Having a blast being a mom

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-23T16:30:00.003-05:00

Logan is growing up WAY TO FAST... He is this amazing little person who is smart and handsome, he loves to draw and read. His baby teeth are falling out left and right and he became a Tiger Cub Scout this year. It's hard to believe he is in first grade, WOW! I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas and a Wonderful New Year!

My"Big Boy" lost his first tooth

2011-02-09T20:38:00.008-05:00

I know I have been REALLY bad about updating the blog. First Happy New Year, I know a little late but better than never, right?

Second my baby has had another big milestone, he lost his first tooth:0) It fell out yesterday in gym class, Logan was so excited about losing it at school, he got to bring his tooth home in a little orange treasure chest. Lost of other things going on and not a minute to write on the blog. Logan is rockin in school, he is reading just under a second grade level. He is above where he needs to be in all areas. I am such a proud Mommy. He got his first valentine note sent to him in school today from a little girl in his class, they had "Valentine Grams" that you could buy for .30 it was a card and a pencil, so cute. He already has a "girlfriend" I heard 3 while helping one day in class, but he says no just one and that is a girl named Sierra. I always knew I was going to be in trouble with him, he has ALWAYS liked pretty girls.

All is well around her besides the DEEP FREEZE that we have been in for a while now. I sure hope that Groundhog was right :0) I am sooooooo over winter!

Any ways just look at how handsome my boy is, he is growing up way to fast~

Just a cute pic :0)

Snow what fun...

Another big thing going on right now is that we are adopting again, but this time it is a little girl doggy who we named Lily. She will not be with us until March 15th she is still to little to leave her mom:0) Here's a few pics of her also just because she is so darn cute!

Santa

2010-12-06T14:07:00.002-05:00

I love my little Skeleton

2010-10-20T00:51:00.004-04:00

We went to our annual "Halloween Jamboree" this past weekend, so fun!

4 yrs, Already!

2010-09-22T14:31:00.003-04:00

It's amazing to me how fast these past 4 yrs have went by... I have watched Logan turn into this amazing, funny, smart, caring little boy. Don't get me wrong he has his moments but for the most part he is amazing :0) Wherever I go people comment on how good/polite he is and it always makes me smile.

Happy 4 years to our family and the Lang family, they traveled at the same time as us, what a GREAT journey we had to our two amazing little guys.

Kindergarten Already, WOW!

2010-09-06T14:30:00.003-04:00

I am surely not ready for my baby to spend 35 hrs a week at school... I think it's way to long for a 5 yr old who has a SAHM. Logan is very excited about going. Last week he was a bit scared, after going for package pickup, meet the teacher and pictures the other day he can't wait. In fact, the count down is on :0) He found out his best buddy and his "girlfriend" from Preschool are in his class and he is beyond excited :0)

So we had a great summer and I cannot believe it's over. I guess the older ya get the faster the time goes, bummer because my baby is growing up way to fast :0( We had a great summer, waterparks, beaches, parks, pool parties and Cedar Point, Lots of fun!

This past Saturday my husband decided it would be fun to fall 20 feet. He fractured his back, herniated 2 disc, fractured a couple ribs and took a few staples to his melon. Poor guy I feel so bad for him, he's in terrible pain and is having a hard time getting comfortable. Thank God no head trauma or internal bleeding, he is VERY lucky. Not sure how long he is going to be off work AND he is a pretty difficult patient, LUCKY ME! I hope he makes a full recovery and his back is not messed up forever. I already have pretty bad neck problems, Logan doesn't need two parents with bad backs.

So I will leave with with a few pics of my handsome little man and I will post some more tomorrow of the first day of Kindergarten.

It's been a long time

2010-07-10T13:09:00.005-04:00

Boy, what to even say??? Preschool came and went. It seemed like the year started and was over just as fast. Logan did great in school and learned so much. He did have some issues in the beginning, he was fine when I left him but when it came time to pick him up from school he melted down as soon as he seen me. It lasted only a few weeks and then he was fine. After Christmas break he started having issues with me leaving but that only lasted about 2 weeks and he was fine. His teachers loved him and he got a great review at parent teacher conferences. He is reading great and comes up with the funniest things. I have started making him do "homework" every other day so he doesn't forget what he learned in school. I am getting sad about sending him off to kindergarten but that is for a different post.

We have been so busy, we left for vacation the day after Logan got out of school. We have had party after party to go to and lots of other things going on. Logan took a "little Monkeys" class (intro to gymnastics) and now has started to take ice skating lessons. We have went to some community kids picnics in the park with clowns and magicians. Next week he has a week long cooking class to go to and then in 3 weeks he has a week long science class. Yesterday we had about 12 friends over for a pool party. Like I said, on the go, go, go.

I have posted some pics of preschool graduation and the last day of school at the park. There is one from a field trip to the nature center also.

Life is good and Logan is such a blessing. I CANNOT imagine life without him, he is the BEST thing EVER :0) Any ways here are the pics, next I will upload some from our vaca, it was great! If anyone is still reading my blog I hope your summer is as great as ours.

Happy Easter

2010-04-03T20:01:00.003-04:00

Went out to my Dad's for and Easter egg hunt. Had a lot of fun but man the wind picked up and the rain started. It was just enough to make it cold and wet but we all managed to have fun. We had two different Easter things going on last weekend but little man woke up on Saturday with a fever and it continued into Sunday so needless to say no pics with the Easter Bunny this year :0(

Have a wonderful Easter!

Me, Logan and my Sister

Happy 5th Birthday My Beautiful Boy!

2010-03-13T22:42:00.005-05:00

Although I really miss you little, I am loving watching you grow into this amazing person:0) I feel so lucky and blessed to be your Mommy...

Fun in the Snow!

2010-02-23T10:41:00.003-05:00

Even though I am SOOOOOO over the snow, Logan and I managed to have some fun in the 6 inches that came down yesterday!

Logan say's GO TEAM RUSSIA!

2010-02-16T10:08:00.004-05:00

We bought this jersey for him in Moscow when we completed our adoption and it was WAY to big, not anymore! I cannot believe how much my baby has grown.

Wow, Time Goes By So Fast

2010-02-10T13:01:00.003-05:00

So, we have been so busy. We are trying to figure out what is best for Logan as far as Kindergarten goes, half day or full day. I REALLY want half day but I will not find out until the end of Feb if they will offer it at Logan's school. I do have the choice to put him in a different school if they don't offer it but I feel uneasy about that to. I don't want to bounce him around from school to school. He is in a free standing pre-school now so if he can't go 1/2 day at his school then he would be in 3 different places before 1st grade and I don't like that. So I guess if they don't have half day at his school we try full day and see how it goes. The half day program is the same as full day they just don't have a lunch and rest time. Gosh, please let there be half day:0)

Last weekend we went and watched Jeff's god-daughter in her dance competition... They rocked, placed 2nd in 2 dances and 1st in the Hip-Hop and then took grad-champs over all, way to go girls!

Logan is doing great. He LOVES school and has made a lot of new friends. He is reading new words everyday and blows me away at how smart he is:0) He started swim class w/one of his friends from school and he loves it even more w/Josh in class with him. We have a few invites to b-day parties for friends from school and then his is next month. I CAN"T BELIEVE MY BABY IS GOING TO BE 5, OMG!

Any ways, things are great on our end...I made a little slide show of our happenings over the last few months...

Something to HELP Haiti

2010-01-18T16:37:00.001-05:00

I thought this would be a GREAT way to help a little when it comes to the devastation in Haiti. I copied this off of someones blog so help and do your part today. It will only take a few minutes of your time.

There are hundreds of Haitian orphans who are awaiting final approval for adoptions to families in the U.S. The building in Haiti where the adoptions are processed was destroyed in the earthquake. It may be years before the processing can resume.

However, the U.S. can grant temporary visas to all orphans whose adoptions were pending before the earthquake. With the grant of visas the oprhans could then come to the U.S. to live with their adoptive families, but be classified as "foster care" children until the final paperwork is completed. In granting the visas, the evacuation of the hundreds of orphans stuck in this limbo will free space in Haitian orphanages for the thousands of new orphans that have been created by this emergency. Please note that under U.S. rules, any family that applies to adopt a foreign child must first be certified as a foster care family, so there is a safe-guard system in place to insure that these oprhans who would come here under this plan will be safe.

PLEASE, PLEASE. Contact your U.S. Senators asking that they put pressure on the United States Citizenship and Immigrantion Service (USCIS) to grant "temporary visas" to all Haitian orphans now in orphanges awaiting the completion of their adoption process.

This is a real way to help and it will cost nothing. You can send Emails by going to the website for the United States Senate (http://www.senate.gov/) and finding the links to your two senators' websites.

If you have contacts or friends in any agency of the U.S. government who could push this idea with USCIS, please reach out to them to help, too.

Some Snow Fun

2010-01-14T15:58:00.002-05:00

The Only and best way to get some use out of the deck in the winter :0)

Moscow for the New Year!

2010-01-03T14:23:00.003-05:00

No we weren't there but it sure looks beautiful... Thanks Dave for sharing the pic!

Good Bye 2009, Hello 2010!

2009-12-31T22:11:00.003-05:00

So much has been going on this holiday season. I will get a post up of some fun things that we did but for now I wish all a Happy, healthy and safe New Year.

A little snow to play in today

Merry Christmas from My Family to Yours~

2009-12-24T09:53:00.002-05:00

Personal Video email from Santa

2009-12-14T14:57:00.001-05:00

Click here to get a personal video email from Santa to your kiddos..... Very Cool, Logan loved it :0)

Santa!

2009-12-08T14:37:00.003-05:00

Christmas Tree Fun!

2009-11-29T11:46:00.007-05:00

We always go and cut down our tree, it is something Jeff and I have done since we were just dating. It is such a blast now to take Logan. This year he picked the tree, well he insisted on the one we got :0)
We had some friends join us this year, they loved it and said it is now a tradition they will do with their children. Thier first is do Dec 28th

Gosh, it looks like they are standing in the middle of a forest not a Christmas tree farm, LOL!

Circus Fun!

2009-11-24T23:16:00.006-05:00

We went with my friend Tania and her daughter Julia to the Ringling Bros Barnum and Baily Circus this past Sunday. It was a lot of fun and the kids seem to really enjoy it. Tania and I were both excited also neither of us had been to the circus since we were kids. Logan like all of the shows that he has been to could not take his eyes off of it :0) At times some skits seem to run a little long but for the most part it was a good show. It's always worth it just to watch Logans face.

This is a little off subject but my little man is writing new words all the time by himself. He wrote "i love you to" today back to me when I told him I loved him, he called me in the room and showed it to me as his response, amazing :0)

Funny!

2009-11-15T13:41:00.002-05:00

My little man is the funniest. While driving we smelled a pretty bad smell and he says yuck what's that smell, egg salad! I laughed so hard, is he funny or what.

Happy Halloween!

2009-10-30T22:39:00.008-04:00

My little Wall-e

Logan's school party
Logan and Mrs. J
My niece and her boyfirend came over to carve pumpkins and they stayed for dinner, fun :0)

This & That

2009-10-25T07:00:00.000-04:00

Logan has a new baby cousin~ Gabrielle, she was born Weds the 21st. Congrats to my brother and SIL. I told him he was no longer Nanny's baby and he said oh yes I am and tell her that. Logan was funny at the hospital he would not get near the baby for a good picture, maybe when she is a little bigger.

Logan did his first Word search, it had 8 words in it and he found all of them by himself. He really does amaze me everyday :0) I thought that was incredible for 4 1/2. He is reading like crazy these days and he just told me this morning that he now knows what he wants to be when he grows up~ a teacher :0)

We had a nice visit with Busia, we haven't seen her enough lately.
Other than that we are very busy and have been on the go. We will be heading out for a Halloween party in a few hours, so I must go and get ready.

BOO!

2009-10-15T20:03:00.002-04:00

Logan learned this at school~ I love it when he teaches me stuff.

Preschool Update!

2009-10-09T15:42:00.004-04:00

Logan is doing GREAT~ He LOVES school and if you ask him that is exactly what he'll say. The first few days were a little rough when I picked him up but we've had nothing but good days since He loves his teachers and I am so glad his regular teacher has been back since last week. Mrs. J told us on Monday that she loves this class and how smart they are. She said that she was starting them on the second half of the year curriculum because they are all so advanced. That really says a lot about the parents involvement I think.

I had a bit of a hard time figuring out what to do after I dropped Logan off at school, that lasted a whole 2 days. I barley have time to do anything, it's really only about 2 1/2 hrs, just enough time to do a few errands and then it's time to pick him up. It's really nice not having to drag him to the grocery store :0)

Fall is in full bloom around here and the color change is so beautiful. I sure am going to miss summer, more so this year because we really only had a few hot days. Our electric bill was a lot lower this year I'm sure because we had the windows open most of the summer. I think my heat has already ran more consecutive days than our air ever did between spring and summer, strange! We hit the cider mill last weekend with some friends and the boys had a great time. We had never went to this place and it was AWESOME, I think it's our new spot~ so much to do and very open so even with a lot of people I don't think it would feel crowded. Boy there is nothing like fresh cider and donuts, YUMMY!

I planted close to a hundred spring bulbs the other day, Tulips, Giant Daffodils and Grape Hyacinth. I can't wait to see them in the spring~ something pretty to look forward to :0)

We have been pretty busy and I am having a hard time finding time to blog so I may be going down to a once a month update, I'm still trying to figure it out.

Happy Fall~

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Something Strange is Going On?

2009-09-24T12:01:00.003-04:00

So my friend called me the other day and started telling me about this broom where her Mom works standing up all by itself. She said it had something to do with the way the earth was on it's axis right now. Of course I had to try this and it worked. I just did some Goggle searches for it and I found a couple of different things about it but not much. It seems like this is happening all over the country right now and some people say its because brooms can stand like that? I know my broom has never stood alone before so I tried it with my outside broom and it worked. Check out the video I took of it, even Logan got it to stand up. Whatever the reason is behind it I think it pretty cool. I just wonder how long this is going to happen for? So you readers out there try it especially you out of country readers try it with your broom and leave a comment if it worked or not.

