This waiting room is really cool. I think I'll wait out here while you guys go in and get poked and proded.

Well, I guess I'll just bite my lip and go on in and give them a little bit of blood. I don't think so. It took four people to hold her down.:( I had to wait in the hallway and be the "rescuer" once they brought her back out.

Today was a huge day for Julia. She first went by and saw her friends at Lifeline Children's Services that helped to bring her home to Mommy and Daddy. We love our friends at Lifeline. We then went for lunch and had her favorite, noodles. They stick to the clothing really well.

After lunch, we had to go visit the International Adoption Clinic. We had a great visit I thought but Julia might not agree. These guys are awesome. They do not leave any leaf unturned and are so kind and courteous. We had a lot to do and made it through all of our questions, lab work and the removal of the infamous stitch in her nose (Thank you, Dr. Chambers, for your persistence). I highly recommend you visit these guys if the facility is accessible to you following an adoption. They definitely have their act together. All in all, we had a great day and breathed a sigh of relief because we were given no surprises regarding her health at this point. We have several follow-up doctor visits but feel like all in all that she is doing great.

Mommy, where did you get this sister of mine?
















Grandma Susan gave up on the doll and decided to try music. Boy, did she end up with an arm full.

I took my hair bow out to play with Cousin Madison. She was kind enough to come and chase me around the living room for a couple of hours.

Julia has surpassed many milestones this weekend. She had a playmate over Saturday, Madison, and did very well. She's not afraid of anyone. Now, she might remain quiet for a little while but once she warms up to you, she is very outgoing.

Today, I spent and hour and a half with her in her Sunday school class and she did great. She still does not want anyone to pick her up but me, which is great. I left her alone with the teachers for the second service and she did awesome. I was the one looking at my watch during service and wandering whether she was having a meltdown or not. I walked into her room to pick her up and she smiled once she saw me and raised her hands and ran to me. I was so thankful. She seems to adapt very well and picks up on things amazingly quickly. She spent the afternoon playing with Grandma Susan. She loves to play the piano. Good thing we have a good piano teacher on hand when she reaches that point (we love Ms. Kristy).

Julia now begs to take a bath and lets you know when she's ready to get out. Tim said tonight that it seems like she has been with us a lot longer than a week. We love her so much and feel so blessed that God gave her to us. We see his grace in her each day and each day we see such blessings in her continued happiness with us. I was thinking to myself tonight while watching her run around laughing how lucky we are and how grateful I am to know that I get to witness her growing up. Tim and I might be a little tired right about now but we are also very thankful.

Tomorrow we will take her to Dr. Chambers for her first visit. We just pray that there will be nothing wrong with her and that her immunization levels with meet the US requirements thus resulting in no further shots. We will take her by the adoption agency to let them meet her and then out for a real Italian meal. Wish us luck!