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The Day We Met Lily
Today we met our Lily! We enjoyed another hotel breakfast Monday morning followed by another visit to the fish and gardens. (This time the kids were in actual clothes). The kids had a great time running around the gardens while Brian and I sat on a bench in the sun. Then the official adoption part of the trip started off with a group meeting at the hotel. We are in a group with 9 other families from Lifeline who are adopting children from Guangdong province. We spent a few hours going over our schedule for the next 2 weeks and preparing our paperwork for this week. It was so great…
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Officially Ours – Lily’s Adoption Day!
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Big Day, Big Feelings: What to Expect When Your Child Starts Kindergarten
I dreaded my son’s first day of kindergarten. It was like this one day marked the end of an era – the passage from early childhood to the oh-so-scary “school age. “ There was no way that he was old enough to go to kindergarten, and I was definitely not old enough to have a kindergartener! When the day finally arrived I made sure to document every moment as if somehow that would preserve him in time. I sent him off to school with a special fuzzy in his pocket and kept one in mine as well, sure that this small act would connect us during his first full day…
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‘Twas Mom’s Month Before Christmas
‘Twas the month before Christmas, when all through the stores Mom is out shopping for her girls and boys The sale ads are gathered among her toy stash, In hopes that she’ll save a good bit of cash The children have countdowns to their favorite day With fun advent calendars all on display Mom fills them with family fun to enjoy And maybe even a small trinket or toy At the end of the day, mom sits down for a bit Then leaps from her seat when she realizes it – The Elf on the Shelf! It can’t stay in that spot! So mom scours Pinterest for the next elfish…
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I Refuse to Drive a Minivan! And the 6 Reasons I Do Now
I will never drive a minivan! How many of you have said those words? I know that I did. Repeatedly. I vowed to remain a “cool mom” that would never even dream about driving one of those lame mom cars. And then you know what happened? I bought a minivan. Why you might ask? Why did I sell out and join the minivan club? Well, to be honest, it really is the best family car out there. Here’s why. 1. More Space = Less Fighting Anyone with more than one kid knows that as soon as you get in the car, they start fighting. One is touching the other, someone…
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4 Simple Ways to Fight Holiday Busyness and Burnout
Are you experiencing holiday busyness and burnout? While the holiday season can be one of the most magical and enjoyable times of the year, it can also be one of the most stressful. Gift giving, shopping lists, errands, parties, pictures with Santa, festivals, traditions, and family gatherings often end up becoming a to-do list that is almost impossible to complete. A time that should be filled with laughter and memories becomes tainted with a stressed-out mom trying to make sure that she doesn’t forget the cookies for this party and the gift for that teacher, forcing the kids to smile for a perfect picture as the people in line behind…
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The Surprising Ways Adoption Impacts Your Family
Every November I spend extra time being thankful for the things God has given me in my life. I know that this is true for most people, with the Thanksgiving holiday coming at the end of the month. For our family, November is also the month that we celebrate two of our four children joining our family through adoption. I have spent two Thanksgivings in China adopting two of our four children. On each of those trips I substituted our turkey and mashed potatoes for rice and what I hope was chicken. During our second trip I was really struggling with missing the comforts of home, so I wrote a…
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How to Stop Social Media from Ruining Your Friendships
Recently I was listening to a podcast and heard this, “75 percent of women say that they want better friendships. 75 percent of us are disappointed with the friendships we have and we don’t feel as close to the friends we want.” In our socially connected world, it seems unlikely that so many women out there are feeling lost, lonely, and unsatisfied with the level of friendship in their life. Or does it? When I really started thinking about the friendships in my life, it made me start to wonder if social media is creating a false sense of friendship and belonging that is missing the deep level of friendship…
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First Day of School Sign – Free Printable!
It’s that time again! Summer is ending, and it’s time to start preparing for the first day of school. I am always surprised when the start of the school year rolls around. Didn’t summer start a few days ago? There’s no way we are already doing this again! One of my favorite back to school traditions is taking a picture of each kid on the first day. And while I might tear up a little bit thinking about how quickly my kids are growing, I love looking back over all of our first day of school pictures. They love it too! While I would like to believe that I will…
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8 Things You Should Never Ask Adoptive Parents
Remember that Friends episode where Rachel tells Joey that her boss wants to buy her baby? Everyone is completely flabbergasted that someone would be so insensitive and ridiculous. No one actually asks if they can buy your baby! Right?! Well, as a mom of four kids with two adopted from China, I must say that I have been asked some equally ridiculous questions about adoption. When my kids were younger, it didn’t matter if people asked questions. They were too little to understand or care what I was talking about. But now that they are older, unsolicited questions that highlight their differences or make them feel like they are not…
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Dear Birth Mother, What You Need to Know On Mother’s Day
Dear Birth Mother, Today is Mother’s Day. A day when we celebrate women who love, nurture, care for, and pour into others. Today my husband and children will take care of me, shower me with love, and give me gifts. But you have given me the greatest gift of all, and for that I honor you. I will never know your name. I will never know your story. But every day I stare into the face of a piece of you. If I could tell you anything, it would be thank you. Thank you for deciding to give life to a child. Thank you for the sacrifices you made to…
