Sprung

One year ago today, Tyler and I drove with Svetlana to take Ava out of the Baby Home forever.  Yipee!  Wow one year, it goes by so fast, and then on the other hand it seems like Ava has always been here.  Our lives have changed for the better, and Ava has blessed us sooo sooo much.  She has softened the boys and has them tied around her finger.  I love to see how they care for her, they are not jealous of her at all (this is a question I get a lot)!  She has brought more laughter to our house and more imaginative play!

Thank you God for your beautiful gift.

See how she loved my necklace

I wore that necklace every time we saw her

getting all bundeled up

hello world, Ava is here! 

Outside her Baby Home

Easter 2011, trying to blow her pinwheel

April 30, 2011 our beautiful princess

Poppy Dip Dress

 We love you Ava Grace so much!



Gifts given by God!

I just wanted to share this with you all.  This was done during our Easter Services at church.  I think God gives so many people wonderful gifts to be used.  Let me know what you think.

Sand Animation Art


also,

another thing that I have been watching lately is Carrie Underwood singing with Vince Gill.  I have watched it many times since I saw the link, and each time I get teary eyed.  Once again, God gave her such a talent and gift, all glory to God.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLLMzr3PFgk&feature=player_embedded

this song brings me back to when I was a just a young girl, and we would sing it in church.  My dad was the song leader and I would sit in the pews and just watch him lead.  This song is one of my favorite hymns.

Big Brothers!

I just thought this was a cute photo.  We were shopping at Menards and Ava was walking with Trevor and Austin.  They would count 1 - 2 - 3, and then swing her in the air, she loved it.

Stay off the roads!

Look Out, Austin is 16 today.

My 2nd born is 16, I can't believe it!  Where does the time go?  He will go tomorrow and get his drivers license as it is closed today.  We celebrated yesterday with family at Easter.  Austin is my dungeon dweller (he sleeps in the basement and LOVES it), he is whitty, best burper and farter in the family (did I really just admit to that).  He frustrates me to no ends (probably because he is a lot like me) (minus the burping and farting), and he is my boy that loves adventure.  He is growing into a fine young man who Loves the Lord with all his heart and has a ton of questions and is very insightful on so many things that I can't count.  Happy Birthday Austin, We love you lots.

This is about the only picture I have of Austin

with him up against my chest.

This child loved to be facing out

looking at the world!

Austin (me), Bradley (Julie) and Nathan (Kelly)

all born within 6 weeks of eachother

best buds (all of us)

Tyler being a great big brother to Austin

Austin loving his big brother!

One Year old

Austin and Nathan at the lake, being silly as usual

At Great America, he still loves to fly airplanes 

playing Lacrosse 

Austin just scored a goal,

he is the one running with his arms up 



HE IS RISEN!

HE IS RISEN INDEED!

Easter, my favorite holiday. 

John 3:16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have EVERLASTING life.

This was the first verse I learned when I was small.  It is such a profound verse,for God to give His only begotten Son for me, why?  Because I am a sinner, and He (Jesus) was perfect.  His perfect love, His blood, washes me white as snow!  I will have EVERLASTING life, with God because of Him.

Enjoy your blessed Easter with Family and friends.

Happy 20th Baby

Wow, we look like little kids.  I was just 21 years old when I married my baby, but I thought I knew everything.  I was wrong.  You have taught me so much, made me grow in the Lord, gave me 5 beautiful children and a Love that just keeps going.  Heres to another 20 baby!

Third Day Video

I knew I always liked this Christian Band.  Powerful message about being adopted and being adopted in Gods family.

Da

Russian word for YES.  YES you are the parents of a beautiful princess.  We became parents to our 5th child, a girl, on April 14, 2010 and we were so so happy.

Court building in St. Petersburg, Russia

No cameras allowed inside the building

after court we went to see our daughter

here she is trying to escape to go eat

this is a room attached to where they feed her groupa

we spent about 30 minutes with her and then it was lunch time

and boy o boy she didn't want to miss out!