3 Years Today

2009-09-22T11:24:00.005-04:00

Thank you Adoption Ark for bringing Logan into out lives. He is the greatest joy I have ever experienced in my life :0) I love watching him blossom into the great little boy he is.

Our first day with the "Chicken Man"

Boy has he changed
The Garden Fairy came and carved Logan's name into one of his Pumpinks he grew

Preschool

2009-09-16T15:40:00.005-04:00

So, Logan did great! After about 10 minutes he was all like OK Mom you can leave now :0) It broke my heart and made me very happy all at once. He was a BIT whiny and clingy when I first got there to pick him up. He didn't get to go outside today, things are a little hectic with his teacher being out for the first few weeks because of an emergency surgery. She is very upset about this and even started crying when telling us about it at parent open house last week. She is hoping to be back on Monday, we will see she had a pretty major operation.

Logan would not really talk to me after I got him out of the school. He was really upset. I will post more about that later as he is calling me to come and play. I have to say It was sad and hard leaving him but it was really nice to be able to run around by myself :0).

Here's some pics of the first morning by himself.

1st Day of Preschool~

2009-09-14T16:12:00.007-04:00

How cute is my little guy

We had to make a "ME" board, it turned out OK. I am not the craftiest person but I think it looks good! Logan went through and picked out pics with me and decided what stickers he wanted on it after the pic's and labels were in place.

Logan attended his first day today. I went with him, it was for only an hour so he could meet his teacher and get a feel for his classroom and what is expected from him when he first arrives. I think he is really going to like it:0) We will see how Wednesday goes when I try to leave. He was really excited this morning and did great getting ready to leave the house. I have been preparing him for this for the last month by talking about what is going to happen, and we have checked out several books on the first day of school. I could tell last night he was getting a little anxious about it so we talked about how he was feeling. I told him it was OK and all of the kids are feeling the same as him. He said he was a little scared and nervous but also excited. I told him I felt the same but I know he will love it and make lots of new friends:0)

To be continued until Wednesday~

Vacation~ Mackinaw City

2009-09-08T23:55:00.004-04:00

Make a Smilebox slideshow

We went up to Mackinaw City and then did a day trip to the UP one day. We were gone for 4 days and we had a wonderful time. The weather could not have been any better for us. I found a WONDERFUL hotel that we will stay at every time we go up now. Logan even said it was his favorite hotel ever and if we go back he wants to stay there again. If you plan to visit the area I really suggest this place, fairly inexpensive, free hot breakfast, waterpark, on the beach with a balcony that overlooks Mackinac Island and the bridge, heaven :0)

We met some really nice people and Logan made some new friends like he always does. We did not go to the island this year, not much to do for Logan yet and there was plenty to do in the city. We had plans to go here but Logan was not tall enough to do anything yet. You have to be 48 inches and he is only 44. We will go back in a few years to do all they have to offer.

We traveled to the UP one day and hit the Mystery Spot, Castle Rock and a Deer Ranch. All places were a lot of fun for all of us. I couldn't do the Mystery Spot because it made me really dizzy, it really through my balance off. The guys did it and they both thought it was really cool. I did the first room and had to leave with another lady. the climb to Castle Rock was definitely a work out so we took a short break on the way up :0) The deer ranch was fun also but I felt bad for the deer not being able to run free but they have a good life of Carrots and Crackers all day from us tourist:0) Being able to pet a deer was very cool, I thought the white ones were more soft but the owner told me that they are the same. I am still not sure if I agree with him :0)

Any ways, we had a great trip and I can't wait to go back in a few years to do the Zip line :0) Now the grind starts. We have Logan's Preschool open house tomorrow night for us parents, then on Monday morning him and I go together for his meet the teacher for an hour and then he will start going on Wednesday the 16th by himself. He is going to go 3 days a week for 3 hours and he is pretty excited about it. I am excited to have a few hours a weeks to get things done without dragging the poor guy on my errands.

Getting ready for Pre-school

2009-08-30T10:12:00.012-04:00

This past Tuesday I took Logan into his new pre-school for an evaluations. It seems like ours is one of the few districts around that evaluate the kids before they go into PS. I have friends in many different districts and ours is the only one that I heard of doing this. Logan did great he scored 87. The lady told me he did better than most of the kids that she had seen and to keep doing what I am doing. He wouldn't tell this stranger his name but he would spell it for her, LOL! He got points taken off because he didn't know where his jaw was, I thought this was funny because I have such a hard time with my TMJ and he knows all about the jaw. He also lost points because he couldn't tell her where the heel of his foot was, strange questions. He did GREAT with colors and counting, problem solving, shapes and hoping on one foot although he did better with his right than left. He also new his address could draw his shapes and a couple other things. They should have asked him to spell a few words he would have got a better score, LOL! He LOVED going and I can't wait for him to start, he is really looking forward to it. Yesterday in the mail he got the cutest home-made card from his new teacher telling him how she can't wait to meet him and play and learn, he was tickled pink and is now even more excited to go. All he keeps saying is how nice it was for her to send him that and he want's to make he a thank you card :0)

Logan is now reading about 15-20 words and can spell about 15 here us a list of the words he is reading, I am sure I'll forget a few.
MOM, DAD, IF, IT, AND, THE, PLAY, GO, DOG, STOP, ON, OFF, I forget what else right now but man my boy is not even 4 1/2 yet and of course I think he is the smartest kid out there :0)

Yesterday my BFF and I took the kids to the Detroit Red Wings open house. It was really cool. We got to tour the locker room and they had some puck shots for the kids. Logan got up there shot the first one missed by a mile and then shot the second one right into this little hole they had cute out :0) It was so cool the whole line started to scream for him, it was so awesome. Then we were standing there to take some pics on the Zamboni and Steve Yzerman walked right by us, of course I wasn't paying attention and before I knew it all I got a pic of was the back of his head. He literally was only a foot away from us, right in front of our faces. Logan did not want to wear his Red Wings jersey he wanted to wear his jersey we got him in Russia. That was fine by me as we have a few Russians on out team. We had a great time, thanks for taking us Tania!

Having Fun!

2009-08-21T12:04:00.004-04:00

Summer is coming to an end and we are trying to fit in a whole lot of fun :0) It seems like we have been on the go this past week trying to fit in as much as we can before my little man starts Pre-school in a few short weeks. We have been to a bunch of new parks and Logan loves them all. We went to the library the other day and checked out a few books about starting school and have talked about it a lot. I love the fact that his PreS has the child and parent come in the first day for an hour together and then his next day is on his own. Logan will go Mon/Weds/Fri for 3 hours a day. I am sure he will do fine as he is getting very excited about it. I have been clothes shopping over the past month picking up thing here and there so I don't spend a lot at once. I cannot believe how expensive it is to send him to school. Logan picked out his back pack the other day and he picked Woody & Buzz. I thought he would have picked something else but he just really LOVES them. I can't wait, in 2010 they are releasing Toy Story 3.

Any ways, that's all I have time for now so I will leave you with some pics of my little guy. We went to the fair the other day with our neighbors and their little guy who is 5 1/2. Logan got BRAVE and went on a lot of rides he wouldn't go on just at the beginning of summer. My baby is no longer a baby :0(
I guess they have to grow up :0)

Happy 38 to Me!

2009-08-10T09:29:00.002-04:00

Yesterday to celebrate my B-day My mom and Step-dad, my BFF and her daughter and my Niece and her Boyfriend came over for a BBQ and and ice cream cake, we had fun. I am still shocked as I turn a year older every year. Not sure why? aging is inevitable but I guess the fact that I am 38 today is enough to feel that way. It still feel's like yesterday I got my drivers license :0)

The hubby did a great job of gift giving. Remember a few post ago I said how Logan told me he loved me to Jupiter and back. Well the DH went and had that engraved into a travel coffee mug for me, it brought tears to my eye's. Thanks Jeff that was the best gift ever.

Logan is doing great! We just had our last PPR with our Social worker. This is the final step in the adoption, it's hard to believe that Logan will be with us for 3 years next month. Last year at our visit he was 40 inches and 38 lbs, this year he is 44 inches and 44 lbs, man my boy is big! I'll update more soon with our summer happenings.

Happy 10 year Anniversary!

2009-08-05T09:42:00.012-04:00

Wow, I cannot believe we have been married for 10 years. It's been a great ride and I'm looking forward to the next 10 :0)

Happy anniversary Jeff, you are a great husband and father :0) I can't wait to kick your butt on the golf course tomorrow :0)

This picture was at the end of the night. We went to the bar after and I didn't want to ruin my dress

To Jupiter and Back

2009-08-02T23:18:00.002-04:00

Logan told me tonight at bedtime that he Loved me to Jupiter and back, how sweet is that :0) I just love my little guy to pieces!

We have been on the go. We had another grad party today, the last of 5. Thank God! It's been and expensive summer. Lots going on and no time to write a post but I had to write down how sweet my boy is. I doubt I will ever forget that but it's nice to have it here on my blog for one day when he may read it.

Huckleberry Railroad

2009-08-02T11:28:00.001-04:00

20 Year Reunion

2009-07-20T11:09:00.006-04:00

OMG, I think most of the women looked great you know besides the cheerleaders who are all now heavy and not very pretty. Isn't that how it usually goes? Most of the men beside maybe 3 looked awful, old, gray, bald or heavy. It was pretty funny, they put everyone senior picture on their name badges and almost all of the guys had mullets, LOL. Gotta love the 80's in our acid washed, peg-leg jeans and big hair. We had a good time, they made it an all weekend thing and unfortunately we didn't make it to the bar on Friday night which I am kind of bummed because most of the people we hung out with went there and not to the actual reunion on Saturday. Oh well now we know so in 5 years we will hit the bar and save some money and skip the actual reunion. We toured our old school and that was really neat, I cannot believe how small the classrooms and desk look, LOL. We also drove around all of old stomping grounds and it was fun to try and find our friends houses that we hung at when we were kids.

Cannon Ball!!!!!!

2009-07-10T13:49:00.002-04:00

How did I miss June?

2009-07-07T22:04:00.009-04:00

So, I cannot believe I missed the whole month of June with no post. We have just been really busy but I will entertain you with some funnies from my little man.

He watched the cartoon "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" and he say to me "Mom, why does he want to stole Christmas" so I explained that he does not like Christmas because he doesn't have anyone to celebrate w/and yada, yada, yada and he replies with "that's to bad he's really missing out" Logan is just growing up way to fast. The other day we are in the car and he just starts cracking up so I asked him what was so funny and he said "I was just remembering when me, Deigo and Jake were playing and rolling all over each other the other day and it was just hilarious". I laughed so hard and I thought that was very grown up, you know something a big kid would say.

So baseball was fun the first week, Logan took direction well from his coaches and had a lot of fun. He even read one of the other kids name tags. I know read right he's only 4 but the kids name was Logan also. I did think that was pretty cool. He's standing out there and calls me and say's "Mom, this guys name is Logan" The next week we showed up a little early to let him play on the play ground and there were 2 5 1/2 year olds out there from his team but they told Logan he couldn't play with them it was only for 2 people so he got his feeling hurt and refused to go on the field and play with his team, so we left. Last week he didn't want to go on Monday he wanted to go on Thursday. The only problem with that is his team plays on Mondays not Thursday so we missed it again. This week we had no ball so there are 2 weeks left and we'll see if we make it. I was shocked he didn't want to go, he had so much fun that first week. I am glad it didn't cost much. Now he keeps telling me he wants to do gymnastics, so I am looking into that.

We have a lot going on, between birthday parties and grad parties we seem to have something going on every weekend. We have been trying to enjoy our pool but the weather has not been really hot. Like today and yesterday it it not even 75 a little cold when there is 20mph winds, you freeze when you get out of the water. Logan is a little fish this year. He started out wearing his vest but now he is only wearing arm floaties and I think by the end of summer he will no longer need those either. He does a great cannon ball, legs tucked and all. He told Jeff that his cousin Amber taught him how to do it. He does jumps were he kicks his legs out and he also does a spinning twist into the pool. I bought him some dive sticks the other day so we will see how he likes them.

Logan really is reading some words and spelling some also. The list includes for reading~ Mom, Dad, If, and, it, on, no, off, pop, corn, the. I know there are few more I just can't think of them right now. He is spelling, no, on, off, egg, and, mom, dad, pop. He has blossomed so much in this past year I am amazed. I can't get over how big he is.

I have to say is that Logan will most likely be an only child. I do not think we can adopt again although I would LOVE to if the funds were available and Jeff wasn't so old (HAHAHAHA) I think it stinks for him, Logan absolutely loves being with other kids so I am thankful we live in a neighborhood full of them. I won't hold my breath that I will ever get prego, we have been trying for 7 years and it hasn't happened so I don't think it ever will. I am one of those unexplained infertile woman, that stinks, it would be nice to have an answer. I never really cared about biology any ways it was just always about being a mom. It makes no difference to me how Logan became our son. The other day I had someone say to me "ya know he looks like he could be your son" I was horrified that this person said this in front of my 4 yr old so I said back well that's because he is my son. I know this person did not mean anything negative by it but man people stop before you speak. My little man is very bright and knows what your saying. So I just talked to Logan about it and we both agreed that it doesn't make a difference who's belly he grew in, I AM HIS MOM and WE ARE A FAMILY no matter how we became to be. He was so funny, he started saying, who cares, its not a big deal and so what I didn't grow in your belly. God I love that kid of mine :0)

I can't wait for school to start for him this fall, he will be in heaven hanging with all of the kids. We know a little boy who will be in his class so he is excited about that.

