Happy Love Day

As Oliver says, HAPPY LOVE DAY! He has been looking forward to this day for awhile now. Oliver enjoys celebrating holidays -- he gets excited, likes to count down to the big day and generally elevates even the most ordinary holiday to something special. Having a child does bring a new level of joy to life!

Pure joy!

Oliver invited Oma to be his special valentine at school this year. While I was sad to miss out, clearly they had a great time. Thank you Oma for sending us pictures!

What an awesome picture of these two valentines!

So focused...if only we could bottle that for things like cleaning up.

Fun activities at the valentines party

An action shot by Oma!

And better late than never, HAPPY LUNAR NEW YEAR! Nearly a week ago we celebrated the Lunar New Year with a korean and thai dinner, then Oliver tried his Hanbok on again. This may be the last year it fits, but he still looks so very handsome in it!

What a doll!

Winning the Lottery

We won lottery! In truth, we've "won the lottery" in many ways -- no worries over basic necessities, overall in good health, loving families to support and encourage us, a wonderful son and more. But this time I am speaking literally of winning the lottery....for Weaver Lake Elementary. Oliver is officially welcome to enroll for Kindergarten next year at our local STEM magnet school. Amazing!

We have been praying for some time that God would show us the right path for Oliver when it comes to school next year -- should we wait (since he is a July birthday); if so, what do we do next year; if not, where should he attend. Lots of prayers for closing doors, opening windows, giving us words of wisdom, etc. In an answer to our prayers we have received a couple of words of wisdom in the last week, plus the letter that began "Congratulations". God is good! Sometimes He answers prayers in round about ways, but this time we were blessed with direct and clear answers. Thank You, Lord.

I will admit, I shed a few tears when we opened that letter. Feelings of joy for the clear answer, and because we believe it will be a great match for Oliver's learning style and interests. Now we are officially going to have a kindergartner in our house!

It's been a while since my last post. We had a nice holiday season, though we were all plagued with illness (and for Oliver and I we are STILL not fully recovered...over a month into this virus). Even so, things haven't slowed down for us. Oliver is now a "Lil' Dragon" at World Taekwondo and seems to be enjoying it (while also looking extra cute in his uniform).

We've had a relatively snow-less winter here, but we did manage to get out for Oliver's first sledding experience. He had a blast!

We even found time to take him to one of his favorite places, Nickelodeon Universe at the Mall of America. Let's just say he was a little excited...

It is going to be an exciting year!

Two Years as a Family

Two years. We have been a family for TWO WHOLE YEARS! That means that we have been together for about as long as it took for us to go from seeing Oliver's photo and referral in January 2012 to taking custody on December 20, 2013. 

I still cry anytime I stop long enough to reflect on that day...both the best and worst day I have known. We were joined with a wonderful, funny, smart, loving little boy who turned our lives upside down in lots of great ways. He, in turn, gave up his whole world, all those he loved. As I think back to the confusion, sadness and terror that so obviously filled him, my heart breaks again. As I recall the complete sadness of his foster mother and foster brother, two people who loved him so much, my heart breaks again. For that day and many that followed, he deeply struggled and grieved. 

Yet it is with joy and laughter that we woke up together Sunday morning, happily a family of three. Oliver found the gift we had wrapped for him and was eager to open it -- an Olaf ornament. We headed off to church, followed by lunch at his new favorite restaurant: Red Robin (he likes the games you can play at the table). It was then off for the children's Christmas play: A Charlie Brown Christmas. Special family time for a special day! The play was fun and Oliver ended up being the first one through the receiving line of actors. He got every.single.signature, including Woodstock! 

Working backwards, here is a picture summary of the day:

Snoopy and Charlie...and Oliver! They actors are such great sports, signing autographs, posing for pictures and interacting with fans. We highly recommend Stages Theater.

Adorable!

Funny faces waiting for the play to begin

At Red Robin!!

Family day aside, Oliver and I enjoyed a bit of cookie making Saturday...all decked out in our holiday gear. Such a cutie!

And Friday was pajama day at school. Here is Oliver and Otter at Oma's house, getting ready to head on out for the last day of school in 2015. I wish we had pajama day at work sometimes! So cozy...

We may be missing out on a white Christmas this year, but we are still excited to celebrate the birth of Jesus. I think Oliver is a little excited for gifts, but he's also pretty happy to finish his advent calendar manager scene. He was even singing Happy Birthday to Jesus tonight!

Wishing you and your family a lovely week as we prepare for the big day. May the stresses of the season be minimal and the joy be overflowing.

Getting Ready

Christmas is coming and we are getting ready! The tree is up and trimmed, the house is decorated and Oliver's Advent Calendar with nativity scene is growing with each day. 

As mentioned in the "Three-Ring Circus" post, things have been rather busy here lately. We have managed, somehow, to visit no less than THREE Santas, however. The first was our more official visit at Ridgedale Mall (still can't get the formal photo to download, of course). 

The second was at the annual Brooklyn Park Lion's Club waffle breakfast, where we visited Santa last year. 

The third was the day after the waffle breakfast, at family brunch.

Though there has been plenty of Santa and talking of gifts this season, we have also spent time reflecting on the true reason for our joy during Christmastime. One of the ways Oliver did that was singing in the kid's choir during church earlier in December. The kids were adorable and I have enjoyed hearing him sing Happy Birthday Jesus around the house for the past several weeks. 

Don't worry, he's not making funny faces! Just a beat off on transitioning to the baby sign. :)

Cookies have yet to be made, but Oliver is not running out of sugary snacks to enjoy. Here is a post ring pop photo he insisted I snap, rounded out with a McDonald's toy on his head. We were also in the process of decorating our first gingerbread house....which turned out a bit sad looking and not worthy of a blog photo! Maybe next time. 

Goofy

I am excited to celebrate Christmas, though the warmer-than-usual temperatures and lack of snow has made it a bit difficult to really get into the spirit. While I grew up without white Christmases, I quickly got used to it and truly enjoy having one. Hopefully that will still happen....along with time to bake up some cookies!

Hopefully your holiday season is going well and you are able to enjoy time with friends and family.