A Little Breezy...

Robert went to take the trash out on Sunday night and this is what he found...

View from the front gate into the back yard.

View from the back yard looking towards our front gate.

It was dark Sunday when we discovered this, so these pictures were taken Monday morning. Needless to say, it's been very windy here! Fortunately, our dog has not discovered this escape route yet. Robert talked to our neighbor and he knows someone who can rebuild it for us. Apparently this one was built without a foundation which is why it fell over fairly easily. Ahhh...the joys of home ownership! The winds are supposed to die down tomorrow, so hopefully we can get started on this before the end of the week. Thankfully, none of the 16 fires burning in Southern California are near us, but we are getting quite a bit of smoke from the Malibu fire. Please pray for the people affected by all of these fires. They are saying over 1000 people have lost homes already. I can't even fathom what they must all be going through. Thank you to all of the firefighters who are working so hard!

We had quite an eventful end of the week/weekend with Lily. She had been struggling with a cold for a little over a week and last Thursday night (10/18) it turned bad. She was having a really hard time breathing and started wheezing in the evening. I called the doctor's office to get her in 1st thing Friday. He said it was asthma which is often brought on by colds. We gave her a nebulization treatment at the doctor's office (very familiar!) and he sent us home with an inhaler and breathing chamber. She is feeling so much better now and I am so glad to at least know what it is and how to help her in the future. I know it was harder on me than it was on her! The doctor feels she will probably outgrow it. All things considered, it could certainly be worse. We are thankful.

Here are a few more pictures of our girl...

Getting ready for our morning walk. See Panda's little head sticking out? He is no longer allowed to walk with us as we had to turn back twice to retrieve him from being thrown overboard!

Looking so cute in her Sunday best!

I caught her in this pose during her nap yesterday.

Fun Labor Day Weekend

Since it's been hitting the 100+ degree mark here for over a week, Lily has been spending a lot of time in her pool...which she LOVES! It's such a change from the days when she hated her bath so much. Now when she is inside and sees her pool out in the yard, she just stares at it and does the sign for more! She is brilliant.

Lily loves to give kisses, and she loves getting them from Shayna!

On Friday, August 31st, our friends Jenny and Samantha came for a visit. Samantha just LOVES Lily and it is so cute to watch Samantha play with her.

On Saturday, September 1st, we got some relief from the heat and went to visit my mom in Ventura. It's about 20 degrees cooler there. It was so nice!

Lily and her Lau Lau.

"NOW look what I can do!" She is growing and learning so much every day. I found her one morning sitting up in her crib. It's already going by so fast, I am trying to soak up and enjoy every minute with her.

On Sunday, September 2nd, our friend Martin and his daughter came out for a visit. It was their first time meeting Lily and we all had a really nice time. Martin's daughter was so great with Lily...she fed her and walked around with her all over the place, and had a lot of fun playing with her. We can't wait to see you guys again in November, if not sooner!

I dare you to tell me this is not the cutest face ever! Lily had lots of fun at her Nai Nai's on Labor Day. We had a really good BBQ...of course every meal at Nai Nai's is excellent!

Looking adorable in her PJ's.

Nai Nai and Lily playing with her blocks.

"Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow." James 1:17

Lily is truly a perfect gift from God and we continue to be amazed at this precious gift from Him.

There's No Place Like Home

If only it were as easy as clicking my heals and repeating that phrase! All in all, our trip home was relatively uneventful. We made all of our flights and our luggage all made it home! The only thing newsworthy about the trip was about 2 hours into the 12 hour flight. I gave Lily her bottle...she must have been starving because she gulped that thing down like she had never eaten before! The next thing I knew it was all coming back up, all over me. Then I heard the loudest crying I'd ever heard come out of her. I think it scared her more than anything. She was so upset and I was so blessed to be able to comfort her...even with baby throw up all over me! I didn't even care. All that mattered was making my daughter feel better. I had packed a few extra outfits for her, but nothing for me. Needless to say, mommy didn't smell too good by the time we got to San Francisco! The best part of the trip was going through immigration in San Francisco and bringing our newest American Citizen across the official border...our little American girl. She did so well on the trip home. She just amazes me...she is so adaptable and easy going. We finally got to the house around 4:00 and were greeted by a very happy Shayna! By about 6:30 Lily had had enough so we put her down for the night. I thought for sure she'd wake up during the night, but there was not a peep. I kept checking on her, paranoid mommy that I am, and she was just lying there sound asleep. She didn't wake up until 8:00 this morning. It was a long day!

As soon as we get the rest of the pictures uploaded and re-sized, I'll post them...hopefully by this evening or tomorrow. For now we are soooo glad to be home!