Road Trip (Part 3) - Natural Bridge, VA

So, on Monday morning, we woke up and headed east. This was our longest day of driving. We were going to take a detour and go through the Smokey Mountains, but after being up late partying with the F family and just being ready to make it to our final destination, we decided to save that for another time. We ended up taking an exit that we thought an outlet mall was at and it turned out to be where the Cubs AA team plays. There was a visitor center connected to the ballpark. We got out and got to go in the stadium and let the kids run around some. The picture above was taken at a McDonald's we stopped at to let the girls play.

On Tuesday, we left Roanoke and headed to Natural Bridge, VA. We were going to see, what else but the Natural Bridge. There is a bridge that was carved out by a river. It is amazing to see, the pictures don't do it justice. Also, down by the bridge they have a Native American camp set up. It was interesting to see. It was nice to spend a day outdoors after being in the car so much.

The picture above gives you an idea of how HUGE the bridge is. You can barely see Ryan and the girls, but you can see Ryan's red shirt.

There was also a wax museum that we toured before we got back in the car again. This time we ended up at our final destination, Suffolk, VA. When we pulled in, Jessica, my sister-in-law, was sitting by the front door waiting for us.

Road Trip (Part 2) - Chattanooga, TN

Next, we got up in the morning and drove to Chattanooga. The plan was to go to the Tennessee Aquarium in Chattanooga, but we were most excited to see the F family that we were in Russia with for both of our trips. J and I actually met on the plan ride to Moscow in the galley. We quickly realized that we had corresponded with each other over our blogs! What a SMALL world! Then, it turns out we were staying in the same apartment building just a few floors apart. On our second trip, they had the same timeline as us. This time we each had our children with us and we were each picking up a child to bring home.

We met the F family at the aquarium. The aquarium was great! The highlights were probably petting the sting rays and the butterfly room.
C & little J
Ryan and Vera by information about a river in Russia.


The men and all the children. I realized the only pic I have of J is the group picture we bought from the aquarium. J, we should have taken a picture together!

After the aquarium, the F family invited us to their home for dinner. We enjoyed a home cooked meal after eating on the road. Since we were together, we had to play Wii. The first time Ryan and Kiara played a Wii was in Russia in the F family's apartment.

I think these 2 think they were the winners!
Meanwhile, Vera was playing with her Russian boyfriend. I think little J was sweet on Vera.
We had to finally say goodbye and we were off to our hotel. Thanks F family for opening your home to us, we had a great time. We hope you are able to make it to our state someday!

Road trip (Part 1) - July 2009 - Holiday World

We took a road trip in July and we were gone for 2 weeks. I have never been gone on a vacation that long, except for our trip to Russia, but that wasn't exactly a vacation. :) We stopped at a great Amish buffet on our way to our first stop. Here is Vera enjoying the yummy desserts!

Our first stop was Holiday World in Santa Claus, IN. Holiday World was A LOT of fun, we will definitely be going back. The best part for this Diet Pepsi addicted gal was that all Pepsi fountain drinks were free in the entire park!! I probably drank the amount of my admission fee in soda!! Just kidding! I tried, though. After lunch, I went to change Vera's diaper and found that she had a complete blowout! Unfortunately, the line for the bathroom went right around the baby changing station. Luckily, there were many sympathetic moms. I had to take Vera out of the bathroom just in her diaper and shoes. I don't know why I didn't bring in an extra outfit for her since this isn't the first time she has done this, but then I wheeled her out to the parking lot and got her clean clothes and got another outfit, just in case. Which, I believe, we did use, but because she was wet from playing in the water and not from a bodily function!
Our first activity was to watch the Holidazzels!
Next was lunch. I am sure the huge grin is because she knows what awaits me in the bathroom!
Outfit #2 getting wet!
One of the highlights of HW for Kiara was being able to get wet in her clothes!
No trip to HW is complete without visiting Santa.
Getting ready to get back on the road again! To Nashville to spend the night and then on to Chattanooga.

Home 7 months...

Vera has now been home with us for 7 months! She is just getting bigger and bigger every day! Over the past month we were gone for 2 weeks on vacation. We had a blast as a family.

Vera is full of personality these days. She is constantly on the move and knows what she wants. She isn't talking much more and I think she gets frustrated that she can't talk more. She tries to say words, but a lot of times they sound nothing like they should. She says please a lot, but it sounds more like peas. Vera is 26.5 pounds now, so she has gained over 7 pounds since we brought her home. I haven't measured her height, but I know she has gotten taller. A lot of her pants got to short and her legs look really long.

Firsts for Vera this month...

First 4th of July.

First time to the ocean.

First time meeting characters (Elmo was her favorite).

First time to Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia.

Vera loves to swim and will just stick her head right in the water. She loved the beach. She would have ran as far out into the ocean as she could of if we didn't hold on to her.

When I am putting Vera to bed, she loves to be sung to. She likes Rock A Bye Baby and You Are My Sunshine. I know she wants we me to sing when she starts to sing them herself. Then, I start to sing and she lays her head on my shoulder and sucks her thumb. So precious!