I am off to my 20 yr reunion this weekend so the boys are home alone, I hope they have fun. I graduated in Columbus Ohio so I am heading down and going with 4 of my girlfriends down there. I am so happy that after all these years I still have a few GREAT friends from my high school days. It really is hard to believe it's been 20 years, it seems like yesterday until I look in the mirror, LOL.

I almost forgot some FANTASTIC news, Orson Mozes plead guilty to 17 counts of violating Penal Code section 532(a), felony obtaining money by false pretenses. He also admitted the truth of the special allegation charged under Penal Code section 186.11(a)(2), aggravated white collar crime taking over $500,000 and he will now be sentenced to 3 years and 4 months in PRISON and he was ordered to pay restitution to all of us 57 families that he scammed. They did recover some money but not even half of what he stole from us families so I hope he will have his wages garnished for the rest of his life once he gets out. It never pays to be a scam, karma is a bitch. Thank you to the DA in Santa Barbara CA and Norma the investigator in the case. Also to the late Laura Cleves if it wasn't for her back in 2005 when we were victimized by Orson the case would have never moved forward. Thank you for making Orson accountable for his despicable actions.

What we've been up to = A LOT!

2009-05-27T23:30:00.010-04:00

I find myself rushing to post this and get to bed. We have been pretty much on the go around here. We signed Logan up for Pre T-ball, he starts in the middle of June, I'm not sure how he will do he has never showed any interest in sports really. One day we were going to my Mom's and the kids were in the school field and we had to stop and watch them. Since then he has talked about baseball and want to try. I hope he likes it if not oh well it was only $27 thru our township and he gets a t-shirt also.

The other BIG thing that I signed Logan up for was Preschool. It was a hard day kind of :0( I can't believe my baby is going off to school. I am sad but happy at the same time. I'm happy because L really needs to go off to school to be with other kids everyday and it's going to be nice having a few hours to get some things done by my self come this fall. I am sad because my baby is growing up way to fast!

We have been so busy working around the house. I lifted all of the pavers on both sides of our driveway and leveled them out. They have really caved in and separated since we moved in 6 yrs ago and I could see it was an accident waiting to happen. That took me about a week total, there is still more that needs to be done in the back by our deck but that is going to have to wait. I must say I did a really good job for having never tried it before;0) We moved a yard of mulch, well Jeff pretty much did most of the mulch because of my neck. I planted the garden and all of my flowers are done, I even pulled a Radish out of the ground the other day and Logan ate it up :0) I had to chop down 2 Sandcherry shrubs because of disease now I need to get the stumps out so I can replace them with these really cool shrubs I bought. We opened the pool, well Jeff did that to :0), I did put some Chlorine in the day before he took the cover off and I could see down inside that the water was clear, yahoo that made it so much easier. We have our Sub garage sale this Thursday, Fri and Sat so the past 3 days I had to get ready for that. Oh and the list can go on because you know then there is all of the inside chores that need to get done also.I had Logan call his Papa and ask him to come over with his new toy (a powerwasher) and clean the play-scape off. It needs to be painted and having papa do it is going to save me a days work, thanks Dave!

I have made time for Logan also, he has really got to hang out with his friends in the neighborhood a lot these past few months since it has gotten warm. The other day there were 4 Mom's and 7 kids just having a BLAST together, it's going to be a FUN summer and a long one all my boy wants to do is play outside with the other kids.

I finally did the storybook from Shutterfly from our journey to Logan. I did from trip one until the day we finally brought Logan home and landed in the US. I hope to take some pics of some of the pages and post them. I really can't wait to see it, I'm so excited:0) It did take me a few days to do it, so if you want to do one plan on it, it is definitely time consuming.

Any ways, here are some pictures of my little cutie and one of Julia thrown in there because she is just so cute :0) And yes I know my boy needs a hair cut, can you believe how big his Mohawk is, LOL! It just so happens we are going today.

Happy Mother's Day!

2009-05-10T23:15:00.003-04:00

To all of you Mom's out there and Mom's to be, Happy Mother's Day!
I hope you had a wonderful day.

And She's Not Even an Octopus

2009-05-09T14:15:00.002-04:00

A funny by my little man. We were at the store the other day standing in line to check out and the lady behind us had her arms full of stuff. Logan looked at her and then said to me "wow Mom she has a lot of stuff and she's not even an Octopus" I just about died laughing. That kid of mine sure is funny!

Today we met my mom for lunch and when she bit into her sandwich it dripped down her shirt and she said "oh shit" so what does little man say "oh chip" I'm glad he heard her wrong :0)

What a Slacker!

2009-05-03T11:02:00.007-04:00

I have been getting harassed by some because I have not posted much in a while. We have just been really busy. It has finally become spring around here and my little guy just wants to be out with his friends all the time :0) I'm not complaining because we had a really nice family move in a couple houses down and the kids love each-other and their mommy and I are becoming pretty good friends.

We went to the Science center and Logan loved it. I forgot my camera so I only had the cell phone and it really didn't take that great of pictures :0( I think Logan is a little young for most of it but he had a good time anyways. We will definitely go back. Actually he has told me almost everyday that he can't wait to go back with his friends and show them everything :0)

My health has been improving THANK GOD! I was really not well there for a while and I am starting to feel much better. I was fitted for this VERY annoying mouth traction to get my TMJ under control. It was really getting bad. My jaw was locking up for weeks at a time and really starting to cause a lot of facial pain, dizziness, eye & sinus problems and some migraines in my eye/temple area. I have to wear this appliance for the next 6-8 months, 24 hrs a day and it is NOT easy. My TMJ expert informed me it was one of the worst cases he has seen in years. He told me not only is it because I am a clincher but my jaw did not line up right since birth, more of a deformity. This mouth piece does not allow my bottom and top teeth to touch, I am on a lot of restriction as what I can eat, how to chew, workouts and the list goes on. The first 11 days were HELL, I had a lot worse symptoms (all normal) but it has been 17 days now and I am feeling the positives coming out.

I also had an MRI done of my neck because I was having a lot of numbness, tingling and pain in my left arm and I found out that I have Spinal Stenosis So I guess in other words give me a new neck and jaw and I'll be fine, LOL! Now I will start to work on that also. The best treatment I think for that is decompression so I ordered this on advice from my Chiropractor who I can no longer have adjustments from only neck stretches BOO HOO, I looked forward to getting cracked every couple of weeks. I also have no curve in my neck, it is bone straight, from a car accident I was in when I was 19 so I am looking into how to get the curve back also. So needless to say I hardly ever pick up my 43 pounder any more :0( I usually sit and have him come and climb in my lap. I do still pick him up every once and a while, it's hard to resist his cute little face.

OK, so back to Logan, he is doing well. I was told by everyone that 4 is such a wonderful age. I do agree that communication is so much better and it is a fun age BUT it is also VERY trying. My little guy now knows it all and can do everything by himself and has become a little dare devil. I am sure we will be in the hospital for stitches or a broken bone of some sort before the end of summer (I hope not but even my neighbors agree) A couple weeks ago he decided he was going for a bike ride whether anyone was going with him or not and despite me screaming for him and then chasing after him he kept going and got way out of my sight. Well he was grounded from his bike for that for the rest of the day and the next. He got a new bike from his Nanny & Papa for his B-day and he is WAY to fast on it. Then just yesterday he decided he was crossing the street by himself and ran across without even looking. My heart sank, thank God there were no cars coming because we live on a pretty busy street. That was about a 10 minute conversation with multiple reminders since so hopefully he does not do that again.

Logan has always been a pretty good boy compared to most, don't get me wrong we have had our share of not listening but his new found "I don't have to" and "I'm going to do what I want" is very hard to take. I was telling my friend I think it is so much harder because he has always listened and been pretty compliant for the most part that the total lack of disregard is throwing me for a loop. I told her that although we had to parent a very unconventional way for a while because of attachment I never had any other children so that was all I know, this not listening thing is driving me nuts. I know this is all a learning process for him and that all kids test and are brats that is how they learn so I hope this phase passes quickly because one can only have so many time outs :0)

Logan's Easter basket

Science Center

Julia's 2nd B-day party, Elmo was there!

The Oscar Mayer car

Happy Easter!

2009-04-11T09:19:00.005-04:00

4 Year well visit

2009-04-07T20:43:00.002-04:00

Logan had is 4 yr check-up and his Dr. was just amazed how big he is. She showed us his map on her computer of his growth chart since coming home in Sept 06. We could not believe it way down at the bottom, barely on it to now almost off it. She said she never thought he would ever grow this much. I really chalk a lot of it to putting him back on formula for the first 6 months home. He went from 3% for height and weight to 90% now. He is 42.3 lbs and 42 3/4 inches, WOW! His Dr was also impressed that he can hopscotch, he is rather good at it. I thought it was good also I know the little girl who's a month older than L cannot switch her jump up yet to hopscotch.

Logan also got 2 shots, she wanted to do 3 but we decided to skip the booster of the MMR for now. He did get a high fever for a day and half from the vaccines and she also told us he had an ear infection in his right ear. He did well on his eye exam but not so well on the hearing on the right so after he finishes his antibiotic for his ear infection we'll take him back to be rechecked. I am sure he doesn't have a hearing problem but you never know. Logan really was against the shots and totally tightened up his leg so he was really sore for a few day's and boy did he milk it. I tried to video him and his MAJOR limp but ever time I tried it made him upset and he would just sit down.

The picture I posted the other day with the HUGE sunglasses is what he pulled out of the treasure box at the Dr's. Logan's Nanny and Papa took Logan to the Zoo after the Dr's and he wore those things all through the Zoo and then later when he got home and we went to the store. He is so funny :0) He got pushed all around the zoo and didn't walk so that made his leg hurt even more I'm sure. Any ways he is back to his normal hopping self and the leg his all better.

We have had a lot of Easter fun going on so as soon as I can I'll get it all together and post some pics.

Say Cheese, Please :0)

2009-04-04T11:41:00.001-04:00

Logan's Referral Pics

2009-03-25T00:05:00.005-04:00

I have never posted Logan's referral pics on here, not sure why? Any ways, I uploaded all the pics from our 2 trips to Russia to start making a photo book from Snapfish or Shutterfly whoever I can get the best with. Any ways, I came across these and I wanted to share them. I think these photo's where taken in May 06 so Logan would have been just 14 months. These are the youngest pics we have of him. I thought at one point I found him on the Kemerovo database but some info was missing so I wasn't sure. I REALLY believe it was and so do a few of my friends and family but Jeff did not think so. I unfortunately lost those pics when my computer crashed :0( I have all of our pictures in a photo album and on disc but these story books are so wonderful I just have to have one. I can't wait to start making one every year.

Any ways, here is my little cutie. Boy has the life in his eyes changed. We got these the first of June and traveled July 4th 06 to go and meet him. He had changed a lot from these pics to when we arrived a few months later. I remember his hair was a lot thicker but he was just as tiny.

Birthday Fun!

2009-03-16T22:10:00.007-04:00

We went away for a night to Frankenmuth. We had a great time and my boy is just a fish. He loves the water and would have stayed in all day I think. Logan also got his first hole in one Putt Putting. I find that funny because he is not very good at it :0)

We also celebrated Logan's 4th b-day with some friends and family over the weekend. Fun was had by all. One of the kids, the oldest who is 6 said as he was leaving that it was the best b-day party he has ever been to :0) that made me feel good as a lot of time and effort was put into it. I served the 6 kids that game mini corn dogs and FFries along with some fresh fruit. They all loved it and us adults got to have a sub platter along with a few different types of salads, meatballs and fresh fruit. The cake tasted great but I was not happy with its appearance but Logan loved.

Logan got some great gifts and some money to save. Some of the things he got were a new bike, a Leapster 2, Lego's, some Wallie stuff, a hot wheels track and a few games. I think his favorite was the Pixo's. We have used just about all of them so we took 20 bucks of his money and ordered this awesome set online. It's by far the best deal for your money. It's funny I told him he had to use his own money to get it and he was all for it:0) I would normally just get it for him but we spent enough on everything else and he got plenty. I am also trying to teach him the value of a dollar. Any ways, we all had a good time and most importantly Logan had a blast.

Happy 4th Birthday Logan

2009-03-13T23:22:00.005-04:00

Daddy draws Buzz Lightyear

Happy 4th Birthday Logan! It is such an honor and privilege to be your Mommy not to mention the most rewarding thing I have have ever done. You are so funny, smart, bright and yes you are a little stinker some times :0) I love watching you discover new first in your life, your expressions are priceless. I hope you had a wonderful birthday and I know how happy you are to be turning 4 your such a big boy.

I love you baby,
Love, Mommy and Daddy too!

P.S. Thanks for helping clean for your party tomorrow, your the BEST helper! I want to note that you vacuumed the house so remember that when your doing your chores when your older that you use to like to help clean, LOL!

It's Been a Long Time!

2009-02-27T21:51:00.008-05:00

Gosh we have been so stinking busy I haven't had a moment to post. We painted our great room, it was a big deal because we have really high ceilings so we paid my brother to do them and Jeff and I painted the walls. We then had our fireplace tile cracked out and replaced. We ordered a new door cover for it and as soon as it comes in I will post some before and after pics. We also painted the mantle and I LOVE how the whole thing looks but I am dying to get the new doors, CAN"T wait.

We also replaced our foyer light and the light going up our steps and the ceiling fan in our great room. The lights before were totally NOT my taste and did NOT go with anything in our house. These are all things that I have wanted to do since we moved in 5 1/2 years ago but put on hold because of the adoption. Now we finally had a little extra so we went for it. Well that and we refinanced for the AMAZING LOW rate of 4.875% fixed for 30 years so we rolled our last of the adoption expenses in that and are still paying WAY less than we were. Yahoo for us!

I was also not feeling right for a few weeks. Eye problems, (never had before and still have 20/20) dizziness and just overall not right. I have been through a battery of test, CT and an MRI and thank god everything is coming back normal.
I have been feeling back to normal for the last 5 days, yahoo!

