Sunday Snapshot..... A Very Busy Week Indeed!!!

As this weekend is wrapping up, and I look back on all the happenings of the week, I can't believe how busy we were!! As busy as it was though, we had a very fun week, with lots of celebrations!! Let's see, this week (in addition to school and work) had: a Sunday School Christmas party, 4 ball practices, 3 ball games, an impromptu trip to our capital, a Christmas play, a Christmas party, a graduation, and a Christmas musical!! Whew! Here are a few of the highlights!!!

We enjoyed our Sunday School Christmas party last Saturday evening. One of our good friends annually hosts this party at her home, and everyone has a great time. All of the kids stayed at church with some of the older kids, so it was really great for the adults to get to chat and catch up! I caved and let Zoee and Grayden wear their new Christmas outfits to the party. I was going to to save them for Christmas Eve, but they are so cute, I thought they should wear them more than once!! Check out the ruffle bottoms on Zoee's jeans.... so adorable!! I found them on an Etsy shop (http://www.etsy.com/shop/SweetSophiaBowtique?ref=ss_profile)








** I really need to learn how to sew!!**

































On Monday, after 77 days.... we were finally given our 1800 A approval!!!! Yes!!! I know that for some of you this is foreign language, but this is the United States Immigration Services approving us to bring a foreign born child into this country. There are many more approvals to go during this process, but this is a big hoop that I am happy to have jumped through!!

Our 1800 A approval was the last document we needed for our dossier (collection of 6 months worth of paperwork to go to China). Since my goal has been to try and get our dossier to China by the end of the year, I decided to drive to Raleigh to get all of our documents certified. My mom went with me and we dropped everything off by 9:30 am. I was told we could return for the documents at 4:30, so we took advantage of the day and went to breakfast and then shopped around. We had a lot of fun. At 4:30, that all ended. When I returned to the office to pick up our documents, I learned that they had rejected some of our documents because they weren't notarized properly. I honestly felt like somebody ripped my heart out and stomped it with their shoe. I was exhausted from the day and then I learned that I would have to do it all over again. I really wasn't very good at hiding my feelings by this point, and I think the lady at the desk felt sorry for me. I heard her call a lady in another office, and then she asked me to step aside. Proving once again that our awesome God works miracles in what He favors, around the corner came a true angel sent from Him. **Remember when you read this next part that it is now 5:00 pm and I am in a government office** I was literally shaking and trembling and the lady who stepped out and touched my arm, offered to correct our documents and re-notarize them. 6 of them. At 5 o'clock. PM. And then I dared to ask if they would also be able to be certified that day since we had driven in from several hours away. And she said... "Give me 15 minutes". And then she brought the beautiful, certified papers out to me. And I cried like a baby. I hugged her. I think I said "God bless you at least 5 times". And she hugged me back, smiled and asked me to send her a picture of my baby. And let me tell you, she is going to be on my Christmas card list from now on!! So, what I thought was going to be a devastating day, turned out to be a day in which once again, God showed me that he favors this adoption, and He is behind every step, every approval and every payment in this entire process.

Zoee had her first ballgame this week and they WON!! She did great!! It is so amazing how much all the girls on her team have improved since last year. They are quicker, taller, and more aggressive! Michael is helping to coach, and he was grinning ear to ear the whole game! He was so proud of all of the girls!

Grayden got to be in his very first Christmas program ever this year!! We were so excited to get to see him on stage! He loved every minute of it and I think he was just the cutest, most handsome wiseman ever!!

He was very excited that he was the wise man who brought the gold!! Too cute!! His teachers and the entire Preschool did a wonderful job making this so special!!


On Friday, at Zoee's school, we celebrated her teacher AND Jesus' birthdays!!! It was so much fun! We were able to keep it a secret from her teacher, and she really was surprised! Mrs. Whitford is such an EXCELLENT teacher, and it was an honor to be able to help make her day so special!! Do you see the Crayon Monogram?? That was Zoee and I's very first (of many) Pinterest projects! Very fun... very easy... very affordable...and very cute!! You can check out how to do it here: http://acreativemomma.blogspot.com/2011/05/crayon-monograms.html




















And, on Friday night.... IT FINALLY HAPPENED. I GRADUATED!!!!!!! Yay!! After 3 years of full time working + school + being a wife + being a mama..... I am finished... with the school part that is! It feels really good to finally have my Master's and have that goal accomplished. My family was such a huge part of helping me succeed, and I could not have done it without them. And they were all there to see me walk across the stage and be hooded. Thank you all so much! Love you!!


Sorry for the exceptionally long post, but it was a very busy and very fun week! I hope that each of you enjoy this last week before Christmas and that we can all slow down a little and take time to reflect on the true meaning of this season. Blessings!!!