Journey to Our Little Girl...

Korea Trip Day 2: Monday

2011-05-28T14:30:00.001-07:00

Today was so special. Meeting Emma's foster mother was a wonderful experience I will never forget. See the complete post regarding our visit.

Here's a look at what we did today:

Woke up around 7:15 to get ready and see some sites before meeting foster family. By the way, our guest house doesn't believe in wash cloths, so we had to improvise by using hand towels :)

Found the Dunkin Donuts near our room and enjoyed some American breakfast :)

We then decided to find somewhere close to shop. Since we are staying at the SWS guesthouse which is in the business district south of the river, we weren't sure where to start. We knew going north of the river to the tourist areas wouldn't work since we were meeting our foster families at 1:00. As we stood on the sidewalk trying to figure out where in the world we should start looking for somewhere to go, two Korean ladies (I believe sent by God) walked up to us and asked if we needed some help. You might ask why that's such a big deal? Because in Korea very few people speak English to you. It's not necessarily because they don't know (most taxi drivers don't) but it's because they are intimidated. So, language is a rather big barrier if you can't speak Korean. Anyway, the two ladies were very helpful by telling us somewhere close to shop. When we arrived, it looked more like a convention center, but upon going inside, we found an "underground world" of shops. Yes, I loved it! On a side note, the Korean culture seems very energy efficient. They don't run air conditioning often and the escalator doesn't run continuously. So, after figuring out that you have to swipe your hand on the sensor, we were in business... There were lots of neat shops at the COEX where we went, similar to a mall in the US. After some shopping it was time to head back and meet the foster families.

We first met Emma's foster mother who was very sweet and loving. She is always hold a special place in my heart for the care and compassion she showed to Emma. We exchanged contact information and will keep in touch. Read more on the separate blog post.

Then it was time to go to MinJoon's foster mother's house. It was a
neat experience to get to see a Korean home. She lived in an apartment and as most other places, it was quite warm. They seem to conserve energy when possible. It was so neat to see how SWS brings the families together at the foster family's home to allow the child to interact with the adoptive family. We stayed for about an hour. Leaving was one of the most difficult things as Dana had to leave Ben there, which is generally the case. So Dana was set to get Ben for good on Wednesday at the SWS office.

After getting back from the foster family's home, we were able to visit the reception center. It's located in the same building as the SWS guest house and surprisingly, it doesn't have any security to speak of. We were able to get on and off the elevator there without any questions. This just shows the perspective and attitudes of the people about orphans. The reception center is home to about 30 babies from birth to 6 months. All babies stay here until they are unsuccessful at domestic adoption. Once they turn 5 months and no one has adopted them domestically, they are place with foster families until an international adoption is completed. I thought that was quite odd but I think it may have something to do with the way adoption is perceived and allows for domestic families to adopt discreetly. It was very emotional seeing the children there and knowing that Emma once played in the bouncers and cribs that were there. The staff love the children and have great compassion for them. If you have a little one at the reception center, let me know and I may have a photo...

Since our room is quite bare without any form of entertainment, we decided to venture out that afternoon and find some things for our families. We took a cab to Insadong market which is about 10 minutes. Since Seoul is similar to NYC but more spread out, we decided not to take the subway and the cab fares are reasonable. Insadong is a traditional Korean market area where you can find popular souvenirs like wedding ducks, name chops, scrolls, flags, chopsticks, pottery, t-shirts, and many other things. In the markets it's okay to negotiate price and if you know me, I love bargaining! I picked up several things there including a name chop for Emma with her American name since a dear friend went and got a traditional one the last time she was in Korea. This vendor used a stone to carve out the name while you waited and had been featured on television. There is also an area of Insadong that resembles more of the NCY shops and we looked there and decided to eat at one of the local barbecue places. Most of Korea consists of major roads with alleys that then have alleys off from them. So it can be a maze in terms of getting from one place to the next once you go off the main road. There are also lots of clubs, generally nestled in the alleys as well, but we never felt unsafe.

Jess

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Seoul, South Korea

Meeting Emma's Foster Mother

2011-05-23T09:18:00.001-07:00

I can't begin to explain the emotions I have felt today. My heart has been joyful as I have anticipated meeting Emma's foster mother for the last week. I am so thankful for this experience. Getting to see first hand how much Emma's foster mother cares for Emma was very humbling. She said Emma was very special to her and remembered all the little things Emma did. Meeting her gave me assurance that she was well taken care of during the first months of her life. I will be forever indebted that she took such great care of our little girl while she was waiting for her forever family. I truly believe Emma's love for music and dance is contributed to her foster family exposing her to it. Today was very meaningful day as I was able to fill in some of the pieces of Emma's story. I will take this experience and share with her just how much she was loved not only by us but by her foster family also.

I had the privilege of getting her contact information and look forward to keeping in touch as Emma grows. How blessed we are to have Emma in our life!

Here are some sweet gifts the foster mother brought her Emma. All of the sweet treats are for Emma and her brother!

Jess

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Location:Seoul, South Korea

Introducing Ben Minjoon Lewis

2011-05-23T00:53:00.001-07:00

This post is dedicated to Minjoon, the agency's first international sweetheart! When we met his social worker, she informed us that Minjoon was featured on some of the posters that have been hanging on the walls here in the building. Little did we know we have been oohing and ahhing over him!!! These photos are of him when he was younger. They are part of the campaign to encourage domestic adoption in Korea so being was being snuggled and loved by a famous Korean actor!

Dana met Minjoon for the first time at the foster family's home around 2:45 Seoul time. Minjoon was sooo sweet! He was tired as it was nap time! The sweetest part was that he fell asleep in Dana's arms. Minjoon will join his forever family Wednesday at 11:00 Seoul time. Needless to say she can't wait!!!

Jess

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Location:Seoul South Korea

Over the Pacific

2011-05-22T01:16:00.001-07:00

We are 7 and half hours into our flight from Dallas to Seoul. Korean Air has amazing service. The picture below was taken on our individual screens that are loaded with American and Korean movie releases. There are games and music libraries as well. The hospitality of the flight attendants is remarkable. They are so nice and helpful even carrying children up and down the aisles! It will be approximately 4 pm Korean time on Sunday when we land. We are hoping to visit a few shops and go to sleep early since Monday in Korea is a big day for both of us! Emma's foster mother meeting is Monday afternoon. Even though it hasn't been that long since I left, I sure do miss the family. Love you guys!

Jess

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Leaving on a Jet Plane

2011-05-19T22:17:00.001-07:00

And headed to Korea!!! It's been a hectic few days as I have been preparing to go to Korea to meet Emma's foster mother and see where she spent the first few months of her life. This all came about last Thursday as a family I am working with received their travel call. I am flying with another adoptive mom to get her son. How special to share this with her! We are leaving on Saturday morning and will return Thursday afternoon. The flight is about 16 hours but Korea is 14 hours ahead. So, we will lose a day going and gain a day coming back!

There are so many emotions dancing in my mind as I prepare for what I will say, how she will react and trying to think of all the things Emma might ask me one day about her birth country. I can't wait to see where my sweet girl started her life. I am going to take lots of pictures and keep a journal here on the blog to record this experience for her to learn about one day.

Please pray for safe travels and for Ryan and kiddos as Mommy is away.

Family Rules Canvas

2010-12-13T11:35:00.000-08:00

Recently at a birthday party, I saw the cutest Family Rules Canvas. It was so neat, I decided to make one for our new house. So, here's mine:

You can find the step-by-step instructions here. Here's the short version:

1. Purchase a canvas, mine is 24x30 using 40% coupon from H@bby L@bby

2. Pick out scrapbook paper (this is the most fun part!) Be sure the paper isn't too dark, as my first rule is hard to read.

3. Look at the list of rules and decide which ones you want to use or make your own.

4. Cut the scrapbook paper into various strips (I used 1, 2, and 3 inch widths) Cut two and tape them together to make one long strip since scrapbook paper is 12x12

5. Write the rules or print them off on the computer and trace over them. I just eyed them and wrote them out.

6. Paint the edges of your canvas with an acrylic paint that will match the room you're putting it in. The strips will cover the middle so don't worry about painting all of it.

7. Use Modge Podge and "paste" the strips to the canvas spacing them however you like. (The paper will curl/bubble, just try to flatten the paper as much as possible but it adds character! ;o)

8. Allow to dry overnight or a few hours and apply a coat of Modge Podge over the top to "seal" the canvas and papers. You can apply several coats about 20 minutes apart or a single coat will suffice. (Use a brush or sponge to apply)

9. Enjoy!

5. Use paint pens to write the rules, you can also print them off on the computer.

Here's some pictures of the project in process:

Notice where I taped the strips together in the Never leave angry strip

Blacks were too dark even with the white paint pen. FYI using the white paint pen require tracing the rule several times...

Long Time No Post...

2010-10-13T19:33:00.000-07:00

Wow! It's been a while since I last posted! I've been posting on photos on Facebook and haven't kept the blog as up to date. I know that lots of people read the blog for information, inspiration or to just see pictures (yes Papa, I know you don't have Facebook!). So, what have the Johnson's been up to?

We celebrated Emma's first Gotcha Day September 29th at Chaney's. To say it was an exciting day is an understatement. There were so many emotions surrounding this extremely happy time for us. We were overjoyed with this blessing God has given us and at the very same time, saddened for the loss that occurred for this day to happen.

Emma is getting so big, talking ALL the time, getting into everything from climbing on the kitchen table to throwing toothbrushes in the toilet. She loves singing and dancing, Barney is her favorite show (I know, I know, but she has learned so much from that purple Dino), she can count to four, loves working puzzles, and puts a smile on our faces every single day.

I love being at home with her. She and I have such fun snuggling, playing, reading, and having lunch with friends. Our adoption agency has taken off and we are working with several families. We recently sent our first family's home study to Korea, so in the near future, Emma will have another Korean friend to play with.

Chase celebrated his 9th birthday this week. It's amazing how fast he's growing up not only mentally but physically. He's grown so much and continues to make us proud by being the sweet young man that he is.

I'm still learning how to plan and organize without the structure of a full time job. I thought staying at home would give me time to keep the house super clean, dinner fixed each night, and laundry caught up...Who was I kidding??? I am even further behind but house keeping never was my thing anyway!!! We are getting close to finalizing Emma's adoption, so stay tuned for pictures and a post!

Happy 18 Months Emma Yeirin!

2010-08-02T21:12:00.000-07:00

Miss Emma is 18 months old today. We spent the day by shopping in Bowling Green, eating lunch with Daddy, and taking another trip to the ER tonight! Emma was in the office and I took her by the arm to walk into another room. She decided she didn't want to go and tried to throw herself on the floor (I know sweet Emma). When she did, my natural reaction was to hold on to her and pull her up, well apparently some kiddos have nursemaid elbow. That means the elbow dislocates easily. She cried for about 15 minutes and wasn't moving her arm. Needless to say, we went to the ER and they put it back in place and she was back to her old self immediately. I was amazed at how quickly she got relief. The x-ray showed that everything is back where it belongs and 4 hours later, we're back at home and Emma is asleep. Whew, what a way to spend your day! I am so in love with her. She continues to amaze and bless our family. It's so neat to watch her grow, learn new things, and interact with us. I am thankful for Emma's life and the decision her birthmother made to allow her to come into the this world and become our daughter. I pray that her birthmother finds peace and comfort in knowing that she choose a better life for Emma. I will forever be thankful to her and I hope she knows how much we appreciate her selflessness.

After the doctor put her elbow back in place. . . Coloring with her toes!

Waiting for the x-ray results...

Helping Others Adopt...

2010-07-29T07:16:00.000-07:00

It is with excitement, joy, anticipation, thankfulness, humility, and delight that I announce the beginning of a ministry. Ryan and I are opening a home study and post-placement agency in south central Kentucky. The mission of our agency is to help orphans by assisting families to grow through adoption. Our office will be located in Franklin but we will serve families throughout Kentucky. Our hope is to truly live by James 1:27 and help orphans by finding them forever families. We work with families who are pursuing international and domestic adoption. Our services include home studies, adoption education, and post placement visits. We have been blessed to experience adoption ourselves and hope to share in that joy by helping other families adopt. You can find out more about our agency and what we do by visiting our website: www.foreverfamilyadoption.com. You can also find us on Facebook at Forever Family Adoption. If you have questions or know of someone who is interested in adopting, please tell them about us and we will be happy to meet with them to discuss adoption. It is amazing to look back and see how God has guided us in this direction long before we knew what His plans were for us, from me getting my Masters in Social Work to adopting Emma and educating other families about adoption before we started our agency.

