Official and permanent - adoption finalization in court

June 13th at 9:30 a.m. we (along with several friends and Grandpa) met at the family court. . . and Nathaniel was legally added to our family. His name was changed to match ours and he has all the rights and privileges of any biological child! He is our son!

Daddy and his boy just before the hearing

 

Mommy's sweet baby son. . . how I love him!

 

We are so thankful for this precious gift!

Grandpa was the family representative. GramMee was keeping Lydia's girls while Lydia and Tom were at the hospital for the birth of their third daughter (what a special day!).

At the witness bench listening to the judge (picture snapped unawares and shared with us. . . not really allowed)

He's our son for always! The judge and attorney. . .

And the dear friends who joined us for this significant event

One of Nathaniel's devoted big sisters giving him a congratulatory kiss as we got in the car to go home

Our so happy family! Our neighbor Colleen stopped by the house just after we got home and offered to take some family pictures for us - what a blessing! One with Grandpa too!

Nathaniel's dedication (and 3 months old) - June

So far behind on blogging. . . I decided that the reasonable thing to do was pick up with current pictures. But then I realized I wouldn't get to share some very special events if I did that. So, playing catch-up again! =)

Big sister Hannah is multi-tasking. . . holding "Baby Daniel" while chatting on her cell phone.

The love is mutual!

Handsome baby boy is three months old!

Love his smile and dimples!

June 12 - at church just before Nathaniel's formal dedication to our Lord

Pastor Brooks spoke about Nathaniel of the Bible (John 1:43-51) whom Jesus said was "without deceit," who recognized Jesus as the Son of God, and to whom Jesus promised he would see the heavens opened.

Rejoicing afterwards with our pastor

And with GramMee and Grandpa who traveled to join us for Nathaniel's special day

Two handsome Nathaniels!

Our family of five! Grateful for God's kind blessings!

Memorial Day/week fun

Smart Daddy. . . playing with the girls in the sprinkler while watering our very dry grass. Abigail and Hannah were elated - the sprinkler was exciting and having Daddy play with them made it a real holiday!

'Course, Hannah was a little nervous, so Nathan carried her through the sprinkler. =)

Not Abigail. . . she had all kinds of tricks and experiments!

Nathaniel loves the outdoors and was happy (mostly) to chill on the front porch or help Mommy take pictures of the other three.

 

We bought a "local vacation" package deal which included a baseball game. Problem was, Nathan had to leave for a business trip the same day as the game. So, Uncle Caleb kindly agreed to escort us. Brave fellow!

Abigail enjoyed her first ballgame hotdog!

Nathaniel was a good sport the whole evening - and sat with Uncle Caleb for close to an hour. =)

Hannah barely noticed the game, but sure liked the potato chips!

And our poor, sweet son. He adores his big sister Abigail though one day he'll be mad at her for putting her flower sunglasses on him (and at me for posting this picture)!

End of the 7th inning and time to head home to bed! Thanks, Uncle Caleb!

Grandmama and Granddaddy visit!

Meeting the newest grandson!

Hi, Grandmama!

So happy to see Granddaddy!

Dad and Nathan grilled steaks on our new (happy anniversary and Father's Day!) charcoal grill. Mmm! See the little girls playing with the hose (I mean watering the vegetables) in the background?

Loving Grandmama

And Granddaddy too!

Nathaniel loves his Daddy! And Daddy loves his Nathaniel. =)

Sweet smiley boy!

Munchkins mid-May

We're loving this boy's smile! And those striped pjs are 3-6 months. . . he's almost done with 0-3s!

 Giving each other hugs

 All that cuteness!

 All that sweetness!

 All that trouble!

 So thankful for our three blessings!

Hannah is potty trained! We started last Monday and Wednesday she figured it out. Those are Huggies potty training stickers plastered across her front. The current challenge is weaning her off of "tweats." She can go every 15 minutes to get another M&M. Now we're trying. . . "dry till lunch" and "dry till bedtime" rewards. =) Back to just one in diapers!

Sisters and cousins - May 10th

What a treat to drive just an hour to visit Lydia and girls in their new home (Tom was still working in Maryland during the week)! Abigail and Hannah couldn't wait to get there and Nathaniel sweetly slept the whole way there (and cried the whole way home - sorry Erika!).

We had a fun lunch on their back porch. . . the girls thought they were grown up enjoying their goodies at their own table! Lydia is eight months pregnant and didn't want pictures, so I just took ones of our little girls.

Popsicles/icecream afterwards were yummy and messy!

Hmmm. . . I think we turned the hose on to rinse fallen popsicle and then sticky fingers and then little girls claimed it. And they all ended up soaked. =)

Children at home. . . Baby's two months old!

Do you think Hannah loves her baby brother? She calls him "Baby Daniel." And he's beginning to look a little stout. =)

Did you know how exciting it is to wash dishes? Nathan injured his back at work one night recently and wisely began putting the stool in front of the kitchen sink for hand-washing (instead of us lifting Hannah up). Only problem is, that gives Hannah easy access to the sink. Whenever it crosses her mind, she perks up and exclaims "Dishes!" and runs to the sink. The real joy is in the running water.

 Abigail took this picture of Mommy and her boy one night while Jennie Lue was over. . .

And the first smile we've captured on camera - they're quick flashes that don't wait!

Nathaniel two months old. At his checkup, he weighed 12 pounds, 5 ounces and was 22.5 inches long. Our baby boy is growing fast!

Big sisters forever asking to hold their brother. . . love it, and them!