The Crazy Sock Sisters

 I love having all the kids home from school.  I relish everyday that we get to sleep late.  I love every game they make up and play together.  And, one of my true loves is seeing what the girls put together to wear.  My younger girls definitely have the Asian since of style, and it is so cute.  Sometimes, they can drag Noelle into it, so I have to take that opportunity to capture the spunky fun.

My sweet Hope.  She is so exotically beautiful.  I have Chinese people come out of the woodwork to talk to me about her.  They all want to know where she is from because she is so unusual, and what they consider to be an exotic beauty.  They want to touch her and stare at her eyes.  I have had tons of Chinese people tell me that she needs to go back to China and model.  They are always shocked that she was an orphan up until an year ago.  Now granted we do know that she was the model child for the orphanage as they put her in front of the camera anytime a newspaper reporter showed up, we just thought it was because she always smiled.  But now we know, that she was considered to be beautiful...after all, they all called her NaNa which means "beautiful."

LeeLee on the other hand captures the hearts of the Americans.  There is something about her that attracts the non Asian population.  She also knows how to reel people in with her spunky full of life personality.  We had a perfect example of the difference between the two girls at Lifeline's reunion.  Families who had adopted or were adopting kept coming up to me to tell me how beautiful LeeLee was. Several commented that when they dream of their daughter's face at night, they often dream of their child looking just like LeeLee.  At this reunion though, there were about 15 employees of China's Adoption Offices, one by one they each spotted Hope and came to touch her face, and ask lots of questions about her and where she was from.  LeeLee just kinda looked up with the what about me look, but they couldn't take their eyes off of Hope.  To me, they are both beautiful in their own special way.

And speaking of beauty....Noelle just radiates beauty.  Her beauty is such a natural peaceful beauty that comes from her heart and radiates to the outside.  She is such a blessing and such a patient and loving big sister.  She loves having sisters, and watching them do their music routines today makes me realize that I really missed out by not having a sister.  I hope the love that these three girls have for each other remains for a lifetime....it would make this momma's heart happy.

Happy Birthday Jesus!

Oh yes, I was that mother....I had the kids sleep in the basement, which is their preferred place to sleep.  I put crepe paper all over the door and told them that if anyone came up before normal wake up time, then I would personally go to their pile and take away a gift.  Three of the kids were really just casualties of LeeLee's previous behavior.  Since she woke us up at 1 a.m. and never went back to sleep last year, I decided drastic measures were in order.  It worked!  At 6 a.m., I heard a knock at the top of the stairs.  I was able to reply, "I'm coming, I have to go to the bathroom."  Then "I'm coming, I have to let the dogs out."  Then, "I'm coming, I need to get my camera ready" Then finally, "Hold on, let me see if Santa even decided to stop at our house."  Once I had confirmed that he had indeed made a stop, they ran through to the living room.....the best .89 cents I ever spent!

 Each child was tickled with what they got.  We don't do a big Christmas around here, because it just isn't really what I want it to be about, but it is nice to see the Christmas morning smiles.

Even Pippa had a present wrapped under the tree.  Noelle was blessed with a Kindle from Santa.  She is such an amazing reader, and I often can't get her to the library often enough....with the Kindle Santa gave her, she will be able to purchase books, and get them for the Kindle on loan from our library.  This excites me because she can do it all from here.

LeeLee loved that Santa sent her exactly what she asked for.  All she wanted was an elf you could touch.  She was thrilled to have gotten this sweet elf.  She loves Tina.

Hope wanted a dancing penguin, and she really does love this thing.  They have all had fun making up dance routines with the penguin.  It really warms my heart just for her to be here for Christmas morning. I am so happy that she gets to be a part of all the fun.  My heart every Christmas morning breaks for the thousands of children who are like Hope waiting desperately for the love of a family.  We had a special treat when we walked into church.  Our Chinese brothers and sisters got baptized on Christmas morning, as one of them started crying when she explained that yes, she believed in Jesus, my tears became uncontrollable.  Oh how I love China, how I love the people there, and oh how my heart aches for the children....the forgotten ones.  Happy Birthday Jesus...in our house I hope that we give you what you really want for Christmas, which is simply just us!

