Next Time I'll Know Better

Today Steven and I went in for his 3 month pictures. They're the first ones we've had taken of him, and I was getting frustrated that we hadn't had any taken yet. So, I called the studio this morning and got a 3:00 appointment. Bad idea. Why? Because that's when my baby is finishing up his nap. That's when my son needs to eat. Because today, that's when he went for an hour plus without smiling. Lovely.

We did get some cute pictures, and I made sure I ordered enough for our family and everyone. My family likes 5x7s, but this studio doesn't put two 5x7s on a sheet, so I ended up ordering quite a few sheets (thank goodness for coupons!!). I decided to wander around the mall after we were done, and while I was exchanging a shirt at another store, I realized that I had only ordered pictures for us and for my parents. Oops! Fortunately, I was able to go back and order a few more sheets--I told them that I needed to because I forgot that my husband has a family :) So now I really do have enough for everyone.

Next time, though, we'll schedule the pictures for after nap time and after eating. Maybe then we'll get some nice smiles out of my normally very smiley little man!

Teaching

Well, it's official. I'm not teaching next quarter or summer quarter. There just aren't enough classes. If a class is added for some reason, then I might be able to teach, but at this point, that doesn't seem likely. I do have the option of tutoring in the Writing Center, but I would have to get significant time blocks to make it worth the drive (approx. 70 miles round trip).

I knew that this was probably going to happen, but it didn't make getting the e-mail any easier. We really need the money, esp. with the little guy's adoption fees. I've been looking at other schools, but no one is hiring right now.

I have a temp. job opportuntity scoring standardized essays (I did it last year), but it is all day, 5 days a week for 4-6 weeks. By the time I paid someone to watch Steven, it wouldn't be worth the money. I'm glad that I have my lia sophia, but I don't have that to the point that we can live off it.

Mark says not to worry about it right now, but it's hard not to. I know that God will provide; He always does, but it's hard not having the security of a steady income.

So, if you know of any part time jobs or want to host a show, let me know :) Thanks also for praying as we try to figure out what God wants me to do next.

Taxes

are NOT fun, especially when you didn't know that you need a special id number for your baby, and that you get it by submitting a special form, and that it takes 4-8 weeks to process, which means you might not be able to file on time, which means you'd have to file for an extension, which means you don't get your return for a long time :(

It's all in the wording!

I got quite a few things done today, including giving Steven a manicure/pedicure, a nasal passage cleanse and a refreshing wipe down followed by a change of wardrobe. After his morning at the spa, we did a few sitting and standing exercises and worked on hand-eye coordination. That was followed by a relaxation/meditation time complete with soothing sounds. And that was all before lunch!

In other words, I cut nails, cleaned out boogies, changed diapers, wiped him down, had him sit and stand while I dressed him, set him on his play mat for a few minutes, and then put him down for a nap.

The first version just sounds better, doesn't it?

You Know You're an Adoptive Parent If. . .

My friend Stephanie posted this on her site, and it is so true!

YOU KNOW YOU'RE AN ADOPTIVE PARENT IF ...

1. The fact that there are 143 million children without a parent to kiss them goodnight has made you lose sleep.

2. You realize DNA has nothing to do with love & family.

3. You can't watch Adoption Stories on TLC without sobbing.

4. The fact that, if 7% of Christians adopted 1 child there would be no orphans in the world, is convicting to you.

5. You spend free time surfing blogs about families who've experienced the blessing of adoption.

6. It drives you crazy when people ask you about adopted child's "real" parents.

7. You've been "pregnant" with your adoptive child longer than it takes an elephant to give birth.(5 1/2 years for Mark and me!)

8. You'd no idea how you'd afford to adopt, but stepped out in faith anyway, knowing He'd provide. (& He does!)

9. You've taken an airplane half-way around the world with a child you just met.

10. You believe God's heart's for adoption.

11. You realize that welcoming a child into your heart & family is one of the most important legacies you could ever leave on this earth.

12. You know what the word "Dossier" means & you can actually pronounce it correctly!

13. You've welcomed a social worker into the most private parts of your life.

14. You shudder when people say your child's so lucky that you adopted them, knowing full well you're the blessed one to have him or her in your life.

Way to go Disney!

First Look at The Princess and the Frog
Source: Italian Daydreamer
January 14, 2008

Walt Disney Pictures has revealed this first photo of princess Tiana in the studio's traditionally-animated The Princess and the Frog, coming to theaters in 2009. The movie is written and directed by John Musker and Ron Clements and features the music of Randy Newman.

A musical set in the legendary birthplace of jazz -- New Orleans -- "The Princess and the Frog" will introduce the newest Disney princess, Tiana (voiced by Anika Noni Rose), a young African-American girl living amid the charming elegance and grandeur of the fabled French Quarter. From the heart of Louisiana's mystical bayous and the banks of the mighty Mississippi comes an unforgettable tale of love, enchantment and discovery with a soulful singing crocodile, voodoo spells and Cajun charm at every turn.

(ok, so we could definitely do without the voodoo, but i'm just excited about finally having a black princess!)

Reading with Daddy

My Two Little Love Bugs!

Grandpa Hal and Nanny

Mark's parents made a quick stop at our house this weekend on their way to Iowa to see Mark's grandparents. They got in late Saturday and left early Monday, but we enjoyed having them here, and I know that they loved hanging out with Steven.



Since they didn't make it out for the shower, I showed Nanny all of Steven's cool stuff, and she loved his little outfits. She also gave him most of his bottles while he was here and even changed some diapers. What amazed her was that I put him to bed when he's still awake. I just change him, feed him if necessary, kiss him, and put him down. I guess I didn't realize that that's kind of unusual.

