* Happy Days *

These last few days with Matthew home have been so wonderful and he is adjusting better than we had ever imagined he would! He loves to eat, is sleeping at night (in his crib for the last two nights I might add!!), and is just a happy little guy most of the time. Yesterday we took him to the doctor for a check-up and found that he weighs a healthy 20 lbs :) He has a slight ear infection, is teething (his first tooth popped through his first day here!) and has been congested since he arrived, but despite all this he has been smiley and content most of the time. Needless to say we are ASTOUNDED and THANKFUL for how well he is doing!

For the most part we have just been hanging out at home getting to know each other. We took a walk outside which was lovely, and went to visit Grammie (Brad's mom) yesterday. Matthew is such a little charmer and everyone is so in love with him already :)

Especially Mommy!

Home at Last!

Ready for more pictures?? :) It was so hard to pick out just a few to share - these last couple of days have been filled with amazing memories and special moments, and we are just soaking it all in and enjoying getting to know Matthew.

The transition is going really well so far, better than we anticipated I think. He has taken to both Brad and I very quickly and is willing to be comforted by both of us. I must add at this point that I am married to the most amazing man and it has been incredible to see him become a daddy! He is so hands on and it's been so wonderful to work together through this time.

Nighttimes have been the hardest so far as we expected, but they really haven't been bad. Matthew was used to sleeping with his foster mother so for now we are just doing a lot of holding and we are letting him sleep on us at night on the couch. It is working okay so far and we *hope* to begin transitioning to the crib soon! We were excited that he actually slept 20 minutes in the crib yesterday! There is hope!

But for now, who can be upset that they get to spend time doing this:

Or this:

Matthew is enjoying his new toys and likes to play and chew with everything!

He is such a little sweetie!

He absolutely loves our Ergo baby carrier! This thing is a life saver - he loves to be held while you walk but I've gotta say, he's quite a heavy little guy and these momma's arms are getting a workout already! The Ergo really helps take the pressure off my back and arms, and Matthew and I can still be together :)

More snuggle time. This just melts my heart!

And speaking of melting my heart...here's our handsome boy!

This is the first picture we have of him smiling! He likes the Exersaucer!

My happy little boy:

Reading books together:

We are so thankful that Matthew is doing so well. He has been through a lot in the last few days, and we know he is grieving for his foster family. On the way home from the airport he cried for about the last hour and just kept saying, "Omma" which means Mother in Korean. Talk about breaking your heart - I cried right along with him, knowing how sad and confused he was. He has still cried for her a couple of times since then, but much less, and seems to be finding comfort in Brad and I. We are so thankful to have him here and are enjoying every minute of this!!!!

The Big Day!!!!!

Yesterday was incredible! I am trying to think of what words to use to describe it, but it is almost impossible! How about this: one of the most amazing moments of my life and even better than I ever dreamed it could be.

Matthew is napping on Daddy's chest right now so I thought I'd quickly post some pictures. The day was full of emotions but somehow I managed to stay fairly calm throughout the day and was able to enjoy it fully. We know that so many people were praying for us and for Matthew and we felt those prayers yesterday. We are so grateful to be loved by so many people!

Once we knew Matthew's flight had arrived, time seemed to stand still! Waiting to see him come out was so agonizing! But at long last, Brad gasped and pointed and said, "There he is!"


We are so grateful for the kind and gentle woman who escorted Matthew here. We can tell she took good care of him and she was so very sweet. She walked up to us, and handed him to me, and without a sound Matthew put his head on my shoulder! It was absolutely amazing. Everything around me disappeared and all I knew in that instant was my son was in my arms.

One happy momma!

One overjoyed papa!

I hear sounds upstairs that Matthew has woken up so I will be back soon with more of an update. Let me just say that yesterday was a gift from God, and our son is a blessing that I am so thankful for! He is so precious and I love him with all my heart already. Praise the Lord!

19 Hrs and 41 Mins...But Who's Counting?

Four years ago we began our journey to become parents. Along the way, the road twisted and turned, and for a while it seemed that it would never end.

But tomorrow, the waiting will end...and we will become mommy and a daddy to the most precious boy we could imagine! It is still hard to wrap my head around this, and the emotions of the last couple of days have been overwhelming. It's hard to put into words how blessed I feel right now.

Tomorrow around noon we leave for the airport! We have friends and family going with us, and I am looking forward to meeting our son with so much anticipation. I believe that right now he is at the airport in Seoul, ready to get on the plane. I am praying for our sweet boy, that he is not scared, that it will not be a difficult flight, and that he will be at peace.

I thought I'd share a few pictures of some of the transformations around our house. This weekend we got a new bookcase, got his toys all ready, put out his books...

We also finished (for the most part) Matthew's room! I love how peaceful it feels and I cannot wait to be rocking my little boy in that chair!

Tonight I packed a diaper bag for the first time in my life! It was so much fun to realize we are finally going to be using all of this stuff we've been gathering for him for so long!

Today I heard the song that became the theme of my "waiting" time - it is called "Worship in the Waiting" by FFH. It was so amazing to hear it come on the radio today, after not hearing it for months and months. It was like the end of a chapter of my life...and the beginning of a wonderful new chapter!

"I will worship in the waiting

I will walk these sands beneath my feet

Though the winter winds are blowing

The ground is not frozen underneath

I will worship and not grow bitter

Cause I know You see the end of it all

With the spring will come the rain

And I'll see what was gained

In the waiting"

I thought about those days when I cried and cried and wanted so badly to become a mommy...God saw my tears, and heard my prayers, and I know He saw the end of it all - He saw tomorrow! How thankful I am for this amazing journey and for God's grace that has carried me through.

TRAVEL CALL!!!!!!!!

Today at 12:30pm

we received the call we have been waiting for...

praying for...

longing for...

to hear the wonderful news that our son Matthew

will be joining our family

this THURSDAY

September 24th

(which happens to be my mom's birthday!)

Our hearts are overjoyed

and we are praising the Lord for His goodness.

"I prayed for this child, and the LORD has granted me what I asked of Him."

1 Samuel 1:27

The Best Five Years

Yesterday was our five year anniversary! The sky was blue with no clouds to be seen, just like on our wedding day, and I thought back to that special day when Brad and I said our vows to one another, promising to love each other and stick with each other no matter what.

These past five years have been so amazing and as I looked back over the time I realized how truly blessed I am to be married to this man. We have had our share of ups and downs over these years, encountering some things we never dreamed we would face when we got married, but thankfully I can still say these have been the best five years of my life. There has been so much laughter, so many good times together, and the smiles by far outweigh the tears. We've learned a lot about love, and though I know we still have a lot to learn, we have grown so much closer as we've walked through life together these last few years. We are so excited as we look forward to this next phase of our life and as our family will soon be growing :)

Brad got me this beautiful picture for our anniversary that has one of my very favorite verses on it. "God is our refuge and strength, an ever present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear..." Psalm 46:1-2. For me it kind of sums up the last five years - we have learned this together, and I'm so thankful to now have this visual reminder about the great God we serve. It made me cry...happy tears :)

I must admit, I was hoping that we would get our travel call as an anniversary present...but the Lord's timing is always perfect, so we wait and pray that perhaps this week we will hear those wonderful words we've been waiting so long to hear - "Your son is coming home!"