Sleepover Peace Party

I don't exactly know where my brain was when I told Noelle that I would throw her a slumber party of her closest friends.  I told her that she could invite four friends and that I would throw her a really cool peace party.  She invited a party hardy bunch, so we had lots of fun and a full night.  Since Paul was gone, I didn't get as many pictures of all the activities, but we stayed busy.  They painted peace paintings.  Then they made their own oreo cakesters similar to the snowmen, but with peace signs.  Then we had a hot chocolate bar and ice cream cake.

 Once we cleaned up from that, the girls made lip gloss...this was super fun!  Then we did fingernails.  We did a water marbling technique that makes the nails look tie dyed.  All toenails were then painted with a sparkly OPI color.  They were all so cute.  Noelle had picked out Mr. Popper's Penguins, so we all settled in to watch that.  Finally at 2 a.m. all was quiet in the house.

But only for four hours.  They were all up and ready for french toast early in the morning.  I will think long and hard before I agree to another slumber party.....but I do think she is worth it!

My Baby is 11!

Noelle wanted to eat catfish for her birthday, she we grabbed her best friend, her sister, and Tita, and headed to Moe's Original Barbecue downtown.  Noelle loved it, which thrilled me since I picked it.  I knew they had catfish, and I was just hoping she would like it.

They let her use a Sharpie marker and write on the tree in the middle of the restaurant.  They all wrote their names.

I can't believe she is 11.  She is such a blessing to me.  She is always my big helper, and she actually enjoys helping out around the house with the girls.  She often calls herself the good one, because she knows that she is my easiest child to parent.  However, I am fearing the emotional teen years.

And no, she doesn't look like me.  She looks JUST LIKE HER DADDY.  Unfortunately he had to be out of town, and missed her birthday.  Poor Hunter was sick, so he missed out too.

She opened up her presents from Tita there, and then wore her robe.  I want one of those, it is cute!  Happy Birthday precious girl.  I am proud to be your momma!

Making Birthday Snowmen

Noelle loves Pinterest almost as much as I do.  She wanted to make something different for her birthday, so we settled on covering oreo cakesters in white chocolate and adding embellishments to turn them into snowmen.

They were fun to make.  She was so proud of them and excited about taking them to school the next day to share with her friends.

Her friends loved them.  They were a big hit, so we decided to make a station at her birthday party where her sweet guests would make their own.

Oh Christmas Tree!

 We ventured out to a new Christmas tree farm this year since the one we have visited in previous years closed.  So, we headed out, in the search of the perfect tree.  I drove everyone crazy wanting to look at every tree before we picked the perfect one.  We always get an imperfect tree.  You know, the ones with two trunks, and the one's that lean, or the ones that are missing large chunks of limbs.  There is just something about them that says, pick me, pick me.  We have a great stand, so we can overcome most problems so that the ugly duckling can also be a Christmas tree.  We found our perfect ugly duckling.  I love how everyone is standing around watching Hunter cut it down.

 Paul finally jumped in and helped him at the end.

Then the four of them dragged the tree to the car.  It did turn out to be such a beautiful tree all decorated.

After dropping the tree off at home, we ran to Petco to hunt down Santa for a contest.  Unfortunately, we didn't win, but we did get lots of samples and toys for the dogs.  We love Petco......for the record, Annie didn't like it to much.  It made her a bit nervous, but Rags and Pippa felt fight at home.

Fun in the Sand

Since the boys left early, the girls and I got to stay and play in the sand.  They had a blast with some friends they met making a giant sea turtle.  He turned out pretty cute I think.

This was my real surprise.  Pippa liked the beach.  She didn't just like it, she loved it.  Every time she went outside, she would start trotting down the boardwalk towards the beach.  She would turn back and look at me to see if I was coming or not.  She just wanted to sit there and feel the wind and let the salty air soothe her achey bones.  I hope Pippa has many more trips to this place with us.  I never feel like I get enough time there.  We always tell the beach good bye when we go, and we always come home and start planning our next trip.

