I Love Love...

So we have had Valentine's decor up for a while now...what do people usually do after the Christmas stuff comes down? It leaves a void, and I must fill it.

So I do. But not too much...because I also enjoy after Christmas clean house.

But hearts, and pink things, those don't create unnecessary clutter. And I do so love pink things.

Anyways, let's look at the Valentine's decor, shall we?

I made this heart last year. I'm all about recycling the decorations this year. So green of me.

Hearts everywhere.

And chocolate. What's a holiday without chocolate?

Same printable from last year...how very 2011 of me.

Even the throws have hearts...and they are pink!!

These blocks were at Target, and they switch around to make multiple words. And they stack to make a tower (for the three year old).

A little Winter quote. I will have to find something about love. Underneath is a hippo climbing at a park. Thank you little M.

Hearts, sticks, and a lovebird pillow. I think the sticks really scream Valentine's. Maybe I will paint them pink, or something.

I love love. yes, I do.

Gym Time

So Little M started gymnastics yesterday. Oh my goodness, you guys, she was so precious.

I am pretty sure that in the history of gymnastics no one has ever been so happy to be a budding gymnast as little M.

She spent the whole class squealing with delight. Squealing, and laughing. Sometimes she just ran around in circles waving her hands in the air. Because when you are very happy, that's what you do.

She told me that she wants to go again and again. Her favorite was the "thomerthocks (summersaults)."

Next time I will get pictures...for now these will have to do!

Wordless Wednesday...

Naleigh Moon

This music video is near and dear to my heart.

I think everyone knows who Katherine Heigl is...did you know that she and her husband adopted a little girl in 2009? From Korea?

Their little girl, Naleigh, came home with a heart condition similar to our little M's.

Do you know how much criticism they got? Tons.

Did you know they dealt a lot with attachment issues? Yes, they did, especially Katherine.

Adoption is hard. A new family is born through pain and suffering. But it is also the most beautiful thing in the world, and changes you completely. Completely and wonderfully.

Enter The Dragon...

The year of the dragon has been so fun so far! We made a dragon cake...

And did some dragon crafts. We found this one, and the dragon cake, over on Kim K's blog.

The dragon represents strength and brings good luck.

Little M told me she loves the dragon so much... so cute.

The characters for little M's chinese name are the phoenix, which is the dragon's counterpart.

This dragon craft we found at Michael's, and little M has been running around yelling "happy new year!" all morning.

Happy year of the dragon!!

Gung Hay Fat Choy!

Today is the first day of the Chinese New Year!

Happy year of the dragon!

We celebrated with friends yesterday, with good food and dragon cake.

Chu Ru Ping An!

I Did It!

I have been waiting and waiting for little M's hair to be long enough to do french braids.

I can finally do it!

There were so many super short chunks of hair in there, and her hair was so thin. But now, finally, her hair is healthy and long.

Little M was pretty happy about her braids, too. She told a stranger at the store that she had two beautiful braids, and asked if he would like to touch them. He agreed that they were beautiful, but thankfully declined the touching.

What Is It Like To Be An Orphan?

There is a precious little girl, Xiaoyun, who was adopted in April, just days before she would have aged out of China's system, and would have no longer been eligible for adoption.

She has severe scoliosis, and would not have lived much longer.

She is now in the hospital for six weeks for a series of six surgeries to repair her scoliosis and save her life. Each surgery will get harder, and because of her limited lung capacity the doctors won't be able to fully relieve her pain. She is so brave.

Xiaoyun has not even been home for a full year, but she already has a lot to say about orphans and what it feels like to be an orphan.

If you feel led to send a card to Xiaoyun, to help pass the time while she is in the hospital for so long, you can send it here:

Evelyn (Xiaoyun) Willoughby
c/o Kosairs Children’s Hospital
231 E. Chestnut St.
Louisville, KY 40202

Mood Swings

Aww, little M...she is so happy most of the time. Most things that might devastate others just roll off of her.

Except when she hears no. When she is told that she cannot do something that she wants to do...that's when we see this face...

And that face can last a pretty long time sometimes. I am glad when she is happy again, but I don't mind unhappy face too much. How can I when it is so cute, and so pitiful? The whining is what gets to me. Little M knows her words, and when this face comes to town we hear all about the feelings behind it..."I tho dithappointed... I THO dithappointed!" I know, it sounds cute, but imagine it in a high- pitched whiny voice over and over, many times throughout the day. Ugh.

Yes, we can do the happy/sad thing over and over, all the livelong day. What will puberty bring us?

Thankfully, she is happy more than she is "dithappointed," and as long as she doesn't hear "no," we see this face...my favorite face.

My Sweet Girl...

My precious daughter,

You are almost four years old now, and what a sassy little thing you are!

You are also the sweetest girl I have ever known. You are amazing and beautiful.

Your smile melts my heart, and your laugh brightens my day.

You are determined and strong. You are independent and smart.

You are (mostly) easygoing, and patient.

You can do anything you try, and you can be anything you want...I will help you however I can.

I have never been as proud of anyone as I am of you. You are brave and resilient.

You go into everything new experience with an excitement and enthusiasm I envy.

I love you more than you will ever know, and I am so proud to be your mommy.

Wordless Wednesday...

I Got Board...

So Pinterest is both my best friend and my worst enemy. I guess we're frenemies...

Pretty much everything I see on Pinterest, I want to make. I knew when I saw a picture of this giant ruler height chart that it was going to be mine.

Also, I love Home Depot. So there was a lot of love going around this day.

I got myself a six foot board...

Then we distressed it. Yes, we. As often as I can, I let little M be involved in crafting and decorating. So I gave her a screwdriver, and let her pound away. She still shows me all the marks she made, and I like that she has that sense of ownership in creating something with me.

I stained it in a light walnut. Little M was not involved in this part since I am insanely worried about fumes killing her brain cells and all that...

Up close you can see all the marks we made.

Then, I took a black sharpie, and drew my lines and numbers. I started to use a paint pen, but it was too wet, and started to bleed. If you look closely you can see that some of the lines aren't perfectly even. Little M was helping here, too.

This is my favorite section. This was where little M could reach, so it has the most "distressing."

I love that it looks like a big giant ruler. And it is decorative enough that it doesn't have to be hidden away. I hung it six inches off the floor, so I started my measurements at six inches, which makes my ruler six-and-a-half feet.

And if we ever move, we can just take it along, and we won't lose those sweet marks from this little shorty...