On February 2, Mommom celebrated her 70th birthday. We celebrated the first weekend in February with lunch then Josh's district band concert followed by a nice dinner out with the Moyers. We sang to Mommom with cookies at lunch, but we didn't stop with just singing "Happy Birthday" to Mommom...we sang to everyone along with relighting the candle.
We had LOTS of sprinkles for our cookies this year! Maryn worked so hard that her hands turned colors...first a red, then dark purple! We had sprinkles everywhere...we were even walking in sprinkles by the time we were done!
We had just finished decorating the tree and were taking some family photos. We were trying to get a good picture of Maryn and me. She was supposed to be laying on my back when all of a sudden she takes a flying leap! Who knows what that little girl is thinking!
It seems like the boys usually raked leaves when Maryn was napping and given the ages of Josh and Caleb, they are not prone to jump and frolic in the leaves. So...we had to schedule a time for Maryn to experience jumping in the leaves, one of those things that every kid has to do! She was very tentative at first, but after we tossed her in and threw leaves at the boys, she had a blast!
Maryn received this dress from Aunt Debby and Uncle Jeff for her birthday. She looks so pretty in it, though she won't keep the hat on! On this Sunday, she insisted the lamb be in the picture and in some pictures the lamb was wearing the hat!
This past Saturday was South County Secondary School's Homecoming Dance. It was Josh's first dance, with his first girlfriend, Angie. They went as a group of 9, 3 couples and 3 additional girls. They went out to dinner first, then came home to get all dressed up, to a friend's for pictures and then to the dance. Josh had a great time, but since he is a man of few words, that's about all the information I have, oh and he can't dance! He did look handsome in his new suit. Maryn loved her flower and being able to see all the "pretty girls."
They grow up so fast! On September 23rd we celebrated Josh's 17th and Maryn's 2nd birthday. We celebrated with both sets of grandparents and my sister and her family. We ate pizza, veggies, cake and ice cream. Mommom made the cakes! A purple butterfly (chocolate) for Maryn. Maryn selected what she wanted from the design, color and flavor! Josh's cake was a prism which is the theme of the marching band show this year. Mommom copied the design from Josh's show shirt. We had a fun dinner followed by football game and marching band show.
A year ago today Maryn Yu-Meng was placed in our arms...it was the end of a very long wait and the beginning of a wonderful, exciting and fun journey. This year has gone so incredibly fast, but has been full of joy! Tonight we are celebrating with Maryn's favorite dinner...chicken and french fries. We'll also have some carrots, apples and end with an ice cream cake. While she won't remember the day, it is one that we will celebrate every year!
It's been almost a year since we got Maryn. This time last year we were packing, trying to keep our suitcases under 50 pounds. What a difference a year makes and what a tremendous blessing this little girl has made in our lives! We just had our last social work visit and need to send pictures along with the report that will make it's way to China. This is one of the shots required (child with her parents). It's not often we get both Rich and I on this side of the camera.