WOW, 1 Year together and in someways it feels like yesterday,

and in other ways it feels like she has always been with us.

No Help Needed

I had been concerened about Ava Grace in regards to her talking and fine and large motor skills.  I called our local school and they got me in touch with the county department that handels this.  Since Ava is under 3 they don't do the cosulting thru the school district.  We set up the appointment and went over what was going to happen and if Ava qualified for help how everything would work out.  Well it took about 2 weeks before the Speech Therapist and Developmental Therapist could come to our house today to evaluate Ava.  After watching the therapists assess Ava Grace and ask me a ton of questions they have both concluded that in NO WAY does Ava qualify for any help.  In fact the Developmental Therapist told me that Ava is performing at the age of a 3 year old!  Wow, I told her how much we have been working on and she was really impressed with the growth and skill that Ava has.  The speech therapist was amazed that Ava is stringing 2 words together already.  To tell you the truth, Ava has just recently exploded with her words.  It was like a light bulb went on in her head and now she can tell me all kinds of things.  She understands everything and repeats everything we ask her to.  I was concerened about Ava with her "S"s and her "T"s.  Considering she says no for snow, and anta for Santa, but she can say yes, perfectly.  For her "T" she can't say Tyler or Trevor, but she can say top or table, and a few others I can't remember.  It was interesting to see Ava interact with the therapist.  She was not afraid at all, and they were very impressed with her altogether.  One thing that kept coming up was...does she ask for anything?  You know I never heard her ask for anything, but she will say outside, with a questionable look on her face and she will look at me and say cookie.  so I guess in some ways, that is her asking to have or do those things.

Overall I'm still happy that we had her evaluated, it reaffirms the fact that so much happens at the home.  Tom, the boys and I all work with her and I guess our hard work is paying off.

This is a picture from the night of the AWANA party, even Cooper is helping with Avas development.  Learning how to balance!

Ava sitting on Cooper, what a good dog he is!

Happy Birthday Daddy

Wow, my dad will be 80 years old tomorrow!

My dad reminds me of an eagle.  Maybe because he loves eagles and decorates his house with them, but maybe it is because of the free spirit eagles represent.  My dad loved to be moving around.  Moving from house to house, moving on a bicycle, moving in a car, or just moving in the yard.  He loved to keep busy and then he would crash at like 9:00 p.m. in his lazy boy chair. 

So many memories of when I would ride my moms really big Schwinn bicylce to the corner of 95th and Kedzie to get my dad after he got off the bus from a long days work, I was in 3rd grade!  I would sit on the handle bars when he biked us home.  Sometimes my brother David came also, and he would sit on the basket in the back. 

How he helped to teach me to swim at the local swimming pool.  How one day I told him I learned how to water ski, so that next summer he made sure we all went water skiing on vacation.  How we used to take family vacations in a pop up camper.  I remember thinking that that camper was huge!  Now when I see pictures of it, I'm totally shocked how little it is. 

My dad LOVES licorice, black or red it dosen't matter.  I love it now also, along with any other kind of candy!  My dad loved to have dessert right after we ate a dinner and how I now HAVE to have a dessert, or it just dosent feel right!  Speaking of dinner, it was family tradition to sit down as a family for dinner, and now I make it a priority for my family.  So much conversations happen over that dinner table.

May 1, 1954

Engagement Day 

Munich, Germany

1954 

Radio Truck

1957

Wisconsin Dells 1962

May 2010

May 2010 

Dad, I LOVE YOU!  Thanks for being my dad, and showing me how to love unconditionally.  Sally

Too Big

Trying on Daddys Jeans, a little to big!

yes, she plays with her brothers cars now also (seen all over the kitchen floor).  She just likes to dump them out and then clean them up.  I'm telling ya, she is so different than the boys.  She is a GIRL!