Happy Gotcha Day!

Happy Gotcha Day K & T!  How can it be four years already?  Four years ago we brought you two home. I fondly remember picking you up with Daddy, hugging your foster parents and getting into the car for the long trip home. We were just so tickled to be getting the two of you together, both such beautiful babies.  It is such a wonderful memory, and as I'm thinking about it now, I feel the love from the heavens above, for we are a match made in heaven.  You two are loved by many, I know that too.  I know you are loved by us, your Mommy & Daddy.  Every single moment, of every single day, we love you, no matter what.  We've talked recently about how we love you when you make mistakes, or when you're upset with us, or you feel we're upset with you.  As you guys are growing more independent, wanting to do more on your own, we are going to bump heads.  But, we always love each other through and through, that's what families do.  I know your extended family loves you, just as we do, they pray for you, cheer for you, and love you to pieces.  They have sacrificed much over the years to help take care of you while we are at work.  They give their time, and their energy to make sure you are well taken care of, and you certainly are in their care.  I know your birth family loves you too.  You each have asked a few questions here and there, about them, and we do our best to answer.  What we always share, is that each of your birth parents loves you.  They want the best for you, they chose for you to be with us because they wanted to make sure you had the best lives that you could.  As you know, we continue to pray for them too.  Happy Gotcha Day K & T, you two are miracles for us, and we hope we are miracles for you too.  We love you to the moon & back! 

This was taken on a recent Saturday night, Miss K & I playing Go Fish while the boys played wii in the basement.

Beautiful K, what a dream you are! You are going to be such a wonderful momma some day.  You love T like no other, you boss him, want to take care of him, problem solve for him, make him giggle, "read" to him, sing with him, say silly things to him, and play with him.  You sometimes fight with him too, but you really take a lot before you react to him.  You are the best big sister around.  K, you love your Baby too.  You have since the moment you came home. You dress her, snuggle with her, carry her around, feed her, think about her, play with her and love her, as you have every day for the past four years.  My friend Heather is having a baby boy next month, and this has really ramped up the baby questions and play from you.  You are excited to meet Heather's little one.  Me too!  K continues to be one smart cookie.  She is starting to learn sight words, is asking lots of questions about math facts (which was started by Nana), and remembers every single thing she learns.  She has gotten great reports from school about her kindness and academic effort there.  She's even gotten glowing reports from the eye doctor, crediting her eye improvement solely to her consistency in wearing her glasses.  My oh my K, you are my favorite little girl in the whole wide world!
 

Sorry this is sideways....K drew this rainbow with her Papa sliding down it on a recent birthday card for him.  I love the expression on the face, pure joy!  Rainbow are K's favorite things to draw these days, she even remembers Roy G Biv.

 Here's a little update on Miss K.

 

 Favorite songs:  Teach Me to Walk in the Light, My Mother is a Baker (a song from school), If You're Happy & You Know It snuggle with Mom

 Favorite colors: pink and purple (She no longer says this as one word)

Favorite foods: K is still a fabulous eater!  She says soup is her very favorite food, but she also like strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, grape tomatoes, black olives, onions and peppers from pizza, Nutella sandwiches and cereal (Frosted Mini-Wheats, she calls it Square Cereal).
Favorite books: She really into pop-up books or books that do something, and loves her book of scripture stories from the Bible that she got for Christmas.  Esther is the one she asks for over and over.  She's getting really good at retelling stories by looking at the pages, and sometimes insists at night that she be the reader instead of Mommy or Daddy.  We let her, it's all good practice.
Favorite games: She still likes to do puzzles, she can do a 75 piece all by herself.  She has also recently learned to play Go Fish.  She likes Candyland too.
Favorite toys: her babydoll, "Baby", all of her stuffed animals, and she says she loves everything in her room.  :)   

Favorite playground activity: Swinging is still her favorite thing to do, she can now get herself going all by herself by pumping her legs.
Favorite inside activity: painting, coloring and playing with stickers are her very favorite things to do.  She also like to play Legos, and race cars with T.
Favorite snacks: strawberries, a few jelly beans (but she really doesn't like a lot of candy), potato chips, popsicles, popcorn, and kiwis.

