Santa.

Yesterday, we went out for breakfast and then to see Santa. Stella almost backed out several times but after an hour of waiting-she had the courage to go speak to Santa:)

She gave him a very long list of random items....like a trumpet and a telescope and was so proud of herself when it was all over! Very sweet.

Merry Christmas!

The most wonderful time...

Our family has had a few days off together and i'm SO thankful! Christmas time with a 3 year is really special and her excitement about the holiday is incredibly sweet.

Stella has loved decorating cookies, handing them out to neighbors, going 'sleighing', drinking hot chocolate, and helping daddy shovel the snow. Everything is so exciting for her! Especially the Christmas lights and holiday cartoons (her favorite is How the Grinch Stole Christmas). Here are just a few pics from the weekend.

Her 1st Snowman.

Working on Christmas cards.

Getting gifts from Uncle Ty Ty and Aunt Ju Ju.

And giving gifts to Uncle Ty Ty and Aunt Ju Ju. She was so excited that she told them what it was before they had a chance to open it:)

We are looking forward to a simple holiday and making lots of memories together. Tomorrow-we go see Santa. Stella doesn't really want to.....she thinks he's a 'little scary'....so i'll keep you posted:) I would love a picture this year. Last year, it ended up being just Santa and I in a blur because Stella was running away. We didn't buy it but luckily Brandon had his phone handy and snapped a crappy shot. Hopefully we'll do better this year!

It's been so long!

It's been so long since i've updated my blog! It is my goal to do this more often:) So much has happened over the last 2 months.....it's hard to know where to start!

So-I'll start off slow, with some pictures to hi-light a few of the special things we've been doing lately.

1. Stella turns 3! All I can say is that 3......is way different than 2! She is vocal....intelligent....emotional...and completely adorable. I feel like i'm dealing with a kid instead of a baby. She is hilarious and I tell her that she's my favorite on a regular basis.

2. Stella dressed up like a princess for Halloween again this year. She wears a tiara on a daily basis so I guess it was the best choice and I didn't have to purchase a costume! She didn't like the masks/scary stuff this year so we stayed inside most of the day, but she does LOVE one thing about Halloween.......CANDY CORN.

3. Our good friend Scott Bartlow celebrated his birthday and hosted a 2o's themed murder mystery party. So fun! I'm not sure what my face is doing.....but it was a lot of fun!

4. And a special one-Brandon hasn't even seen this picture yet:) Tonight he fell asleep with Stella and I came in and snapped this picture. He is on vacation this week and we are so happy about it!
More updates to come.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone.

sad day.

today, patrick swayze dies at the age of 57.

growing up, patrick swayze was always my favorite. i have vivid memories of acting out dance scenes from the movie dirty dancing with my girlfriends and trying to do 'the lift'. i have loved so many of his movies (some pics below).

msnbc writes:
Patrick Swayze, the hunky actor who danced his way into viewers’ hearts with “Dirty Dancing” and then broke them with “Ghost,” died Monday after a battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 57.
“Patrick Swayze passed away peacefully today with family at his side after facing the challenges of his illness for the last 20 months,” said a statement released Monday evening by his publicist, Annett Wolf. No other details were given.
Fans of the actor were saddened to learn in March 2008 that Swayze was suffering from a particularly deadly form of cancer.

2002.

Today I received an encouraging email from the Ethiopian team at our agency (Gladney) with some information about the New Year's Celebration in Ethiopia. Today is the the first day of 2002 in Ethiopia. Below is some info on the holiday.......

September 11th is both New Year's Day and the Feast of St. John the Baptist. The day is called Enkutatash meaning the "gift of jewels." When the famous Queen of Sheba returned from her expensive jaunt to visit King Solomon in Jerusalem, her chiefs welcomed her back by replenishing her treasury with enku or jewels. The spring festival has been celebrated since these early times and as the rains come to their abrupt end, dancing and singing can be heard at every village in the green countryside. After dark on New Year's Eve people light fires outside their houses.
The main religious celebration takes place at the 14th-century Kostete Yohannes church in the city of Gaynt within the Gondar Region. Three days of prayers, psalms, and hymns, sermons, and massive colourful processions mark the advent of the New Year. Closer to Addis Ababa, the Raguel Church, on top of the Entoto Mountain north of the city, has the largest and most spectacular religious celebration. But Enkutatash is not exclusively a religious holiday, and the little girls singing and dancing in pretty new dresses among the flowers in the fields convey the message of springtime and renewed life. Today's Enkutatash is also the season for exchanging formal New Year greetings and cards among the urban sophisticated in lieu of the traditional bouquet of flowers.

happy.

i'm a happy girl. wanna know why? this week, a lot has been accomplished for our adoption! we have rec'd the approval from uscis that i've been waiting on! we rec'd our notarized homestudy in the mail! a few final documents have been submitted for our dossier and we await authentication and then.............the official waitlist!! hope everything goes thru ok and i hope to have great news to share in a week or two.

i know the waiting list just means more waiting but it's been a long road of paperwork over 10 months and this will be a big day for us. another step closer to my little girl.

adoption update.

i check the mail everyday hoping to find our final paperwork from uscis. it's not here yet! our homestudy agency told us that it would take 60-90 days to receive this. everything else is done and waiting......

when our dossier is finally on it's way to ethiopia, i am going to throw a party!! you will all be invited:)

i recently found this on etsy. there are lots of adorable items, like this one, that are sold for a good cause. i have yet to purchase anything, but i love looking at all of the unique things that are for adoptive families.