3 hours ago
December 29, 2010
New Family Photos and a New Look!
How do you like our new look? An important little somebody had been missing from our header for way too long! I love the new design by Danielle over at The Design Girl Studio featuring images captured by the incredibly talented Garry and Emily of Big Star Studios. Girls' outfits are by Sweet Sassy Boutique on Etsy. Here are a few more of our favorites from the Ft. DeSoto Beach session:
December 27, 2010
Special K Day
On December 27, 2009, we walked a cobblestone road to an orphanage in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, where K was placed in our arms and our lives were forever changed. After months of staring at her picture and longing to hold her, our prayers were answered and she was forever entrusted to us. And precious K, one year ago today, her little world was turned upside down as she was taken by two strangers from the comforting familiarity of Hannah's Hope and her beloved special mothers. As the days, weeks and months have gone by, her trust, connection and love for us has grown. We have become family. We feel so undeserving yet so incredibly grateful for the opportunity to be K's Mom-Mom and Daddy. That she is the little girl we were matched with is something that could only have been orchestrated from the heavens. Thank You God! She is a perfect fit and has blessed us beyond words.
(Scroll down and pause (II) the background music before playing the video)
December 25, 2010
We WISH You a Merry Christmas!
(Scroll down and pause (II) the background music before playing the video.)
Merry Christmas from Our Family to Yours! MWAH!
December 23, 2010
Our Disco Dancin' Elves
Just LOVE this cute little disco elves video we made with JibJab. Our girls can't get enough of watching themselves! And we can't get enough of watching them watch themselves! Mr. B calls the second video the rehearsal and the first one the finished product. Our girls have the moves, y'all! And watch how Miss K cheeses it when she notices me with the camera--such a ham! (Scroll down and pause (II) the blog background music before playing the videos).
December 19, 2010
A Series of Unfortunate Events. . . and Santa!
For months, our girls have been saying they wanted Santa Claus to bring them a toy poodle (carefully qualifying the request by explaining that what they wanted was "Not really a TOY poodle, but a real, live poodle that's called a toy poodle because it's as small as a toy. Got it?"). Over Thanksgiving weekend, a perfect little white toy poodle named Chloe popped up on Craigslist, and Mommy and Daddy surprised the girls with an early Christmas present.
I've always said "no inside pets!" but this loving, cuddly, affectionate lap dog is winning me over. And she's housebroken, doesn't shed, doesn't chew, is sweet with the children, and can be groomed and clipped into fun, fancy hairdos--all big plusses in my book!
The mall advertised that Monday would be "pet night" and Miss M thought it would be a great idea to take Chloe with them to see Santa and let him know the poodle request had been covered. It also happened to be one of the few open evenings on our holiday calendar, so we inked it in.
Since I wouldn't have time to cook, thoughtful Mom B invited us to swing by their house after visiting Santa for a lasagna dinner. They wanted to see the girls in their Christmas dresses and Mom B even purchased a festive Christmas "dress" for Chloe.
After insanely long and stressful days at work (seems every client wants to close every deal by the end of 2010!), Mr. B and I rushed home, changed the girls into their dresses, tights and patent leather shoes, and loaded everyone and the dog into Dad B's Hummer (we still haven't purchased a replacement car since mine was totaled in a wreck a couple of months ago that I never blogged about but miraculously walked away from) which Mr. B had warmed up for us since we were having record-breaking low temperatures--in the 30s with wind chills in the 20s! That's miserably cold for us Floridians--I don't even own a winter coat!
And so we were off to see Santa. . .
BUMP-BUMP.
"What was that?" asks Mr. B.
"You ran over the cat!" I blurt out as I see this contortioning ball of orange fur rolling around the driveway ahead of us and scooting off into the flower beds. If I could re-wind that moment, I would have whispered that remark to Mr. B. Somehow at the time it was like a reflex as I watched the horrible scene unfold. It was awful. I've never seen anything like it.
The girls started scolding their Daddy. "You need to watch where you're driving, Daddy!" "Why weren't you looking out for the cat, Daddy?!?!"
As Mr. B got out to assess the situation and the cat's condition, I tried to smooth things over between the girls and their Daddy and back-pedal a bit. I didn't want the girls to be angry or sad with him. "Maybe that wasn't the cat after all, girls. . . After all these years, surely that cat knows better. . . "
Mr. B called the vet to give him a heads-up we may need his services. We knew the cat wouldn't survive but didn't want him to suffer if he wasn't going to go quickly.
