Christmas and miracles!

As I sat in church on Christmas Eve listening to our Pastor talk about miracles in our lives, I immediately thought about the birth of my 3 boys.  There is nothing like becoming pregnant and giving birth that shows a real miracle.  I mean really...everything that must come together in order for this perfect little baby to be born.  It is truly nothing short of a miracle.  And it blew me away.... every.....single...time!!!  And then I turned in my seat and saw this

and I knew I was looking at another of God's miracles. The actual miracle of her birth was experienced by her other mother.....her China Mommy.  But the circumstances in which she became a part of our family is a miracle none the less!!   I remember the beginning of our adoption story...the part where I had to convince Scott that it is something we should do.   And then we met sweet Grace, who quickly transformed Scott's heart and we started the paperwork.  And who would ever have thought that we could tackle the mountains of paperwork , and doctor visits, and fingerprint appointments and police clearances and time restraints.  But we did...and it was a miracle!  And then that call on May 19th 2008, when our adoption advocate said Kathie I think we have a little girl that would be perfect for you.  And that little girl turned out to be the most perfect fit for our family.  Coincidence???  no... a miracle!  And don't forget the miracle of Scott, who had an intense fear of flying...who because of that fear had NEVER flown before,  who got on that plane and flew non stop for 13 hours so that he could meet and bring his daughter home!!

And so this Christmas has reminded me of all that God can accomplish.  I thought a lot about my children the last few days, and  the miracles that brought them to me.  I am blessed beyond belief that they are in my life and that I have been entrusted with their care.  Hope you all had a Merry Christmas!!

Prayer Request

I have a  prayer request.  I have a dear friend who was just diagnosed with ovarian cancer.  She has a huge support system of family and friends but I know she would appreciate all your prayers too!  Thank you!

Osbourne Family Christmas-Disney cont.

The first night in Disney we went back to Hollywood Studios where we had been earlier in the day.  Imagine my shock at the transformation.  Although I knew the streets would be lit for Christmas I had no idea the beauty that was waiting for us!

Music was playing and the lights were dancing to the rhythm.  So was Sierra!!

You have to see it to believe it!

Disney!

We returned from Disney late Friday night ( really early Saturday morning ). I have wanted to post more but I am just so overwhelmed with all we experienced/ It was my second trip to Disney and Sierra and Scott's first. It is an amazing place and one leaves there with a profound respect for all those involved behind the scenes. Magic, dreams, wonder, laughter,joy, beauty, fun,colorful.are all words that come to mind when trying to describe the feeling of Disney. And to watch your child as she sees for the first time the castle or shakes hands with Mickey or kisses the cheek of one of her favorite princesses,its as the saying goes "priceless" Disney does it right. They make you and your children feel special. They work hard to make their park the best, and it shows. The hardest part is deciding what to do on any given day. There is sooo much to choose from.

Tonight I will share with you some pics of our dinner with the princesses. Scott's brother and his wife had arranged for the 3 of us to have dinner with the princesses at a restaurant in "Norway". Sierra was dressed in her favorite princess dress and tiara and her seh excitedly asked me to put her hair in a bun. She wasn't thrilled about the leggings or the sneakers but I am somewhat practical too. There is nowhere to go in Disney without having to walk and it was COLD that day. From the moment we entered the restaurant to the moment we left..our girl was in awe!! What a memory for her to treasure forever. And the last princess to make an apeearance???? Her favorite...Ariel!!

            I love how she has an itch and is scratching just as I take the picture! I have another too!

                                                               Daddy and Cinderella!

                                                                Dadddy's favorite princess

         Sierra made the waitresses day when she aked if she could have a picture of her too.  She was a   student from Norway!

                                                                  Mmmmm.....dessert!

A night filled with joy and wonder...more magic to follow soon!

We Are Back!!

What a trip. No one does it better than Disney. Here are a few pics with more coming over the next few days!!

The long awaited first glimpse of the castle

Sierra spotting it for the first time, walking with her Aunt Carol and Uncle Steve!

                                                            Note the winter coat and hood!!

More to come in the days ahead!!

Going Away

I will not be posting for a little while.  We are leaving early in the morning to go visit some friends!!!

See you all when we get back!!!

Happy Thanksgiving!

