Family News!

Well, it's been a long time! We have some exciting family news that I wanted to share and I plan to continue blogging. This spring our family made the decision to start an international adoption. After lots of prayer and research we decided on Buckner/Dillion International as our agency and chose Korea. We have had lots of different reactions, but mostly positive from people when we tell them that we are planning to adopt. The biggest question is "Why? Especially when you already have 3 children!" I hope this will answer some of the "Why" questions!

About a year ago, the Lord opened our eyes to a great and overwhelming need. There are over 143 MILLION orphans worldwide today. As we started thinking and praying about the possibility of adoption, the subject continued to come up in Bible studies, sermons at church, books we were reading, and conversations with friends. It very quickly became clear to us that God was specifically calling us to adopt.

"When you reap your harvest in your field and have forgotten a sheaf in the field, you shall not go back to get it; it shall be for the alien, for the orphan, and for the widow, in order that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hands." - Deuteronomy 24:19

"Because I delivered the poor who cried for help, and the orphan who had no helper." - Job 29:12

"Learn to do good; seek justice, reprove the ruthless, defend the orphan, plead for the widow."
- Isaiah 1:17

"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." - James 1:27

The Lord has a great love for orphans. We were faced with this reality and with a calling and a choice. We decided to obey. Now comes the hard part - the paperwork!!

Here's where we are in the process:
After a lot of thought, research and prayer we have decided that Korea is the best match for us. We will adopt a toddler, probably between 18 months and 2 years old. They told us that about 80 % of the babies adopted out of Korea are boys. We will most likely be matched with a boy, but we can't specify gender. The children live with a foster family and have excellent medical care while we are waiting. We have been told that it takes anywhere from 20-27 months to complete the process, but of course that can change at any time. Recently, our Step 1 application was approved and we have officially been accepted into the Korea program. We just received Step 2 in the mail and we have a LOT of work to do!

Thank you for praying for us on this crazy journey!

3 Months of Catching Up!

Most of you have figured out that I have trouble keeping up with blogging! Here are a few pictures from the last few months. Alex is 7 months now and cuter than ever! He is having a hard time with ear infections, but otherwise a great baby. Kyle and Haley are enjoying their classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Kyle is learning so much and having lots of fun!

Camping trip this weekend (before the snow!)

Bathtime! Alex is sitting up now!




8 inches of snow in February!


January

Santa Pictures!

It has been a while since I updated our blog, so I am not going to try to catch up. Here are some pictures we took today. Alex is doing great, but he definitely adds another layer to our already busy schedule. I don't seem to find as much time to blog as I used to. I can't imagine why!!

We went to see Santa today and got some great pictures. We went to a mall near us and there was not a single person there today! The kids got to talk to Santa for about 10 minutes and just loved it! Santa was really nice and it was fun to have that extra time instead of standing in a line and feeling rushed. Haley asked for a doll and Kyle asked for a real gun so he can shoot the wild animals when we go camping. Santa said maybe a Nerf gun would be a better idea. I think Mommy and Daddy agree. :)

Alex was fussy so he did not end up in this picture. We did get one with all three that we bought for us. He wasn't happy about it, but he did tolerate it.

He was happy when we got home so I took advantage of that and got some adorable pictures in his Santa suit!

Alex will be 4 months next week. He loves to be entertained by Kyle and Haley and they are so sweet with him. He is laughing now and smiles all the time. We are now consistently sleeping through the night, which makes everything better! He is getting bigger and stronger and has managed to wiggle out of his bouncy seat more than once. I have to strap him into everything now. He is very social (is that a surprise in our family?) and is starting to fuss when we walk off and leave him. He is also really big - our biggest baby by far! - and almost wearing 6-9 month clothes. He loves to cuddle and I am taking full advantage of that since he will forever be the baby of our family.

3 Months!

Alex and Kyle - Haley was not in the mood for a photo session that day.

Alex continues to be a wonderful baby! I can't believe he is 3 months already. He loves to sit in his bouncy chair and watch Kyle and Haley. He is grinning all the time and he just lights up when anyone talks to him. When he gets really excited his whole body wiggles! He has started grabbing onto things and found his feet last week. He rolled over a few weeks ago, but hasn't done it since. He is growing fast - his feet are at the end of his 3-6 month sleepers already. I bet he will be tall like everyone else in the family (except for me).

2 Months

2 Months Old!!

Wow! Time has really been flying in the Wolf household. I'm sorry I haven't updated in a while, but it has been hard to find a quiet minute to work on this. Alex is doing great! He was 12 lbs and 25 in. long at his 2 month checkup. He is still having some trouble with the reflux, but the medicine he is on is really helping a lot. He is such a wonderful baby. He is sleeping 8-9 hours at night (most nights) and takes 3 or 4 naps during the day. He is so happy when he is awake and is always smiling. He is starting to make some really cute "talking" noises and is almost laughing. Kyle and Haley really enjoy talking to him especially now that he smiles back! Alex is such a wonderful addition to our family and I am just loving having a baby around the house again. For those of you that were around when Haley was a baby you know that we had a rough first 6 months with her. As much as I wanted to enjoy her when she was tiny, it was hard sometimes. Alex is almost a complete opposite and we are so glad for an easy going baby this time. He has already attended a bunch of soccer games, does great in restaurants and goes shopping with me while Kyle and Haley are in preschool. I hope you enjoy our latest pictures!

Proud big brother! Kyle has fed Alex several times and he will actually sit there long enough to give him the whole bottle! Very helpful for a busy mommy!

Sweet big sister! Haley just adores Alex and is always giving him kisses and helping to entertain him.

Alex at 2 months. And yes - the hair is real!

Haley's First Bike

Haley has been asking and asking for a bike for about 6 months now and we decided with the nicer weather it was finally time! She was so excited to go to Toys R Us last week and pick out a bike! Of course she picked one of the girliest bikes they had - a purple Tinkerbell bike. Daddy put it together and she is having so much fun! She is still learning and goes pretty slow, but she is getting the hang of it fast. She will be racing her brother in no time! I can't believe my baby girl is riding a bike! It seems like yesterday she was Alex's size.

Alex's First Two Weeks

We have been a little busy lately and I haven't gotten a chance to update the blog, so here are a bunch of pictures to show you what we have been up to the last two weeks. Alex is doing great, other than some reflux problems. He is sleeping pretty well at night - most nights we are up between 3 and 4am and that is it! Kyle and Haley love having their little brother home and they are both big helpers. We have had some crazy moments, but overall things are going well.

Alex just before we left the hospital on August 22

Going home!


First car ride (I couldn't figure out how to rotate this - any ideas?)

Our first day at home

Alex's first bath - he did not enjoy it!

August 24

Mommy's helpers

Sept. 6

Sleeping - Alex's favorite thing to do right now

Sept. 6