First Day Out In The Boat

J wanted to take the boat out for the first time today.  It was overcast and rainy-looking, but he SWORE it was going to burn off.  Well, we drove the hour+ down to Levey Park and this is what it looked like:

We stayed out on the water for just a couple hours.  Very close to the dock.

Cara didn't care.  She was soooooo happy to be out in the boat!

Temps in central Washington are supposed to reach 100 this next week.  That kind of boating weather sounds much better to me!

Dance Dress Rehearsal

Yesterday was the dress rehearsal for the dance recital.  We practiced with full hair and make up so we would know what to change for the recital tonight.  It was rainy and overcast for most of the day yesterday, so I thought I would be able to get some good pictures outside before we left.  The sun was starting to come out, so most of the shadows are still to harsh for my liking.

I did 5 girl's hair yesterday afternoon and my sister in law did the make up.

They wanted a jumping pose.  Do you know how hard it is to get 5 girls in the air at the same time?  Especially with the little ones.

This picture just cracks me up!  Cara was so excited to get on stage for the first time!

Recital is tonight at 7 and we will start hair and make up again in 3 hours.  I'd better go hop in the shower!

Happy 2 Year Referral Anniversary, Cara! {Sunday Snapshot}

Cara's actual referral anniversary is June 22nd, but I didn't have time to take her stats or photos until this morning.  I will never forget the morning of June 22, 2010.  That morning our family was forever changed for the better.

We received a referral for Wu Ao Huan, a 3 year old living in Shanghai, China.  Her referral described her as a shy, quiet child.  We laughed and wondered how a shy, quiet child would fit into our noisy family! ;)

We learned later from the orphanage that "Ao" means Olympics and "Huan" meant rings.  The Olympics were being held in Beijing and they believed Cara had a special spirit; just like the Olympics.  Their hope was that she would always live her life in the spirit behind the Olympic games.  We were touched by the name given to her in Shanghai and chose to keep it as her middle name.  She truly does have a special spirit about her.

Here is our beautiful girl in a picture I snapped this morning:

And here she is holding her referral photo:

I also took her stats this morning after I took her picture.  Cara was in the Shanghai SWI for 22 months; from 18 months old to 40 months old.  In that time, she gained 1 kg and 8 cm.  Not much growth for formative growing years.

She weighed 13 kg and was 89 cm tall when we got her.  Today she weighs 16.5 kg and is 107.5 cm tall!  In 20 months she has gained 3.5 kg and grown 18.5 cm!  She's a skinny little shoestring!

And she's not quiet like her papework said!  She's funny and loud and loves to sing and dance.  She knows almost all the words to the songs on the radio.  She likes to play on the monkey bars and jump on the trampoline.  She likes to color and play dress up.  She's up for any kind of adventure.  And we love her.  So very, very much.  All the way to the China moon and back!

These pictures were taken with a Cannon EOS T2i with a 1.8 lens.  Taken in automatic, edited with Photoshop.

For more Sunday Snapshots, click here:

San Antonio Trip

Ugh!  I've been a terrible blogger lately!  There have been so many things going on, I just haven't taken the time to update.  Last weekend I went to San Antonio for a conference for work.  J and Cara came along with me.  Of course, we visited the Alamo:

Cara outside one of the doors of one of the interior buildings.  We didn't stay long because it was soooooo hot!

Birthday Weekend

We have 3 birthdays in a row in our family:  Cousin L is June 2nd, Cara is June 3rd, and B is June 4th.  We celebrated Cara and B's birthdays on the 2nd, L's birthday on the 3rd, and back to business as usual today.  So we kind of had different kid's birthdays celebrated on the wrong days, but it worked. :)

B was sooooo excited!  He got 4 club seat tickets to the Seahawks vs the Titans.  Best present ever!  Thanks, Grandma and Grandpa!

 Cara got a Pinkalicious bike.  She said, "O.M.G!  A Pinkalicious bike!"

B in his new Ray Bans...

Cara's cake.  She wanted a pirate party! ;)

Waiting for candles to stay lit.  It was a bit breezy outside, so they wouldn't stay.

All 3 birthday kids:  L is 6, B is 15, and Cara is 5!