Fun in the sun

We had an awesome weekend with Georgea this past weekend. We made some real strides toward getting her comfortable in and actually enjoying the pool. We've been working on this gradually a few days a week. Sitting on the side of the pool, splashing & patting the water, etc. to ease her in. Sunday we were able to spend the bulk of the day in and out of the pool. Georgea was giggling, splashing, smiling, just having an all around great time. We finished the day with a tribute to the iconic Michael Jackson via a "best of" CD blaring from the patio stereo and some serious dancing in the shallow end of the pool. Georgea LOVED it! That's my girl.

She has so many darling sun hats that sometimes she models more than one per day.

A little tentative in her "floaty" from Ginger & John, but she warmed up to it after a bit.

Snuggle bunnies.

Georgea was chewing up a goldfish cracker, but the look on her Daddy's face....oh so sweet, I just had to post this picture.

Contemplative....I spend a lot of time wondering what's going on in that sweet little mind of hers.

One of Georgea's familiar expressions. We have a couple of referral pictures from her early days in China where she is making this face, pulling her lower lip in. It still amazes me that she's here, in our arms, and we're observing these "looks" first hand.

Smiley girl! And just look at all those teeth. They are coming in like crazy. If my count is correct, we're up to 14!

Pulling that bottom lip in again. :-)

Love this little "smirk!"

Making progress

James & I really hope to give Georgea a sister from China....someday. But for now, this is what we have to offer and it seems to be going fairly well. :-)

Georgea is actually doing her "happy feet" in this photo. She claps her feet together quite often when she gets excited. Pretty cute.

Time is fleeting...

They say "time flies when you're having fun", and I can attest, this is true. Today marks one month since Georgea was placed in our arms. It's hard to believe that a month has passed. I look at these pictures of our very first day together in Nanning, China and in so many ways it seems like yesterday. In other ways though, the passage of time is evident. Georgea has opened her heart to us. She says "Mama" and "Dada." She smiles, giggles and reaches for us. She's sleeping comfortably and through the night in her crib, in her own room here at home. We've graduated from a bottle to a sippy cup, and moving from formula to milk will happen in the next week or so.

We opened our hearts to Georgea before we ever laid eyes on her, years prior in fact. Our hearts connected with her at a new level when we saw her beautiful picture for the first time, at the end of February. And we became one with her, when we were blessed to hold her for the first time on May 25, 2009.

With the two employees from Yulin Social Welfare Institute that brought Georgea to us in Nanning.

Back at the hotel, a physically & emotionally exhausted Georgea Lin Zi Luo sleeps. This was one of life's sweetest moments for me.

More paperwork on day one. Baby girl rests peacefully on her Daddy's chest.

Beautiful and sweet beyond our wildest dreams. We love you baby girl and are so thankful for this day.

First Father's Day

Sunday was an amazing first Father's day for all of us! We started the day with our first hike as a family of three (Vida unfortunately isn't allowed on this particular hike). We went to Pinnacle Peak and Daddy toted his girl on his back in our hiking backpack. Georgea LOVED it! It was so fun! She was looking around at all the beautiful sights, smiling, waving her arms and taking it all in. She really had a great time. This is super good news because James & I love to hike and it's part of life for us. Again, Georgea is just fitting in perfectly.

After our hike we went home and I cooked a big afternoon brunch for the new Daddy, and our baby girl. Georgea enjoyed everything that James & I were eating. She's transitioned really well to "grown up" food. She is not a picky eater at all & has yet to refuse anything we've given her.

We got so many good pictures that I had a hard time narrowing it down. Lots of photos of our beautiful hike, and then brunch afterward. We were able to capture lots of Georgea's sweet smiles. Happy girl with a full tummy!

We ended the day with a drive to a beautiful nearby lake. We unfortuantely left the camera behind. It was a gorgeous time of day and I would have loved to have captured some shots of that peaceful stroll along the water. All in all it was a perfect day. Happy Father's Day James....you are an amazing Husband and Daddy. We love you!

Starting out. James was a trooper. The backpack we chose is not very comfortable, but Georgea loved the experience. Would love to hear of any suggestions from any other hikers. Does anyone use an ergo carrier, or have another more comfortable method of toting a 20 pounder?

Love the boulders along this trail, amazing.

Daddy & his girl taking in the Arizona beauty.

Giving Daddy's back a little break.

Happy Father's Day "Da-Da" (she IS saying "Da-Da" now!)

Back on the move!

Almost finished...."where's the food??!!"

Georgea's brunch. Eggs, strawberries, blueberries, whole wheat pancakes (no syrup!), and veggie sausage (Mama's girl). She totally cleaned this plate!

Smile-a-thon!! We just love our baby girl's sweet smiles and giggles......

Fun with Friends!

Georgea had more visitors on Saturday! Our beautiful friends Jillian & Rowan and their parents Cindy & Bill came by to meet Georgea and spend some time with us. It was so fun to watch the girls play with Georgea, and to see Georgea's interest in them. Georgea is definitely social. She really enjoys interacting with other children, and we feel very blessed that she is already surrounded with a wonderful group of friends and mentors.

Playing with the the "talking tea set" that the girls brought for Georgea.

Jillian offering Georgea a sip of "tea!" Georgea's first lesson in drinking from a "big girls" cup.

Georgea loved this tea set on Saturday & hasn't stopped playing with it since. Ahhhh, a break for Mommy....maybe this gift was really for ME!

Three beauties!

Guangxi Girls

Georgea & I had special visitors, our friends Christine & Sascha, on Friday afternoon. Sascha & Georgea are not only from the same province (Guangxi), but they are from neighboring cities. As massive a country as China is we were really surprised and quite excited when we found out that Sascha and Georgea are practically from the same "hometown." What a blessing for them to have each other to grow up with right here, at home. Here are some fun and snuggly photos of the girls enjoying each others company.

FCC Event

We ventured out on Sunday and took Georgea to her first Families with Children from China event. It was great to see several of our friends that we hadn't seen since before we left for China and Georgea was the belle of the ball. :-) All of Georgea's China sisters were very excited to meet her. Georgea is very social, but was a little overwhelmed by the up close, warm greetings she received. So, James & I took turns holding her for most of the time we were there. We're definitely learning as we go as to what works and the timing of exposing Georgea to new things. All things considered it was a really nice evening and we are so thankful for all of our FCC friends. It was fun to hang out with them and actually have our daughter with us. Wow, saying that still makes my heart beat fast.

Georgea's debut. She was pretty precious in her new dress from her friends Sue & Alexa. The bracelet matches Mommy's mahjong bracelet. We found the bracelet at "A Gift From China" in Guangzhou.

Alexa time! We had so much fun watching Alexa interact with the "older" girls (4 year olds) at the park. Alexa has been a joy for James & me, and helped us through our long wait to travel to China. So happy that Georgea will have her as a role model.