Well, I am just going to throw this out there… I’m terrible at updating this little blog. Unfortunately, time just gets the best of me and Instagram/Facebook is so much quicker than writing out a blog post. BUT, for the sake of memories, I decided to do a “what’s been going on lately” write-up! So, in no particular order, here’s what life has been like in 2015 so far!
1. We have had some CRAZY weather here in North Texas this winter. The snow/ice kept us home for three different snow days. It was great to spend some extra time as a family. This particular day brought us lots of puffy snow, and we lasted all of 15 minutes outside playing in it! As much as Joelle loves the thought of snow, she would still prefer to stay inside and just look at it from afar!
We did the typical “we never get any snow so we are going to cram everything possible in 10 minutes” thing… snow ice cream, snow angels, mini-snowmen, snowball fights!
So glad she has a daddy like Jared because I could hardly step foot out of the garage in fear of getting too cold!
2. Joelle’s still rockin’ the Kindergarten thing! She’s become quite the little reader… and is now reading on a level 12! That’s about a mid-year 1st grade reading level :)) (Need I remind you that she has only known English for TWO years??!!) We couldn’t be more proud!
The best part is she LOVES everything about school. She prayed and prayed that we wouldn’t have to stay home on those snow days. She just loves her teacher, working, and the little friends that she has made! I know it won’t always be like that, so I’m cherishing every moment!
3. We’ve been trying out different hairstyles! My goal was to learn how to braid, but it’s just not happening right now. Thankfully we found a lovely lady about 10 minutes away that will try any of my ideas! AND, she’s super fast! This hairstyle took about 45 minutes and will last for 2 weeks. I still really love the puffs, and the braids back to puffs gives it a new, fun look!
4. We also celebrated Joelle’s 2nd Gotcha Day! We bought fabric while picking up Joelle in the Congo. Jared met a sweet lady in town that is a wonderful quilter! She turned the fabric into a beautiful quilt!
To celebrate her gotcha day we did a few things… Medieval Times, ice skating, and ate at her favorite restaurant! It was a fun weekend until I got sick as a dog!
5. For Valentine’s Day this year we decided on a family date rather than just going out as a couple. We knew that we would be taking an anniversary trip not too long after, so we wanted to include Joelle in on the Valentine’s festivities!
6. Speaking of anniversaries… Jared and I celebrated TEN years of marriage on March 12th! Jared planned the PERFECT vacation to Turks and Caicos. We had such a great time together, and it was just as beautiful as can be! I even got BACK in the water to snorkel after Jared saw a shark just a few feet away from me. I call that conquering a pretty large fear of mine!
We are taking Joelle there in June, so we went to the location where we will be staying and gave her a little FaceTime tour. We can’t wait to go back!
BUT, we missed Joelle quite a bit, so we let her sleep on our floor when we got home! We also went a little crazy buying every stuffed animal we found. I mean, every girl needs a huge lobster, whale, and stingray from the Turks, right?!
7. We are still persevering with adopting our two little boys. We’ve had quite a bit of movement, and I hope to update that whole process on here very soon. Until then, we appreciate all of your prayers!
