Saturday Mornings....

...are pretty much my favorite. I've just started a new book and i think that Emma and i are on the downward swing of our being sick. We may even sneak out of the house today as i think we both need to get outside and away from the house for a bit. We snuck out yesterday to visit the local plant nurseries and see the koi fish at another. Emma was lucky-the guy on duty where the koi fish are let her feed them! Now, it seems, we need to have a koi pond in the backyard.

I just finished reading "Double Down" and it was really a good book. The book i've just started, "Race of a Lifetime" is by the same authors and it's starting off to be a good read, too. Political books like these are a favorite, as are biographies. "Race of a Lifetime" deals with the 2008 Presidential Election, so needless to say, i'm a bit late in reading this best seller, but better late than never. There is nothing like getting lost in a book; it's truly one of my most favorite things to do. I just hate that it seems to take me so much longer now to finish a book!

We are sponsoring a sailor again who is out at sea....so very excited to do this again. We do this in Matt's name. Matt is Robert's nephew, who was also a sailor but was lost at sea a few years ago in the Gulf of Aden. It's hard to think about Matt...such a young, smart, intelligent man with his future in front of him. He was following his dreams and his ending should have been so much different. But God, it seems, has other plans and these other plans sometimes make no sense. We have a 'girl' sailor, which is really cool. I was able to hear from her this morning and that, too, was very cool. Emma and i are working on a Care Package for her and as silly as it sounds, it is so much fun to put it together for our sailor. I can't imagine life on a ship like that!

Lots of fun baby news around us....a friend of Robert's son has a wife who is expecting her first baby. I believe that this little one is due just in time for Christmas, too. I also have a long time friend who has a young daughter is expecting her first child with her husband in mid-February. Both girls are relatively young but both of these young women seem exceptionally strong and so in love with their husbands. Yes, i wonder if they are too young, but you know, my Mama had me pretty young, too. And yes, i do realize that my Mom had me a long time ago and that times have changed. But looking back at photos, i can see how my sister and i "grew up" with my Mom and it makes me smile. My parents took us everywhere with them; if we couldn't go, then no one went...and i have a feeling that both of these young women will be wonderful mothers. My friend's daughter is a bit special to me as i've seen her grow up from a kid to the woman she is becoming now. I'm not sure how the parents feel about their young daughters (okay, they aren't THAT young, lol....just young to me!) being pregnant; i imagine there is concern about how they should have waited till they were more settled, had more money, better jobs, etc. but i hope that they will realize that these babies are something that both young women wanted. They both wanted to become Mothers and have families...and i'm willing to bet everything will turn out fine. I am hoping that i can be an "honorary" aunt for my friend's daughter--because you know, i'm much to young to be a grandmother. :)

Well, it's time to find some lunch and then, perhaps, get out for the rest of the day. It is a beautiful day today with the sun shining and that's the kind of day that is best to be outside in!

It has been.....

....a very long time since i have been this sick. In fact, all three of us are sick--which, if you're a Mommy, you know that is a disaster. Poor Emma and i basically have laid in bed for almost a week, fighting off this yuck.

Sickness around here usually follows the same MO:

Emma gets sick first.
Robert goes next.
And then i fall down hard and fast.
Trust me when i say that when i fall hard and fast, it's not a pretty sight.

I ached in places i forgot i had.

Emma is finally coming around.

Robert is slowly coming around.

Me?

Not so much.

But i have a peach of a husband who made a roast and homemade mashed potatoes tonight for us. I was too scared to eat as much as i wanted to, so i just had a very small bowl of the mashed potatoes with the yummy gravy. The smell was amazing....but i was right in not eating too much as i could feel my stomach wanting to get rid of what i had eaten.

Hopefully, we will all fully recover this week.

Right?

Today....

....seven years ago, we became a family of three.

That moment, seven years ago, was the most amazing moment for Robert and i. I have no doubt that moment will be cherished forever by both of us.

I remember every detail of that day....counting her fingers and toes, praying over her, holding her close while she held on to my finger with her little hand. I remember her falling asleep on me, still holding my finger. I remember her looking into my eyes with her big, brown beautiful eyes...what a moment for me.

And as grateful and thankful i am to be her Mama, my heart aches for her birth mother, who may have felt she had no other choice than to place her first, little daughter up for adoption. I constantly pray for S, trying to desperately let her know thru my prayers that her little daughter is much loved, safe and is growing up to be a funny, smart, people-loving little girl who has her eyes, her nose and her hair.

So, you see, my happiness happened at the expense of another woman....and i truly never forget that. I have to be honest when i say that knowledge has also changed me so much. It has made me look at adoption in a different light, changing long-held beliefs about what i felt adoption is/was and how adoption should come to be. It's hard to share those thoughts because i know that folks will think to themselves, "Well, you adopted your daughter the way adoption was...." and that's true. But one day, one day soon, i'm going to put my thoughts on the subject of adoption. I have a feeling my friends will not be completely thrilled with my thoughts....but i am hoping that they will understand them.

We love you, sweet girl....to the Moon and Back!

Home, Sweet Home!

After an amazing family vacation for two weeks to Hilton Head Island, we are home.

I love going on vacation, but i love coming home, too....i just can't describe the feeling of walking into my home. It's almost like i finally exhale and feel totally at peace to be home. Of course, i get that feeling of peace when i arrive at the beach, but there is something that i love about where i call home. Tennessee is one of the most beautiful states--really, i'm just not saying that because i now call it home. Honest.

I managed to end up looking like a racoon with my sunburnt face....but i didn't care. No makeup for almost two weeks felt good-i did wear light makeup one night when we went out to eat at Hudson's. I managed to keep my face moisturized so it didn't feel like a piece of old leather and i got sun gradually instead of getting burnt my first day out. You finally learn that wisdom as you grow up, i guess.

Emma loved the beach and the pool. She had a wonderful time as she made friends with everyone she could while practicing her swimming. This kid loves water and loves to dive underwater. I'm now looking into lessons where she can get even better; but wow, those lessons don't come cheap. The biggest surprise was watching her take to seafood. One night, Robert brought us almost 4 lbs of fresh shrimp for dinner and i couldn't believe how much Emma ate. She loved shrimp! She peeled her own shrimp and ate her weight in shrimp. It was fun to watch her try new things....

Lots to do here at home....laundry and putting the house back together after the upstairs overflowed a few weeks before we went on vacation. All of the repairs are made, but carpets need to be cleaned, beds need to be moved around, sheets/comoforters bought and beds need to be made. It's been overwhelming, to say the least. Thankfully, Emma goes to camp next week during the day, so i think i can finish up then.

Back to my work....