Now onto better things like my cute little man, he is doing great! Smarter than ever and saying some pretty darn funny things like~ not bad, not bad at all, that's interesting and a whole bunch of other things that I can't think of right now of course. I need to start writing things down daily. I can't believe next week my baby is going to be 4, OMG 4! So now I get to get busy for his party next weekend. It is a Buzz Lightyear theme who he still loves and dresses as often :0)

Logan has been sick this past week. I actually think he has/had 2 different things. He had a fever for 2 days around 100 but no other symptoms. Then he was better for a day then came down with a stuffy nose and a dry cough but only coughing once in a while. He woke up this morning with a fever blister, poor baby. We had my friends daughter Sophia for 2 days this week and she was sick with a MAJOR runny nose and a deep cough. Logan already had a weekend immune system from whatever caused his fever so I feared he would get her cold. Logan was great in the morning with her but when he got up from his nap he was jealous of her, he wanted his Mommy all to himself :0) She is only 5 1/2 months so I had to do everything for her and I carried her a lot and he decided he didn't like it. He has been clingy and whiny for a couple days now so we have done some holding time these last 2 days. I know some of it is he is not feeling well but today when he got up we had to rock a bit and he just relaxed and soaked it up and emerged with a totally different attitude, THANK GOD!

Today is a beautiful day here in Michigan. It's like 64 degrees outside so I did some running around for party stuff while Jeff and Logan got outside and made mud pies, played on the play scape and ate lunch out there.

We took him for his 4 yr pics and they turned out great. I only got 2 different poses because it was a fortune for more and I would have all of these pics go to waste. I got one with a number 4 and then Jeff picked out the profile one. I keep picking on him telling him it is like something my parents would have done with us you know the typical 1975 pose, LOL! My favorite was one of him standing up with his hand sin his pockets but I really wanted that darn 4 in there. This will be the last number year for a pic so next on to bigger and better things. I think I am going to try JCPenny for some pics next year, I just keep seeing these adorable shot from there. Logan was so funny usually we have such a hard time with him taking pictures and this time he walked in and just started posing. Jeff and I were laughing so hard the lady probably thought we were nuts, LOL!

I'll leave you with some cuteness :0) and a couple pics of our lights before and after.

The top pics are before and the bottom after

Nice Hair, Silly Boy!

2009-02-14T19:32:00.000-05:00

I Like You!

2009-02-02T00:19:00.003-05:00

My little man told me tonight that he likes me a lot and that he likes hanging out with me. How cute is that :0)

So what do you think of my shiner?

2009-01-29T18:42:00.002-05:00

Random Things and Americas Most Wanted

2009-01-27T23:27:00.003-05:00

Americas Most Wanted is set to air the story about Orson Mozes on Saturday, January 31st, check your local listing for time. I can't wait to see how they pieced this all together, what if any of us victims were incorporated into the segment. I know that there were a few of us that submitted video, pics and told our story so this is going to be interesting, can't wait to watch it.

So Jeff and I spent our first full night away from Logan since we became a family of 3. We had to go out of town for a funeral so we made the most of it. To say we had a good time at a funeral is kind of sad but we did. It was almost a 5 hr drive so we talked a lot, we even stopped and shopped a little. I got a jacuzzi room with a fireplace but when we walked in our room the smell of gas filled the air. Unfortunately they didn't have any more rooms with a jacuzzi and a fireplace so we just ended up with the jacuzzi. That was no big deal because we most likely would have only had the fireplace on for a few anyways.

Logan did well. He had no problem sleeping or anything else until he saw me the next day. He was very whiny but we got him settled down to stop for lunch but when he woke up from a nap he was a wreck for about an hour and a half. I had to do some holding time with him to settle him down and he ended up telling me he was scared he was going to have to stay at Nan's. I explained again that this was his house and we will always come back for him. He settled down and we had a good afternoon.

I got my first black eye from being a Mom. Logan got me good with his elbow. It was an accident but man it hurts. He is not napping much these days but I am still laying him down for a "rest" around 1:00. Well today him and Jeff went to our cabin and he fell a sleep on the way home and got about a 40 minute nap and he woke up all out of sorts. If Logan can't sleep for at least 1 1/2 hours he is better off with out one. So today I pick him up to take him to the chair to sit with me to settle down and as I am lifting him up he wails back and it got me. I could feel the knot growing as I was walking to the chair thinking HOLY SH#* I need ice NOW! I didn't even need to look in the mirror to know it was going to be a shiner. I don't remember the last time I had a black eye, maybe 15?

We still have some Christmas stuff up outside. It's buried in the snow so there is no way for us to take it down but I am getting bored with looking at it. Snow, snow go away :0( Speaking of those darn lights, I have never had such a hard time with lights before, EVER. This past Christmas every time I turned around a strand was burning out. Inside and out. It started outside and then came inside to the tree, errr. I think lights went out on 5 of the six tree's outside and I think they went our on the tree 3 different times. What a battle that was, LOL!

Logan is now 42.8 lbs and 42 inches tall, He is growing so fast. I love talking to him, the conversations we have are priceless. I need to go buy an outfit for his 4 year pics. WOW, I cannot believe he is almost 4, he is amazing :0) I am going to take him to Portrait Innovation, I love that they have 2 people working with you and they have some great packages. I am thinking this is the time to do a family photo, we will all be there anyways and L has been home for almost 2 1/2 years and we have never done a professional family shot. I guess I am now looking for what we will all wear, HMMMMMM?????

I am starting to think about preschool in the fall for Logan. I am just not sure how many days I want to put him in. I know I am not doing 4 but still undecided about 2 or 3? I have plenty of time, sign up is not until May. I have 2 different open houses to go to in April to figure out what center will be the best fit for him. One is real big more like an actual school and the other one is smaller.

Ice Skating Anyone

2009-01-23T13:29:00.007-05:00

Jeff put Logan's skates on, he stood up and fell. He then got right up walked over to Jeff with no problem at all and was ready to go. Logan did not want to hold our hands, he wanted to use the bar thingy they have to help them stay up, so be it.

Logan stepped on the ice and that was it, he just started shuffling his feet and off he went. We went around about 2 times and then he wanted to check out all of the benches and penalty boxes. I told him his daddy spent a lot of time in those boxes when he was younger, HAHAHA! Anywho, he went around a few more times, got going pretty fast, fell a few times but nothing major and then had enough. We skated for about 25 minutes, so a long time for a first. Logan really liked it a lot and he LOVED seeing Jeff fly around on his skates :0) This is only the second time I have been on skates since I was around 15 and the last time was about 6 years ago. I was shaky at first but got more steady as the time went on. We had a really fun time and are going to try and make this a once a week habit. The arena has open skate M-F and it's only $11 for all of us.

Penalty

Wink, Wink!

2009-01-21T23:33:00.005-05:00

In the past few weeks Logan has mastered the skill of winking with one eye. Here is a funny video of one of the first times he was doing it :0) I love it, he's so excited and proud. He just looked at me one day and said "Mommy look what I can dos".

It made it up to the double digits finally today but not much higher than 20, better than -20 but still frozen or as Logan said once its like the Arctic :0) At least the snow has stopped, thank God seeing the white stuff everyday and all day was getting old.

This is what it looks like around here

2009-01-15T19:30:00.008-05:00

It is just COLD, below zero cold, although nothing like in Minnesota. Can't really get out and enjoy all this snow. Logan has now been wishing on a star at night for snow in the morning and we have just about got some everyday. I am over it already and winter is just getting started :0(

Today we went down to our friends house and had a play date for a few hours. The kids played really well together. They even sat at the counter and played with Play Dough for almost an hour. I was hoping that Jennifer was going to sign Isa up for Pre-school so we could do some car pooling but she said she is probably not going to. I really think with how much kids are pushed to learn at a young age that PS should be publicly funded. I think it is rather expensive, especially because our taxes are so high. I think I am only going to send Logan 2 days but I haven't really decided yet. Logan is so smart, He is even picking words out of books, he does this with a few, IF, IT, AND, NO, OFF, ON, MOM, DAD, LOGAN **UPDATE** just after I posted this when reading tonight Logan said "look Mommy it says Caillou right here" I was reading through skills at ages and he is already doing things that it said kids do in Kindergarten.

Last Saturday they had a pre-school fair at the library so Jennifer and I went. It was about 10 schools in the area. It was small but OK. We did get a free bag and a couple of children books for free so that was really nice. I got the info I was looking for in my area, another bonus. I am however not sure of what center I will send Logan to as we are pretty much right in the middle of them. I have heard great things about one center but really nothing on the other so its time to do some research on them both.

I haven't posted in so long, I feel like I have a lot to touch on. This year Christmas was great, Logan is at a fun age and he just got it. He has changed so much in the past 4 months, I am amazed. He was a little shy and still is with some people but it seemed like almost over night he has become this outgoing little man. We walked into my cousins house on Christmas Eve and he looked at everyone, said hi and Merry Christmas pretty loud and then looked at his cousin Eddie and said "come on lets play". It was so cute. Christmas morning was so much fun, he loved his Geotrax airport and I think his talking Woody doll the best. He got way to much stuff from all of us :0) He was so excited that Santa ate most of his cookies and milk :0)
I hate to say it but he really doesn't play with much of what he got besides the airplane. He played with it all, figured them out and now he is done with them. He is playing with the Woody doll but not the Buzz (I think the Buzz is just a little to big for him). He did get a couple of games that we have played a few times but other than that it has been Geotrax (he already had the train).

New Years was a really nice day. We hung out all day and I made a really nice dinner. I ended up taking off around 10:30 to my friends house after Jeff fell a sleep. He works such wacky hours he can never make it to Midnight (LOL you old fart Jar). It was funny we were all just gabbing away that we missed the ball drop by about 30 seconds, LOL!!!!!!! Happy New Year!

The reporter that did this story wanted to do piece on Orson's arrest so they came out to do an interview with us and it is set to air this Friday at 11:00pm on channel 4 here in the greater Detroit area. I will get it posted as soon as I can after. Thanks again ANONYMOUS for turning Orson in, you made a lot of people happy:0)

We checked out a new library and boy am I impressed. I cannot get over some of the stuff they have for the kids. Logan has story time there on Weds for the next 5 weeks so that should be fun and we signed up with some friends so the kids will have fun and us Mommies can chat after class. I also found out there is an outside ice rink right next to it so hopefully it will warm up a little so we can go out there.

Jeff took Logan to the Ice rink for the first time last week. They didn't skate just checked it out and now L want to try it. He has actually said to me a few times that he is really excited to try it. I think we are going to go tomorrow or maybe Monday. I kinked my neck and it has been really sore for about a week now. The sharp pain is just starting to go away so I hate to go and fall and mess it up more so maybe we'll go tomorrow and Logan and Jeff can skate and I'll take pics :0) we'll see.

Logan and my niece Amber

Even Logan thinks the Steam Mop is great

Bowling with some friends

Happy New Year!

2009-01-05T14:02:00.003-05:00

I will get around to an update soon. I am still busy trying to get the house back in order:0) For now I leave you with a picture of my cutie!

Christmas in Pictures 2008

2008-12-30T22:33:00.001-05:00

UPDATE Orson Mozes featured on my side bar

2008-12-26T23:01:00.008-05:00

Orson was arrested today (Dec. 29) thanks to an anonymous tip that came into America's Most Wanted. So whoever you are anonymous, THANKS!!!! What a way to end 2008, YAHOO! Here's his most recent MUG SHOT.

OK, I never wanted to hijack my blog about the scum bag Orson Mozes but we just found out some info on him (or at least we think it's him) from the DA in Santa Barbara that they believe him to be in Florida. He was arrested in Naples in November and Miami in December. I think now if this news report is right twice in Miami in December once just 5 days ago, so all of you Floridians please keep an eye out for him. This is good but bad news, we now know he is in the states and not aboard. The bad news is that he was arrested multiple times and released. I am baffled that this could happen. How can someone be released without knowing who they really are, not to mention someone who is listed on America's Most Wanted, EERRRRRR. This has all just unfolded for our case in the last few days so it is changing daily. I just pray we are close to finding him, that would definitely make for a great beginning to the new year:0) I find it rather funny though that he is being arrested for petty theft. A far cry from his couple million dollar home in CA. I know it's not very Christian like but it makes me smile.

Any ways, please keep your eye out for Orson or who ever he is these days. If you do see him please contact authorities right away at the information provided by his photo at the left or your local law offices.

I hope you all had a great Christmas, it was so fun this year with Logan. He of course got way to much stuff.

Merry Christmas from Our Family to Yours

2008-12-23T22:52:00.004-05:00

I know Logan's eye's are closed but that is because he would not open them for the picture but I like this picture because he was having fun and being silly. He is NOT into pics at all right now so I am surprised we even got him in one laughing :0)

Merry Christmas

**Snow update: about another 4 to 6 inches today, we'll see what tomorrow brings as far as ice

And Snow It Did...

2008-12-22T22:11:00.007-05:00

First, Happy Birthday Jeff. I hope you had a great day :0) Happy B-day to Tania today also and my Mom tomorrow.

Since my last post we have got about 15 inches of snow. And to go along with it bitter cold temps, like 20 below with the wind chill all day yesterday. So we really can't even get out and enjoy the snow. Freezing cold, runny, red noses in a few minutes, yuck! We are expected to get about another 2/4 inches of snow and then Christmas Eve sleet/snow mix, double YUCK!

I baked my first ever Pumpkin Roll and it was fantastic, I will definitely make it again. I always thought it would be really hard but I found it rather easy.

We (Logan and I) also made frosted sugar cookies, coconut macaroons dipped in chocolate, chocolate chip cookies and buckeye's (peanut butter balls dipped in chocolate). They are all very good, I think my favorite cookie is the frosted sugar, I haven't had them in years and they are just really YUMMY!. Jeff liked the macaroons the best and I think Logan liked the buckeyes the best. Oh ya, we also did some chocolate molds and I made brownies for Jeff's b-day cake.

