GOTCHA DAY!!!!!

We can hardly believe that the day has already come..... Our first "Gotcha Day" as a forever family. It has been exactly one year today that we picked up Alyssa at the baby home in Sosnovoborsk, Krasnoyarsk Russia. We had left for the orphanage at about 4:30 in the afternoon on November 21, 2008. We were so excited and nervous all rolled up into one. The 45 minute drive seemed to take forever. We tried to soak up everything that we could on that last journey to the orphanage. We took a video for most of the trip so that we would not forget the ride. When we arrived, they had Alyssa in the room ready for us to change her into the clothes that we had brought with us. She had this "lost" look in her eyes. She had no idea what was happening. For all of you adoptive parents out there, you know what I am talking about. We took a few pictures before we left and then out into the sub zero temperatures we went. It was dark and cold when we left. The streets were a solid sheet of ice. When we started out on our drive, we found out quite quickly that Alyssa did not like the lights of the oncoming traffic. She screamed and cried. The only thing that I could think of to do was to sing to her. Me, not being a very good singer, I sung very low so as not to drive our driver Sergei crazy. I sang Jingle Bells for the full 45 minutes back to the hotel. It worked!!! She fell asleep for most of the trip, so I guess she enjoyed my singing.... HA HA HA !!!!
That day changed our lives forever. To see this child today you would have never guessed that she has been through such trauma.
Today as we look back at our amazing journey, we decided that we would spend the whole day together doing "fun" things. One thing that we did was attend an adoption celebration at a local church that was celebrating National Adoption Day. It is pretty cool to think that this day fell on our "Gotcha Day". We went there and visited with other families that had brought their children home from Russia this past year or two. We exchanged names and phone numbers so that our children could have a connection from their homeland of Russia. We also learned what we will need to do to readopt Alyssa in Tennessee next November!!! We really look forward to that day also!!!! Later in the afternoon we headed to Pigeon Forge to go to Dollywood. They are all decorated for Christmas and Alyssa really loved all of the lights. She also really loved the light parade which had Santa included in it. She rode her favorite rides, the ducks, the bees, the pigs and the train. She had hot chocolate for the very first time also. It was a HIT!!! This girl loves chocolate!!! We had a very fun and exhausting day, but it was such a wonderful day. The LORD has so blessed our family. We thank HIM every day for bringing this child into our hearts and our family. She makes every day a joy, and we are very humbled by the fact that the LORD chose Wade and I to be her parents. For those of you out there who are considering adoption, your life will never be the same. There are not enough words to express all of the emotions that you will experience in the journey of adoption. The highest of highs, and the lowest of lows. But what you may think of as the end of our journey, we feel that our journey has just begun. The journey of "forever"!!! We love this child with all that we are, and we feel such gratitude for the whole journey........
Thanks for stopping by.....
Love, Julie

One Year Ago Today.....The Start of Forever!!!!!

Where do I begin.....As tears are flowing from my eyes, I am remembering this day exactly one year ago today. We had gotten up early after a rather sleepless night. We were very excited and nervous because our court day had finally come. We had arrived at the court house with our translator and facilitator and waited for our turn to go in to see the judge. After going through about an hour with the judge, she returned to the court room with the answer we had waited for 2-1/2 years to hear.... DAH !!!!!
The judge said YES, that our adoption of Alyssa was approved!!! Our world was forever changed. All of the years waiting for a child was finally over. There are just not enough words to describe the feeling of becoming a mom after such a long wait. When we first met Alyssa in June 2008 we knew that it would be forever. All of our hopes and dreams for a forever family had come true. All of the paperwork and waiting was soooo worth it!!! To remember back on this whole journey is just completely overwhelming.
We cannot believe that it has already been 1 year!!! Alyssa has changed so much in such a little amount of time. She has grown about 4" and has gained 8 pounds. She has gone from a look of being so scared, to a look of complete joy and happiness. There is not a day that goes by that we don't just beam with joy about her being in our family. She is like a little ball of light. She has an amazing little spirit, and an amazing way that she loves the people and things closest to her.
We look back with such gratitude to our LORD, for giving us this great joy of being parents. We thank all of you for your love and prayers on our journey to our daughter. We could not have done this without all of you!!!
In a few days we will be celebrating "Gotcha Day"!!! On this day we will celebrate Alyssa and we will rejoice in our "Forever Family"!!!!!
Every year we will reserve this day to be together as a family, and to tell Alyssa just how special she is in our lives.
Thanks for stopping by.....
Julie

FOOTBALL AND FALL IN TENNESSEE!!!