After a little while, Mr. B returned to the car. He whispered to me that the cat didn't make it. We had a quick, hushed conference and decided that this was the only night we'd have to see Santa, especially with the dog since not every night is pet night. We would wait until after the Santa visit to relay the news to the girls. We didn't want a bunch of mournful faces in our Santa picture. And we would give the cat a proper burial later in the evening. Given the cold weather, a few hours' delay shouldn't be a problem. It was already 7 and Santa was scheduled to fly back to the North Pole at 9.
Poor cat.
But the clock was ticking and the show must go on!
"Well. . . what happened, Daddy?"
"We'll talk about it later."
Surprisingly, the girls were willing to delay the news. Santa Claus was a good distraction.
When we got to the Santa line, we realized that "pet night" meant something totally different to us than to the rest of Lakeland. While I was picturing families like us showing up with their children and family pet to get pictures taken with Santa, we were standing behind 50 people, only 2 of whom had children in tow. The rest of these people had actually left their homes in freezing weather, to stand in a line in the mall for over an hour and pay money to get a picture of Santa with their dog. No children. Just Santa and the dog. Can you imagine? I'm all for pampering pets, but this was taking the pet as a family member concept it to a whole new level. We waited and waited and waited. Then when they would finally get their turn--I'm not exaggerating--they would spend at least 5 minutes per dog trying to get the perfect shot. Of a dog! Who knows what they were looking for--perky ears? a winning smile? And then there were the dogs waiting in line going potty on the mall floor requiring their owners to clean up after them. So gross! Our polite little princess puppy just snuggled in Miss M's arms the whole time. People thought she really was a toy! As I looked around and thought about my day, all that had happened earlier, what I was doing at that moment, and what was still on the agenda--I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. The most ironic thing is how typical such craziness is in our lives right now. Is it real or is the candid camera guy about to show up?
After nearly 2 hours, we finally got to the front of the line. Santa seemed so relieved to finally get to visit with three beautiful little adoring girls after all of those dogs! Miss K gave him a high five and blew him a kiss but did not want to sit in his lap. "No, no, no. No hold you." she said as she shook her finger back and forth at him. She was content to sit next to Miss M on a little present decoration.
**click!** Mommy got her Santa picture. A totally cute one at that!
After the photo was snapped, Miss M and Santa proceeded to have long, serious-looking discussion as Miss A looked on intently and Miss K pretended to lose her balance on the block. "Whoa, whoa, whoa!" she would giggle as she dramatically swayed around. Then she would try to stand up and dance and jump around. She's not nicknamed Kiya Knievel for nothing.
Miss A and Miss M told Santa goodbye and promised him some milk and cookies and carrots for the reindeer. I picked up Kiya to make way for the golden retriever waiting in line behind us.
I asked Miss M what she told Santa. Thankfully, the cat incident was not part of the conversation.
"Never mind about the poodle, see, we got one, but me and A would both like a Night Fury toy from the How to Train Your Dragon movie. They're about this big [holds up her hands] and you can buy them at Wal-Mart if the elves don't know what I'm talking about. And next year, I want a pony".
We asked her what Santa said in response.
"He said he'll do his best."
It was after 9 when we arrived at the B's for dinner. Lasagna was delicious as always. We had to leave around 10 to get the girls in bed (it was a school night for Miss M, after all!) and tackle the dreadful tasks of burying the cat and covering all of the plants with sheets lest most of our landscaping die (tropical plants in Florida will NOT come back if they are left uncovered during one of the few "hard freezes" we get). The girls all fell asleep in the car. We carried them into bed and poor Mr. B stayed out in the bitter cold until after midnight burying the cat and covering the plants.
Tuesday morning, we told the girls that good ol' Garfield had gone on to cat heaven.
"I knew it all along" Miss M said. Can't get anything past that girl.
"Maybe he was just wanting to go see Santa, too." Miss A speculated with a frown.
"Well, he got something even better" replied Miss M. "He got to see Jesus! And after all, Jesus, not Santa, is what Christmas is all about!"
Yes, Miss M, despite all of the hustle-bustle, activity and business of our lives around the holidays, let's not forget that He IS what it's all about!
I've always said "no inside pets!" but this loving, cuddly, affectionate lap dog is winning me over. And she's housebroken, doesn't shed, doesn't chew, is sweet with the children, and can be groomed and clipped into fun, fancy hairdos--all big plusses in my book!
The mall advertised that Monday would be "pet night" and Miss M thought it would be a great idea to take Chloe with them to see Santa and let him know the poodle request had been covered. It also happened to be one of the few open evenings on our holiday calendar, so we inked it in.
