2012 -- our year in photographs

since it's still the first week of january, i'm allowing myself to sneak in one more new year's post.  i had planned this post to coincide with the actual new year's holiday...but like with most things in my world, i'm running a little late.  i guess that only makes this more authentic, right? (you can go ahead and agree now).

so, even though the timing isn't perfect, i'm going forward with my idea anyway.  i've always wanted to do a photo based "year in review."  last year, something came up and it didn't quite get off the ground.  and this year the first few days of 2013 have also started sneaking quickly away. but something really crazy has happened:  i am alone this weekend.  well, sort of alone.  i'm on my way to meet rick in california for the weekend (he's been there all week for business). it's a three hour plane ride and because we live in the awesome 21st century i can fly 30,000 miles up in the sky and still get internet.  incredible!  i am flying from snowy minnesota to sunny southern california.  go ahead and laugh out loud.  i know y'all are really happy for me.  packing was kind of hard though.  i have to tell you, i have grown very attached to my snow boots, leggings and fur.  in a very short time, it has become like a second skin.  but heading to a place which is currently 70 degrees and sunny, means i had to part with the layered look and the intense winter wear.  i'm not going to lie, it was a little traumatic last night figuring it all out.  after all these months in the frozen tundra, i am not exactly prepared to show any skin.  not even an ankle! gasp. but back to my story....i had a couple of hours while flying, just enough time to write a short post and come up with my "year in review."

"twelve significant photographs in any one year is a good crop."  ~ ansel adams 

as a big fan of ansel adams, i would have to agree.  i am pretty sure though, he wasn't talking about a mother of five who is enamored with her kids and trigger happy with her camera.  i am not sure how significant anyone else would find my pictures, but they mean a lot to me and, without a doubt,  i have way more than twelve of them! still, my vision was along these lines -- to choose one photo from each month.  a total of 12 photos which might best capture our busy year.  now, that sounded so neat and tidy and perfect in theory, but the fact is, with a family our size, there just is no easy way to highlight only one of the kids in a specific month.  clearly we spill over at all sides...i was determined to make this work, until i got to february and realized both emily and bella share that birthday month -- they actually share the very same day!  so february needed to include at least two photos...march was pretty much the same -- sarah and connor both being march babies.  the one photo thing just wasn't happening.  so... i took the pressure off, threw my plan out the window and gave myself some wiggle room. let's all keep in mind i take about 10,000 photos a year. or something like that.  considering that number, i think i did a pretty good job keeping it simple.  i hope you enjoy.  and, once again, happy new year! 

~ 2  0  1  2 ~ 

j a n u a r y

sarah was escorted by her handsome daddy to the annual perimeter school father~daughter dance. truly, there is nothing sweeter than this evening.

f e b r u a r y

emily turned sweet 16.  her birthday was especially sweet as she shared 

her surprise party with her best friend, carlee.  

and i suppose getting surprised with a car was pretty sweet too!

princess bella turned 4.  her birthday was a royal celebration especially because her two new friends, mary henley and maggie sims, were home from china, just in time to attend!

m a r c h

connor also had a birthday (does there seem to be a theme here???)

 our fourth born boy turned 9 on march 7th.  i think it is the perfect age to be a boy.

two weeks later his sister, sarah, turned 12 -- 

  i just love my girl's smile!

a p r i l

in april, we made our annual spring break trek to watersound, florida with about 100 friends and families.  each year we all take over the gulf of mexico with kids and parents of every age.  it is an unbelievable highlight of my kids' year. 

this is one of my favorite photos from our week.  

easter in atlanta -- it couldn't be a more beautiful time of year in the south!

m a y

emily was invited to attend the jchs prom with gray mitchell.  

we spent the entire month getting her ready...quite the event!

bella had her first ballet recital. 

 honestly, i am not sure i'll ever recover from all that cuteness.

after 8 years at perimeter school, tyler graduated from 8th grade.  i had the privilege of delivering the commencement address to 85 eighth graders and their families.  it was such a sweet evening. i love this picture of us fussing over our teenage son.  classic.

j u n e

sarah and tyler attended a week of christian wildnerness camp (camp highland) in the north georgia mountains.  unbelievable week for both of them!

rick's sister, jen, and her kids came all the way from salt lake city to spend a week with us in atlanta.  8 kids and total chaos.  

this second picture is from our "cousin games"

...a day of  good, old backyard cousin competition.  

also in june, we met up with my entire family in kelleys island, ohio to celebrate my mom and dad's 50th wedding anniversary.  we traveled from new york, georgia, oregon and ohio to come together.  worth every mile of it!

j u l y

the truck arrived, the house was packed and the front door closed for a final time.  july came and the mcnatt family left atlanta. it was one of the hardest things we've ever done as a family.   atlanta, we will never forget you.  

a u g u s t

august brought some new views.  minnesota has welcomed us well.  

and i'm pretty sure we'll never grow tired of looking out at this lake.