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28

Here we are God, use us to help orphans find forever families.

We chose a tree with hearts as leaves for our logo because families are based on more than just biology. A family is created with love and adoption is an act of love that creates a forever family.

One Year Ago Today...

2010-07-27T18:52:00.000-07:00

We got the call that would change our family forever...

And saw the face of the daughter we loved already

You can read about that amazing day here. I have replayed the "call" lots today and I can only look at Emma now and smile as I thank God for how He has blessed us. Wow what a difference a year makes! Thank you God for allowing us to be Emma's forever family. Emma, we love you with all our heart sweet girl!

Here's a few recent pictures:

Catching Up...

2010-05-18T15:12:00.001-07:00

Ok, so I am a slacker!!! Thanks to my wonderful friend for reminding me that I haven't posted in...well, too long. So instead of trying to go back and catch up, here are some random pictures of what we've been up to...

Emma isn't going to school just yet...She likes Chase's backpack though

I've started trying to take her picture every week or so in this chair to see how much she is growing. Isn't that a sweet face!

One morning I Emma decided to play with Chase's gloves. She had one on her hand and was trying hard to put the other one on. I helped her out and she was ready to work. Our hard working girl!

I went into the kitchen one morning to put breakfast dishes away and I heard Emma yell "Momma, Momma!" This is what I found. She was so proud of herself.

Emma likes to play in our dirty clothes piles (yes piles) and she found Daddy's shirt and helped herself to put it on. She was walking down the hallway like a runway model.

Our church celebrated Easter week with a Maundy Thursday dinner. Emma enjoyed the soup and crackers. This is a picture of her at church.

I'm not sure if Emma celebrated Easter last year with her foster family, but we were excited to be able to have her home to celebrate this year. She loved her stuffed duck in her Easter baskets as well as the puffs.

Emma conquered the slide. She wasn't sure about it...

Bunny ears

Feeding myself for the first time. She ate an entire piece of pizza!

Growing...

At the ballpark, watching big brother play

Laughing at Chase

After she mastered the little chair, she decided to try to big one!!!

Last Post Placement Visit

2010-03-31T07:31:00.001-07:00

Well, it's been way too long since I last blogged. We've been very busy around here! On March 19th, we had our last post placement visit, so we are waiting on paperwork to be sent in order to finalize Emma's adoption. Of course she's been our daughter since the moment we saw her referral picture. The court date is simply a technicality.

Here's a picture of Emma and our Social Worker. She has been wonderful to work with!!!

Wordless Wednesday

2010-03-24T15:05:00.001-07:00

Emma Dance

2010-03-07T19:31:00.000-08:00

Well our little girl loves music! Tonight she showed her dancing skills. Chase and I were listening to songs on iTune$ and when Emma heard this song, she started dancing!!! Ryan got out the Flip video and we were able to get it on tape. Check out the video here.

Happy 13 Months Emma Yeirin!!!

2010-03-04T15:35:00.000-08:00

It's been 5 months since Emma came home and in many ways it seems like she's always been here. On Tuesday, she turned 13 months old and is certainly acting more and more like a toddler. She is such a funny little girl! Emma is saying lots of words and doesn't forget anything! So for being 13 months, here's 13 words Emma can say:

1. Chase-which can have many different tones depending on what she is trying to get across

2. Bath-don't mention it unless you're going to give her one. She loves bathtime!

3. Momma-lately she's been saying it a lot!

4. Dadda-She loves her Dadda and gives him love when he comes home

5. More

6. Bite

7. Cat

8. Bye bye

9. That-usually followed by the pointing of her finger to what she wants

10. Night night

11. Baby

12. Juice

13. Ree-"read" she has really taken interest in books and loves to read them

Emma also says "shh" as she puts her finger over her mouth. It's humorous that in the middle of the night when she wakes up crying and we tell her shh so she doesn't wake up Chase, she stops crying, puts her hand over her mouth and says shh. It usually doesn't last long...

This is the look I get when she wants my attention. She wraps her little arms around my legs and looks up at me with this face and says, Momma...too sweet!

Looking at a book

This is a sweet dress from Poppy Dip. Wonderful friends, Tara and Tiff gave this to Emma for her birthday. Tara is in the early stages of adopting, so keep her in your prayers. You can check her out here. Thanks ladies for such a sweet gift!!!

Emma's Pap impersonation. . .

Doesn't she look sooo big sitting in that chair!!!

She smiles a lot, but usually puts it away when I get the camera out!

This girl sure is musical! She loves to dance and sing. I'm glad since I don't have any musical talent at all!!!

Watching American Idol and singing along!

Future star...

Photo Friday

2010-02-26T12:55:00.001-08:00

Poochy Lips

Happy Valentine's Day!

2010-02-15T16:29:00.000-08:00

This is our first Valentine's Day as a family of 4. It's different to think that this is our first Valentine's Day with Emma but it's her second. On this day that celebrates love, I hope with all my heart Emma knows how much we love her. She is such a funny and precious girl. Her new thing is to take her lips and pooch them together. It's the cutest thing. I love how she calls for Chase when he leaves the room. Today he wasn't exactly being the best big brother and in her not so nice tone, she said Chase as if letting him know to knock it off! She loves "real" food and even points to what we have and says "that." When she does get what we have, she pats her belly and says "Mmm." Bagels are her new favorite snack. I think she loves being able to hold it by herself. What a sweet girl we are blessed with!

For Valentine's Day Ryan got Emma and I these shirts. I love them! What a neat conversation starter for adoption! Thank you sweetheart for the thoughtful gift, I Love You!!!

Emma's Closet

2010-02-13T20:39:00.000-08:00

A blog mom that I follow has a sale of her daughter's clothes after she outgrows them. I thought this was an excellent idea! So I have placed some items from Emma's closet for sale. You can take a peek by clicking here. The password is closet. All items are arranged and you can find a description and price by clicking on the picture. Email me at growingourfamily@gmail.com if you would like to purchase something. Please refer to the item name (Outfit 1, etc) when purchasing. If this goes well, I'll try it again when the season changes. Happy shopping!

Emma's Dol Party

2010-02-08T11:36:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we officially celebrated Emma's 1st Birthday with a Korean American Dol Party. She did wonderful and loved all the excitement. I have been planning and preparing for a couple of weeks, hoping to make sure everything was perfect for our sweet girl. I always want to remember her birth culture and incorporate it into our lives. Family and friends joined us for the wonderful celebration of her birthday. There are many traditions associated with a Korean child's first birthday. We tried to include them as well as add some of our own. Here's some pictures of Emma's special day.

The Dol table is generally filled with fruit and stacked with items. This symbolizes prosperity for the child. We stacked fruit, gumballs, gumdrops, and cookies. It was a lot of fun decorating the gumdrop tree. Although I don't know how they get some of the items to stay in Korea. We used hot glue which meant the gumdrop tree wasn't for eating...

The backdrop was a quilt we got for Emma. I have made a tradition to get her a quilt on her birthday and other special occasions. I think quilts are a neat keepsake and she can use them later!

This is made from a styrofoam cone and 7 bags of gumdrop slices... and lots of hot glue!!!

A special thanks to SevenCupcakes for the cupcake toppers. They were adorable!!!

The cake was placed on Emma's great-grandmother's cake stand. I thought it would be neat to include something from each grand-grandmother.

The punch bowl also belonged to one of Emma's great-grandmothers as well as the utensil holders.

Instead of party favors, we decided to have a candy bar with treat bags for the kiddos to enjoy.

This is the Doljabee table. The items in the tray are presented to the birthday child and it is said that whatever she picks will signify what she will be in life.

Some were traditional Korean items...
Thread- long life
Wooden spoon- good cook
Money - wealthy
Book- scholar/excels in academics

And then we added a few of our own:
Microphone-Musician

Bible- ministry
Softball- athletic
Stethoscope- Doctor/Nurse
Apple- Teacher
Lineman tool- Linegirl (this was an item picked out by Uncle Zak)

She choose the microphone during the Doljabee. It doesn't surprise me as she loves music. She dances to music, sings at church, and stops anytime she hears music. That's my girl. The next item she chose was the stethoscope, so it seems she might be a musical doctor! Maybe she will sing for her patients... The softball was the third item, which makes Daddy and big brother proud!

In the Korean culture, it is customary to give our towels as party favors. We made these and gave them to the Doljabee raffle winner. The rest were given to those who answered questions about Korea correctly.

Another component of a Dol is to have a blessing/prayer for the child. We had guests write a blessing or prayer on the photo frame and will put a picture of Emma in her hanbok in the frame and hang it in her room. I thought this was a neat keepsake for her special day.

There is always a picture of the child and the Dol table. Emma was interested in playing with the cake since it was so close!

This head covering is worn at the Dol. She kept it on for a few minutes. Usually they are too big, but Emma is big for her age, so it fit pretty well.

The Dol table

She loved the balloons!

Doesn't she look beautiful!

Mommy and Emma

Our wonderful family. We are so thankful for Emma. She is a blessing to us and we know God has big plans for her!

Her birthday outfit. Running around in her tutu.

We gave her a set of training chopsticks from Korea for her birthday. She liked them...and used them as drumsticks...musical, I think so!

This is Giggles, an asian message doll. I picked this up at a local boutique. She is asian and has a opening on the base to place a note. We wrote Emma a note and she can look at it when she gets older.

Her own cake to destroy...

She didn't know about it at first...but with time she managed to smush it and get it everywhere. It was so sweet, she even shared with Daddy, Chase, and Nana.

This is a day that our family will always remember. I want to thank all those who came and share this special day with Emma. An extra thank you to those who came and helped decorate, made punch, stacked cookies, blew up balloons, donated gumballs, cut up fruit, and helped clean up after. Thanks so much, we love you all!

147 Million Orphans

2010-02-04T13:25:00.000-08:00

That number should bother us. It should keep us awake at night. What can you do to help unite a child with a forever family? Pray, give, raise awareness, adopt...

You're Invited!!!

2010-02-02T07:00:00.000-08:00

We would like to invite all of our friends and family for a celebration in honor of Emma. We would love to share this special time with you!

Korean Cuisine-Seoul Garden

2010-02-01T16:13:00.000-08:00

In celebration of Emma being home 4 months and her first birthday coming soon, we decided to experience part of Emma's heritage by going to an authentic Korean restaurant. A blog friend recommended the Seoul Garden in Nashville. Thanks Bate's mom! We went with my sister-in-law, her husband, and two kiddos. Let's just say it was an experience! My brother-in-law braved all the "appetizers" that came out prior to the meal. We all played it safe by ordering beef and rice. The side dishes were interesting and somewhat spicy. The kids weren't impressed as they sampled the rice and beef.

4 Months Home

2010-02-01T15:52:00.000-08:00

Emma has been home for 4 months and in some ways it seems like yesterday when we received the call that she was on her way home to us. I remember that day so vividly. It was Monday and I was teaching reading when my cell phone rang. Of course I don't usually answer my phone during a school day but I knew Emma had gotten her visa the Friday before and that a travel call could happen although not likely on Monday. Little did I know that she was already on a plane to the United States. The weekend and extra 14 hours difference in Seoul made it impossible to let us know any sooner. At that moment, I burst into tears and my second grade students were all cheering and clapping as they knew it was the call I was waiting for. Our agency director informed me that we must go to Detroit that day so we would be there when Emma arrived early the next day. After calling family and scrambling to get our clothes together (Emma's bag was packed that weekend) we drove to Michigan as a family of 3 and came back a family of 4. After arriving around 3 in the morning and getting little sleep, I remember laying awake that night talking to God and thanking Him for the blessing that I know I don't deserve. Love is an amazing thing especially when that love comes from Him. I've been asked by others, "Do you love her the same way you love Chase?" And my answer is of course I do. The love that I have for my children come from God and it's an unconditional love that doesn't considered whether or not they grew under my heart or in it.

