fourth of july shirts

I hope everyone has been having a great summer!  Ours has been very busy and full of excitement, as you have probably gathered from our last post.  This month we have been enjoying the warm weather, pool time, and relaxing a bit.  We have really enjoyed not having a full schedule but that will soon pick back up in August!

This year for Independence Day, Bryce and Zoey made their own shirts (and I made one for Oliver)!  They loved every second of being able to make something they would wear.  We started with this tutorial from pinterest: http://cutesycrafts.com/2014/06/diy-eraser-stamped-4th-july-shirt.html  and white shirts/bodysuit, freezer paper, fabric paint, and our hands!

Like in the tutorial, I cut the freezer paper into stars and ironed it onto the shirts shiny side down (I got a simple star image from google images).  The freezer paper is very easy to peal off later but stays on very well to make the negative space of the star.  I also placed cardboard in the shirt so the paint didn't bleed through but it also made it easier for the kids to "dot" on.

The tutorial recommended using pencil erasers, however we didn't have any and we like a little mess with our projects.  To get the dots, the kids used their pinky fingers!  They enjoyed dotting around the front of the shirts and around the star.  It was just messy enough for them to have a lot of fun!

We let the shirts dry for the time recommended on the paint (ours said three hours) then pealed the freezer paper off.  

After taking the paper off, we left them to dry overnight to ensure all the paint was completely dry before wearing them.

The last step was to wear them and look adorable.

These were such an easy and fun project to do with the kids, they took less than thirty minutes and were quick to clean up.  These could easily be done with any shape and colors for a fun project.  Bryce and Zoey loved wearing the shirts and showing them off at the party we went to!

Enjoy making shirts with your little ones!!!
.katherine.

forever family

Oliver's adoption was finalized!!!

We had Oliver with us now for eighty-four wonderful days from placement to finalization.  To prepare for finalization, we finished our adoption education and had two home studies.  Home studies have to be done every four weeks to check on how we were adjusting to the adoption and make sure there are no problems.  In the state of Texas after the second home study our social worker can recommend we finalize which has to happen before the next four week mark.  We went to court on friday, June 26th to finalize!  

I was very anxious about going to court, however it ended up being was a beautiful celebration of our adoption.  Finalization took place in Lubbock, where Oliver was born.  We met with our social worker, the head of the agency, and the judge to answered questions about Oliver and how he fits into our family.  Bryce and Zoey were even involved in the process which was wonderful for them.  The entire process took about fifteen minutes and ended with the judge finalizing the adoption!

It was a great way to celebrate the last eighty-four days but I couldn't help think of Oliver's birth mother.  It makes me sad that she doesn't know this beautiful little boy.  I admire the strength it took to chose a life for Oliver that she was unable to provide and we will forever be grateful to her.  I will always pray for and think of her, she gave us a great blessing.

We are so happy to be a forever family!  I didn't realize how much stress I had held on to until Oliver's adoption was finalized.  One year and two days before going to court our home study was approved and we were a family waiting for a child.  It is amazing the difference a year can make!  Finalizing is an exciting moment in the adoption journey...one that families anxiously wait for.  It means this adoption journey is over, it is exciting!!!  Welcome to this family, officially, Oliver!  We love you!!!

.katherine.

christmas

I love Christmas and I love memories of Christmas growing up....the morning excitement of seeing what Santa brought, being surrounded by family, listening to holiday music all day, watching "It's a Wonderful Life," and HUGE dinners.  Being so far from family and not being able to get home for Christmas means holidays are a much more quiet.  While I also enjoy a quite holiday, I still LOVE being surrounded by family during such a special time of the year.  This year, we were spoiled and my family came join us for the special holiday!  And even more fun...our holiday was spread over several days (due to all the various travel and work schedules).
My brother, Sean, arrived first on the 20th, then my parents on the 23rd, and lastly my "baby" brother, Ryan, on the 26th!  Talk about a full house!!!  IT WAS WONDERFUL!  We made cookies, went on walks, read books, played games, did projects, sang songs, watched movies, went to mass, ate too much....and that doesn't even include our "Christmas"!

On the evening of the 26th, Bryce and Zoey had their first "sleep over" away from the house!!!  They went with Mimi and Papa to the hotel while we all set up for Christmas.  The next morning Bryce and Zoey were SO excited when they got back to the house to tell us about the hotel and see what Santa brought.  They were surprised by an indoor trampoline, character dolls (toy story and frozen), books, "How to Train Your Dragon 2", new shirts, and a stocking each! 

When it came to opening gifts our family tradition of starting with the youngest and going one at a time to the oldest and repeating til the gifts have all been opened quickly was pushed to the side with these two excited three year olds.  They were so excited to open gifts...it didn't matter whose they were!  When it came to their gifts they took the time to play with each new toy, try on each new outfit, or try to put every puzzle together. It was so much fun to watch how excited they got about each item and watch the joy in their eyes.  I will not say it was a fast process, quite opposite actually, but it was so much fun!  Everyone was spoiled with so many fun things...we had everything under that tree to include a plunger, t-shirts, beer jelly, pottery, photography cards, tools, camera equipment, sheets, and a smoker!!!

It was wonderful to have everyone here with us and enjoy such a fun week!

Zoey and Bryce keep asking if it is time to put the tree back up so they can come back.  We are looking forward to next year when we can hopefully all be together for Christmas again!
.katherine.

a year in review

Welcome back to our family's blog - updated with a new name and look!  What do you think of it?!?

I can't believe it has been almost an entire year since our last post!  This year has been full of adventures, changes, and excitement.  Sit back with a good cup of coffee and I will fill you in on this last year of our crazy life!

This year, we were spoiled by so much time with family and friends.  Both the Kerrs and McPhersons came out for the holidays, we had a family wedding in Georgia, went a family reunion, went to a wedding in Virginia, went on two additional beach trips, and had friends come to visit!  It is great that we are able to see everyone so often and the kids get know their extended family.  It is a huge change after spending five years so far away!

We continued to learn more about our new home and the area.  This year we took advantage of many of the activities and amusement opportunities we have.  We saw "Disney on Ice", went to a dinosaur exhibit, got a membership at the SciPort, saw the Mardi Gras parades, and so much more.  We love how many activities and events this area hosts; it is a great way to get out, explore, and spend time together.

I started a business, Little Elephant Designs, at the very beginning of the year!  I am doing appliquéd items, baby items, and unique accessories for moms.  I had my first "show" a few weeks ago and I loved it.  This little business gives me a chance to sew and make some fun items.  Check out the etsy store by clicking the button on the right side of the blog and I would love to hear what you think!

This year was also filled with many doctor's visits and medical changes.  The kids started seeing several new specialists to include an allergist, pediatric gastroenterologist, and a pediatric ear, nose, and throat specialist and I continued to see the neurologist.  Zoey was diagnosed with Reactive Airway Disease, suspected Asthma without a confirmed diagnosis.  It is common with children who were preemies or were ventilated but unknown yet if she will grow out of it.  Bryce was diagnosed with a gluten intolerance with suspected Celiac's disease.  Bryce and I both had surgery this year.  He had his adenoid removed and I had my gallbladder removed.  My MS is not progressing which is wonderful.  All of these are manageable with medications, diet, and routine visits to the specialists so overall I would say we are perfectly healthy.  

The kids started school in August with a two day a week preschool program at one of the local churches.  They love their teachers, class mates, and school!  They have two amazing teachers and about ten children in the class.  It is wonderful to see them socialize with the other kids and learn so much.  Just last night they were spelling their names without any help!  It has been really good to start them in the preschool and have them so excited about going to school.

Our big news this year is we are ADOPTING!!!  In May we had our inital meeting with a local adoption agency here in Shreveport and started the application.  We had our home study finalized at the end of July.  The waiting began at that time and we knew we could get a child the next day or in two years!  Our local agency showed our profile book and we kept an ear out for any other opportunities to add to our family.  In the beginning of September, we saw on Facebook that an agency in Texas was looking for an adoptive family and we inquired about being matched.  We knew the agency wanted to show the birth mom several families as potential matches so we sent our information, home study, and profile book.  On October 2 we got the call - we were chosen!!!  Our baby boy, Brady James, is due February 24th.  He is African American, very healthy, developing correctly, and will be the perfect addition to our family!  Bryce and Zoey are so excited about having another sibling; they talk about him all the time, ask when we get to meet him, and made a countdown chain to his due date.  We are very excited that God has given us the opportunity to add to our family!  (Click here to shop amazon and help our adoption savings.)

We hope you all had a wonderful year and are enjoying getting ready for the holidays!  We look forward to keeping up better in the coming year!
.katherine.