   

in august, rick and i celebrated our 22nd wedding anniversary. seems impossible to have that many years behind us. weren't we just 19? we have so much to celebrate.  i am so thankful for the amazing husband and father God has provided.

s e p t e m b e r

first day of school!  

emily 11th.  tyler 9th.  sarah 7th.  connor 4th and bella preschool.

o c t o b e r

we loved watching tyler out on the soccer field again.  

he had taken a break to play lacrosse, but joined the team at southwest christian high school this fall and had a terrific season.

rick's mom and dad came for a visit -- making sure to come before the snow hit!  

we had a wonderful few days with them and did our best to show them the finer things minnesota has to offer.  they liked seeing minnesota, but what they really loved was hanging out with their grandkids!

n o v e m b e r

emily's varisty volleyball team won their sectional championship and headed to the state tournament where they took second place. an amazing experience for all!

d e c e m b e r

december...wow, what can i say!
it brought our first huge, minnesota style snowfall, a new puppy, a beautiful christmas and a crew of our best friends from atlanta. it felt like the month of continual celebration.

thanks for coming along for the wild ride of 2012.  i can't wait to see what's around the corner of 2013.  maybe a quiet, boring, uneventful year?  no adoption...no cancer...no big move.  as i look out the airplane window, i am reminded of another flight out of minneapolis  a year ago.  on that trip back to georgia, we had been only visiting.  i had no idea we'd end up actually moving.  was that truly only a year ago?  that puts the whole year thing in perspective.  i wrote about that trip in a post called snowflakes and flying. (http://eventhesparrow843.blogspot.com/2011/12/snowflakes-and-flying.html) but that's the way it goes.  and that's why it's important to look back and remember, we didn't know.  we didn't know where or how or when God would move us.  but He did.  and it's just plain good to think about, no matter how much we want to believe we're in control, God is the writer of our stories.  i am glad He has given me a passion to record through writing and photography the odd, funny, awesome moments along the way.  but, without a doubt, HE is the author and finisher of our faith. (hebrews 12:2). to HIM be the glory for the great things HE has done in 2012.  

finally ~ "an update & two pictures" from china

her eyes. i look at this most recent picture and i see only her eyes - large and luminous. ebony windows. soul-filled eyes.  21 months of life reflected in this sweet countenance. i am not sure these dark pools provide even a trace of smile. oh, how i long to see laughter there.  is wish for the sparkle of delight.  i want, even, to see the twinkle of mischief.


okay, so i lied. i see more than her eyes. i see much chubbier cheeks than i did in the post-surgery pictures from august. today she is absolutely round. oh, how i love that. she is almost unrecognizable from the pictures this summer. oh, how i love that too. perhaps it is the naive american side of me that believes with chubby cheeks comes gerber-baby-good-health. i don't know...but it pleases the mother in me. she is fed. she is eating. those very basic things bring comfort. i also see an unbelievable buzz cut. her head has been shaved. why? we don't know...perhaps lice? well, if that is the case, it is only another reason why she will fit right into the mcnatt family - 2008: the year of the louse. our family was struck that year with at 5 episodes.


in the second picture sent i could see more. she is inside, but incredibly bundled up in a too-big sweater and vest. there is a cold, cement floor beneath her with a few puddles of water behind her. why? after receiving the picture i immediately shot back an email to our agent: "please tell me why there is water on the floor of her room? i need to know." he didn't know. "is it cold there?" he didn't know. i checked the weather report in guangzhou city for today...50 degrees this morning.


it is her mouth that is most familiar: those rosebud lips resting just above what looks like an impressive double chin. oh, that the time would pass quickly until we receive a kiss from those very lips...until her mouth moves to form the treasured word, "mama."


please, Lord, make these months swift. 


there is so much still awaiting a stamp of approval. we want only to bring her home before this baby face alters any further.  but for today, we are just so very thankful to finally see her again. since august, we've had absolutely no update, no pictures, no news....nothing. when i opened the email from our agent yesterday it was like striking gold. the attachment read, "update and two pictures." the download bar has never crept more slowly across the screen. but there she finally was; large eyes, chubby cheeks and a terrible haircut. it was all so wonderful....well, maybe not the haircut. those eyes seemed to penetrate right through my computer screen from china to georgia.


remember that list of questions we were supposed to come up with last month? well, after our initial 500, we had finally narrowed it down to a scant twenty. we whisked those questions off via our nashville agent, somewhat skeptical, but hoping desperately for a response. weeks passed. we heard nothing. but yesterday the original document we sent came back with neatly typed answers to each of those questions. we still don't know who provided the information. we don't know their name, their credentials or their qualifications. but we are deeply thankful for even this glimpse into bella grace xue's world. it is nothing monumental or dramatic. it is only a whisp of information...barely a start. but it is something. and in this elusive world of international adoption, it is gold. pure gold.


so, friends, add it up: large eyes, chubby cheeks, a terrible, wonderful haircut and twenty answers. this is what we have in our hands today. this is our treasure for the moment. this is what allows us to feel wealthy in our hope and wild in our love for this little girl living in a land across oceans.

pictures from china!

pictures today!

18 months old...she is all eyes. so thankful to just see her sweet face.