Details, Details!

By now, most of you have heard the details, but to make it official:

Yes, we are adopting AGAIN.  Yes, we are heading to China AGAIN.  Yes, it is a boy AGAIN. 

Our sweet boy is 4.  He fits right in between Moses and Judah.  I can hardly wait to see how the boys interact.  Oh the excitement!!  I was hoping to have our LOA by now so I could publicly share his pictures but that will have to wait.  Things have slowed down and we are praying next week will be OUR week to move forward.  This may be adoption number 3, but I am still not good at waiting.  

I did say additionS in my last post, didn't I?  Oh for more information and with that update, pictures!

Brushing Off the Cobwebs

It's been a long time since we've updated the 'ol blog.  Much has happened.  We've had our sweet Moses for a year now!  We've had birthday celebrations, 2 years with Judah, visits to the beach, a missions trip to Uruguay and hundreds of days in between with just the every day chaos that is our lives.  If you've read any of my blogs, you know they start with a new adoption and end shortly after coming home when time is at a premium and personal time, non-existent.  Go ahead and connect the dots..........

So, here we are dusting off the blog, blowing away the cobwebs and preparing for our next big adventure.

Trip to the Zoo

Picture Warning! There's ALOT in this post.

Thanks to a phone call from Mario's Brother, we took a trip to the zoo. Moses and Judah's first trip to see the animals. (No, we don't count China's zoo. We enjoyed the pandas but looking at chickens and raccoons in a cage just doesn't compare to what we have here in the states.) Seeing the zoo through the wonder and amazement of little ones again made it a new experience for all of us.

I think Moses could have watched the ants for hours. :)

My great niece, Bella, is in the back of the egg. Isn't she sweet?

My great nephew, another cutie!

Giving Uncle Richie the 'rock'.

The baby elephant was one of Moses' favorites. Can you see it in his eyes?

My biggies were so patient with all the animal watching. Especially considering it was nearly 100 degrees the day we were there. Having friends with us helped our attitudes.

It didn't take long, however, for boredom to set in. I mean, how many animals can you see in one day?

Two of my most favorite people in the whole world. My BFF with her hubby. Thanks for coming on our impromptu trip. Lynnette, you can pay me later for not posting the 'pretty' pictures of you cooling off. No, I am not above blackmailing you. Maybe you should pick your friends better.

Judah's excitement level picked back up with the last visit of the day, the monkeys.

Heat aside, we had a great time with friends and family. Lynnette, the check better be in the mail. :)

Love Covers a Multitude of Sins

1 Peter 4:8- Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.

Oh what HOPE is found in that little scripture in 1 Peter!!! That a little boy can go from this............

A little boy leaving an orphanage and every thing he knows, scared, crying at every thought of sleeping, speaking only when told to repeat, nervously running from distraction to distraction, unsure of what to do with himself, repeating negative behaviors learned from children not taught differently....................... TO........................................

a little boy living with his family, genuinely happy, loving to entertain those around him, laughing, talking, playing and sharing, growing taller, getting stronger, singing songs, learning to live within a family.....................................

communicating his needs, a happy and sometimes mischievous twinkle in his eye, spontaneously sharing love in the form of hugs and kisses, and oh so happy to sleep in his own bed.

Look what *LOVE* can do! God, Your works are amazing!!! Who is there like you?

MRI

On June 23rd, Moses and Mommy were off for the first of his necessary testing, namely his MRI and bloodwork. He did great, loving all the attention and the personal TV. He did great until it was time for the IV. My poor little guy was so scared. Then they took him down for the MRI and that was about all his little heart could handle. They sedated him while he sobbed in my arms.

The procedure took about 40 minutes. (double the time it should have) After that we were just waiting for him to wake up and drink a little water so we could go home. He looked so sweet, lying there with his teddy bear. This sweet little boy has the biggest heart. After all he has been through -he still loves, still hugs, still kisses. I am constantly amazed by his abilities and joy.

Often when I am out with the kids shopping or running errands, I will have people come to me asking about the boys. Are they brothers? Where are they from? The conversation always seems to end with a "They sure are lucky to have you." No. It's not true. They are not lucky. They were chosen by a God who loves them to be a part of our family. We were chosen to share in their lives, to teach them and train them. While the obvious part of their story says they have benefited from being pulled out of an orphanage, out of an institution life, out of the darkness of being abandoned and left to their own devices,-the truth is, we have gained more than our boys have. We have hugs, kisses, laughing, cuteness, playtime--I could go on. Luck has nothing to do with our lives. It is not by chance that Moses and Judah are a part of our family. It is all by design of our wise Creator. Oh, how thankful I am that His ways are not my ways.

Behind Again!

We've had lots of things keeping us busy in the Dominguez house. Too busy to post here, in fact. Two biggies are...............


Lillie's Birthday!!!!!!

My little princess is 7! 7, already?! She is my girly-girl. The one who loves dresses and shoes with a heal and fingernail polish and getting her hair done and ANYTHING that sparkles and pink, pink, pink. In fact, as I type, she is playing blocks with Moses in a pink shirt and pink pants. That's just my Lillie. No one had to tell her how to be a girl. She had it down the second she was born. What a gift this child is! You can tell from her smile she is *loving* being the center of attention. It's been hard sharing Mommy and Daddy with 2 attention-starved toddlers. It was lovely having a day just for her.


You might notice in this picture that my two house tornadoes have noticed the cake.

Sweet kisses from Daddy and still smiling.........................

Uh-huh. Hard to miss that look on Judah's face. We see it every birthday. When the cake's brought out and he knows he's about to eat. Oh Baby!!!!!

I LOVE this Girl! My 'little Lisa', as Daddy calls her.

Carlos' Wedding!!!!

We also attended my nephew, Carlos', wedding. It was a beautiful day and I think the looks on their faces say it all. Please pray for Carlos and his new wife, Brittnee, as he is deployed shortly to Afghanistan. Congratulations Carlos and Brittnee! We love you!

Our Family, minus the two biggests. What a blessed woman, I am. Thank you, God for your many blessing.

Trip to Florida

We escaped the grey of home to head to the sunshine state! In the adoption world, it isn't normal to change scenery so quickly for your new child. However, we are NOT a normal family. Not normal in many ways. :) As it turned out, It couldn't have been better. Just what we needed! Especially Moses. The trip gave us more family time and Moses' little personality is starting to shine through. He's quite a character, this little boy God has blessed us with.

The beauty of blues........ blue sky, blue ocean ...............ahhhhhhh

Alas, vacation did nothing to end the need for the dreaded timeout!! A fun time playing in the potty was had by both boys but ended in a torturous trip to the playpen. NO FUN there.

The pool was just as wonderful as the ocean and no one complained for lack of sand.

BUT ............... The beach is MY personal favorite. The kids stay busy for hours on end and are happy doing so. What more could a Mommy ask for? My only complaint is the sandy mess afterwards. Oh and maybe the packing everything before hand. Other than that, I love it!

We figure this was most likely Moses' first trip to the beach too. He needed no promptings in what to do.

I know this probably looks like a nice picture of Moses and Judah playing together. Looks are often deceiving. Judah is actually 'taking' Moses sand and toys here, resulting in tears...........

So that's it, Peeps. The updates are over and your caught up on the Dominguez Journey! :)