Thanksgiving 2011

I called my mom around the beginning of September and let her know that I really wanted to go to the beach for Thanksgiving.  I normally host Thanksgiving at my house, so I thought she and I should discuss it before I set me plans.  We love the beach in the fall, and with the struggles that two of my kids have in school, I just really wanted to get away.  I love the Cape because I can load up the entire family, pets and all and head out and truly relax, because well, there is nothing else to do.  Mom said she had been thinking about the same thing, and would love to go with us.  She then called my brother who said he would also like to join us, so I was excited.  I would have my whole family under one roof for Thanksgiving.

We were able to catch a few family pictures with all of us together.  It was great to be able to spend time with my niece and nephew.  I'm sure they don't really know who I am, so it was nice to be able to spend time with them.  Getting to know them was a real joy for me too.  I hate that we don't see each other more.

Hunter loves the beach.  He is always up to something.  He had fun in the bay finding all kinds of interesting critters.  He even brought home a shell with a crab still in that about scared me to death.  He and Paul left the beach early so they could get back for the Auburn vs. Alabama game.  

And these two, look at the tans they got in the middle of November.  It is crazy how dark they get so quick.

Where Do I Live Again?

Last time I checked, I lived smack dab in the middle of the city.  However, all the creatures of the country must know that I am a country girl at heart, and they are showing up regularly.  And unfortunately for some of them, they just aren't welcome here.  We have a small urban chicken coop in the back yard.  It is great for teaching the kids responsibility, and about food production.  However, since they have arrived, we have seen some wildlife we didn't anticipate.  My opossum friends keep coming around, so I humanely trap them and move them to a large wooded park where they are safer and can find more food.  This is the first of three that we have trapped.  This is the smallest one.  We give them all names and send them on their way.

This fellow on the other hand, doesn't quite need to be in the middle of the city.  Let's just say I was a little more than shocked to discover this one (I didn't kill it, it got hit by a car.)  Now we have a new threat which doesn't just want the chickens, it also wants my dogs.  We now have a nice sized pack of coyotes.  I haven't caught a picture of them yet, but they are letting their increasing presence be known.  I went out around 5 a.m. with the dogs.  I turned my back on Pippa for just a second to watch Annie, and one started across the street towards Pippa.  I screamed and waved my arms and got to Pippa first to scoop her up, but it terrified me. I got Annie and Rags in as quick as possible.  They are making me nervous as they are getting increasingly aggressive in the city since their isn't as much food here for them.  They have been attacking dogs on leashes, so I'm not a happy city dweller right now.

Introducing...Annie

I have been happy with having two dogs.  Very happy in fact.  But after losing Lulu, and bringing Pippa into the home we still had a very sad Rags.  While Pippa has done wonders for me, and she has helped me to still be sane she has not enjoyed Rags company, and I have felt bad for him.  We pet sit Willa sometimes, and he always perks up when she comes in the door.  He is so happy....but the last time Willa's family came to the door to collect her, his face fell.  It broke my heart.  He truly needed a friend.  I started looking for a friend for him, and thought I found the perfect one.  However, due to a strange turn of events, I was not able to adopt that dog, so my search continued.  There was one particular dog that I watched for a few weeks that was in Wedowee, AL.  I called and talked with the shelter staff about her, and after learning her story, I felt like she needed a chance.  I took Rags up to meet her, and they played so hard together.  They slammed into walls and had so much fun.  I could tell she would bond well with me, because she was extremely bonded to the kennel worker.  So, I brought her home on a trial basis....see, Annie had come from a sad situation.  She was owned by a man and his wife.  They had around 70 dogs, but for them, there was something special about Annie.  She got to live inside with them, and it was obvious she was well loved.  The wife died of cancer, and the man tried his hardest to take care of all the animals.  They were all fat, happy, fixed, and loved.  However, he was overwhelmed.  The county decided to step in and relieve him of the burden the animals had caused.  So off Annie went to a shelter to wait for someone to come.  Sure enough, a family did come for her.  They took her home, and left her outside.  They allowed children to take sticks and poke them at her.  After weeks of abuse, Annie had enough of it, and started cornering the children anytime she saw them.  She snarled and barked and let them know she didn't want to be abused.  So that family packed her up and took her back to the shelter.  So, there she sat again waiting.  Rags and I were her next hope of a home.  However, I knew that we had four children at home that Annie may not like considering what she had gone through in her previous home.  Annie settled right into our home and was so excited to see my bed.  She snuggled up right in the middle of it, and looked so content.  That of course was until I brought the four kiddos home from school.  She lost it.  There were times when I really wondered if it would all work out, but now she understands that my children at least will never hurt her.  They bribed her with treats and tons of affection, and now she loves each and every one of them.  Rags is happy again.  She is the most bonded dog I have ever had.  Paul and I often say that if we lived on the streets, you wouldn't have to worry, because Annie would be right there by our side.  She is a loyal little one, she is a quick learner and doing great with training.  She is proving herself to be our smartest dog ever.  She is 6 years old, weighs 24 pounds, and looks a lot like our favorite boy, Rags.

