Our Lovely Little Fairy

She's 4!!!  Can you believe it?  We can't!  We turned into Pixie Hollow for a day and welcomed fairy friends, including Tinkerbell, to celebrate Thea's 4th.  Happy Birthday, Thea!!

We're Still Here!

Sorry our posts have been few and far between.  Life with two little ones is wonderfully busy, especially when we are working full time!  I will aim to get more frequent with my posts so those of you who are still around -- please stay!

ALL "BUBBA" -- BDAY AND GOTCHA DAY

HAPPY BIRTHDAY EJ!!!!!!!!! 

EJ (aka "Bubba") turned 2 on May 4.  We had a family/friends gathering on the 5th.  He enjoyed playing with his cousins in the swimming pool, bouncing in the bouncy house and filling water balloons.  EJ loved his cake, too!  (Semi-homemade, thank you very much!)  EJ LOVES BALLOONS so we had LOTS of balloons at his party, which was fun. 

 

On June 7 we celebrated EJ's GOTCHA DAY by going out to dinner.  It's hard to believe a year has gone by since he was placed in our arms that morning at Holt Korea.  From a quiet, scared *understandably* little guy to a rambunctious, funny little dude with a great smile!  We're blessed!  

 

Hello Again!

I know -- it's been TOO LONG! Things are going great -- super busy, like most folks I know.

EJ is starting to talk a little more -- he says "hi" and "bye". Kathy, our new daycare provider, says he has said "outside" and "swing", as well. I have yet to hear these words....in due time!

Thea is no long my baby, I must accept it. She is such a "big girl" now -- not wearing diapers anymore, getting so tall, talking up a storm.....

We have had super nice weather here in Nebraska lately -- we're hoping that Spring has officially sprung -- it's too early to know for sure, but we'll take it.

It's Official -- He's Ours!

This morning we headed to Sarpy County Courthouse to finalize the adoption of our wonderful blessing, Elliott James. YAY! It's official and it feels GREAT!

One Year Ago Today....

The phone rang early in the morning as I was sitting at work booting up my computer. It was our wonderful social worker, Bonnie, who said "ARE YOU READY?" Was she CRAZY? Yes -- we'd waited for this call!!!! She started talking about him generally -- date of birth, where he was born, health, name, etc. - and then she sent us these pictures and we were IN LOVE! So worth the wait....

Happy Halloween 2011 and 18 months old...

Trick or treating at daddy's workplace resulted in tons o'candy before Halloween so, of course, we went back for MORE on Halloween night in our neighborhood.

EJ is now 18 months and weighs in at just over 20 lbs. We thank God each day for him as we are so blessed to have him in our lives. Thea shows moments of liking him....we're making progress, right?

Loving Fall!

Fall Update:
We celebrated Grandma Linda's birthday and Cousin William's birthday this Fall. We had a visit from Grandma and Grandpa Duey. During the visit we all went to Pooley's Pumpkin Patch with Uncle Dan and Aunt Amy. It was so fun! We've been blessed with fantastic weather and will be sad to see it go.

Thea and EJ are looking forward to Halloween (especially Thea, she's been asking about it for a month). There are lots of yards with Halloween decorations in them in our neighborhood so we often go for walks at night and look at the "spookies" as a family.

EJ had ear tubes put in last week and we think he can hear better! He said "mama" and "MATT" so we're hoping for more words soon. He finally weighs 20 lbs. Can you believe he'll be 18 months next week?

Ah That Delicious Sweet Corn

It's Almost September ALREADY

Here's the latest and greatest, folks!

• I am to work (almost) full-time. I missed my clients and co-workers and it's good to be back.


• EJ is adjusting very slowly to daycare; we're thankful my schedule is a bit more flexible so I can be around more as he makes yet another transition.


• Since June EJ gained almost a pound and grew one inch! He's almost to 20 lbs. now and isn't even making the charts.


• Thea had her preschool open house last night and officially starts preschool tomorrow. She'll attend two days a week in the afternoons. The little backpack I bought for her is too small according to the preschool director so we'll look for a bigger one that won't tip her over backwards. I'll try to hold back the tears tomorrow...


• Matt is keeping busy with work, honey-do lists, the kids and his favorite hobby -- making and reloading bullets and pistol competitions!


