More pictures

beautiful girls

Graham and Claire learning to belly dance.  Graham are you having fun???

not sure about Goofy

quite the group of three

a sticker makes a girl happy

I think we lost her!

FAMILY PHOTO

Many Thanks

Yum- I used chopsticks!

Italy

China pavilion 

Xi'an Warrior

typical Tessa!

Birthday dinner celebration

We are so thankful for a wonderful birthday/Thanksgiving trip to Disney.  The days were fun-filled and very busy.  We truly had a great time!

HAPPY EARLY BIRTHDAY TESSA!

UMM - ICECREAM!

THE AMAZING CHINESE BIRTHDAY CANDLE!

ELMO - TESSA'S PAL

happy Friday!

Orphans are easier to ignore before you know their names. They are easier to ignore before you see their faces. It is easier to pretend they're not real before you hold them in your arms.
But once you do, everything changes."
~ Anonymous

Getting ready for school Thursday!

No crying today at school drop off!  Hurray! She's getting to be such a big girl!

whew this backpack is heavy

look at my ponytail!

let's see, this is my lunch box

Happy Hump Day!

Getting ready for school in the Sanders household!  This includes Tessa 'getting into' the kids backpacks, lunch boxes, and as pictured books.

Saturday's activities

A little sandbox time

Love to be outside

a little basketball time

basketball fan

wow girls!

Links and thoughts

  This is a great link in honor of Adoption Month.  Click Here to read it!  She puts in words some of the many thoughts that have been running through my head since we first made the decision to adopt.  With much prayer and a great leap of faith, we now have a miracle in our midst.

Happy Veteran's Day

Graham is honoring his special 'Popi' for his service to our country at the SHS Veteran's Day ceremony.  On the left is Senator Aderholt and on the right is Graham's teacher Mrs. Norman.

Fun at the Mc Wane Science Center

Inside of a large mouth bass

my daredevil Claire

Hurricane wind simulator

November is Adoption Month!

Four Adoption Terms Defined: by Rita Laws

Natural child: any child who is not artificial.
Real parent: any parent who is not imaginary.
Your own child: any child who is not someone else's child.
Adopted child: a natural child, with a real parent, who is all my own.

__._,_.___

Weekend over

yum, whipped cream is good

new invention in footwear

We survived a busy weekend.  The big kids won both of their basketball games.  Tessa was a trooper and one of the biggest fans!  She did find some time for quality activities in between all of the fun!

Happy Friday - Cheese!

Potty Time!

This is better in the kitchen

Yay!

One minute Mommy!

I'm done!

We had a grand time 'trying out'  the potty!  We were trying to recover from a rough night.  Some retail therapy at Target helped ease the pain and a little potty humor was good for the soul.

Wacky Wednesday!

cheese

moving

resting

dancing

 After a rough night, this little girl can still make me dizzy!  She can be in one hundred places at once!  One would never know that she was up half of the night unable to go back to sleep.  She even woke up happy and was thrilled when her brother got her out of bed.  She is like an EveryReady battery!