{big & strong}

my mom just emailed me this photo

of Claire & my Dad

this is the face they make after

Claire eats

because as we all know

food makes you 

big & strong

THIS is why they created the word 'Re-DONK-ulous'

On Saturday, Claire went to the 3rd birthday party

of one of her little girlfriends.

It. Was. Amazing.

Not just amazing, but 'putallotherpartiestoshame' amazing!

The theme was 'Alice in Wonderland'

(the Disney version)

I got there a bit early, so I was able to get some pictures

without all the twenty-seven 3 year olds 

that would be arriving.

Get ready... I took a lot.

When you first arrive, you have to go through

the Rabbit Hole

Then you come to the door

Don't forget the special drink

So you can shrink down to fit through the door

Walk through the gate, and follow the signs

The Queen's House of Cards

The Mad Hatter's Tea Party

{complete with a kid size table}

The Pink Birthday Throne & a Close Up of the Center Pieces

Yummy Cookies & Delicious Apple Juice Tea

And a Tea Party wouldn't be complete without

ALICE!

{Claire stalked this poor girl. She followed her everywhere}

I'm not sure what the girls were looking at

but Claire's expression cracks me up

So a BIG Happy Birthday to Matea

I am SO GLAD that you and Claire are friends!

{and it's not just because your Mom knows how to throw a party!}

Taking One for the Team

One thing about making hair accessories for girls

is that I have a built in 'model'

that I can use at a moments notice

(and she's pretty cheap labor)

But now that little Charlie will be joining us soon

I have to start 'expanding'.

And no, I'm NOT making these myself.

I'm 'partnering' with another company.

This way I can have exclusive prints 

for my customers. And only

sell them when I feel like it. 

(which will start July 5th if anyone is interested)

So until your brother arrives, 

you'll be taking one for the team, Claire.

Thanks a million!

Going for a Walk

To get out of the heat, I decided to go up to my parent's house - where honestly, it felt a good 15 degrees COOLER than it does where I live. Claire was super excited because I can't think of a person she loves more than my Dad. Grandpa Dean has been a long standing favorite... for quite some time. So after we had lunch outside on the porch, my Dad and Claire took off to do fun things and maybe go on an adventure or two. A little while later we were called out to get a glimpse of some of the highlights. 

Claire demonstrated  how she can jump

while holding a rope.

The Walking Stick Duo

The Walking Stick Duo in motion

going up the path to the...

Hammock!

Apparently Claire has to sit with my Dad 

because when she tried to sit by herself...

she fell out. 

(or rather it flipped over)

Overall, it was a fun way to spend the day.

So thanks a ton Mom & Dad!

New WBC

Yesterday we received a new WBC for Charlie.

{this is where I would insert a new photo of him}

There weren't any new photos.

But beggars can't be choosers, right?

So here's the rundown:

He gained just over a pound and now weighs

14.96 lbs

He had a big case of diarrhea

(enough to where they notated it. hoping its

just a quick bug, and nothing serious)

He's starting to sit on his own

(ranked 'poor' for stability)

He can pull himself up to the standing position

(ranked a '+' for that!)

He's babbling

(I wonder if it sounds different in Korean?)

Overall it was a good WBC. Today Charlie turns 9 months and his WBC was done on the 15th. He's currently assessed at a 7-8 month developmental level (which we expected) and he's increased his intake of Nutramigen (oh how the dollar signs are increasing as well...). One of the great things about the adoption forums I'm a part of, is that you get to 'meet' a ton of different people... and chances are, some of these people have experience in what you're going through. I was actually able to talk to 2 different ladies who have kids with some of the same GI issues as Charlie. One person in particular, her son is now 15 years old. He leads a totally normal and healthy life, and it was  so encouraging to hear her tell me their 'story'. One of the things she told me is that her son never really crawled. He started walking and crawling around the same time (just over a year). Which actually makes a TON of sense to me. I would think their little bellies are just a bit more sensitive than the 'average' kid. Just hearing some of the things I can 'expect', was so incredibly helpful. Things I never even thought about - but again, made total sense to me. 

Yesterday I was able to mail off our I600 and the I600a. Now we really can just sit back and relax wait our turn. I doubt it'll be very relaxing, but I'm certainly going to try and keep my craziness under control this time. From what I understand, we have a good month before I can start freaking out over what's taking so long. But I think in total my wait for approval of both forms could be around the 2-3 month mark (I THINK). 

Alright, I think I've bored you all enough. I'm off to get some lunch. 

Hope Is Fading

Today on the adoption forums that I'm a part of, 

someone posted the link to this short video.

It totally made me cry. 

I don't believe that everyone is called to adopt.

But I think we are all called to help.

And that 'help' can be in many different forms. 

Maybe it's sponsoring a child. Maybe it's offering support

to an adoptive family who just brought their child home.

Maybe it's just through prayer.

All I know is after watching this, I just 

wished there was something more 

I could do.

Hope is Fading from Allan Rosenow on Vimeo.

Getting the Crazies under Control

So today was a much better day. I don't feel as crazy and I'm hoping that this 'feeling' will last me the next 4-6 months. To help erase the pain of yesterday, I did the only logical thing possible, and turned to my beloved KDramas and ate ramen with my new stainless steel chopsticks.

I bought this super cool set at Little Seoul's. 

Metal chopsticks are unique to Korea and since everyone

in my Korean Dramas eat with them, 

I pretty much have to as well. 

They use the long spoons to eat rice - they don't eat

rice with their chopsticks. And I have to say, there's

something about these spoons and chopsticks that makes

makes the food on the KDramas look so delicious!

I even want to get the pot they use to make ramen in

and use the lid as the plate!

(if you watch KDramas you know what I'm talking about)

Currently I'm watching 'Dandelion Family' 

but I have to wait until tomorrow for the next episode.

So I've been dabbling into 'Pink Lipstick' which

has turned out to be super crazy. 

I found this flow-chart that helps

explain how everything is tied together.

I think that pretty much explains everything.

And in total randomness, I noticed this

while Claire was eating lunch: