First of the many Halloween festivities....Friday night at the rec center 2007 with "Leo the little Einstein", "Troy" from Highschool Musical and a princess fairy cat!!!

The 24 months we've been waiting....and are still waiting!

The 24 months we've been waiting....

Sorry about the music from the bottom last two posts, for some reason they are playing at the same time!
Anyway, two Octobers ago, in 2005 we began this journey to adopt our daugther Sophia Ruth(who two years ago was going to be named...Madelyn, Miah, Kennady, Sadie...and the list did go on..!!!) BUT...thankfully, our Charlie boy came up with Sophie! And we are now set with her name, Sophia Ruth Rogers!
So...24 months ago, my baby was literally a baby, two years old...he has had 2 birthdays and is now a big 4 year old preschooler. We've dressed up for Halloween twice and are approaching the third time. We've waited through two Christmas's and soon to be a third. We've left the year 2005, and the year 2006 and will leave 2007 without her.....
But, my sweet Sophie girl we are not giving up on you. This wait has only strengthened us and made us realize how much we already love and want you and Know God has chosen you for us! We will wait no matter how much longer we are asked to wait!
What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared
to what lies within us.
-Ralph Waldo Emerson
I love you Sophie Ruth....!
Mommy!

The 24 months we've been waiting....and are still waiting.....

Charlie's first wedding...and Ian's too!!!

Pumpkin Picking in Kentucky 2007

Halloween Costume Debate 2007

Well with Halloween literally around the corner, our Charlie boy is having trouble picking between two costumes......Will he be Leo from the Little Einsteins program he loves(whom if we dye his hair red, he actually looks like!)
Or will he be a space pilot...his other favorite obsession(space/flying)????
Decisions, decisions.....maybe he'll be both and mix it up between the diff halloween parties! Stay tuned to see what he picks!

They are finally through referring the month of November 2005

Yeah!!!! We are so happy that China has finished matching babies to ALL the families that were logged in in November 2005! That was such a HUGE month and took them 6 months to get through. Now...rumor has it that Dec/Jan/Feb are much smaller months as in the amount of people logged in and waiting, so lets all pray that we see them moving through these months quicker to get to us in March!!!!

Nothing else new, Charlie is loving school and made a best, or should I say, "girl"friend, named Kylie, and it has made all the difference in him LOVING going there! Funny, b/c she looks so much like my neice, Abi, whom Charlie adores, so maybe that led him to her!

We are off to ANOTHER wedding this weekend out of town, but this one should be so fun, Jeff and Charlie are in the wedding! This will be Charlie's first time as a ring bearer!! I'll be posting many pic's of our handsome little guy after we're back, so stay tuned!

Also, if you read that last post of the butterfly song by Martina McBride, that's thanks to my sis-in-law, Krista, who brought that song to my attention!! Thanks Aunt Krista, we LOVE the song and listen to it everyday and know it will be Sophie's song!

That's it for now, Blessings to all and love to Sophie Ruth!

She's a Butterfly

Monarch
Originally uploaded by sokolowicz

She remembers when she first got her wings
And how she opened up the day she learned to sing
Then the colors came, erased the black and white
And her whole world changed
when she realized
She's a butterfly, pretty as the crimson sky
Nothing's ever gonna break her down
And everywhere she goes, everybody knows, she' s so glad to be alive
She's a butterfly
Like the purest light in a darkened world, so much hope inside
such a lovely girl
you should see her fly, it's almost magical
it makes you want to cry
She's so beautiful
God bless the butterfly
give her the stregth to fly
Never let her wings touch the ground
-Martina McBride

Poem for Sophie written by Amy Rogers

Butterflies and apple trees for my Sophie Ruth to be!

As I look out the window, above piled up dishes
I stare at your tree with so many wishes

Your butterfly comes through our yard each day,
I know it's a sign and a time I pray

I pray that you're warm, snuggled up with care
I pray that you're looked after, and that someone is always there

I pray God's Angels are whispering in your ear,
that Mommy, Daddy and Charlie all long for you here

I pray that this spring, when your apple tree blossoms,
when the pink flowers appear
and your butterfly is near

That you Sophie Ruth know we're on our way,
that we've waited so long and each day we pray

We've prayed for you, and loved you this whole time through

And God has whispered You are for us
And we are for you!


