~ MIA "DANCES" WITH MEI MEI ~

Mia has been watching B*rney obsessively lately. She gets so excited when he comes on the screen and she knows when all the "funny" parts are coming and giggles her sweet laugh. The only other thing she will watch is "Sing and Dance with Mei Mei", which is quiet catchy...Anthony & I find ourselves singing in Chinese too! Big brother convinced me to put this video of Mia dancing on the blog - this was taken after rising from her nap - enjoy!

*Notice how she uses her props: a napkin and pocketbook!

~MEMORIAL WEEKEND ~

We had a nice, fun-filled long weekend. We had BBQ's and some seasonable weather ~ it has not been a warm spring here in NY so far. It was poppy's birthday (my dad) and we celebrated, with a BBQ of course - any excuse to be outside after a long winter is welcome.

While at my parents house, the kids planted some vegetables in grandma's garden. The boys look forward to this every year and mostly to picking their own cucumbers, tomatoes, etc. I'm sure Mia will enjoy this tradition next year with the boys. This year she carried around a spoon, digging where ever she could! (Eddie grabbed the cucumber seeds and planted them quickly, no sooner did he plant them, then he dug them up again!! "Look grandma!". Yes, grandma got a kick out of that one.

"Hmmm, what can I dig up?"

Pretty Girl

We then had a BBQ at our house with some close friends. It was a gorgeous day and we enjoyed preparing for our company - what a great day to be outside! It was also the first day the boys jumped in the pool - it didn't last long, even with the heater on, it was just about 70 degrees - "brrrr".

Anthony poses!

I was trying to get all 3 kids on this rock.

It is the perfect photo spot in our yard.

Only my big boy cooperated, but look at him!!!

Anthony & Eddie

(I love their t-shirts, they're from the G*p and

have an American flag made of baseballs and bats!)

~ Pretty ~

~Precious ~

Madison, Max & Mia have a "picnic"

Mia and her Godmommy

The prettiest girl in the whole wide world!

The boys love this floating tent, they ate in here

and hung out in here A LOT! Another great buy!

Anthony & Alexa leave NOT one kernel!

Penny spent the day under our weeping willow tree

(she does have a water dish here and had many "snacks")

Max & Madison are very weary of dogs,

so they felt somewhat secure knowing that Penny was in this spot. . .

but a major breakthrough happened:

First, Max pet Penny

(she's such a sap isn't she?!)

Then, Maddy snuck in a pet!

(Penny is in heaven!)

Thank you my friends for a fun day. What a great start to the lazy days of summer - we look forward to many more warm, sunny BBQ days!

On Memorial Day we stayed close to home, most of the day. Daddy and the boys and our neighbors went fishing, while Mommy and Mia spent some time together. We almost took a bike ride. . .

At first Miss Mia wasn't too keen on the idea -

then I rode around the court a bit and she got

more comfortable... but she wanted to walk in the stroller instead -

we went to visit Meggie for a while!

The boys ready to fish...even though they came home empty-handed,

their smiles showed a great time!

It was such a busy weekend,

I think we wore Mia out - if that's possible :)

I do not want to forget to thank all those who fought for our freedom - thank you does not seem like enough . . . HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY!

~ A YEAR AGO TODAY ~

I received the most exciting phone call of my life . . . it was 3 pm and we were about to leave to pick Anthony up at the bus stop. My father had stopped by and he was going to walk with Eddie and I; however, the phone rang and I looked at my caller ID to see it was my agency

(GWCA). This was it!!

Let me back track a bit here, I spotted Mia's profile on our agency's WC list on April 27, 2007 and filled out the application to adopt her. I was told that our agency would review all the applications and choose which family would best suit each child. We could expect to hear back from them after May 21st, if we were chosen. O.k., so the weeks went by, Meaghan Grace's parents were leaving for China to bring her home, and I remember Michelle saying, "if you get a call from GW, call me immediately in China!". "Yeah, we'll see", was my response...

Well, the days and weeks went by and I had this overwhelming feeling that I was going to get this call - I kept telling myself not to get excited and to keep my emotions in check. But, everytime the phone rang I ran to it to check the caller ID, and on this day there it was ~ my agency calling and I knew why!!

As I mentioned we had to get "A" at the bus stop, so I told my father to bring Eddie with him - I needed to take this phone call! I picked up the phone and was told we were chosen to review "Dan Dan's" file and we had 2 weeks to make a decision. . . I hung up the phone and flew down to the bus stop, heart racing, eyes bugging out of my head. I explained as calmly (yeah right!) as I could to my father what was going on - wow!!

