Kevin, Cindy and James

James's first baseball game

We took James to his first baseball game on May 11 (Angels v. Tampa Bay Rays). Here are some pictures:

In this one he's all bundled up in his warm clothes in the carseat after we got home...doesn't he look cozy and warm?

I put a slideshow below of pictures of James at home. Most of these were taken when he was right around three months old. The pictures in the green plaid outfit and the blue-striped overalls (including the cute one with Kevin) were taken on Mother's Day. Aren't the ones with the blue blanket on the couch so cute? He was being extra adorable that day so I was just clicking away on the camera.

I couldn't resist!

Here are some more...

My little genius, playing with the alphabet toy. "Spin, spin the letter..."

All dressed up and ready for church...

The whole family. :)

Oh, you know there's more to come!!

More James!

Here are some updates on our little love bug...

Here he is having some Daddy-time. Doesn't he look smart?

Here is his sweet little James smile...

He really is the sweetest little thing. I just can't wait to get him up in the morning...he gives me a huge smile every time I lean over the crib to pick him up. He also smiles like this, laughs and coos every time we change him. He loves getting his diaper changed and taking a bath!

This is a good four-generation shot: Great-Grandpa Seth, Grandpa Daryl, Daddy Kevin, Baby James.

Here is James in my favorite jammies...he grew out of them so fast! :(

Here is James gettin' jiggie....

James and Mommy...

I love this face, but I don't think it's a face only a mother could love! :)

Introducing James Henry

If you're looking at this blog, you probably already know the great news - we've adopted a beautiful baby boy! James Henry came home to us on March 11, 2010, two weeks after we found out his wonderful birthparents had selected us to adopt him. He was born on January 28, 2010, in San Diego county, and LDS Family Services made the arrangements for him to join our family. We are just beside ourselves with love and adoration. This little boy is a wonder in so many ways. He's asleep right now, so I've got a few minutes to try to quickly get some pictures on here for those of you who haven't met him yet. I'm going to attach a slide show above this post. Keep checking back for more pictures!

A little about us....

We are excited to introduce ourselves. We were approved for adoption through LDS Family Services in January 2008 and are now anxiously engaged in searching out and finding our little baby! We feel like the time has definitely come for us to add a new member to our family.

Let us tell you a little bit about ourselves.

Cindy was born and raised in southern California. She went to BYU for her Bachelor's Degree in English, but after graduation came back to California and hasn't left since. She later earned a Master's Degree in English from Chapman University and now teaches college English, the best job in the world! Cindy loves all things beautiful: waterfalls, mountains, blue skies, rain, oceans, classical architecture, classical music, and most of all, books. Cindy will mostly be maintaining this blog, so when you read the "I" voice, it will usually be hers.

Kevin was also born and raised in southern California, and also graduated from BYU -- with a Bachelor's Degree in Psychology. He served an LDS (Mormon) mission in Brazil and now speaks Portuguese and Spanish. Kevin loves to analyze things, has a great eye for detail, and can get totally caught up in a project, but he also knows how to relax and have fun. He also enjoys taking in the occasional ballgame -- particularly if it involves the Dodgers, Angels, or Lakers.

Pictures of the two of us...

A little more about us....

Kevin and I dated for almost two and a half years before we got married, so we were very good friends and knew each other pretty well by our wedding day. I was really excited to be getting married, because all I ever really wanted out of life was to have a family, to be a wife and mother, and to create a home. Our wedding day was the happiest day of my life. The picture above is the picture we used in our wedding invitations.

Here is a picture of Kevin from our first Christmas together. Don't you love the tiny tree?

The pictures in the slideshow above this post are mostly from vacations we have taken. I really love traveling and have had some unique opportunities to get out and see the world. I have an adventurous spirit and always feel like there is more out there that I need to discover and explore.