Chase said that the time has flown by since she came home. It does seems like it. It also feels like she has always been here. Tomorrow we celebrate her birthday and I can't believe that she will be 1. She's learning so many new things and her personality continues to blossom. She's walking everywhere which means she is getting into everything! We love you Emma!

Bath Time, Birthday Plans, and New Hairstyle

2010-01-22T11:23:00.000-08:00

It's been such a nice week being home with Emma. She is much happier with Mommy playing with her all day. The house is a mess and I could wash clothes for three days and still not be caught up, but it's not going anywhere and she is changing every day. She is crawling less and less and her balance is getting better. She still looks like a weeble wabble at times when she walks.

Emma loves bath time. She kicks and smiles when we ask her if she wants to take a bath. Her favorite is splashing in the water and playing with her bath toys.

I have been busy getting her birthday plans together. Her first birthday is going to be so special and we know how fortunate we are to share it with her. There are other families that dont' have that opportunity and we are going to enjoy it. Her birthday is on a Tuesday so we are going to celebrate the Sunday after. More details to come. I am still working on decorations and food. I want to incorporate the Korean culture as well as American traditions so it should be a neat experience.

As you can tell in the photos, Emma's hair is getting longer and I tried a new hairstyle today. She looks so cute but Mommy certainly needs to work on her styling skills.

Look at her go...

Snapping a few pictures in her birthday outfit for invitations

It doesn't matter what her hair looks like, she's still adorable!

Pigtails for my sweet girl

Staying at Home, Emma is Walking!

2010-01-16T14:23:00.001-08:00

This is probably one of the most difficult posts to write. The past couple of weeks have been challenging to say the least. I went back to school, teaching, after being home with Emma for 14 weeks. Initially I thought the transition would be manageable. Emma had a very difficult time being with a sitter and after consulting with an adoption therapist, we decided it would be best for Emma if I stayed home with her. I am so blessed to be able to do this and also very thrilled to be with her during the day every day. As I told my teaching family, my hearts also breaks that I won't be able to fulfill my obligations to my students and see friends that I have grown close to as often. I know that God has a plan and he can see the entire picture of our life. With that said, I know He has something great in store for our family. We have been prayerfully considering an amazing opportunity within the adoption community and hope to proceed with it now that I have some spare time. More about that as things progress. So as I left school Friday afternoon, it was a bittersweet ending to a wonderful experience at a school where everyone loves and welcomes each other.

I am also in the process of planning Emma Tol party, her first birthday celebration. I've been researching traditional Korean customs and hope to incorporate those into a Korean American celebration. It's hard to believe she will be a year old in a few weeks. She is constantly changing and I think it safe to say she is officially walking as of yesterday! She's still wobbly and falls down, but it doesn't keep her from going where she wants to go!

Here's our little girl standing up on her own and taking a few steps...

She loves her sippy cup. It only took her a few minutes to learn to drink from a straw.

One of her favorite things to do is to pull everything out of the drawers in the kitchen. She does it very well!

Happy 11 Months Emma

2010-01-12T13:01:00.001-08:00

Our sweet girl is 11 months old now! That is so hard to believe! She is growing, learning, and changing so much every day. So what is our big girl up to these days? Here are 11 things that our sweet girl is up to:

1. She is talking all the time. She loves to say "night night" at bedtime and yesterday she pulled up to me and said "take."

2. Her new favorite game is riding a horsey. We played it the other night and today she sat on my leg and started to jump. As soon as I began to sing the song and bounce, she giggled and smiled.

3. It is the sweetest thing to see her interact with her brother. She is quite the charmer when she blows kisses to everyone and winks.

4. Her walking skills are getting more and more defined. She is taking several steps at a time before stumbling over.

5. She is also standing up in the middle of the floor by herself by pushing up with her knee. Our sweet girl is quite strong!

6. I love the way she sits and plays with one leg behind her and the other in the front. She is so limber!

7. She tried Goldfish for the first time this week and loves them.

8. She mastered a sippy cup this month. Her favorite are the ones with a straw. She loves apple and white grape juice.

9. Emma's dancing abilities are amazing. She loves to dance to music and has started adding vocals. Her favorite Barney song is Deck the Halls and sings the fa la la la la on key! She also enjoys singing hymns during church.

10. Emma loves her baby doll and likes to hug and love on her like we do Emma

11. Emma is turning into quite the explorer. Her ability to clean out a cabinet, drawer, or laundry basket must be a record...

Snow Day

2010-01-07T17:28:00.001-08:00

The snow came down overnight on Wednesday which allowed for a snow day!!! Not only did we get out Thursday and Friday of last week, but we have been out Monday and today this week! Chase enjoyed playing in the snow with his sled he got for Christmas last year. Emma wasn't sure about the snow at first, but enjoyed it after getting used to the cold. She was so cute all bundled up! It looks like we'll be back to school tomorrow as most of the snow has melted. Emma and I are staying warm and enjoying just hanging out at home. I've been getting things prepared for her big 1st birthday party coming up in Feb. 2. There is lots to do especially since this is her first birthday and the Korean culture places a great emphasis on the first birthday (Tol). She has a special outfit called a hanbok that her foster parents sent. This is the traditional dress that Korean children wear on special occasions. Hope all is well with everyone...Stay warm!!!

Emma wasn't a fan of sledding. She doesn't care for motion whether it is in a stroller, car seat, wagon, or even a sled!

3 Months Home

2009-12-29T20:52:00.001-08:00

In some ways it's hard to believe Emma has only been here 3 months. In other ways, it seems like yesterday we received the call that we were matched with a little girl. In every way that matters, she has always been a part of our family and that is the amazing way God uses adoptions to bring together a family. God knew long before we did, that Emma would be our daughter and from the beginning, He prepared our hearts to receive her. We can't imagine life without her and as each day passes, she continues to amaze us with her personality. We have a very intelligent little girl that loves music, her brother, and parents. We are so blessed at how she has adjusted into our family. There were difficult times for her, but she loves her family and knows that we are here to stay. She has started taking a few steps and I'm sure will be walking soon. I love the way she blows us kisses and wakes up with a smile on her face. Her love for music is so cute and she has become quite the dancer swaying back and forth to the rhythm. As the new year approaches, we have so much to be thankful for this past year. I am so excited about what the new year holds as we prepare to celebrate Emma first birthday in February, finding a place to settle and call home, and looking at what other opportunities God might be calling for us to pursue. May 2010 be a year full of the renewed promise God has to bring you joy and happiness. May you find that happiness in Him as it will never be found in things... Welcome home 3 months Emma, to the family God created to love you forever!

Emma's First Christmas

2009-12-29T19:35:00.001-08:00

This has been the most memorable Christmas for our family. It is surreal to think that last year having a daughter and sister for Christmas seemed so far away. Little did we know that God had a plan to provide us with Emma and give us the privilege to share in her first Christmas. On Christmas Eve, we celebrated with my family at Nana and Popa's house. Emma was slow to rip the paper off presents, and once she did get one good strip, she wanted to rip it into tiny pieces. It was so neat to watch her unwrap her presents, with the help of big brother. Her face seemed to say what is all this about... She received a wagon at Nana's and liked riding in it for a short period of time. I think her favorite part was napping in it later that evening. She also received a baby doll and immediately started giving it hugs and kisses. I think she is going to be a wonderful mommy one day! Ryan and I exchanged gifts later that night as well as Chase and Emma. Chase wanted to make Emma a bear at the Build-A-Bear workshop this year and she gave Chase a new portable DVD player since his broke while she was watching it. Ryan gave me a wonderful present this year...a new camera. I have taken approximately 13,000 pictures with my current camera and have loved using it. Photography is my favorite hobby and with a new little girl, there is a lot to take pictures of! I was very surprised and thankful for the awesome gift. It arrived today and I have spent the afternoon playing with it!!! I love it, but not as much as my wonderful husband!

It is a tradition at our house to attend the 11:15 Christmas Eve service at our church, and this year was no exception. Emma, being the night owl she is, was awake to attend and even stayed awake through the entire service.

Christmas morning was exciting as Chase and Emma woke up around 8:30. This year he was so excited and watching him open presents was so much fun. We went to Ryan's parents for lunch and to spend the day. The kiddos had so much fun there and Emma loved playing with all the things she received. She played us a tune on her new piano and pushed her baby around in her new shopping cart filled with play food that she can chew on. Of course she also enjoyed playing with the boys' toys, especially Max's fire station.

Christmas Eve:

Notice the sweet little bracelet Nana and Papa gave her... She had a bracelet on in her referral picture so it didn't surprise me when she left it on and didn't try to take it off. It is so cute!

All smiles at the Christmas Eve service, even with a runny nose!

Finally fell asleep on the way home from the Christmas Eve service...12:30 am

Christmas Morning:

Gran's house Christmas morning, I wish I knew what they were thinking...

Playing with her new baby doll and shopping cart

Giving love to her new inch worm ride on toy.

Having dessert with her play food

Playing with my new Canon 50D...Love it!!!

Man Down

2009-12-21T13:49:00.000-08:00

Well, it finally happened... Emma captured a snowman ornament from the tree and not only did she grab him, but she managed to pull his leg off!!! When I asked her "What did you do to Mommy's ornament," she pointed at the injured snowman. One snowman down, two others in her sights...

Her new tricks for the week. She stood alone Saturday night and danced to Frosty the Snowman on TV. She loves music and has started swaying and bopping when she hears it. Last night at church she was dancing and humming to hymns. We have it on video and I'll try to get it posted later. Too cute!

Are you talking about that snowman who is missing a leg?

Who me, amputate a snowman? Look at this face...

Countdown to Christmas

2009-12-16T11:16:00.000-08:00

Sweetest face I know...

It's hard to believe that Christmas is only 9 days away! I'm sure Emma will love ripping the wrapping paper into tiny pieces. She is such a busy girl these days!!! You can tell that she's comfortable at home as she opens the gate that keeps her in the family room and goes to explore the rest of the house. I can't manage to keep things picked up after her. She pulls everything out and smiles when you ask her what she just did! The tupperware tops in the drawers are her favorite. She is saying baby which is adorable. Hopefully Santa will bring her one to love on... Her bottom tooth is coming in more as well. She loves to have her teeth brushed and likes it even more when we let her do it! Last night Chase burped and Emma spent the next 5 minutes trying to mock him. We were laughing so hard and she was trying so hard, I thought she might throw up. Her facial expressions are too funny. She has also found the back of the couch and enjoys crawling from one end to the other. We go back to the doctor tomorrow to finish the "catch up" on her shots. Chase has his Christmas program at church tonight, so Emma will love hearing the music and watching big brother on stage. Here are a few pictures...

Yes, Daddy does Rock! We love him bunches!!!

Santa and Opryland Hotel

2009-12-12T20:35:00.001-08:00

Emma decided that standing was overrated and took two steps toward to me this afternoon! I was so amazed and proud of her. She's also started giving Mommy and Daddy hugs. It's the cutest thing. She puts her arms around us, just under our arm pits and leans her head into our chest. Yes, it melts Mommy and Daddy's heart. The Christmas tree continues to be a topic of "no" as she has gone over to it what seems like a hundred times today. She patiently waits for the ornaments she wants to come around and then smiles that sweet smile and rips the ornament off the tree. Upon getting it, she shakes it just to hear the bells jingle.

Tonight we took Chase and Emma to see Santa Claus in Nashville. Needless to say it was very busy. I didn't know how Emma would react to him, so Chase held her while Santa talked to her. Turns out she liked him and probably would have sat in his lap, but we didn't push it... She waved bye bye and Santa told her he would bring her a babydoll. We did a few more things at Oprymills and then headed over to Opryland hotel to check out the lights. Emma enjoyed them, but really liked playing in the fake snow the best. Ryan ask me to marry him in December at Opryland Hotel, so we always try to go back and reminisce. It's funny how different it is with two kiddos in tow. We finished off the night with a trip to Olive Garden for dinner. It was a wonderful day spent with those I love so much. I couldn't help but think about Emma and how special this season is for her and us. This is her first Christmas and I am so thankful she will spend it with her forever family.

Chase and Santa

Emma and Chase with Santa

Our family of 4. Thanks to the sweet lady who took it!!!

Oh, my, he's getting so big!

Cheese...

Photo spot...