Halloween Has Gone to the Dogs

 For Halloween this year, we decided to go all out for the dogs, and that the kids would just wear things we already had around the house.  So, after some research, we decided that Pippa would be a Chia pet.  She made an adorable Chia pet, and we were quite confident she would do well in the costume contests. She entered two, and came in third in both of them.

 Then there was the famous Rags.  Hunter wanted to be Waldo again for Halloween because we already had the stuff, so I decided that maybe Rags could be Waldo's dog Woof.  I found a sweater at the local thrift store, and after about thirty minutes of cutting and sewing, we had a costume.

 We even used shrinky dinks to make a tag for the collar just like Woof has on in the Waldo books.

Rags took first place in our local contest, and second in the larger one in Columbus.  He looked amazing and played the character really well.  Everyone that saw him smiled and said he was the coolest costume they had seen.  The kids all had a great time with the dog costumes that they are already planning next years costumes.  The competitive side of me can really get into this.

Amidy and Little Z-All in one day!

While in Birmingham for the reunion, we decided to try and catch up with some of our favorite college students of the past.  We called both Amy and Lindsey (Amidy and Little Z, as nicknamed by the kids) when we left the reunion hoping to be able to catch up with at lease one of them while we were in town. Amy was studying for her social worker boards (which she passed) and Lindsey was sleeping since she is a night shift nurse.  So we didn't know how things would play out.  But we had a few errands to run, and while running our errands, Amy found us and we got to hang our for awhile.  She got to meet Hope, and we got to meet her fiance, Brandon.  I had already met and interviewed him online, so I already felt like I knew him, and I had already given Amy our approval.  In person he was just as great, and I am so thankful that Amy has found such a wonderful man to be a part of her life.

While out with Amy, Lindsey called, and hunted us down in the mall parking lot.  We were able to talk her into staying and eating with us at the Cheesecake Factory.  She ate breakfast while we ate dinner.

My the end of dinner, I had three girls that didn't want to let Little Z go.  I don't blame them though, the good byes are always hard.  I just feel blessed that we got to see both of them and hug their necks....now if only March would come, we will be able to hug Amy's neck again at her wedding.

Lifeline Reunion

For us, Lifeline is family.  Not only did they help us bring our latest two into the family, they have become our family.  So, when we have an opportunity to be with them, we are there.  It is so sweet to go to the reunion each year and fellowship with other families who have also answered God's call for adoption.  This year we were especially excited to meet a new Lifeline family.  They are the Bamberg's, and they are adopting Hope's friend from her orphanage.  I had the privilege of talking to them and asking Hope questions about their princess, and watching as God confirmed for them, that she was to be their child.  Hope took to their children quickly and declared to me that their Lilly was going to love her new family.

