http://www.loveeachchild.com Our journey of love into foster and adoptive care Wed, 06 Aug 2008 18:12:55 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en I am holding in my hands the adoption decree for our sweet Hope Giver (well....I actually had to put it down to write this post, but you get the picture).  She is finally ours....completely and totally ours! After weeks (months actually) of checking the mailbox every day, we ... http://www.loveeachchild.com/2008/08/06/finally/ Today is the day we celebrate you, Hope Giver! You are 2 years old today. Even though you have only been with us for 5 months, we feel that you have always been with us. You are our daughter, the one that calls our names each morning, the one ... http://www.loveeachchild.com/2008/08/04/happy-2nd-birthday-hope-giver/ We are still waiting on word that the adoption has been finalized.  And maybe it would be more appropriate to wait until that final word before posting this.  But, the reality of what I want to share is not affected by a legal document.  Regardless of when that adoption decree ... http://www.loveeachchild.com/2008/07/10/you-are-mine-a-poem-for-hope-giver/ Okay, so I said I would update everyone on our other summer trips and i have to say I am a bit late in doing so.... I seem to have needed a vacation from our vacations. We had a wonderful time during our travels, but with all the changes ... http://www.loveeachchild.com/2008/07/05/summer-08/ It is hard to believe that we have not written anything since the end of May. This tells you just how busy we have been around here! In the last 2 weeks, things have changed dramatically, and for the good. I have officially stopped working for the ... http://www.loveeachchild.com/2008/06/10/beach-days-2008/ Some very sad news has been making its way through the adoption community, and I want to take a moment to mention it here and encourage prayers on behalf of this hurting family. Back in December, Christy mentioned an organization called Shaohannah's Hope, which is an organization that helps with adoptions ... http://www.loveeachchild.com/2008/05/22/weeping-with-those-who-weep/ There are so many thoughts I would like to share about my lovely wife as the mother of our children. There are not adequate words to convey many of them. But on this Mother's Day, I want to honor my wife by trying to articulate some of what I ... http://www.loveeachchild.com/2008/05/11/mothers-day-2008/ As Christy mentioned, watching Hope Giver develop, grow, and learn is an amazing thing. And the "cuteness factor" just goes through the roof sometimes with the things she learns and does. The other day, I decided to try to play hide-and-seek with her, even though I knew she didn't understand ... http://www.loveeachchild.com/2008/05/07/youre-kinda-missing-the-point/ One of the joys of being with a toddler each day is seeing the changes in their development.  And at the stage that Hope Giver is currently in, it seems that these changes are taking place daily.  One of the areas that is developing very rapidly is in her expressive ... http://www.loveeachchild.com/2008/05/03/living-life-with-a-toddler/ I have a confession-- Even though I desperately hated anything "girly" as a child, I want to see Hope Giver embrace her girl within :) One area that I have been encouraging her in is her hair.....she has beautiful hair and a beautiful face....and she would look absolutely adorable ... http://www.loveeachchild.com/2008/04/16/hairbows-and-jee-dah/