We had a rough night last night. Emma ended up in our bed at about 11:00 last night and Samuel was up several times. Jeremy ended up on the couch and I actually got up earlier to get ready for work because the two kids were taking over the bed. Jeremy also got a taste of how hard it is to stay at home all day with two kids. He had a rough day. The kids were crazy today. It is so weird, but Emma will not take a nap in her bed the days that Jeremy is home. She ends up taking a short catnap on the couch. I guess she knows that her daddy will get her out of bed if she cries. When I got home Jeremy was ready to get out of the house. Jeremy also got his scores today from his Praxis saying that he passed all four tests. He was hired at that school,but it could not be official until he got the scores back from the test. He needed to pass all four tests to get his TN teaching license. He was nervous about the last test he took. He thought he did not do well on it.So, we decided to go eat at Old Chicago (a pizza place) and get some supplies for our trip that is coming up in a week. We are taking some kids from the youth group to Student Life Camp in Myrtle Beach.

 So, we are about 10 minutes from the restaurant and Samuel starts crying that his stomach hurts. We just thought he was hungry. He then says, "Mommy I am stinky". Indeed he was stinky. We pulled over to a gas station so he could finish going to the bathroom and so I could clean him up. We then went to Target to get some new shorts. It was quite an ordeal. He seems to be OK now. I was concerned that he was getting a flu bug that has been floating around the Riggs Family. 

Samuel has been playing this really cute thing. He will put his backpack on and get another bag in his hand and he will say, "Mom, I am going to Korea to get Chloe." I was thinking the other day that my kids will probably grow up thinking that all babies come from Korea. Emma continues to do something new every day. She is quite a handful. She is definitely more work than Sam was at this age. She is into EVERYTHING! Here are a few pictures of the kids at supper. Emma is now sitting in a booster. She actually does good sitting in it. Sam would never sit in a booster. 

It was back to work today. I had a nice week off of work. It was busy, but good. The kids are also recovering from the long weekend. They had a great time spending time with cousins and going swimming and the other things we did the past few days, but it wore them out. Yesterday we just hung out at the house. Samuel and Emma played outside on their bikes. Our driveway is gravel so they just ride up and down or little sidewalk in front of the house. I put Emma to bed at 7:00 and she went right to sleep. She cried out at 1 am but slept until almost 7 this morning. Samuel also cried out a few times last night. Samuel is having a bit of trouble adjusting to the new summer schedule.

 Well, yesterday we got our letter from Immigration that they received our paperwork to start our process with their office. We should be getting another letter in a few days saying we can go get our second set of fingerprints. After our fingerprints that clearance from immigration should be within 8 weeks. Jeremy and I are going next week to get our physicals and our dog Maggie also has to go to the vet. There is a new form we have to fill out stating that our dog is up to date on her shots and that she is friendly with children. We should have all our paperwork done by the end of next week. Our social worker told us today that we can get our official referral for Chloe after our 3rd post placement visit for Emma, so maybe by the end of JULY. A quick timeline, after the official referral Chloe should be home within 3-4 months. Immigration is saying that after the referral we should have clearance for Chloe to come home in 8 weeks. In case you have forgotten, this final clearance took over 3 months and this is the step that our paperwork was mishandled. So, as you pray for us and Chloe here are a few specific prayer requests. First, pray for me as we start this process. I am just recovering from the stress that Emma's adoption process took on me. I am very nervous about doing this again. Second, I am praying that Chloe will be home before November 10th. If Chloe comes home before Emma turns two we will not have to pay for her a plane ticket to Detroit.

We got a few minutes of swimming in today. Samuel and Emma are like little fish. The water was so cold but they both just got in (with the help of floats and Dad). Emma was not afraid at all. Samuel will probably be swimming by the end of the summer. He does such a great job moving his arms and legs to get around the pool. The kids are finally getting their nap. We will be going over to Jeremy's mom and dad's in a few hours for a cookout. It will probably be another late night. Jeremy is going in tomorrow to his new school. It is a planning day for teachers, so he is going to get an idea of what to expect when school starts. Here are a few pictures of the kids swimming today. 

We had big plans for today, but the rain has definitely put a damper on them. We were all going to our friends house to swim. They have a beautiful swimming pool. We were going to swim for a few hours, have the kids take a nap and then have a cookout at Jeremy's mom and dad's house. We were also going to have the 4 grand kids picture taken outside today. It has rained all morning and it looks like there will be scattered storms all day. So, we are just hanging out at the house and will head over to Gran and Papa's later for a cookout (if it is not raining).

