Please welcome...The New Character who Has Joined our Cast...

Well, it is without further ado, that we announce the arrival of Sweet Cheeks (SC) to our blog of family adventures and mostly fun times!! (PS - I hope my song list is playing -- it is not working here in Russia! something about licenses... please let me know if you read without music!)

I said to Jeff tonight "Is it just me, or are you waiting for the other shoe to drop, or is this not just amazing?" Jeff being Jeff said, "NO, moving forward" :) He is such a rock! We truly have been blessed - and I am not sure if it's kharma coming around for us or what, but now that we are "officially official" truly we have our agency to thank for this wholesome goodness that has come our way! I hope you enjoy some photos of our gal as much as we've enjoyed taking them along the way the last few days!! As soon as I get their permission, I will publicly post who we worked with and hands down, I would recommend them to anyone. anytime.

....Time to say goodbye to your friends here Sweet Cheeks...

...SC Clearly has 1 over on her Papa...
And I think the poor guy doesn't even quite suspect yet..
the spell she has already put him under!!

... Suit Up, Kiddo, the World is Waitin for You!...

...Adios Amigos... Thanks for taking such good care of me!!...
I truly have to say that this baby home is remarkable and did a wonderful job taking care of our baby until it was time for her to come be with us... We felt she was loved and well cared for, and we will always feel gratitude to those who work here....

... I am so happy, I could just sing a song...
...Or at least bang one...

... Papa, now you have it right...
...you see, the pink and purple ones bang much better...

what you should know is that these photos with her papa are extra special... I am adding this in and thanks to Jim... Our SC is "knew" to men -- ie: she essentially saw none. She was anxious but charming w/ her papa on the first 2 trips, and she is cautiously optimistic but still a tad curious about him -- if i am in sight, she generally wants to be all over me... and her dear papa has been so sweet, patient, and loving -- he flirts with her from a far to the point she can't resist him..... kinda like her mama felt some 14 years ago... :) and so, the times they are together and her sitting on his lap are huge.. i do have a video of her this afternoon -- her first tried and true belly laughing -- all saved up for her papa :) I know that they will be a great duo at all the father-daughter sport/dance events :)

...Someone is not happy at the discovery that...
... there is no "Sports Center" or "ESPN2" in Russia...

...It's 5 O'Clock Somewhere... and our happy bells are ringing :)
...lucky for her we DID refrain from buying it...

Dear Sweet Cheeks -
You are just so cute it is incredible and YES we have had to ask anyone who meets you in person to refrain from, well, squeezing your cheeks!! :) As with your brother's arrival, I am still pinching myself to see if you are real in our lives... And then you squeal with laughter, crawl over and climb all over me like a playground structure, pull at my hair, and overall be so cute that I know it must be true!! It is hard to even express how the time leading up to you has been for us... please we know you are the new ray of sunshine our family has hoped for to grow and thrive with... You have lived 12 months of life not knowing what it is like to be part of family... and you have such a huge family waiting to love you -- family & friends will surely find you as gorgeous and sweet as we do... Your big brother awaits at home for us, and we can't wait to introduce you both... He is going to be such a great brother... and you are gonna crack him up and keep him on his toes as his lil sister! Tho I know sometimes it will be hard for both of you to learn to share Mama and Papa, I can't wait to see you and he grow to be fast friends, I KNOW you both can do it! And, oh, the stories we will all live to tell together! welcome welcome welcome...
All of our hugs and love -
Mama and Papa!