Professional Pictures*Updated*

We had professional pictures made on July 2 by a wonderful photographer named
Robin Allen. She has been taking pictures of our kids for 15 months now and this was the first time James and I joined in. We went to James' parents lovely farm and it was the perfect location. There are a lot of pictures so make sure you scroll all the way down and check out all of them. If you are anywhere near, I can't recommend Robin highly enough. She is super-patient with kids and she has a great eye for getting the right shot. You can click on the pictures to see them in a larger size.
*Robin is going out on her own and has a new website. I have linked that website and you can see it when you click on her name. Also, if you scroll down you can see some new picutures of the boys.*

The Whole Crew!

Claire and her "Peacock Dress"

From the moment we first met Claire, she has been a "fashion queen". I had read everything about adoption and attachment that I could get my hands on before we went to China and I felt as prepared as possible for what lay ahead. I had read not to rush into changing your child's clothing too soon as they may feel attached to the clothing that they had been put in by their nanny or their foster mother. So, I was doing exactly that. After we had been in the room for awhile, I opened Claire's suitcase to get another toy out and Claire saw the suitcase full of clothes and she sat straight up and started looking in and then she started taking off her clothes and pointing to the clothes in the suitcase! She was so excited that she couldn't wait to try on the new clothes. Everyday in China she was thrilled to put on a new outfit and every night she was just as excited to put on a new pair of pajamas. We had a ritual of going and looking in the mirror at whatever new thing she was wearing and admiring how pretty she was. Once we got back home, Claire turned into a shopper. She would walk into a store at age 2 and start moving the clothes on the rack and looking at everything she could see. She had definite ideas about what she liked and I will admit that she had very good taste! Well, that was a long story to get to the point about this dress. We were at Gap and Claire saw this dress and she actually gasped out loud. She said, "Oh Mommy! I just have to have that dress. That dress will look so gorgeous on me!" (Did I mention she has great self-esteem?) She went on and on until I just had to buy it. She talked about the dress the entire 45 minute drive home. She said, "My Daddy won't believe how beautiful I am going to look in that dress." Well, when we got home she immediately had to put it on and she does this little run-way walk (I'm not joking), and she shows her Daddy the dress and she tells us, "I am so gorgeous in this dress. I am going to call this dress my Peacock Dress because it looks just like a peacock." So, that is why we have pictures of Claire in this dress, because Robin says that any dress that a child has given a name has to be photographed! I think it photographed beautifully.

Laura

Our Laura is turning 9 this week. It is so hard to believe. It seems like only a couple of years ago that I was in the hospital holding her for the first time. I know everybody says it, but it is just so true.

Our Boys *updated*

Here are the boys! They are reluctant subjects at best when it comes to photography sessions. I'm sure it is the age and the gender. It's a good thing that Robin is so good at what she does. Connor who is in the top picture is 13 and Chase, below, is 15.

The Creek

We took the girls to the creek for some more pictures and it was so hard to just pick a few. We love how in the second picture of Claire, her dress had gotten in the water and she immediately reached down and wrung it out. Laura is looking more grown-up all the time and this picture of her really shows it.

A Day at the Lake!

We spent a day at the lake with James' parents and his brother Joe and his brother's wife Laura. Claire actually calls her 2Laura because she had to differentiate between her sister Laura and her Aunt Laura and since James also has an Aunt Laura, Claire came up with 2Laura. It is a pretty effective way of keeping the 3 Laura's straight! We had a lot of fun and the kids (and adults) loved being pulled around on this floating thing called "Mable". I somehow ended up without a picture of James, his Dad or 2Laura. I'll get everybody next time.

Chase and Claire

Lake Pictures!

America The Beautiful for 232 Years!

Ray Charles singing a beautiful tribute to our nation and its' heroes.

Our Final Beach Day!

Our last day at the beach was the hottest yet, but the water didn't seem any warmer to me. Of course, the girls still didn't seem to mind. After our lunch we spent some time in the pool. Normally, Claire wears a swim vest at a pool and we didn't have ours with us. As I turned to take Laura's picture in the water, Claire jumped in. Luckily a lady was there and pulled her right up. Claire got out and told us, "You need to be careful in that big pool. If you go under, you don't come back up!" I think it may be time for some swim lessons! We finished out our day with a photo session of the little ladies with the pay-off of ice cream for pretty smiles. All they needed was a little sign that read, "Will work for chocolate".