Happy Easter...and Good-bye Blog

Better late than never...Happy Easter!!! It's hard to believe, but we have come full circle & are celebrating Easter for the second time together. The Nyah we know & love today is a far cry from the quiet little baby we celebrated with last year! :) She is now a running, jumping, non-stop talking toddler who knows EXACTLY what she wants & is persistent about getting it! All kidding aside, she is doing so well...I am amazed every day at the new things she learns. It's fun to see her personality continue to develop...she got a double dose in that department!

I have decided to discontinue our blog...life is getting busier & I don't seem to have much time to keep up with my blog posts. Thank you to everyone who has followed along with our journey & prayed for us along the way. Those prayers have been answered & I thank God every day for my happy, healthy, beautiful little girl!!!

Gotcha Day celebration continues...

These 3 children have very strong ties...they share a history of circumstances that brought them together at an orphanage in Awassa, Ethiopia. Now, by the grace of God's design, they are all living in West Michigan and can continue to share in each other's lives.

To celebrate the 1st anniversary of our children coming home, we went to GoJo to enjoy some delicious Ethiopian food & the great company of our friends!!!

When I look at these pictures, it brings me back to the day we first met one year ago. When I think about everything they've been through, it makes my heart smile to see how happy & healthy they all are now! What a blessing these 3 little ones are to all of us!!!

Gotcha Day Anniversary

I knew it had been a while since my last post, but I'm just now realizing how long...it's been a busy couple of months! Between sickness (which we keep passing back & forth) & teething, sleep has become a precious thing, so there has been little time for blogging.
Aside from that, Nyah is doing exceptionally well...she's learning so many new things, it's hard to keep track of them anymore. She's talking A LOT, attempting to repeat everything I say (yikes!), running everywhere, climbing on everything, dancing, singing & cracking us all up with her little "Nyah-isms".
On March 12, we celebrated the 1st anniversary of our "Gotcha Day". I just can't believe it's been a year already...fastest year of my life!!! And the most wonderful by far...she is truly the most amazing gift from God!
Here are a few photos of her with her Gotcha Day cake. When I put it in front of her, she looked at me like "are you serious Mom???", but she only hesitated for a moment. :)

So now we begin our 2nd year together...looking forward to the adventures ahead of us!

Happy Gotcha Day Baby Girl...I love you so much!!!

Friends, Food & Fun!!!

We started our weekend by getting together with our S.C.A.M. friends on Friday evening which also happened to be Ganna, the Ethiopian Christmas. Here's Nyah in her traditional clothing to celebrate the holiday. We've just discovered a new favorite...spaghetti!!! I haven't tried to give it to her until now & she absolutely LOVES it! She immediately figured out how to "slurp" up the noodles, so not only does it taste good, it's fun to eat. :) Although, I need to find a bib that covers her entire body...and her chair...and the table. :)
Since it's officially winter & we live near the lakeshore, I figured I better buy a sled for Nyah. We tried it out today & she had a blast. I pulled her around the backyard & she just grinned from ear to ear! When I told her it was time to go in, she pointed to the backyard & showed me the sign for "more". And just to be sure she was making her point, she followed it with the sign for "please"...how could I resist?! It's so hard for me to believe, but Nyah is 18 months old today. Time is flying by so quickly! It seems like she has become a "big girl" overnight...she no longer uses her "binky" & she has decided she is too big for a high chair, so we (yes, me too) eat our meals at a little kiddie table. She also thinks she is too big for a bib, but as you can see from the spaghetti photo above, she is clearly wrong about that! :) She is learning so many new words & growing like a weed, too.

Here are a couple of her 18 month photos...

But no matter how big she gets, she'll always be my baby girl!!!

Happy New Year!!!

When I look back at 2010, it's all kind of a blur...it's hard to believe so much has happened in a single year! Becoming a mother, bringing my daughter home & watching her grow before my eyes has made this the most exciting & blessed year ever! I look forward to a new year & all that it has in store for us!

Happy New Year!!!

A Very Special Christmas!!!

What a blessing to have my daughter home with me this Christmas...our first Christmas together as a family! She has brought so much joy to so many lives...truly a gift from above!!!

Nyah has definitely enjoyed all of the celebrating...she caught on to the unwrapping of the gifts pretty quickly, though she was very conscious of throwing the paper away...every little piece of wrapping paper she ripped off (no matter how small) went immediately into the garbage! So, as you can imagine, this was a lengthy process! :) It was so much fun to see the excitement through her eyes...it made me feel like a kid again!

We always celebrate with my immediate family on Christmas Eve, so Nyah was surrounded by all of her grandparents (& great grandma), aunts, uncles & cousins who love her so much! Then Christmas morning, we had our little family celebration with Nyah, Mama & YaYa (this is what she calls my mom). Then we went to spend some time with our dear friends later in the day. As you can see, Nyah is loved (& yes, spoiled) by so many!

Playing with her new "food" w/her cousin Lauren. Opening gifts from our friends
Giving a gift of Ethiopian coffee & mugs that say "Aunt" & "Uncle" in Amharic.

My little drummer girl...& no, this is not hers...thank goodness! This catepillar is the same gift I gave my friend's son when he was little...they are all too happy to pay me back for all of the loud & annoying gifts I've ever given their kids...uh oh!

A kitchen set from YaYa

How cute is this...thanking Jesus for her fake food. :)

"Reading" Twas the night before Christmas...

The girl loves her music!!!

Grocery shopping...isn't it funny how kids find this stuff fun?!

This awesome doll house/bookshelf was made by some wonderful friends!
Thanks to all of our friends & family who shared in our first Christmas together & helped to make it so special. Above all, thank you to our Father in heaven for blessing our family with Nyah, our most precious gift!!!

A visit with Santa...

We finally made it to see Santa today! As you can see by the look on her face, Nyah was not so sure about this whole situation. The "elf"/photographer said "Wow, she's really giving me the evil eye"! I was just happy she wasn't screaming. :)

Things have sure changed since the days of the polaroid in the cardboard frame...now you can get your photo on a USB flash drive! And yes, I was that mom who bought the photo package with multiple sizes, the flash drive, the photo ornament AND the keychain! What can I say...she my first! :)