Family pictures (finally!)

So a month ago we decided it was high time we got some new family pictures. I think our last professional family picture was taken at least two kids ago! :) My friend Beth (local blog buddies-- email me if you want more photographer info!) took these beautiful shots!

Sweet Sarah

Sarah always has lots of ideas for cute poses!

Happy little man!

This is one of my all time favorite pictures of Jason.

Friendly, easy going Logan

Sensitive, kind hearted Evan

Witty, confident Justin

The older I get, the faster time flies. Sometimes the day to day stuff gets in the way of the big picture. Today I am especially grateful for each of my beautiful children. We have our share of struggles and challenges, but the rewards are so. worth. it. Reminding myself to count our blessings today and always!

This time last year...

This time last year, we visited our favorite pumpkin patch with our boys.

This time last year, we were making our lists and checking them twice, preparing for our trip to China to bring Sarah home! (We flew to Beijing on Halloween!)

This time last year, we were experiencing a huge range of emotions about the trip and about meeting our daughter for the first time.

This time last year, I was praying that I would be able to cope with seven flights (I'm not particularly fond of airplanes).

This time last year, we were overwhelmed and grateful for all of the love, support, and prayers said on our behalf... and for Sarah.

This time last year, my heart ached to hold our little girl.

And now, this year...here we are, on our annual trip to the pumpkin patch, with Sarah skipping through the corn maze with her brothers.

What an amazing year this has been. It has not always been easy. There were days, especially early on when I worried if we were "enough" for our little one. Was she bonding appropriately with us? Was she happy? Were we "getting it right?"

We still wrestle with these (and many other) questions from time to time, in regards to all of our children.

But we try to learn from our mistakes, seek out advice from other parents, share experiences, press forward in faith and pray always!

And, especially today, we smile as we watch our children scatter in a field of orange, choosing perfect pumpkins.

Recuperating and Running!

Haven't posted for a couple of weeks... the strep bug visited our family early this year... with a vengeance! Five of us were on antibiotics at the same time. This sets a new record, which we do NOT want to repeat!
Between trips to the doctor and resting up, life went on (full throttle) as usual!

Justin decided to run cross country on his junior high team. When he told me he was going to run, I had flashbacks of my days on the high school cross country team. I realize that some people actually enjoy running, but for me, it has always been grueling, hard work. My freshman year, I wanted to run as fast as the "gazelle-legged" tall girls, so I worked really hard. But even with this determination, I wasn't exactly leading the pack! So the next fall I played volleyball instead and found my niche.
So when Justin decided to run, I though for sure I must have passed down a "glutton for punishment" gene!
This is a picture of him right after one of his meets. He placed eighth overall (in a field of about 40) and had the second best time for his school! Awesome!