Test test test....

Testing..... Is this thing on?

Another finished project!

I knitted this for a family member's deer- themed nursery.  Sure hope she likes it! <3

What I learned....

I learned french seams:

I learned to double check before I cut (this was supposed to be a size 8 but after a cutting accident became a size 3!):

I learned how to make double patch pockets:

I learned that selvedge edges do not always line up with prints: 

I finally learned how to add a kick pleat:   

What a fun first sewing adventure!   

Sew didn't need another hobby!

The other day, I went to a fabric store to pick up another set of double pointed knitting needles and saw the place covered in little pillowcase dresses.  What a cute project, and to make it even better the dresses were for an organization that donates dresses to needy girls all over the world.  Hmmm.... what a great project to learn how to sew and also help a worthy cause!  So I dove in and made five sweet dresses!  I learned a lot and have caught the sewing bug....... ;).  Now where did I put those knitting needles?   

Testing?!?!

Oh, law......it's done been a whole two years since I blogged.  Huh.  Whatsablog?   I figure if I start back up, I may actually remember what day it is.   I'm still left  somewhere in January of 2012.   

what fun!

What I love the most about being a mom so far are the off-the-wall, from-outer-space comments and questions that pop up in the oddest times.  

(Ok.... that sentence was just crazy.)

The other day I was driving down the road when Caroline asked, "Mama, how do snakes poo-poo?  I mean..... they have to poo-poo don't they?  ..... How?"  (please read poo-poo like puh-eww puh-eww, you know, in the most southern way possible.... draw it out..... nice an' slow, and you'll have it exactly as she said it.)

Um.   Wha- whaat?  ;) (this is me trying not to laugh...)  Umm.  Uhhh.  Well, I guess.... they have butts? Yes.  Snakes have butts.  But we don't talk about snake butts.  Um- K?

Memory...

One of Caroline's most favorite games is Memory. 

And man, is she ever good?!

She plays to win, and usually I let her.

'Cause I'm skeered!  ;)

Serious concentration...

Aaaaannd.... she wins by a landslide! 

Other memories came back today...

She said while she was in China, she ate too many potatoes and puked on the way home.

So now that's why she doesn't eat potatoes.
(except french fries...they don't count!)

Fair enough, and nice to know!

She also drew a picture of a chicken dinner that her foster mother made for her. 

It was her FAVORITE!

But alas, I'm not sure I'll be able to re-create it... 

Any ideas on what this might be? ;)

Afternoon Shenanigans...

Oh, they look so cute!

*yawn!*

I can do it too, Thirsty!  See?

And for your viewing pleasure,

I present:  

CAROLINE CAM!  

(the commentary is cute!  But boy, where'd she get that southern accent?)

yes, Ma'am

So she calls me ma'am.  And I don't like it!  


ma'am |mam|nouna term of respectful or polite address used for a woman : excuse me, ma'am.• a term of address for a ranking female officer in the police or armed forces.• Brit. a term of address for female royalty.ORIGIN mid 17th cent.: contraction ofmadam .I don't know about you, but I want to be a mama, not a ma'am.  I don't want to be ranked as a "female officer" in my child's life.  Just this morning, after she asked if she could go to work with "Baba," knowing good and well that she  wouldn't be able to...    I got the Eeyore's version of, "yes ma'am."  *sigh*  And throw in some extra sad, mopey eyes, and then.....  I forgot to take a deep breath.  THE deep breath of mommy calmness.  So I said in my most chipper, non-confrontational voice, "Honey, who told you to call me ma'am?  I mean, you don't call Baba "sir?"  Right?  See... it makes me feel that you don't like me.  (MISTAKE!  SHUT YOUR MOUTH MOMMYINTRAINING!)  You know.... it's kinda formal.  Do you know what formal is?  No?  You know..... not relaxed.  Anyway, it's okay if you wannacallmemaa'm, but I was just curious."   OH man, ohmanohman, I did not just have a conversation about her calling me ma'am!  What the hey.  Our morning is off to a wonderful start!  Good morning, anxiety, frustration, and insecurity! Y'all are right on time!  