Poor Jeff got sick with a high temp, he was nice and clamy :0( Really I think the only thing he had was a high temp and he was tired, thank God. It lasted about 2 days but the poor guy working for UPS had to go in, it's a crazy time right now there as you can imagine. We had to cancel plans we had for his parents to come by from Friday to today. And we also had some family over yesterday. I am in need of a relaxation day and I think that is tomorrow. The only thing we have to do is take some books back to the library. I really don't like to be on the roads with Logan around the stores right now people are driving like crazy and some of our roads are still bad from all of this snow.

Logan got some great gifts over the past few days and I am excited to clean out his toys after Christmas to make room for the new. We are going to take a bunch of stuff for donation before the end of the year. Aunt Chris brought his gift in the adorable bag, dont you just LOVE it. It is felt and I plan to wrap it up and put it away for him for his kids.

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow

2008-12-17T21:55:00.008-05:00

Last night we got about 4 inches of snow and I thought for sure my little guy would want to go out in it but no. He all of a sudden doesn't want to go play in it because he doesn't want to freeze. It's pretty funny when he tells me why as he shakes himself like he is cold, to cute! I hope the snow sticks around for Christmas, I always love to have a white Christmas :0)

In other news our festivities have been on going since Friday and will continue right up to Christmas day where we will stay home and relax :0) Tania and I got together last Friday and let the kiddo's open their gifts. She got Logan this little digital camera, it's not the kid one so he LOVES it. Saturday we went to my Dad's and Step-moms with my brothers and their families and my sister. That same evening I had my annual girls night Christmas party. That was a long day, we left at 10:30 am, I dropped my guy's back off at home that evening, freshened up, left and didn't return until about 1-1:30 am. On Monday we had Jeff's Grandma over for lunch and on Friday we will have Jeff's parents over for dinner. We are also having Jeff's Aunt Chris, uncle Rick and cousin Ricky over for brunch on Sunday. I think that is our last gathering until Christmas Eve where we will gather with all of my extended family on my Mom's side and then head to my Mom's for dinner around 7:00 and gifts. Christmas day we stay home and relax. It's nice that Logan actually gets to be home and relax and enjoy all of his gifts. Usually someone will stop by for desert, no plans as of yet this year so we'll see.

I have been baking away also. I need to figure out one more type of cookie to make? I have never made a Pumpkin Roll before but I am going to try it on Sunday for our brunch with Aunt Chris. Other than being pretty busy at least every other day we have been trying to lay low on the other day's.

Logan Update: He is doing great. I think in the last 4/5 months he has really settled in. I no longer have any attachment fears, he LOVES, WANTS and needs his Mama :0) He is growing like a weed still. I was looking back at some pictures just from May and he is soooo much bigger. I had to get him some clothes for Christmas as he is almost to big for his 4T pants. When I bought them a few months ago we were rolling them and had them adjusted at the waist almost all the way and now they are out at the waist and just barley long enough. Same thing last year. He definitely grows the most in the fall, thank god we get through the summer without going up a size :0) Logan is smart as a whip, amazing on the computer and loves his friends. He can't wait for Christmas and this year I can't wait to see his face Christmas morning.

I ended up wrapping Logan gifts in the white tissue paper like Jeff wanted but I will not do this next year. Sorry babe it's boring :0) I have been asking around and most of the Mom's I talked to picked some type of fun paper. I think the suggestion I liked the best was Santa paper, something real festive. So next year it is on to something new :0)

We also celebrate a lot of Birthday's this month. My Dad just had a B-day on the 10th. Jeff's God-daughters is on the 17th and then next will be Jeff's and my BFF Tania's on the 22nd. Then my Mom's on the 23rd, whew. Happy Birthday to all of you!

I leave you with some cuteness :0)

Look how tall Logan is

Santa, The Big Jolly Guy

2008-12-10T21:55:00.006-05:00

As you can tell by the look on my little man's face he is not very happy to be sitting on Santa's lap. Jeff and I are actually sitting on either side of him on the arm's of this giant chair. The lady zoomed right in and cut us out :0) I was glad he finally sat on his lap for the picture. The ladies helping were great, they did a few tricks to make him laugh. Logan held his face as to not smile, what a little stinker. He wanted to laugh so bad but wouldn't let it out so this is what we got. He was OK as long as I was holding him and he even shook his hand but he still wouldn't talk to him. He did wish him a Merry Christmas and said thank you for the little coloring book he got when we were walking away. The picture is not to awful but not great, maybe next year he'll smile :0) click here to see last year with Santa, not happy then either.

We actually seen Santa once already at Walmart. I didn't know he was there and L didn't want anything to do with him there. The picture we got has L, me and santa L & S are both looking the other way. I gave up and said that was fine because I don't want him to always have a fear of him. Logan wasn't having anything to do with him there either. He was fine standing close and watching. The funny thing his he totally LOVES everything Santa right now but he doesn't want to talk or sit with him :0) I found this web-site that you can call Santa and they record your kiddo telling Santa their wish list and then they email it to you. Very cool Logan listened to the whole thing the elf talking but as soon as the bit jolly guy started talking he ran away, LOL!

BERRRRR!!!!!

2008-12-07T19:07:00.009-05:00

It has just been down right COLD these past few day's more like mid January not mid December. Yesterday it was snowing before we got up and continued well after we went to bed. We got outside a little and shoveled the driveway in the morning but by mid afternoon you really couldn't tell. There wasn't enough for the snow blower and Logan wanted to shovel so that is what we did. He made a snow angel also but it was to soft to build a snowman. The funny thing is is that for as long as it snowed we only got about 2 inches total. Today we tried to got out for a bit and it was so darn COLD we came in about 15 minutes later. We need some sunshine :0) and at least 40 degrees for a few.

I'm gonna get one :0)

Today Logan was asking me why we had presents for other people under the tree and so I explained what Christmas was all about. And then I said we give to the ones we love and he asked me if there was a present for his friend Isa. It was the sweetest thing ever and made my heart melt. My little guy loves his friends and wants to think of them also :0) We have been talking a lot about the less fortunate and how we donate to the shelters and why. EVERY time we see the Salvation Army at the stores he asked for our change to put in the pot. He even did this to my Mom the other day when they were out. I had to explain that we cannot do it at every store we will go broke, LOL!

I am all done shopping, I got the last of my gifts on Friday now the wrapping begins. I have actually done some of that to but only a few. I am up in the air about wrapping gifts. I HATE the WASTE of the paper. I will recycle it but it just bothers me to use it. I wanted to not wrap L's gifts from Santa but Jeff is not liking that idea. Jeff would like me to wrap his gifts from the Jolly guy in white tissue paper because that is what Santa did for him. I am not sure I really like that idea either so time will tell. I would like to pick a paper that is more kid friendly, maybe like his favorite thing right now. I have tried to find Buzz Lightyear paper but I can't. I did find some Snoopy paper and bought a roll because he likes him. Although he has never seen the Charlie Brown shows yet because they always come on to late and he just wasn't old enough. I bought him a shirt I got on clearance for like $1.50 and I told him who they were and that I loved them as a kid. He LOVES that shirt and I know he will love the paper. So if any of you lurkers want to chime in on how Santa wraps your kiddos gifts please do, I would love to hear what others do.

We always get such a big tree and every year we say we are going smaller but we never do. Next year we a re going thinner for sure. Jeff and I have always went and cut down a tree since our first Christmas together so of course we will carry that tradition on for a very long time. This we we went to 3 different places before we found a tree. Ridiculous I know but the first place only had a very few tall tree's the second place that is only about a mile away went into foreclosure so they did not take care of their tree's and that all looked brown, not very healthy at all. We went to a place that I had seen online the night before that was about 20 minutes from where we were and it was a hidden gem. They had SOOOOOOO many BEAUTIFUL tree's it took some time to pick one out. Well actually as soon as we walked up I seen a great tree but another family had left their saw there and claimed it. We found the perfect tree and love it, it looks beautiful and smells fantastic.
This is our beautiful tree, we cut about 3 feet off the bottom.

From december 2008

When we went and cut down our tree I took some good pictures, I ended up using one for our Christmas cards. I ordered 2 different cards and the Blue one is by far my favorite. The Red one is nice but a little to formal of a picture of the 3 of us for me. I love how cute Logan looks with that Santa hat on and he was just being silly like his normal self so that picture was perfect to represent who he is :0)

I am really excited for Christmas this year. Logan is way into it and knows whats going on and it's making it that much more fun. Most of our neighbors decorate their houses and so do we so our street looks great. I am looking into going and seeing this light show next weekend. It is like a five mile drive through a park it's suppose to be spectacular so I know L will love it but I think it is like an hour drive each way so it's still up for debate. I am going to do a little more research online before we make a decision about it.

Well it's time to get my little man to bed and relax. I have been going non stop all day, actually for days now :0)

A Few Other Things!

2008-11-27T21:01:00.003-05:00

Logan has almost stopped napping. Since Florida he has only napped maybe 3 times, I have still been putting him down but he is not falling asleep and after about 45 minutes he'll start calling for me. I knew this day was coming but I was hoping for later :0) He is doing pretty well with this transition. He is getting about an hour of down time so I think that is what is getting him through the day. I have also rolled back bedtime about an hour and he is sleeping a bit later. If he does nap he lays awake in his bed until almost 10:00 and I don't want that. So for now I will continue to take him up for a nap and if he don't fall asleep that is OK at least he is resting.

I also jinxed my poor little guy talking about him not peeing at night. While in FL he had a few accidents and then right after coming home. He is now wearing a Pull-up at night but has been dry every night but one. I swear I talk about his progress in an area and we have a set back. So we continue with PU's for now and hopefully by the end of the package we are free of them again. I knew he would have a hard time at night, He sleeps so sound it doesn't even wake him up sometimes. I wish I could sleep that deep :0)

Logan is also so fun to talk to. The conversations that we have and the BIG words that he uses crack me up and always in the appropriate way. I was also told by the Security lady in the airport how polite he was. One guy took our boarding passes and Logan looks at him a few seconds later and says "excuse me, can I have those back please" It was so funny. They were all like he's so polite and good training mom, I was so proud of him.

Hey There, We're Still Here

2008-11-26T22:15:00.013-05:00

I cannot believe I've been MIA for so long. We were actually in Florida for 5 days, Nov. 13-18. My friend Tania and I took the kids down while the guys hunted. We stayed at my Dads place, got really cheap flights and a great deal on a car that we split so it was a pretty inexpensive vacation. Until you add in Sea World. Wow is it expensive to get in there although you can save 20% if you have a Southwest Airlines reward card that is free to sing up for.

I got sick for the first few day's down there. I struggle with my balance sometimes and I think the flight just kicked my equilibrium's butt. I tried to make the most of it but it was hard the first 2 days. I was getting dizzy off and on for 2 days straight. I made myself do stuff and so did Tania, LOL! But enough of that we had a good time all around and I think the kids did to.

Julia is only 19 months and Logan is 3 1/2 so we weren't ready for Disney yet but we did go to Sea World and it was WONDERFUL. I've been there before a few times and each time I go I love it more, we all LOVED it. They have the most amazing play area for the younger kids (under 12 but over 4). This thing was just a giant climbing fort made of tubes and nets and I am talking GIGANTIC. I wish I would have got a picture of it. It was a little to big for L so we opted for the sand area for the little ones. They were both totally happy playing in there. They had a really cool Pirate Ship that we all climbed. We saw the Shamoo show, that was great. Logan actually reached in and stroked a Stingray. I didn't think he would do it but after watching me a few times he wanted to do it and he LOVED it. He'll tell you that it felt like snot :0) Tania got a great shot of it.

We also went to Cypress Gardens. It was the last day before they closed for renovations. I'm glad we went tickets were only 10 dollars each and it was just big enough for the younger kids.

We actually missed part of it to get back for a nap and the little stinkers didn't end up sleeping anyways. Long story short they started talking (screaming) through the walls to each other. Tania and I were cracking up. we decided to get them up and go to Downtown Disney hoping they would fall asleep on the drive. They both did so we drove around a little extra to let them sleep a bit, stinkers :0)

Downtown Disney is a lot of fun. It wasn't that busy being off season so it was nice being that our kiddo's are on the young side. We ate at the Rain Forest Cafe, expensive, but good food, huge portions and great atmosphere. We have such a great picture that our waiter took, but Logan decided he was not going to be in the picture and hid. It's funny you would never know he was with us, you can't see him at all, LOL!

How handsome is my little guy :0)

Jeff's actually been on vaca for 2 weeks and just went back this past week and now he's off today but will have to go in on Friday for a few hours. He really needed the break. This next month is going to kick his butt at work and he will be putting in some very long hours.

I ended up getting a cold about 4 days ago. It is just the common cold, runny nose, sneezing and scratchy throat. I pushed it a little the other day. I wasn't feeling very well and I plugged in our Christmas lights outside (only because my neighbors did, normally I would wait until Thanksgiving night but Logan begged) and half of them didn't work. I was so mad, I spent a lot of time fixing them and making sure they all worked before I put them on, before we left for Fl when it was still in the high 50's. I ended up having to take 4 strands off of 3 different tree's, only to hang one again to have it go out 2 seconds later. So off we went to the store so I could finish, I had to buy 2 more strands, EERRRR I told Logan he better enjoy the tree's having lights because next year we are only having light up yard stuff :0) It didn't help my cold that I was doing all of this on a damp day. I just wanted it done.

Yesterday I laid around all day, I didn't do much at all besides make dinner. Today was a different story, I am still not great but getting better. I had things that I had to do. I went to the Chiropractor and Target, came home and baked. I made a Pumpkin pie, Rice Krispy treats and Chocolate Chip cookies to take to my Aunt's for Thanksgiving. Now here it is 12:30 and I am spent. My nose is starting to burn and I am going to take some medicine and go to bed. Have a great night!

