Monday, December 22, 2008

Referral anniversary



On December 6th, 2007, Barbara and I laid eyes on the most beautiful girl we have ever seen. It was the day we received Maggie's referral. From the moment we saw her, we knew our family would be complete. This year has been the most amazing of my life. We have seen Maggie grow so much, and have already created such wonderful memories.
Thanks to everyone who has embraced Maggie and ourselves during this amazing time in our lives. We are so lucky to have such amazing friends and family.

an early Christmas



Last night, Barbara and I decided to let Maggie open one gift a day until Christmas. We received Maggie's present from my Uncle Bob and Aunt Barbara just after Thanksgiving, and Maggie has done so well to leave it alone for such a long time. She was thrilled that we let her open it last night. She got three learning books, and we had to read each one of them immediately. She loves them! (Thanks Uncle Bob and Aunt Barbara!)

Today we received a box of gifts from Barbara's cousin Tracey's family, and allowed Maggie to open one of the gifts they sent. The one she opened had a beautiful hat, scarf, and doll. Each were homemade by Tracey and the girls and are BEAUTIFUL! The hat and scarf will come in handy for our trip to Baltimore next week. Thanks!

We are already having an amazing Christmas!

Christmas with Mia








We had Mia and her parents over Saturday night for dinner and for the girls to exchange Christmas gifts. Mia gave Maggie a large Mickey Mouse (she LOVES it! and has had to sleep with him every night) and a chef's hat, apron, and spoon to use when she cooks. Dinner went great and the girls had a blast. I think they enjoyed playing in the large gift bag more than anything. They are so good together and played and played and played. We all adore Mia!

ornament exchange



Last Sunday we had several families from our local FCC (Families with children from China) group over for an ornament exchange. It was Maggie, Ellie Lu, Maya, and Mia and their parents. The kids had a great time doing a craft and exchanging ornaments and the parents enjoyed getting together as well. For those who missed it, we may have to do it again next year.

Cookies with Julie






Last weekend, Barbara's cousin Julie stopped by to stay with us on her way home to Florida. She picked a good day, as it was cookie making day! Barbara's mom and aunt came over, and Maggie was in charge. She loved making cookies and pretty much did all the baking (she had a "little" help, I think). The cookies were delicious and Maggie only had to change shirts twice. Everyone had a great time and Maggie adores Julie. It was great to see her.

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

an artist?






Tonight while cooking dinner, Maggie was sitting at the kitchen table drawing. When I got done, I went to look at what she was drawing. She said it was a picture of me. I was stunned at what she did. Althought it didn't really look like me (her picture had hair), I thought it was a great job for a three year old. As you can tell from the picture, she even drew the arms. I can't draw as well as Maggie can.
I am also adding a picture of Maggie's snowman toenails. Barbara and Maggie and Jennifer and Mia all had their nails done on Monday.

CFA Christmas party













On Saturday, we attended the Holiday party sponsored by the Craniofacial Association of America (http://www.craniofacialfoundation.org/). They went all out and we all had a great time. They had clowns, a balloon maker, crafts for the kids, an inflatable slide and jump area, good food, and of course, Mr. and Mrs. Claus. Maggie would not sit on Santa's lap, but she would sit next to Mrs. Claus and told her what she wanted for Christmas (the same things - a kitchen and a Mickey Mouse clubhouse...and that's it). The pictures tell the story, and as you can tell from the ride down the slide, she chose not to go down a second time (she went so fast she almost did a flip on the bottom - I think it scared her). She was worn out within the hour, but we are glad we went. We met some very nice people and look forward to the family camp the foundation hosts in April.
Barbara took some pictures of Maggie to possibly use for Christmas cards. Maggie seemed to close her eyes for almost every picture, but we still think they are adorable.
Maggie is really getting into Christmas. She has to help Barbara wrap EVERYTHING, and she insists that she is in charge. She has such a strong personality and doesn't realize that she is only three. She continues to amaze us. Her speech is improving almost daily and she is progressing well with speech therapy.