Parenting madness...

Hmmm, how did Harry Potter get in the mix?

I have SO many books on parenting and adoption.... so very many.  I must admit, I've only read three or four out of the very many purchased with the best of intentions.  I think they confuse me more than anything.  So during particularly hard moments of parenting..... I mentally go blank.  The only thought in my head becomes, "I don't know what to do!"  

She looks harmless, right?  Meow!  

So that's why I loved this article...

How to Land Your Kid in Therapy 

What I gleaned most from this was:
"there is no single foolproof recipe for raising a child."
Well that's nice to know.


I also need to remember that when she is feeling anxious, mad, or sad, (all emotions that I cannot handle from her) that I don't have to "visit" these emotions with her.  That's so hard for me to do!  I tend to be an emotion sponge.  I feel on a deep level other people's pain.   And then usually.... I turn the pain and negative emotion into something that I caused.... I turn it into my problem.... my responsibility.  No wonder I'm uncomfortable in this trepidatious role as a new mother of an older child.  This ain't supposed to be about me, people!  With everything that I have, I want to be a good mother to her.  I want to allow her grief to flow without hindering it with my fear.  I want to allow her to be angry because Lord knows.... I would be pissed to have been taken away from my family and friends, and everything that I've ever known.  


Boy, I have a lotta learning to do!  Maybe I'll go consult my library.  Heh.  

Where do I start.... again.

Sometimes I have so much to say, I can't even get one word out.  My mind becomes a jumble of emotions and feelings, and my thoughts get muddled.  So I'm just going to have to start somewhere.

uh...

I am now a mother.  There.   The process of becoming a mother was not exactly how I had envisioned it, but...  there you are.  A mother, none-the-less.  

I am an eleven month old mother to a seven year old child.  There were bound to be some hiccups in there somewhere.  

But I just want to say she is the most amazing little person I know.  She is the bravest little soul that I know.  She is kind, smart-as-a-whip,  perfectionistic,  entertaining, charismatic,  and beautiful.

Even though I still have days when I don't know how to "mother" her.... I know we are meant to be together.  And I pray, I do this mothering thing right...

Two weeks from today...

And yes... I am pretty much wigging out.

I don't travel well.

We'll leave it at that.

;)

So this is how my Saturday has gone...

New Camera, Thirsty yawning, the mattress is still there...

I washed Caroline's sheets, made Marc switch out the sconces in Caroline's room with the ones in our room, 

I helped Marc put up the chandelier,  

painted a new Cherry Blossom branch (which Marc said looked like a white lightening bolt... yeah, well I saw it too.) 

Gizamee slept, I painted the sconce that was in our room that was to be put in Caroline's room so it would match the chandelier,

and then

I did a little fun craft project.

The flowers go in Caroline's room...

but to see it you have to go to our travel blog. 

(Blogger is blocked in China so I had to use something else.)

www.ourcaroline.com

Come see!

Update...

We have confirmation that we will be leaving Sept. 4th and coming home Sept. 18th. 

 Oh, is that why I feel sick, or is it from the four shots I had to get yesterday?  Urgh.   :)

Oh my goodness, oh my goodness.....

Oh!                                Oh!

Oh my goodness!                Is this for real?

It's looking as though we      leave on September 4th!

We arrive in Beijing on September 5th! Tour Beijing on the 6th.

We fly to Guangzhou on the 7th, and get Caroline that afternoon!

Paperwork, touring, bonding, eating, crying (I'm sure,)

getting homesick, but having thetimeofourlives,

and taking WAY too many pictures,

and then fly home on September 18th.

All preliminary of course.  ;)

~WOW!~

~

I just know it!

I'm going to know something today....

I can just feel it!!!

(Even though it's Friday 13th.) heh!

Come on email!!!

I'm so excited!

This feels like I'm standing on the edge of a cliff...

waiting for someone to tell me

 when to

JUMP!