Emma loved the fake snow, so much she cried when we decided to move on...

Beautiful lights!

This is the spot where Ryan proposed to me. Right by the huge tree after a day of ice skating, lights, and a carriage ride

The true meaning of the season...

I love the Nativity scene

Daddy and his girl

My sweet kiddos

By the same tree where I said "Yes"

Decemeber Days...

2009-12-11T15:33:00.001-08:00

I didn't give you the gift of life, but life gave me the gift of you.

Last night we had our second post-placement visit with our social worker. It went fine and the report will be sent to our adoption agency soon. It hasn't quite been 3 months, but our social worker is adopting from Ethiopia so she wanted to get this month's visits completed a little early. They leave the day after Christmas to go get their son. Congratulations to them and safe travels!!!

Emma and I enjoyed the cold day by spending it inside in our pajamas. We are actually still in them! It is nice to have a day at home with nothing to do but spend time together. She is such a funny girl and has entertained me all day today. The way she will crawl over to me and give me love just melts my heart. The weekend is busy with Chase having a basketball game tomorrow and then we are going to take the kiddos to see Santa in Nashville. Of course Kentucky plays tomorrow so we'll be sure to catch the game as well. I still have plenty to do around here before I go back to work soon, like wrapping presents, finishing up thank you notes, and getting the house back in order. Needless to say, none of these things take precedence over spending time with Emma. So there is still lots to do. Here's some pictures of the last week or so.

So excited...

Caught being still...for a moment

This is her new way of crawling. I guess she thinks she can get where she wants to go faster. We call it the Mowgli crawl.

Keeping her eyes on her big brother...

My sweet girl... I love that smile!

Everyone teases me about always having a bow in her hair. You can tell why...Her hair has grown so much that it is down in her eyes.

Just removed from playing with the Christmas tree...

Is that an ornament?

Happy 10 Months Emma Yeirin

2009-12-10T20:03:00.000-08:00

Well, 10 months and 8 days... Emma turned 10 months on Dec. 2nd. It's hard to believe that she has been home over 2 months. I am trying to focus on enjoying the time I have with her before I go back to school in January. It is going to be so hard to leave her.

We are so in love with this little girl. Chase is smitten over her and constantly is taking care of his little sister. Even if she does bite him on the shoulder has he totes her around. He even managed not to drop her even though the bite marks left a bruise. What a trooper he is! Emma continues to amaze us with her sweet personality. She does something new every day and it never surprises me what she might do next. So here's what she's been up to: winks on command, says "Pap", stands alone for a few seconds, understands the word no (although she doesn't always listen), and is working on another bottom tooth. Aside from this, here are

10 things we really love about our Emma:

1. She gives "lovin" to us and squeezes us tight when we ask

2. The way she pats us on the back as she hugs us

3. When music comes on she dances along

4. The way she likes the DVD player, makes a car ride peaceful (if you like Christmas Carols)

5. How she babbles constantly and she seems to know what she is saying...

6. The way she knows when Daddy is about to do the C-A-T-S cheer and as he says ahh, she leans to make the "C" and says Cats at the end....This makes Daddy so proud!

7. She opens the gate and follows Mommy around the house

8. The Mowgli crawl that she does in order to get where she wants to go faster

9. The many faces she makes... serious, funny, happy, surprised, solemn

10. The way she crawls to her Daddy with all smiles after he comes home from work

Putting up the Christmas Tree

2009-12-09T11:04:00.000-08:00

It's a tradition at the Johnson house to put the Christmas tree up the Saturday after Thanksgiving. By that time, the turkey has digested and Black Friday gifts are setting in the spare room, ready to wrap (and are still setting there). Ryan and I got our tree the first Christmas we were a couple, 9 years ago, and we love it so much that we fight with the prelit bulbs every year. This year the small section at the top was out and it only took us two hours to find the problem. Let's just say between the light issue, football games, and 9 month old curiosity, we were two days actually getting the ornaments on it!!! Emma really enjoyed the tree and the lights. She was intrigued by the fact that it turns. She has for the most part, left the ornaments alone. There are a couple of ornaments that she really likes to catch has they spin by. I absolutely love the Christmas season. The best part of the season is remembering that all the Christmas spirit comes back to a little baby in a manager. May your Christmas be filled with the love of Christ and the spirit of what He can do in your life.

Emma enjoyed playing with the ribbon

Chase has so many of his own ornaments that we decorate a tree for him. I decided to decorate one for Emma even though she only has three ornaments, one of which Chase gave her from his tree.

This is Emma's first ornament. Instead of buying one, I decided to make it using her handprint.

Thanksgiving 2009

2009-12-07T21:02:00.000-08:00

Give Thanks...

This Thanksgiving was one of the most memorable Thanksgiving I have ever had. We have so much to be thankful for. So here are a few of the things we are thankful for:

-Chase, and knowing he loves Jesus

-Emma, and the way she has bonded with us

-Health

-Family and Friends

-Our church

-God's amazing power

There are so many other things I could mention. This Thanksgiving my heart is full with love and true joy, joy that only comes from God and His ability to show His greatness. This joy isn't filled by things or people, but knowing how God provides miracles for us because His grace and mercy is unlimited. To Him be the glory for our Thanksgiving...

Waiting for the Thanksgiving meal...

Mommy's little turkey

Giving love to her bear

Cheesing with Aunt Tammy

Thanksgiving is about spending time with family, eating, and of course napping

Baby Dedication

2009-11-30T09:25:00.000-08:00

In light of Adoption awareness month, we thought it would be nice to have Emma dedicated in November. Last Sunday, November 22nd, we promised to raise Emma in a Christian home while doing our best to nurture her relationship with God. It was a perfect day filled with joy and happiness as we celebrated having her here long before we expected but also being able to dedicate her in front of our church family. We are so blessed to be her parents. She went to Brother Tim, our pastor, and looked at him as he spoke. It was so cute as she had this look on her face like she was taking in everything he was saying.

Doing Well

2009-11-21T12:49:00.000-08:00

Emma slept all night last night!!! That is such an accomplishment. She is such a funny little girl. Her facial expressions crack me up and the way she mimics what you tell her to say is hilarious. I can tell by the way she looks at me that she knows I'm here to stay. That was one of my biggest fears, fearing that she wouldn't attach to me. I love the way she holds her hands out and says Momma. Her love for music is evident in the way she dances to noises and loves her Sing-a-Long songs. She's doing very well in her car seat now and hardly fusses. Chase has mounted his DVD player to the middle seat and she loves to dance to her Cedarmont Kid videos. We think we know what Emma wants for Christmas! (Mommy and Daddy too) Emma is also doing well with others holding her. She looks to make sure Mommy or Daddy are close by but isn't bothered by others holding her. She is eager to come back to me when I hold my arms out. Again, that shows that she has attached. I know family and friends had a difficult time with the wait, but we love Emma and want what's best for her. Here are some pictures of the past few days.

My friend, Gayla, getting her Emma fix...

"Can someone open this gate...Please..."

Sweet girl with her top teeth shining.

Emma is pulling up and beginning to cruise along the furniture.

Gran giving her girl a bottle

6 Weeks Home, Dr.'s Appointment

2009-11-12T12:20:00.000-08:00

It's so hard to believe Emma has been home six weeks. We went to the pediatrician on Tuesday and Emma is 21 lbs 10 oz and is 29 1/4 inches long. She is continuing to grow and her thyroid levels are great. We will be introducing more foods and working on her sleep at night. Her personality continues to shine and she is the sweetest thing. I love watching her play and explore. She has been giving Ryan, Chase, and I "lovin" and it is the best feeling ever when she wraps her arms around our face and loves on us. Her strong legs and arms allow her to pull up to whatever she wants to. She is still walking behind her lion and cruises on the couch. It is so cute to watch her sign more when she wants Cheerios.

The no hold period is over, so gradually family and friends have been getting their hands on her. She doesn't seem to mind as long as you don't try to take her away from Mommy ;o)

Having tea with Papa

Gran's girl

Pap was excited to get his hands on her...finally!

Our little "turkey" playing with her many toys...

Uncle Roger getting some sugar from our sweet girl

Do You Have Room?

2009-11-08T19:23:00.000-08:00

An Orphan no More...Adopted and

LOVED FOREVER

This month is National Adoption Awareness month and in effort to promote adoption both domestic and international, I encourage you to search your heart and the possibility that God might be calling you and your family to adopt. His call may be faint, but please don't disregard it. Pray about it and God will guide your path. There are 147 million orphans in the world. As Helen Keller said, "I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something; and because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do something that I can do." Adoption may not be the best choice for your family, but there is something you can do. PRAY and if able, provide financial support to care for orphans. But most importantly, pray. We live in such comfort. Our homes are huge, with extra rooms and large cars with extra seats. What about you, do you have room? Maybe you have hesitations. I urge you to talk to someone who has adopted. There are so many options through adoption. Gender, age, nationality are just a few options that you can consider. A fellow blogger is advocating the adoption of an 8 year old boy from Ethiopia whose father was killed in a construction accident and his mother is unable to care for him. If are interested in adopting an older child, please visit her blog to get more information and to see photos. http://weloveourlucy.blogspot.com. God bless each of you and please remember our orphans!

I ask, Do you have room?

Emma's Gotcha Day Video

2009-11-06T08:23:00.001-08:00

It's finally done. I have struggled with creating it because I wanted it to be perfect and those who know me know what a perfectionist I am. I finally had to let the worry go and find the joy of reliving this moment again. Every time I see it, tears come to my eyes. My goal was to finish it for National Adoption Awareness month and I did. The thank you notes however are still being finished, so for those who have given our sweet girl a gift and haven't received a thank you, please know how deeply we appreciate your love and kindness for us and I will be sending a thank you note! Enjoy!

"E" is for Everything We Ever Dreamed of...

2009-11-04T19:55:00.000-08:00

We are so in love with her. Our journey is everything we ever dreamed of when God placed the desire to adopt on our hearts. This experience has been so much more than we could have hoped for. How blessed we are to be her parents. The past couple of nights have been wonderful. Monday night Emma slept all night. Ryan and I were amazed and rested! Last night she was up for just a few minutes but quickly went back to sleep. We are so proud of her. She is also getting more independent and has been walking behind her ride along lion. She's saying many words and mimics what we tell her to say.

She loves stuffed animals, especially ones with UK on them! ;o)

Happy 9 Months Emma Yeirin

2009-11-02T20:27:00.000-08:00

Emma Yeirin Johnson-November 2, 2009

Our sweet Emma is 9 months old today. We also have the joy of celebrating her being home 5 weeks. It's amazing how much she has changed and learned over the past 5 weeks. Everyday she does something new and exciting. She has bonded and attached to us so well. Her personality is easy going and funny. Her little legs are always on the move and she loves to explore. So, Emma, on your 9 months of life, these are 9 things we love about you:

1. The way you smile at your brother no matter what he says or does

2. When you look at us and say "Momma" and "Dadda"

3. We love the peculiar way you sit in the floor with one leg behind you

4. The way you curl up your toes

5. How you wake up from your nap, press the music player, and dance in your crib

6. The way you blow your nose when Daddy shows you how

7. The way you kick and squeal when it's bath time

8. How you growl at us

9. The way you try to stand up in the middle of the floor

Emma's First Halloween

2009-10-31T19:20:00.001-07:00

Emma had her first Halloween tonight. She and Chase had lots of fun visiting family and collecting goodies. This was the first time I have tried to put her hair up in pigtails and it seemed to work. I am going to have to get some tips from other mothers with daughters! Growing up, I was a tomboy so I never got into the cute hair styles... We are so thankful to be able to experience her first Halloween with her. It is amazing to think a few months ago we were hoping to have a referral for a daughter this month, and God is so amazing that He brought her home before we were even due for a referral! I can only say that God has a special plan for her life and the life of our family. We hope that everyone who hears about our journey will hear how God's hand was in all of it. We give Him the glory.

Our first stop was Mema's house. Emma didn't know what fun she was about to have!

Look at that handsome football player and the most adorable little cheerleader I have ever seen. She sure does love her big brother.

Future UK football star and cheerleader

Go Big Blue!

The Whole Gang:

It's hard to believe our family has doubled in children in just two years...

