A week with Aunt Becky

We had the most wonderful week with my sister, now known as "Aunt Becky", last week. Becky flew out from MD during the heat of the Arizona summer to see her new niece and we were all blessed by her joyful presence. Aunt Becky was the first to hold Georgea since she was placed in our arms a little over a month ago in China. The transition was seamless. I plunked Georgea into Becky's arms before we even got home from the airport, during a quick stop at Whole Foods, and Georgea smiled and went happily to her. Wonderful!

I thankfully got a week long break from the role of photographer and Becky captured lots of great shots. All of these are hers.........come back Becky, we miss you terribly!

Georgea after a shower with Mama (the only way we bathe these days). Love this personalized towel from my friend Nancy. So adorable, it's our favorite!

We spent some time every day practicing crawling. We've been educated that it's important to crawl before you walk. So....we've removed the walkers for now & it's all about placing Georgea on her belly and encouraging her to crawl. She makes progress every day & we feel confident she'll achieve this important milestone.

I love this shot! Georgea is thumbing through the photo album we sent her when she was in her foster home. It has her Chinese name (now her middle name) on the front & the photo that's visible is her referral photo...the first image we ever saw of our beautiful baby girl.

Enjoying three of her fave's...Alphabet caterpillar from Sascha & Christine, Taggie blanket from Castle House in Cincinnati and Pat the Bunny from Natalie and Luca. A happy baby girl!

My new Ergo Carrier. This is my favorite! We've got a few carriers & they all serve a different purpose, but this is my all around favorite. Easy to put on, great support (no back pain) and Georgea can sit front (snuggly) or backpack style (productive), which means I can do things like vacuum and mop with my baby girl attached to me for bonding. This makes us both very happy. Oh, and Vida enjoys the "hands free" aspect too.

Dinner at Pei Wei. Georgea does really well eating from her Daddy's chopsticks.

Snack time. We're working hard at encouraging Georgea to pick up food and ultimately begin feeding herself. She's got the "picking up" part. Getting the food to her mouth is another story. I'm learning to tame my type A, get it done, check it off the list personality. One thing at a time Mama!

A quick Target run on the 4th of July. Georgea happily relaxes in the cart. She's an easy girl.

Back at home on July 4th. My dear friend Sue has waited so patiently to get her hands on Georgea. She understands our waiting though as she made this same decision with her sweet daughter Alexa when they returned from China. This is Sue's first time holding Georgea and again, Georgea was happy to go to Sue and happy to be held.

Fourth of July celebration at the home of our good friends Nicki & Tom. Our American girl was sporting a red white & blue "sparkle" top from her friends the Chiavacci's who continue to spoil her like crazy!

4th of July snuggles and giggles with Aunt Becky!

Sporting the Ergo backpack style. Love my little package back there.

I enjoyed this beautiful sunset behind our house with my sister....

Late bloomer. This "golden rod" in our front yard bloomed on July 5. That's late, but we'll take it. This is one of the many things I love about the desert. The miracle of a beautiful, delicate flower growing out of a prickly cactus..........God's hand at work.

We trekked to the lake near our house on Becky's last morning with us. We wanted her to see this awesome beauty. It was a little warm, but my east coast sister hung right in there with the Arizonan's, despite the heat. I was proud. :-)

Attempting to protect my girl from the hot desert sun. No amount of spf 50, or sun hats, etc. are going to keep our little brown bunny from getting super dark. We keep trying, but she is like a magnet for the sun. No burning, but she sure gets brown.

Back home & heading for the aiport. Let the tears begin.........

Georgea geared up and ready to take Aunt Becky to the airport. An awesome week comes to an end. We are so grateful for this time....memories to last a lifetime. We love you Beck'!