My list

I have been tagged by So These Are the Days. So, here it is!



Four Things I did 10 years ago

1. got engaged

2. breifly lived in Maryland

3. worked in title research in a courthouse

4. planned my wedding



Four Things I did five years ago.

1. gave birth to Sean

2. moved Brian to a bed from a crib

3. started doing childcare in my home

4. I cannot remember any more - so I will say lost some memory?



Four Things I did Yesterday.

1. wash, wash and more wash

2. drove kids to and from school

3. blogged

4. played with the boys



Four Shows I love to watch.

1. Boston Legal

2. Deadliest Catch

3. Brothers and Sisters

4. Frasier re-runs



Four Things that make me happy

1. my kids

2. random acts of kindness

3. organization

4. crossing things off of lists

Happy Mother's Day 2008

I have received this e-mail a few times before and thought it was appropriate for today!

Before I was a Mom,
I never tripped over toys or forgot words to a lullaby.
I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never been puked on. Pooped on. Chewed on. Peed on.
I had complete control of my mind and my thoughts.
I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held down a screaming child so doctors could do tests.
Or give shots.I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put her down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew that something so small could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom,
I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body.
I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond between a mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth, the joy, the love, the heartache,
the wonderment or the satisfaction of being a Mom.
I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much,
before I was a Mom.

Justin's Birthday - round two

We had some family that couldn't make it last Saturday. Since Justin only turns one once, we decided to do cake for a second time. Plus I didn't get to make a big cake last time and only made cupcakes due to the low attendance! Justin had a great time and definitely enjoyed the chocolate cake more than the vanilla one. Maybe that is why he didn't dive right in last week. I surrounded by a house of chocolate loving boys. All four of them prefer it to vanilla and Brian Jr. has been known to turn down cake if it is not chocolate on chocolate.

Justin has been walking so much more in the last week. He started so much more today! He now probably walks and crawls about the same amount in a day. And he starts off walking as far as he can and then crawls when he falls down. It is neat to see how proud he is of himself! Justin walking so much also means that the bumps and bruises are not far behind! I had better hurry up and get some pictures!

His first 'girlfriend', Jordan, will turn one in June. She loved Justin. In fact she may have loved him a little too much! He did not quite feel the same way. She pretty much smacked and attacked him. She would go up to him and tackle him. He would try to crawl or walk away. During one escape attempt she tried to grab him and only got the waist of his pants. She pulled them right off of him - it was so funny! Jordan kept giving him love pats on his head. At times, those love pats didn't seem so lovey! Then once when he was lying on the floor she went over and laid down on top of him!

By the end of the night you could tell that he was definitely avoiding her! It is so funny to me to see how personalities can be so different - even from birth. Justin has always been more easy going and laid back than Jordan. She is so much more adventuresome and outgoing than he is! They are like complete opposites. There were times when he just sat and stared at her like she was from another planet! Hey - opposites attract! There may be a future for them yet!

Jordan ready for a sneak attack

first time kicking a ball
trying to kick again
Justin's 2nd cake
diving right in
what is this?
Justin and Mom
the fork was stuck to his shirt
after he tried to throw it backwards!

Tea Twice is Nice!

When I first found out that Brian and Sean were both having a Mother's Day tea I got a little worried. The worry was soon replaced with happiness when I found out that Brian's tea was at 9:30am and Sean's at 10:45am. I was afraid that they would both be at the same time and I had no idea how I would choose which one to go to!

Brian's was a lot of fun. They had a couple of cute songs about Moms and had poems hung up in the front of the room. They did not have names on them and it was fun to try to guess which one was written by your child! I have to admit that it was harder than it looked - who knew so many first graders had the same handwriting! Brian's' said-

My Mom has blue eyes.

My Mom has yellow hare (hair).

My Mom loves granola bars.

My Mom makes the Best cakes.