Charlie, Jeff and I have really been feeling Sophie so strong on our minds the last month, so I felt led to write to our sweet girl and this is the poem I came up with from my heart!
I love you so much already Sophie Ruth Rogers, words can't express how much we hold you dear and want you here!!!!!!!!
Love, Mommy

Yet Another Butterfly

Yet Another Butterfly
Originally uploaded by Straw6erry Gir1

Okay, I don't even know how to write my butterfly story in a "nutshell", b/c it's pretty long, and most of you will think I'm crazy(except for Kearston and my mom), BUT...for almost a month now, I've had "a" butterfly, or numerous different butterflies, following me around EVERYWHERE, and when I say everywhere, I mean it...even different states, and this is on a DAILY basis!
This all started a month ago when I began praying and asking God to send me some sort of signal that our Sophie girl was okay and on her way to us.....that's when all these butterflies, started showing up in my life. Anytime I am outside, whether at my house or a local park, or in KY or in CA a butterfly will appear and fly around my head!
So I began telling my dear friend Kearston all about this and she had someone look up the theory behind butterflies showing up in ones life and I couldn't believe it!
This is not word for word, but basically it says that it is very good luck to have a butterfly continue to appear in your life and it represents that there is a time you are going through that you have to "wait"...and during the wait, something wonderful is being made to happen in your life, and after this long wait, as a catapiller waits to turn into a butterfly, the beauty in your life will emerge.......the beauty for us will be our Sophie girl!!!!
Anyway, again, I don't have the story entirely correct, but that is the just of it!
So when you see a butterfly, think of our Sophia Ruth and say a prayer for her!
I know Lord, this is you, showing yourself to me, and reminding us to trust in you and hang in there, and have faith.....
"Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen" -Hebrews 11:1

Our baby is growing up, Charlie's first offical day at Preschool -September 12, 2007

Well, I did it! Or I should say, our Charlie boy did it! Preschool today was a HUGE success! No tears I am happy to report from Charlie or mommy!
Charlie is so excited that his best buddy Caden is right in the classroom next door to him, and I think that gives them both a bit of a sense of security!
I adore this school and am so happy we chose it for him.
Both his teachers said they would have never guessed that he hadn't already been at school previously, b/c he was so secure and well adjusted......I admit, I had a proud mommy moment upon hearing that!
As much as my heart broke when I walked into my lonely house this morning after dropping him off, I also felt so much joy in my heart and happiness for Charlie that he is off to a great start, begining his little life journey away from home and from me! Praise God for a great start to school and prayers for many, many more to come!
And Sophie girl, as always, we think of you and pray for you each and every day!
Love, Mommy

Charlies First visit at Preschool -September 2007

The next batch of baby referrals....thru November 25 2005...

Well, I wasn't going to post this, just b/c I am so sick of hearing that they are STILL matching folks that were logged in, in November....BUT everyone keeps asking(and I do appreciate how much everyone cares!)So....yes they only sent baby referrals to people logged into the adoption program through November 25 2005...meaning they still have five more days in that month of November to match people and then they can move onto the month of December.....
Remember we are logged in on March 15 2006....not much later than December, and the word out there is that December 05 and January and February 2006 do not have that many people logged into the adoption program, so things SHOULD start moving a bit faster bringing them to us in March 06.....We Pray, please pray with us!
On another note, our dear friends, Tressa and Alan, are in China right now as I write, on their way to get their sweet baby Mattie! Their blog is: www.tressanalan.blogspot.com if you want to follow their journey! They are going to get her on Sunday! Please pray along with us for them too! Some day our Sophie Ruth and their Mattie girl will be pals!

