Spring Adventures

This spring has been filled with adventurous activity, at least by 2 and 4 year old standards.

While we were in Pennsylvania for Easter, we made a trip to the Tyler Arboretum, a favorite place of my childhood.

They currently have a series of tree houses spaced throughout the woods.

Jason loved the one that was built in the shape of a guitar with musical instruments on the walls inside.

Sophia was helpful with the ones that required climbing.

It was a joyful way to welcome in spring after a long winter.

Almost all of the house components are made from natural materials, including tunnel entrances.

We were glad Uncle James was able to take the day off work to spend it with us.

Our next spring adventure, was a return to the cold, with Sophia's first time on ice skates.

The Friends of Foster Care sponsored this wonderful event for foster families.

A new friend very patiently helped Sophia, until she was moving across the rink on her own.

Jason was not interested in trying on skates and much preferred to drive the Zamboni.

Also sponsored by the Friends of Foster Care, was a day at Furnace Brook Farm Therapeutic Riding.

We had gotten a photo of Sophia on top of a pony about three years ago, but this was the first time she really rode.

She also had an opportunity to feed and groom some horses.

I have always loved these gentle giants and it was wonderful to see my children interact with them.

On to more adventures!

Jason's Adoption Party

Ten days after we left the courthouse, we celebrated Jason's adoption with neighbors, family, and friends from as far as Colorado, Indiana, Pennsylvania, New York, Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Connecticut and as near as walking distance from the building. We wish you all could have been there!

Jason's adoption is about adding, his name begins with those given to him by his birth mother before Archambault was added and his body continues to flow with the blood of a father and mother that are not Joshua or I. 

We celebrated with Ecuadorian music coming from the speakers and pictures of his birth mother in the slide show of his first 2 1/2 years of life. Our hope is that we will be able to sustain a relationship with his mother and connect with his father and half-siblings.

Jason's Speech Therapist

Trains are Jason's current favorite and his Aunt Aimee and our friend Kim brought the theme to life with tables turned into steam engines, railroad tracks, a photo booth with train props, and a train car buffet table. The train shirt he wore was mine as a child.

A train running alongside one wall displayed some of our favorite quotes about adoption, such as:

"In adoption, a child is not given up. A birth mother gives life, she gives a part of her heart that will never feel whole. And the adoptive mother gives her life to the child, as well as a part of her heart to another mother."- Tevva Cooper

Sophia singing "Happy Adoption" to her brother

"Adoption has the dimension of connection - not only to your own tribe, but beyond, widening the scope of what constitutes love, ties, and family. It is a larger embrace. By adopting, we stretch past our immediate circles and, by reaching out, find an unexpected sense of belonging with others."-Isabella Rossellini

It has been said that adoption is more like a marriage than a birth: two (or more) individuals, each with their own unique mix of needs, patterns and genetic history, coming together with love, hope, and commitment for a joint future. You become a family not because you share the same genes, but because you share the same love for each other." -Joan McNamara

"Family not only need to consist of merely those whom we share blood, but also those for whom we'd give blood." -Charles Dickens

"He is hers in a way that he will never be mine, he is mine in a way that he will never be hers, and together, we are his mothers."- Desha Wood

We are thankful to everyone for bringing food to share, to the decorators and party planners. To Alison and Ross MacDonald for the 4 ft letters with lights from their company DorisLoves USA. To Ashley Ringius for the cake (Each tier with one of his names, the first three given to him by his Mom and the bottom one with Archambault) and Melissa Fuccillo with Lovelifepics.com. We are fortunate to have such creative and generous friends.