February......What?!?! (Christmas 2014 and Adoption Update)

So....apparently its already mid-February and I haven't posted about Christmas yet. How did the time get away from me?  I will say that December was super busy and crazy at our house other than the Christmas parties, shopping, and family gatherings. We were able to spend time with all three sets of grandparents and we still managed to be home Christmas morning. (Success in my book!)

These two kids make me so happy! (Aren't they just adorable?)

Avery is a girly-girl like me and loves jewelry, so one of her favorite gifts this Christmas was a monogrammed necklace from her Mama

I have lost count of how many big trucks Hudson has and somehow our family members seem to find ones he doesn't even own yet

A tradition at our house is not only leaving Santa milk and cookies, but making sure the reindeer also receive a treat. Here are the kids sprinkling the yard with reindeer food left by our elf, Charlie.

Christmas morning was such a magical one this year. Both Avery and Hudson were so excited and very grateful for each gift. ( I hope they never outgrow the coordinating pj phase).

The Ninja Turtle action figure was all Brad and I must admit I was skeptical, but the look on this boy's face says it all!

Avery was so excited to receive an old iPhone to use for music and selfies!

Aside from all the glories of Christmas, we were also in the midst of completing our home study during the month of December. Initially, we were told the home study process could take from 3-6 months time. So after many months of gathering important documents, filling out extensive applications we sent in our home study dossier right before Thanksgiving. I expected us to wait awhile before we were given the thumbs up to begin the process; I mean it took me several months to complete all the paperwork, surely it would take the agency awhile to sort through it all.....right? Nope!

We received a call about a week later stating we had a social worker and to call her to schedule our first meeting. So I thought, okay no big deal. I believe I called her on a Friday afternoon and we had our first home study visit scheduled for the following week.  She would come to our house for a couple of hours to interview us as well as inspect our home. I was surprisingly calm and not overly OCD about the cleanliness and tidiness of our house; so instinctively Brad thought something was wrong with me.  We immediately loved our social worker as she was very relatable and sweet (not sure what I expected). Our first visit was easy and completed!

The very next week we met for our second meeting, which again was easy and smooth. Our third and final meeting would include Avery and Hudson, which made me nervous. We scheduled it the first week of Christmas break when everyone would be home. The kids were sweet and on their best behavior (God is good)! So other than a couple of minor things our home study was finished in 3 weeks!! WHAT?!?!  So naturally, I assumed that with the Christmas holiday in 3 days it would be awhile before we heard anything from the agency. We put it on the back burner and enjoyed Christmas with our families.

Unexpectedly, I received an email on December 31, 2014 stating that our home study was not only complete but approved! WHAT?!?! And this email was being sent from our international agency, not our local one. What a wonderful gift to end the year! We have been so blessed thus far on this journey, we know that God has been with us each step. So now we are completing more paperwork for our Chinese dossier, finishing parenting classes and awaiting USCIS approval. We have also begun to think about fundraising and how we are going to bring our daughter home.

So I guess that's why its February and I'm just now blogging about Christmas.....