Happy Turkey day to you all

2008-11-11T14:47:00.004-05:00

Things are good around here but I have had no inspiration to write on my blog lately. I hope it comes back soon. So for now I leave you with a quick update.

We have just been on the go, a couple different Halloween things, a couple trips to the Zoo and hanging with fiends. L is so funny now he is saying to everyone "you know what's coming? Thanksgiving" So cute! Logan was sick for a few days but bounced back quick. He has done a great job of staying dry at night, only 2 light morning accidents in about 6 weeks I think :0) I'm so proud of him in so many ways.

Happy Halloween!

2008-10-31T11:36:00.005-04:00

2008-10-19T21:27:00.000-04:00

Way To Busy!

2008-10-18T20:20:00.000-04:00

This past 2 weeks here have been so beautiful. I love the temps in the mid 70's with the sun shining, AAAHHHHHHH!!! I am not however liking all of the leaves that have blown off the tree's the last 2 days. We have only a few ornamental tree's in our front and 2 small ornamentals in the back but we have some woods behind our house so our back yard gets loaded with leaves. It is fun for L but a real pain in the butt to clean up.

In my last post I said we had a b-day party to go to at the Cider mill. It was even more fun than I thought it would be. If you have a little one who's b-day is in the fall it is a great thing to do. The kids had a blast and I am pretty sure all of the adults had fun also. There was just enough to do not overwhelming for the kids.

Since that day we have pretty much been filled with play dates and other things going on. We found a new park that I heard was beautiful but man I had no idea. It was amazing. I bet it cost at least a million to open. There are 3 play scapes total but the middle one is the size of about 3 of your average ones put together. There are several different water features and the bathroom house is amazing. There were photographers everywhere including the bathroom building taking pictures. It is almost to big to keep an eye on your kids. I think 6 is the perfect age for that park just because it is so big. Having only Logan made it a lot easier but my friend Debra had her son Alec who is 4 and her new baby and it was hard for her to keep an eye on Alec and the baby but we had a great time and so did the kids. It had this thing as soon as I seen it I knew Logan would love. It is this spinning contraption that worked by shifting your body weight just a little. My little man didn't want to get off of it :0)

We also made a trip to the zoo with my friend Tania and her daughter Julia. Like I said the weather has been so fantastic. We have a great Polar bear exhibit and that day he was in the tunnel swimming above our head it was the greatest thing. I have video and pics that I am going to post, it was the first time I had seen him in the water like that. And I have been to the Zoo a lot since the Arctic Ring of Life opened several years ago, WAY COOL.

We also went to the Childrens Museum, it was just OK. I don't think we will go back. A lot of other cool things to see and do.

So Logan has been in his new room with a new bed for almost 2 weeks now and everything is going great (knock on wood). When we moved him in to the new room we did not put the rocking chair in there and after about a week he started asking for me to rock him. How sweet my little man missed sitting with me every night reading books and singing songs so we moved it in. He is feeling much better about that and to be honest I missed it to. I was just laying in his bed w/him and reading and singing although we don't really sing anymore he wants to spell words instead so that is what we do after we read now :0)

L has been potty trained for well over a year now but he still wore a pull-up at night. At first because he was still in his crib. Then went the crib to a toddler bed and he still wore a pull-up. Logan is a sleeper so I knew he would not wake up to go if he had to plus he doesn't come out of him room really. Well about 11 days ago he started waking up dry. For 3 day's he was dry and then we used our last PU night 4 and he woke up dry again. We ran out of PU's and haven't since. It has been 10 day's now and still dry, YAHOO Logan! I took some advice and have been getting him up just before I go to bed and taking him to the potty. It's working so for now that is what I am doing.

It seems like almost overnight he turned into a little boy. My baby is all gone, he's ALL BOY now. I looked at him today and he just looked much taller today compared to yesterday, weird I know but true. Man, I love my little guy!

2008-10-18T19:25:00.001-04:00

Fall is Among Us!

2008-10-03T22:23:00.005-04:00

Almost every year around this time I start wanting to paint a room. This year has been no exception. I have wanted to move L's room for a while now so his new room needed to pumped up and I wanted to let him help with the "theme". We headed off to Lowes and I let him help pick out the colors. He wanted blue strips with red also. I think it turned out great. I pulled up some decals online and we went through them and we decided it was going to be Pirates.

I pulled up a couple of quilts online also and let L pick out the one he liked the best. I got lucky because it was the one I wanted to get. After searching I found out it was no longer available but good old Ebay pulled thru and I won it new with tag for $45.00 instead of the $80 that it retailed for :0)

Logan not only got a new room but he also moved into a full size bed from his toddler bed, He loves it. I kind of had to look for him in it, LOL he is so small in his new BIG bed.

We are headed to a b-day party tomorrow for Logan's best buddy Alec. It's at the Cider mill so it should be a lot of fun for all of us. What a great idea for a fall b-day. There are lots of things to do there. They have a corn maze, hay tower, bounce house, hay rides and pony rides. Not to mention the yummy junk food :0) Can't wait there should be lots of photo ops.

2 Year Gotcha Day!

2008-09-22T13:02:00.000-04:00

I cannot believe it has been two years since I was blessed with the honor of becoming your Mommy. The past 2 years have went by in some ways so unbelievably fast. I have watched you blossom into such a charming, smart, funny, handsome little boy. Your laugh is contagious and your smile will light up any room. As I was putting together the slide show of the past 2 years it's hard for me to remember you so small. You were such a tiny little thing when we became a family, barley on the growth charts and now you are on the high end of them.

You weigh 40lbs and are 41 1/2 inches tall. You can spell mom, dad, egg, no and Logan. You know your ABC's and are counting. You know all of your colors and shapes. I love to listen to you rhyme your words, the other day it was Lasagna and Tania. You crack me up every day, you have the greatest personality and are always joking around :0)

You love to do puzzles and playing on the computer. Outside is your favorite and if you have the chance to go to the cabin you are gone. You are loving playing in your Buzz Lightyear costume (That is who you are being for Halloween this year). You are such a dare devil on your bike and big wheel that you scare me sometimes. I have a feeling I am going to have a ramp jumper on my hands when you are older. The park is always a favorite thing of yours to do, especially our park :0) You are really into playing with other kids now and want to everyday. It's a good thing we keep busy with the library and play dates. Time to start ice skating lessons I think.

You are such a joy to have in my life and I truly am amazed by you everyday. I love you more than life itself and my heart aches for all of the loss you had in your infancy. We are all going to have the best life because we found each other. I love you Logan and I am so proud to be your Mommy.

2008-09-17T19:57:00.003-04:00

I have not spoke out about my personal feelings about our upcoming election because I am disappointed in both of our candidates. I am not a Republican or a Democrat I vote for who I feel will do the best job for our Country at the time. It has been true characteristic of Democrats in office to RAISE taxes and there is no way that ANY American can pay higher taxes in the state of our country. I could go on and on but I will stop. You can draw your conclusion of who I am voting for by watching this very touching video I found on another blog. Sorry if anyone finds this offensive.

Wanted to Share

2008-09-16T13:11:00.002-04:00

A very dear friend of mine just sent me this email. I am not the junk email/chain email person but every once in a while I get a good one and here one is. Instead of forwarding it on I am sharing it here. I have had a lot of emotional, very unnecessary things happen in my life the past couple of years and this email really hit home.

Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass, but learning to dance in the rain.' ~anonymous

A birth certificate shows that we were born; a death
certificate shows that we died; pictures show that we lived!

Have a seat . . .
Relax, and read this slowly.

I believe - That just because two people argue, it
doesn't mean they don't love each other.

And just because they don't argue, it doesn't mean they do.

I believe - That we don't have to change friends if we
understand that friends change.

I believe - That no matter how good a friend is,
they're going to hurt you every once in a while
and you must forgive them for that.

I believe - That true friendship continues to grow, even
over the longest distance. Same goes for true love.

I believe - That you can do something in an instant that
will give you heartache for life.

I believe - That it's taking me a long time to become
the person I want to be.

I believe - That you should always leave loved ones with
loving words. It may be the last time you see them.

I believe - That you can keep going long after you think
you can't.

I believe - That we are responsible for what we do, no
matter how we feel.

I believe - That either you control your attitude or it
controls you.

I believe - That heroes are the people who do what has to
be done when it needs to be done, regardless of the consequences.

I believe - That money is a LOUSY way of keeping score.

I believe - That sometimes the people you expect to kick
you when you're down will be the ones to help you get back up.

I believe - That sometimes when I'm angry I have the
right to be angry, but that doesn't give me the right to be cruel.

I believe - That maturity has more to do with what types of
experiences you've had and what you've learned from them and
less to do with how many birthdays you've celebrated.

I believe - That it isn't always enough to be forgiven
by others. Sometimes you have to learn to forgive yourself.

I believe - That no matter how bad your heart is broken,
the world doesn't stop for your grief.

I believe - That our background and circumstances may have
influenced who we are, but we are responsible for who we become.

I believe - Two people can look at the exact same thing and
see something totally different.

I believe - That your life can be changed in a matter of
hours by people who don't even know you.

I believe - That even when you think you have no more to
give, when a friend cries out to you, you will find the strength to help.

I believe - That credentials on the wall do not make you a
decent human being.

I believe - That the people you care about most in life are
taken from you too soon.

The happiest people don't necessarily have the best of
everything; they just make the best of everything they have.

Looking Back and Some Advice

2008-09-12T14:27:00.003-04:00

As we are getting closer to our 2 year gotcha day I have been doing a lot of reflecting back. I cannot believe the changes in our little man. When L first came home he was so cautious and reserved. He was so small, almost 19 months old but only weighing 19 lbs and only 29 1/2 inches. He wore a 9 month pant and a 12 month shirt. In the first 4 months he gained 9 lbs and grew 4 inches. He must have been hurting growing so fast. He never really cried he would just start and then put his thumb in his mouth and stop. He has definitely learned that crying gets him things but it took a while for him to learn that.

I wanted to post some things that we did to help him with his transition. We limited hugs, kisses, feeding and any care taking role to just Jeff and I. We had planned on doing this for just the first 6-8 weeks home but as we got to know him we learned that he was just not ready for any of that yet, he still did not know what a parent was or that it was us. I remember we were home for about 4 months and we took him to the mall and he walked out of the play area and just kept going, not once EVER looking back for us (of course I followed close behind to see what he would do). When he was scared or hurt he would ALWAYS go to his blanket. It took a very long time of teaching him to come to me or DH but he still had to have the blanket. We did the no holding thing for about 6 months but when it did start happening he was the one who started to initiate the closeness and that was really only to a select few. he started to get some stranger awareness at that point THANK GOD!

To help with the lack of nutrition in the first year and half of his life we put him back on a bottle and formula until his 2nd B-day so for about 6 months. He needed the formula for the nutrition, we used the step 2. It was no problem breaking the bottle habit either. We started with naps and that was no issue at all. And then when he turned 2 I got ride of the bed time bottle. It was about 3 days of just a little fussy and that was it. I still game him milk but in a sippy cup. The bottle and formula was not only good for his weight gain I think it helped some brain development also and it was good for attachment.

We started doing holding time after he was home for about 4/5 months. I started to notice some RED FLAGS and my gut was telling me he needed more than what we were doing. The first time was the longest hour of my life and his to I am sure. The next time was only about 25 minutes of screaming and then the next it was about 5 minutes and then just pure love and snuggles. Just a few months back L started having some issues and he started acting out looking for holding time. As soon as I would pick him up and head upstairs he would settle down and snuggle right in. I asked him if he just wanted me to hold him and he said yes. I explained to him that I will hold him anytime he needs me to and that he doesn't have to act up to have mommy time.

Another thing I did was carry him every where. I got the Playtex Hip hammock that is designed for older babies and he fit great. I walked around the neighborhood like that everyday. I am sure people thought I was crazy carrying around a 20 pounder but he needed it and I was going to give my baby what ever he needed to flourish despite what anyone thought. I truly believe you cannot parent a PI child especially one newly home like you would a child raised in a family since birth. They are totally different. After a little while home I started doing time outs L would pull so far away it took days to get back to what we accomplished and it caused a lot of aggression also. So from recommendation from another adoptive mom I started doing time ins instead and that worked great. I know that I had read that somewhere also but I read so much I sometimes forget about things until they are brought to my attention again.

I have to say just in the past few months Logan has really settled into his own. I can look at him and how he behaves and see that he has finally excepted us as his and he will make claim to us also. I LOVE IT. I know that we will still have our fair share of PI related stuff. As he showed some just about a month ago with another woman. Not that he wanted to leave with her or anything but he got very close to this stranger and wanted to be by her the whole time we were around her. His behavior for a while after was HORRIBLE towards me. I think he still has some issues being able to love Jeff and I both. Not when were apart but when we are all together he has been VERY whiny lately. I hope that one day I will be able to say that my boy does not suffer any issues relating to being in an orphanage for the first 18 1/2 months of his life. I have no doubt that he is attached to us but I still believe he suffers a little.

So if you care here are my recommendations as a mom to a PI child who has been home with his family for almost 2 years.

AGE does not make a difference, ANY baby/child can suffer from attachment problems. I know of babies as young as 9 months coming home and rejecting their new parents. They will also suffer a great loss no matter what they have now. We as their new parents took them away from the only home they ever knew. I think ever child/baby should be treated as if they HAVE an attachment problem for the first 6/8 weeks home, at least until they get to know you and vice versa.

Putting a baby back on a bottle even up to the age of 3 (if they will take it) great for eye contact and attachment, I HIGHLY recommend this.

FORMULA, I think is the key to why L gained weight and grew so fast.

Skin to skin contact, swimming and bathing together are greats ways to do this.

Carry them as much as possible. As some of us call it Velcro them to you.

Do holding time, it may seem like torture at first but the benefits are amazing.

In my opinion, from experience do not do time outs for at least 6 months, do time ins. Putting a child out that has been out for so long can be detrimental to them.

