Announcing.....

Yes, it's true... I haven't added a new post for almost a year. Life got kind of crazy last fall and then it seemed too far gone to try and catch up on a move back to Minnesota, Isa's third birthday, the adventures of our first snowy winter, my sister's wedding, etc...... so, I decided to semi-retire the blog until we had some big news to share.

Of course, we assumed our news would be about a baby! Aaron and I completed a homestudy in Illinois last summer to adopt a second time, and then after we moved we did another homestudy and thought by this summer we would have great news of an addition to our family to share. We are currently waiting for a little girl in South Korea and are also sending a dossier to Rwanda within the next month. The process is taking longer than we thought and the wait has been as hard as it was the first time. Yet, I know God is faithful and I have recently been filled with such incredible, sincere joy looking at the family he has provided me with that I am learning how to wait with eager and hopeful anticipation, rather than in a state of fearful discontentment. Waiting for something we long for so intensely, for such a long time and undetermined amount of time, has challenged my beliefs and tested my faith. I have been praying for Him to show me I can trust Him, to lighten my emotionally heavy load, to give me peace, and to teach me to REST in His faithfulness. I have begun to understand that in order to fully appreciate and enjoy the amazing adventures God has in store for our family, I would have to, once-and-for-all, grab that giant wand and permanently erase the picture I created on my little personally etched-a-sketch life. And, after an incredibly fun weekend together I did just that- on Saturday while playing together in the pool the slate was wiped clean and I was honestly open, and happy, just the way we are. And for the first time in months, I began to wonder about the blessings and adventures we would have, rather than worry how closely they would match my picture.

Well, as it turns out, I didn't have to wonder for long. Yesterday, my dear friend Bobbie called to tell me she found puppies and if we want a sibling we should be at her house ASAP to go see them and, if it was the right situation, bring one home! We had talked with them about the breed we wanted next, and it turned out they were looking for the same one. The difference was they wanted a puppy this summer, and we were comfortable knowing we will get a puppy when Heidi is gone... someday in the future, far far away from now. Aaron was golfing with my Dad and Abby's husband at the time, so I called and told him about the puppies, and after waiting while he took an "impossible shot", he picked up the phone and said..... "well, you better get the checkbook." That was it! We jumped in the car, drove three hours north, and fell in love with the cutest little bundle of love we have ever seen! Yes, I know, it's only a dog... we have no human addition to our family to announce. Yet, I couldn't be happier! We all wore the same clothes for two days, didn't have chance to shower, and were up in the night with a little bundle of love- just what we needed. God has a way of answering prayers that just makes me laugh. Last night as I watched Isa and my Godson Christian beaming and bubbling over with joy at the sight of their new puppies, I knew God was taking care of me. He has a plan, His timing is perfect, and He is always faithful. And although I do hope to have another announcement soon, I am so thankful for the gift of raising these little brothers with our dear friends. What a turn of events I never saw coming. Yes, God is faithful... and so fun!!!

Here's Henry- our little (for now) Bernese Mountain Dog.
Hope you get a chance to meet him before he gets big- better come quickly!

Mission accomplished- puppies on board and lots of smiles on faces!

And, a pic for those of you who haven't seen our little Isa Lu for awhile- she is such a big girl with a big girl haircut. Time just goes by so fast.....

Cheers- here's to more posts soon,
Aaron, Megan, Isabel, Heidi, Jazz and Henry

Summertime fun!

What is better than summer?! I know, every time I say how much I love summer Aaron reminds me that I say that about every season- I just can't believe I actually say it about winter, but I must! We had a great summer visiting friends and family, spending time together on the back step eating ice cream, and are more thankful for our little Isababy with every passing day. She is truly a big girl and reminds me of it everyday. She wants to do everything by herself and is so proud when she can. We have many more pics to come... but for now, here a few.

Riding a pony at the Taste of Champaign!

Isa's favorite babies are Andray and Pigtail and she plays with them everyday. This day they were in a time out in their bed- so cute!

Building a rainbow for her Ark! I didn't know she could love a toy so much- thanks Beth and Ryan.

Isa is such a spirited soul and is always playing- even pretending to read Mommies books and bake a cake with Apron on at the same time. She reminds us everyday of the joy in the littlest things in life- seeing the moon as the sky darkens, jumping over lines in the sidewalk, and going on acorn hunts. What a gift! I LOVE summer!!!

Our little ballerina

Isa loves anything princess and ballerina and last week my mom sent her this tutu she made. Needless to say Isa loves it and we had a great time making up a ballet and performing for her baby doll 'pigtail'. She loves the Angelina Ballerina books and felt like such a princess with her tutu on.

Mimi even made a matching tutu for pigtail!

Cookie break... princess got tired!

