December 8th - Such a blessing to our family.

This is the day we met Blake for the first time! On one hand it seems as though it was just yesterday that we were in the cozy Vlad Inn meeting new adopting parents and making the trek to Artem, and on the other hand it seems like Blake has been a part of our family forever.

When we woke up yesterday morning we had snow on the ground for the first time this year. Seeing the snow covered ground and bare trees really helped bring back a flood of memories from a year ago. I remember the eerie feeling of landing in Vlad for the first time and wondering what on earth we had gotten ourselves into. I remember the lighting, workers, smells, and food of the Vlad Inn. I remember sitting with the Martin and Pitman family for hours talking about what to expect through the adoption process. I remember our December 8th appointment with the MOE that we almost didn’t get to because our papers hadn’t arrived from Moscow on time – then at the very last minute they showed up. I remember seeing Blake for the first time and being so drawn by his smile and outgoing personality and so taken aback by his orphanage haircut, smell, and green tights.

We cannot say enough how incredibly blessed we are to have Blake home with us!

Keeping the blog up to date is nearly impossible these days. Here are a few pictures to share with you. Ohhh and on Sunday night Justin got all of his crops harvest. I am so thankful to have him back at home in the evenings and on the weekends. We have missed him tons!

Here is our mail one windy day before Thanksgiving. Brady and Madison went out to get it for us and the wind knocked it out of their hands. They went running all around the yard trying to gather it up. They were so aplogetic we couldn't be mad at them.


This was the first time in 10 years that we were home on actual Thanksgiving Day. We had about 28 people in our house and loved every minute of it – even Justin’s burnt turkey and the scramble to get another one prepared in time!



We did get our Christmas tree put up. The ornaments that Blake decorated his sweatshirt with are from one of the sets we brought back from Russia with us.





This past Saturday Madison had her Christmas concert and Brady had a swim meet. Here are some pictures of Madison and Blake from that morning.