The Christian Crew

its the place we rest our heads at night, the place we greet our friends and family and create such precious memories together. We just finished a Very long and FUN vacation and I'm exhausted and so happy to be HOME! And with my family! Family is everything and on this vacation we got to see just about everyone who is related, related by adoption or married into our families! More detail about this trip to come! Oh and about Aria's Birthday too! she was able to take her very first riding lesson on her birthday day!:)   Open adoption is incredible and we were able to visit with almost everyone in our adoptive families! I will post about it soon! til then!    

I can't believe its been 4 years already! I remember this day like it was yesterday!!! Jessica, His gorgeous birth momma!       He is such a SPUNKY boy and his PIRATE PARTY Was Fantastic & fun! Over 60 ppl and loads of kids! Here's a whole bunch of pics to feast yer eyes on!     Lots of GAMES and Challenges!   We had a big potluck after snacks:)   The fish food was the pirate's booty and natural gummy fish:) the play set made a GREAT Ship!   Loads of fun was had by all! Aren't we the coolest pirates ever? Nah, we try though!   So Glad our special boy had a great day! We always have a BIG party for our kiddos. It's not about how many people come or how many presents they get- Its about the amount of FUN they have, no matter the cost/ time/ effort! I believe in Celebrating every moment and the kids are only young once, then its over! So Party On!      

SO... (drumroll please) WE BOUGHT A HOUSE! YEP, we did it. Sorry for the lack of pics right now- you will get them soon! We found a place up in the Mountains of CO and we are LOVING IT! Though we haven't moved in yet- every time we visit it- it feels a bit more like home. We did demo on the house last friday and i sledge-hammered the kitchen tile today and we have had lots of help to get it to the 89% completely demoed phase. There is still more stone to remove from the fireplace and more flooring and tack strip to remove but, WE ARE SO CLOSE! Next is gas lines ran to the kitchen, upgraded and new furnace and HVAC stuff, some plumbing and electrical work then THE GOOD STUFF- new floors, new paint, new counters, new appliances, new doors , new trim etc... We are however doing some RECLAIMED projects too ( another day i'll talk about it). Today, the Rainbow play set got installed in our yard ( did i mention it's 2.4 acres?) G-man also locked the KEYS in our car! Luckily...

YUP, lots of re-homing is going on over here! Our sweet Furry boy, Hemi, just spent 6 days with his new family. He has 2 other mastiffs and a boston terrier to run around with. He has 2 fenced acres and lots of love and attention by his new parents. It is very bittersweet for us. He has spent 2 yrs in our care! He will be missed but we know He will have such a better life than we can currently offer him. He will get more walks, more playtime, more "siblings" more love and attention and be cherished for the great Dog He is! Hemi's new dad is almost out of hospital, recovering from surgery and His new mom will be picking him up from us shortly. We are privileged to have an open adoption and have been watching Him while surgery has been taking place.  ALSO  WE ARE RE-HOMING TOO! Yep, We found a home in the mountains and are excited about the 2.4 acres, and almost 4k square feet of living space. It will be such a new adventure and our family will See if we ...

G-man is growing like a weed and will be 3 in May! He is working hard learning is words, colors, shapes etc. He is 90% of the way potty trained, loves cars, trucks, and most importantly CHOO CHOOs !!!  He plays well with Slade and teaches him funny things ! He loves his HUGE doggie- Hemi , and crawls all over him.  He loves anything physical and enjoys hugs kisses and snuggles and is very affectionate and friendly. He hates going down to sleep and doesn't like certain foods these days but that changes day to day! He is roughly 30.5 lbs and is a SOLID little guy. Not much body fat on him ( except in the two cheek areas:) We are so blessed by our little man , our open adoption with his Loving birthmom and birthdad. Seriously- we are LUCKY and overjoyed by this FUN, loving Mini Man!

SO the KIDS were awesome! Gavin did the best job as a first time trick or treater! He galloped from door to door and only got frightened a few times. We are so happy they love dress up but, I'm excited for the HOlidays. I have SOOO much catching up to do on this blog and about my Works with Adoption advocacy- all good news!  Brielle was a VAMPIRESS  Aria was a werewolf , and a pink princess and Belle for various parties  Slade was a scary Dragon ( he looks so vicious;) Gavin was our lil' buckaroo cowboy! So darling!

So.... TODAY. I took my 2nd Ballet Class! Some of you may wonder WHY an old-ish lady decides to try to fit into a leotard and why on earth now? Well, I can tell you- it's been on my mind for a while. I have wanted to learn all about ballet and the ART of the dance- so, why not now, I'm not getting any younger and i can dance WITH my girls.( not the same class though) And I love the challenge and process I'm going through as i try and learn this new love! Today, as we had our stretch, the teacher asked me about my baby BOY! ( i love telling his story but we didn't that have that much time so, i said yes, We Adopted almost 4 months ago... BINGO! That leads into the ADVOCACY part. I thought to myself ( sweet another op. to shar e my LOVE for adoption) BUT, before i could utter any thing else, Angie ( one of the students who is also a MOM) says: I'm Adopted! Where did you adopt through? Me: LDSFS! Angie: Cool, I spoke on panels with the Albequerque office a couple ...

a flight for Brielle's awesome birthmom, KARA, to come see us for the week of her birthday! I'm so excited to see them at Thanksgiving and have her and her little boy come up for a visit. They better get ready for some good times and snow!!! This will be the first Birthday that Brielle's whole Birth family won't be at b/c we live 12 hours away now. But... Having Kara there will be so Special. We are very close and can't wait!!! Plus, January birthdays can be tough. So, i go ALL OUT when it comes to them b/c i know how it feels ( mines the 4th of Jan.). I always wished mine was in the summer but, i can't change that and I'm so glad i was born when i was. Even if it was only for the purpose of making Brielle's Birthdays even better!!! She's hitting the big half decade mark too:) Man, has it really been that long? It feels like only a few blinks ago, we were standing in a hospital room gazing at this perfect tiny baby and amazing young woman. Now, Kara...

