New PJs

A couple weeks ago we got a very special package from Eli's foster family! Anything from Korea is so special and exciting to us, and as soon as we found out there was a package waiting we hurried to the post office and opened it in the car. :) Eli's foster family included some very sweet and kind letters which we will always treasure. They also sent some Pororo laver that the boys LOVE, and the cutest matching pajamas. They were so excited to wear them, and had such big smiles on their faces. Eli kept pointing to them and saying "Omma, Omma."

I couldn't resist taking a video, too.

Thank you, thank you, to his amazing foster family!

Joel's Family Day--Four Years

On the 16th, we celebrated four years together with Joel. It's hard to believe he's been a part of us for that long. We can't imagine life before him anymore! I just reread our family day post from last year, and guess what? Joel chose the exact same activities this year! I gave him some suggestions of places he likes to go, and he choose the "beach pool", pizza place for dinner, and ice cream at Oberweis. In between all that, we also had playtime at a local organization and a tball game. Whew! It was just me and the boys at the pool, which was a bit stressful. I'm okay taking them to our local pool, but this one is quite a bit bigger and there's more room to run. We all survived, though! The boys loved it.

Silliness during our picnic lunch

A rare moment of relaxation

Yay! It's my Family Day!

The pizza place has arcade games, so it's always a hit with the boys. And picking out a prize is part of the fun, too. :)

We were joined for ice cream by my parents and our friends, who were also at the t-ball game.

We had a very fun day and always love celebrating our family and the joy of our boys!

Eli's 2nd Birthday Party

We wanted Eli's first birthday celebration with us to be a special one. We invited our friends, rented a bounce house, and ended up with a great party! We picked a dog theme, since he adores dogs. He cannot leave our dog alone, and every time he sees a dog out somewhere he makes a beeline for it. He gets the biggest smile and makes these little happy noises. It's the cutest thing ever! I ordered some graphics from Etsy and used them to print some of the decorations.

Eli's favorite things about the party were the m&ms in the trail mix I made, the bubbles, and having access to numerous water bottles. He was also pretty happy with his cupcake and candle.

Eating m&ms

The older boys had way too much fun playing with the water table and squirting each other in the eyes.

The bounce house was a big hit, too.

Inside we played a slideshow with photos of Eli, from the time he went to live with his foster family at six months old until now. This one was on his first birthday.

We're thankful to all of our friends and family for helping us celebrate Eli's special day! 

Happy Birthday Eli Taeho!

I can't believe our little guy is TWO today! We are having so much fun with him, listening to his new words, hearing his silly laugh, and watching him grow and develop his own personality. We are so happy that we can celebrate his birthday with him this year, instead of 6,000 miles away.

As happy as we are to have him home with us, our hearts also hurt for those who love Taeho and can't be with him. His birth mother, birth family, and foster family are in our thoughts often, but especially on these milestones and special days. We pray for them to be filled with peace and comfort in knowing that he is healthy and happy.

Happy 2nd birthday, Eli Taeho! We love you so much!

Camping 2013--Part 1

In following with tradition, we went camping this summer with our group of friends and family. This was our first trip away from home with Eli, and I was pretty nervous about it. He doesn't always do well in new situations, so we weren't sure what to expect. There were other things I was worried about, but thankfully none of those worries actually happened. (When, oh when, will I learn to stop worrying?) Both boys had an absolutely great time. They slept well, played hard, and enjoyed every moment. The campground had quite a few activities, so we were never bored. We stayed in cabins this year, and let me just say that I would happily sell our tent and cabin it every year. It was great. Our cabins were right by a small lake, so the boys enjoyed lots of bike riding down by the water and fishing.

My favorite photo of our trip. Love the joy here!

We also went mini-golfing, paddle-boating, and swimming. The adults enjoyed some time in the hot tub while the kids played nearby at the park, and we had some play time at the small beach, too.

We rented a golf cart to get around the campground, and the boys (all three of them) loved riding around. And pretending to drive while honking the horn.

We also enjoyed some moments of relaxation, while drinking pop, juice boxes, and water bottles. (None of which are had much at home. Joel was overly excited that he got to pick out two cans of pop for our trip.)