This is a day that I so miss those not with us, my parents, my grandparents, Scott's Mom,..... but I can not help but me thankful for all the blessings that have been bestowed on me.  The love of God our Father, who is there through it all: my husband, who is my friend and confidant:  my 3  older sons who are maturing into men that I am sooo proud of:, the girls in their lives, who have added more happiness into our lives; my sweet Sierra who has filled my days with the most unimaginable joy;  my brother and sister, who are the 2 people I can count on for ANYTHING; Scotts family who has become so much more than "in-laws";friends who really know the meaning of friendship; an employer who has let me take  a 2 year leave of absence and has given me my old job back(come January); health insurance which right now is still good with very little cost to us; continued good health for Sierra; a roof over our heads; enough food to eat; a free preschool program for Sierra; and a country where men and women are willing to risk their lives, to save it all for us!!
Happy Thanksgiving to you all and I hope your lives are filled with abundant joy!

Sierra's Baptism and a Celebration of an Engagement

Sunday wa a very emotonal day for me.  We had Sierra baptized at our church  Since she was older then the infants my other children were when they were baptized, I really wanted her to understand what it was aboutm hence why we didn't so it sooner.  She was excited, especiallly to have all her brothers and Pop Pop and her Aunt and Uncle and cousin, and other friends who came to witness this special event. The moment where I stood and promised to raise this child as a believer in Christ and all He stands for , was a special moment indeed.  4 other children were baptized and our Pastor had tears in his eyes as he laid his hands on eavh child's head.  He has always said baptisms were his most favorite..  Sierra looked beautiful and even sang a duet with the pastors wife.  Sierra has always said she wanted to sing with her and we thought Sunday would be a good time.  She was nervous but stood up in front of the entire church and sang Jesus Loves Me.  It brought tears to many eyes, including my own.  It is not lost on me that if she had stayed in China she may never have learned about Jesus at all! 

In the afternoon we attended an engagement party held in honor of my son Paul and his fiance Jenn.  Again it was a wonderful time.  A day spent with so much family is always top notch in my book.  They radiated happiness and we are so excited for them.  The wedding will be next October..a fall wedding...my favorite!!
 
Here are some pics

 Pastor Paul

 Our friends the Kelly's who are Sierra's godparents

 My favorite 'from the back" photo

 Paul and Jenn

All the boys and girls!

Thank you!!

We went to Lowes today and they had these stickers at every checkout.  Nothing on the back, no advertisments, just a simple thank you.  And so I send .....to all my bloggy friends who have sons, daughters, husbands, wifes,brothers and sisters serving and defending us.....my heartfelt and sincere  THANK YOU!!!!

Black and White with color!!

I have been playing with a new program that I downloaded free.  Its Paint.Net.  I have always loved this kind of picture and did not know how to do it.  Paint.net uses layering to create this effect.  So much fun!!!
Still learnign how to use the magic wand effectively  but am having a great time learning!!

Leaf Waxing

I was reading through some of my favorite blogs and came across this neat idea. http://4ourkiddos.blogspot.com/2010/11/school-candy-fun-project.html   So today I stopped at the hardware store and bought some wax. When we got home Sierra and I went leaf picking. We chose our favorites and brought them home. we melted the wax dipped the leaves in and laid them on wax paper to dry. I tied them on thread and hung them from 2 windows!! I can't wait to do this agian next year when the colors are at their peak. It was great fun and Sierra loved dipping the leaves! Special thanks to David who ran and got me more wax paper !!!

Still some beautiful color!

Taking a walk to look for leaves

Finding and choosing

Melting the wax

Carefully dipping

Leaves waiting to be dipped

 Drying

 Hanging in the window for all to see!

This was a great activity...can't wait to do it again earlier next year!!

Happy Halloween!!

I hope everyone had a great Halloweeen!!  This day has a new meaning for our family. 2 years ago after months of waiting, we finally received, on Halloween the final approval for us to go and get Sierra.  So now it ranks up there as one of my favorite holidays.  On Friday Sierra had her preschool celebration.  It was awesome!!  On Saturday she attended a Halloween Party that her Mimi puts on. And Sunday she went trick or treating and then to Jenn's parents hourse who really do up Halloween!!  Of course there is now way too much candy at our house and no one wanted to get up this morning, but we had a blast!!

My favorite Halloween Cat!!

From Jenn's parents' yard

From one of the haunted rooms at pre school