Just so you know... I am very aware that everyone is going through something different in their journey of adopting a child. Some people are like eggs and crack under the slightest pressure. When People do Fall apart- they often show their weakest, worst character dimensions. Pay attention to that- searching expectant parents- friends- fellow beings of the world ( okay everyone) Here's some fabulous quotes on adversity ( or trials) If you click on that link and read on... You will understand exactly what I'm getting at... Trials can make you stronger- if you view them as part of natural life and not an event that happened to you... I've had my share- hence i have thickened up my Elephant Skin and very rarely am i offended by anything or anyone!!! Thank goodness for that!

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 ...

Please take a second and donate if you can! Here's the details.... We are holding a contest! The person to donate the 100th dollar will win a prize! If you support adoption help us out! Take what you would spend on a one time manicure, fast food, soda pop, etc and put it towards a good cause! If you need a receipt let me know! Hey guys! Our goal is 100 in 100 so in 100 hours starting at 4 o clock our goal is to get 100 dollars for scholarships 4 birthmothers! Remember it is tax deductible! If you own a business you will go on the website! Even 1 dollar helps!! Spread the work we want to meet our goal! www.scholarships4birthmothers. blogspot.com -- Jessalynn Bills Speight www.birthmothers4adoption.blogspot.com We support you awesome Birth parents!

I love that my friend, Danielle, swaps me cool binks for my boutique products. The last order had some new ones all about adoption that were inspired from the adoption community and I had been desirous to have cool pacifiers that expressed OUR LOVE for ADOPTION ! Today was a Super busy day with lots of cool and crazy things... I biked 3 miles+ uphill pulling 80lbs in the trailer (kids and stuff) to scripture class and back. The downhill was a breeze, Took Aria to preschool, cleaned my car, then myself, picked up Aria, made dinner for the missionaries, Brandon locked his keys in our car- in front of our house. Had dinner, went to YW Volleyball practice and had my new friend Rachel help coach the girls- She's AWESOME (and and adoptee who will be speaking at the upcoming fireside in November. Then came home, put girls down, made clips and finished a few other projects- I AM BEAT! Time to sleep now. I deserve the break BUT,... before i doze off I'm sure I'll read over some ad...

The Girls had their first day of Preschool last week and are NOW busy with School 2-3 days a week. Brielle goes to a Montessori Preschool with her friend Elizabeth! They had a pretty good first day and week. Today Brielle liked playing the House GAME (as she calls it) We love her smile and laugh. She is such a blessing and so full of life and excitement and sometimes little girl drama!!! Here's one of her teachers leading an opening circle time thing. This is B's 2nd year of preschool b/c she is a Jan. B-day. We are thinking of a half year of preschool and then doing an evaluation for Kindergarten in Jan. She's a smarty pants and gets bored if she isn't challenged. We are also looking into a School of Gifted Children. We shall see:) Aria was very shocked at first. To be in a very new place (my friend's home)! She goes tues/thurs. and always comes out smiling when it's time to pick her up! She loves kisses as both our girls do! Her very first backpack. I got cra...

turned me to a song i performed about 9 years ago. It Struck a cord with my heart today. Enjoy!

...will have to be reported tomorrow:( I'm totally burned out from going to the Water Park with the girls! Pictures will come soon and Many More Good things! I have decided to help other couples get some exposure on my blog as well. So 2 times a month i will feature another hopeful family or couple! It just love helping others in this regard. When NEW couples get into the adoption Arena- some have a sense that's it's a competition when it's totally NOT. Of course everyone desires to be chosen but, It's not anything that you can do to make yourself look better to a birthmom than another couple can. you have NO idea what she may be looking for in a family! And God has His hands in this - so, Leave it to the PRO! And other good news... I will be doing an Auction On FB in a bit to closeout all my CC Baby Inc. products. More on that later. Have wonderful Sunday friends and readers!

...of things i have to do before preschool starts is getting longer and longer!!! If i didn't have the desire to make some things instead of buying them- it would probably be much shorter! BUT, i love sewing and making dresses and skirts and hair flowers and bows and jewelry and so on. It's fun when you know that my kids have some special one-of-a-kind items and i enjoy making these things. I also LOVE to shop online for adorable items i can't make! Shopping in the mall or stores is fun too but, i can normally find a lot more in a smaller amount of time! And time is something of a precious thing right now. Luckily, i don't get overwhelmed very easily! I just roll with it, make LISTS, and start getting things done! I am glad my mother instilled in me the ability to have GOALS and make lists to organize my time and thoughts and energy! I think everyone should have so sort of a goal- both long term goals and short term goals! I also know that when things don't work o...

So today's title might be an odd one for some but, I say willing to submit- not anyone's will but, God's! I have realized that most of this process is completely out of our hands. We just have to have faith and be willing to submit to God's timeline and His plan for growing our family! I know this is not news to some of you but, i have to say the WAIT is harder than you'd think- even with my 2 girls! Even though they are my kids- my heart goes out daily in hopes that today will be the day our Birth parents find us! Or today will be the day we get a call from Her or our Agency! We feel so strongly that we are NOT supposed to sit around and just WAIT-we are to be actively searching, spreading the word about our decision to adopt again, and spreading the word about OPEN adoption as an option- where otherwise someone might terminate a pregnancy! I hope you all get a good look at all the couples who are hoping to adopt on our blog and consider each one of them- even if ...