Goodbye Pre-K

Jaxon's first year of big school is officially over. He had his circus program today. All of the children looked so cute in their shirts and did a great job. 

 Jax is really going to miss his teacher, Mrs. Book! We all love her so much. She was Sawyer's teacher last year. Thankfully, we see her at church every week.

 I am so proud of my big kindergarten boy!!

 Yesterday, Mia and I went to his water day at school.

 He was so good with Mia taking her around to the water slides and pools. He really is so sweet with her (most of the time).

Sawyer has Kindergarten graduation on Monday and then our summer officially begins. Yay!!

My Mother's Day

Wow! May is a busy month. We have been celebrating lots of fun things like Mother's Day, the end of school, and my birthday. So, I am just now getting around to posting about Mother's Day. We started thinking and praying about our daughter in Africa over 2 years ago, so I am beyond thankful that she was home this year to celebrate with us. This Mother's Day was extra special because my daughter was finally home. It was also a little bittersweet as I think about the woman who first loved her, her birthmother. I have also been praying for this woman for over 2 years. I have never met her and probably never will this side of Heaven, but she is very much a part of my life. I wish I could hug her and tell her how much I love our girl.

 I have some pretty amazing and silly kids. I'm so glad I get to be their mommy.

This was also an extra special weekend because I got to spend it with my mom and grandma. They came for a visit to celebrate my 32nd birthday and to watch Mia Grace be dedicated at church. 

 Here was our best attempt at a 4 generation picture of all the girls on Sunday morning.

 Six years ago, we dedicated Sawyer on my first Mother's Day. It was such a special day with my then 6 week old baby and I will never forget it. This year we dedicated our three year old daughter to the Lord. We committed before our church to tell her about Jesus, raise her in church, and pray continuously for her.

 It was a special day and I'm so glad my family was there to be a part of it.

I am thankful for all of the amazing mothers in my life and I pray that I will follow their examples as I raise our three children in the Lord.

2 Months Home

Yesterday marked 2 months since we arrived home with Mia Grace. We have been a family of 5 for 2 months now! Things have really started to feel " normal". 

 When I watch my 3 children play I have such a feeling that this was meant to be. She fits in our family so well. She adores Sawyer and looks to him as her protector. He is so good at his role of big brother to a precious little sister. She and Jax are so much alike. I have even had so many people tell me they look a like. He teaches her things like how to do somersaults and crazy dances and she thinks he is hilarious. Even when he's not here she will mimic his dances and faces and say "Jaxon" to let me know she is thinking of him.

 We visited mother's day out this week. I am planning to teach again next year (2 days a week) and have Mia in my class. She had so much fun playing with the other kids and eating a popsicle. I think it will be a great fit for her next year.

In the last 2 months she has learned so much. Her therapy is coming along well and we are seeing improvement in several areas already.
It's fun to experience so many firsts with her as we introduce her to her new world. Happy 2 months home baby girl! We love you!

Busy Week

I can't believe it is only Wednesday. This week has been jam packed. Monday we had Mia's PT and OT eval all morning. She was so exhausted that she fell asleep as soon as we got in the car.

Tuesday, we stayed home all morning and worked on some of the things the therapists suggested. I try to work with her most mornings when we are home anyway. This week I let her play with shaving cream for the first time and she loves it. We practiced throwing and catching a ball and she learned to catch her ball. Yay Mia! I was so excited when she first did it and she was pretty proud of herself too. 

Tuesday afternoon I took all three kids to the dentist. Thankfully, my grandma helped me out and took Jaxon for the first half and then stayed with us in the waiting room until they were all finished. Mia did well and her teeth looked good. Unfortunately, her brothers had one cavity each so we will be back to the dentist next week to have those taken care of.

Mia had so many firsts this week. We didn't have any appointments today, but we joined Sawyer for his last field trip of the year, and Mia went to the zoo for the first time. I didn't capture many of Mia's firsts on camera this week, but I did take a few pictures at the zoo today. 

 Monkeys are her favorite animal and she kept making monkey sounds all day. Monkeys are Sawyer's favorite animals, too.

 She really liked looking at all of the animals. She also learned some new words. Today she said alligator, wallaby, kangaroo, and warthog for the first time. It was fun to be able to teach her some new words.

 Sawyer was so happy to have his sister with him on his field trip. He is such a good big brother. He even shared some of his lunch with her after she ate all of hers.

I'm glad I got to spend the day with my oldest and youngest babies.

Tomorrow Mia has a hearing recheck appointment. She had fluid in her hears last time, so it was hard for the doctor to get an accurate result. I am praying her ears are cleared up and that Mia will pass this time. Then, she will have her first therapy appointment. I'm hoping we can stay home and rest on Friday!