Helllllloooooooo

Hi, all! I have been asked (demanded:) to update the blog. It has been a little while. We have been a little busy here. Let me update you all: we are adopting another babe with Down syndrome! He lives in a different European country and the process is a little different than Ukraine. We are knee deep in fundraising and trying to complete the state side part of the adoption. The home study is complete. The USCIS application was mailed today! We should get a fingerprint appointment and then hopefully, we will get our government's approval to adopt internationally. 

Our biggest hurdle this time around is funds! We had saved the money upfront for Caden and Cole's adoption. Cooper had a full grant, so we didn't need a lot of money. This time around...we are starting from scratch. We are working hard and progressing, so I am trying not to panic, but trusting that thousands of dollars will come is really hard for me. 

Update on the boys: 

Cole is 8 years old and HUGE! He is taller than his typical peers, has a 6 pack abs and has an athletic build. He is sweet, funny and laid back. His nickname is sneaky Pete! He waits until you aren't looking and goes for a toy that one of the others have. He is potty trained and very independent. He can write his name, knows all his numbers and letters and loves school. He is still a loner and needs extra encouragement to engage with others.

Cooper is also 8 years old. He does NOT have an athletic build. He weighed around 15 pounds when he came home. He now weighs 60! He is quite the chunkster. He loves to eat. He still can't chew very well and still requires thickened liquids. He goes 100 miles an hour as soon as his feet hit the ground until he passes out at night. He says a few words, signs some and his favorite activity is to play on the iPad. He is not a fan of school. He would rather hang out at home. He is extremely loving now and greets us with kisses and joy! He is so different than what he was and is definitely a man on a destruction mission. He requires a set of eyes on him at all times!

Caden is 6 years old now and is a tiny dictator. He seriously thinks that he is in charge of the world. He tells people where to sit, what toy to play with, everything. He is VERY smart and loves school. He is a jokester and will hide your stuff from you and then crack up watching you look for it! He currently carries a plastic spoon and cup around everywhere he goes and even sleeps with it. Sean keeps extra cups and spoons in the house at all times because he panics without one! I have said that God made him extra cute so we would get mad at him for being the dictator he is. He is a little tiny thing still. Some days he eats like a man and then he might just snack only for several days, but he is healthy and growing!

Danielle is now 22 and just graduated from nursing school. She works full time and is on the go all the time. She is planning on going back to school at some point, but unsure when. All I can add here is...thank God the village helped raise her:)

Cody is the last man standing. He is 20 years old and in nursing school. He works full time also. He is laid back and doesn't really have a concrete plan of what he wants to do right now. Believe it or not, he still plays Runescape! Yes, 10 years later!! 

Sean and I are still the same;) no big changes here, except he has lost weight and I have gained it!!!

Well, that catches you all up and I will try to add some pics!