Photos of Our Forever-Daughter!

Our family! Cats and people! Everyone loved!!!!

Olivia counted 2 million kisses today!!!!

That is what being adopted means!

It means you get kissed 2 million times!!!!

(as opposed to the normal 1 million times a day!)

And every newly adopted daughter needs

to take some time to do her studying at her desk!

We are so happy as we bask in the reality that Olivia is our Forever-Daughter!

It has been so very many years in trying to get to this point, that it is all the more amazing of a feeling. Tonight I held her just a bit longer before putting her in her crib for the night as I simply savored the reality that we officially and legally have a daughter. Olivia has been our daughter in our hearts since late February, and we certainly have been BEING her parents. Now it is just official and legal, and it feels awesome! And some would say miracles don't happen! Miracles DO indeed happen! Praise God!

Adoption Finalized

We learned this morning that the judge signed the order finalizing Olivia's adoption last Friday the 13th. Praise God for bringing Olivia into our lives and for bringing us to the end of this long journey.

Video- Olivia eating cereal

Just uploaded video to YouTube

First Try at Rice Cereal

Olivia calmly took her first mouthfuls of cereal today.

... and occasionally said this stuff feels odd in my mouth :-)

This was Olivia's first try at eating solid food. Grandma B and Daddy took photos and movies while Mommy tried her best to feed Olivia. We have been getting advice from the Speech Therapist and also information from a DVD from TalkTools. Olivia did not spit the food back out, but let it be in her mouth and tried very calmly to figure out just what to do with it.

It will take a while before Olivia is truly up to speed on eating. But this first try went better than we had expected.

A movie to Celebrate 6 Months!

Happy 6th Month Birthday

Today is 6 months since we received the phone call that Olivia had been born! Wow! It is hard to believe that it is already 6 months. We think that since her development is slower than for a typical baby, that time goes much slower also. There is lots of time to savor every step along the way. Sometimes with a typical baby, the rate at which they develop can make ones head spin! We are lingering in the luxury of enjoying every step along the way. (and making lots of lemonade out of any available lemons to sip as we wait!)

Olivia has changed so much from that 4 lb baby whose skin hung on her bones. If you remember, she was initially on oxygen, IV's, feeding tube, in an incubator, and on a billiblanket for jaundice. In addition, she was hooked up to all sorts of monitors. We would sit with her and watch her monitors and pray that everything was going to be alright. Praise God, 13 days after she was born she came home from the NICU! Today, Olivia is a healthy "strong" baby with Down syndrome who is developing very well considering the circumstances. Today we began putting small blocks into an old oatmeal canister. Plunk Plunk! Very exciting! The blocks are small enough for her to hold, and Mommy helps her get them to drop into the canister. (all the while providing necessary head and torso support... but the support needed for her head lessens everyday). Olivia enjoys knocking blocks over! And she enjoys pushing the top to make it go around!

Praise God for the gift of Olivia in our lives!

and

God bless her most wonderful birthmom for entrusting to us this precious baby, Olivia!

We think of the birthmom everyday, and thank God for such a wonderful woman!

Well baby- 6 month

Olivia had her 6 month well baby pediatrician visit today. She is indeed a well baby! Praise God! She is still a healthy baby with Down syndrome! She got one shot. We will see how she does with that. Right now, she finally settled down for a nap.

The official weigh in results:

Weight: 15 lbs 8 oz

Length: 24 1/2 inches

Head Circumference: 16 1/4 inches

This means she is:

40 % for Weight

11 % for length

17 % for head circumference

We are going to retest her thyroid numbers to be on the safe side. She has been sleeping 15 hours total a day. That is good. But then again it could be cause for alarm. So, it is better to be safe than sorry.

Olivia did very well at the doctor. No crying through the exam, nor any crying with the shot. She just focused her eyes on Mommy, and somehow we made it through without a tear. Praise God! Mommy and Daddy get so nervous at these appointments. We do our best not to let Olivia see our anxiousness. I think we do pretty well. We were more relaxed at this appointment than at the last. We just love her so very much!

Thursday it will be Olivia's 6 month birthday! 6 months ago our life changed! It changed in unexpected and marvelous ways! No one could have prepared us for the Ups and Downs of being Olivia's parents! We have been so blessed and feel God's grace has made this all possible. Without the grace of God, things would never be going as well as they are, and we would have never made it through the tough times. There will surely be more tough times as we parent Olivia, and God will be there at those times, too. God is good and merciful and almighty!