Good-bye to 2006 and hello to 2007. I hope you enjoy part 2 of some of my special memories I shared with Gracie in 2006.

In May Gracie celebrated her first Mother’s Day with mom. One year prior Gracie was only a dream and now she is a very special reality. What a wonderful Mother’s Day gift for my mom. The other thing I remembered about May was that summer break was just around the corner. One more month away and then I would be spending more time with Gracie. I really looked forward to that.

In June I prepared to... more

Good-bye to 2006 and hello to 2007. It was a great year but now it is time to move on. It is time to work on those New Year’s resolutions and make new goals and new memories. It is also a time to reflect on the memories from years past.

Here is part 1 of some of my special memories from this past year that I hope you will enjoy.

In January we celebrate my mom’s birthday. I remember Gracie loving and hugging Mommy more than usual that day. I guess she knew that was mom’s special day.

In February... more

Christmas with Gracie was a blast this year. She was so funny because when it came time to open our Christmas presents she looked confused since we told her she could not touch the presents in the days leading up to Christmas. Once we told her it was all right to open them her face lit up with excitement.

Gracie received a Leap Frog learning system with books she could change out, a mega color doodling pad and three Blue’s Clues DVDs just to name a few. I gave her a Dora the Explorer bathtub... more

Well, it has been a few days since I have written, but with the preparations for the holidays and having a cold, it has been hard for me to get on the computer.

It is almost Christmas. Just ONE more day! I can hardly believe it is that time of year again! Today my mom, my dad, Gracie, and I went to my Maw-Maw’s (Grandmother’s) house for a Christmas Eve brunch. My Maw-Maw is such a good cook so we had all kinds of great things to eat. Scrambled eggs, hash browns, HOMEMADE biscuits, country ham, tenderloin, oranges,... more

Last Wednesday my mom took Gracie to Wal-Mart to pick up a few Christmas gifts. Mom typically does not care to take Gracie shopping if she can help it. As you can imagine with a two year old the shopping task becomes a little more difficult. She usually will find more things in the shopping cart then she planned on buying because Gracie will take things off the shelf and put them in the cart when she is not looking. Or there is generally some nice and neat display placed where a two year old will think it is Lego Land and…well, you... more

Some may not know that ladybugs have a special meaning to those of us in the Chinese adoption community. The Chinese adoption myth is that ladybugs are a sign of good luck and it is said if you see a ladybug your referral will be coming very soon. As I said in my last blog, I am not one that believes in luck but I do appreciate the symbols ladybugs do represent.

After doing a little more research on ladybugs I found a lot of interesting facts and myths people from countries around the world hold on ladybugs. http://www.celticbug.com/Legends/Lore.html... more

Gracie has an adorable ceramic tea set that was given to her by our Aunt Kirey for her second birthday this past August. It has the saying “Ladybug, Ladybug fly away home…” on the little plates and teapot. Some may not know that ladybugs have a special meaning to those of us in the Chinese adoption community. The Chinese adoption myth is that ladybugs are a sign of good luck and it is said if you see a ladybug your referral will be coming very soon. I am not one that believes in luck but I do appreciate the symbols ladybugs do represent.... more

As a sibling there are times it is really hard to keep your cool when your brother or sister gets into your belongings. Gracie gets into my art supplies, the laundry I fold, my homework and what I am typing on the computer. These are just a few things Gracie gets into. Sometimes I really want to yell at her and that is usually what all siblings what to do to their siblings from time to time.

When I do homework sometimes Gracie will come into my room and jump on my bed. There are times where she will grab a... more

What is it about stickers toddlers love? I remember when I was a little girl I loved stickers. My mother would take me shopping and I would have to have a new set of stickers. My favorite stickers were the ones with glitter on them. When it was time for me to move up from the church nursery into the “big people’s church” my mom always packed me a good stack of colorful stickers to keep me occupied so that I would stay as quite and still as possible. (I do not think it worked some Sundays). She even bought me a sticker... more

Buster is our fat and fuzzy feline. Buster and Gracie are best friends but it hasn’t always been that way. When we arrived home from China with Gracie, Buster took a looked at her and then looked at us and we were sure that if cats could talk that he said, “Take her back!” Grace would crawl to Buster and then pull his fur or tail and he made it known that he was not happy with her and that he wanted no part of her. Gracie wasn’t going to let that stop her. She continued to crawl toward him waking him from his sleep and he... more