Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Day at the beach
A fun day at Kohler-Andrae State Park beach.
Sofia chasing bubbles on the beach with Grandma.
Smiling for a picture with Uncle Shawn.
Burying feet in the sand.
Running on the beach.Celebrating Miracles
Last month Sofia participated in Relay for Life in Marshfield for the first time. My Mom has participated for many years, but this was her 2nd year participating as a cancer survivor. Like so many others, our family has been devastated by cancer time and again. My Mom lost both her parents and two sisters to cancer, and 6 months after her own diagnosis, her younger brother received his diagnosis.Even though my Mom is still fighting hard, we had much to celebrate. The first miracle was my Mom surviving the doctors' original prognosis, and the second miracle came with the referral of Sofia. At the beginning of the year, we all thought time was not on our side, and my Mom's dream of becoming a Grandma looked dim at best. So even the timing of these miracles was a miracle!
The last year has renewed my faith in HOPE. Even when things are so dark, you can't see any light, there is still a light there.
The last year has renewed my faith in HOPE. Even when things are so dark, you can't see any light, there is still a light there.
Grandpa, Mami, Sofia, Grandma
Monday, August 3, 2009
Me encanta bailar.
When we received our first information about Sofia, it stated that she loved to dance.....and they weren't kidding. She even breaks into dance when one of our cell phones ring. Here are two video clips of her dancing while Paul plays guitar.
Sunday, July 5, 2009
First swimming pool
Sofia LOVES the water and wants to play in her swimming pool every day. As soon as she walks outside, she points and says excitedly "pool!" Here are a couple video clips and some pictures of her enjoying her new swimming pool.
Friday, July 3, 2009
Sofia turned 2 on June 15!
Sofia turned 2 years old on June 15, (it has taken me awhile to catch up on posts) and here are just a few pictures of us celebrating. The weekend before her birthday we celebrated in Marshfield with Grandma and Grandpa. We all went to the zoo. At that time she didn't say "duck" yet, so she ran around the pond pointing and repeating "quack, quack". We saw lots of animals, but I think she was the most intriqued by a little mouse that was sniffing around a bush by the bear cave. We kept trying to move on, especially Grandma who was keeping her distance from the mouse, but Sofia kept running up to it and pointing.Sofia loves Dora, in case you couldn't tell from her doll and the cake, so she was very excited to get a Dora kickball, and beach towel from Grandma and Grandpa, along with a swimming pool. Uncle Shawn thought it was a great idea as well, since he got her one too. The cell phone is from Mami and Daddy, knowing how much she loved to talk on ours, we thought she would enjoy one of her own :o)
Yummy!!!
Yay! A swimming pool from Grandma and Grandpa. (Actually, uncle Shawn bought one, too. It was a great idea!
Wow! My very own cell phone! Now I won't have to try to grab Mami and Daddy's anymore....
Oh, Dora card, with stickers 
Sofia and cousin Max playing with her new Elmo mailbox. 
Elmo Birthday cupcakes
Pictures below are from the 2nd birthday celebration with Aunt Tamara, Uncle Craig, and cousins Max and Sam.
Oh, Dora card, with stickers 
Sofia and cousin Max playing with her new Elmo mailbox. 
Elmo Birthday cupcakesWednesday, June 17, 2009
Home: happy and healthy
We've been home for just under six weeks now, and we are all doing great! Sofia is pure joy, and constantly making us smile and laugh.
There have definitely been challenges as we adjust to being home as a family, but it finally feels as though everything is falling into place and we couldn't be happier.
The first challenge of Sofia being comfortable enough to be alone with Paul only lasted a couple weeks. It didn't take her long to realize what a sweet, fun guy he is. Paul loves it so much, he wishes he could be home with her all the time. And for anyone wondering, Sofia did finally start calling him Daddy (instead of Mami) a couple weeks after we came home, much to Paul's relief.
