Friday, January 28, 2011

Adoption

Today on Kelly's Korner Show us your Life, the topic is adoption.  It's so hard to put everything I feel about adoption into one post.  As many of you know, adoption has changed my life and has made my dreams come true.  No, I'm not advertising something for Disneyworld...but it is true.  Being a mom is the one thing in my life that I am great at instinctively.  (I don't mean that pridefully or to boast that I think I am the greatest mom, I'm just saying it is who I was meant to be.  I hope that makes sense)  I always thought I would be a good mom, but I had to wait 35 years to find out what is was really about.  Sure, there are moments of 'un-greatness' in my journey through motherhood, but generally I feel wonderful and fulfilled at where I am in my journey with Molly.


(just a quick repost of a great picture of molly because you can't have a post about her and not be able to see her!)

Now...to take you all back a bit for the full story:

For anyone new to my blog or who has questions about adoption or adoption as a single mom, please leave a comment and/or email me.  I'm always so happy to talk about adoption!  These are just links to some of the pages at the top of my blog for anyone who hasn't read through them before.  I don't feel the need to rewrite what has already been written and hopefully this will give you the information you may want.

"Our Journey"
"Journey to China"
"Timeline and Expenses"

This is a post about how to know if you are looking at "your child" or not

Every post about adoption

My first post about Molly

If you are reading on Facebook, Google Reader, or an RSS feed you may have to click to my actual blog to be able and access the links.

Sunday, January 23, 2011

a day at the circus

molly and i had such a fun day on saturday

{after our day together on friday thanks to 1" of snow!}

we went to the Barnum and Bailey Circus!
i wasn't sure how she would do for such a long show but she did great!
























the greatest show on earth!

winter clothes

 i'm totally addicted to buying clothes for molly
i used to be addicted to buying clothes and accessories for myself
this is so much better!  
i almost exclusively only buy clothes from: etsy, ebay, goodwill, and consignment stores.
it makes me feel like i have actually saved money
i think that is a false reality...because i've bought too much! ha!  
she has wore the cutest dresses to church this month and i've failed to take pictures of them all
but, this one from last week looked really cute
especially with the cute fur jacket from china!
 this little outfit came together from a consignment store
the jacket is the cutest little thing
unfortunately my camera settings were off and the colors didn't come through well
{note to self:  learn how to use my camera!}
my great aunt made the cute hat and matching scarf for her
and it all came together so cute!

 we had just a bit of snow left from Thursday night's snowfall and I wanted it to be in the pictures
as always, it is so hard to get a picture of her smiling and looking at the camera!
 but, i did manage to get a few


Friday, January 21, 2011

2010 Scrapbook


I have tried to be productive on my snow days and finally have completed our 2010 scrapbook.  I have said goodbye to making scrapbooks by hand, it's just too time consuming and too expensive.  This year I tried using Shutterfly and found it easy to use.  This will be my first photo book from them.  For 2011, I am going to try and build my scrapbook throughout the year so it will not be so much to do after Christmas.  I think it will be much easier to complete at the end of each month.  I want these scrapbooks to last, so I ordered the black leather cover.  I thought it would be timeless and would hold up best to wear and tear.  I can't wait to hold it in my hands!!

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

a good rule

I love reading Sarah's blog over at Clover Lane.  I swear I'm addicted to her simple, organized, and seemingly calm life!  I have lots of blogs I like to check on each day, but she is usually at the top of my list.  Today I somehow clicked over to an older post of hers and this "rule" of hers stuck out to me...

6. Your children need you to be happy, secure, calm and unstressed...not popular, skinny, well-dressed and rich. Don't be tempted by the status quo.


I thought this was so well said and I guess I feel like this is one "rule" I can follow.  I'll never be skinny or rich, but I can definately be happy, secure, calm, and unstressed!  Of course, lots of snow days help me to keep calm and unstressed through the winter time! ha!  Nashville is looking at another possibility of snow this week which means more snow days at home for Molly and me!  YEAH!!  If you happen to have a snow day this winter, take some time to sit back and read a few of Sarah's posts over at Clover Lane.  I'm sure she'll inspire you  too!  And if you do not feel like you are showing your kids that you are happy, secure, calm, and unstressed, I encourage you to figure out what the hiccups are in your life and get them sorted through.  Nobody's life is perfect, but our kids feel our stressors more than we know and realize.  Honestly, I know that Molly doesn't care that I'm not a skinny mom.  But, she does care that I am steady, calm, and dependable.  Routine and rituals have made the most difference in her adjustment and attachment period. 
 
Maybe one day I'll magically turn into a skinny mom...but I won't "stress" about it! ha!

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

fun snow days!!!

keys to a successful snow day...

we've been snowed in for three glorious days and i've loved every minute of it!!
i could so easily be a stay at home mom...if only i could create an income this way???

yesterday we made a snowman, i forgot how hard it is to make a big snowman so she looks a little anorexic
she must be doing better with her new year's resolutions than i am!
aunt nancy came over and took molly sledding for a while
it's so nice to have great neighbors!
molly loves her and looks like her too!

she loved it and all of the energy spent outside made for a great nap!!

Monday, January 10, 2011

molly's christmas wardrobe

i finally got around to putting molly's pictures in a collage
you can get a lot accomplished on snow days
i've made about 5 different posts i think
anyway, i've said it before, but i love dressing a little girl!!
my favorite christmas outfits were the little bow sweater/skirt outift, the smocked dresses and her "santa" pant suit...so cute!!

snow day fun!

what a wonderful, glorious snow day we had today!!
i was so excited, i'm sure i was happier than any of the kiddos in my classroom to wake up to a lot of snow
molly and i got up, dressed in many warm layers, and were out by 10:00
apparently the rest of the neighborhood was sleeping in because we were the only ones out sledding!
we had a great time
this was molly's first sledding experience
each time she got down the hill she said, "faster, mommy"!
it was so cute!














we made snow angels

and tried the snow


came home to our snowman mugs and hot cocoa waiting on us
we had a snow day picnic in front of the warm fire and read books



we are looking forward to snow day #2 tomorrow!!
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