Recapping the holiday

Well, Christmas was eveything and a bag of chips!! The boys were so excited that Santa brought them a Wii. They have been playing it nonstop ever since. Jacob loves Carnival games and Logan is really into Lego indiana jones for Wii. I think that they will go through Wii withdrawl when they go back to school.

We spent alot of time with family and traveling during their break from school and I am finally getting the boys on schedule for Monday. We have all been off for 12 days, talk about a painful return to work and school!

We are hoping that this new year will bless us with out daughter from China, but there are still many people in line ahead of us, so we will continue to wait our turn. At the very least we can hope for a better year than the year before right? Here is wishing everyone a very happy New Year!!!

Thoughts of China...

I know that the next few days will be a whirlwind, so I have decided to blog some of my thoughts today. The first thought that I have is of our baby Killian. This will be our 5th Christmas without him. Logan asked me about him yesterday and was asking why a baby would die. Logan is really understanding death at this time, since his Grandpa recently died, but struggled with his younger brother's death, because this does not make sense... yes I understand that too, but his is our path in this life. And although I would trade any lessons I have learned, to be my shallow self before his death, I can't deny that my life has changed since loosing him. I am grateful for my healthy and happy boys. I appreciate family more, and have to believe that we are adopting a daughter now because Killian knows this will heal us. Killian is always with us... I can feel him and see his signs from time to time. And our baby in China... so many unanswered questions. Is she born, where was she abandoned, is she loved this Christmas, is she warm, is she being held, is her belly full??? All these questions that we don't know the answers to.. we can only hope that we will be holding her soon.

Revving up for Christmas!

Well the Vogel house is revving up for Christmas. We went to see the man in red yesterday. That was fun. Of course when they saw Santa, they completely changed their list... ugh! The picture below is of them waiting in line. I wasn't allowed to take a picture of them with Santa, unless I wanted to pay for it, and we said no thanks. I think that if I tried the lady would have tackled me to the ground and taken my camera. As it was I had to walk through to the exit while they talked to Santa. The bear in the picture is Winston. Winston travels through Logan's class and then the kids have to write about their adventures with him. It was very exciting to take Winston to the mall with us!!

There were 2 really great things that happened at the mall though. The first is that Logan reminded Santa not to come down the chimney because he will be burnt by the wood burner. The second awesome thing is that Jacob gave some of his money to the bell ringer. This is a big step for Jacob, because he is somewhat of a miser. It was really cool to see him donate his money, independently. They are both such sweet boys and we are really blessed.

We also made cut out cookies. Well at least the first batch, because they have both eaten 5 each today alone and the cookies will never make it to Christmas. They have a sweet tooth, like their mom!

We will update again to tell everyone how Christmas turned out :)

Thanksgiving Reflections...

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. I love Thanksgiving, it is definetely my favorite holiday. I would have to say that I am thankful for my health and my family, extended and immediate. It was a busy weekend for us. We had a split Thursday with celebrations in both Pittsburgh and Beaver. That kept us moving. In Pittsburgh the boys enjoyed playing with the marshmallow shooters that my brother made for them, and playing with their cousin Nick. The food was great as well as the company!Then it was off to Beaver for dessert and more merriment. That was fun too and it was nice to see everyone. Now it's off for the Christmas rush... fun, fun! Take care everyone!

Fall Fun!

Hi everyone.. Just thought that I would post a quick update. Halloween was great. I spent the afternoon volunteering at both of the boys school parties, which I really enjoy. The kids are so funny and nice, and the way I see it, they are only this young once. Then we went to town for trick-or-treat, also a good time. Logan was a motocrooss rider and Jacob was a Hounds football player. They have also been having fun playing in the falling leaves. There are always plenty to play in at our house.

To update on the China journey for our daughter. The news continues to be a longer wait. It could be up to another year. The wait is uncertain at this time, but we will continue to be in this until the end. I just have to believe that there is some fate behind all of this and that the timing of her adoption is being planned this way for a reason. If anything it keeps me sane!!!

Nine is Fine!

Our oldest son has turned 9. This is both a blessing and a challenge. A blessing in that Jacob has been here with us, creating memories for 9 years, and a challenge because 9 year olds are tough to raise. He has become so independent and is really growing up. He is starting to test the household boundaries and can be defiant at times. All of these behaviors are trying, but healthy. It's really quite interesting to see Jacob trying to find his interests and place in this world. He is really growing up.

We had a wonderful party for Jacob at a local recreational place. Jacob and all of his friends had a wonderful time. It was a great party and this really celebrated his 9 year old birthday!

Happy Birthday triple cheese... we love you!

Happy 5th Birthday

Well I'm posting a little late, but there has been too much sadness and I just couldn't do it yesterday. I looked in our Killian photo album for a picture of Matt's dad and Killian, but we don't have one, 10 weeks is not alot of time for photo opportunities. Anyway with Matt's dad passing, it really makes you appreciate what you have. I have a wonderful husband, 2 great boys, a china doll on the way, and 10 weeks of precious memories that I will never forget. Happy 5th baby Killian..."This is not at all how we thought it was supposed to be

We had so many plans for you, we had so many dreams

But now you've gone away and left us with the memory of your smile

And nothing we can say, and nothing we can do

Can take away the pain of loosing you...

But we can cry with hope

We can say goodbye with hope

'Cause we know our goodbye is not the end

And we can pray with hope

And we can say with hope

There's a place where we'll see your face again."