Did someone say that it is almost Fall??? Tomorrow is the official start of Fall.
How can it be here so fast??? It is also hard to believe that we are getting ready to do our 1 year post placement visit and report for Russia!!!! We got the call in October of last year about our court date and also our second trip to bring Alyssa home. The LORD has blessed our family sooooooo much!!! Alyssa still brings tears to my eyes almost daily, and we cannot even remember our life without her now. She is doing amazingly well. She is really starting to speak alot of new words on a weekly basis. She is learning her letters and numbers also!!! She can recongnize about 6 letters of the alphabet using her magnetic letters on the refrigerator. She loves to count to ten and she loves to sing the alphabet song!!! A very interesting fact that we find simply amazing is that she still recognizes Russian words and phrases when you say them to her, and she tries to say them back. Also, some of the pictures that we have showed her from Russia she recognizes also!!! I have started working on her Life Book also, which is an album that she will always have just for herself that tells her the story of her adoption. We are going to instill in her that she should be proud of her heritage, and that mommy and daddy are proud to have such an amazing little princess in our family and our lives. If anyone out there that reads this blog is thinking about adoption, I just want to tell you that it was worth every worry, every document, every tear, every sleepness night, every low, every high and everything in between. The LORD brought us to adoption, and HE continues to show us amazing blessings for our family. I often ask myself how I can be so lucky to have been given this child to love and to raise??? She is everything that I could have asked for and sooooo much more!!! When she smiles her little face just radiates such joy, and as a mother, I wish no more for her than complete happiness. Adoption is so much more that bringing a child into your family, it is
LOVE......The LOVE of the LORD......The LOVE of being called MOMMY..... The LOVE of everything great in this lifetime!!!!! I continue to learn about myself, learn about Alyssa and grow closer to the LORD just because of this adoption!!!!
We know that we will adopt again, hopefully within the next year or so!!!! We just know that Adoption is just toooooo important!!!! These children need homes, and we feel absolutely honored and humbled by the love of this precious child. Thanks so much for stopping by. Please enjoy a few pictures of our little Alyssa...
Blessings.....
Julie

MORE SUMMERTIME PICS.....

SUMMER TIME IN TENNESSEE!!!!!

Did someone say summer??? Yes!!!! Little Alyssa is starting her first summer here in Tennessee and it is a HOT one!!! Having come from Siberia this little girl sure loves being outside in the summer sun. She tans so easily which makes me rather jealous.... I just burn only being outside for 10 minutes. She has started this summer off on a great note. For her 2 year old wellness visit we were told that her immunizations that she had done in January, along with what she had done in Russia, she will not need anymore shots until she starts school!!! Thanks Children's Hospital for that wonderful news!!! Alyssa is learning to ride her new bike that she was given for her birthday by Grandma and Grandpa Word. Although she has not quite gotten the hang of it, she gives it a try. She loves to swing on her playset, and she loves to play in her sand and water table. POOL!!!! Did someone say POOL???
Yes, this girl loves the water!!! She has a small pool at home which she really loves. She also has gone swimming in her cousins pool. We are hoping that she learns to swim pretty soon. We will probably have to have her take some lessons.
We had a pretty good 4th of July!!! That morning we headed off to the Knoxville Zoo. It was her first time at the zoo. (I love all of these firsts!!)
At night we had a few family members over, and did a few small fireworks. Alyssa was ok with the little fountains, but when it came to the big shells she really wanted no part of it. So we went in the house to watch them through the front window while Aunt Lori and Daddy shot them off.
We are gearing up for our first "vacation from home" to Grandma and Grandpa Church's house in a couple of weeks. It will be a long weekend, but we are looking forward to everyone meeting Alyssa!!!
We cannot believe how much she has grown since we have been home. She has grown about 3 inches and gained 7 lbs!!! She has grown so tall!!! She is learning more and more words everyday. And she is really starting to like some childrens shows on t.v. She loves Blue's Clue's more than anything. She had her first dental appointment a few weeks ago, and passed with flying colors. She has only 1 more molar to come in, and then we are home free on teething!!! She is constantly drooling and biting on her fingers, which in turn causes a little rash on her face. She is enjoying the summer during the work week at Grandma Donna's house. Sometimes her cousins Logan, Bryson and Ethan are there also.
Well I guess I will close it up for now. Enjoy the pictures.......
Thanks for stopping by.....
Julie, Wade and Alyssa