We were emailed all the information they had on "Dan Dan" and I read quickly, yet decisively every detail about my daughter. There were growth & development reports, ultrasound pictures of her heart, medical information, personality traits. . . and then her pictures! I had trouble opening her photos and called my friend, Debbie (who happens to be Mia's godmother!) to help me out so my computer would read the file, BUT I told her DO NOT LOOK AT THE PHOTO BEFORE ME, I had to be the first one to lay eyes on her!

Then, she appeared on my screen

and I remember just crying. . .

She was a doll,

she was precious and her eyes,

oh those eyes ~ were calling me.

~ The very first picture ~

Oh, how I know this look now!

Do you know, before I even thought of calling China to tell Meaghan's mommy, well, she rang me! She checked our agency's WC list and noticed that "Dan Dan" had pending next to her name - "there's a good reason for that", I told her "THEY CALLED ME!!!"

The next two weeks were filled with every range of emotion. I was happy. I was scared. I was speechless. I was determined. I ran around to doctors and made phone calls like "a chicken without a head" (one of my parent's favorite expressions).

The outcome is obvious ~ Mia is where she belongs ~ home ~ and with her family.


I knew He was whispering to me all those weeks, preparing me for that phone call. There really is a greater plan ~ Michelle and I still cannot get over how close in age the girls are (3 weeks) and how close we live (same development) and all of the other "coincidences", if you believe that is what they are ~


What a blessed day ~ May 23th !

~ FIELD DAY ~

Eddie had his Field Day at his preschool yesterday ~ we had a sunny, yet windy & chilly day! It was perfect for the kids to run around and cheer their teams on. The teams were seperated into 3 colors; red, blue and "E" was on the super yellow team! The kids bunny-hopped around buckets, threw balls through hoops and into water buckets, among other races. My little guy has come such a long way since September, and I was thrilled to see a hug smile on his face as he ran the races ~ sweet!

~ Mia loved the playground ~

Of course, she found the castle,

as every princess should!

Such enthusiasm!

(Actually, the only way to get her to sit

still, so I could watch the races; was when

I pulled out this "lolly")

~ Go Eddie Go ~
"Wow, I got it in!"

"Yeah!"

I'm so proud of my boy!

He worked so hard and most importantly,

had FUN!

I guess this is just the beginning of the end of the school year activities. Another school year over (he does have 5 weeks left though), where does the time go? Don't get me wrong, I love the summer and having the kids home with me; but it's sad to say goodbye to another "year". My little guy will be starting kindergarden in the fall ~ yet it seems like yesterday that I sent Anthony off on his very first day of school. . . and he'll be starting 5th grade!!!

Where does the time go?

~ A DAY IN THE LIFE OF . . . ~

~ A Pocketbook ~
Kisses for my pocketbook!

"Yes Pocketbook & I are ready to go"

Eating lunch (and every other meal)

with her trusty pocketbook

~ playtime ~

See the pink strap?

Mia does everything with that bag over her arm!

~ naptime ~

(don't worry the handle isn't long enough to go over her head

~ safety first!)

We're up from Our nap!

~ Silly-girl and her pocketbook ~

Time for bed!

(if I do put Mia into her crib without her bag,

she will tap her arm over and over,

that's the sign for "I need my bag!")

I know this is a silly post, but we had fun documenting pocketbooks every move! I know this phase will not last forever, and I thought Mia would look back on this and laugh one day. She truly has a deep love for this soft, cute bag!

Where did she get it you ask? This bag was given to Mia by our sweet and thoughtful next door neighbor, Dee Dee for Easter! Thanks to Dee Dee we have a "backup" pocketbook: she had bought a few of these (thank goodness) for her granddaughters (who aren't as taken with it as Mia) and she smuggled me out another one for standby; when I have to wash it!!

So, I am happy to say because we have a backup bag, pocketbook has gotten a bath (I carefully placed it inside a pillowcase before throwing it in the wash) and it looked spanking new! When I hung the bag up in the livingroom to dry, out of Mia's sight; do you know Eddie grabbed it and said "look Mia your pocketbook is all clean"! Miss Mia was then walking around with both bags!!! I quickly grabbed one away and put it in the laundry room for safe keeping. . . until the next time it needs washing!

We love you pocketbook!

~ HAPPY FAMILY DAY MEGGIE ~

Todays a special day!

A year has gone by since Meggie joined her Forever Family!