Who knows what the next two years will bring-Kim may have something to say about that! ;o)

Halloween Party

2009-10-30T18:35:00.001-07:00

Today Emma and I attended Chase's 2nd grade Halloween party. Emma enjoyed the excitement and seeing her big brother. Last night was a better night for sleeping at the Johnson house. Emma went down around 10 and we didn't hear from her again until 5 this morning. She took a bottle and went back down until we woke her up at 7 this morning. We are trying to get her up earlier each day and put her to bed a little earlier. She was tired this morning and took a nap from 8:30 until 10:00. After a quick nap this afternoon, she is hopefully down for the night. Tomorrow will be a big day for a little cheerleader. More to come...

Emma and Chase playing in the clothes basket

What a sweet face...

Night Owl

2009-10-29T14:59:00.000-07:00

The title and the outfit are fitting considering Emma didn't go to sleep until 1 o'clock this morning. She is quite the night owl these days. We are still trying to get her nighttime routine sorted out. She is doing better in her car seat! We are thankful for that. Here's a few pictures from the past couple of days.

Does she look sleepy to you? This was taken around 12:30, yes after midnight!

Ready to play...

Emma is crawling everywhere. When she gets to her desired location, she pulls up to stand in order to see what she can get into.

The sweetest face... I love the twinkle in her eyes.

I have never been much of a housekeeper. Nana and Granny raised me better. But these days I can't keep the mountain of toys picked up either...

Emma loves music. Here she is checking out Barney songs.

1 Month Home,Pumpkin Patch, Pumpkin Carving

2009-10-27T08:09:00.000-07:00

As I write this, I can hardly believe that a month ago today our sweet girl was on a plane to meet us for the first time. We were waiting anxiously and excitedly for the moment when we would hold her in our arms forever. She has come so far in the past 4 weeks. I am so thankful that God allows us to be her parents. Ryan and I can't imagine what life would be like without her. We don't really think about the fact that we didn't give birth to her, but instead about the unconditional and immeasurable amount of love we have for her. Last night she was playing and for the first time, we noticed that she was really thinking and figuring out how that toy worked. It was so nice to see her interact like that. We are blessed to have two wonderful children and we know that God has been so good to us.

This weekend we went to Jackson's Orchard to pick out a pumpkin and enjoy the apple goodies they have. The weather was great! Emma wasn't sure about the pumpkins at first. Especially when we plopped her down in the middle of a bunch of them. Her hesitation only lasted until the top was cut off. She loved playing with the insides of the pumpkin and even wanted to taste the mush. She was very curious about what was inside the pumpkin and liked squishing the pumpkin mush between her fingers. Chase and Dad did a wonderful job carving the perfect Jack-O-Lantern. Emma liked to see it lit up at night.

Our first post-placement visit is today. I'm sure Emma will love the company!

Funny Face

2009-10-23T13:26:00.000-07:00

This is hilarious. Emma has this new face that she makes. There's no way I can describe it, so I took a picture of it. It's even funnier in person. We have it on video, but it won't upload to the blog... She does it when we give her the baby doll that she has played with since she came home. Aside from her new funny face, she has boycotted the car seat altogether. She literally cries and screams the whole time she's in the car. Any of you who have any suggestions, we'd love to here them. She also has a new thing where she shakes her head no when she doesn't want to do something. Little Miss Emma is getting quite the personality. She did sleep better last night. She went down at 10:30, had a bottle at 12:00 and stayed down until 6:00 this morning. We woke up and Ryan and I looked at each other and said, "Did you get up?" We were pleased to learn both of us slept for 6 hours straight!

Our little Minnie Mouse...

Notice Emma is right in the mix... She wants to be just like Daddy and brother...

Emma is such an explorer. Here she's learning more about spiders...

So Sweet

2009-10-21T10:42:00.000-07:00

Emma is learning to do new things everyday. It's hard to believe that just 3 short weeks ago she was sitting up and falling over and now she is crawling, pulling up to everything, and even trying to stand up in the middle of the floor! She babbles all the time and her sweet smile and adorable laugh is such a blessing.

I am amazed at how wonderful the transition has been for our family. Here's a snapshot of the Johnson gang lounging around. Notice Emma is sucking her thumb and playing with big brother.

Here's Emma standing alone and even letting go with one hand to show me her red ball.

Did I mention how much I love this sweet girl?

Emma loves her big brother!!!

Holding Violation, Barn Service, 1st Post Placement Visit

2009-10-19T14:59:00.000-07:00

Well, we've had a holding violation! This weekend, we invited Gran, Pap, and Mema to join us for some chili. Emma is continuing to crawl and pull up to everything. Emma happened to crawl to Mema (great-grandmother) and pulled up to her. Mema took the opportunity to put Emma in her lap. You know great-grandmothers... Emma didn't mind and liked playing with Mema's necklace. For those of you who are counting down, 3 weeks tomorrow!

Emma was so cute yesterday. We were playing one of her Korean children song CDs that her foster parents sent and she actually started singing along to the chorus (or what I believe to be the chorus). It was so funny! We might have a future singer on our hands.

I want to wish Nana a Happy _ _ th Birthday!!! She turned _ _ on Sunday! We love you enough not to tell everyone you're 50!!! ;o) We enjoyed celebrating with her!

We had our annual church Barn Service yesterday. Our church meets at a barn and we have food, fellowship, worship, and a funny talent show. Being the wonderful mother I am, I forgot the stinkin' camera!!! Emma was so cute in her pink snow suit. We kept her nice and warm in the carrier. She really liked the grass and tried to eat it. I don't know if she has ever seen it before. She also liked the fire.

We have our first post placement visit next Tuesday. It's hard to believe Emma will be home a month next week! She has continued to bond and learn some many new things. I can't imagine life without her and our family has so many wonderful things to praise God for.

The Holding Violator!!! :o)

Emma enjoyed playing with Gran's measuring tape. Grandmomma Johnson would be so proud!

Look at those two top teeth. There are two more up there working its way down.

Chase was trying out his photography skills..

Cold Weather in KY

2009-10-17T14:13:00.000-07:00

It's been a chilly few days here. The cold weather hasn't slowed Emma down. She is crawling everywhere and pulling to the couch and other objects. Even more, she is teething!!! Not just one tooth, but all four of her top front teeth! The left front one is already in as she has been working on it for over a week, but the other three have now broken the skin and are working there way through. This might explain why we were up all night on Thursday! She slept much better last night after I gave her some Oragel and Tylenol. She didn't even wake up for a bottle last night! Did I mention she didn't go to sleep until midnight?!! She's turning into quite the night owl. We are staying home today to try and get her nap schedule and sleep schedule situated.

We went to our small town's annual homecoming parade for our high school football team. If you're not from here (and even if you are) you might not understand the importance of this event. The square is shut down, our schools stop instruction and all students attend. Each of our high school grades decorate a float and our homecoming candidates ride on them. This is big town celebrate in a small town atmosphere!!! Since it was so cold and rainy...Emma and I sat in the car with some friends.

Two ladies sent Emma this bunny and some other adorable things!!! Emma loves snuggling with her bunny! Thanks girls, you are so sweet!

Where's the Pictures?

2009-10-14T19:22:00.000-07:00

Well, it's been 5 days since I last posted and I've heard about it!!! So for those who asked, here are some of the things we have been up to:

-Saturday we spent the day running errands and stocking up on baby items that we needed. I can't seem to get much done during the day by myself!!!

-Sunday we went to church again and enjoyed seeing our church family. That afternoon was Chase's 8th birthday party and decided to celebrate with family since Emma is still adjusting. She did well and didn't mind the company. She and her little cousin Max are still getting used to each other. Christmas will be interesting to say the least! Chase had a Boston Red Sox birthday and got lots of neat gifts and money to buy some new basketball shoes.

-Monday was Chase's actual birthday so we couldn't not celebrate since he was out of school. We went to Chucky Cheese...not completely alone, Ryan joined me for fun and games. Chase wanted to eat at Shogun so we went there for lunch and Emma was captivated by the entertainment. Chase, Emma, and I went back to Chucky Cheese to use the rest of his tokens. We then gandered the mall and then went to Target. We finished by stopping by Barnes and Noble to pick up the newest Diary of a Wimpy Kid book. We finished the day of excitement by having dinner with Ryan's dad who shares a birthday with Chase. I don't know exactly how I managed to do all that!!!

-Tuesday was a "stay at home" day. I tried to get some things accomplished and did managed to make it to Wal-Mart! I still can't figured out how to clean the house and wash clothes during the day!!! Little Miss Emma was teething and wanted Mommy close so we played and forgot about the mess. I'm sure it will still be there when I get around to it!

-Today we had lunch with a college friend of mine. It was nice to spend time with her and I was thankful that our schedules allowed us to catch up. After that I dropped by to see Nana and her friends at her work so that could meet Emma. After picking up Chase, we went to the local boutique store to get another pink bow since Emma has discovered that she can pull them out and when she does, she shreds the end of it. I left with 4 different pink bows. Who knew there were so many shades??? :o)

-Tomorrow I am going to see my family at school and check in with my sweet students. I have missed them and I can't wait to see how they are doing.

Here's some photos of the past few days. I will try to stay caught up... I love that you all enjoy reading it!!! We enjoy sharing our life with you!

This is Emma in her 'jumper." She loves to jump up and down, but only for a few minutes as it confines her....

Emma has been teething. She already had her two bottom teeth when we got her, but her top right tooth has come through since she has been home. Today I noticed another tooth working its way through on top... These teething biscuits are great....but extremely messy. We needed a bath after this one.

Our sweet girl in her pumpkin outfit.

Did I mention she was teething?

She started crawling a few days ago, but today she really put it into practice and managed to get stuck behind the couch. She hasn't learned reverse yet.

Our pastor and his family got Emma this sock monkey. She was working him over tonight. I love that face...

So "Dog"gone Cute

2009-10-09T10:08:00.000-07:00

Emma is doing well at night. She went to sleep last night around 10:00, woke up for a bottle at 2:45 and then slept till 8 this morning. Good girl!!! Here's some pictures taken of our sweet girl today. Isn't she beautiful?

Showered with Love...

2009-10-08T10:22:00.000-07:00

Yesterday afternoon Ryan's work hosted a baby shower for Emma. It was so nice and as you can see from the pictures, Emma enjoyed opening her presents and playing with Ryan's work family. Emma is still working on getting her top tooth through so she has been chewing on everything. I can tell she is a little fussy but I'm not sure if it's the formula, the teeth, or a combination of the two...either way, she's still our sweet little smiley girl!

Working on that top tooth...

Doctor's Visit

2009-10-07T10:52:00.000-07:00

Emma had her first well baby visit this morning. She has been spitting up with the American formula, so our doctor changed her to soy based formula. Hopefully that will help with the spit up. The doctor said the composition of soy formula is close to the Korean formula she was taking. She also received 3 shots today in order to begin her revaccinations. We decided to go ahead with revaccinating to be sure all of her immunizations take. On top of that she had to have blood drawn to check her thyroid, but she only cried for a minute. Miss Emma was such a big girl today. She took everything they were doing to her so well. Let's just say Mommy probably took it harder than she did. We continue to be so blessed by her sweet personality. She is such an easy going baby. She also has a new tooth! It's the top left one. We thought she might be teething but she wasn't fussy. I kept hearing a grinding sound yesterday and told Ryan about it. Sure enough, it was her bottom tooth rubbing against her top one. Here she is at the doctor before the shots...

Our high chair was delivered yesterday. Now we can eat lunch and supper without crawling all over the room...

Getting around...without the bow!

Emma has learned to growl this week. This is her sweet little face when she is making her grrr noise. It is so cute because she growls on command!

She had enough of the camera, so she decided to confiscate my camera strap...

Our Little Pumpkin...

2009-10-06T11:59:00.000-07:00

We continue to be amazed at how well Emma is adjusting. She is sleeping better at night and her little personality is adorable. She started growling yesterday and it is so cute!!! Big brother is adjusting well also and he is such a big helper. She is napping now and he told me he wished she was awake so he could play with her. How sweet! I conquered Wal-Mart today and let's just say that was an adventure! I was even brave enough to take Chase out to lunch.... I had forgotten how much trouble it is to go somewhere with an 8 month old. Here a few pictures from the past day.

