Poppa and they have totally fallen for her. She is very affectionate with them and they are just lapping it up. Here's a few photos of the last couple of weeks.

Christmas is coming..and so are Nana & Poppa!

We've been super busy preparing for Christmas, end of school activities and my parents' visit from England. They arrive today!!! So excited!
The weather is very seasonal-- snowy and cold! Just perfect for hunkering down indoors, trimming the tree, wrapping presents and cooking yummy food.

Thanksgiving 2009, Orange County, California

We flew to Southern California to celebrate the holiday with Tim's family. It was a wonderful trip visiting with everyone and catching up with their news. Jack, Liam and Sam disappeared with their cousins and we hardly saw them the entire trip!
Ruby did amazingly well, considering. She met her grandmother~Nan, 7 aunts and uncles (and their spouses), dozens of cousins and quite a few second cousins. A lot for anyone to cope with!

She absolutely LOVED the beach, it was such a joy seeing her experience the ocean for the first time. We wished we could have stayed longer but Tim had to get back to work....
Now the countdown for Christmas begins! We await my parents who are flying in from England on December 7th. Cannot wait to see them.

Ruby's New Pix for Christmas

Here is a selection of the dozens of beautiful photos we had taken of Ruby today. We have been home 4 months now and time has flown! She is completely settled with us and we just can't imagine our life without her! It truly does keep getting better and better.

We leave for California on Friday to spend Thanksgiving with Tim's family. We are eager to introduce Ruby to the family and also her to them. We are also excited to show Ruby the Pacific. As she was born in north central China, we know this is the first time she will have ever seen the ocean or ever played on a beach. Can't wait to see her joy!

Orphan Sunday is today!!

November 8th, 2009 is Orphan Sunday

"Defend the cause of the fatherless..." Isaiah 1:17

Orphan Sunday from Christian Alliance for Orphans on Vimeo.

New Day girls!

Today we had a wonderful visit from a dear friend and her daughter, also from Luoyang in Henan. Precious Mya was also taken to New Day for heart surgery. Her mom, Sara, and I met in a local Panera earlier this year, before Ruby's referral. Thanks to Sara's encouragement, we visited New Day while in Beijing. Their family now lives in Iowa, sadly for us. We miss them!
Check out Sara's amazing blog at : www.footballandfriedrice.blogspot.com

Ruby turns 2 today!

Today we celebrated Ruby's 2nd birthday!! We spent the day at a local farm with good friends. We picked pumpkins, fed the animals and had a picnic in the sunshine. Ruby is blossoming daily and is now saying lots of words in addition to her signing. She is growing like a weed; still eating like a horse and readily gives and receives affection. It just keeps getting better.

Random pix

15 years ago...

...Tim and I were married in a small village church in England on a chilly autumn day surrounded by family and close friends.
I wore fresh flowers in my hair that special day; they were simply beautiful! Today Tim had the same Peruvian Lilies delivered to me, much to my surprise! I'm one lucky woman =)

15 years, 8 moves (2 countries) and 4 children...wow!
Here's to the next 15....!

Colorado craziness

Well, last Wednesday, much to everyone's shock here, it was 40 degrees and we had snow flurries for about 24 hours!! Very early for the Front Range.
I hastily cranked the heat on, sent the boys to school in their ski jackets and was convinced winter had begun early this year.
Not so.... this weekend it has been in the 80s. (what?) We have had our summer gear on again as well as sun screen and the AC is back on. Talk about crazy!!!
I must say, it does keep things interesting and I actually like the changes. Of all the places we have lived, one thing Colorado does have that is constant, despite the fluctuating temperatures, is SUNSHINE; buckets of it, all year round!
Thus you will never hear me complain.
Never.

Taking advantage of the beautiful weather, we hiked all afternoon and hit Maggie Moo's after for a well-deserved ice-cream treat.

September pix