The Christian Crew

We had a Very Long vacation and it's best to divide it up based on our travels. SO, this last summer we left at the end of July and went to my mom's place, in a little town called Fallon, NV! It was pretty cool to drive down memory lane but, as I get older, this is less of my town and more of the past. This town holds very special memories and some sad ones as well. Like performing as Hodel in Fiddler on the Roof, helping out with the Local ARC with the special needs adults and students, meeting some of my Best good friends here, singing at the Christmas tree lighting, swimming at the pool, playing at the parks I played at as a kid, passing by the schools and soccer fields I once frequented and so much more! I will always have a love for little Fallon and the great people I know from this town who helped me become the woman I am today! We got to see a few friends and the zipped off to June Lake and Mammoth , CA to visit my grandma's gravesite and walked again down Memory...

BIRTH PARENTS of CO and SURROUNDING STATES COME JOIN WITH OTHERS ... ENJOY THE OUTDOORS AND FUN HIGH ADVENTURE SPORTS like the Leap of Faith, ropes courses, obstacles courses, canoeing, hiking, rappelling, rock climbing, zip line and night hike! Come to get in touch with Nature, other birth parents, have fun like a kid again, grow and learn from others and ALL FOOD is provided for you! 75. per birth parent and YES you can come for FREE with our  ADOPT A BIRTH MOM  sponsorship! Travel can be included in this program- so- if you want to come- LET'S GET YOU HERE! We can make arrangements for birth fathers or couples (separate tents) 5 Spaces are filled so we only have 11 LEFT! REGISTER by Clicking Here and depositing 25. to hold your spot ( if you are getting sponsored- you can get this refunded)

So, I spent a couple hours trying to figure out the views and studies on transracial adoption. I read this article about the Transracial Adoption Paradox In Summary of the article.... The current research literature on psychological outcome, racial/ethnic identity development, and cultural socialization suggests that transracial adoptees—both domestic and international—are psychologically well adjusted, exhibit variability in their racial/ethnic identity development, and along with their parents, engage in a variety of cultural socialization strategies to overcome the transracial adoption paradox. And this blog has a great articles and resources. Of Course the RHOUSE always does! This post on Iamablackmother has a great understanding of TA and Religion... "I believe if I do my best with parenting my children, including my transracially adopted daughter, that our Heavenly Father will help with what I am unable to do if I ask. " There is much t...

... Nellie! Yep, It's been very busy here with many things going on and little time to blog. So sorry if time is escaping me. It will be like that till mid-January! Here's Gav's 5 month pic from a bit ago. And We take His 6 months one in a week and a half( gees that went quick) still no finalization date due to circumstances out of our control but, whatever- it will be here before you know it! We are so excited for the Next week off and I know we will all have fun and i will get some sewing done too! I have about 2 blankets, a quilt, a play apron, 2 dresses and possibly some small items too! This weekend will be singing time and gingerbread decorating contest time. I had a nightmare last night about it but, thank heavens it was a dream. I woke up kind of angry! Well, Happy Turkey Day and National Adoption Month , again! Share the love, please! Cool side story, we got a free, designer ( good looking) bunk bed from an adoptive momma of 7 ( one bio six adopted). It is such a b...

are hoping for an adoption miracle! These two are sweet and fun and Jess is a terrific lady that i love! You couldn't find a better gal around! Check them out here! Oh and check out all the new families that have been added on the side bar! Maybe you will find your match there! ( p.s. If you personally know me, please shoot me an email and i will feature your link there and spotlight you!)

Last Sunday Our Little Aria Turned 4! We can't believe it! We have all kinds of FUN with this crazy girl who digs for worms in a leotard or dress up! She likes to say " Tend I'm a princess and you say_____" And she will tell you what to say or do! she LOVES to EAT MEAT and salad and anything sweet. She isn't fond of breads and the like. Aria always loves to cuddle and often falls asleep in ODD places like between the love sac and the TV stand, under a table, On a step,on the bathroom floor, half on her bed half off and so on! She CRACKS us up and we LOVE IT! We are happy to watch her grow but sad It's moving so quickly! LOVE YOU, SWEET BITTY GIRL!

So... Brielle is getting pretty good at tracing and writing her name and other small words! And today she decided to use the chalk to her advantage after church. She is such a creative little girl and sometimes a little sneaky with her masterpieces too. She loves getting her hands on anything she can to draw, cut, glue, color etc. Luckily, we are here to help direct it properly- most of the time! Since this picture has the W.O.W. in it. I want to share OUR view on this! We totally agree with it! Everything in Moderation, Every Herb is ordained and Constituted by God for the use of Man,( of course the obvious one- no addictive substances) and greater knowledge and wisdom comes through obedience to these health laws of the Lord. And we want to be great examples to our children as well! Neither of us struggle with major parts of this and we plan on raising our kids to be happy, healthy and fit children. That does not mean we are in perfect health though- both of us are striving to be a bi...