Since I wouldn't have time to cook, thoughtful Mom B invited us to swing by their house after visiting Santa for a lasagna dinner. They wanted to see the girls in their Christmas dresses and Mom B even purchased a festive Christmas "dress" for Chloe.
After insanely long and stressful days at work (seems every client wants to close every deal by the end of 2010!), Mr. B and I rushed home, changed the girls into their dresses, tights and patent leather shoes, and loaded everyone and the dog into Dad B's Hummer (we still haven't purchased a replacement car since mine was totaled in a wreck a couple of months ago that I never blogged about but miraculously walked away from) which Mr. B had warmed up for us since we were having record-breaking low temperatures--in the 30s with wind chills in the 20s! That's miserably cold for us Floridians--I don't even own a winter coat!
And so we were off to see Santa. . .
BUMP-BUMP.
"What was that?" asks Mr. B.
"You ran over the cat!" I blurt out as I see this contortioning ball of orange fur rolling around the driveway ahead of us and scooting off into the flower beds. If I could re-wind that moment, I would have whispered that remark to Mr. B. Somehow at the time it was like a reflex as I watched the horrible scene unfold. It was awful. I've never seen anything like it.
The girls started scolding their Daddy. "You need to watch where you're driving, Daddy!" "Why weren't you looking out for the cat, Daddy?!?!"
As Mr. B got out to assess the situation and the cat's condition, I tried to smooth things over between the girls and their Daddy and back-pedal a bit. I didn't want the girls to be angry or sad with him. "Maybe that wasn't the cat after all, girls. . . After all these years, surely that cat knows better. . . "
Mr. B called the vet to give him a heads-up we may need his services. We knew the cat wouldn't survive but didn't want him to suffer if he wasn't going to go quickly.
After a little while, Mr. B returned to the car. He whispered to me that the cat didn't make it. We had a quick, hushed conference and decided that this was the only night we'd have to see Santa, especially with the dog since not every night is pet night. We would wait until after the Santa visit to relay the news to the girls. We didn't want a bunch of mournful faces in our Santa picture. And we would give the cat a proper burial later in the evening. Given the cold weather, a few hours' delay shouldn't be a problem. It was already 7 and Santa was scheduled to fly back to the North Pole at 9.
Poor cat.
But the clock was ticking and the show must go on!
"Well. . . what happened, Daddy?"
"We'll talk about it later."
Surprisingly, the girls were willing to delay the news. Santa Claus was a good distraction.
When we got to the Santa line, we realized that "pet night" meant something totally different to us than to the rest of Lakeland. While I was picturing families like us showing up with their children and family pet to get pictures taken with Santa, we were standing behind 50 people, only 2 of whom had children in tow. The rest of these people had actually left their homes in freezing weather, to stand in a line in the mall for over an hour and pay money to get a picture of Santa with their dog. No children. Just Santa and the dog. Can you imagine? I'm all for pampering pets, but this was taking the pet as a family member concept it to a whole new level. We waited and waited and waited. Then when they would finally get their turn--I'm not exaggerating--they would spend at least 5 minutes per dog trying to get the perfect shot. Of a dog! Who knows what they were looking for--perky ears? a winning smile? And then there were the dogs waiting in line going potty on the mall floor requiring their owners to clean up after them. So gross! Our polite little princess puppy just snuggled in Miss M's arms the whole time. People thought she really was a toy! As I looked around and thought about my day, all that had happened earlier, what I was doing at that moment, and what was still on the agenda--I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. The most ironic thing is how typical such craziness is in our lives right now. Is it real or is the candid camera guy about to show up?
After nearly 2 hours, we finally got to the front of the line. Santa seemed so relieved to finally get to visit with three beautiful little adoring girls after all of those dogs! Miss K gave him a high five and blew him a kiss but did not want to sit in his lap. "No, no, no. No hold you." she said as she shook her finger back and forth at him. She was content to sit next to Miss M on a little present decoration.
**click!** Mommy got her Santa picture. A totally cute one at that!
After the photo was snapped, Miss M and Santa proceeded to have long, serious-looking discussion as Miss A looked on intently and Miss K pretended to lose her balance on the block. "Whoa, whoa, whoa!" she would giggle as she dramatically swayed around. Then she would try to stand up and dance and jump around. She's not nicknamed Kiya Knievel for nothing.
Miss A and Miss M told Santa goodbye and promised him some milk and cookies and carrots for the reindeer. I picked up Kiya to make way for the golden retriever waiting in line behind us.
I asked Miss M what she told Santa. Thankfully, the cat incident was not part of the conversation.