She also decided that Lilly would have a great new dad.  She tested him out for Lilly, and wore him out.  Luckily Hope didn't scare him away, she actually excited him even more to go and get his girl.

The girls also got to visit with Lily, our guide in China.  She has become a friend over the years, and is such a blessing to adoptive families.  I adore her, and how hard she works for the kids.  The other lady in the picture was part of the Chinese delegation that came.  She works for the CCWAA.

Chinese Festival

 Our local art museum, held their annual birthday celebration.  This year it was China related, so we jumped at the chance to go.  The kids learned how to do traditional Chinese calligraphy.

Hunter really got into this, and was the only one who attempted to do the Chinese characters.  His sisters roots are someone seeping in.

 Hope cracked me up, because when she finished she looked at me with all sincerity, and said, "Look, I wrote Hope just like in Chinese!"  And of course my response was, "Well of course you did baby, and it looks just perfect.  I'm so proud."  And at those words of confirmation, she beamed....Have I mentioned that I love her?

Noelle got into the pottery making.  She made a penguin, which had nothing to do with Chinese culture, but it had everything to do with her interests.  She is so serious.

We finished out our day by having tea with the Chinese emperor, and listening to him tell us about what life is like in China.  Hope looked at him when he finished and said, "That is not the same China I am from."  I guess the China he described is very different from the China an orphan knows.  It makes me anxious to take her back one day and introduce her to her homeland in a different light.  The land that I have fallen so in love with.

One Year With our Hopey

It is hard to imagine that it really has been a year since they walked in with Hope in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia.  She ran into our lives with a smile on her face.  She was ready...ready for a family, ready to have fun, ready to have someone pay attention to her, and most importantly, she was ready to be loved.  Our sweet girl ran in that day and ran straight into the arms of her father.  She had arrived, she had a earthly father who scooped her up and made her feel secure and safe.  She just kept staring at him wondering if he was real, or if the idea of a daddy was still just a dream for her.  The expressions and smiles on her face that day is one of the things that will forever be retained in my own memory.  It is almost as if I can hit rewind and watch the scene unfold again and again in my head.  Isn't it such a lovely picture, and picture of how we should all be?  We should all run straight into the arms of our heavenly father realizing that we were chosen, chosen to be adopted by him.  I am so thankful that everyday I get to replay this real life example of Hope's forever family day in my head, so I can be reminded of where to run to....and boy do I need to run there so often.

Surprisingly, adopting an older child has been such a blessing for us.  Hope's adjustment over the last year has been easier than we ever expected it to be.  I kept wondering, when is this all going to fall apart, but it hasn't yet.  She just fits in so perfectly.  She somehow seemed to be our missing link.  She still is everyone's best friend in the house, and with her here, there is just more peace and harmony.  Now, it is definitely louder with Hope around.  I was once watching a video series where a man mentioned that loud children were a good thing because it meant they had life, and to a mom who had lost her children, noise would be something she longed to hear.  So, I try my best to rejoice in all the noise....after all, they are all full of life.  Now that Hope has been home for a year, and is in school, we are starting to see where she struggles.  She is an amazing auditory learner.  She picks up language quickly.  She also figures things out quickly, and remains the tattle tale that her orphanage described her to be.  She also likes to fuss.  It is funny, because after living with our sweet Emily for a year, I got used to the fussing.  When Hope starts it, we call her our mini-Emmy.  Emily of course says she doesn't remember fussing, but the two of them are very similar.  I think God prepared us for Hope by giving us Emily first.  Hope appears to struggle with academic learning.  At this point, she just doesn't see a need, so we are working to point out why she needs to learn.  She still struggles with her fine motor skills because of the mild cerebral palsy, so her writing skills are still lacking, but are improving.  

To us, Hope is, well...PERFECT!  I know she isn't perfect on pen and paper, but she is perfect for us.  I think she has taught me much more than I have taught her.  What a blessing she is to us, and what a blessing she will be to us for many more years to come. I love you my sweet girl...I am glad that you found your way to us....my only regret is that we didn't find each other sooner.