Have a Holly Jolly Christmas

Our adoption paperwork was logged in with the Chinese government on September 29, 2005. At that time, we could not even imagine the wait that was ahead for us. We spent not one, but three Christmases waiting. Three agonizing, painful Christmases where our hearts ached to hold our sweet Molly. To say that I cried a lot would be a gross understatement.

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Maybe that is why I appreciate the holidays so much more now. Molly is with us. There is really no better gift than that. As we decorate the house, attend holiday parties and negotiate the crowds at the local mall, there is a specialness about the season. There is a reason to celebrate.

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Honestly, my heart is full and whole. I have an amazing husband and a daughter that is beyond incredible. I have everything that I could ever want. And I can reach out and touch them, hug them, kiss them whenever I want. Nothing, and I mean NOTHING, is better than that. Who needs gifts to open on Christmas morning? Not me.

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Sharing this Christmas with Molly has been wonderful. Last year was her first Christmas and although it was very special to us, she really wasn’t old enough to understand the magic. This year, at almost three years old, she gets it. Boy oh boy, does she get it.

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Molly has a repertoire of Christmas carols memorized (Rudolph is her all time favorite), talks nonstop about Santa (although she won’t sit on his lap), and knows just what she would like to see under the tree on Christmas morning (a doll house). She loves the decorations, the Christmas cookies and treats, and the winter weather. She is all about Christmas this year, and that makes the season fun for the whole family.

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One of Molly’s favorite events so far this holiday season has been her very first Christmas party. Molly is in a playgroup with other kids who have been adopted from China. She calls them her China friends. When I told her that her China friends were having a Christmas party, Molly ran to put on her fancy clothes and click-click shoes (shoes with heels).

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There were friends to see:

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Toys to play with (Hmmm, where did she learn to do this?):

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And food to eat:

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And eat:

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And eat:

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There was a book exchange where Molly received 2 Dr. Seuss books from Elizabeth:

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And lots to Mamaratzi standing at the ready to take pictures:

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And more pictures:

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And even more pictures:

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It was truly a magical time for Molly. And it was magical for me. I’m almost 45 years old and I get to experience Christmas like I was a child again. What a gift. Like I said before, life is good. Merry Christmas!

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More holiday blogs to come….Up next: building gingerbread houses. Check back in a day or two!

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Oh, and for those of you who are wondering why I am blogging while on vacation in Florida...well, I AIN'T in Florida! Tony was asked to postpone our vacation so that he could cover a project at work. Sooooo, we rescheduled our vacation. We'll be heading south in a few weeks.

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I should be in Naples Florida toady. The wind chill here makes it -22 degrees. That's 22 degrees BELOW ZERO!!! The temperature in Naples is a balmy 78 degrees. 100 degrees difference, if you do the math.

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I love my husband's job, I love my husband's job, I love my husband's job....trying desperately to convince myself :o)

Tis the Season to be Busy

I've been a bad, bad blogger. I know that it is the season to be jolly, but truthfully I've been so busy I haven't had time to be jolly yet. I also haven't had time to blog. In fact, I still don't. Molly has about 5 minutes left on her nap, so I just have time to post a few pictures then it is back to being a mommy. So here you go...random shots of Molly.


Molly models a dress lovingly knitted by Miss Brooke Wheeling.


Signing Grandmom's birthday card.

Everyone needs a hug every once in a while. Pooh is one lucky bear.

Taking a picture of Mommy with her mini camera.

Molly suspending herself between the sofa and coffee table. She thinks she's all that and then some with this little trick.

Decorating the house for Christmas. This is about as close as she's gonna get to having her picture taken with Santa. She wants to sit in the Mall Santa's lap in the worst way, but after waiting in line eight different times, she just can't seal the deal.

Another new pose for Molly. She is so excited that she can sit with her legs crossed, "Just like a little lady." Someone needs to tell this little lady that she is giving the world an eyeful of what is under her dress. Thank goodness she has leggings on!

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Taking a break with the Christmas critters.

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More holiday pictures to come...please check back in a few days and I have a new post...I hope!

Can I still be thankful even though I am a week late?

I know that Thanksgiving was a week ago, but I was so busy that I didn't have time to post. Is it alright if I do my thankful post now? I mean I have so much to be thankful for and I would hate for the year to g by without me expressing thankfulness.
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Twelve years ago, a handsome young man came up and introduced himself to me. Two years later, I married him.
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Almost three years ago, a precious little girl was born in China. A year after that, she became my daughter.

I wish that I could think of a word that would adequately express how very thankful I am for these two people:

I cannot imagine a life without either of them. They make me feel whole, complete. They bring me joyfulness, peace. The provide laughter and delight. They are everything that is good. I will be forever thankful that my life includes both of them.
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I also have so many other things for which I am thankful: my family, Tony's family, our health, our home, friends, chocolate.
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In these crazy economic times it is hard not to focus on everything that is going wrong. But when I stand back and examine what is truly important, my life is full. Very full. I couldn't ask for anything more. And I am forever thankful.