Our audience

She holds onto the bar of her crib and holds out her arm saying, "plie... tondu". She even has the french accent going on... "tonzu"! It's interesting that her foster mom always called her 'princesa' and as soon as she put her tutu on she starting calling herself "la princesa". We definitely need to plan a trip to Guatemala to visit her family there.

Thanks for the tutu Mimi- it was a huge hit!

Welcome Roslyn Ann!

Isa has a new baby cousin! Jake, Celest and Andray welcomed Rosyln Ann on May 23rd and she is adorable! We can't wait to meet her and kiss her sweet face.

The cutest Goddaughter in the world- Uncle Aaron loves you sooooo much baby Ros!

Congratulations Stang family- we love you guys! Feel free to check out their blog for more pics of our nephew and niece: www.waitingforbabystang.blogspot.com.

Lovin' the month of May!

Isa seems to get bigger and more grown up everyday and surprises me with how much she can do and say these days. She has gotten very good at playing by herself and making up stories about her "guys". I will be making dinner and overhear her plot and it usually involves a baby losing his mommy and she reassures him it will be ok- his mommy is coming right back.



She loves to be out and started taking a dance/music class that combines all of the arts and she loves it! This is a picture of Isa and her friends Erszi and Lauren at dance class- they have so much fun together. I get to teach with Heidi and Lynne (Erszi and Lauren's moms) and we have such a great time together. What fun to look forward to a work meeting!


We have a wonderful farmer's market here and Isa has eaten her weight in strawberries since they've been ripe! She was in the backseat just eating one after the other on the way home saying, "I just need one more Mommy... ok, just one more....!" We have strawberry waffles, strawberry yogurt, strawberry smoothies, strawberry popsicles... strawberry stains everywhere! yum!



She loves to swim and run through the sprinkler too- look, we even have strawberry swimsuits! And, I have my eye on the cutest strawberry outfits at Gymboree now too! I wish we could buy outfits and still be cute...
Helping Daddy spread some mulch. She loves to water the plants and is actually pretty helpful. I can't wait for her to help me grow some veggies and learn to cook. She already is a pretty good bread maker.
She got to spend the weekend with her best buds Jacob and Johnny a few weeks ago and she had the best time. She asks me about them often and includes them in her prayers most nights. It is so sweet to watch them play together and love each other- we are so lucky to have Beth and Ryan in our life.

Happy Mother's Day to me!

Isa and Alex! Alex has taken care of Isa since we got home from Guatemala and truly became a part of Isa's family- she is sure going to miss her this summer.


Uncle Jake came to visit too and it was great for her to spend time with him. We miss our family so and wish we could see them more often.

Finally have a new camera!

"CHEESE!!"

I am sorry for the lack of updates lately- right before Valentine's Day our camera stopped functioning so haven't taken any pictures... until now- we just got our new camera and love it! I have only taken a few pictures but I do have to post them because I really think she has changed a lot over the past month or two. She looks and acts like such a big girl now!
Some of our favorite Isa sayings from the past month are:

Me:"Isa, don't stick your fingers in the light socket honey- that is dangerous- ouch!"
Isa: "You close eyes Mommy. Go nigh night- sleep tight. I stick fingers socket."
(Like Mother like Daughter I guess- when I was her age I told my mom to "read paper" so I could continue eating butter by the fistful!)

"You my best friend whole wide world Mommy"

Me: "Are you hungry Isa?"
Isa: "No, I fine right now. Thank you asking me Mommy."

"DADDY- NO GO WORK!!! NO!!! DON'T LEAVE ME DADDY!!""" (she is becoming kind of a drama queen lately)

"Oh thank you Mommy (for the new dress). I so pretty. I princess. I looka mirror."

"I not feeling good Mommy. My need me-cine."

Isa is more fun than we ever imagined having and is truly the light of our lives. We are going to Mexico on vacation next week so I will be sure to post some pics of our little cutie on the beach. She is very excited about going to the beach and swimming in the pool and is already putting on her swimming suit ready to go!SPRING IS ON THE WAY!!

Happy Spring everyone- look for posts from Mexico next week!

Fun in the snow!

Happy Winter!

Isa has embraced winter and loves playing in the snow. She got to go sledding for the first time with Mimi and Papa, has made her first snow angel, and is in love with snowmen thanks to all the singing ones Grandma and Grandpa had at their house over Christmas. Last week we were leaving the grocery store at night and it was snowing huge flakes that looked almost magical under the street lights, so we had to stop in the middle of the parking lot to catch snowflakes on our tongues. She makes everyday more fun and truly has blessed our winter with some long lost wonder!

(yes, we still love Heidi... most of the time :)

And, I just had to post this picture because this is what I get to witness every night while I am making dinner.... she's always into something, and most of the time it's funny!