Thinking back to last year, waiting with anticipation to hear from Michelle & Mike . . . I had so many questions - did she cry? did she walk to you or was she carried? what is that moment like? I was living vicariously through Michelle, as I had applied to adopt Jin Yu Dan but had not heard back from my agency ~ I wanted every detail!!

Mia and mommy stopped by to congratulate Miss Meg on her Forever Family day ~ it is always very sweet to see our girls together and to see their bond grow.
It is priceless.
We love you, Meg!


Hugs!

~ HAPPY MOMMY'S DAY ~

I am having a lovely and reflective Mother's Day. I am beyond thankful for these 3 beautiful and unique children. It took many years to get here ~ we are complete. I love my handmade cards and pictures, thank you for the hundreds of hugs and kisses today alone. You all made this a beautiful Mother's Day for me:)

A special thanks to my wonderful husband for all you "put into" today to make it so special!To all the mommy's still waiting to physically hold your children, Happy Mother's Day! I pray that you will feel the complete joy and love of your child sooner rather than later! You are always in my thoughts - had I not found Mia on that WC list last April, I would not be surrounded by my children today. I will always be thankful and grateful!

My mom, me and Mia

(my mom is blending into the trees & bushes!)

My parents stopped by for breakfast this morning. The kids adore their grandparents and love spending time with them. I am blessed with wonderful parents, but today I want to say "Happy Mother's Day" to my amazing mother. I love you and would not be where I am today without YOU!

Anthony & Poppy

My little guy inherited his love for baseball ( and his name)from my dad!

~ My darling girl ~

~ You inspire me ~

~ I could admire you all day long ~
~ I'm in love with you ~

(To all my Eddie fans, he was not "in the mood" for mommy-razzi today. I was lucky he agreed to take the first photo!) He spent much of the day gathering worms, helping daddy transfer plants; and when I least expected it, he'd charge over and hug me!

~ OUR VACATION COMES TO A CLOSE ~

UNIVERSAL STUDIOS: We were all looking forward to this day since it would be our first time going to Universal. I was so excited because they had Barney (Mia's favorite, "Bar, Bar", as she affectionately calls him) and Spongebob (Eddie's favorite). Anthony tried to convince us that Islands of Adventure would be much better (more rollercoasters and big kid stuff), but we decided "Studios" would be best, this time around ~ we promised our big boy we'd go to his "spot" next trip. Barb, me & Mich

You've seen and heard about the "4 of us" on this blog,

we were only missing Debbie, who couldn't get away from work :(

I know many mom's don't prefer the big yellow guy,

but he makes my little "E" so happy.

I love the way Mia is leaning in for a hug :)

Mia & Barney!

This was adorable and highly recommended.

Barney had his own area in the park!

He had a show with BJ and Baby Bop;

and afterwards we were able to meet him, take pictures

and play in the play area. All 7 kids in one spot!

Aunt Michie was thrilled Mia went to her!

Our girl is making big strides :)

**The dress Mia is wearing above is one of the dresses I had taken to China with us. When I put it on her (in China) it was baggy and looked too big. When I was packing for Disney and came across this dress - I was thrilled to see it fit her perfectly (mind you, it's a size 12-18 mos.!). My petite little princess is growing!

As it turned out Anthony went on some fun rides: ET, Men in Black, Jaws, etc. While the big kids went with the dads, us moms let the little ones play in the Curious George and Woody Wood Pecker area. It worked out real well and we all enjoyed this day!

BACK TO MAGIC KINGDOM: On our last day we chose to return here for some "unfinished business" !

First stop, was our photo with Mickey (and Minnie). I had had a strange "dream" of sorts the night before: we went to have our picture taken with Mickey and when I got the photo back there were two older people in the background. In my dream, when I looked closely at these two people ~ they were my grandparents!! (who passed away a few years before, six months apart from each other. They were married almost 65 years and were the BEST grandparents you could ever wish for. They loved Florida - had a home there in the winter and came back to NY to be with us in the summer). I don't see them in this photo below, but I know they were with us :)

Mia making herself at home in the store!

So. . . I left daddy in one part of the store and

went to do some shopping-

when I come back to him, I ask "Where's Mia?".

He points in the corner and this is what I see!

"Can they all come home with us?"

I guess Mia's not ready to leave yet.

This was Friday and our flight was 8:00pm this night.

We had a wonderful last day in Magic Kingdom,

and then drove straight to the airport.

"No, really I think we can fit them all in the overhead!"

GOOD-BYE DISNEY

WE HAD A BLAST!

THANKS FOR THE UNFORGETABLE MEMORIES :)