Finally home.

When I first started this blog over six years ago, it was to document our family's adoption. We did not believe that biological children would be part of the picture and so after lots of prayer and research, we decided to start an international adoption.

We began the process in February 2010 with the hopes of bringing home a baby from Ethiopia. At that time, adoptions were going pretty smoothly and we couldn't wait to get our referral, travel to Addis Ababa, and bring home our child. The future we had planned for changed many times...we got pregnant with Judah, left the Ethiopia program, began the adoption process in Ghana, switched to Congo, got pregnant with Sylvie.....and then waited for our child from Congo.

But.

God had other plans for our family. And though there has been lots of heartache, many tears, and years of waiting, we have finally brought home our son - Mathieu.

Mathieu

born in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo

legally adopted in 2014

forever home in 2016

The last couple years have been the most difficult in our lives. There's not enough time to share all of the details today, but to sum it up, God gave us another son in October 2011. For 2.5 years we waited for the Congolese government to allow adopted children to come home. God gave us the strength to endure and brought our son home in His timing. To God be the glory.

"The LORD has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy."

Psalm 126:3

{Sylvie} 11 Months Old

I cannot believe that my baby girl is almost done with her first year. It's so fun watching her grow and change but I want her to stay a baby forever!

Sleeping:  She had a great month of sleeping. She's still taking two naps, around 9:45-11:25 and 2:30-4:00. Bedtime is around 8:00. She's still waking up around 5:00 to eat, but then goes back to bed until 7:15 in the morning.

Eating:  Sylvie's eating changed a lot this month. I had to leave for a few days and we knew it was time for Sylvie to learn to take a bottle. We had tried a few, but it hadn't gone over well. It took her a few weeks to get used to it, but she is finally a bottle pro! She is down to nursing in the morning when she wakes up and before she goes to bed. She's been trying (and loving) lots more food like pizza.

Growth:  We haven't been to the doctor in a bit, but she does seem to be getting longer and thinning out. No more tummy rolls like she used to have! She wearing 12 month clothes.

Milestones:  This was a huge month for Sylvie. She is now a really fast crawler and enjoys getting into everything, especially the pantry and laundry baskets.  Her first word was "mama," but she also says "hello" when pretending to answer the phone and "dada."

Likes:  Sylvie is a big fan of Ritz crackers, reading books, getting out of the house and running errands, pulling my fabric off the shelves, and digging through the pantry.

Dislikes:  She is still our little koala, and likes to be held close for lots of the day. If she's on the ground too long, she lets you know she's had enough of that!

{Sylvie} 10 Months Old

This little girl is 10 months old...

Sleeping:
Sylvie has become a pretty good sleeper! She's still taking two naps a day (same times as last month) and goes to bed around 8:00 at night. She's still waking up one time a night to nurse, but goes back to sleep until 7:00 in the morning. Finally...everyone is feeling more rested!

Eating:
Sylvie is starting to eat lots more. Her favorites are yogurt, toast, cheese, fruit purees, yogurt melts, and Cheerios. She is nursing five times a day, and has three meals at her high chair.

Growth:
She is our growing girl! Sylvie is wearing 12 month pajamas, and 6-12 month or 12 month clothes.

Milestones:
This month was so fun to watch Sylvie learn and grow. She can sign "all done" and "more." She also has learned how to clap, wave, and give kisses. And she said her first word - "mama!" Sylvie got another top tooth, so now she has five total. She is still not fully crawling, but can scoot herself around the room.

Likes:
Sylvie is still our little Koala, meaning she loves to be held all the time. She has also become obsessed with my phone...wants to hold it constantly and will scream if someone takes it away. We've watched the little stinker try to swipe the screen with her finger! Sylvie also likes going places. She gets really excited to go in the car to take a trip to the store, drop off Judah at preschool, go over to a friends house, etc. Maybe she gets tired of being in our house so much due to the weather, but I also think she's social and likes seeing new people and new things.

Dislikes:
She still doesn't like being left alone. Sylvie also gets mad when we take away my phone. Other than that, she's a pretty happy girl!

 celebrating a very special birthday

she loves her BlaBla fox, Suzette!

 first big girl bath with Judah

always her daddy's girl

{Sylvie} 9 Months Old

This first year is going by WAY too fast. I really can't believe that Sylvie is nine months old!

Sleeping:
This month has probably been Sylvie's best to date for sleeping. Sylvie takes two naps a day. The first nap starts around 9:45 (2.5 hours after waking for the day).  The second nap starts around 2:15 (3 hours after waking from her first nap).  She is in bed for the night around 7:45.  I wouldn't say she has a "schedule" since these times can vary from day to day, but her naps occur most often at those times so she's fully rested and happy. Sylvie is still waking one time each night for a feeding, around 4:00/5:00 AM. I am ready for a full night's rest one day, but I don't mind the early morning cuddles!

Eating:
This girl loves her Cheerios. She's also a big fan of puffs, fruity baby food, and the orange vegetables. This month we also tried peas as a finger food (they weren't a favorite so we'll have to keep trying), and small bites of crackers and bread. Sylvie also started feeding herself and has become a pro at that pincer grasp.

Growth:
At her 9 month check-up, Sylvie weighed 20 pounds, 12.6 ounces and measured 30 inches.  She is wearing 6-12 month and 12 month clothes. Sadly only a few of her 9 month clothes still fit.

Milestones:
This was a huge month of change for our baby girl!  Sylvie started feeding herself Cheerios on December 10. She also learned to wave, bounce up and down when she hears music, do the sign for "all done", and clap in the same week (last week of December)! She has gotten really good at sitting up by herself and is starting to move from the sitting position to laying on the floor.  Sylvie also got her top two front teeth this month!

Likes:
Sylvie loves to be held, but mostly if you are up walking around. We call her Koala quite a bit :)  She gets a bit restless being held in your lap for too long. She also loves Cheerios, pulling toys out of her basket, bouncing when she hears music, taking baths, going for car rides, and being the cart at the grocery store.

Dislikes:
Sylvie doesn't like being left in a room by herself, even for a second.