A Lot of Life to Share, so Starting Again Now!!

Always thinking about posting here, but neglecting to do it.  Yesterday, Joshua clicked on the tab and saw the blog and watched some sweet videos from when he was 3 and 2 years old.  I realized it's been nearly 5 years since posting.  A lot of life has happened, so rather than try to catch up, I'm going to use this to capture more of the funny and great things Joshua does so we can be thankful and treasure every moment of this life.  He's a sweet and good boy.  We have lots and lots and lots of video and photos from the past 5 years....hope to post more as we move along. 

So, yesterday, he told me that there was a hula-hoop contest in gym class.  He won third and first.  Third for actual hula-hooping around the waist (first and second place went to Gaby and Claudia respectively) and his first place win was for the longest push of the hula hoop across the gym.  Pretty cool.  He's been learning to hula hoop for the last two years or so, honing his skills at the Baltimore City Farmers' Market during a few visits this past summer.   I reminded him that his achievements also mean he's the top hula hooping boy in the class!  

Joshua is a wonderful athlete, more to come on that.  And is doing so well in his school work.  An amazing, brave and courageous boy!

Here he is fishing at a nearby pond with Dave (Dave's foot) from this past summer too! His first outing and he caught 7!

Three Years Ago and Today!

It was Friday, April 13, 2007 at about 4 p.m. that we met our little boy in Kazakhstan! An amazing journey. And what a wonderful joy it is to have him in our lives. Who knew then that three years hence, we'd be taking him to preschool, going to birthday parties for 3 and 4 year-olds, and always coming up with a good answer to the question "why" - which generally follows most conversations with Joshua. Bright, inquisitive and super sweet, charming and funny! That's how he was 3 years ago, and it's gotten better every day since.

Jingle Bells!

Jingle Bells. Joshua's singing it in his crib...trying to relax for his nap. It's the cutest thing ever. Doubt if he'll sleep, but he's happy! He learned the song in preschool, but didn't want to participate in the sing-a-long. I'm sure the music teacher will be happy to know he knows the words! Merry Christmas!

Ball game

Joshua has become a fan of the 'old ball game' even before his first live game. He will sit and enjoy however, a game with Mama & Papa in front of the TV (even if only for a few moments). Joshua also enjoys swinging his wiffle bat at his wiffle ball and anything else within reach.

Two Years Ago... We Got the Call; and Here's to Pop

It's been 2 years (Feb. 6, 2007) that we got the glorious call that our boy was waiting for us in Uralsk, Kazakhstan. I (Amy) freaked out when our coordinator called the house at 8:30 a.m. (she never called the house), and I knew that's why she was calling. After getting all the wonderful details about Joshua, I frantically tried to reach Dave via cell phone, but to no avail. He was on a job site, in the middle of a frozen field in Delaware, prospecting a project. Finally after about 20 minutes of repeated 911 pages, he returned the call. WOW, what a morning. It was probably the coldest day of the year, but I was shivering more from excitement about what was coming over email at any minute. I waited until Dave raced home from Delaware to open the emailed photo we received of our boy (posted last year at this time), to know upon first glance that he was indeed our son. What restraint and patience I showed at not peeking until Dave finally got home around Noon! We cried, laughed, jumped up and down and knew our lives would be forever changed. And all for the better.

Joshua continues to be the most amazing child, and now at nearly 2 1/2 years old, delights us with his wonderful language skills, makes us laugh with his sense of humor, and astounds us with his sensitivity to all that's going on around him. Joshua loves music, books, running, kicking, laughing, and playing with his cars and trains. He loves to be the center of attention, and loves a good party! We are so blessed.

And here's to his Papa - a special man indeed, who weathered the biggest storm of all this last year concerning my health. But, we are so blessed by the love and support of our families and dear friends, who have helped us immensely through that turbulent time.

I'm sharing here a picture of me, Joshua and Pop (my beloved dad) from Joshua's 1st birthday and christening on 9/16/06. Pop passed away on January 10, 2009 but he had the joy of knowing and loving Joshua, and delighting in his antics. Joshua had the honor of knowing his Pop, a man with sparkling blue eyes, and a love of all in his life, especially his grandchildren. Joshua knows Pop is in heaven, and knows that Pop worked with big gasoline trucks and big ships. We will be sure Joshua learns more and more about his Pop, and what a wonderful Pop he was to us all.

The petting zoo is a favorite stop at the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore.

Hey Jude

One of the many delights of your child growing is how he learns to repeat everything you say and sing. Dara recorded this last week after Joshua's lunch (thanks Dara) while he was feeling hammy.