Happy Halloween

Their contagious smiles!

Love how they posed like their brothers

Sage was brave tonight and posed with friends

Three Little Princesses...
Halloween party at the church.

The girls loved Halloween!! What a fun filled day. First, they enjoyed seeing their brothers in the costume parade at their school, cool. Then, they went trick or treating at the mall. They were delighted the first time someone put candy in their bucket. How magical! They enjoyed the Merry-Go-Round in our spare time. After a short nap, they hit our neighborhood with Trevor from the back of dad's tractor- beats walking up all the hills and long driveways. Then they ended the day seeing both Grandma's and Grandpa.

I tried not to laugh as I noticed the girls weren't afraid of any of the scary costumes, even close up, yet they are afraid of people (strangers).

We love Fall!!

Since I didn't have my camera at the pumpkin patch, here's the next best thing.

Happy to see the girls enjoyed carving the pumpkins, and was grossed out at the slimy insides. Oooooh!! True girls! Their brothers helped them dig out the guts so they can get to the important stuff, poking holes in the pumpkin.

Thanks Martha for the adorable outfits, love the colors!

Not afraid of Panzer anymore, they love him, and all dogs. Now I'm trying to teach them that not all dogs are this nice.

These girls clean up as well as they make messes... (well almost). Sophie made sure she swept up every last piece of rice she dropped at dinner. Then she politely put the broom away.

Sage showing Grandma her favorite pics on the fridge.

Sure love these girls!!

Flower Girls

Lovely flower girls at my niece's wedding

They had fun dropping the leaves down the isle,

but of course they had to clean them up,

even before the bride walked down.

This is about as close as they would get to the beautiful bride.

Mom and Dad are too far away.

Congratulatulations C & D!!

I use the trial version of Lumapix. It's userfriendly, fun, and free.

First, Go to lumapix.com
At the very bottom of the page, click on downloads.
I'm using the free trial version, I'll purchase the program when I want more options, but for now I really like this one. I like my collages simple that won't take away from the photos. To use this one, download lumapix Fotofusion 3.7 version, not V4 version.
Then click on Auto Collage.
To upload your pictures, get in the right folder by clicking on the small square next to folder, then click on browse. (Is this where you where stuck Rony?)
Once you've selected your photos, make sure they're right side up and click on next.
Now, make sure you change the canvas size to 10" x 10", this will prevent Luma pix watermarks all over your collage.
Then click on finish.
Click on process to save your collage, name it, and save it in the right folder.

Well maybe not super easy at first, but once you play with it you get the hang of it fast.

Few more tips:
-no need to crop your photos beforehand, you can zoom in and out, rotate, tilt, etc. while creating your collage.
-use auto tools to change order of pictures on your canvas. You may delete and add more pics if wanted.
-double click outside of canvas to add text.
-when/if you purchase the program, their are many more options.

BTW, if you purchase this (reasonably priced), I suggest going through Donna at Double Happiness, she referred the program to me... She's the real pro!

Wonderful News!!

We have been to our pediatrician and a few specialists to check out our sweet girls. They are getting all their immunizations redone, and of course all the standard tests, poor girls. They didn't even cry when they received their first set of immunizations, OUCH!
Their medical records from China indicate that Sage tested positive for Hep. B. We were aware of this and did some research, and felt very comfortable bringing these girls home.
Well, we received some wonderful news this morning from Dr. B at Primary Children's. According to recent tests, the Hep. B is not in her bloodstream anymore. I almost cried right there in the doctor's office when she said this.
What great news! Of course, we will keep an eye on it all, and she is due back in one year for a check up, but for now, she is a healthy, happy, playful little girl. What an answer to prayers!!
We have been very happy to see how healthy, well cared for, and well adjusted these girls are- after living in an orphanage for their first three years of life. They do fear strangers and love to be close to mom and dad, or brothers, at all times (which we secretly love). They eat well, sleep great, play well, and love deeply. They are just a joy and we love them to pieces!
They both have hernea's and will need surgery for that in December :(.

Singing in the Rain

We love the rain and couldn't resist trying out our new umbrella from Trevor. Don't worry, we weren't out very long, and mom warmed up our feet as soon as we came in. Umbrella's are fun!

Moon Festival

What a delightful evening! We celebrated the Moon Festival. We had a nice Chinese dinner, walked up the red carpet (the girls loved this), made some Chinese crafts, ate moon cakes, and enjoyed the wonderful company. Sophie and Sage had a great time, Josh was the photographer this evening, and Nick enjoyed video taping. Trevor enjoyed dessert the most! It was so nice celebrating with other adoptive families.

Our Blessing Day!

What a wonderful day! Our girls got blessed today. They received beautiful blessings from dad, it was perfect. I am so thankful for a husband and father who can do this for our children. We wondered how they would do when all the men surround them, so we limited the number in the circle. They were a bit nervous at first, so they sat on moms lap and did great, while the other one ran laps (not quite, but almost). It went very well and we are so thankful that we were able to do it so soon. They have been home now for only six weeks. As we were able to bless them today, we thought about how they have already blessed our lives. They are a joy and fit in so well with our family!

We enjoyed the gathering of family and friends. It's been great to share this exciting time with them and everyone has been so enthused and supportive. They are loved little girls with many cousins, Grandma's, Grandpa's, Aunts & Uncles to enjoy! It is so nice to see them blend in and venture from mom and dad's side a little. It was a very nice day!