She also loves Paddy Cake. She likes to take the hands of the person singing it and make their hands do the motions. Then she likes to do it again and again and again....you get the picture!

It is amazing to me how much Vera has changed. I came across this picture on my brother-in-law's Facebook page and was amazed how little Vera looked.

Vera and me on January 1, 2009.

Vera on July 16, 2009.

June happenings...

June was a busy month for us. Since I am not good about blogging more often, here is a summary of what we did in June. We took a trip to Chicago that I blogged about here.

Our VBS was the first week of the month. Ryan and I helped with recreation and Kiara and Vera both had a great time in their classes.

My sister and her husband made a trip home at the beginning of the month. I asked my sister to trim Kiara's bangs while she was home since she is adventurous in the hair department. She did a great job!

I celebrated my 33rd birthday. Here is a picture of us celebrating by going out to dinner with parents. It is almost impossible for us to get a good family picture.
This summer Kiara took some fun park district classes. She took a class where she painted with bubbles and one where she painted with vegetables. Here is Kiara, I mean Rosebud, in her Native American jacket she made in another class.

She is also in a dance class where they do tap, ballet and jazz. Here she is for the day they were suppose to dress up like princesses.

Kiara had a few Singsations performances this month, too.

These two are pretty cute, but watch out when they get together!

We also squeezed in a garage sale since our neighborhood was having a sale. It went well, but we still had a lot left over, but very little of it came back in the house.

We also went to a couple of birthday parties for some cousins to round out the month. It was a busy month, but a lot of fun.

Home 6 months...

It feels like I just wrote about being home for 5 months and now we have been home with Vera for 6 months!

Vera is a firecracker and about as polar opposite from the little girl we met in an orphanage in Russia in November 2008! We thought she was a quiet child who liked to observe, but that couldn't be further from the truth. I think she might be louder than Kiara, if that is possible! She knows how to turn on the charm and catch everyone's attention. She is a sweetheart. I love it when she pulls me in for a hug and will just let me rock her as long as I want. 6 months ago, I didn't think that would happen. I didn't know if the way she spent her first year of life would keep her from wanting to be held close and snuggled. It brings tears to my eyes to remember how different things are now even from a couple of months ago.

When I look at her, it is hard to fathom that she didn't come from my body. It just doesn't seem possible that she was born in another country and didn't spend the first year of her life with us. God has truly blessed us with a beautiful child. I praise Him for leading us on this journey. When so many times we wondered if we were on the right path, He was there leading us to our daughter.

I never thought my kids would be so far apart in age. They are almost exactly 4 years apart. Both Ryan and I have siblings that are 2 years or less apart in age from ourselves. As the adoption process was taking longer and longer, I worried my children wouldn't be able to connect with one another. I am happy to say that I worried for nothing. Kiara and Vera already have fun together and enjoy each other's company. So, if that is the case before Vera can even form sentences, I am sure they will only get closer as they get older.

Vera continues to add words to her vocabulary. Her newest word is baby, which she says through clenched teeth. Also, now when she waves she also says "bye bye" very clearly. She is still exhausting because the girl doesn't stop. Even when she is watching her show on TV, she is usually standing and slowly moving around. Her feet just can't stay still!

Vera LOVES to play Patty Cake. Actually, she likes to take your hands and make them do the motions. You can't just do it once, you get to do it over and over and...

Adoption brings such a joy to my heart. Today, Kiara was looking over my shoulder as I was looking at some adoption blogs. This blog had pictures of 2 little boys. One a biological son and one adopted from Ethiopia. She asked me if they were brothers, I said yes. She then asked if they were twins! Not only is there a major height difference between the boys, but one has light skin and one has dark skin. It just warms my heart that Kiara really doesn't see much of a difference from someone biologically having a child and someone adopting a child. I wish everyone saw it that way.

20 months old...

Wow, Vera turned 20 months old a few days ago. Time is flying by.

Vera has continued to grow and change. She is now 25 pounds, she has gained 1 pound in the past two months. I was planning on measuring her length so I had a record of it, but have yet to remember to do that. Once I remember, I will edit the post. So, if you need to know how tall Vera is...come back in a few days!

Vera still isn't talking a ton, but has added a few words to her vocabulary. In addition to Ma Ma, Da Da and Night Night, she now says Ki Ki, Sissy, Hi, Jack (her favorite show), and probably a few others. She has mastered blowing kisses. She will blow them to anyone that is in her vicinity.

This kid can eat! She has slowed down a bit, but she eats anything you give her. The unfortunate consequence to that is some VERY dirty diapers! Kiara would blow out a diaper on occasion, but it is a regular occurence for Vera. Below is a picture of her filling her diaper. I am probably the meanest mom ever for posting this picture, but it is so accurate of what we see on a daily basis!

Vera is still a good sleeper, but she no longer likes sleep, if that makes any sense! We use to be able to barely rock her and she was pointing at her crib because she wanted in there. Now, I think she would rock forever. When we do lay her down, she cries and pitches a fit, but is quiet about a minute later.

Vera and Kiara play together so much more now. It is the sweetest thing. Kiara is so good with Vera, she makes me very proud.