Flowers In Bloom

It's been one of those fun weeks where you look at your kids and it seems like there was one of those sudden changes, where things are all of a sudden a bit different.  I love being a Dad and being involved in the lives of the Fab 5, so these moments are funny to watch.

Bekah is growing up and maturing into an amazing young adult.  She has worked hard this year and I think that has been a very good thing for her.  She approaches it was a great attitude and work ethic, and it really, really financially responsible.  I make sure that she knows that, no matter how old or grown up she gets that she will always be my little Boobunny, but it's easy to see that she's crossed that threshold into adulthood.  As awesome a kid as she was, she'll be an amazing, beautiful woman!

Alyssa continues to amaze at being so incredibly blessed and pretty much anything she tries to do, she does with excellence.  We also overshot on the have good looking kids metric by a long ways.  She went to a dance last night for a young lady our family knows through martial arts, and to say she looked beautiful would be a gross understatement.  She is supermodel beautiful, and supremely talented, yet so sweet and unassuming and humble. 

Kayleigh went out for dinner with Jodi and I last night while the rest of the Fab 5 were scattered about, and we had such a great time with her.  She is blossoming into a stunning young lady and is a joy to spend time with.  She so definitely has our family sense of humor (blessing or curse.....).  She and I kid around a lot, and spent the dinner scattering peanut shells on each other (while Jodi looked at us like we were nuts of course....).  It is wonderful to give her hugs and tell her how much we love her and are thankful she is our family now.

Dylan went to the dance last night as well and it was the first time I've really seen him dressed up, slacks, dress shoes and a real to goodness necktie.  Man, this kid is growing up fast (and tall!!....) and he looked so handsome!  I've told him this for years, but he is the son that every dad in the world prays he gets.  He is such an amazing person with a maturity well beyond his years, a heart of gold, and that perfect blend of steel and velvet.  And, I'm sure, he grew another inch last night.  Or I shrank.  Or both.

Michael continues to grow in confidence so much which is so awesome.  He got to hang out with Bekah last night (the super cool older sister thing....).  While we were at the beach for Christmas we got a lot of comments about family getting to talk with him a lot.  He would come in and even initiate conversations and was quite the talker.  This is a big jump from the shyness both he and Kayleigh use to have around people and really nice to see that they are getting comfortable.  He is really looking forward to karate classes starting back up in January, he has excelled and it has been an amazing venue for him in his new world.

2012 was an incredible year for us as our family completed the adoption process and the Fab 5 started their journey as a family of kids.  It's been a truly joyous and humbling walk so far for God to have given us the responsibility of providing these kids with a life and future.  We can't wait to see what 2013 has in store!