One year ago....

Pigtails

I put my baby girl's hair in pigtails for the first time yesterday.

Doesn't she look like a big girl?

I dislike "baby mullets",

so I've kept her hair trimmed before now.

But I think it's time to let it grow out.

Here's all my sweeties.

Maddy gets her cast off today!

YAY!!!

She has been so sweet

about wearing a cast.

Even though it's one of the

hottest summers ever,

she hasn't complained at all

about it the cast being hot.

They are all excited about going

swimming

tomorrow!!

And here's one more of Miss Mia.

Just because she's cute.

17 months

Today Miss Mia is 17 months old.

Here's what she's been up to:

-Most of her clothes are 6-9 months.

-She wears size 2 diapers.

-She has kinda big feet--size 4.

-She still takes 2 naps a day (usually 4-5 hours total).

-Loves to play with her Bubby and Sissy.

-Climbs on EVERYTHING.

-She is SO BUSY!  It's hard for her to sit still (especially in her highchair or at church).

-She can go up and down stairs with no problem.

-She talks a LOT--but we still can't understand most of it.
-We are all SO in love with her!!

Video

So, for months now, I've been working on a video of our trip to Taiwan to get Miss Mia.

I'm hoping to have it done in time for the one year anniversary of when we got her!

That's in just a couple of weeks!

In the meantime, enjoy this video of Mia chatting on her phone.

It's my all-time favorite!

It'll make you smile.

GUARANTEED!

Have a great weekend!

It's OFFICIAL

{I'll try to go back some and catch up some on the big spaces of bloglessness in between posts.}

As of today, my youngest daughter is officially and legally Mia Ryanne!  WhooHoo!

Who wants to celebrate?

Anyone?

I still have some things to do:

-Certificate of Citizenship in her American name

-Social Security Card in her American name

But that's it!

Then I'll finally be done with the paperwork from Mia's adoption!

Just in time to start the next adoption!

CHANGE THE WORLD FOR ONE

Whether it is a child in Taiwan, China, Africa, on the other side of the world, in a homeless shelter, or foster care system here in America, there is no difference. These children in need {through no fault of their own} need the ORDINARY people in this world {like me and you} to give them help to change their world for the better. We can't change the whole world by helping just one, but the whole world for that one...CHANGES.

What are the ways you help others??

So, the kids and I all needed new shoes. Yep. All of us. I was tempted to just run to Target or Wal-Mart. But I was inspired by my friend, Jennifer Chase and her blog post. Why not make my purchase count for something? MEAN something to someone. I LOVE knowing that 4 children who didn't have shoes before now have shoes covering their precious feet. What are the ways you help others??