"Never mind about the poodle, see, we got one, but me and A would both like a Night Fury toy from the How to Train Your Dragon movie. They're about this big [holds up her hands] and you can buy them at Wal-Mart if the elves don't know what I'm talking about. And next year, I want a pony".
We asked her what Santa said in response.
"He said he'll do his best."
It was after 9 when we arrived at the B's for dinner. Lasagna was delicious as always. We had to leave around 10 to get the girls in bed (it was a school night for Miss M, after all!) and tackle the dreadful tasks of burying the cat and covering all of the plants with sheets lest most of our landscaping die (tropical plants in Florida will NOT come back if they are left uncovered during one of the few "hard freezes" we get). The girls all fell asleep in the car. We carried them into bed and poor Mr. B stayed out in the bitter cold until after midnight burying the cat and covering the plants.
Tuesday morning, we told the girls that good ol' Garfield had gone on to cat heaven.
"I knew it all along" Miss M said. Can't get anything past that girl.
"Maybe he was just wanting to go see Santa, too." Miss A speculated with a frown.
"Well, he got something even better" replied Miss M. "He got to see Jesus! And after all, Jesus, not Santa, is what Christmas is all about!"
Yes, Miss M, despite all of the hustle-bustle, activity and business of our lives around the holidays, let's not forget that He IS what it's all about!
December 15, 2010
Faces of Adoption
Recently saw this new video put together by AGCI. So fun to see some of our sweet adoption friends featured and what a surprise to see our precious K's picture in there, too! Scroll down and pause (II) the blog background music before playing, then enjoy!
Faces of Adoption from Videos for AGCI on Vimeo.
December 12, 2010
Future Diva: Baby Girl Loves Product
We might have a future diva on our hands, y'all. Our Miss K loves herself some beauty products!
Whenever it's time to apply hair cream or body lotion, she holds out her hand and says "hand". I put a little bit in her palm and she goes to town helping me put it on her. Another one of her favorite things to do is to sit on my hip as I put on make-up. She watches intently and takes it all in. And then, in those brief moments when no one's looking, the REAL fun begins.
After regularly finding her sitting in puddles of shampoo, conditioner, lotion or makeup. . .
We've gotten better about keeping the "real stuff" out of reach.
But that hasn't stopped our clever little K. She's discovered some alternative beauty products you may not have heard of.
Like sweet cream butter moisturizer!?!? When things got a little too quiet after Thanksgiving Dinner, we went looking for Miss K and . . . GAASSPP!
We found her at the "kids' table" with a butter dish in hand!
You just scoop it out like so. . .
I think I need a little more on my neck. . .
Or how about the Desitin (yes. . . the HINEY cream!) facial mask she applied at Gabby's house last week. Double GASP!
She might be on to something. She's got perfect skin!
And next time you run out of waterproof eyeliner, consider using a sharpie marker. Oh my sakie. . .
Oh what a mess our baby girl is! She's beautiful from head to toe, and she sure keeps us on our toes!
Whenever it's time to apply hair cream or body lotion, she holds out her hand and says "hand". I put a little bit in her palm and she goes to town helping me put it on her. Another one of her favorite things to do is to sit on my hip as I put on make-up. She watches intently and takes it all in. And then, in those brief moments when no one's looking, the REAL fun begins.
After regularly finding her sitting in puddles of shampoo, conditioner, lotion or makeup. . .
We've gotten better about keeping the "real stuff" out of reach.
But that hasn't stopped our clever little K. She's discovered some alternative beauty products you may not have heard of.
Like sweet cream butter moisturizer!?!? When things got a little too quiet after Thanksgiving Dinner, we went looking for Miss K and . . . GAASSPP!
We found her at the "kids' table" with a butter dish in hand!
You just scoop it out like so. . .
I think I need a little more on my neck. . .
Or how about the Desitin (yes. . . the HINEY cream!) facial mask she applied at Gabby's house last week. Double GASP!
She might be on to something. She's got perfect skin!
And next time you run out of waterproof eyeliner, consider using a sharpie marker. Oh my sakie. . .
Oh what a mess our baby girl is! She's beautiful from head to toe, and she sure keeps us on our toes!
December 8, 2010
Blog Friend Playdates and Reuniting with Cribmates
One of the biggest perks of blogging during the adoption process was the opportunity to connect with other adoptive families across the country. We learned so much by reading blogs of families that went through the process ahead of us. And our friendships with families alongside us on the adoption rollercoaster journey kept us sane! Our blog friends are treasured and have provided more encouragement, support, inspiration and smiles over the past couple of years than words can even explain! In recent months, we’ve had the opportunity to meet some of our “virtual” blog friends in real life. It’s been so much fun!