A Day in the Life of Alyssa.....

A day in the life of Alyssa truly is a blessing!!!!
She makes us laugh and cry, and keeps us on our toes. I have posted a few pictures of Alyssa for you all to enjoy. We had taken a trip to the aquarium in Gatlinburg on Good Friday so I have included one with Alyssa and Wade inside one of the aquariums. We have been enjoying some of the warmer days by taking Alyssa outside to play at the park. Alyssa is really coming in to her own little person. She pays attention to everything, and she tries to figure out how things work. She tries to be very independant, but also loves to be held by her mommy and daddy.
Another funny thing is that she loves the singer "Lady Gaga". When ever she sees her on T.V. or hears her singing on the radio she gets very excited!!!!
Our daughter definitely loves music!!!! Our family is so blessed to have Alyssa in it!!!!! Keep watching.....
Love Julie

Alyssa is 2 !!!!

It is hard to believe but our little Alyssa has turned 2 !!!!!
Her birthday was Tues. May 5th, but we had her Princess Birthday Party on
Sat. May 9th. We were hoping to have her party outside, but because of the threat of rain we had it in the basement. We decorated with pink and white balloons and the cake was a Princess Castle. Alyssa's aunt Cheri made it!!!! It was so beautiful!!!! We had many family and friends at the party, and we had a really fun time. On the day of her birthday we had a small dog cake for her which she really loved!!!! Alyssa got many presents, and loved playing with the other kids.
It is hard to believe that Alyssa has been home with us for 6 months!!!
She is growing so fast, and we are so overjoyed at watching her grow!!!
We have been so busy with everything that I just don't take the time to post.
I will do another post so that we can catch you up on little Alyssa.
Thanks for stopping by....
Julie

Spring is Here at Last!!!!

