Snow Days

 This winter is really Hannah's second winter, but last year she wasn't real thrilled with it because she had just begun to walk and really couldn't move that well in her snowsuit.  But this year, she is loving every minute of it.  We finally found a good saucer sled for her and took her out in the back yard to pull her around. She really couldn't sit on her bottom without falling backwards, so we decided that riding on her stomach was the best position. She had all smiles and a few giggles.

 

Cheese!!!

Baba pulling his girl!!



Hannah learning how to make a snow angel.



Snow fun with Friends

Over Christmas break, we finally got a good snow, so we decided to visit our good friends and neighbors, The Stablers.  Will and Ethan are Hannah's twin boyfriends.  They are a month older than Hannah and they all love each other.  We are so thankful to have such great friends.

 

It's a jungle out here!  Check out the hats.

 

Hanging out with the snowman!



Go Ruthie, Go!!!

Mama and Hannah-my favorite picture.





Sightseeing in China

Our agency always encourages anyone who is traveling to another country to adopt to always take a few days and go sightseeing. One, it gives you time to get over jetlag before you receive your child and two, you get to know your child's culture. So here are some pictures of our trip before Hannah and some with Hannah.

 

Waterfall inside our hotel in Guangzhou





           

           The entrance to Forbidden City



Inside the city

                    



Holly's dream flower garden

The Great Wall in Beijing

Roger standing beside a handcarved ship made from Jade.

The lady was glueing the detailed metal pieces onto the pottery so that it could be painted.

 


The finished product

Our Cruise Down Pearl River
The lights on everything changed every 5 seconds or so. It was beautiful.

The magic show on the boat.





Hannah's first time getting on a plane.

   

The last flight from Detroit to Indianapolis. We were all exhausted!!

 

First morning bottle with Sammy at home.





The Adoption Day

On October 26, 2010, Roger and I signed the papers and stamped our thumbs and Hannah's foot to make her our official daughter.  She did amazing and it went much smoother than we ever imagined.  We were still in shock that she was finally ours and we could finally take her home. 

                      

Gotcha Day

On October 25, 2010, Roger and I held Hannah in our arms for the first time. We waited for 5 years to adopt from China and it has been worth the wait.  We thought we would cry uncontrollably, but I think we were both so amazed that we didn't think to cry until we got back to the hotel room. These first few blogs will be for those of you who didn't follow us on our website when we were in China. I just wanted to give you a quick glimpse into the last year so you can see what we have experienced through adoption. 

Holding Hannah for the first time



Roger holding Hannah for the first time.





Just the Beginning

I am just testing this new way of communication.  Will post many pictures later,