Favorite Foto Friday!

SUMMER LOVIN'!!!



Sprinkler Fun!!!



Lunching Ladies

To cool for da pool!


Dinner Parties

And just Monkeying around!

The Story of My Adoption

So I have had several bloggie friends mention wanting to know the story of how I came to adopt - so here it goes!

I remember being downtown Charleston during Christmas at the Omni Hotel (it's fancy and full of shops ) probably on my way to Laura Ashley - around the corner came the CUTEST family I had EVER seen - it was a tres posh mom and dad with the most beautiful little girl - she was Chinese and looked nothing like them and they were laughing and so full of joy - I knew RIGHT then I wanted to adopt - I really went home at 10 or 11 and told my parents when I grew up I was going to adopt a little girl from China - I just knew that my family wouldn't be complete without it!
Fast forward 16 years - I am on the verge of getting married - Kevin and I had discussed our family situation - and that was the plan - we would have one baby - if it was a girl - I could decide if we wanted to adopt or not - if it was a boy - adoption was NOT an option! Several years and lots of trying later - neither our marriage or our plan for children worked
I had always said I wanted my babies by the time I was 30 (I lost my dad when I was 25 and right before my wedding)
So I bought my house in July - got my divorce in November and in February had my first meeting with my social worker - I had started doing research and realized that China was probably not going to work for me because of length of referral time, I didn't have the input and the travel - My social worker thought I should go to Russia because the baby would look like me - I didn't want to travel twice and I was concerned about fetal alcohol syndrome - so i suggested Guatemala because it was close - they were in foster care and they were not prone to alcohol syndrome!

I picked an agency out of Simpsonville, SC and off I went - They sent me a referral picture of Annie and it was sooo strange - she looked JUST like me when I was little
I knew the instant I saw her face - I said YES and NEVER looked back!
I turned 30 in May -
I went to visit her in June when she was 4 months old - I went to visit when she was 6 months old and thinking I would be back in a few weeks (that's another story) went to pick her up at 9 months old - We flew into Charleston Airport at 11:15PM on November 17th and as we walked off the plane - My friends had come to SURPRISE me at the airport! it was awesome - off we went the next day to work and the rest they say is history!

I would LOVE to adopt again and am have been on the verge several times in the last 4 years - I have been asked numerous times
"Don't you want a baby that looks like you?"
I really could care less if they look like me (probably better if they don't :)
"Don't you want the experience of child birth"
Uh - NO NO NO

I say "Do you know how many children don't have homes and are starving for love and parents?" "Could there be any greater joy in life than looking at YOUR child no matter how they came to be yours?"

Adoption is BY FAR the greatest experience God has EVER blessed me with and to say I have been blessed in life would be the understatement of the world!

Weekend Update!

Mom's Night Out - Fonduely Yours! We went and had fondue - I think the cheese was my FAVORITE!!! Well maybe the white chocolate too! It is always sooo much fun to have some girlie time!!!


Next up BABY SHOWER!!! Hooray - it's a GIRL for Sugar (it's also #4 in as many years)
the other 3 are boys so we are OH SO EXCITED that Olivia is on her way!!!!

We really do look for any excuse (this one is great) to get together and have FUN FUN FUN!!!

Hit your knees and PRAY!

This SUPER SWEET Eliana is in Guatemala waiting on her precious parents and she is SICK! She is in the HOSPITAL! And she had a ROUGH night! Pray for her fragile body and that her parents can get there ASAP to be by their beautiful daughter's side!
Lindsey and Chris Wheeler - stop by their blog and let them know you are PRAYING!

Favorite Foto Friday!

Significant Other





As most of you know I too am a single mommy! So I have many significant others (MY GIRLFRIENDS) there are too too many to show so I thought I would show Annie's significant - Her BEST FRIEND ABBY!!! She is my best friend, Leslie's little girl - so these girls spend LOTS of time together! Annie says as soon as she hears her "it's my best priend ABBBBBBYYYYY!!!" she talks to her on her "cell" phone - asks if she can go everywhere! they have soooo much fun!

SCORE!

DARBY will be SOOO proud!



I have been talking about wanting a bike to ride around town with annie ~ good exercise and it's fun! Well as most of you know "cost conscience" isn't my thing - so I was telling my mom and she said "we've got bikes here"
This bike was FOUND at a Cracker Barrel (of course) I guess it had fallen off someone's camper/truck/car - So I have decided to call it my own - It's already been on it's maiden voyage! Now all it needs is a kid carrier, basket and radio and I am GOOD TO GO!!!

Practicing

Annie LOVES her babies - so she wanted to "stroll" into town with one of the babies and take her to The Pink Croc to pick out a new dress (we have doll clothes) so off we go - she was precious - she couldn't keep the stroller straight and as you can see needed to stop for a break - she learned it's hard work! She tried to get me to push the baby home! hahahahahaha

Favorite Foto Friday!

BLOOPERS!






WOOOPS - SMILE FOR DA CAMERA - OR NOT!!!

Hummingbird - the first and FAVORITE drink of the cruise!

Dinner for seven please! (maybe next time i will dry my hair before dinner)

Waiting on the boat to Blackbeard Cay for snorkeling with the stingrays and hanging on da beach with yellowbirds!

Dinner darling - I was having tooo much fun to bother with my hair any night!

Senor Frogs! Ole' is all we had to say - MORE Pictures to come!!!

School's Out for Summa!

Until NEXT week - Annie is doing summer school/camp!


They had their end of the year partay yesterday!

With PIZZA! Aren't they precious!!!!

End of the year gifts!

Thanks Kay for putting their names on sooo pretty!

4 girls and 1 boy - Monty is leaving us to go to big boy school!

this is annie's super cute class room

this fancy thing is a braille writer - annie's little fingers aren't quite strong enough to push all the buttons!

Let's Talk about SEX baby!

AND THE CITY - SOOO FUN!

We met for apps and drinks at our new favorite hang - I tried to gear the mommy conversation toward SEX (the movie - gutter mind) but it swayed toward Victoria Secret and Fredericks - I guess that's what cosmos and girl talk will get ya!

The on to the movie where fortunately we all had tickets so we grabbed seats and POPCORN as you can see and sat back and laughed (and cried a bit) for 2.5 hours!

GO SEE IT WITH YOUR GAL PALS!

Hello Lovah!

Guess What I got?