I really like, all this drugs!

Paige had her second of three cortisone shots in her back today. She isn't quite this groggy when she is done, but she is still fairly entertaining.  Maybe next time I should ask them to double her dose and bust out the camera.

Crazy little climbing squirrels

After the kickball disaster, we signed Levi and Noah up for a football skills class at the Gilbert Rec Center.  At the first class, they spotted the rock wall and were itching to try it.  So after their second class, I gave them a chance.  I figured they would go 10 feet, freak out, and be done.

Noah got about halfway up on his first try before he looked down, realized how high he was, and suddenly he just couldn't go any higher.  But after a few tries, he got past the halfway point and made it all the way to the top.

Levi, the crazy little squirrel, went shooting right to the top on his first try.  Then without even batting an eye, leapt off the top to be caught by his harness.  Then repeated the feat five more times.  He said he wanted to do it six times cause he was six years old.

I think they probably climbed for an hour.  At only $2.50 each for a day pass, I think we will be headed here again in the future.

A long wait

One year ago today, on September 13th, we saw the face of our daughter for the very first time. It was an amazing moment when I saw her picture and knew that she was to be ours and we were to be hers. Oh what a good and glorious day when we first laid eyes on our Tufah.

Thank you God for the road that was laid before us, even as bumpy as it may have felt. Thank you for the amazing gift you have given us in Sophie Joy Tufah. Thank you God that she is home at last, right where we knew she belonged, the moment we first laid eyes on her.

One, too, fwee... bwast-owff!

Pweepaiwing my jet pwane..

My hat?  Check!

Eawphones?  Check!

Kitchen aipwon?  Check!

Weady to go!

Dad, I'm a jet pwane man!

And downt fowget my stinky mittens!

We tried string last weekend

After quite a bit of convincing, I managed to convince him to let me tie a string on it.

It kept falling off.  On about the 10th attempt, I finally got a nice tight knot in it.  He refused to pull on it.  Then he said he wanted it off.  Of course, it wouldn't come off then.

I had to cut the string with my Leatherman, leaving being the loop around his tooth (but don't tell him that... he thought it was all gone.)

Then yesterday, driving to school, I looked back at him belting out the chorus of Hot Rod Mercury (such a great song...) and lo and behold, what did I notice missing?

He doesn't have the foggiest clue when or where it came out.

Crazy kid...

FroYoDisco

The local frozen yogurt joint wasn't aware of what they were creating by playing disco.  Everyone in the joint was cracking up...

This talent clearly skips a generation, directly from paternal grandmother to grandchild. 

All ready for tennis lessons!

Four months home

Hard to believe that a mere four months ago, on May 1st, we landed in Sky Harbor Airport with Sophie in our arms. What a thrilling moment to step off the plane and know that we were home and it was all finished. She is ours forever, and we are so thankful.

Since coming home Sophie has celebrated her birthday, learned to walk, sprouted 6 teeth, has grown two inches taller, gained five pounds, begun using English words (momma, dada, Ella, hi, bye-bye, up, no, mine, baby, nana (banana), uh-o, woof woof, quack quack, set - go), uses sign language to say: more, all done, bath, thank you, eat, milk, and drink, has become a much happier child all around, has traveled to Denver, Michigan, and Rocky Point, Mexico, loves to snuggle, gives big pucker lip kisses, has the worlds greatest giggle, learned how to remove her helmet without undoing the Velcro, learned how to undo her diaper by undoing the Velcro, loves anything water related, has had lactose (milk) and sucrose (sugar) removed from her diet, has been introduced to Cheetos thanks to her brothers, is now a happy stroller rider and is no longer allowed to be a mommy rider, will now happily walk bare foot in grass, has grown very fond of her buddy Luke, discovered the joy of putting her hands in the toilet at every opportunity, has eaten the tops off of several crayons, discovered her nose hole and anyone else's that will hold her close enough to reach, loves to play with baby dolls, feed them bottles, and pat them on the back, has learned that mommy does not like pinching, has a great love for phones and remotes, still sucks her thumb to go to sleep and has to hold a blankie as well, knows the Mexican hat dance and which way the ladies ride, loves to dance and clap to music, throws her sippy cup off her tray at any opportunity, has learned to feed her buddy Banjo the rest of her meal when she has finished, takes one 3 hr nap a day, has grown more curls in the back but is still lacking in the front, loves belly buttons and will lift other's shirts to find them, greets me with a "hi!" after each nap, and has found her way even deeper into all of our hearts.

Oh how we love our Sophie Joy Tufah, and are so blessed to have her as our child. It has been a busy, crazy, exhausting four months home. Sophie has come so far in understanding what it means to be in a family. What love looks like from a well meaning six year old brother's tackle hug. How to show love through kisses and snuggles. What discipline means, and how to react. There used to be so much crying for every. little. thing. Now, I can redirect, close a cupboard, or say no with out the full body flail, tears, snot, and sobs. Now, if you take away an iPhone that she swiped off the night stand, you might still get the flail, tears, snot, and sobs. The girl really likes her technology :).

We would do it all again to have the privilege of having Sophie in our home. The dreaded paper work, the excruciating wait, the travel, the bulging disks in my back, every last detail we would do again, in a heart beat, for the joy of being her family. God is so good!

Hooray for four months of being a family of seven!