 We had a good day yesterday. After church and lunch we all took a long nap and then we went to Gran and Papa's to visit with the family. Samuel and his cousin, Austin, had a blast. We laughed that Jeremy's mom would have to take a nerve pill after we left. Sam and Austin (who is almost 3) ran through the house yelling and jumping around. They were crazy. Andrew (who is 9 months old) slept most of the time and Emma fell asleep at about 8:30. We were imagining how crazy it will be at Christmas when Emma and Andrew will be running around and hopefully Chloe will be home. Gran and Papa may have to add on another room for the grand kids. They will have 5 grand kids under the age of 4 years old. We got tickled at Sam because Austin is not potty trained yet and Sam thought he was going to teach him how to use the potty. You can just image the conversation between them in the bathroom. We were all up late last night but my kids were up at 6:30 this morning. They sleep so much better when they are on their regular schedule. They were up early and I had to get up with both of them in the night. Well, I am going to try and get the kids down for a nap in case the weather clears up later for us to go swimming.

The wedding was very nice. It was very hot, but everything looked beautiful and Samuel and Emma did great. Samuel and Austin walked down the aisle and Emma came running down the aisle all smiles. We had  busy day and we are all very tired. Emma has actually been asleep since we got home at 5:30. I am not sure what our night is going to be like. Thankfully my sweet husband took the kids to breakfast this morning and let me sleep in a few more hours. Well here are a few pictures from the wedding. 

Things went like I expected tonight. All the kids were running all over the place. Samuel and Austin (Josh and Allison's son) did good walking down the aisle, but Emma, well she would start walking toward the front but then dart somewhere else. The wedding is outside and she loves to be outside so she just wanted to explore. It was also very warm this evening. I am not looking forward to sitting in the heat tomorrow. Oh, well. Here a few pictures from this evening. Emma's little outfit came with a hat and Sam thought it would be silly to try it on.

Today has been a very busy day and it is not over yet. This morning Emma and I attended a bridal tea and Jeremy and Sam attended a graduation. Emma did really good at the tea. I was concerned because I knew there would be lots of tea pots and other breakable things. I also did not know what she would think of the food. Of course she was absolutely adorable. When we got to the tea house we were told that they did not have a high chair but she sat nice and tall in one of the chairs. Every day I realize how big she is getting. She also liked the food. Her favorite was the broccoli quiche. She ended up falling asleep in my arms while I finished my lunch. Everyone just made a fuss over her and she loved the attention. I was also able to show off the picture of Chloe. It is amazing that so many people follow the story of our family. There were several people there that I did not know but they knew about me and my kids. I think it is neat. Someone asked me if I thought it was weird that people knew all about our lives. I think I have an amazing story of blessings and hope so I do not mind at all who knows our story. Well, the kids (and Jeremy) are taking a nap. We are off again in a few hours to the wedding rehearsal and the rehearsal dinner. I guess I will find out tonight how Emma is going to do walking down the aisle. I hope to post some cute pictures of the kids from the wedding. Emma is very difficult to get her to take a good picture. She looks and says, "cheese" for about 2 seconds and then turns away. I guess I better try to take a short nap while I have the chance. 

Jeremy made this picture of our three kids. I think it is really neat. They are so beautiful! Today was a pretty good day. Sam and Emma both slept until 7 this morning and woke up in a good mood. We then filled out some of our paperwork and went to get our fingerprints made. I had my first irritation with the adoption paperwork today. We have to get a form filled out by our doctor and I found out that I have to get another physical. It would be ok if I had insurance that covered doctor's visits. The lady at the desk was not helpful and she told me I had to see a new doctor because I was considered a new patient. I explained that because of my history I needed to see the same doctor I have seen over the past four years. It was so frustrating. I do not like going to the doctor anyway so this just made it worse. I have not heard good things about the two doctors she suggested. So, now I have to figure it out. Our social worker sent our I600A form to the Immigration office in Memphis today so we will officially be in the system in a few weeks. Well, the kids are now in bed and Jeremy is out with his brothers so I am enjoying the peace and quiet. My sweet Emma is into EVERYTHING so I now have to pick up the destruction she made today. Maybe I can get to bed soon. We have a big day tomorrow with wedding activities. 

