Thankful

Yesterday, we had the opportunity to share Thanksgiving at our home with friends and family. Chip and I asked every guest to sign our Thankful Journal. We started the tradition a couple of years ago to give everyone a chance to reflect on and record what they are thankful for.

Some of the entries are fun. My youngest sister Anastasia wrote, "I am thankful for people and turkey and dogs. I love dogs!" My nephew Collin is thankful for water. My teenage sisters are thankful for sleep, chocolate and boys.

Others are poignant. Our friend Noline became an American citizen this year and is thankful that she was able to vote in the presidential election. Leon and Val are from communist Russia and are thankful to live in the U.S.A. My friend Jennifer, whose husband is a police officer, wrote that she is thankful "for my husband coming home safe each and every day."

I am thankful for my husband, beautiful boys, community, and extended friends and family. I am also thankful for all of the people who are lovingly caring for our baby girl in Ethiopia until she comes home to us.

Baby Sister's Dresser

Look what we did.

Before:


After:




I found the dresser on Craigslist for a great price. I knew I wanted to paint it a distressed black and add crystal knobs. I found the knobs at Home Depot for $10 a pair. They're actually door knobs that Chip adapted. I sanded and Chip painted. More nursery pictures later...

November Update on Sister

We received an update on our baby. She weighs 13 pounds and is growing and learning every day. This is what the Gladney rep in Ethiopia had to say about Sister:

"Her favorite is when you rub her stomach or shake her hand - she will give you a huge smile. Even just talking to her holds her attention, and she'll gaze at you with her big brown eyes till the sun goes down. Developmentally she is doing so well! She is ahead of the curve and can almost lift her head to 90º while laying on her stomach... Also, the caregivers tell me that she is eating quite well, which may explain her terrific weight gain. I'm so happy to see her doing so well, and can't wait for you to meet her!"



Take a look at her big brown eyes. Beautiful.

Baby Shower

A few weeks ago, my dear friends Eleanor, Eva and Jen threw a shower for me at my parents' home. The party was beautiful - fresh flowers, baby bootie petit fours from Stein's, champagne Mimosas, homemade girly hor d'oeuvres and lots of friends from all different phases of my life. What a wonderful way to celebrate our baby girl.

The hostesses and I started talking about a shower a few months ago when the time frame for an adoption like ours was much shorter. As our wait became longer, I was hesitant to commit to a date until it felt right. I think lots of adoptive parents struggle with the same thing. We don't want to be ill-prepared, but we don't want to get the nursery ready and fully-stocked only to have it sit empty for weeks or months. And we are scared to celebrate an arrival that could be delayed again and again.

For me, the time finally felt right, and the shower was October 19th. I was overwhelmed by the generosity and thoughtfulness of my family and friends. As I opened gifts and everybody oohed and aahed, this whole baby girl thing became very real. A couple of different times during the shower, I lost it and boo-hooed. Not dainty, lady-like tears, but serious awed-by-the-miracle-of-this-baby tears. I realized that our little girl is already loved by so many people. Family, friends and neighbors are all excited for her to get here. Can't wait to get you home, baby sister.

State Fair in October

We go to the State Fair of Texas every October - we play hookie and go during the week. It's a tradition Chip and I started in the early 90s when we moved to the Dallas area after college. The boys love the fair - the Ferris Wheel, corn dogs, funnel cakes, games, three-headed snakes, butter sculpture and petting zoo. This year we even ate a fried Nutter Butter. You gotta love Texas! All day, the boys kept commenting, "We can't wait to show Sister the fair!"