New and Improved

Well, here it is...our extreme blog makeover!

You'll still get the same adorable girls...
The same emotional posts...
The same plethera of pictures...
The same wit...

It will just all be in a prettier package!

A HUGE thank you goes to Tina at www.thestoryofyou.com ! Check out her creative designs and follow family journeys!

Off to another busy week! Stay tuned!

P.S. Want to reconnect with your spouse? Skip date night, forget the movies...just wash dishes together. We did that tonight! I forgot how much some uninterrupted time doing something rather mundane can really get us to focus on each other. It was nice! (Still thankful we have a dishwasher though!!)

The smell of fresh cut grass....

So wrap your mind around this one...

Tony and I took the girls for a walk around the 'hood tonight in their wagon. We were super pumped because it was warm enough for them to wear their new flip flops! (Their toes are cute enough to EAT, I swear!) Anyway, after huffing and puffing pulling all 75 pounds of Radio Flyer and twins, we decided to take the top off the Jeep and take a short drive.

While Tony was taking the Jeep apart, I took the girls out of the wagon. Because our girls are Chinese hillbillies, they had taken off their adorable little flops within two minutes of being in the wagon. So when I picked them up, I just plopped them in the grass until I could load them in the Jeep.

Well, one day last week Laney got to touch the grass with her bare feet and it lasted like a nanosecond before she howled. I wondered what this experience would bring. After I set them down, they both stood stock still like statues. They weren't whining yet, but they weren't lovin' it either.

I immediately took off my flops and tried to make it a game. I talked about how it felt on their toes and between their toes. I talked about how cold it was, etc. Then I pretended like they were trying to get me and I was trying to get away. (Yeah, right, they were frozen solid) Well, it finally worked...Abby stretched her toes out and grinned. Took a step and giggled. Her smile was priceless. Laney followed suit once she knew the grass didn't eat Abby's feet after a step or two. I'm proud to say they took three whole steps before they freaked and wanted, "Up beease"!

So imagine that...two years and 3 months old and experiencing the feel of grass on your bare feet for the very first time. The girls have had many, many firsts and many emotions associated with each one (swinging, um, yeah, wow). But this one really struck me. I'm so sad that they haven't had that experience. I'm so sad that they're scared to feel it. However, I am elated that we got to share that with them though. My goal is to have them chasing lightning bugs barefooted by July.

Just thought I'd share another first with you...I had to choke back tears and laughter all at once.

God is good...all the time...

P.S. Still no word on Grissom :(

P.S.S. Don't forget to look at our cuties on Tony's post below!

The UPDATE

Hello. First, Grissom is still missing. We received a few calls, but they turned out to be a different cat. Please keep praying we find the fat furry little guy.

Well, I am going to provide an update that covers several weeks of updates. We have had many firsts, a ton of fun and cannot wait for more! The girls are growing and learning more and more every day. They have put on some weight, grown an inch or two and are speaking unbelievably well.

Below you will find their first day in the snow (yes, I am going a ways back). Neither were too excited about the snow, but seemed to have a good time towards the end.

Just a week or two after the snow, we began to experience warm weather. Here are photos from the first trip to the park near our house.

Another fun day was spent at the Children's Museum. Here the girls check out the underside of an old car...pretty cool.

Another fun trip was to the Indianapolis Zoo! Our friends Brian and Nancy were nice enough to ask us to join them for a day a the zoo (THANKS BRIAN AND NANCY). We had a great time! We look forward to many more trips to the zoo.

The girls and their friend Morgan watch creatures that lurk in the sea.Abby and her new found buddy, a penguin.

The next new adventure is the backyard. Aunt Robin gave the girls Jarrett's playset. THEY LOVE IT!!!! THANKS AUNT ROBIN!!!

And we swapped Jeeps. The girls call it the "NEEWWW JEEP".
Thanks for checking in on us. More updates will come later.

Still no word....