No spanking, you have no idea what the little guy/girl has went through. They could have been abused. We all know that they were neglected for however long they live in an orphanage because 12 people cannot take care of 400 kids at once.

And my most important thing is listen to your gut. A person even if they have 4 or 20 kids cannot tell you what your little one or you has or are going through. Their child unless they are PI also are totally different. Do what you feel is right for your child they are the most important one. Even if people disagree with you, you are your child's greatest advocate.

Oh ya, read, read and then read some more, you cannot be over prepared for what your child has went through or how to help them with their loss and grief.
Attachment takes time it is not an over night thing. I really believe it took Logan well over a year to become attached to me and we did a lot of things to promote it. We had 10 steps forward and then 2 back many times throughout the past 2 years all part of attachment. I really think his hardest part was just a little over a year home. He had some MAJOR issues going on so we got rid of the time outs started doing more holding time and time ins. November and December of 2007 were horrible. But with love and understanding of where his anger was coming from and helping him from all that I learned before his adoption got us through it and he emerged even closer to me.

I have to say with his rough start in life and by that I mean missing out on what most babies have and that is love. A newborn requires so much their first year of life and Logan didn't get that. My heart aches for him for that loss. I wish I could have been there for him to comfort him when he needed it. Logan has turned into this smart, funny, witty, handsome little boy who I am so very proud of.

Busy, Busy, Busy!!!!!

2008-09-09T16:16:00.002-04:00

Wow, I need a break :0) It seems like we have just been on the go every day for a while now. The end of summer came so fast and I cannot believe it's dark around 8:00 already. I do not like the cold although as I am getting older I do not like it really hot either.

Over the Labor day weekend we were very busy. I went out Friday, Saturday we went out to dinner, Sunday we had people over and on Monday we went to the state fair and then had our neighbors over for a swim. My neighbor got us free tickets to get in and as we pulled in to park the lady in front of us gave us free parking tickets, awesome.

Logan has decided that he wants to ride the rides so we got him a wrist band because that was the best deal at $25. I just still can't get over that my 3 yr old wrist band was the same as an adults. First off he isn't tall for a lot of the rides to go without an adult so we had to get some tickets also. And of course the people at the counter are running a huge scam. They got my neighbor and I for a total of 20 bucks. They take your money first, ask you to hold up your kid to the window, stamp their hands first and then put on a band. All the while never giving you your change back and minutes have went by so your mind is else where. They should have handed us our change right away before making us hold up our kids. LA realized about 5 minutes later and we both checked and neither of us had the change due back to us. I wonder how many other suckers they got? When we both went back up to the booth there were no questions, they looked behind a piece of paper and just handed it right to us, JERKS.

I signed L up for 2 different library classes. We started our first one for the fall today. We have done several library classes at our local library but today we went a city over and I am so glad we did. Logan had a blast, Ms. Meagan sang songs, read books and they played a few games. We got new neighbors a bit ago so while we were out for our daily walk yesterday we stopped by and told them about it. Isa is 3 1/2 just like L. I was so glad to see them walk in today. The kids had fun with each-other and made some new friends also. I like Jennifer the Mom and we parent a lot alike so that is nice.

Our local library is starting a baby-sign class. Where was that 2 years ago when L first came home. Although I loved teaching them to him. He was really good with his signs and he picked them up very quickly. He will still do some of them if you ask and he show's some babies if you ask him to, way cute! Any ways, we are going back to our local library because he has moved up and it is a different librarian. Ms. Holly was VERY boring and could not really hold the kids attention. That class starts on Thursday so we will see how the new lady is. I love the library because it is FREE first of all and they have great things for the kids.

I am not sure we will do play group anymore, L seems a little old now for the group that seems to gravitate there. I am still thinking ice skating come January so for now I think we will stick to the library twice a week. We have also started to sit down twice a week and do some pre-school work sheets. Logan loves them and he is pretty good at them. We went to the store and he picked out his own folder to keep his work in. He had to get a monkey because that is what his Nanny loves so he does to.

Things to Know!

2008-09-02T19:00:00.004-04:00

I have been following this blog for a while now and what she wrote the other day brought back a lot of emotions. You see we had people disregard that L may have attachment problems and need different parenting techniques than what works for a baby raised in a home since birth. We heard that all he needed was love and he would be fine. Some people even said that within the first couple of weeks coming home he would be fine and know we were his parents. Well if you have ever been in our shoes you know that it takes A LOT longer than just a few weeks.

This woman has 2 bio-kids and one adopted. Here are her words.

Children living in an institution, then becoming adopted and labeled as Post Institutional (PI)- are not the same as children raised in a family setting from birth. It's oranges and apples.....Truly. I realize that the vast majority of people in this world will never understand or experience a PI child.....however, I just want to encourage the people who do encounter a PI child to respect their differences. Prior to bringing XXXXX home, I believed that all children just needed love and consistency.....and I believed that every child could be transformed with enough love and enough consistency. I was dead wrong. This process with XXXXX is a learning process. At times I fail, there are times I fail miserably - but the important thing is that I keep trying. Dr. Knight tells us that what comes naturally as a parent may not and probably will not benefit a PI child. These children are are emotionally delayed, and in many cases their brain development is delayed .....XXXXX spent in an institutional setting are the most important years of his life. Is he scarred for life? No. But he'll forever be a different person because of it - yes. Is the time he spent there THE most important years, no, but respecting his past is crucial to helping his future.

All the things he's dealing with, may or may not be due to him being PI - but in the chance that it's a delay or an issue that spawns from PI - then it's my job as his mom to take every precaution, every step necessary to help him. (I.E. - compulsive nose picking may be his way of sensory seeking, which is common for PI children due to lack of physical and emotional contact during development - on the flip side it may just be a habit - but to just assume that would be neglectful. )

If you know me, if you encourage me - please don't disregard the things I'm dealing with as nonsense....XXXXX is a special child in many ways.......and while boys being different than girls may be TRUE.....you at least need to understand that PI boys are equally as different from a typical boy. If you're truly interested in understanding more, I'd be happy to recommend some reading, or answer any questions to the best of my understanding.

Hilarious!

2008-08-27T20:51:00.003-04:00

I am sitting here watching a little TV unwinding from the day it's about 15 minutes after I got Logan all settled in. I hear him pick up his monitor and then he ordered a kids meal, cheeseburger with no pickle, a toy and apples. This has went on for about 5 minutes now. He keeps ordering different things, now its chicken nuggets, a toy of course and milk. OMG Logan you are so funny. We don't eat fast food very often so this is really funny to me and when we do he usually gets a cheeseburger WITH pickle, apples and milk or apple juice. I am cracking up listening to him!!!!!!!!!

Random Stuff I want to remember

2008-08-27T13:53:00.005-04:00

That boy of mine is so darn cute and funny. Logan has been potty trained for over a year now but at night he still wears a pull-up. Yesterday he woke up wet so he got up changed his pants but kept the pull-up on and laid back down. I told him he can get up and go potty any time he needs to and to take his pull-up off. I thought it was so funny that he changed his pants but left the soaking wet pull-up on :0)

Yesterday we are driving down the road when he asked me "why did daddy and you get married" (I can't believe at 3 he is asking this) so I told him because we loved each-other and wanted to have a family. Then he asked "is it because you wanted to be a princess" I said no why and he said "you looked like one, you dressed like one" AAAHHHHHHHHH, what a sweaty.

We have always talked about adoption, L knows he was born in Russia and that he is adopted. I know he does not "get it" now but he will later and I don't want it to be a foreign thing so it is talked about freely. I have told him that my tummy was broken and so I couldn't carry a baby in my belly like other Mommies. Today as we went up stairs for his nap he started asking me questions about my belly not working and who's belly he was in. I was a little taken back because he has never asked any questions before about adoption or my belly not working. I told him that he got carried in someone else's belly and he asked me who so I told him the name of his BM (birth-mom) and that she was in Russia. Then he asked me if we picked him up in a car and where he lived. WOW such BIG questions from a 3 year old. I expected these types of questions later. I am glad he is curious about it and I will do the best I can to give him honest answers. I truly believe he is the only one who has the right to know anything about his adoption. I believe it is his information to share when he wants.

Having a conversation with my little man is incredible. He talks up a storm and uses pretty big words. I decided not to put him in 3 yr old pre-school and wait until next year. He is a pretty smart kid and I don't want him to get into kindergarten and be bored out of his mind. He will go to 4 yr old pre-school for 3 days next fall. This year we are just going to do things together again. I think we are going to do some ice skating lessons in January. Not sure what we are going to do this fall yet still looking into it.

Logan has grown so much, He is now 41 inches and 40 lbs. They had a health fair that I took Logan to last week and we got a lot of free stuff. L got a back pack and we filled it to the rim with goodies. My arm was sore by the time we left. We went there actually for this program for missing kids. I took L last year and his info didn't get transfered to their new server, long story. They do fingerprints, take pictures and give DNA kits. All of this information is stored so the police can get all your kiddo's info in seconds if they were to heaven forbid ever come up missing. They also gave these cards with their picture and thumb print and a place for your signature. It so they can be treated medically if you are not reachable, perfect for the baby sitter. Go here and check it out, it is a valuable and free service. www.rapidsearchnetwork.com

Now I must run, my little stinker just came down stairs form his nap and by the way he never went to sleep. Two days in a row now with no nap, EERRRR come 5/6 tonight its going to be a long one.

Vacation in Northern Michigan

2008-08-22T19:30:00.012-04:00

This past week Jeff was on vacation so we took off to Mackinaw City for the week. We had a great time. The weather could not have been any better. Logan did great beside our last day. He started getting a little whiny around 5:00 pm but he hadn't napped for 2 days in a row and my boy needs his sleep :0)

We stayed in Mackinaw City and our first day there we just hung out around town. The next day we drove to the UP and then the next day we went to the Island. Our last day we hung out for a few in the morning before we left got a few pics and a round of Putt-Putt in before heading home. Jeff and I went to Tahquamenon Falls and to Oswald's Bear Ranch when we got married back in "99" so it has been a while. The Falls are just as spectacular as I remember. The Bear farm has changed a lot. If your ever in the UP both places are a must see.

We all had lot of fun with some first for all of us. Logan's first included a Boat ride, seeing some waterfalls, walking in a river, building a bear (or in his case Barry the dog) and getting up close & personal with a Bear cub. Jeff and my firsts were petting a bear cub and seeing a Bald Eagle in the wild. I did not include that in Logan's first because I am not sure if he seen it or not. He was in the middle of the back seat strapped in his car seat. We were driving and there it was, it was so cool, I had to full over and get a picture.

Any ways, I'll let the pictures tell our story, enjoy!

At the Water Park

On our way to Oswald's Bear Ranch in the UP

Petting the Cub

First time seeing a Bald Eagle in the wild

Tahquamenon Falls State Park

Playing on the beach outside of our room

Taking the Ferry to Mackinac Island

First Boat Ride

Taking a Break!

Having fun on the Island

Playing Putt-Putt

The End!

Armada Fair

2008-08-15T18:42:00.002-04:00

We love to go to one of the local fairs in our area. This year it was such a change with Logan. He wanted to ride rides. Last year he wouldn't try anything, this year he watched and picked a few. He even tempted to ride the kiddie roller coaster, he watched it, waited in line, got on all by himself. He even sat there for a few seconds. Then all of a sudden he wanted off, I was glad that happened before it took off. We had such a great time, watching L's face on those rides for the first time was priceless :0)

I am by no means a prude but when we went into the petting area I couldn't believe my eye's. I am not one who ever favored the pants/shorts that had writing on the butt but when I seen this little girl 10/12 years old had a pair on that said "Jail Bait" I almost died. I'm sorry but who the hell lets their LITTLE girl where something like that? She was there with her mom and I know I shouldn't judge but what a dumb ass her mother must be.

Being Silly

2008-08-14T17:18:00.002-04:00

Happy B-day to Me!

2008-08-10T19:24:00.006-04:00

I cannot believe I celebrated my 37th Birthday today. WOW, is all I can say ;0)

Logan took this picture, I had to bend down or my head would have been gone, LOL!!!!

Logan got these glasses at Chuck E Cheese the other day, how funny does he look :) It had a mustache but he had to take it off, he said he was to young for it he's only a kid

What Rhymes With Stink?

2008-08-07T19:15:00.004-04:00

Butt! Logan has been walking around for weeks now rhyming. Tonight I said to him, Logan what rhymes with stink and he looked at me so seriously and said "butt" No it does not rhyme "butt" they sure do go together. We laughed so hard, I sure do have a funny kid :0)

About a month ago L came out of him room into the hall at bed time for the first time ever. He has gotten out of bed, read books or sat and talked but never came out. The first night he came out he did it 3 times, on the third I got up stairs without him hearing me and he opened the door as I was going to open it and it scared the living s*#t out of him. He came out the next couple of nights but I got that stopped pretty fast. He has not done that since then until tonight. I heard him open the door and I said Logan you better get back in bed and that was that. I heard him reading a book but about 10 minutes later the door opened again. I went up to get him back in bed, he had to show me his watch that we couldn't find. He had the cushion off of the rocker and he had to tell me he found it. I got him back in bed sang him a song, kissed him good-night and walked out, I haven't heard him since. While I was singing to him he was holding my hand, I just love my little guy :0)

Last Saturday L came down from his room into ours when he woke up for the first time EVER. Usually he rolls around a bit waking up, I hear him in the monitor so I go and get him or he calls for me. I am in the bathroom brushing my teeth and I hear "OOHHHH good morning daddy, where's mommy" I was so shocked. I knew it would happen sooner or later but I was still shocked. He told Jeff and I "Caillou do it, I do it just like him", darn that Caillou. He has been waking up about 45 minutes to an hour earlier this past week then normal and has come down every morning, eeerrrrrrr!!!!!!!!!