My heart has been very heavy after hearing the news of the tragic death of Maria, the daughter of Christian recording artist Steven Curtis Chapman. Maria was the youngest of three children that were adopted from China by the Chapman Family. She was only five years old. The Chapman's are major contributors to the adoption community. Not only have they challenged people to adopt, they started a grant program for families needing assistance with adoption expense called Shaohannah's Hope. We were blessed to receive a grant from this organization to help with Emma's expenses. I have been praying for this family since I heard the news. You can read the full story at www.stevencurtischapman.com

When I woke up this morning my first thought was that yesterday was dream. I am still in a bit of a whirlwind of emotions. I also slept long enough last night to actually dream. Emma went to be at about 9 last night. She cried out once at 10:30 and I thought we were in for a long night, but she went right back to sleep and did not wake up until 7 o'clock. Samuel also slept through the night last night. I am just very thankful that Emma is sleeping in her own bed. I was worried that we would still be fighting that battle once Chloe came home. 

 I had to work today so Jeremy had the kids today. They took our donation to Good Will and then went to Sam's Club with Gran and Janna. Everyone in the Riggs' family is getting ready for Jacob's wedding on Saturday. Samuel is a ring bearer and Emma is going to attempt to be a flower girl. I am getting a little nervous about how Emma will do walking down the aisle. Because of all the activity this weekend I have a nice break from work. I am not going back until next Wednesday. 

We have another busy day planned for tomorrow. I think we are going to get our fingerprints made and try to get most of our paperwork together for our homestudy. It is kind of frustrating that in a few weeks it will all be out of our hands on how the rest of the process goes. I am tempted to e-mail Memphis and warn them that our paperwork will be coming in a few months, but I won't for now. Sam has a new video on youtube saying Psalm 95:1. Type in koreandad to find the video. 

Well, we have had quite a day. This morning was spent cleaning and getting the house ready for our second post placement visit for Emma. Our new social worker came and asked a bunch of questions about Emma 's adjustment and she confirmed that Emma was doing very well in our home. We then officially started our homestudy for Chloe. We also got a wonderful surprise, a picture of Chloe. We do not know any more information, but we now have a face to our precious daughter. As you can image my emotions are all over the place tonight. Reality is really starting to set in that our family of four will soon be a family of five. The process does seem like it will be a bit easier in terms of paperwork as long as we do not have the immigration problems like we had with Emma. We are delighted that we got a picture, but most of you know that after the picture is the hardest part of the wait. I am just so humbled that God has chosen me to be the mother of these three amazing children. I am actually posting the first pictures we got of Samuel, Emma, and Chloe.

On Saturday Samuel found a harmonica when we were cleaning out the garage. He started playing it and he is pretty good for a three year old. We took a video of him playing and I have been trying to post the video for the past few days but for some reason it will not post on my blog. The video is on www.youtube.com. When you get to the you tube site just type in Sam on the harmonica or three year old playing the harmonica. It is really cute. Emma also got in the video a little bit. 

The other day in the car Samuel said," Hey Mom look." I turned around and he was making that sign with his hand. He then said," This means I love you mom." Of course I had to take a picture.

Today was Samuel's last day of school. Here are a few pictures of him today at Fun Day. He has always been afraid of these inflatables, but I guess today he overcame his fears. He had a great day. 

We had a good day today. After church we ate lunch and the kids and I took a 2 hour nap. We are recovering from our work from yesterday. We almost got the garage cleaned out. We have a whole wall full of stuff we will be taking to Good Will, so the garage will look better once we get that stuff out. Jeremy and Samuel were taking some trash to the dump and Samuel saw something in the van and said, "Dad, that belongs to Will." Jeremy asked him, "Who is Will?" Samuel replied, "I don't know. Mommy said it was going to Will." He thought we were giving our clothes and toys to a person named Will. It is so funny the things they pick up.

I thought today I would share about Samuel's graduation. Last week Sam had graduation from pre-school. He was so excited. I know it is just pre-school, but I was pretty emotional. I am so proud of my little boy. He is a hand full sometimes, but he is so sweet and kind. He is always a big help. The night of the program his class came out on the stage and I experienced maybe my biggest parent moment. Now do not get me wrong, I have many times I felt like a parent, but there was something about sitting among many parents and watching this little boy smile and wave and say, "Hi Mommy". It is moments like that that I am very much aware that I am his mother and he is my son 100% no matter how it became possible. His class sang a few songs and they recited James 1:17, "Every good and perfect gift comes from above." It was a very proud moment.