We had our Colorado FSA meeting yesterday and we have so many COOL things in the works and underway and on our events calendar... Like a 5k run for Adoption , Our Regional Conference , Making Birth Parent Valentine's , Parade floats and so much more:) It makes me giddy with excitement to think about all that FSA is doing! So proud of the gang for all they do! Good Job Everyone!

SO... many hopeful adoptive couples and families have a few worries and myths that I want to share in this post...( random pics of our zoo trip too ) For some reason these have been on my mind a bit as I've been spreading the good word of adoption and talking with couples and high school aged teens and friends... Why haven't we been chosen after 18 months, 2 years etc??? ( not us, just a ? from a few couples) Couples who wait are not hopeless. I feel that our wait time is part of the process of learning an d growing and preparing. Couples with long waits often get the blues but, usually that can be remedied by GETTING BABY OFF THE BRAIN and getting involved in other causes instead of just doing nothing. A good cause is adoption and FSA is a great wait to advocate and outreach, often through this contacts are made and placement is more likely to happen ( and time flies faster). One of my best friends in Henderson, NV waited for 3 years and after getting involved in FSA, she w...

We had way too much fun this day! Garden of the Gods is situated near Colorado Springs and it's a pretty cool park. Though it's not a huge place- it is so interesting to see how the layers of sediment have eroded over time- leaving these formations of sandstone and limestone. Us with Gpa Danny! some horses pulled up and we just had to pet them! The girls were just doing a "shake your booty" cheer and asked dad to give them a hug! It was funny and cute. And YES- one of our most important goals in life is to keep our daughters "off the Pole". Kind of a Vegas joke since we used to live there:) This is Jessica, our friend and a birth mother, watching and protecting Aria, who has her moments with her. They cuddle some days and sometimes Aria wants nothing to do with her. I chalk it up to terrible threes. And the fact that she's been a baby too long. Here these two crazies are obviously trying to hold up the rock:) So silly! My dad!!! Balance Rock ( well, i t...

Makes me Cry with JOY!!! I don't Care how, who, or where my future children come from. I don't care if my kids "match" my skin color. I don't even think twice about ME anymore b/c it's NOT about ME!!! It's about the children. I cry for different reasons all the time but, today, i cried watching a movie about a couple who adopted 2 babies from Ethiopia. It tugged at my heart strings and I remember meeting my friend Shay's newest Addition from Ethiopia. Her one and only Son, in house full of girls! He was gorgeous and so sweet and when i got to meet him, he was so friendly but, you could tell He knew who his mommy was. I asked Shay about why she chose Ethiopia- she said something like" it just felt like where we were being led to find him". I Often wonder if adoptive couples let themselves be LED in their adoption journeys anymore. I wonder the same thing for Birth Parents. I wonder if people are just going with the easiest, cheapest, or most...

Hoping you will have a fun-filled weekend and remember to be SAFE! Love to you all from us and the girls!

.. .my friends and i made hair clips for our girls ( mine have a ton already but, it is fun teaching others) and for upcoming holidays! I also got the chance to speak at the LDSFS Adoption Core training today. There are some awesome couples going through the process and I hope they all go where they are led in their search for a child to adopt! My advice to them was: Be HONEST with birth parent commitments Be Yourself - flaws and All- BP want to see who you are- not some plastic Ken and Barbie Have fun while you wait Advocate for the Cause- everywhere- not just their adoption but Adoption in general! Get involved with FSA- you will be so glad you did! It's for everyone and we NEED your energy! Don't get discouraged and do not fear- both of those are tools from the adversary! Know that God knows what you need when you need it- trust in him and DO all you can do to facilitate: faith without works is dead! Tomorrow we will go to the FSA activity at a historic farm with pumpkins ...

Aria is just getting over bronchitis and I'm not too happy about that. It all started when she caught a cold from some kids i sat a few days back. All 3 were hacking up. Then A gets a cold and B but, only Aria's turned into nasty bronchitis. Such is life- she is on the mend now! And is mostly happy lil' girl! We've pulled out the Halloween Decorations and i must admit... I'm a total Scaredy Cat! I can't do the cob webs, skulls and ghosts. I prefer fall leaves, pumpkins and other gourds, stalks of wheat, hay and just a few jack-o-lanterns. I know it's because of childhood bad dreams and i just don't like putting a BAD-ish or scary things around me or giving off a Yucky image of fright! So not me! I never dressed up as a dead something or other. I think i was only a witch once and that was the scariest thing i ever was. I was a gypsy, a grandma, Jazmin, cheerleader, princess, etc... Nothing really spooky ever! Sorry to disappoint anyone but that's how ...