Has it already been a month since I last posted??? Once again I have failed to keep posting on a regular basis. I know that many people still log on to see little Alyssa, so here we are again!!!! We get so busy that time flies by so quickly!!! We are so glad to say that Spring is finally here!!! Today it got to 75 degrees, but guess what...... Tomorrow it will only be a high in the 40's with snow showers.....???? Did I just say snow showers????.... Yes I did!!!! So much for the Spring flowers!!! Let me catch all of you up to speed on little Alyssa.
We celebrated Wade's birthday on March 5, which was really special since it was his first with Alyssa. She helped me make him a cake, and it could not be complete of course without a cat somewhere on it. (I will tell you more about that later). The only cat that I could find for the top of the cake was from a Halloween cupcake topper that I had in the drawer. Alyssa didn't care......it was a cat....that is all that mattered!!! She added all of the sprinkles and the cat!!!
As you can see in the picture, she had such fun making it!!! I am just wondering what I will have in store for my birthday???
Let me tell you a little Alyssa secret. Life is not worth living unless it involves a cat or dog!!!! From the moment she wakes up and then again before she goes to bed she has to make sure that her stuffed dogs and cats are in the correct spots. We love how she says "kitty..kitty". We cannot explain the way that she says it, you would have to hear it for yourself. All that I can say is that it sometimes bring me to tears from laughing at her.
Another love of Alyssa's is clothes and shoes!!! Great......I guess when she becomes a teenager we will have to get 2 more jobs to support her clothes and shoes habit. One day in JCPennys we were shopping in the store and were getting ready to leave, well it just so happens we were passing by the teenage girls clothes section and she decided that she did not want to go.... She had things that SHE wanted to look at!!! She pulled daddy over to this one shirt hanging up, and you will never guess what this shirt said........"Remember me, I am going to be famous"!!!!!
Well that told it all!!!! We knew that she was our little drama queen, but that confirms it. HOLLYWOOD bound we should go!!!! We have high hopes for our daughter, but stardom is probably not one of them. Who knows though.....She loves music, she could be "Your Next American Idol"!!!!! She loves the show!!!! She will clap and yell "YEAHHH", only if they are really good. She definitely has a love for music!!!
As you can see by one of the pictures I posted, she LOVES daddy's boots!!!
She can actually walk in them too!!!! When ever she can, she walks around in either our shoes or our socks, but she refuses to keep her own socks on!!!
As some of you know, Wade has been reduced in hours at work like alot of people in these slow economic times. It has put a tightening on our budget, but it has been somewhat of a good thing for Wade to spend some quality time with his daughter. One day during the work week Alyssa spends with her daddy instead of her grandma. Wade is such a great daddy. She really loves the time that he plays with her!!! She has gotten very close to him in the past month or so. He took her for the very first time to Panther Creek Park a couple of weeks ago. The picture I posted is from the top of the overlook, looking down at the lake. What probably most of you don't know is that is the spot that Wade proposed to me!!!! We also had our first date there!!!
We have very fond memories at that park, and knowing that he took his daughter there for the first time brings tears to my eyes!!! She got to see her first deer there that day, and she got to see her first boat go across the lake from the overlook.
As you can see by the picture of us in our front yard by the Bradford Pear tree, spring is in bloom!!! We had Lori take this picture so that we could use it for our 6 month Post Placement assignment. Yes, I said 6 months!!! Under the guidelines from our agency and from Russia, we have to complete a post placement visit for them about Alyssa at 6 months, 12 months, 24 months and 36 months. We have a social worker from America World come to our home and visit with our new formed family. They check and see how Alyssa is doing, and see how our family is adjusting. We just had our 6 month Post Placement visit on Friday April 3rd. It went really well!!! She said that Alyssa is bonding beautifully, and that our family is doing great!!! We have to have this report turned in to Russia by May 11th. That will be 6 months from when we were told that we were officially Alyssa's parents!!!!
We look back on the whole adoption experience as an amazing ride!!! We look forward to all of the days ahead, and who knows........ Will we start this ride again????
Maybe!!!! Keep tuned in..... We may decide to adopt again!!!! Talks are in the works.... We believe that Alyssa needs a sibling.......As for now though, we are enjoying every second being the parents of little miss Alyssa.....
Love, Julie

There is a First Time for Everything.....

Riding in Daddy's Stang...
First Valentine's Day
First Day of Church!!!
Having fun in a box
First ride in my wagon...