• Next week we have our second home visit from our social worker. One more and we will be able to finalize our adoption.

More later!!

The Heat Is On!

It's been hot here in eastern Nebraska and we've been doing our best to stay cool. Lots of popcicles, sprinklers and ice cream going on! The last few weeks have been busy. EJ met his cousins, Sidney and Jesse, and Aunt Laura for the first time. Then EJ went on his first big trip to Papa and Mutti's in Scottsbluff with Mommy and Thea. Daddy Matt met us a few days later at the Duey cabin (aka "Mountain Time") in Colorado. Getting out of the humidity and heat was WONDERFUL! Thea and EJ loved the horse, Frosty, and the kitties in Scottsbluff. They loved the chipmunks in Colorado, too.

Lots of folks ask how Thea is adjusting to her baby brother. She has been very challenged for attention, as most older siblings are when the new one comes along. It has been harder for her, most likely, because EJ is mobile and gets into her things. We are hearing "send him back to Korea" less and less and catching a few sweet moments between them -- I've caught them holding hands in the car several times! We have a ways to go with Thea -- we think she is getting better. She starts preschool next month, which she is more than ready for.

EJ is doing great! According to Dr. Duey he has 12 teeth and is getting his canines now. He loves most of what we feed him and is gaining weight. My goal for August is to spend a lot of time getting him used to his new daily routine at daycare with his sister. I start work again on August 24th.

We had our first post-placement visit and it went well. (Bonnie, our social worker, is the coolest.) We are HOPING to finalize the adoption yet this year. For Korea we have to have three post-placement visits and then finalize the adoption through the court system.

Some Glimpses of Our Korea Trip

Our trip to Korea was so interesting and rewarding. We especially enjoyed our food tour, the DMZ tour, the fish market and the Korean War Museum. We also loved our day with our guide on the city tour. She took us to a traditional Korean tea house; the tea there was incredible! Sarah loved her tofu donut from Dunkin Donuts and we found out if you order more than $10 from McDonalds, they deliver!

One Month Ago

We arrived in Omaha with our dear son, EJ. I'm happy to report that he is adapting very well to our family and home. We are so blessed. EJ is a happy, easy, sweet boy. He is a super climber and is now walking all over the place!

Someone Had A Birthday.....

Three years ago a beautiful daughter was placed in our arms and she is more wonderful than we ever could have imaged. She is the light of our life and we are so blessed she is ours. Happy 3rd Birthday THEA (July 1)! On Saturday, July 2, she celebrated with her family and friends, a bouncy house (complete with slide!) and a Dora cake. She was thrilled!

Today she had her three-year check up with the doctor and she is right on track -- long and lean. In the 80th percentile for height and 58th for weight. We are so thankful she is healthy. In a few weeks she starts "Bug Camp" and started dance class last week.

A Few Pics of The Kiddos.....

Happy Father's Day and Update

Here's to the #1 dad -- Matt! He is a wonderful father -- he makes time together so fun and he is so dedicated to his children. Here he is with his favorite little man.....

Things have been going quite well at the Lierman household. The first week was a little rough because EJ was really sick with a bad ear infection and cold. He's finally feeling better and his personality is starting to come out. We are so in love! He's been such a sweet baby so far. He has a great smile and is a very active little guy. The toughest diaper I've ever changed because he squirms so much. The foster parents warned us.....and boy were they right! We're having fun getting to know him. He's on a pretty good sleep schedule now. Thea is adjusting SLOWLY. It hasn't been a cake walk for her. It seems to be getting a tad bit better. We know this is temporary and we're trying to keep her busy. She'll start bug camp and dance classes soon. And we can't believe she'll be 3 in a few weeks!

Introducing Elliott James "EJ" Lierman

Here's our beautiful little son. He's a super sweet baby. He slept almost the whole flight back from Seoul and again between Detroit and Omaha. We are so blessed. I will post more about our trip and meeting EJ and his foster family when I have time. It's currently 2:37 a.m. Omaha time and me and little peanut are up after a nap. Hoping we can go back to sleep soon! We're so glad to be home! Thanks for everyone's well wishes. We can't wait to introduce EJ to you all in person!