Kevin, however, has taught me that some vacations dedicated primarily to rest and relaxation can be just as enjoyable. Together, we like taking weekend trips to nearby getaways such as San Diego, Palm Springs, Santa Barbara, etc. At local venues such as these, a typical day might consist of sleeping in (just a little), venturing out to some of the local shops and restaurants, and otherwise hanging out at the motel playing Scrabble, watching TV, dining in, or going to the pool.

This picture is from a Scrabble match when we were staying in Palm Springs.

Here is a picture of us "packing in" a night out on the town in Chicago, vacationing Cindy-style.

Kevin is self-employed as a real estate broker and spends part of his time working with clients in the traditional sense of helping people buy and sell homes. At Kevin's encouragement, I got my real estate license so I could periodically help him take clients around to go house-shopping -- something I frankly confess I enjoy doing. Kevin devotes the balance of his work time to developing relatively high-end, high-tech marketing systems for other real estate professionals who then become business partners or "clients" in a different, less traditional sense. While Kevin is good at both aspects of real estate, he probably enjoys the marketing side a little more. My "real" job is as an English teacher. When we have a baby, I plan on retiring from work and becoming a full-time mom and homemaker.

Here I am whipping up some dinner in our lovely teal kitchen.

Some of our favorite pastimes include playing with our cats; watching Survivor and those good ol' cable-TV classics Man Vs. Wild and Seconds from Disaster; getting together with friends for dinner and games; going to Angels baseball games with various groups of friends and family; getting together with Kevin's parents and grandpa for dinner and a Boggle match (nobody has ever beat Kevin); and getting together with my family at my mom's house to swim, eat, and play cards.

Here is a picture of Kevin blowing bubbles for my nieces and nephews at a party at my mom's house. The grandkids get lots of love and laughs at grandma's house!

Well, I think this should give you a good feel for our family. I think we live a fairly simple life, focusing on work, church, and home. While we like to travel and enjoy the world around us, we mostly enjoy spending time together and with our families. We have a good life and a good home, and we just want a baby to share it with.

Our brief foray into parenthood...

We thought it was time to update our blog to reflect an experience we had in September. On September 25, 2008, we received a phone call from a doctor who had delivered a baby that morning. She told us his parents had made the decision to place him for adoption. We went to the hospital that day, met the birthparents, and were able to hold the baby -- such a beautiful little boy. After meeting with them, his parents decided they would place him in our home for which we were so very grateful. The next day, when he and his birthmother were released from the hospital, we went and picked up our first son.

We named him Blake Charles. Blake was the name his birthparents had been calling him, and we felt it suited him nicely. Charles was Cindy's late father's name. On the night he was born, we went on a wild shopping spree, buying a carseat, stroller, crib, changing table, clothes, diapers, bottles, bathing supplies, and everything else a baby might need in his first week or so of life. On the first day Blake was at home with us, we put together his furniture and stroller, and took turns holding him with all our family members who came over to welcome him into our family.

Blake was an absolute doll. Not only was he beautiful to look at (as you can see in the pictures below), but he had the sweetest temperament. As long as he was being held, he was content. He didn't particularly like being put in bed, but he would sleep for hours as long as we were holding him. We, of course, didn't mind at all -- as proud new parents who had waited so long for a child, we were only too happy to oblige his every wish. He also seemed very alert and intelligent when he was awake. I could make eye contact with him from the very first day, and he also smiled from the very beginning. Mostly he would just look around with his big brown eyes, looking like a little scientist investigating a new world. The "Beautiful Baby Blake" picture in the slideshow below captures his little scientist look.

My favorite time with Blake was in the middle of the night. Although I was tired, that was the time when I really bonded with him. It was like Blake and I were the only two people in the world. His smell, his sweet baby breath, his soft skin. It was an enchanting time for me. After he ate, I would sing to him and he would smile at me -- such a sweet angel baby.

Unfortunately for us, Blake's birthparents missed him too much. After a few days of heaven with Blake, we received a call from his birthfather telling us that they wanted to raise Blake themselves. You can imagine how heartbroken we were to have to give our little miracle baby away. The only consolation is knowing that he is with people who love him as much as we do. Blake will always be, in our hearts, our first baby.