Thank You Melinda and Scott!!

Thank you so much Melinda and Scott! These two fabric squares are from Tim's lovely cousin Melinda and her husband Scott. She graduates this Spring and will be a Veterinarian. Their wish for Sophia is " We wish for you to have an appreciation and compassion for all creatures, and that your heart knows the love of a special pet".

Wishing Along with 'Much Ado' and 'Catching Butterflies'

Join me in making a wish for Jane at 'Much Ado' that her documents receive a final approval from China and she will soon be united with her child. Her LID has already passed through and she should have already received a referral.

Also, make a wish for Amy at 'Catching Butterflies' that her TA comes. She is on a tight timeframe and the documents need to arrive quickly.

Goodbye Hockey..Another Great Season Comes to an End!

Another great hockey season
for Zach. He really shined
this year as a defenseman.

His coach thinks so highly
of him that he has asked
Zach to help him coach
the defensive players on
his team next year.

It's Monday......

Have a great Monday everyone!

Enjoy Your Sunday!

I love Sundays! We just got home from church which we really enjoy because all of our neighbors go to the same church and we get to see each other and worship together.

Tyler, Katelyn and I are going to watch our neighbor boy Colin in a play of Rip VanWinkel.

We are having brisket and cabbage today for dinner in honor of St. Patrick's weekend.

Then tonight hopefully we'll relax and get a little laundry done so we are ready for next week.

Have a wonderful Sunday!

It is Spring on my Blog!!

I really appreciate all of your compliments regarding the new Spring look on my blog. The header is the 2nd one that Heather made for me. She really is very talented.
Even though it seems like Spring and Winter are still playing tug of war here in Michigan, I've decided that Spring has won!

Thank You Dolores and Shawn!

Thank you for this quilt square Dolores and Shawn. My picture doesn't do it justice here. It is very cute!

St. Pat is Bringing Great Luck! Kris @ 'The Mad Race for Macey' is DTC!!!

Congratulations! For those of us who have wished and prayed for Kris, this is fantastic news. You are on your way girl! If you would like to send a note to Kris, she is listed on my favorite blogs.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!!

Wear your green and have some fun!!!

Let this dog give you a big Irish kiss....

Canadian Adopting Parents

If you are a parent who lives in Canada and are adopting a child from China, please go to Carolyn's blog 'China Calling'. There is a link on my favorite blogs list. She has information on what you can do to address the issue of Chinese SN children not being allowed to be adopted in certain parts of Canada.

Happy Friday!!

I HAVE 3 POSTS TODAY, SO PLEASE SCROLL DOWN AND WISH GRANDMA A HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!

Ok, I got the brown envelope in the mail, but I have no idea what it means or how/when to process what is inside. What do I do with it?

Fun in the Mail!!

Thank you to the Hinchberger Family for this VERY FUN piece of fabric for Sophia's quilt. I still am a long way from having 100 pieces.

IF ANYONE WOULD LIKE TO TRADE QUILT SQUARES, LET ME KNOW!!

Happy Birthday Grandma Kathy!!

Happy Birthday Grandma Kathy!!!

Congratulations to my dear friend Steffie and the entire Beckering Tribe for being DTC! If you haven't already left an encouraging note, please do so by selecting 'Never Too Many' on my favorite blogs list.

The dinner went great. We actually ended up going to an Italian Restaurant. Thank you for all of your kind words and advice. You all are such a great support system for me!

Business Dinner Tonight

My boss called and asked me if I would mind having dinner with his good friend who is the Regional Sales Director for the company that I work for. He is in town tonight, so Tim and I are going to take him to a restaurant called Bonefish. Hopefully we will have a delightful dinner. I must admit that I am a little nervous.......

Spring Break.....Going Anywhere?

The ice on the lake is melting. The snow is disappearing and I can feel Spring trying to push its way through. I am so weary from the long winter and all of the sickness that it brought with it.
In two weeks I'll be sitting beside the ocean. I need our Spring Getaway desperately. Are any of you getting away for a vacation this Spring?

Check your Vehicle.....You May Be Able to Use Ethanol Fuel

I was at the gas station today with Zachary waiting to get a car wash and he was looking through my drivers manual. Come to find out, my 2003 Yukon XL can take Ethanol Fuel. We had to check my VIN number and it matches the group of trucks made that year that can take the newer fuel. I'm sure you all know that Ethanol costs less and is less harmful to the environment. It also supports American farmers which is a cause that is near and dear to our hearts since we live in a farming area.

Forgiveness..My Sunday Sermon I Guess

I found this somewhere out in blogland and love it. I don't have a lot of time to post, so I think this will be good for today. I have been a prisoner myself, the quote is really true.

Encouragement for My Sisters

Be strong my fellow mothers waiting for your children. I know that this is a hard road. But I also know that you won't lose the dream of your daughters. Hold it close. The timelines are changing, the rules are changing but we can't let it change us. I've been reading some blogs out there that are breaking my heart. Keep sharing your experience, even when it's hard. You are my pillars of strength through all of this. I am so looking forward to watching your days come and to seeing you united with your girls.