So Jeff and I went golfing the other day and had a blast. No I didn't even come close to beating him but I didn't do that awful for not picking up a club in over 2 years. We will be going again soon. We planned on just doing 9 holes but ended up doing 18. The last 2 hole were pretty much torture on my arms and I was tired but I finished. I left Logan with my Mom for the longest time yesterday. I dropped him of at 9:00 am and picked him up around 6:00 pm. He had breakfast, made Check Mix, went out to lunch, took his nap with no problem, got spoiled by my Mom and niece, and just had a great time. I forgot how much fun Jeff and I have golfing, we definitely needed that:0)

One of my favorite things about summer is waking up and finding blooms like this one on my Hibiscus plant.

Happy 9 Years to Us!

2008-08-05T13:53:00.004-04:00

I cannot beleive that we have been married for 9 years. It has went by so fast. Happy Anniversary to you Jeff.

Love Me
P.S. I can't wait to kick your butt on the golf course tomorrow :0)

Our photographer used our wedding pictures for years after our wedding for advertisement. We were always on the inside of this magazine and in 2004 we made the cover, what an honor, so I thought I would share. The pic did not scan that well but you get the jist.

What a Nice Day : 0)

2008-07-31T23:49:00.005-04:00

It was smokin hot out today. I had decided yesterday that we were doing something today so I asked Logan what park he wanted to go to. He had the choice of the splash park or the park/beach, he chose the beach. He had such a great time playing in the water and sand. I remember what it was like as a kid to just roll around in the sand, now I don't like it at all besides on my feet.

Jeff and I were laughing he hears this one mom telling her kids "no don't go in the sand it will get all in the carpet" Lady did you miss that you were at the beach? Some other ladies sat down close and I swear this lady must have said Tyler 100 times, come on people let them be kids. I am all about paying attention to what your kid is doing and stuff but seriously.

We had lunch at the park and he dried off and played on the playground for about 30 minutes before we headed home for his nap. On the way home Jeff and I were talking about going and seeing Jeff's grandma tomorrow and Logan was pretty insistent that we go see her today when he woke up. So I gave her a call and we headed over there for the afternoon.

When we got home his friend Jake was out so he played with him for a while before we headed in to read some books and get ready for bed. It was a long fun filled day. I can't believe I didn't take my camera around with us today. I have been slacking taking pics lately.

Logan has turned into such a smart, funny little boy. I really do have a good kid. Don't get me wrong we have our moments like yesterday he pushed his friend, what the heck. He was totally playing when it happened and was not trying to be mean but I am a keep your hands off kinda mom. I made him say he was sorry and explained that we do not do that. I asked him if he would like it and he said no. So I explained that he needed to stop and think about what he is doing and if he wouldn't like it if someone did it to him then he should not do it to others. I think he got it, I hope he got it. I talked to him about it at bed time and then I told Jeff and Jeff talked to him about it today. I hope I don't see that again :)

A Little on Attachment

2008-07-27T21:40:00.004-04:00

I know that we have been home for almost 2 years but I still like to go and read up on things. I know that L is attached but I am still not sure that he is 100% there. There are little things every once in a while that throws up a red flag. One of the web-sites that I love is www.a4everfamily.org. I was checking things out and I came across this article~

When Family & Friends Don't Understand

Since many of the symptoms associated with attachment problems look like normal childhood behaviors, it can be very difficult if not impossible to explain to friends and family. Some, in an attempt to be helpful, try to dismiss the problems. You hear, “Oh, my son has temper tantrums all the time,” all the while thinking to yourself, “Not like these, lady!” Others try to generalize, “He looks perfectly normal to me,” while you roll your eyes, knowing that he is at his worst only when he is home. Alone. With you.

And then, there are the friends and family who, in the spirit of helpfulness, begin to question your methods, or even worse, your sanity.

Could you imagine NOT getting the support needed from your family and friends in such a difficult time. It is such a HUGE transition for the baby and the new parents they surely do not need any more stress. To get criticized for wanting the best for your baby is a shame. A family should be commended for their efforts not condemned. Who in their right minds would do this? So if you are reading this remember SUPPORT is what every new parent needs no matter if you agree with their methods or not. Bringing a baby/toddler or and older child home from an orphanage is/can be very difficult and is WAY different than bringing a baby home from the hospital. So show your loved ones the support they need even if you don't get it :0)

I think sometimes even to talk to your friends about things your child is going through can be hard because they have not been there. I thank God I have Kim to talk to about things. We adopted our boy's from the same baby-house and traveled together. Our kid's go through some very similar things. So to all of you adoptive parents find that someone who is experiencing things as you are because parenting our kiddo's is A LOT different than the baby brought home from the hospital at birth. Our kiddo's have been through multiple losses in their short little lives.

And here is a pic of my little cutie, man he looks like such a little boy now :0)

Can You Help make a Difference?

2008-07-22T21:31:00.013-04:00

Please help if you can, copy and paste the link.

The struggle that this family has endured at the hands of Orson Mozes/Adoption International Program is horrific. Please do what you can to help them bring their children home. Orson has financially ruined them and their boys are in a Kazakhstan orphanage hoping that their Mommy and Daddy come for them. I am so happy that they have found the strength to move forward in hopes to bring their boy's home after all they have been through.

http://www.quest2kaz.blogspot.com/

P.S.
Can anyone tell me how to add a link the correct way? I know it is something very simple that I am missing, THANKS!

Big Jumper

2008-07-22T00:41:00.006-04:00

Expectations

2008-07-18T01:10:00.002-04:00

Expectations, I have learned never have them of someone even if they are very little because you most likely will end up disappointed :0)

The Holiday Weekend!

2008-07-09T23:12:00.003-04:00

We had a VERY busy week, it started last Tuesday, we went to the Zoo. There was a bunch of us, Me Logan, my Mom, my niece, my friend Tania and her daughter Julia. We had a good time and L is so good with Julia. Check out the pic in the slide show, they are in their strollers holding hands :) We went to the beach/park Friday with our neighbors. Then on Sat we went to my friend Debra's house. Jeff and I took L to the splash zone/park on Sunday. We went out to dinner w/my Dad and S-mom Monday and then Logan went and hung out with his Nanny & Papa for the afternoon Tuesday. Today (weds) we stayed home all day but L was still in the pool for about 2 1/2 hours this morning. We need a few days of rest around here. Any ways, we all had a great holiday weekend and I was glad Logan got to hang with his friends.

We have some interesting things going on this weekend and I pray all goes well. I WISH I could write about it here but some dirty laundry is just not for the world to read. I feel in my heart that someday I will write about it but I want to do it in the right way. I am still trying to forgive :0)

2 Years Ago!

2008-07-04T07:10:00.009-04:00

The first picture is L's referral picture the second one I just took. boy has he changed :)

I cannot believe it was 2 years ago that we boarded a plane headed to Siberia Russia to meet Logan. That was a day I will never forget. Although we left on the 4th it wasn't until the 6th that we actually landed in Siberia and went to meet Logan.

That was such a strange day. We had tried to become parents for SO MANY YEARS and here we were finally going to meet "our son" for the first time. It was such a hard day. My dear dog Baylee died as we were getting ready to leave for the airport. That was totally unexpected she was not ill at all. It was such a long 2 days of travel. If I remember correctly it was something like 36 hours from the time we left our house until we actually got to strech out on a bed and get some sleep.

The morning of the 6th I was sooooo sick from all of the travel and lack of sleep not to mention I had a WHOLE ball of anxiety to go with the lack of sleep and food. I remember telling Jeff as we were waiting for our translator and driver to pick us up to go meet L that I just couldn't do it. I needed to sleep and then we could go, he told me to pull it together, I had waited so long to be a mom and I was so close. Thank god he was there to get me going. I laid down for about 30 minutes and did some deep breathing and just kept telling myself it was all going to be OK.

I will never forget sitting in Dr. Lubmilla's office and hearing the door open then close and as I turned around there was my beautiful little guy just standing in the middle of the room all by himself. My heart leaped and I was so excited to finally being looking at my baby face to face. He looked scared to death and he was soooooooo serious. It took 2 hours to get him to smile and then our visit for the day ended.

Our journey to become parents took about 5 1/2 years. 1 year of trying alone 2 Years of infertility treatments. And our adoption took almost 2 years to the day to complete. We had 3 different agencies and a trip to Kazakhstan and then finally we found Adoption Ark and thanks to them we finally become parents. I have to say those 11 weeks that we had between our first and second trips were the most grueling 11 weeks of my life. It was so unbelievably hard to leave L behind especially not knowing when we would be back for court and knowing that a Russian family or a bio-family member could come forward for him at any time before we went to court. Thank God the plan was for the 3 of us to be a family.

Logan you are the light of my life. It doesn't make a difference how bad of a day I have your laugh can always make me smile. It is such an honor being your Mommy and I am so happy to watch you grow and thrive. You are the greatest, I love you!

Happy 4th of July

I Feel Great, NOT!

2008-06-30T13:46:00.008-04:00

I have an ear infection, I got into some Poison Ivy, I pulled my neck a bit yesterday and it's THAT time, EERRR!!! Oh yeah my left eye was bothering me for a while so I went to the Dr. He then had me go see an Ophthalmologist who informed me that I have 20/20 vision. But I am now suffering from seasonal allergies that are messing with my eye's. I am now taking an eye drop and an antibiotic for my ear infection. See why I feel great :) I have never had seasonal allergies before so this is something new for me. The Dr said he had already seen about 7 people that week who's eyes were bothering them and it turned out that it was allergies that they never experienced before.

On a lighter note Logan is loving being in the pool and I am so glad that we have fenced just the pool in separately. He is now totally fearless and is jumping in all the time. Just a few short weeks ago he couldn't even stay upright in his jacket by himself, now he is swimming from one end of the pool to the other with no help and just feeling very comfortable in the water. He would go in ALL day EVERY day if we would let him. He has a life-jacket on at all times also, pretty soon we are going to start taking him with-out the life jacket so we can teach him to swim without it.

The pool area was our MAJOR summer project. First we (Jeff) had to cut a piece of cement out around the pool, it had cracked and lifted so it was a real hazard. Our whole yard is fenced in but we needed to do just the pool area so L can eventually go out back without me. After the cement was done we had someone come and put the Aluminum fence in and then we did the deck. It turned out great and Jeff is constantly checking out how straight his work it :0) He really did do a great job and I think it turned out FANTASTIC!!!!! We have such a huge backyard that doing this did not take anything away from it's beauty :)

SCARY!

2008-06-29T10:59:00.003-04:00

A few weeks ago I read a research study of 13,000 people. The study showed that while pregnant using your cell phone even only a few times a week was just as harmful to the unborn fetus as drinking and smoking. The study showed that the children born had a higher rate of learning disabilities, ADHD and a list of other learning problems or hyper activity. I will search for the article and post a link to it if I can find it. It was very interesting but I am sure pretty scary if your prego.

Any ways, this video was sent to me from one of my prego friends that I sent the article. For years they have been saying that cell phones cause brain tumors/cancer and then the next study shows they are safe.

What do you think of this video? I find it VERY alarming!

The Video Speaks for Itself

2008-06-25T02:21:00.005-04:00

Watch Local 4 news tonight at 11:00

2008-06-24T18:13:00.004-04:00

We did a story with Karen Drew a local reporter here in SE MI about our failed adoption. She tells our story and the story of Orson and a few other victims in MI. The interview was done last Weds and was supposed to air sometime in the middle/end of July and they thought it was to good to let go that long. So watch Local 4 tonight at 11:00 and Weds morning at 6:15 am for a follow up. If your not in the viewing area you can see the story here www.clickondetroit.com

I will get it posted on you-tube and here on my blog as soon as I can. Let's get this slime ball off the streets so he can't scam anyone else.

STAY TUNED FOR MORE!!!!!!!

Flying My First Kite : )

2008-06-18T21:07:00.004-04:00

Having a blast being a mom

Merry Christmas!

My"Big Boy" lost his first tooth

Santa

I love my little Skeleton

4 yrs, Already!

Kindergarten Already, WOW!

It's been a long time

Happy Easter

Happy 5th Birthday My Beautiful Boy!

Fun in the Snow!

Logan say's GO TEAM RUSSIA!

Wow, Time Goes By So Fast

Something to HELP Haiti

Some Snow Fun

Moscow for the New Year!

Good Bye 2009, Hello 2010!

Merry Christmas from My Family to Yours~

Personal Video email from Santa

Santa!

Christmas Tree Fun!

Circus Fun!

Funny!

Happy Halloween!

This & That

BOO!

Preschool Update!

Something Strange is Going On?

3 Years Today

Preschool

1st Day of Preschool~

Vacation~ Mackinaw City

Getting ready for Pre-school

Having Fun!

Happy 38 to Me!

Happy 10 year Anniversary!

To Jupiter and Back

Huckleberry Railroad

20 Year Reunion

Cannon Ball!!!!!!

How did I miss June?

What we've been up to = A LOT!

Happy Mother's Day!

And She's Not Even an Octopus

What a Slacker!

Happy Easter!

4 Year well visit

Say Cheese, Please :0)

Logan's Referral Pics

Birthday Fun!

Happy 4th Birthday Logan

It's Been a Long Time!

Nice Hair, Silly Boy!

I Like You!

So what do you think of my shiner?

Random Things and Americas Most Wanted

Ice Skating Anyone

Wink, Wink!

This is what it looks like around here

Happy New Year!

Christmas in Pictures 2008

**UPDATE** Orson Mozes featured on my side bar

Merry Christmas from Our Family to Yours

And Snow It Did...

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow

Santa, The Big Jolly Guy

BERRRRR!!!!!

A Few Other Things!

Hey There, We're Still Here

Happy Halloween!

Way To Busy!

Fall is Among Us!

2 Year Gotcha Day!

Wanted to Share

Looking Back and Some Advice

Busy, Busy, Busy!!!!!

Things to Know!

Hilarious!

Random Stuff I want to remember

Vacation in Northern Michigan

UPDATE Orson Mozes featured on my side bar