Thanksgiving was so crazy busy that I didn't get many pictures of the actual celebration, but here are a few shots of Miss Molly helping to prepare the pumpkin pies:

Step 1: Measure

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Step 2: Stir

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Step 3: Mix

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Step 4: Clean up all the sugar that you spilled on the floor

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Step 5: Look really cute in an apron

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Step 6: Enjoy the fruits of your labours
First time eating pumpkin pie....

I think she likes it!

Give the People What They Really Want...

I'd like to think that you come here for the witty commentary about Molly that I painstakingly write each week; But let's face it, you come here for the pictures. Right? Without further ado, here is some of the scrumptiousness that I am blessed with each and everyday:

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Halloween 2008: The Year of the Monkey Soup

Monkey Soup? What the heck is Monkey Soup? Stay with me. It will all be explained in good time.

Let me begin this post by stating that I hate carving pumpkins. Hate isn't quite strong enough; how about despise, detest, loathe, abhor (yes, I did consult a thesaurus). How we ever ended up with five of the things this year is beyond me. That is a lot of pumpkin slime, my friends; a lot of pumpkin slime. Yuck.
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Anyway, here is a shot of all of the pumpkins before we gutted them (we didn't gut the cute one in the middle):

Molly was overjoyed when I lined up the pumpkins and took their mug shot.
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She was absolutely giddy when I began stabbing at them with a knife. Her giddiness began to wane as soon as she pulled off the first lid:

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Once she stuck her hand inside one of the pumpkins, she was done. Had enough. I don't blame her.


I wish I could have done the same thing, but now I'm the momma. I had to perform my parental duty and eviscerate those poor pumpkins. Lucky for me, Tony came home early and helped me out. We tried our hand at stencil carving this year with mixed results. Two pumpkins ended up with a failed stencil carving on the back and a successful hand carving on the front.
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The infamous Great Pumpkin, who rose from the compost heap, actually made it all the way to Halloween. He is the one carved with the MZ. Here are the results:

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Now the moment you have been waiting for...monkey soup.
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Molly loves monkeys, so this year a monkey costume was in order. We went out monkey hunting in early September, two months before season even opens. They had a great monkey costume at Old Navy, but it was full price and I wasn't going to pay full price. I decided to wait. Afterall, they had an entire rack of monkeys. Surely they would have them on sale before Halloween.
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Later in the same week, I ended up going back in Old Navy for some unrelated item. I decided to check out the monkey costumes once again. Know what I found? Three measly monkeys hanging on the rack! The rest had been sold. I decided to bite the bullet and pay full price. Holy cow, full price!
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Mr. Monkey lived peacefully in my closet until the week of Halloween. On Monday of Halloween week, Molly had a party at Little Gym that required a costume. Great! I pulled the monkey out of my closet and headed to the gym with Molly in tow. Once there, I began to dress her in the costume. She screamed at the top of her lungs, "NO WEAR MONKEY SOUP!" Monkey soup is Mollyspeak for monkey suit.
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Needless to say, we didn't wear the monkey soup to the Little Gym party. Nor did we wear it to another party later in the week. She just wasn't going to put it on. Hmmmmm. Halloween just days away and I have a kid who won't wear her costume. Not good.
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First thing Halloween morning we began Project MFMS: Make Friends with the Monkey Soup.
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It started out by having breakfast with the monkey soup. Molly thought that was great fun. She talked to the monkey, played with the monkey and fed the monkey.

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After breakfast was over I asked Molly if she wanted to put on the monkey soup but I was met with a resounding "NO!"
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Moving on, we took monkey on a tour of the house and even let monkey sleep in Molly's crib. Once again I asked Molly is she wanted to put on the monkey soup and once again she responded with a resounding "NO!"
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Time for the big guns....bribery. I suggested that a sucker may be in order if she tried on the monkey soup. Here are the results:

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I guess the monkey soup wasn't quite as scary when you are sporting a sugar buzz.
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From that point on it was all good. She posed for pictures with the scarecrows and me.......

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.....and also with Grandmom, the bearer of suckers!

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The rest was history. Molly knew that she was going to get candy when we went trick-or-treating so hand in hand with Daddy, off she went:


Of course we had to stop occasionally to take on sustenance. It was going to be a long night, you know:

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We trick-or-treated well into the night. We had to have been out for at least 45 minutes:

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Then it was time to head home and enjoy the "fruits" of our labor.
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Skittles count as fruit, right?

Happy Halloween from Molly and the Monkey Soup!