I need some parenting advice....what would you do?

Zachary's dream is to be an architect. He truly is brilliant. I'm not just saying that because he is my son, his past grades and testing results support this. Academics have come easily for him his entire life and he has been able to skate through school getting good grades.

However, there are few schools in Michigan where you can get a degree in the type of architecture that allows you to design buildings. The University of Michigan and Michigan Tech may actually be the only two. If someone has more information, please share. I need it.

Zach's heart is set on attending the University of Michigan. I have seen my friends children with 3.8 gpa's not be accepted. It's a very tough University to get into.

Zach is 14 years old, he is a freshman in high school. He knows that his grades count for college now. He has not been working really hard at school. His grades came yesterday and his cumulative GPA is 3.533. He was devastated. His eyes actually watered up.

So, here is my dilemma. I have a 14 year old boy with a B+ grade average who is on the honor roll. I can't complain about that, especially since it is his first year in high school. However, my sons goals including getting into a very difficult University.

How do I encourage him to step it up a notch and actually put effort into his studies so that he can achieve his personal goals without making him think that having a B+ average and attending Michigan State which is a fine school is failing?

I don't want to be one of those mothers who tells their child a B+ isn't good enough.

I don't want to be one of those mothers who lets their child think she doesn't think he can get a 3.8 and get into U of M.

What would you do?

2 Things I Picked Up at the Blog Party

I came across the blog of a family that is acting as missionaries in Haiti. I am mesmerized. I will follow their blog as long as I can. They have adopted several children from the area, including a darling baby girl named Phoebe Joy. They provide medical treatment and as much support as they can to the people around them. I strongly encourage you to visit www.livesayhaiti.blogspot.com and leave behind words of encouragement. They appreciate them. Different family members post.





Both sites are on my favorite blogs list if you want to take a quick peek.






I know that many of my on-line girlfriends are scrapbookers. I found this scrapbooking site and I think it looks like it could be fun. I signed up to get some of their e-mailings. You can check it out at www.realwomenscrap.com.

Celebrating Motherhood...the Ultimate Blog Party

I am the Biological Mother of 3 boys: Zachary age 14, Tyler age 11 and Elijah age 2. I am the Step-mother of Katelyn age 14. I am the soon to be Adoptive Mother of Sophia. I am the Godmother of Vincent and Savannah.

There are so many roles encompassed in the term Mother and they each have their rewards and trials. It's the toughest job I have ever had. The most demanding responsibility, it takes everything I have-my heart and my soul. And I thank God for every day that I have the incredible blessing to hear myself called Mom by my children.

That I have been so incredibly honored to be the first person to truly look into their eyes when they entered this world. That I held their bottles and their hands. That I received their first open-mouth kisses. That I brought them before God to be baptized. That I stood beside them on their first day of kindergarten, followed that schoolbus to and from school so I could be there when they got on and off. That they actually believed my kiss could heal any pain.

DisneyWorld, the dentist, hockey, soccer, t-ball, choir and violin concerts-I wouldn't miss it for anything.

So, tell me about your mother roles. Tell me about your joys and trials. I love talking to other Mothers-To-Be, Mothers and Grandmothers.

One Month LID Anniversary!!!

We are 1 month closer to our baby girl!

Today is a very special day for our family. It is the first month anniversary of our LID (Log In Date). What this means to a family adopting from China is that they are one month closer to their child. The wait for a baby can last for up to two years, so families celebrate the date that China acknowledged their paperwork. Tonight we went out to eat at Yen Ching which is our favorite Chinese restaurant and the children each received a special Chinese gift!

My Blog Make-Over Party!!!

Don't hate me because I'm beautiful...or at least my blog is!


Many thanks to my great friend Heather at Headmeister Blog Design for my new winter look!

Heather is a girlfriend of mine who is also adopting a baby from China.
She is using the proceeds from her blog design business to help pay some of her adoption expenses.

So, if you are one of the ladies who I have read is looking for a blog make-over, you can contact Heather on my favorites list at 'Digging A
Hole to China'.

As you can see, my header is fully customized. There are seven diamonds in the snowflakes to represent my family. No one else will have a similar design.

She also was very patient with me, as I am a perfectionist and asked her to revise two of the designs that she did for me. She happily made the changes I asked for and was thrilled with how happy her work made me.

So, feel free to leave me a comment about my new look and feel free to visit Heather's site!

SLUMBER PARTY!!!!!!!

Hey there party girls!! Welcome to my slumber party! I've invited my favorite girlfriends who are listed on my sidebar, so here's your chance to hang out for a while with us and meet some new outstanding women who I enjoy spending my time with.

When you drop in, click on at least one of the blogs on my favorites list and introduce yourself. I think it will be great fun and maybe we can get some new ladies to join the Ultimate Blog Party!!

Grab your pillows, I'm making snow ice cream and hot chocolate tonight. I also have a large box of chocolate truffles...perfect girl talk food...