The Christian Crew

This is Brielle, Our oldest daughter, whom we adopted when she was just 5 days old!... Her party was so fun but a bit crazy. i about lost it there for a bit when all the kids started ran-sacking her presents.I was trying to just at least get a few pics of her and a bit of recording done so, she could remember when she was four forever. The kids blew out her candles before she could even get to them so, we had to re-light them for her! It's kind of humorous now! The bouncy castle was a success and resulted in only 2 injuries. one being Aria's noggin! The man who set it up said that this was the first time he has ever seen the 13 x 13 ft. castle ever fit IN someone's home. Most people i guess underestimate it's size but, man, we pushed around the 800 lbs piano and moved the furniture before he came so, he could just blow it on up. Brielle liked controlling the house and turning the blower off when she felt like it. Not really a good idea. Luckily, she didn't do it wi...

This is the place my girls pratically LIVE in! The play tea party, dress up, watch movies, do puzzles, play house in the kitchen... play chef and make wooden cake or felt cookies... they invite the bunnies and dollies too. And this mini furniture fits them perfectly and It's neutral and goes with everything. If or when we have a boy who grows into the Playroom age, I will redo the colors in Lime, Aqua, red and Lavender There will be a pink girl section with the doll house, dolls and dress up still. I have a feeling a little brother would be invited to a lot of tea parties! When the girls have friends over to play... This place gets TORE UP but, thank goodness for bins b/s most toys have their own bins or storage area. It makes for a fast clean up!

4 years ago, an amazing Birthmother had our sweet daughter, Brielle. We got a call, shortly after she was born and were invited to come to the hospital to see this new baby girl. I just couldn't believe they even wanted us there. I felt like an intruder and an honored guest all at once. 5 days after her birth, she came home with us! Her placement was heavenly and many tears of joy and pain were shed on both sides of the room. It was a sacred occasion for us all! And this tiny baby changed our lives FOREVER! We can't Thank her Birthmother enough. We are eternally in her debt and not a day goes by that we don't think of her enormous courage and love. And Yesterday, She turned 4! Man, those years have flown by! Now... we wait for this amazing Miracle to happen again!

Well, honestly, the girls wake up too early most days, I'd rather get at least 1 hour more than i get. They arise around 6:30 or 7 and we make breakfast while Aria chases the puppy around and Brielle watches a cartoon or does some coloring. Then we eat and laugh and get ready for preschool. Brielle attends a private preschool that my friend runs called the Learning Loft. She loves it and is doing very well in school. It's 2-3 days a week and only for 2 hours. I am glad for that b/c I'm not quite ready to let her go to half day or full day school yet. While Brielle is off at School, Brandon is working on loans or Real Estate school online, Aria kicks it with me and we either run errands or go to the gym and get my sweat on! The playroom at the Gym is Insanely great too! It has 3 separate areas for the kids to play in according to age. A bounce house and slides and tunnels that looks like a small Children's museum! On days that Brielle doesn't have school, we go for ...

Our oldest daughter, Brielle, was our first Miracle! After 4 yrs of trying and less than a month of having our adoption profile in, her courageous birth mother chose to place her with us. We were there at the hospital a few minutes after she was born and greeted by her whole family on both sides. The placement was more than we ever hoped for and our whole adoption with her has been such bliss. We still have open communication with her birth-mother and family and visit with them throughout the year. Brielle is 4 now and loves being an older sister to Aria, playing dolls, dancing, dressing up, going to preschool, riding her bike, doing gymnastics and is a natural born swimmer! She's excellent at addition and is learning her letters so fast! I love our time together when Aria naps too. It's almost like Aria doesn't know what she's missing. We do big girl things like paint with real paints, make crafts and learn recipes or practice songs. Brielle is so sweet and sensitiv...