My Mom is a good drower. (drawer)

Brian did get a bit frustrated because he was one of the last kids picked to read his card. He read the first few lines and then didn't want to read any more. I am not sure if he was shy or if he was mad. His teacher said that he did fine when they practiced. I think it was a little case of stage fright and that he doesn't like being the center of attention.



He read so quickly and held the card up in front of his face, so I didn't get a picture of his really reading it. With a little coaxing he was kind enough to pretend like he was reading it for Mom! What a nice boy! On the outside it says, 'I love you Mom!' with flowers and a picture of Brian and I wearing Raven's uniforms! The inside of the card said - 'My Mom Is Very Special. On Mother's Day She Really Likes A Lot Of Jewelry.' All I have to say is, That's my boy! After the readings the kids served us bagels and donuts with juice. We read our other cards and they gave us the little flower pots that they made us.

Sean's tea was very nice too. They got up in the front of the room and sang a few songs. Then they too served the Moms. We had muffins and cookies and coffee cake bread. It was yummy! I also got a card and a votive candle holder!

Sean and his best friend Reilly

I am always amazed at the way the Sean sings. He does such a great job and puts his whole heart into it! He always does all of the hand motions and has a big smile! Great job Sean!

Paper Pregnant!!!

It's here! It's finally here. In my mailbox! It's here! Did I say, It's here?

I got a letter from our agency today. It is the one I have been waiting for. The one that has a copy of our home study so that we can submit our I-600A form to USCIS. It was in there with the I-600A form and instructions to file the form. Only that wasn't all. There was so much more.

Also in the envelope was a letter addressed to us. It started - " Congratulations! We are pleased to inform you that your home study has been approved and your name is on the list of approved families waiting for a match of a child from Korea." I almost fell off the chair. I thought our home study had to be in Korea before we were officially on the list. But this letter says that we are on the list! Wow! In the adoption world we are known as paper pregnant!

The letter went on about immigration and filing the I-600A form and ended with - "We rejoice with you that you are closer tot he time of receiving word about your prospective child. Please be assured that we are committed to doing all we can to bring you and your child together." Yep, my eyes did fill with a few tears. I am so excited!

So, I have to admit that this adoption thing has taken hold of me and made me a little crazy! After getting this letter I wanted to know, okay needed to know, if our home study was in the batch that went to Korea today. I called the main office. The woman I spoke to the other day was out of the office and some one else took the call. She was very nice and admitted that she didn't know too much about home studies going to Korea.

I asked if she knew if ours went today. She said it didn't and was in a pile that needed additional paperwork. Ugh! She said the other woman would be back on Monday and I could call and ask her about it. She didn't know what was missing and didn't know if it was something I needed to do or the agency needed to do. I have lived a life of things happening on Friday afternoons and holiday weekends. I am getting used to it and should have expected it this time too! She didn't even know if any home studies went to Korea at all.

I later found out that the director of the Korea program is also the director for the Ethiopia program. She has been in Ethiopia and will return next week. I don't know if she needs to see the home studies before they make it to Korea. Hopefully the problem will be resolved and we can be HSTK (home study to Korea) next Friday! But no matter when it gets there - WE ARE ON THE LIST! Paper pregnancy is wonderful!

Swinging Fun!

It was a beautiful day today - the perfect day to swing! Justin had his first ride in a swing - other than his baby swing - last weekend at the park. I got out the baby swing we had from Brian and Sean and hung it on the swing set. Justin loved it! He was laughing ans squealing! The boys took turns pushing him - one gentler than the other! I got some great photos of the boys. I should have I took a ton of pictures!

Brian having a great timea genuine laughbeing sillyI love this one!upside down!Sean swingingserious facemischievous smiletrying to kick me!what a faceJustin swinginghair blowing in the breezeBrian pushingbelly laughsdon't look down!peek-a-boo

I love the crossed feet

Our Home Study Made it to Oregon!