A Busy Weekend

2009-10-05T15:55:00.000-07:00

We decided to take Emma to Sunday School Sunday. She was in such a good mood and smiled at everyone in the lobby. I was concerned about how she would do with so many people, but she didn't seemed bothered by it at all. After church we went out to eat and she really wants to eat what we are eating. I am beginning to wonder if her foster parents didn't feed her from their plates. The information we got said that she just ate formula and grapes and tomatoes. . . Yuck! I assume she ate more than that, just nothing that we would have here! We tried rice cereal and at first she didn't like it. She ate more of it the second time. We also tried squash for the first time last night and you can be the judge as to what she thought about it! She ate it much better today. She still does not like her car seat which is going to be very difficult since we are a busy family. She is okay until the car starts moving. Usually it is the opposite with babies. Here are some pictures of our sweet girl. We are so blessed to be her parents and know that God is abundantly awesome. She is such an easy going baby, full of smiles and wonder and curiosity. She is starting to crawl on her hands and knees. She is determined to get where she wants to go either by crawling, rolling, or doing the worm!

Open Up... Eating Squash for the first time

We slept last night!!!

2009-10-03T14:44:00.000-07:00

Emma is enjoys playing with all her new toys. She is getting more and more comfortable at home. Nap time is getting better also. She is taking her bottle very good. We are going to start mixing it today in order to transition to the American formula. She tried cereal yesterday and didn't like it, but today she ate a few bites of rice cereal and enjoyed it. She also has this adorable yawn that she adds a sigh to as she does it. It's the cutest thing. One other thing mom and dad are very happy about it the fact that she slept from 7 pm last night to 3 am this morning!!! She then took a bottle and went back to sleep until 5. We can definitely handle that! I have been blessed by the way she has also bonded with Chase. He can get her to smile at anything. She loves big brother and he sure does love her... We hope to possibly get to church soon for Sunday School. It is too early to leave her in the nursery and I don't think Bro. Tim is looking for a preaching assistant. ;o) And yes, Bro. Tim, she will say Brother Tim in two languages!

Happy 8 Months Emma Yeirin

2009-10-02T10:47:00.000-07:00

Our sweet Emma is 8 months today! These are 8 things that we love about you sweetheart:

1. Your sweet smile

2. Your 2 bottom teeth that shine when you smile

3. The way you cackle out loud when we blow on your tummy

4. Your ability to get anywhere you want in your walker

5. Your beautiful hair that looks so cute with bows in it

6. The way you give love on command

7. The way you rock on your hands and knees when you want to crawl

8. Your sweet almond eyes that sparkle when you look at us

Emma is continuing to adjust to being home with us. She is attaching to us well and is beginning to be more comfortable around other people. She makes sure that we are close and we assure her. We are following the recommendation of adoption therapists and are only letting daddy, mommy, and brother hold her for the first six weeks. This will help ensure that she attaches to us. She enjoyed her ride in the stroller yesterday. The car seat is still not her biggest fan.

Yesterday afternoon, we took her to a shower that some friends from school hosted. It was so nice to see everyone and I continue to feel so blessed by the love and support of my school family. To my school family: I love you all and am forever thankful for all the many ways you have supported us.

I also want to let all of my students who are reading this blog that I miss you all and will bring Emma by to see you after fall break. Continue to be the sweet boys and girls that you are! I love you all!

We went to the doctor today just to check on her runny nose. Emma weighed 21lbs and 29inches long. Our sweet girl is healthy! She goes back for her official check-up on Wednesday of next week. She will be having blood work, so please pray that she will do well.

First Day Home, Bath, and Playtime

2009-10-01T09:51:00.001-07:00

Hello everyone! I thought you might need an Emma fix, so I am posting while she is napping. Her first day home was so special to us. We enjoyed loving on her and making sure she knows we are here to stay. Bottle time has been difficult for her. She started taking it without crying yesterday afternoon. Nighttime is also hard and we are doing our best to console her. She is still trying to get her sleep routine figured out. When she woke up yesterday around 11:30, she took a 30 minute nap in the carrier and then didn't go back down until last night. She was up and down last night but we are working on establishing a routine. Did I mention we just love her??? She is the sweetest little girl and has such a cute personality. She laughed out loud today for the first time as mommy was blowing on her tummy. She also liked her bath after she got used to it. She splashed and giggled. I will try to post a video later. Here are a few pictures from yesterday and today. She loves her toys.

Gotcha Day, home, and sleeping

2009-09-30T09:24:00.001-07:00

This has been an amazing 48 hours!!! From the last minute call to the airport. Emma arrived at 1:19 EST at the Detroit Michigan airport. She spent almost 2 hours in customs but finally we were united with her. She is perfect. We are madly in love with her. She came right to me and then to Daddy. After a few minutes, she started to cry. I walked her and bounced her and she fell asleep. It was a long day of traveling for her as she flew 4,700 miles yesterday. She doesn't like her car seat, but did sleep in it quite a bit. She loves toys and music. Her foster family sent along 2 Korean children song CD's and they calmed her during the ride. It was a very long trip home. Seven hours in a car is a long time for anyone. We did make several stops. She wanted to get down and play. As expected she would cry off and on but would quickly calm when we soothed her. You can tell she is grieving. It completely breaks my heart to see her cry, but it comforts me to know she was well attached. Her foster family sent lots of items home with her. One being a Hanbok, her first birthday outfit. They also sent two photo albums of her stay with them. I am forever thankful to them for capturing a part of her life we couldn't be there to experience. They also sent two pairs of shoes for when she gets older and a Korean flag. The card they sent was so sweet and just confirmed that they loved her very much. We will be forever thankful to them.

When we finally arrived home around 12:30 am, Emma was ready to get down and play. She is sitting up and scooting around. Her little personality is so sweet and she enjoyed exploring her new home. She fell asleep around 3 am and is still sleeping. Traveling is hard work! Here are some picture of our amazing day... We love you all and are looking forward to getting out soon.

Waiting...

2009-09-29T08:27:00.000-07:00

I wanted to check in and let you know that we are waiting for little Emma to arrive. She is currently on her flight from Tokyo. We are tracking her flight online and she is in Canada just west of Winnipeg. She is scheduled to arrive 30 minutes early at 12:15 CST. Once she lands, she will go through customs and be united with us. I can't even begin to explain the way I am feeling right now. This sweet little girl that God has chosen for our family will be here in less that 2 hours. From the beginning He placed the longing for her in our hearts. We want everyone to see how God has continued to work through this entire process.

I can't wait to see her, hold her, and show her the love that God has given me for her. Only God could be in control of this journey. He alone knows the desires of our hearts and I can't wait to share her with our family and friends. I better go for now, I need to finish her welcome home poster, get the car seat installed, and wait for my sweet little girl. The next time I post, you get to see some pictures of our little gift from God.

Travel Call!!!!

2009-09-28T12:13:00.001-07:00

We are so excited to report that we received our travel call this morning. It was 9:46 am to be exact!!! They said, this never happens but your baby girl will be here tomorrow at 1:45!!! I know God who makes things happen!!!! I immediately was overcome with excitement and joy and nervousness and excitement and .... So as we speak I am throwing clothes together for us. I packed her diaper bag last night (just felt like I needed to...) and we will drive to Detroit and spend the night. Our plan is to come back tomorrow afternoon and let her spend her first night with us at home. Please pray for safe travel as she is already on her way to us. Thanks so all of those who have prayed and supported us. We can't wait to share her with you!!! The next post will be updated pictures of our sweet girl!!!

Emma's Shower

2009-09-27T18:36:00.001-07:00

This afternoon was such a wonderful blessing. My sister-in-law and some friends put together this amazing shower and it was so sweet. We received some awesome gifts as you can see in the photos. There were several handmade gifts and I will be sure to tell Emma all about them and how much her church family loved her even before she arrived. I'll leave you with some pictures from today. I am going to get things put away so I will be ready for a travel call!!! Please pray that her travel call comes soon. We have been blessed with how quick everything has processed, so we hope that we will get that call soon. Have a great week and God bless each of you!

This is a blanket that Ryan's mother cross-stitched for Emma. She stitched her name by hand. Isn't it beautiful?

Waiting for a Travel Call

2009-09-26T19:49:00.000-07:00

Did I mention how excited I am to know we are waiting for a travel call? My stomach flutters at the thought of receiving this call. I've spent the weekend trying to get her things ready in case we get the call soon. I've picked out her clothes (only 5 bows for an overnight trip) and am waiting until our shower tomorrow before I finalize what I'm taking. Friday afternoon, I stayed at school late and planned out my leave. As of now, I plan to take 12 weeks. I am so looking forward to having this time with her to bond.

Today we went to the International Festival in Bowling Green. It was neat to see all the diversity represented. We went to the South Korea booth and met several Korean college students who are exchange students at the University. We had a wonderful conversation and enjoyed some Korean grape soda. Chase was hesitant at first to try it, but enjoyed it. We had a nice conversation with one of the students there and since they don't have a family that mentors them here in the states, we are going to meet with them and have dinner when Emma comes home. It was so neat to talk to someone from Korea and learn more about her culture.

Tomorrow the church is having a shower for Emma. My sister-in-law and church friends are coordinating it. I can't explain how blessed we are with such a wonderful church family. From the beginning, our church family has prayed and God has answered our prayers. No one can explain the short timeline and I answer by saying with God all things are possible.

This next week is going to be busy which will help while we wait for our travel call. Ryan's work is having a shower for us Thursday afternoon. Some close friends from school are having a get together on Thursday night...I can't wait! My wonderful teammates are doing something on Friday. I'm not sure what they're up to, but I know whatever it is, it will be awesome! I am in awe at how amazing the staff are at my school. From the first day I arrived, they have offered to help in any way they can and now I have the honor of sharing in this special journey with them. My school family has prayed with me and the love that resonates there is indescribable. Have a great weekend!

Blessed again... Visa Interview

2009-09-24T15:07:00.000-07:00

As I type, I am consumed with emotion about the day and what it means for our family. Today started out as any other, rushing to get ready and head off to school. As I drove to school today, I had an urge to call the Visa Center. I told Ryan I wasn't going to call until Monday because I knew nothing would be taking place until probably after that. The Visa specialist told us on Tuesday that it would take approximately 2-4 weeks. My heart kept pulling to call today even though I knew that if, just if they processed the P3, it probably wouldn't have made it back to the embassy, much less updated in the system. So when I got to school, I called the number and a sweet lady answered the phone. I gave her the information and she asked me to hold. Her next words were, my she is such a beautiful baby, what cute hair she has! I agreed and then she said, they must be ready to get this little girl home because she has a Visa Interview scheduled tomorrow at 1:00 p.m. I immediately began to cry and smile, and squeal (I've been doing a lot of that lately). I told her to have a great day and she said she thought I would too!!! Of course! I then ran down the primary hallway jumping up and down. I called Ryan and of course he was thrilled and excited. I am in awe at how blessed we have been through this whole process. I give God all the glory and praise. God has something extraordinary planned for her life. I was humbled at how I thought today would be an ordinary day and God had something wonderful planned. So many times we don't have the faith that God can do miracles in our lives. I believe He smiled today when he knew I was completed flabbergasted as I heard her visa interview had been scheduled.

As I understand it, Emma's social worker will go to embassy and Emma will be given a visa or travel certificate. At that point, her travel arrangements will be made and an escort will be determined (the escort could already be decided). We will receive a call from our agency that she is ready to come home within a week or so. Usually the travel call comes 5-10 days before she arrives. That means that she could be here by Chase's birthday! His wish just may come true!!!

My mind is going in so many directions. I praise God for the way he has blessed us. I heart breaks for the foster mother who will send precious Emma to us. I know that day will be difficult for her. I will try to keep in touch with her after Emma comes home. I know our sweet girl doesn't know what is about to happen, but she is about to join a family to will love her forever.

Please pray that Emma will be healthy, she will have a wonderful escort, and the trip to us will be safe. Thanks so much for the support and prayers. Our journey is almost complete...and for that I praise God.

P3 has been sent!!!