The second challenge presented itself after I had to return back to work part-time a few weeks ago. Suddenly, Sofia no longer wanted to go to bed at night. We thought we had the bed routine down, and didn't foresee how this change (that seemed so small to us) would impact her. We have been struggling with this until just recently, but I don't want to be too quick to say it is resolved. I only have one more week of part-time left, and then I have to return to full time, so we'll have to see how this will affect her. Everyone we talked to and everything we have read says to just be consistent and stick with the routine, and eventually things will work out. I'm relieved to say that this is appearing to work....for now.
Sofia is very well behaved and happy 99% of the time, so I consider us lucky, because I feel like we have it pretty easy. There are moments when she will lay down on the sidewalk and yell because she does not want to take my hand in the parking lot, which will draw the attention of everyone else. A small part of me is slightly embarrassed, but a larger part of me is happy in a way, because I finally feel like a parent. I love every moment of being a parent, even the embarrassing, challenging and sleep-deprived moments.
A few weeks after being home, I took Sofia to the pediatrician and an audiologist (since there had been some initial questions on her hearing). I'm pleased to report that all her labs came back normal and the audiologist thinks she has no hearing problems. Her development seems to be normal, but perhaps slightly delayed in language (which is typical for international adoptees). We think she is catching up very quickly though, since she is saying new words every day. Her first English word was puppy, and she was saying this before we even left Colombia. Other than that, she loves to play, act silly, and imitate pretty much everything we do. I have to admit it is kind of nice that she likes to help water the flowers.
Many people have passed along that they miss Paul's posts. Sorry I haven't been able to talk him into it yet, but maybe he will write one soon. I think he just enjoys every free moment being a Dad!
Thank you to everyone who was with us in thought and prayer while we were in Colombia, and also for all the wonderful comments on our blog. It helped so much to have that connection to home while we were away. We love you all very much, and for those who have yet to do so, we can't wait for you to meet Sofia!
There have definitely been challenges as we adjust to being home as a family, but it finally feels as though everything is falling into place and we couldn't be happier.
The first challenge of Sofia being comfortable enough to be alone with Paul only lasted a couple weeks. It didn't take her long to realize what a sweet, fun guy he is. Paul loves it so much, he wishes he could be home with her all the time. And for anyone wondering, Sofia did finally start calling him Daddy (instead of Mami) a couple weeks after we came home, much to Paul's relief.
The second challenge presented itself after I had to return back to work part-time a few weeks ago. Suddenly, Sofia no longer wanted to go to bed at night. We thought we had the bed routine down, and didn't foresee how this change (that seemed so small to us) would impact her. We have been struggling with this until just recently, but I don't want to be too quick to say it is resolved. I only have one more week of part-time left, and then I have to return to full time, so we'll have to see how this will affect her. Everyone we talked to and everything we have read says to just be consistent and stick with the routine, and eventually things will work out. I'm relieved to say that this is appearing to work....for now.
Sofia is very well behaved and happy 99% of the time, so I consider us lucky, because I feel like we have it pretty easy. There are moments when she will lay down on the sidewalk and yell because she does not want to take my hand in the parking lot, which will draw the attention of everyone else. A small part of me is slightly embarrassed, but a larger part of me is happy in a way, because I finally feel like a parent. I love every moment of being a parent, even the embarrassing, challenging and sleep-deprived moments.
A few weeks after being home, I took Sofia to the pediatrician and an audiologist (since there had been some initial questions on her hearing). I'm pleased to report that all her labs came back normal and the audiologist thinks she has no hearing problems. Her development seems to be normal, but perhaps slightly delayed in language (which is typical for international adoptees). We think she is catching up very quickly though, since she is saying new words every day. Her first English word was puppy, and she was saying this before we even left Colombia. Other than that, she loves to play, act silly, and imitate pretty much everything we do. I have to admit it is kind of nice that she likes to help water the flowers.
Many people have passed along that they miss Paul's posts. Sorry I haven't been able to talk him into it yet, but maybe he will write one soon. I think he just enjoys every free moment being a Dad!
Thank you to everyone who was with us in thought and prayer while we were in Colombia, and also for all the wonderful comments on our blog. It helped so much to have that connection to home while we were away. We love you all very much, and for those who have yet to do so, we can't wait for you to meet Sofia!
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