BIG BUTTERFLIES in my stomach!

Hurry up and Wait!

As soon as I get an official travel date

I can't wait to post it....

Right... 

here!

I've been oscillating between tears of joy and the look of a deer in headlights...

all the while constantly checking my email for confirmation. 

Good times.

At least my eye isn't twitching.

Oh, wait.

;)

He leadeth me...

Travel Approval takes on average three weeks.

It could be two; It could be four...

weeks.

After Travel Approval, you leave in about three weeks.

However, travel in October is not possible.

~AND~

This year the Asian Games are in Guangzhou during November,

making travel... highly unlikely.

So if it wasn't in September.... it was to be December.

We needed a miracle.

I needed a miracle.

I prayed...

many lovely people prayed...

Our wait for TA started last Thursday.

But Today... 

four days later...

~We Received our Travel Approval.~

My heart is beating so quickly...

my eyes are filled with tears...

I feel touched by God.

And I am so blessed.

~

I've been Happily Home Sewn!!!

Isn't it beautiful? 

I love it, Jessa!!!

I've been Happily Home Sewn!

Panda Schmanda....

Yippeee!

We're sending Caroline a package!

This time, 

it's a very personal package.

We are finally

"introducing" 

ourselves to her.

I found the cutest book at Hallmark.

It's a storybook wherein you record your own voice reading the story.

We took turns reading the pages.

Very sweet.

We are going to put our picture in the front of the book, 

so she can see our faces,

and hear our voices

when she turns the pages.

I am also going to hold a stuffed animal in the picture, 

and that will be sent to her, too.

The stuffed animal.

I was going to send a panda.

I bought the cutest little panda for her

awhile back.

But then I started thinking.

She already has a panda from us.

When we sent our first package,

a panda was included.

I didn't personally pick out that panda.

But still,

I didn't want to send her ANOTHER one.

PickyPickyPickyItHasToBeJustRightPickyPickyPicky.

So off I went to a lovely gift-store downtown.

I was on my lunch-break so I didn't have much time.

Around and around the WebKins table I went,

at least twenty times.

Pick up, put down.

I had a minor panic attack for a moment 

because I have NO idea what she likes.

Does she like blue?

Does she like frogs?

Are poodles and kitties too girly?

Is the blue hippo too babyish?

I finally settled on two kitties...

and then I looked up.

There on a top shelf were evidently new arrivals.

And then I saw it.

The cutest, sweetest, most sincere face I have ever seen on a stuffed animal.

That was the one.

THE One.

I bought it.

Along with the two kitties....

(What?)

When I got home, and took "The One" out of the bag...

I realized....

It is a PANDA!

It never crossed my mind exactly what it was...

it was just cute.

Maybe subconsciously I thought it was a raccoon?

Doesn't it look a bit raccoon-ish?

Oh well.

Doesn't matter.

 It's just right.

Godspeed little Panda.

Give Caroline all our love.

;)

On my Soap Box.... Organic Perfume.

And after reading about 

the terrible, 

scary,

icky,

chemicals 

that can be in fragrances...

I found this organic perfume apothecary called

Ajne.

Interesting.

So I purchased a sample set...

because it's next to impossible to determine 

if you'll like a scent

just going on description alone.

Oooh, what's in here?

Eh eheheheheeee!

Oh!

Little bottles....

pipets

and things...

I chose:

Vanille - too musky.  Eck!  Wash it off!  P-tuey!

Aphrodisiac - too "old-lady-ish."

But 

Novel Amour - hmmm, interesting.  It has notes of a floral, Fruit Stripe Gum. 

Don't believe it's quite my scent, but 

I think I'll try again.  

This time, I'll watch out for anything that says Musk.  

Musk = Yuck

 in my book!

Such Fun!

I glean too much enjoyment from

getting

small packages in the mail.

Well,

any size packages for that matter!

I'm on a first name basis with the Post Master.  

She probably reads my blog.

;)

Nah.