2009-09-22T17:13:00.000-07:00

I wish you could hear me squeal as I heard that the P3 had been sent today!!!! I am SO excited about getting to this point! After the agency in Korea receives it, they will send it back to the embassy. Emma will then have her visa interview!!! I found out today after talking with our agency that Emma has already had her visa physical. She said her those of you waiting that the Class B form is filled out when the physical happens. Good to know! The only other item is question is the emigration permit which our agency isn't notified of when Emma receives it. She could already have it... Our particular agency doesn't get notified. Please pray that the emigration permit has been issued. She can't travel until she has one. I have heard that only a certain number are issued per year per agency. If things continue to progress and the emigration permit has been issued, the end of October is a realistic timeframe to get our precious little girl!!!

We are Logged Out!

2009-09-18T19:47:00.000-07:00

I am so excited to say that we are logged out at the NVC!!! This means that Emma's information was sent electronically to Korea and we are waiting for it to be processed. Korea will send the P3 packet of information to our agency and our agency will send it back to Korea. Then the Visa Interview will be scheduled. In the meantime, I am going to work on getting my before Emma list checked off. And after that, here's a nice spot to sit and wait...

Thanks to all those who have prayed for us this week. We are one step closer in our journey!

Can you spell Johnson?

2009-09-17T15:12:00.001-07:00

is logged in!!!

It's been a few days since I last posted and these past fews days have been quite the roller coaster. Friday the 11th was a wonderful day, we received our I600 approval and obviously each step is a step closer to sweet Emma. I have tried to remain so positive throughout the process and realize how fortunate we are that our adoption journey has been very quick in comparison to others.

After receiving the I600, I have been calling constantly (they probably have my number on alert) to see if we have been logged in. Of course I looked at everyone else's blog to see how long it took them and set my expectations based on that. As of this morning we were still NOT in the system. I have been frustrated and down about it. For those who don't know, Korea can't start the process of getting Emma ready to come to the US without the Visa center sending the information to them. When we log out, the information is sent electronically to the Korean authorities for processing. So, I called this afternoon and the representative at the Visa center said they had not received our packet in the office. To make a long story short, it was lost in the mail apparently. As you can imagine, I was very upset at this point thinking about how long this might take to track down our information and how many days that might delay us. So I emailed the Louisville office (since you can't call them). In the meantime I can't just sit and wait, because I am the most impatient person I know!!! I called the Visa Center in Washington thinking that maybe just maybe I have been calling the wrong number or there is a mix-up. I talked to a nice lady named Jessica ;o) and she searched for my information using my social security number. The other Visa center searches by last name. She informed me that Emma's information was logged in on September 15th and that the other Visa center misspelled our last name!!! So for the past 3 days The Jhonson's have been logged in!!! I was so excited and relieved to know our packet wasn't lost. I called the Visa center and they have corrected the issue (after a short consultation with the supervisor). Ryan and I were talking last night about how we can't control when someone enters information into the computer but that God is in control of everything and I have learned that patience is a fruit of the spirit I need to work on... God is also in Korea with our little sweet pea as we await to be united with her.

I600 APPROVAL!!! And a Wonderful Shower!!!

2009-09-11T20:54:00.000-07:00

It's amazing how paper can make you smile...

What an awesome day!!! I emailed the Louisville office this morning hoping to get an update on Emma's I600 process. I was pretty disappointed that I didn't get a response back...until I checked the mail this afternoon!!! There it was, an envelope from the US Citizenship and Immigration office. I was so excited that I couldn't even wait to get out of the truck to open it. I immediately called Ryan and squealed! If things continue to go quickly, we could be shopping for a Halloween outfit!!! Oh, how I hope so!!! I am going to call on Monday to see if we have been logged in. Ryan called tonight and the office is located in New Hampshire which means the mail probably hasn't made it there yet, since they don't have our information on file.

Here is the rest of the process as I understand it:

We will log in and out at the National Visa Center. This means that they are reviewing our information and then will send it electronically to Seoul Korea. When it is sent, we are considered logged out of NVC. We will be given a reference number to use to call the National Visa Center in Washington D.C. to find out when the visa packet arrives, when the P3 is sent, and when the visa interview is scheduled. Usually a travel call comes approximately a week after the visa interview. Families usually travel within a week after receiving the travel call!!!

I get so anxious just thinking about it! I have plenty to keep me busy and my before Emma list is quite long. The problem is, I would rather not complete the items on my list and just have Emma here!!!

Baby Shower

My friend Gayla McCoy hosted a baby shower for Emma last night. The decorations were beautiful and the food was amazing. Some close friends came and shared in our joy. I enjoyed spending time with such wonderful friends to share our journey. Emma received so many cute things. My grandmother got Emma her first hairbrush that is unique. I love it and judging by Emma's pictures, we may need it!!!

Seven Months Ago...

2009-09-03T18:22:00.000-07:00

Emma Yeirin,

It's hard to believe in only seven short months and you have already experienced so many changes. Your daddy and mommy love you more than words could ever express. We rejoice in God's greatness and willingness to make you part of our forever family. So little sweet girl, happy seven months old!

Emma Update

2009-08-28T21:11:00.000-07:00

I was so excited to see a packet in the mail today from our agency. It was Emma's six month check-up details. We were thrilled to see that she continues to thrive with her foster family. She is definitely growing and doing well. At six months, she is 20 lbs and 27 inches long!!! Yes, 27 inches. And for those of you who are out of the baby loop, she's in the 95th percentile in height on the US charts. Gran said, "I knew she was created for your family," referring to the fact that the three Johnsons are not small in stature. Emma is also eating well as you can see by her weight. I have been buying clothes (just can't help myself) and a dear lady at church told me that I would need bigger clothes...I am taking them back tomorrow to exchange for a larger size! If anyone needs 6-12 months, you can find a replenished stock at Gymboree tomorrow! All of Emma's blood work came back great as well. Her thyroid levels are good and she is will continue on her medicine. The Korean doctor suggested that she be taken off of her medication around the age of three to see if the thyroid would begin to work on its own. We'll be checking into this more as we will see a pediatric specialist when she comes home.

Chase is playing baseball this weekend with a traveling team, so we will be at the ballpark tomorrow. That will at least help pass the time. Everywhere I look, I see a sweet little girl and I just long for Emma to be here. I am trying to take advantage of these last few months as a family of 3, but it is so hard when your heart knows you are a family of four!

Have a wonderful weekend!

A Few Pictures...

2009-08-25T14:52:00.001-07:00

If the video pictures are too small, here's a few of her room

Chase is working on a picture for the green frame...

I made the hangers for her bows. If you have a little girl and would like one, contact me.

I wanted to use the paper lanterns along with the Korean canvas painting that a family member is doing to bring part of her culture to the room.

Here's the bedding we picked out. Not too girly girl, but also kinda Asian (well if you're from Kentucky, you probably think so.. ;o)

I love this... It demonstrates exactly what we think about our sweet little girl.

Nursery: Before and After

2009-08-24T20:21:00.001-07:00

Emma's nursery is almost finished! It is still a work in progress, but we are ready for our little girl to come! A family member is going to paint a canvas with a Korean theme to go above the crib and we are going to add a chair in the room for rocking Emma back to sleep (or sleeping in ourselves!!!). See the video to get a look at what we've done...

Getting the Nursery Ready

2009-08-23T20:27:00.000-07:00

Needless to say, it's been a busy weekend! We have been trying to clean out the guest room that will be Emma's nursery for the past week. We finally got it cleaned out on Saturday morning and were ready to paint. In just one day: painted two coats of paint on Emma's room, changed the outlets and light switches, added furniture, accessories, replaced the blinds, hung curtains and rod, fixed the bedding on her crib, and the list goes on... Let's just say HGTV would have been proud! There are still a few finishing touches, but I will post pictures soon. I can't wait to have our sweet girl Emma home to enjoy her new room. I just love to go in there and sit and think about all the wonderful memories that will be made there.

I600 Update

2009-08-20T19:05:00.000-07:00

Well, it's so hard to wait. Everyone said it would be and it is. My heart breaks to think Emma is so many miles away and I am missing each day that passes never again to get it back. I hold on to knowing that this is a snapshot in time and soon (although it feels like eternity) we will all be a forever family. As I write, I can't help but wonder what she is doing... It's lunch time there, I hope she's having a good day.

We received an update on our I600. It has been received and should be processed with 3-6 weeks. As soon as we get approval, paperwork will be sent to Korea for processing, or at least that is the way I understand it. At any rate, our agency told us to be prepared for 3-4 months. I pray sooner than later. As for now, we have a room to get ready. This weekend will be dedicated to getting the nursery prepared for her arrival. I hope to at least get it cleaned out! It has been the guest room until now and we have some organizing to do. Anyone bored this weekend? Come over to the Johnson's and pick out something to take home with you from the guest bedroom!

Legals have arrived... and left!!!

2009-08-15T23:24:00.000-07:00

Things are moving along. We received our legals on Friday and they are off to the USCIS office in Louisville. Our acceptance paperwork should be in Korea by now as well. Little Emma is one step closer to coming home to her forever family.

This weekend has been busy. I spent Friday evening with some girlfriends from church. We had a wonderful time eating and talking. After dinner, we went to the movies. It was a much needed girls night out.

This afternoon we went furniture shopping. I am happy to report that we have finally found furniture. I will post pictures as soon as I get the room finished... We registered at Toys R Us tonight as well. Things should be all set for miss Emma to come. Please pray that she arrives before Thanksgiving. Oh, how thankful we are to know she is our little girl.

2009-08-08T19:13:00.000-07:00

Our Little Girl's Name...

2009-08-08T19:01:00.000-07:00

After much thought and consideration, we have decided to name our little girl

Emma Yeirin Johnson

We thought we would have several more months to finalize a name for her. Emma is such a beautiful and classic name. We know a couple of other Emmas, but they are adorable and sweet just like our Emma! When I saw her face, I knew she looked like an Emma, at least to me. So, Emma Yeirin Johnson, we hope you love your new name as much as we do! How amazing to be a mother of two: Chase and Emma. Thank you God for the wonderful way in which you bless our family. I am in awe at Your grace and immeasurable love. Please watch over Emma as we wait for her arrival. Be with her foster mother and help her to nurture Emma. In Your name, Amen.

Happy 6 months Yeirin!

2009-08-02T19:19:00.000-07:00

We wanted to wish our sweet girl happy six months today! We hope you had a wonderful day sweetie and we can't wait to share many more special moments with you. Oh, how we wish we could hold you and kiss your sweet cheeks! May you be happy and may your foster mother take great care of you until you are united with your forever family. We love you so much!

~Hugs and Kisses from Daddy, Mommy, and Big Brother~

Introducing Yeirin Kang

2009-08-01T09:10:00.001-07:00

We are excited to announce we will be the forever parents of beautiful Yeirin Kang. Her name means bright and pure. She will be 6 months old tomorrow. As you can tell from the pictures she is growing and eating well! Chase is so excited and loves his little sister. Since the referral came earlier than expected, we haven't fully decided on a name. We will let you know when we do!

This week has been indescribable. Words can't begin to express the amazing way God has worked this week. Our journey, which we initially thought would take much longer will be complete much sooner than expected. Yeirin should be here by the middle of November! What an awesome Christmas preset!

There are so many ways in which God has worked this week. Let me explain: On Thursday of last week, I found out about a teaching position that had been posted just that day. Due to traveling requirements of my current position, I pursued the teaching opening in hopes of being able to be back into the classroom. I have missed the kiddos. This position would also give me more time to spend with our family and great hours for when a baby comes, which we were expecting in January-April. On Monday, we get a referral for a little girl (about 5 months earlier than expected!). God's timing is perfect! Since Yeirin will be here in November, a teaching position would give me a chance to take time off and spend with her. I officially accepted the position on Wednesday.

On another note, we received conflicting information about the spot on Yeirin's right shoulder. Two different doctors were confident they knew what it was and they gave two different answers! We were torn because we knew one of diagnosis would cause Yeirin to have surgery and possibly multiple surgeries. Ryan and I talked during the two hour drive to Danville and just were torn about what it would mean for her. After arriving at the Adoption agency, the director felt that the place in question would not be something as serious as one of the doctors suggested because she felt the doctors in Korea would have disclosed that information. Before Yeirin leaves Korea, she will be seen by an American doctor and if the Korean doctors do not disclose information, she would not be able to travel. In ten years, this has never happened with the agency we are working with. So, we left with intentions to have the Adoption agency seek additional information from the Korean welfare society about this spot. Here's how good God is: On the way home I began to look over the child study again. In Korea, they use A4 paper which is longer than a normal sheet of paper. When we received Yeirin's orginal documents, they were faxed on regular paper. At the bottom of one of her medical documents, which was cut off during the fax to us, the doctors had conducted a ultrasound of the location on her back and determined it was a birthmark, which is what our pediatrician suggested as well. I was overcome with excitement and emotion. It was as if God knew we needed that information in order to make a strong decision to make His little girl part of our family. Oh, God is good! Needless to say, that was the confirmation we needed!