When we began this adoption journey I would always think about all of the things that Alyssa would learn and do when she joined our family. I would tell Wade, "I cannot wait until her first Christmas, her first birthday, the first trip to the zoo, and her first day of school". Now that she is home all of that is coming true!! It is so amazing to watch her learn something new each day. Each new day brings a new experience for her, and for us!!! A couple of weeks ago we had a very warm day on the weekend, so we broke out the new wagon!! She really liked it, until mommy got tired of pulling and we had to stop. We took a little trip down the road and back, and then a small trip into the play yard to visit with Toby and Wendy. I think that her favorite thing to do besides play with daddy is visit with and feed the dogs a treat!!! She is a definite animal lover!!! We cannot wait for summer to take her to the zoo in Knoxville.
The next picture was of Alyssa playing in a box from her diapers. Wade would put her in it, and they would race around the house and through the air like an airplane. She loved it also, until the sides of the box gave way!!! I guess I know what the next diaper box will be used for!!! HA HA HA !!!!
The next picture is one our absolute favorites!!! This was Alyssa's first day of church. This little dress was so cute. We had not seen her in one since she was in Russia at the baby home. She is really a girly girl. She loves to wear dresses and pretty shoes!!!
The next picture is of her first Valentine's Day. She was not too crazy about the whole thing, until I gave her some chocolate M&M's!!! It was the ones that come in a mini M&M little guy container. She is definitely like her mama!!! Loves that chocolate!!!
The top picture is of Alyssa sitting in the front seat of daddy's Mustang. She really likes his car. She really likes to push the horn!!! She helped daddy move the car in and out of the garage last Friday on his day off. He really looks forward to taking her to his car shows this summer. We hope to give her the little Mustang pictured in an early post this coming fall if she is big enough. We may take it with us to a few car shows and see if she can win a trophy!!!!
We would again like to thank everyone who asks about, and says a prayer for our family. We have so many people still watching this blog, and I am afraid that I am not keeping up so good with the posts. I will try to post more often so that you can watch our little Alyssa grow in her new family.
Wade and I are so very blessed to have her as our daughter!!! She makes us laugh and cry happy tears everyday!!
With all of the hardship going on right now in our country this happy journey gives us all something to be thankful for!!! Even though this country is under a tremendous amount of stress right now, be so very glad that we live in this free country!!! There are many, many people in this world who are not as fortunate as we are to live in the United States.
Please say a small prayer for all of those orphan children here and overseas who may never know what it is to have a "family". We became so blessed to bring little Alyssa into ours......
God Bless...
Julie

2 Months and Counting....

First Sucker!!!



I have finally gotten a free minute to try to catch you up to speed on little Alyssa. It is Sunday night, and Alyssa is sound asleep after a restful day. I cannot believe that it has been just over 2 months since we had "Gotcha Day". We had picked up Alyssa on November 21st from the baby home in Sosnovoborsk. To see her today you would think that it is a different child. She has already grown over
1 inch, and she has gained over 2-1/2 pounds!!! Someone who had looked at her picture then, and then her picture now said that they could tell that she was growing like a "weed". Her little face is filling out, and her pants are getting shorter and shorter on her. She also has 4 more teeth coming in!!!
We have been extremely busy with bonding with Alyssa. She is very attached to me, and seems to be getting closer and closer to Wade everyday!!! She comes to him to be held and for hugs and kisses!! We have been trying to get her used to our close family, and so far that seems to be going well. She has taken pretty well to my mom also, which is good since she is now watching her since I went back to work on Monday Jan. 19th. We are trying to get used to our new routine now that I am back to work. Alyssa is very excited when she sees me there to pick her up after work. So far, me leaving her with Grandma has not been a problem.
She is starting to say a few more words everyday. She surprised us this past Friday morning when we were leaving for work and she said "Hi Toby" very clearly!!! She tries to copy what we say, but usually it just comes out as the first syllable of the word. When she tries to say blanket, baby or bee, she says "Be". She continually makes us laugh, sometimes even to tears!!! She loves every kind of animal that there is, especially Toby and Wendy!! She got to see Grandpa and Grandma's cat named Miss Kitty this weekend, and she loved it. She kept trying to pet the cat, but since the cat wanted nothing to do with a little girl, the cat hissed a little. This made Alyssa run and wonder what on earth was wrong with that cat!!!!
We have learned tonight that a family that is very dear and close to our hearts, will finally get to return to pick up their little boy in Russia. He is in the same baby home that Alyssa was in. They had traveled on the first trip with us when we met our kids. We got a chance to visit with him on our second trip and sent pictures back home to them by email while we were there. They have been in our thoughts and prayers this whole time. We were so happy to hear that they will be leaving soon for Krasnoyarsk.
Sorry once again for not posting sooner..... We get so busy anymore, that it is a struggle to get on here to update all of you.... Many people have been asking for more pictures and updates, and we feel so blessed that all of you are still following this little girl's journey!!!!
She is our dream come true......
God Bless,
Julie, Wade & Alyssa