The Rogers Go Hollywood

Well, I can finally say, "I went to Hollywood!!" And boy did I EVER fit right in!!!(just kidding) I'll have to say it's not exactly what I pictured it to be, but we sure had lots of fun!
In the first picture, that's us at the famous Grauman's Chinese Theater were all the stars put their hand and/or footprints in cement...and their names on the stars in the sidewalks.
Then we went inside the Kodak Theater, where in just a few weeks, the Emmy's will take place and all the stars will walk the red carpet and staircase, so that's us on the actual staircase!
The third picture down is me at.....BRAD and ANGELINA's.....yeah, I was just stopping by for coffee....until I peered into that little hole in their driveway gate and was sent screaming back to my car after their dog started charging the gate(you can only imagine that scene, Jeff and Kevin were mortified and wanted to leave me there I'm sure!) So although I missed the coffee(haha), I did peer in enough to see they own a Toyota SUV and of course a red little beemer right next to it! And some outside toys laying around for the little ones!
The next pic down is us driving down Rodeo Drive.....we tried to call and book an apt with LV or Chanel, but too bad for them, they were full!
And lastly, we got to watch a live taping of the show "10 Years Younger" which is one of TLC's popular reality shows. I couldn't believe how fake reality TV REALLY is.....it was interesting watching how it is acutally produced.....and let me just say the producer was anything but sweet.....totally HOLLYWOOD!
So, if you scroll down more after this post I put two different slide shows of the rest of our trip, we visited Venice Beach and the Santa Moncia Pier too! It was a great time, but it made us appreciate our little homestate of OHIO! You couldn't pay us to move there....cool to visit, but cooler to come home!
We miss and love ya Uncle Kevin! Stay sweet in L.A.!
And Sophie girl...some day, you and me will go back to Hollywood and tear up Rodeo Drive!!!
We love you Sophia Ruth!
Love, Mommy

The Santa Monica Pier

Venice Beach, California 2007

Charlie and Gang summer 2007

Sorry if this doesnt' turn out, I am amazing myself that I was even able to post a slide show at all! These are some of my most recent summer pics of all my children! Addison Ann is the baby, and newest addition to my crew! Most people think I am nuts caring for all six of these children in my home(and I guess if I did it full time, they'd be right!)BUT...I absolutely adore these children and would not feel whole without them all. Each one of them is special to me and of course to Charlie too. They fill my days with lots of laughter and fun, and I wouldn't rather be doing anything else than this. I can't wait for Sophie Ruth to join our crew, and Sophie girl, Addie is waiting here for you too! You are her are going to be two peas in a pod, just like your siblings, I just know it! Love, Mommy

Check out my Slide Show!

Camping out at the Rogers

Well, since summer is almost done....(which I can't get over), and we never made it out to Alum Creek or Hocking Hills yet to offically camp, we decided to do it in our own backyard!
Caden and Maylie got to stay over night for a sleepover and we did it out back in our tent!
It ended up being a perfect night to sleep outdoors, the weather was beautiful and we all(or I should say, the kids)slept like rocks! Unfortunately, due to our yard being on a slop, Jeff and I did not have the most comfortable conditions for sleeping! Oh well, it was worth it to see how much fun Charlie, Caden and Maylie had!
As we approach the end of August, the rumors about the next batch of babies arriving next month are starting. So far I am hearing China may have only matched 3 days worth.....PLEASE, PLEASE pray with us that that is not the case. I know what will be, will be, but it will be hard to accept if they do that b/c it just lengthens the wait for us.......
Time will only tell, but we want our sweet daughter to be, our Sophie Ruth, to know that no matter how much longer it takes to get to you, we will wait patiently and stay strong for you!
It is only time now, and it can't get any worse...only more close to you!
One more thing I wanted to share, is how sweet and ready your big brother to be is for you. On almost a nightly basis, he prays for you, his sister to be, at dinner time prayers and again at bedtime prayers.
Then, the other night while filming him and daddy playing baseball in the backyard, he took it upon himself to candidly leave you a message on the video camera, wait till you see it. It was so precious it brought tears to my eyes. He said, "hi sophie, I can't wait for you to come home and I can teach you to play baseball with me. I am always going to protect you and care for you and feed you your bottles, I love you so much"
How sweet is that? I have learned so much patience through Charlie alone during this process. He has never complained, only questioned, why this wait is so long, and he has never given up hope or a positive spirit in waiting for his sister! And he finally helped us pick her name: Sophia Ruth Rogers!!!!
We love you Sophie Ruth
Love, Mommy