Hanging out with Grandpa Hal and Nanny

Grandpa Hal got some Steven time

And, of course, so did Nanny

My smiley baby boy

After a few days of relative quietness, Steven decided to start "talking" again. Here he is Sunday night telling his grandparents an exciting story.

"You'll never believe this, but. . ."

There's nothing like a captive audience!

Still going strong

"And then I, . . ."

Quite the little storyteller!

Getting quite animated while talking

Just chillin' on Grandpa Hal's lap

Our best attempt at a family picture. Don't you just love Mark's posture?? Steven was pretty pictured out by this time.

Family

Every Friday I'm reminded of how blessed I am to live so close to my parents and for all they do to help me out. On Fridays they watch Steven in the afternoon between when I leave for work and when Mark comes home. A major bonus is that they've been picking him up, which really helps since they live the opposite direction from work! Steven loves going to their house, and it's very obvious that my parents love him. He was all smiles for grandma and grandpa when they picked him up today.

We also see them on Tuesdays since my mom and I are in the same Bible study group. She saves us a seat and holds Steven through the lesson. We make sure that we stop by my dad's office before we leave so he can hold Steven and show him off a little.

Steven has brought us closer together--I spend more time with my parents than I did before, and I'm so glad that Steven has them involved in his daily life. I never lived near my grandparents, and I'm excited that Steven gets to have that!

I'm also excited that Mark's parents are coming out this weekend. They haven't seen him since Christmas, and he has changed so much! The clothes that were way to big on him now have already been packed up and put away. I'm sure it'll be a shock for them to see first hand how much he's changed!

Seven and a Half Hours!

That's how long Steven went between feedings last night!! He slept from 3:30 to 7:30, fell right back to sleep after I comforted him, and then slept until 11:00. Good job, little buddy!

Ohio Pictures!

Ready for the big trip--why the picture??

Wearing my church outfit--still more room to grow in it!

(Compare to photos from court date and voting.)

Discovering the fun sound my fingernail makes on my diaper bag.

Enough to keep a baby occupied for over half an hour!

Pack me up! It's time to go home to see daddy!!

(Notice all the dirtly laundry in the top part of the suitcase--after just 2 1/2 days!)

A Fun Trip

Well, Steven and I made it home tonight after his first little road trip. We went down to Ohio to see my friend Amy for the weekend. (And she had a lia sophia show while I was there, so it counted as a business trip!)

It was nice to see where she lives, and we were able to spend a lot of time just hanging out together. Needless to say, Steven was really good, and everyone loved him. We also went with waking up just once in the night!

My camera battery died while I was there, so I took most of my pictures with Amy's camera. I just need to get them from her! I have several really cute ones of Steven and his suitcase. I'll post them once I get them from her, so check back soon. (And Amy, please e-mail them to me--my facebook isn't working yet again.)

Our (Not Quite So) Big Snow!

The forecast said that we would get 6-11 inches of snow, with a guarantee of at least 6. So a lot of schools closed, and for the first time in the three years I've been there, my school did too. That may sound like no big deal, but if you had asked the administration if we ever close for snow, they would have said no. The philosophy is that if you can get to work, you can get to school.

So they closed this morning, as did most of the campuses in the area (one cancelled all classes before 3:00 but required staff to report). And then it stopped snowing. The area ended up with 2-4 inches, not 6-11. We got about 4.

I'm enjoying my evening off, but we have to make up tonight's class. Our three options are to go an extra 20 minutes for the remaining 6 classes, meet on St. Patrick's Day (the Monday after the quarter ends), or meet on a Saturday afternoon as long as none of our students have class at that time. I haven't decided what I'm going to do yet, but I'm glad that we have more than one option.

I'm sure that the school is regretting cancelling all classes and meetings today since we got so little snow, but I'm not complaining!

lia sophia

As you might know, I had my first two shows last week, and they were highly successful. In fact, I met my first five weeks sales goal in one week! As a result, I got to pick out $200 worth of free jewelry. Today I found out that I also met the new advisor January sales goal, so I got another $100 worth of free jewelry! So far, this job is going really, really well.

My next show is tomorrow night at my friend's house in Ohio, and then I have one at my mom's house next week. I also have three more this month!

As always, if you're intersting in hosting a show and earning free jewelry, let me know! Or, if you're interested in selling it, let me know that too. Everyone I've talked to has loved doing it so far!

www.liasophia.com/rebekahcross

Baby Wipes

My friend Katrina makes her own baby wipes, and when we got Steven, she brought over a container of them for us. At first I wasn't sure what I thought, and since we had a good number of Pampers wipes, we primarily used them. But when I started using the homemade ones, I liked them, and when I found out that they cost a quarter of the cost of Sam's generic to make, I liked them even more!


So I decided to share the recipe with you out there in case you want to try them out yourself. They take about 15 minutes to make (10 of which you just wait for them to soak).



Ingredients: 1 Tablespoon baby oil, 1-2 Tablespoons baby hair wash, 2 cups boiling water, a roll of paper towels cut in half (Bounty Select-A-Size work really well), and a container to put it all in.

If you live near an Ikea, they have the perfect container there, but you can use any rubbermaid/tupperware type container. Just make sure it seals well because you don't want to end up with dried out baby wipes. Put the paper towels in with the cut side down (which I forgot to do this time).

Mix the boiling water, hair wash, and baby oil and add to paper towels. Let steam for 10 minutes (or longer if you're too busy to get back to it right away).

Pull out cardboard tube.

Start the wipes from the center of the roll. If they get dry before you're finished using them, just add a little bit of hot water to them.

Congratulations! You just made your own baby wipes and saved a ton of money in the process!