Favorite outside activity: playing with sidewalk chalk and riding her bike, she now has a big girl one with training wheels!
Favorite outfit: any dresses, she chooses to wear a necklace almost everyday no matter the outfit, and anything sparkly or glittery. 
Favorite shoes: pink running shoes
Favorite tv show: Sophia the First

Favorite movies: Rapunzel is back in the number one spot
Favorite animal: She says "zebra, horse and donkey".  Sense a theme?
What she wants to be when she grows up: a horse rider and a teacher

Favorite places to go: the Zoo, and a local park that is a mini farm.  There are horses there to look at!
Favorite friend: L is her favorite friend at school, and she said T is her favorite friend at home. She also named her cousins as her friends.

 

I took this a couple of weeks ago for my friend Leslie, Peeps and donuts are two of her favorite things, and T was sporting them both.  He made this paper donut at school to remember his field trip to the donut shop.  Nana went with him, they had a blast.

This little boy has grown up so much in the past year.  He's potty trained, sleeps in a big boy bed, goes to preschool and has a bike with training wheels.  He's 4 going on 14.  He wants so badly to be independent.  He has a mind of his own.  I keep telling myself he will have great leadership skills when he gets older with this much personality! He is quick to temper, but also has the biggest heart.  He will share anything with anyone, makes friends easily, and wants to please.  He continues to love sticks and weapons of all sorts.  He always has something in his hand, and runs EVERYWHERE.  He has recently started to doubt himself a little when trying new things, but with a little encouragement he jumps right back in and tries to do his best.  He has become a master of the monkey bars, and loves to be outside.  He fiercely loves his family, and is a homebody.  He would be content to play here all day.  I've told him that he can live with me forever, and he's promised that he would.  He recently told me he will bring his wife to live here too.  I'm totally ok with that! :)  T, you are my baby dream come true, and my favorite little boy in the whole wide world!

 

T drew this on Papa's recent birthday card.  Of course it's all blue, but it's a face!

Favorite color: blue (always has been)
Favorite song: If You're Happy and You Know It shoot a gun, and Press Forward (one of the primary songs we are learning this year)
Favorite foods: Tella (Nutella sandwiches without the crust), hard boiled eggs (no yolk), mini pancakes with jam & cream, Costco hotdogs, any fruit or raw vegetable (especially bananas, cucumbers, and carrots), any candy, cookie, pie or cake.  He's Mr. Sweet Tooth!
Favorite books: The Book with No Pictures, I think because it says, "BooBooButt" in it.
Favorite game:  Playing 'Mario' on the Wii with Daddy. 
Favorite toys: his "Friend", the blue animal/security blanket that Aunt Sarah & Uncle Miguel gave him on his first day home, plastic swords, funoodle light sabers, and a plastic shield (all the same as last year), and we've added a bow & arrow recently
Favorite playground activity: monkey bars!  He can do them all by himself!  At first it made me a nervous wreak, but he has done them so many times now, I'm just in awe of his upper body strength.
Favorite inside activity:  Legos, Mario, and anything that involves a weapon. He will also bring me a book at random times in the day and want to sit on my lap to read it.
Favorite snack: fruit snacks, bubble gum or raw almonds

 Favorite outside activity: running, running, riding bikes, running, running, digging in the garden beds, running, running, throwing dirt, running, running, jumping on the trampoline, running, running
Favorite tv show: PJ Masks, Jake & The Neverland Pirates, Mickey Mouse Club
Favorite movie: Robin Hood (same from last year)
What he wants to be when he grows up: Still wants to be a firefighter like our friend Kevin.
Favorite place to go: "I really don't want to go anywhere.  I just want to play here".  End quote.
Quotes from T: "When are you going to get out of here" (As I sat on the chair in his room waiting for him to go to sleep on one of his first nights in a big boy bed).  

Favorite friends: He named K first, Mommy, and Daddy, Nana & Papa, and then started naming all of his family members.  Plus, F from chuch, "when he isn't out of town" he said.  Silly kid.

 

Playing with paintsoap recently in the tub.

She loved her 'look' with her hair over her face and her 'makeup'.  She asked me to take the picture.

These four years have flown by.  I seriously don't remember life without you.  Daddy & I just laugh now at the 16 years we waited for you.  We should have taken more naps!  You two are our whole world.  Happy Gotcha Day K & T, we are so lucky you are ours forever!