I had an emotional ride on the adoption roller coaster and things haven't even really begun yet! I was told last week that our approved home study was sent to us and to Oregon on Friday last week. Our agency is only about 45 minutes away, so mail usually only take 2 days - and sometimes 1 day. If it was mailed to us on Friday, and today is Wednesday, then it should have been here! Even I can do the math for that! I called to check on it, because I have done enough reading to know that files get misplaced and things get lost in the mail. So, I called our NJ office and J confirmed that everything was sent on Friday.

I was not too worried about my copy, it was the one going to the main office that I was worried about. Since I knew I wouldn't be able to sleep without knowing one way or the other, I called the main office. I spoke to M and she said that she didn't have it but would check and call me back. About an hour later I was picking up Sean from school and when I got home there was a message from M. It said that she did receive our home study today and if no changes need to made, that it will go in the batch to Korea on Friday! I cannot believe it! I am beyond excited!

Vomiting, Diarrhea, Vomiting, Diarrhea...

The title pretty much sums up Sean's life for the past week. He has some strange virus that makes him only throw up in his bed when he wakes up! Can you say fun? You would think that I would have leaned after the first few nights to put a bucket in there with him! Nope it took me four nights to figure that one out! Because he felt better for the rest of the day I think that I figured he was better. I have washed his sheets and comforter more times in the last few days than I have in months! Luckily it was only one session of vomiting per day, but then the diarrhea started.

This was all so strange because I was accustomed to the 24-48 hours stomach flu. It was so bad that he had to wear a pull-up since he couldn't make it to the bathroom fast enough. I have had to wash more of his underwear and pants than I care to count! He also forgot to put a new pull-up on a few times and went on the couch and chair! So add scrubbing two - make that three cushions, to my list! But this not-making-it-to-the-bathroom only lasted until about lunch time. Then he ran around like his usual wild self. He never had a fever, never felt bad (except while getting sick), and always had an appetite! He wouldn't be Sean if he didn't comment on the poop though.

The first day he must have been embarrassed and tried to cover it up by putting a pillow over it. I did not see him do this and later sat in the chair. I didn't move the pillow until after I sat down and kept smelling poop. I checked the baby, the dog's feet and Sean's pants. I still couldn't figure out where it was coming from. It seemed to be all over the house and following me! A few minutes later, I walked by Sean and he said, "Mom I just want to tell you that you have poop on your butt!"

At first I thought he was joking, we are talking about Sean! I turned and pulled my pants around a bit - and sure enough there was poop on my butt! I asked Sean, "Did you poop somewhere?' He said, "Nope, not even in the chair!" Hey, I wasn't born yesterday! His attempt at reverse psychology wasn't going to work on me! As I walked over to the chair he ran upstairs, and thus leaving another clue to his guilt!

I lifted up the top cushion a bit and there is was! Yuck, yuck and double yuck! I took the covers off of both cushions and took them into the kitchen to scrub them in the sink! Just what I wanted to do today, especailly after just cleaning vomit from his bed! The only thing worse would have been if I had a stomach bug too! You can bet I had no sympathy for his illness and he got a stern lecture about telling Mom when he gets poop or any other bodily fluid anywhere in the house - or out!

I thought that he listened to what I had to say. Two days later he was yelling from the couch that he pooped on the cushion again! I guess I should explain that Sean likes to just take his clothes off for no reason at all. At any given time during the day, I can walk in the room and find him naked. I let him have his freedom and figure things are good since he is not doing it at school or out in public. I know how to pick my battles!

So, I grab a box of wipes and run into the living room. When I get there he is looking proud of himself and smiling. Hmmm. Maybe he misunderstood the talk? He says, "Look Mom! Look! I pooped a T-Rex leg!" You know, he was right. I could kind of see a T-Rex leg, although I probably would have said it looked more like Italy! I had to laugh and told him that it did look like a T-Rex leg! He clapped his hands and jumped up and down! Ugh!

Most of the time I have no idea what that boy is thinking or how his crazy mind works. He is one of a kind. And I have to say there is never a dull moment with Sean around! Anyone in need of some entertainment is free to borrow him! You will not be disappointed!