From the Archives: When Our Toys Are Boring...

So I found this old blog post today that I never published. It's dated back in October, and holy cow! I can't believe how much Mia has changed in the last few months. So far toddlerhood has been so much fun, but it's hard not to get a bit nostalgic when you see her little baby face.

Apparently I was in desperation trying to find something new she'd like to play with.

She thought it was hilarious to look at you through it. Of course the tongue's got to be sticking out.

Ready for Auditions

So, the following is a result of what happens when Daddy has full creative control when dressing Mia for the day. I'm pretty sure she could have auditioned for Hair or Footloose and walked right on. Surprisingly, I allowed her out of the house that morning, but as soon as Daddy left for work, we changed. I was rewarded by a later diaper leak, and the whole outfit was changed again. Sigh.

Kiss Me

We just discovered we have a little narcissist in the kitchen today. I think the video speaks for itself...

Wordless Wednesday

A couple of weeks ago, we found ourselves with nothing to do on a beautiful Saturday afternoon. If you know our family very well, you know this hardly ever happens. So we decided to take Mia to the Indianapolis Museum of Art. She did pretty well in the museum, but the most fun was letting her explore the grounds. I really wanted to get her picture with the huge #1, but by the time we made it back to it, I was tired from walking/carrying/pushing the stroller, and I think Mia was about to her limit to. I guess we still have 9 more months to capture it.

Mama's Little Helper

Life with a toddler is so much fun! She's like a little sponge, soaking up all kinds of knowledge and new skills. Just in the past couple of weeks we've learned some new signs, started saying "kitty" and "duck" more clearly (thankfully our speech is still mostly babble and she hasn't picked up any "choice" words), and has even started playing "Ring Around the Rosies."

Yesterday afternoon I let our dog Hank out to go to the bathroom. It had been raining the last few days, so when we'd bring him, we would wipe his paws with a cloth we keep behind the chair. Apparently someone else was watching, too. Imagine my surprise when I turned around to see this:



At first I thought she mistook his cloth for her lovey. Then the pieces fell into place as I watched her wait patiently at the door, knocking to get his attention (just like Mommy). I grabbed the camera as quickly and quietly as I could and immediately called Travis. Moments like these just don't happen every day.

Happy Referralversary!

One year ago today at 12:20pm, we received the most long-awaited phone call of our lives. I can still hear Terra's precious words in my head. "Sarah, I have some good news. This is your referral call!" I can't believe it's been a whole year, and at the same time, it feels like a lifetime ago.
Although Mia's birthday will always be special, I think that our referralversary will always maintain more memories, for me anyway. It's kind of like my "labor" story, as I can still recall every detail of the day. (Read more about the day here, if you like.) I often recount her referral story to Mia, along with her "story" and the details of her adoption. I still can't make it through without crying, but I hope that hearing it over and over again will make it familiar and easier for her to ask us questions as she gets older.

Dearest Mia,
This is the very first time I ever saw your sweet little face.
You have certainly grown by leaps and bounds in the last year! You were a teeny tiny 6 pounds in this picture. But even teeny tiny, you changed Daddy's and my life in the biggest way. Although waiting for your referral was hard, we had no idea that the most difficult wait lay before us. Now that we had seen you, all we could think about was how to get to you. Every month that passed brought us new pictures of you; we loved watching you grow and develop, but we were so sad that we weren't there to see it. We know and take comfort though, my love, that God was with you every step of the way. He has never nor will ever leave or forsake you.

May Updates

Finally, on August 17, we held you in our arms for the very first time. It is also a day that will forever live fresh in my mind.
I couldn't believe that after all those months of waiting that we were finally together...forever. You were very excited to meet us, too. When they brought you out, I remember that you kept kicking your little legs and blowing us precious raspberries. So much drool for such a little girl! We loved spending time in your home country, seeing the orphanage that you were in, and learning more about Ethiopia. We promise to take you back one day.

The first time Mommy fed you a bottle.

The day we brought you "home" with us.
They dressed you in one of the outfits we sent in your care packages!

On the bus in Addis Ababa. You were a pretty good traveler, considering you had only met us a couple of days before.

It has been seven months since we brought you home, and every day is a new adventure. You certainly keep Mommy on her toes! You started walking at 11 months, and are now running everywhere! It is so fun to see you learn new things, and although you are claiming more independence, you still love and need your Mama, and that makes my heart melt. You, my love, are the best thing that has ever happened to me, and your Daddy and I couldn't have asked for a more beautiful daughter. It's quite amazing the draw you have on people; we can't go anywhere without someone stopping us to talk to you. Many stop us to tell us how lucky you are, but it's us, baby, who are the lucky ones. You make our life more complete and we are so thankful that you are in it. I can't wait to see what the future holds for you and me.

With all my heart,
Mama

Emilia Jane, 13 months
22+ pounds

Thoughts on Motherhood, or Lack Thereof

I feel like lately our blog has been kind of drab. I'm not sure if it's just the busyness of mommyhood or maybe the lack of good material, but it just seems boring to me. And if I think my life seems boring, I can only imagine what the rest of you are thinking. (Or maybe you're not because you've given up on me!) So I'm taking a break of my account of Mia's little life for some of my own thoughts. Don't worry, I don't have too many of my own these days.
The other night after we had the little one in bed, I sent Travis to the Blockbuster while I made dinner. Although I would have preferred going myself, I did not want a grilled cheese with macaroni and cheese for dinner (my husband loves starch so much I think he might turn into one someday), so off he went. I braced myself for yet another horror film (he is a horror junkie) or some indie film (which is sometimes a coin toss). He surprised me with a film he thought I could relate to: Motherhood. I wasn't sure if I should be pleased at such thoughtfulness or irritated that he was gone for over an hour on such a small errand. (Turns out he was also having wallets printed for Mia's birthday party at Walgreens.) I decided to choose appeasement.
So we sat down with our sausage and broccoli bow tie pasta and watched Uma Thurman make her way through a day in the life of a New York mother. The first thing I said to Travis after it was over is, "I'm exhausted just by watching her have a family in New York City." I mean, really. Life in the city looks romantic and fun, but try living in a five floor walk-up when your daughter forgets her backpack for school, carrying your elderly dog down 4 times a day to use the restroom with your 2 year old son on your back, or riding your bicycle around while shopping for party supplies (and a cake!) for your daughter's 6th birthday party. No thank you. Life in the suburbs doesn't seem so bad after all...
But more than that, I was struck by Uma's character's struggle with life after motherhood. She's what I would call a power-blogger, blogging multiple times a day about thoughts on her role as a wife and mother, but always feeling trite and glib, and never original or thoughtful (hmmm, sounds familiar). So she decides to enter a contest to win a weekly column at a mom's magazine; all she has to do is write 250 words about what motherhood means to her. The only catch is that she only has about 8 hours to complete the task, and it happens to be the same day as her daughter's birthday party. I won't give too much away in case you happen to see it, so I'll stop my synopsis there.
So here's my take away: I am not alone. Although I happen to read a handful of blogs with mothers that manage to blog nearly every day and have some kind of relevant, thought-provoking post (how? how do they do this and get anything else done?), I am not alone in that between laundry, cooking nutritious meals, playing peek-a-boo, telling Mia for the 100th time not to touch the DVD player, wondering if I've provided her enough stimulation today, remembering to let the dog out, and maybe a shower that all original thoughts that used to occupy my cranium have been crowded out.
Will they return? I hope that one day, they will. One thing is certain; this blog will be more interesting or it will die trying.