Katelyn has had many firsts in the past 12 months and Andy and I are honored that we get to be her parents. She has brought a bright light into our lives. Her personality has blossomed. Her sense of humor makes each day fun. She gets and uses sarcasm (which officially means we were meant to be related). She bravely jumped into our family and together we found our way. I don't know when/if the adjusting will end, but we love our sweet, beautiful, funny daughter so much.
I've gone though a lot of pictures and we have been blessed with many photos of her early years. I can't help but share our beautiful girl using pictures.
Baby Katelyn..approx 8 months old.
I cannot get enough of this sweet face!
Love her beautiful long hair. She is about 2.5 yrs old.
THIS is her personality. Cracks me up!
When she saw this picture she laughed and said "Yeah I didn't like taking pictures." 
Pictures of her with her biological sister and brother. 
Our sweet, serious, beautiful girl.
She remembered this picture and being mad at having to be in the hot sun. 
Katelyn with her 2nd Foster Family. These beautiful people cared for and about her until we could come bring her home. I will be forever grateful to them. 
Then we came into the picture. Below is the first photo we saw of Katelyn. I was immediately taken by her and knew this sweet face belonged in our family. I sometimes have difficulty making decisions, but God led us to her and I knew deep down that we had just begun a fantastic journey that would change our lives and hers. I sometimes thought He was crazy, or asking too much. Oh how wrong I was!
Referral photo, 4.5 years old.
Our family, her foster parents, and the little girl who brought us together in one room that day. I think we were all quite nervous, but excited and hopeful.
May 28, 2013
The sass and confidence exhibited here have served her well. She's one of the strongest, bravest people I know.
I couldn't stop taking pictures of her beautiful face that day! This was on the High Speed Rail back to Taipei.
After returning from Taiwan, we spent a week in Oklahoma with family. Surrounded by all of these new people, she played, tried new things, and made the best of it. After about the 3rd scooter wreck, I actually asked her if she knew how to ride a scooter. She said "No but it is SO much fun!" She went through about 8 layers of skin on her knees in a matter of 5 days. We were definitely stuck on Bandaids for a few weeks.
To her the question "Do you know how to swim?" apparently meant "Do you get in the water? because that answer is "Yes please!" Actually swimming was an entirely different answer! It was very similar to "Do you know how to ride a bike?" Several scraped knees/elbows/hands later, she admitted she had only ridden with training wheels. Once.
On the way to our new home in Las Vegas, she saw a few things she had definitely never seen before.
Slowly we all got used to each other. She experienced summer in the desert, July 4th, and downtown Las Vegas. She informed me it was too hot to go outside. I knew we were meant for each other.
On Skype she had told us she could swim. With adults, a lifejacket, and my heart in my throat, yes...she could swim.
First professional pictures of all three kids.
Dental surgery in August.
Learning how to be the perfect younger sister.
Eyeglasses in September.
First time playing soccer. The girl is NOT shy!
Gymnastics. She is coordinated...but not. Watching her take classes was entertaining.
Her first Halloween. She thought carving pumpkins was strange and gross. She breathed a sigh of relief when I explained that she didn't have to eat the insides.
And I quote, "I wish it was Halloween every day so I could be a beautiful princess, but do you think the boys would dress as nice people?"
Visit to the pumpkin patch complete with a ride on Daisy.
Grandma and Grandpa came to share her first Thanksgiving.
December 11, 2013. Readoption day, She was finally officially a Shanahan!
Her first Christmas. That's the day she decided she liked Halloween, but actually wished it could be Christmas every day. She even suggested Jesus would like it if we celebrated His birthday more often.
OUR first Chinese New Year!
April 5, 2014 Katelyn's 8th birthday. Beautiful!
A birthday swim party with her friends. No lifejacket or worry needed!
Mom and daughter mani/pedi day. She thinks "turning 8 is fantastic!"
Her first Easter Sunday.
Playground time!
Playmates, siblings, friends.
A visit from Grandad in May 2014.
Which brings us to our 1 year anniversary with Mom.
And dad.
And brothers.
So one year later Katelyn is reading and writing English, loving/playing with/tormenting her brothers, and blossoming before our very eyes. We are so very blessed by her. I look forward to the future...all of it...sometimes it's hard, sometimes it's fun, sometimes it's so amazing, you sit back and just praise God. I find myself doing that more than anything else. Life. Is. Good.
May 28, 2014. First anniversary of Gotcha Day.
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