Cindy Lou Who

Check this out!!! One of Alayna's friends' mom fixes her daughters hair like Cindy Lou Who every year for the last day of school before winter vacation. This year, she also did Alayna's hair. How sweet is that?! So, here is Alayna as Cindy Lou Who. Isn't she the cutest thing ever?!

Baking Cookies

We decided that cookies sounded really good, so I gave the recipe book to Matthew and told him to pick which cookie we should make. He first chose peanut butter cookies, but then he decided that he wanted to eat cookie dough so we went with chocolate chip cookies. Then, to my amazement, Matthew decided that he wanted to make the cookies all by himself. So, he did, with only a little bit of help from me. He did a fantastic job. The cookies turned out wonderful and they were gone in a matter of hours. Awesome job Matthew!!!

Shaving

Well, believe it or not, Sean had to learn to shave this past week. He will be only 13 in a month, but he knows how to grow a mustache. He is maturing so quickly. He is now taller than Donovan and is shaving. Where did my little boy go?

Family Pictures

So, we figured it was time to get new family pictures taken. The last pictures we had taken were right before Jeff left for Iraq, almost 4 years ago. We were hoping that the next family picture we would take would have a new addition, but it is not the case. We were tired of waiting. So, without further ado, our family.

Yes, we really do love each other. :o)

The kids.

The girls.

The boys.

Donovan

Sean

Alayna

Matthew

Alayna's Birthday

Can you believe it? Alayna is 10 years old!!!

Yummy chocolate chocolate cake!!!

Yea!!! She blew out all the candles with one breath!

She loves Littlest Pet Shop.

What nifty wrapping paper :o)

Hoop earrings!!! Just what I've always wanted!

First Day of School

The first day of school was today. The kids were so excited to finally be going back after a long, yet fun, summer. As tradition, I took their pictures. Enjoy!

See how excited Matthew is here, love the thumbs up.

Donovan - 8th Grade

Sean - 7th Grade

Alayna - 4th Grade

Matthew - 3rd Grade

Sad Day

We found out today that we will not be able to adopt Brooklyn. The family in MA that adopted one of her half brothers has come forward with the official paperwork and is interested in adopting her. DCFS has their committee meeting today and decided that it is in Brooklyn's best interest to be adopted by this other family.

We are beyond upset. We had an attorney and were only 1 1/2 months away from finalizing the adoption. Now, we lose her and she will not be a part of our forever family. She will remain in our care for a couple more weeks while the transition plans are finalized, then she'll be gone.

Just rip my heart out why don't you. I am definitely going through the stages of grief. I cry one minute and the next I want to throw something. I just pray for the pain to go away. What more can I say?