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http://www.abapartnersplus.com/congress.php?washington=dem1ew3t3rr2t4
reena_shaw
reena_shaw@yahoo.com
Thursday, March 24, 2016
Thursday, December 17, 2015
Thursday, August 27, 2015
Tuesday, January 7, 2014
Ending with the Details
It seems a long time since I updated the blog. I had
originally thought I would quit blogging about the time that I gave the girls their
“100 Good Wishes” quilt, but then I kept adding entries.
This blog began as an adoption blog, to record our travels
to adopt our first daughter Josie and then Clara Rose a couple years later.
Since then I have updated the blog with many pictures and stories of happenings
in our family life. In the mix of it I have also included a few more “adoption”
themed posts. Over the years I’ve kept primarily to the superficially simple
stories of family.
Josie is now 7-years old, doing very well in first grade,
has lots of friends, is starting to do playdates without me or even her sister
tagging along, is very particular about what she wears (although she isn’t into
fancy clothes), loves her IPod touch and pop music, and is overall a happy, inquisitive,
and strong willed young girl.
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| Josie doing crafts at a Birthday Party |
Clara Rose is nearing her sixth birthday and is already, ALL about the boys. She has several friends who are boys, prefers to wear superhero shirts like the boys, and plays basketball better than most of the boys her age. She is overall almost always happy, likes playing-up being the baby of the family, and is forever the performing comedian.
 |
| Clara Rose with her Game Face on! |
We are entering a new stage with the girls, one in which
they are developing a greater ability to understand details of their lives and
ask more detailed questions. They are developing a greater sense of themselves
as a single individual and not just as extensions of mommy, daddy, their
siblings or our family. Oh of course they have a sense of themselves as part of
our family and our family as a whole, but they are coming to an age where they
recognize themselves as individuals all on their own as well. It is quite
something to witness, glimpses of them here and there in public interacting
with other kids, teachers, and coaches when they are unaware of your presence.
Along with this new era come more questions about adoption
and questions of “why?” Many of these questions we only have the answer, “I don’t
know.” The details of these conversations are personal and I feel humbled that Josie
and Clara Rose feel comfortable enough, safe enough, and find me trustworthy
enough to talk to me about their feelings being adopted. Feeling are conflicted
and confusing because you can be happy and love what you have and also miss,
want, and grieve what you barely remember or were not ever able to know. These
feelings are not mutually exclusive—they are simply and complexly feelings that
are felt.As they get older they tell me which pictures I am and am not allowed to post on FB, when it is and isn’t OK to give them a hug or kiss in public and all of that good stuff that comes with growing independence. They are clearly telling me when it is and is not OK to share parts of their lives outside of our family.
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| Me, Josie, and Clara Rose making Christmas Cookies |
So, this is my last post on the blog. I will still be around
reading and occasionally commenting on blogs, but I do not intend to start another
blog. If anyone wants to be friends on FB, send me a request.
Best to all—I have learned much from some of my followers
whom I have not ever actually met.Wednesday, October 30, 2013
Halloween Parties
Oh my, have we been busy party-ing it up all over the place!
Josie had her first "big kid" school event!
A scavenger hunt through a corn maze . . .
AT NIGHT!
She was thrilled!
It was a family event and we went with some of our
friends who also attend the same school as Josie.
There were lots of yummy snacks and a hay ride to and from the corn maze.
We had a blast trecking through the maze with our flashlights and
we found all of our stamping stations for the hunt!
The next day we went to our YMCA's annual Halloween Party.
Their outfits pretty much reflect their personalities!
Clara Rose is Bat Man-- a superhero!
Josie is a beautiful Goddess!
We again linked with our friends for this party and had
a great time!
There was a hayride through the woods.
A few healthier snacks.
Lots of games!
And creepy, crawly, slimy, stations where
you had to guess what was in the pumpkin.
Clara Rose, always the comedian, managed to come up
with answers that got a roaring laugh from her audience.
We've had a great festive season leading up to Halloween!
The Ghourls are super excited to go Trick-or-Treating!
Tuesday, October 29, 2013
Spooktacular Season is upon us
Playing a bit of catch-up . . .
The ghourls and I made our annual visit to the Jack-o-lantern Spooktacular Patch!
This cute display was set-up near the beginning of the pumpkin trail.
Much to pink and prissy for Clara Rose.
Josie loved it!
As expected, the pumpkin trail was engulfed with hundreds--
Thousands (yes, seriously) of jack-ol-lanterns
Traditional faces, happy, sad, scary, silly . . .
Magnificent carvings--
The ghourls always like the few that have a green light inside.
I like the super big ones!
If you look closely, you can see there is another jack-o-lantern
in the big one's mouth!
At the end there is a small forest area filled with
a few super sized jack-o-lanterns as shown above
as well as assorted sizes all throughout the trees.
Moving backward--
Clara Rose went to a birthday party--
she was invited by the birthday boy.
We've enjoyed some nature walks during
to take in the pretty colors of Fall.
Explored new playground equipment.
Made fun new discoveries stomping around
familar hiking grounds.
Monday, October 28, 2013
September
September is over and I don't think I posted once to the blog.
We did take the girls on a camping trip with their beloved cousins (and parents)
over Labor Day weekend, but I think those pictures got mixed in with August.
I had to make an unexpected trip back to my hometown mid-month for a funeral.
It was a sad reason for a trip that provided me an extra opportunity to visit with my Uncle and one of my cousins whom I have not physically seen since she was about 11 years old!
Now a grown beautiful woman- who just got married.
School is going well for both the girls.
Clara Rose is enjoying Kindergarten and is reading easy books.
Josie setteled in quickly to her new school routine.
All worries of a new school and riding the bus etc., are long gone and she is flourishing in First Grade.
She loves her school, teacher, friends, and riding the bus.
Not to mention that she is doing fabulously in all her classes!
With all the excitiment of school starting and mommy going away abruptly,
we did still manage to celebrate the Autumn Moon festival- albeit a bit late.
This year we tried something new to celebrate and I think we are going to make it
our tradition for this special holiday.
We loaded up ourselves and some of our friends after school on a Friday and
headed to the coast for an evening dinner picnic on the beach.
The girls were ecstatic to say the least to go on this fun excursion.
They had a blast playing in the sand,
climbing on the jetties,
I brought our camping stove and heated some soup to couple with sandwiches followed
by hot cocoa later in the evening.
It was a great afternoone and evening!
All the girls had a fun time laughing, eating, and playing.
More beach combing after eating dinner.
Later in the evening the big, bright moon rose over the ocean.
It was a spectacular sight!
We had some yummy cream filled chocolate cupcakes for dessert!
The girls were giddy with the day and night by this point.
We capped off the evening with a little bit of wave chasing before
calling it a night.
Definitely a tradition in the making!
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