One Year Ago

It's been a long time since I posted anything, but while looking at the calendar earlier this week, I realized that it was this week last year that we found out about the boys. I've already posted a lot about that time, but as I think back over the past year I'm so filled with gratitude to God for all of the ways he worked to bring our sons home. Last year at this time, we saw their faces for the first time and we loved them immediately. We began praying earnestly and pleading with God that he would make them our sons and bring them home, and now as I type this they are bouncing in their cribs and giggling (while they are supposed to be napping!). 

In case you don't remember, here is the first picture we saw of them:

And here are some more recent pictures:

Jacob is VERY interested in feeding himself. On his first attempt with yogurt, he quickly abandoned the spoon and used his hands.

And this was the result. He actually was much happier about the whole experience than this picture shows!

For some reason, I didn't think I'd resort to keeping them in their footie pajamas all day and actually taking them out in public this way, but as the weather has gotten colder, I've quickly abandoned that idea!

I knew it was a little too quiet, and I found them doing this in their room. All the clothes thrown out of the dresser, both standing in the drawer and reaching to see what they could get into. 

This picture is from a recent trip to a nearby park. The boys showed no interest in the swings, slides, or tunnels and headed straight for the woods and the creek instead. Their daddy would be proud!

And here is our resident goofball. Isn't this how everyone walks around the house? And just yesterday he went whizzing past me with a mixing bowl on his head. I'm quite certain he couldn't see a thing, but that didn't stop him from barreling through the house at top speed! 

And this picture is simply to illustrate the fact that I will never have an organized house again! I couldn't find this shoe for awhile until I discovered it in a cupboard with my pans. I regularly find my pans in the closet, balls in the laundry hamper, and sippy cups in the pantry (which happens to be a "no-touch" zone). 

The boys are doing so well, and we still thank God for them daily. Just the other day my heart swelled with pride as I watched them play at the park. They are so brave and adventurous and smart and funny (really, I had no idea that 16 month olds could be funny, but they are). We love them so much and can’t imagine our family without them.

That isn't to say that there aren't long days or hard days- we've definitely had some of those! And I do sometimes dream of being able to go to Target by myself or of being able to drink a cup of coffee without having to reheat it six times throughout the morning. But even on the long days, when I step back and think about it, the time when they need me so much is going to be relatively short and I'm pretty sure someday soon I'm going to miss seeing those two sets of arms reaching up for me.