We discovered that the S Family (from The Road Less Traveled) and the P Family (from The Parsons Flock) only live about an hour from us, so when the C Family (from Love is Spoken Here) traveled to Florida to visit, we all met up for a sunset beach picnic. AC captured this adorable shot of the her son S with our Miss K and the P family’s twins. It’s just more cuteness than I can handle! Seriously.
Next, W (from Pratt, Table for Three) and and her sweet son M visited from Texas. M is one of K’s Hannah’s Hope cribmates. He and K arrived at Hannah’s Hope on the same day and they were both there until December. That shared history is so special, and we think it will be so meaningful to them as they get older. When A&W were at Hannah's Hope picking up M (they received an earlier court date traveled a couple of weeks ahead of us), W visited our K, read her a book and snapped this picture for us:
Look what a difference a year makes!
We met W and M for a park playdate followed by a yummy Tex-Mex dinner.
Our friendship with the Vs deepened that week as we shared the experience of meeting and bonding with our daughters, exploring Addis Ababa and inventing new items for the Union Hotel's menu (I wonder if they’re still serving the Emily Burger?). We absolutely love this family. Love them! We decided an African theme would be fitting for our reunion and arranged for a playdate at Disney’s Hakuna Matata playground--overlooking giraffes and zebras!
We've had so much fun turning these “virtual” friendships into “real life” ones and hope to get together with all of these families again in the future! All you other blog friends out there, holler at us if you come to Florida—we’d love to meet you too!
We discovered that the S Family (from The Road Less Traveled) and the P Family (from The Parsons Flock) only live about an hour from us, so when the C Family (from Love is Spoken Here) traveled to Florida to visit, we all met up for a sunset beach picnic. AC captured this adorable shot of the her son S with our Miss K and the P family’s twins. It’s just more cuteness than I can handle! Seriously.
What up, Ladies?
A few weeks later, we got together with the P twins again, and I finally got to meet R (from Love With Abandon) and M (from Along the Narrow Road) at a pool and cookout gathering hosted by some mutual friends. We’re excited that they all live fairly close to us and hope to be able to get together with them regularly in the future! R will be bringing home a sweet 4 year old little girl (Miss A's age!) in January and M is waiting to be matched with her future son!
These baby girls are the same age and always have the most adorable interactions.
Next, W (from Pratt, Table for Three) and and her sweet son M visited from Texas. M is one of K’s Hannah’s Hope cribmates. He and K arrived at Hannah’s Hope on the same day and they were both there until December. That shared history is so special, and we think it will be so meaningful to them as they get older. When A&W were at Hannah's Hope picking up M (they received an earlier court date traveled a couple of weeks ahead of us), W visited our K, read her a book and snapped this picture for us:
Look what a difference a year makes!
We met W and M for a park playdate followed by a yummy Tex-Mex dinner.
(I’ll be storing these in my “possible wedding slide show pix” file! heehee)
While Mr. B was in Rwanda, the V crew (from The Vogeltanz Family) vacationed in Florida. Little E is another one of Miss K’s cribmates. We got to know the V family through our blogs during the adoption process and ended up traveling at the same time to pick up our girls! Our first real-life meeting with them was in the airport when we arrived in Addis Ababa. The next day, we walked with them to Hannah's Hope to meet our girls:
Our friendship with the Vs deepened that week as we shared the experience of meeting and bonding with our daughters, exploring Addis Ababa and inventing new items for the Union Hotel's menu (I wonder if they’re still serving the Emily Burger?). We absolutely love this family. Love them! We decided an African theme would be fitting for our reunion and arranged for a playdate at Disney’s Hakuna Matata playground--overlooking giraffes and zebras!
K adored the V's son N!
After our playdate, the girls and I enjoyed Boma's tour of Africa buffet for dinner.
And a couple of weeks ago, the R family (from Rush Home) visited all the way from New Mexico. They are another family alongside us in the adoption journey and they were at Hannah’s Hope picking up little H the day that K and M arrived. We met up with the Rs at a playground by the beach and then went to a out for a seaside seafood dinner. Their children are close in age to ours and became fast friends. As we were unloading at the restaurant, Miss A scanned the parking lot for them, saying “Where are the cousins?” So cute!
We've had so much fun turning these “virtual” friendships into “real life” ones and hope to get together with all of these families again in the future! All you other blog friends out there, holler at us if you come to Florida—we’d love to meet you too!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
