Merry Christmas from our family to Yours...
This is going to be a good one for our family. I remember last year thinking, this is our last Christmas as a family of 3! Our baby boy should be home next year. It felt like it took forever at the time, and yet it now feels like he has always been with us. The wait is hard, but it melts away the moment that baby is in your arms. I've made some friends in the adoption community. Some are celebrating their first Christmas with their little ones... some are waiting for a little one to come home... some are waiting to be matched with the child they now dream of.... If they are home, hold them close and enjoy every moment. If you are waiting enjoy your (hopefully) last Christmas without them. Then hit the sales for some serious Baby's First Christmas items!!!

To our Family and Friends reading... thanks for keeping up with us. I love that even those who are far away, can celebrate our family through the magic of the internet. :)
We hope to see you all in the New Year.
Wishing you all love, happiness, and health on this very special Christmas.

HE IS ....

...A LAUGHING BOY

...A HAPPY BOY

..A SILLY BOY

...A TEETHING BOY

...AND A WELL LOVED BABY BROTHER

LIVIJA THE RED NOSED REINDEER

The countdown for Christmas is on! We took the kids into town for carriage rides and hot chocolate last night. It was bitterly cold, but we were all bundled up and enjoyed the luminary bags and Christmas lights. Kalvis especially enjoyed the light at the end of Livija's nose.

MY FIRST KISS

Last night I was playing with Livija and Kalvis in Kalvis' room. He suddenly came crawling full speed ahead to my lap. He pulled himself up, grabbed my face with both hands and planted a big, wet, sloppy, open mouth kiss right on my cheek. I of course cried. He laughed.

MY FIRST WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

OH WHAT A FEELING

Typically Kalvis shows that he wants me by crying when I walk in the room and putting his arms up in that baby "Uppy" motion. Lately when I walk in the room, a huge smile spreads across his face and he crawls towards me laughing. THIS is an amazing feeling.
The other night while Papa watched football, I sat in my bed editing photos on the laptop, when Kalvis woke up. I decided to bring him to bed with me for a cuddle. It started the way it typically does... Kalvis was restless. He tossed and turned, pulling blankets and pillows. He finally settled in. Suddenly he sat straight up, looked at me, and smiled so big his pacifier fell out. He giggled as he climbed up on top of me. He collapsed horizontally across my chest and rested his head on my shoulder, falling fast asleep. I remember these moments with Livija and NO feeling in the world compares. It is complete bliss.

FIRST SLEIGH RIDE

RECOVERY

My blogging has suffered as the family has been suffering from colds. Kalvis recovered from the fevers the day after Thanksgiving. By that evening he had developed a horrific cough and a nose that runs like a fountain. When babies get colds like this, it is horrible. They can't blow their nose, or understand why they can't breathe with their beloved pacifier in their mouths. So we get up and rock them, while pulling out humidifiers at 1am. Then there is the coughing until he vomits on me in the middle of the night.... you'll forgive my slacking on the blog....
I am told that when these precious little babies get sick, there may be a little regression in the attachment process. We had a rough day where I began to question his attachment to us. Just one day where I thought perhaps I had imagined that wonderful week that I had just blogged about. I fell asleep that night worrying that this rough day, was a sign of things to come. A few hours later he woke up coughing and crying. I went to him and like an answered prayer, he snuggled against my chest and played with my hair, as he fell back into a comfortable sleep. Prior to this night his night wakings were lots of shifting in my arms, struggling to break free, until brought back to sleep with a few ounces from his bottle. This night I comforted him to sleep. Just me. No bottle.
Since that night, he cuddles.
He is recovering from his cold and back to his playful, smiling self. What a relief. It was a good reminder though that the attachment process is a PROCESS. It's good to be aware, question, research, and work for that bond of parent and child.
An excellent source I found in researching attachment and bonding is www.a4everfamily.com Thought I'd throw that in, since there are other families formed from adoption reading.

What's a post without a picture? Here he is 10 months old!

HAPPY (BELATED) THANKSGIVING

It's been awhile. I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I had drafted many Thanksgiving posts in my mind. We have so much to give thanks for this year. Unfortunately health was not one of them. My little boy got a virus a few days before Thanksgiving. By the time the holiday rolled around, his fever had hit 103.5. So no holiday travel and family dinners for our boy. I would've been content staying at home with the family, but our little Livija had made a marshmallow pie, and was so excited to see her cousins. So Papa and Kalvis stayed home, while Livija and I ventured out for Thanksgiving dinner.
To say I was disappointed is an understatement. Poor me. Poor Kalvis. He's home on Thanksgiving. So soon we take things for granted. The fact of the matter is, HE IS HOME ON THANKSGIVING. There is still endless thanks to give.
I hope you all had a wonderful holiday, full of many things to be thankful for this year. Let the Christmas excitement begin!