59/365 It’s just an apple...

...I was eating.

I was happy looking at the seeds that were exposed by an overzealous bite.

Little seeds of hope...so small with so much potential....nestled away, just waiting for their opportunity to flourish.

Then I smiled...even though it's just an apple.

58/365...what???

Imaginary texting? Really???

57/365...learning...

Today was ‘Open House’ at Tae’s school. I love looking at all the projects they have been working on. This is a mobile that she made. On one side of the card she wrote the things she liked or was afraid of when she was a baby, on the other side she wrote how she feels about those same things now. The purpose was to show the kids how people grow and change.

Don't you just LOVE that toothless grin?

56/365...Tae met a new friend...

...and then she fell in love! She held him like this for about 30 minutes!

I wish the picture was better. Bad light and I forgot my camera...for the 2nd time!

Congratulations to…..

Laura Willard….FLIP!!!!

AND

Michelle Kelker…for the $25 gift card!!!!

Thank you to everyone for participating. It was a lot of fun and we really appreciate the support!!! xo

55/365...A Daddy trip...

54/365 A nice change...

...dinner made for me instead of by me!!! Lucky Mama!

53/365...just another....

...winter day at the park!!!

Seriously??

This is my windshield after something was either kicked up by or flew out of a pickup truck. I won’t tell the whole story…but, it involved the freeway, the rain, and me frantically trying to get two elderly men to pullover…and them ignoring me. Pretty scary to have something big enough to make this type of crack come flying at your face…

view from outside

view from inside

52/365...the sound of....

...her laughter makes my soul sing!

Tae has been showering us with fits of rolling laughter…you can’t keep from laughing yourself…it’s contagious. The sound is magical. The moment is magical. She is magical.

…and in the blink of an eye…

Seven years went by…

Happy Anniversary to my hard-working, dream-sharing, hand-holding, heart-warming husband….I am such a lucky girl. I love you!

Only 4 Days left....

Click here  to enter for a chance to win a Flip.

we had to move up the end date...sorry.

51/365...LoVe...

You can read the adoption post for this picture here :)

Here we go...

The adoption process is long; it truly is a life journey. For us it is a journey across the world, but even more a journey of the heart.

Today I sat down and, without thinking about it, I made a list of items we will need to get for Milo’s room. Items for a little boy, our little boy…and it hit me…this is really going to happen! We are really going to become a family of four, we are really going to have a son, Taegan is really going to be a big sister…finally. We aren’t there yet, but we are getting close. We are closer than we have ever been before and I can feel it, I can feel him and I know he is waiting for us. And, a part of my heart breaks because I know the hard part is about to begin. The part where we see his face, and we love him even more than we love him now, and we are miles away, and we wait, and we feel helpless. I have been keeping myself busy for so long, working diligently toward this dream of our son, and now I wonder what will keep me busy for this last portion of our adoption??? What could possibly distract me from him??? Nothing.

I’ve always known that the path of adoption is difficult, that it is challenging and painful. Our journey so far has been long and emotional, but the discovery, and the growth has changed us, for the better, and we are so grateful for that. Today, I realized where the pain and the challenge lies and I took a deep breath to prepare myself for the ride ahead….because the real journey is about to begin!!!

The support that we have received has really made this journey possible. I feel that simply saying thank you is not enough…..then I remember the beautiful life that will be joining our family, his smile, his laughter…his everything…and I know that you will all rejoice in our dream fulfilled. So once again, thank you!

50/365...love making orders!!!

The Smiling Heart Etsy Shop

49/365...Date night...

Would you like one of these?

Would you like a $25 gift card???

If you want to learn more click here.

You should really check it out...join the fun!

48/365...a simple joy...

47/365...Way to go Tae!!!!

…since Tae had so many sick days and there were various other delays due to school activities, she finally took her spelling test today and look….She rocks!

46/365...business and dinner....

...it was a girl date…Tae would not touch her food until her homework was finished…sometimes she makes up the strangest rules!

45/365...Happy ♥ Day...

44/365...creative girl...

43/365...made with LoVe...

42/365...hilarious….

We read this story twice tonight and laughed till we were in tears…Love…

41/365...Reminders everywhere...

40/365....she is sweet...

My baby has been sick…third day home with Mama, eighth day of school she has missed in a month :(

Tonight I tucked her in bed and then decided to join her for some snuggles. She nestled into me, wrapped my arm around her, and laced her tiny fingers through mine. I smiled at how small her fingers still feel. She was asleep in moments, her gentle breath tickling our hands. She is soft, she is sweet, she is kind, she is LOVE.

39/365...field trip...

Go Dog Go....it was fantastic....Tae was still talking about how funny it was as she was snuggling down for bed...love her...

38/365...With my own two hands….

Puzzle Update…5th month’s progress…

Update time!!! This month (January) the Puzzle Project added 29 pieces!!!! I know…TWENTY NINE pieces!!! This brings us to a total of 120 pieces sponsored. SO exciting! As always, we are SO grateful for all of the love and support that everyone has sent our way! We really are getting closer to our little guy every day. Dossier documents are still being collected and we are chugging along!

Only 380 pieces to go!!!

We will be starting another fun fundraiser later this week so make sure you check back…especially if you like prizes!!!

For January, we would like to give a special thanks and lots of LOVE to:

♥ The Wichman Family ♥ The Soetan Family ♥ Nick & Jo ♥ Michelle ♥

[caption id="attachment_385" align="aligncenter" width="490" caption="120 pieces sponsored"][/caption]

37/365...My Poor Bug...

...has another bug :(

36/365...just like me...

...It is so fun getting toys for Tae that I loved when I was a kid…did you have one of these??? They are much sleeker now with the new battery operated, flat screen model....Yet still the same! Ice cream anyone?

35/365...Freaky...

...I am still tying to figure it out...

34/365...I knew she could do it...

I’ve noticed a little silliness in Tae during gymnastics. The silliness typically emerges when she has to work on something she hasn’t mastered…she gets discouraged and acts like a complete goof. There is a fine line between having fun in a class and being disrespectful of your coach. I want her to have fun, but I don’t want her to be one of those kids. I told her last week that if she can master her pullover, I will buy her a new leotard…aka a gymnastics treasure.

Her response in a whinny, annoyed voice … Ma-OM!?!?! (insert limb flailing) Now I really have to try!!!

She did a perfect pull over each time…nothing wrong with a little bribery motivation!

33/365...progress...

http://www.thesmilingheart.com/



32/365...silly girls...

...I love watching the bond between these two grow...they are quite fond of each other :)