Another Good Report

2009-07-29T22:46:00.000-07:00

It's been a busy day. I accepted a new teaching position and officially started today. With open house tomorrow, needless to say, I have lots to do. Kim graciously helped me all day and at midnight, the room is in pretty good shape. I am still working on the paperwork and planning component!

More importantly, Ryan received a call from the Adoption physician this morning. She was very optimistic about the treatment of her under active thyroid and concurred that all the other medical information shows she is growing and meeting the developmental milestones. She had somewhat of a different opinion about the place on her shoulder which we originally were told was a type of birthmark. The specialistic thinks it is a lymphangioma. If this is the case, she would need to have it removed when she gets here. The doctor didn't think it was anything to be too concerned about and said she has seen it before with international adoptions. Further testing would determine to what extent treatment would be needed. We are going to inquire more about this and see if any further treatment has been done in Korea. The doctor went on to say that there is no reason she wouldn't live a happy healthy normal life.

Please continue to pray for us as we meet with the adoption agency and seek God's will in finding the little girl He has chosen for our family.

Timelines are Made to be Broken...

2009-07-27T21:09:00.000-07:00

We have been telling everyone that we are in the "hurry up and wait" stage. Well, today our wait may have come to an end...

I thought it would be at least 4 to 6 months before I could write to say that we have received a referral. But God's timing is perfect and although we have prayed for the wait to be short and for our little girl to come quickly, we of little faith, never thought today would be the day. Here is how it happened:

There was a message on the home phone on Friday from our home study agency. I didn't think much about. I actually told a friend at church on Sunday when she asked how things were going that our agency called on Friday and probably wanted the rest of our parenting certificates. This morning I was on my way to Bowling Green and my phone rang, it was our adoption agency. I answered the phone and Julie greeted me with a friendly hello. She began to explain that they received a referral for a little girl in the Waiting Child program and wanted to send the information to see if we would be interested. I inquired about why she was considered a waiting child and she explained that she has hypothyroidism (under active thyroid). I wasn't for sure what that meant, but I knew that we were open to learning more. Julie faxed the medical information and sent me two precious pictures of her. Let's just say she has the most adorable face and her hair puts a smile on your face! :o) Ryan says her hair defies gravity!

After reading her case study and medical information, we decided to take the information to our pediatrician for review. She met with us this afternoon and said that her condition was minor and would simply require medicine for treatment. She has met all of her developmental milestones and is growing well.

We requested the full referral information and will be reviewing it in the next couple of days. Needless to say, we can't begin to describe how excited and overwhelmed we are! We want to share her picture with you but are going to wait until we officially accept the referral. An adoption blog friend gave me the name of a well known adoption pediatrician and we are going to follow up with her just to make sure. Please pray that God will continue to guide and direct us as we determine if this adorable little girl is meant to be part of our family. We appreciate all the friends and family that have prayed today.

It is amazing how easy it is to fall in love simply by looking at a picture of one of God's children. God, if this little girl is meant to be ours, please continue to open our hearts and guide us to the right people who will confirm our natural instincts to make her part of our family. Help us to be objective but also open to the wonderful way in which you work. God, I give You the glory for all you continue to do in our lives and the way in which you bless us daily. May we honor You in our actions and may we follow Your will if this little girl is meant to be ours.

Home Study-Report Drafted

2009-06-22T19:46:00.001-07:00

We are so excited to share that we received the draft of our home study Saturday to look over. Ryan and I have been revising the pages and just sent it back to our social worker for final touches. We are one step closer to our little girl! We also received our formal application in the mail on Saturday. After compiling pictures and completing paperwork, we are ready to send it in as well. We will update when we know more as we continue the journey. Please pray for our little girl, chosen by God to be part of our family.

Home Study 2: Completed

2009-06-06T09:36:00.000-07:00

We are excited to have our second home study finished!!! (and to hand in all the paperwork) Meredith came to our house to meet Chase and interview us. Chase was a little nervous about the interview which didn't take long. Meredith asked him if he was excited about getting a baby sister and he of course said yes. He also told her that he was going to teach her how to play baseball. Ryan and I were each interviewed as well. We were able to discuss our families and the values that were instilled in us growing up. The home study will be compiled and sent to Korea so we can get our referral. I am still waiting on the formal application from AIAA so I am going to track that down on Monday.

Please continue to pray for our little girl. Our estimations suggest that she is about to be born or could even be a newborn!!! I pray that God will watch over her, be with her birth mother and foster mother. I also pray that her needs will be met and that she will know the love that not only we have for her but the unmeasurable love God has for her!!!

I purchased a picture frame this week that is waiting for her referral picture. It says:

"You don't choose your family. They are God's gift to you, as you are to them." -Desmond Tutu

I can't wait to meet the little girl God has picked for us long before we even knew what His plan was...

Home study, TB test, Blood work, Fingerprints, and Shopping!

2009-06-02T20:56:00.000-07:00

It's been busy couple of weeks! Here's the update:

We met our caseworker Meredith on Friday May 29th at Starbucks. She was wonderful. It is amazing how God puts certain people in your path. She is a social worker too and is starting her masters in social work at Western this fall. What a small world! (I tried to prepare her for the millions of discussion board posts she would be doing over the next year!!!) The meeting went well and was very informal. We enjoyed sharing with her our reason for adopting. We have our second home study visit Friday. . . One step closer to our little girl.

Ryan and I also had blood work and TB tests for the process. I told him I was a little excited about the fact that he had to endure the blood work, TB test, and urinalysis this time whereas with Chase I had the joy. He chuckled and said she's worth it!

We went to Louisville Monday afternoon to turn in our I600A form and get fingerprinted. The I600A is a petition to adopt. The fingerprints are for federal background checks. Hopefully those will be processed soon.

We have been doing some shopping for our little sweetheart. I want to make sure we have everything in place before she gets here. Ryan and I have been looking at strollers and furniture. We were amazed at how much things have changed since Chase was a baby.

It's hard to fathom that our little girl could be born already. I know God has a wonderful plan for her life. Please keep us in your prayers as we finish up getting the paperwork together. We pray that our home study Friday goes well and is typed up and processed quickly!

We have a caseworker!!!

2009-05-20T15:47:00.000-07:00

We received a caseworker for our adoption process today! Next steps are to get our home study completed. I spoke with her this afternoon and we have our initial meeting next Friday!!! Needless to say we are so excited!!!! Our second meeting is scheduled for June 5th. It will take about ten days to process. After speaking with a representative from AIAA today, we should get a referral in 4-6 months after our home study is sent to Korea. That could mean we would have our referral close to Chase's birthday or by Christmas!!!

Please pray for us as we should receive our HUGE packet of paperwork tomorrow. I've heard this is one of the most difficult aspects of the process (aside from the waiting). I have started gathering items that we will need and organizing the paperwork that I've already filled out. This isn't exactly the easiest thing to do since we are also in the middle of moving!

I am constantly amazed at how God works in our lives. My heart longs to know this little girl that will have a family to love forever. I thank God for the support of our families and friends as we make this journey together.

Sharing the News (cont.)

2009-05-18T19:06:00.000-07:00

Thursday night after our softball game we were able to share the news with Ryan's uncle Dale. He was surprised to hear our news. He jokingly asked if we were getting a new puppy when we told him we were expanding the family. He knew Aunt Mary would be excited about our good news, she always wanted a little girl in the family.

It's been an exciting weekend. Friday night I graduated from WKU with a masters in Social Work. I am so thankful to be finished and am looking forward to spending quality time with my family on Saturdays instead of being in class! The social work department held a private graduation ceremony that was very nice and personal. After, we went to Longhorn to have dinner. There we were able to share the news with Mema, Granny, Uncle Roger, Aunt Charlotte, and Joey. Mema was excited for us as was the rest of the family. Granny wanted to make sure she had dibs on giving her a crib since she gave Chase his. Uncle Roger made Charlotte choke on her food when he mentioned that he wouldn't mind adopting a daughter! Joey entertained us with lots of questions!

On Sunday we were able to share the news with our church family. They too were supportive and we definitely need the prayers as we fill out paperwork and wait and wait and wait...

Sunday afternoon I was able to share the news with my cousin and her family. Well, almost... It seems Chase was so excited that he told everyone he knew and they found out through the grapevine!

We are closing on our house on Wednesday so we spent the afternoon moving as much of the big furniture as possible. Leave it to the Johnsons to move, graduate, and adopt at the same time!!! Thankfully one of our youth from church came to help us, otherwise I'd still be trying to lift the armoire!

Sharing the Big News

2009-05-13T19:03:00.000-07:00

Tonight we were able to tell my family about our future little girl. Nana and Papa were excited for us. Papa said he had been wishing for another little girl in the family. Nana said she would have something to look for at yard sales! She was also excited about the extra shopping partner.

Chase never ceases to amaze me at how compassionate and caring he is. He told me this morning as he was getting ready for school that even though he hadn't met his sister yet, he loved her already. What an answer to prayer! We welcome your prayers as we think she may still be growing inside her birth mother or is just a newborn. Please pray that God will watch over her and keep her safe and healthy. Pray for her birth mother and the difficult decision that must take place in her life in order for our lives to be filled with such joy.

A Word from Big Brother...

2009-05-13T18:52:00.000-07:00

I have been waiting for you to be here. from your big brother Chase

The Journey Begins

2009-05-12T21:20:00.000-07:00

Today is a monumental day in the life of the Johnson family. We completed and mailed our preliminary application to begin the adoption process for a little girl. After months of prayer, we have decided to adopt from Korea. According to the adoption agency, the process should take approximately one year. We were told to be prepared for the placement to occur earlier, which would be wonderful for us!

I guess the journey really began several years ago when Jess shared the desire and calling to adopt. For Ryan, it took a little more searching and prayer to know that this is how God intended for us to expand our family, but after persistent seeking, God provided the assurance that this was the calling He was giving to us both. Having previously only casually discussed it at different times, we knew others that had gone through the process with China, and it seemed it would be a long time before we met the age requirements and processing times continued to lengthen as much as 36 months before placement. So we placed our plans on hold waiting for the right time.

It became very clear and evident that His plans and timing were well beyond anything we imagined. We began to see sign after sign and had encounters with other people who had been through similar processes that opened our eyes to the possibilities that Korea had to offer and that we literally could begin the process immediately. Of course, Jess, with her ability to research and gather information, soon had a wealth of information, facts and first hand experiences and recommendations from others that continued to verify the direction we were being led. We have been amazed at how God has shown us individually and together His plan and purpose for this phase of our family's life. As we shared together our excitement, we couldn't wait to get the process started and ultimately hold the little girl that will be ours to care for. We chose a Christian adoption agency to assist us in the process. They've already proved to be helpful and supportive with the many questions Jess has asked!

Naturally, the next step was to tell Chase. After buying a "Big Brother" shirt, we took him to the park to tell him about his future sister. His initial response was: "I want a brother." Of course now he is excited and planning all of the ways he is going to take care of "Sara-Beth Ann Johnson" (Chase's suggestion of a name for her).

We decided to tell Ryan's family over dinner. Gran is excited that she is finally getting that girl as much as she loves her 3 grandsons! I'm sure Pap is disappointed that the UK basketball team isn't getting a future player but will love her just the same!!! Aunt Kim can't wait to buy girl clothes for once! Uncle Zak was slightly disappointed that Jess wasn't pregnant and wouldn't have that to harass her about for the next 9 months. Dax was surprised and Max was preoccupied with the french fries!!

We are amazed at how God has blessed us with the desire and ability to adopt. We know the journey will be trying and the paperwork daunting, but with the support of family and friends, we will find our way to our little girl. We're excited that she will have a family to love forever!