We enjoyed a restful holiday weekend complete with Ryan home and our schedule being EMPTY.....

which opened up opportunities for little ones to enjoy the simple things in life...

 and then life happened again and we were back to the summertime grind.....

 "summertime grind" being swimteam, baseball, basketball, and.....

Blue Man Group? Colin was able to sit front and center for his first viewing of the Blue Man Group.  I haven't figured out which is more entertaining - watching the actual show or listening to Colin tell Pryce his rendition of the group?  Colin says that even though it would be awesome to be a part of the Blue Man Group, he is pretty sure he would not succeed because he would be too tempted to smile - C had a hard time with the fact that they NEVER smiled :)

Baseball is his love.

He is another guy on the field, in his own world.....

 solely focused on success.....

 and driving the other team off the field.....

to him, its all in a days work and someone's gotta do it!

Splishin' and splashin'....

 that pretty much sums up what we have done for the past three days!

 Add in a little baseball and a little tennis.....

 and a little r & r....

 plus a picnic with some very special friends.....

 and our weekend was a success!  

I must say my favorite part, aside from spending time with my husband and children, was during our adoption gathering when one little girl shouted to the rest of the children, "Hey, guys, time for a family picture!!!"  Such sweet words.  Our families have all bonded together over the last four years and it does feel like family when we are all gathered under one roof.  (And the children know, too, that no one leaves without a "family" photo!)

Many will ask if I ever just sit and wonder about what my girls' lives would have been like had they grown up in China.  My honest answer to that question is no.  They are my daughters and on a daily basis I don't even think about their adoption.  I am more consumed with being their mother.  However, one afternoon this week I sat and watched as MK swam freestyle and backstroke up and down the pool for swim team practice and it hit me.  It hit me that she would have NEVER been given the opportunity to shine to her best potential in China.  In China, her cleft lip and palate would have defined who she was and who she was to become.  Here, at home with her family, her cleft is just a mere part of her story, a blip on the radar as she journeys through life.