The whole gang

You'll notice that this is camping part 1. Our next trip is in July, and we're hoping for just as great of a time!

Ours Forever

On May 2nd, Eli's adoption was finalized, and he is legally ours forever. Hooray! Of course, we've always felt that he's part of our family, but it's a big relief and joy to have that completed. We feel so blessed that he's part of our family. He really is the sweetest little boy. He's always hugging and kissing, getting Joel's bear for him when he's upset, sharing his toys with random kids at the pool, kissing our owies, and loving on animals of all kinds. He also loves to snuggle, which  is a new experience for us. :)

We love you, Eli Taeho, and we're so happy that you are ours forever!

A Family of Four

Six months ago today, we became a family of four. On that day, we were handed a scared, quiet, and very sad little boy. As I reflected on that time today, I was filled with many emotions and the realization of how far Eli Taeho has come since then.

On that day in Seoul, our hearts were full of happiness for this little boy to join our family. At the same time, we were filled with sadness for his foster family and for Taeho, who would soon lose everything that he knew. We knew that it would be very hard day for everyone.

We met at the agency after meeting Joel's foster family and Taeho's foster aunt and cousin were there, too, along with his foster brother. It was obvious how much they cared for this little boy, too. We played together for a few minutes and his foster mother gave us more gifts--a toy bus, lots of clothes, and a pair of shoes from his foster aunt that didn't quite fit yet. Our social worker also gave us diapers, formula, a CD of Korean children's songs, a small Korean flag, and an engraved jewelry box.

Then it was time for us to take Taeho. We all walked out into the hallway, and the good-byes began. I was wiping away tears and so was Taeho's foster mother. We got to the elevator and she grabbed my hand very hard and began to sob. It was heart-breaking. Our social worker had to pull Taeho away from her because he was clinging to her, and she handed him to us and we got in the elevator. Taeho was screaming and reaching his arms out to the elevator doors. Our hearts were breaking, and it felt so wrong to be taking this boy from the people he loved and who loved him. By the grace of God, I was able to hold it together and not break down myself. I didn't want to upset Taeho anymore than he already was. I tried to stay calm and kept telling him "it's okay" in Korean. He continued to cry as we walked back to our room. We tried to soothe him and carry him on our backs, in a way that was familiar to him.

Daddy finally got him to take a nap. When he woke, he was very quiet but calm. We fed him some curry chicken from his foster mother and he and Joel played for a bit. 

After a couple of hours, Taeho started to cry and pointed at his shoes, then at the door. Our hearts broke for this little boy who just wanted to go back to the only home he'd known.

Over the last six months, Eli has blossomed into a happy, outgoing, chatty, sweet, loving, and fun little boy. We are loving his personality and the fact that he feels comfortable enough with us to show us who he really is. It was difficult to feel an attachment for him at first, but we have fallen in love with him and cannot imagine our family without him.

Joel has really grown into his role as a big brother, too. The majority of the jealousy he experienced has gone, and he shares a lot more with him and is always looking out for him and trying to teach him new things. They both love each other so much, and are constantly playing together, hiding from each other, laughing, and getting into trouble.It brings us so much joy to watch them together! We really weren't sure how they would get along, especially due to their rocky start as brothers. Eli looks out for Joel, too. We were playing with some friends, and one of the boys was getting angry at Joel for playing with one of his toys. He started to yell at Joel and Eli immediately hit the boy. It was so sweet that he was trying to protect his big brother. (We're still working on the hitting. :)  

I don't want to go into details on this blog, but I will say that I had a very difficult time adjusting to this change in our family. I finally feel like I'm coming out of a sleep deprived and hopeless fog, and starting to enjoy life and the boys again. I've found myself developing more and more of a motherly love toward Eli, and I'm able to see what a cute and awesome little boy he is. It's a wonderful place to be, especially compared to where we were a few months ago. I truly didn't know if our life would ever feel right or normal again. We are praising God for getting us through those rough times and giving us a feeling of hope again.

Our boys mean the world to us, and although these months have been difficult, we know that the challenges are making us stronger and are cementing our bond as a family. We are looking forward to life with these two, and all the fun and joy they bring.