We haven't heard anything on Grissom. We put posters up, put and ad in the newspaper, called all of the shelters, and walked and driven miles. We have yet to hear one single word about our poor, missing Grissom. We are SO blessed though, because we have friends and family just as concerned as us! Every day someone emails or asks if we have found him. We have also had friends and family peruse town looking for him. If he only knew the many miles that have been trekked and minutes that have been spent searching for him. He definitely wins the prize for best hider in the game of hide and seek.

Thank you so much for your prayers, thoughts and concerns. If you forget what he looks like, scroll down and check out his cute picture. Some people think it is silly to be this concerned over our kitty, but they don't understand how important he was to us before the girls came home. Not-to-mention how important he is to the girls now. They ask about him often.

Thanks again...hopefully our next post will be with some good news!

Grissom is Missing....

Our little kitty (ok, he's huge and 3 years old) is missing.
I noticed Thursday night (about 10:30 pm) that he must have gotten in a
fight b/c he had a horrible gash in his lower cheek/upper neck. A
huge chunk of fur was missing and he looked really raw underneath.
Well, yesterday Tony got a good look at it today, he said we
definitely should take him to the vet.

We got an appointment for 3:45 yesterday. On the way, we dropped off the girls
at my mom's and then stopped by my sister's to get a crate. In the
process of putting him in the crate, he escaped. He shot out and
took off like a rocket. This all happened in Fountain City...so unfamiliar territory for him. :( We looked for over two hours and then off
and on all night. Upon arriving back home, Laney kept
asking where Grissom was. She looked under the seats in the car
(where he was on the way to the vet) and in our garage. It's just
heartbreaking.

So I'm asking for prayers for our little kitty. He's lost, alone,
and very hurt. We have already put up flyers and asked all around
the area where he was last spotted. Tony even went again last night to look. He thought in the dark he might spot his eyes. Poor
Grissom.

I know there are more pressing matters. But this little guy helped
us during our wait for our girls. He's one of our first kids!! (Fur
babies)

Thanks for your thoughts and prayers....

HOLY COW, WE WON!

So I got an email this morning that I won a free blog make-over!!! No, this isn't a phony website hoax. A fellow FTIA adoptive family runs a website www.thestoryofyou.com
and she hosts adoption journeys. She was running a contest in April for a free blog make-over and WE WON!!!!!

When I entered, I never thought we'd win! But, entering the contest gave me the idea to at least try and figure out a new blog name. (I like our current one too, but wanted something that could grow with us...IF we choose to grow!)

I was just wanting to change the blog name to jazz up our, otherwise, boring blog but NOW....YAY! The whole thing is going to get jazzed up! YAY, YAY, YAY! Can you tell I'm pumped?

Nothing will change (blog address, losing content, etc.) but it will look WAY better! We haven't figured out what design we want to go with yet, and I'm not sure how long it takes Tina to get it up and running. So in the mean time, you'll still see green polka-dots, and my lame attempt at color by using the tickers. But oh, baby, changes are a comin'!

Love the name ideas so far too...keep them rollin' in!

The Contest

And for you Seinfeld fans....it's NOT the same KIND of contest....:)

I want to change our blog name...I think...that IS if I can come up with something funny/catchy/witty/cute. Tony doesn't have an opinion, at least I don't think he does.

I like the idea of a play on twins, two, etc. An example would be Twindom instead of Kingdom...but Twindom what? Twindom Tired, where Abby and Laney reign supreme? Does anyone have a good idea? If we can't drum one up, no worries...our cute little title will stay, but everyone likes a good change! (Especially if we ever add to our family, the current title won't work!)

So, got any good ideas? Put them in the comments section! Thanks!!!

P.S. We're still working on a for-real post :)

P.P.S. Mom, you're right....happy kids, tired parents!!!! I was so happy as a kid, surely you were worn out!!!!

Still Alive...sort of....

Yep, we're still alive....no, the twins didn't hog tie us and put us in the closet. We are just swamped....sorting through pictures now....will post SOON, I promise...so BACK off Lauren! HA!

Man, we've had lots of fun lately. Can't wait to share!

Stay tuned!!!!