William's world {part 2}

These 3 were taken about 10 days ago on a warm day.

• Will is truly loving the warmer weather and being able to play outside now.
• Has been extremely lovey lately and giving all of us many kisses!
• He has a new 'Batman' backpack and puts little toys in it, puts the backpack on and tells me he's Daddy going to work....(so cute!)
• Can be quite literal and I remember that well about this age of 3. I tell William he's 'very handsome.' He replies, "I not handsome...I William Michael." I explain what the word 'handsome' means and he still says the same thing.
• Loves 'Knock-Knock' jokes. Only his knock- knock jokes consist of 1 joke...here it is...Will says "Knock-knock!" I say, "Who's there?" Will replies, "William Michael." I say..."William Michael who?" He replies..."William Michael-William Michael!" and then laughs hysterically. This goes on maybe 10 times a day. And everytime he tells the joke, we laugh just as hard along with him. ;)
  
  
  

A little bit of Spring

Favorite Foto Friday

These were all taken last Sunday of Grace.

I had a different idea in mind before we went out the door to this little park that's right by our house. Miss Grace was in a 'mood' if you know what I mean, and I grabbed the tulips out of a vase on my kitchen counter. Her mood definitely improved. :) I believe there is 4-6 inches of snow forecast here in Wisconsin for Saturday....Spring IS coming right?....someday.... maybe soon.

Spring giveaway winner....

And the winner is....

Lori of A Journey to our Daughter!!!!

Congrats Lori on winning my Spring giveaway and thank you to everyone that left a comment and entered. I'll be doing another one sometime soon I'm sure!

Wordless Wednesday

Spring on the inside

My newest banner found at the etsy site. This is hung above the desk area in our kitchen right where the computer is.

Table in our dining room that I change seasonally. This year I found these bird nests that I went crazy for. :) Our cat likes to play with the Easter eggs and I find them on the floor frequently.


Nest with glass cloche and plant.

The snow may be gone from Wisconsin and Spring is officially on the calendar but it truly doesn't arrive here until late April. The grass is quite brown and there aren't any flowers blooming yet, so yesterday Grace and I made our home look a little like Spring had arrived. And please sign up for the Spring giveaway in my previous post. Enjoy the week. :)

Spring giveaway!

'No matter how long the Winter, Spring is sure to follow.'

~proverb

'Spring is sooner recognized by plants than men.'

~ Chinese proverb

The first day of Spring is tomorrow March 20th. Spring also known as the 'Vernal Equinox' is when the sun crosses the equator...so day and night are about equal in length for a while. All I know is that with the recent time change William is sleeping about an hour later in the morning and that alone is a reason to celebrate! In honor of Spring's arrival I'll be giving away the above sweet Spring gifts, 2 embroidered cotton hand towels and a box of 6 french milled robin's egg shaped soaps that smell quite delightful. A week from today(March 26) Grace or William will be drawing the winner's name and I'll be sending off these Spring gifts to brighten up your home. So please leave me a brief comment if you'd like to be in the giveaway. Welcome Spring...we are so happy you are (almost) here!

Wordless Wednesday

William's world...

• Mandarin oranges might be the best thing to eat in the whole wide world...and those little plastic cups they come in are pretty awesome too!
  
• Thinks Elmo is a pretty cool guy and William talks to him when we watch Elmo DVD's. Right now 'Elmo Visits the Doctor' is his favorite.


• Loves to play in his playhouse and all the neighbors' too.
  
• Rides his tricycle as much as he possibly can...he calls it his 'motorcycle.'


• Has the sweetest little voice.


• Still wears his Batman Halloween costume 2-3 times a day...mommy may have to find another one pretty soon as it may fall apart, it's been washed so many times.
  
• Likes to pretend he's Batman, Spiderman or Superman.


• Is mommy's little love bug.

A brief glimpse of Spring

Grace just hangin' out.

Playing 'follow the leader.' He follows Grace pretty much everywhere.

Grace on a bridge that's in a park in our town.

Exactly a week ago today Spring arrived very briefly and it got up into the 60's. I let Grace and Will go without jackets which they loved and we went to 2 different parks last Friday afternoon to play. Winter is back this week, it's snowed once and has been very cold....such is the nature of Wisconsin. I know Spring will be back...hoping sooner than later.

This week Grace is the 'Star Student' for her class and today she dressed in one of her pretty red traditional Chinese dresses and wore it to school. I'm going in to speak to her Kindergarten class about Grace's birth country of China and a little bit about adoption...she is very excited.

This weekend will be another busy one for us with our regular activities plus these 2 will be getting their pictures taken by a professional photographer and also be going to another friend's birthday party. Have a great one!

Wordless Wednesday

Attachment and adopting a toddler to preschool age child

Last week(Thursday) was the first day we could really get outside and play for a decent length of time and it got up into the 50's. Another milestone(I think) happened in that Will ran up to me, grabbed my legs and spontaneously said, "I love you Mommy!." That was a first, he's said "I love you" many times before but it was always a response to us saying it. This little boy has come so far. I'm humbled and in awe of how brave he has been. Our children come with a history before they come to us, a history of loving caregivers or foster parents and I am ever mindful of that. You can see why they grieve and it's hard for them to take a chance to love again. If you are adopting a child that isn't an infant throw out all your expectations of what it will be like, your child has to grieve their loss before they can love again. And they will. It just takes time. The child you see being home at one, two or three months is not the real little person that they are.

Sunshine on a cloudy day

Grace is 6 years old and one of the happiest children I've ever known. It's hard for her not to smile. I've mentioned previously how she's reading and is really taking off now. Another new thing she's just learned is how to tie her shoes. She's pretty much a girly girl but will wear dresses or pants. She loves shoes(just like her momma). She also loves to teach Will games and songs. She's the daughter I prayed for and much more.

It was actually in the 50's here yesterday and a lot of the big snow piles melted, so we spent a fair amount of time outside. We have a busy weekend ahead with swimming, church, a birthday party and I'm taking a photography class. Have a great weekend!

The beauty in imperfection

Camera: Nikon D80

Exposure: 1/125

Aperture: f/8.0

Focal Length:34 mm

ISO: 100

Flash: Fired

Exposure Program: Aperture Priority

Software: Picnik

The above picture is one I've posted on my blog previously but have changed to black and white. It's linked to the we picture {this} photography blog, that has some very talented photographers who post.

Wordless Wednesday

Just couldn't stay away long

Well I just couldn't stay away long. Not much of a break but it's not like I was gone somewhere tropical and sunny. Today we absolutely had to get these 2 outside and we took them to a local park where they played on the see-saw, swings and a very tall slide with snow and ice on the ground. It was bitter cold. Of course they didn't mind!

Will pointing to the park.

Hope your week is a great one. March is finally here.