Day two: Ethiopia Reads library

(I will post pictures later -sorry)

Olivet church has hosted presentations by Ethiopia Reads the past couple years and some members have really been involved in fundraising for them. So it was an obvious choice to add a trip to one of the libraries that has been created/funded by Ethiopia Reads.

The library we visited was at the Fregenet Kidan Lehitsanat School in Addis Ababa. This school provides food and education to over 200 children 11 and under.

Entering the school compound I immediately knew this was going to be one of the highlights of the trip. The joy of these children is unbelievable, they just want to be touched. They shake your hands, practice their english, "what is your name"' and touch your hair. We had fun playing with them for awhile before they had to go back to class.

There were six total classrooms, we visited a number of them and the children sang songs for us. They were all so impressive. In the K1 room it was made up of 4 year olds and I imagined Maya being in the classroom and what her life would be like here. It saddens me to realize how much my girls have lost of who they are.

We then visited the library which Ethiopia Reads helps support which is on the school grounds. It was a one-room library filled with a variety of books and computers. The library also opens its doors to the local community which is a great idea and a great use of resources.

This school is a great example of providing survival tactics to these children, but also a plan and vision for these children to thrive. They have a complete model built of a new school they hope to build. They are raising money to purchase the land they currently exist on and then will build a beautiful school compound complete with a community library.

Day 1 - Kolfe Boys Orphanage

Today we spent the day at Kolfe, getting to know the boys. It was such fun to see the group interact with the boys, playing soccer, american football and many games such as hide and seek and the human tug-of-war.

For those familiar with Kolfe, you understand the brilliance that are the boys of Kolfe, but also may realize the challenges that a group of 150 pre-teen and teenage boys present when living in an orphanage setting.

As the Olivet organization we discussed many of these challenges before agreeing to lock our hands in partnership with these boys. As our relationship has been built with Children's Hopechest and Kolfe, these challenges have proven to be true.

Today, four boys from Kolfe were able to address the leadership at Olivet, Hopechest USA and Hopechest Ethiopia together in one room. We were able to listen to them describe their wants and needs, and expectations of us working together. In turn, we were able to define and re-set expectations. It was a great meeting and one that needed to happen. Hopefully from this point forward our relationships can continue to grow in both trust and love amongst all parties.

While we were meeting the rest of our group was out on the soccer field playing with the boys. The youth on our trip had so much fun interacting with the boys. They played hard and laughed a lot. It is so gratifying being able to watch these peers from two different sides of the globe come together as one in play.

We finished the evening with dinner at Carnivore Addis (isn't that the best name ever for a restaurant!) which was a great experience and our first option to try traditional Ethiopian food. It was also the second meal at which machiatto's were served, and over half the group had fallen in love with this delicious treat.

Dorms at Kolfe

Hopechest leadership Mesiker and Ben Savage

Playing some American "football" with the boys at Kolfe.

The newest boy at Kolfe, he overcomes his handicap (deaf) with amazing sweetness and the help of his brothers at Kolfe.

Travel to Addis Ababa

Our travel plans began with a two-hour delay in Fargo, as we waited for the plane to arrive from Chicago. As luck would have it our connecting flight to Frankfurt was also delayed so it all worked out and there were no missed flights or anxieties.

The rest of the flight went ok, as well as two 6+ hour flights back to back can be I guess. We had a three-hour layover in Germany, and there was little to do there outside of breakfast (it was 2:30am our time back home.)

Some photos from our trip.

Walking through the airport in Chicago.

Leftover cots from the big storm in Frankfurt over Christmas.

Getting some sleep on the flight.

Our arrival to Addis Ababa and long waiting line for our Visa.

Favorite Pictures from Christmas

Since Dave will be taking blogging about his trip to Ethiopia this week, I thought I'd share a few favorite Christmas pictures.  I actually didn't take too many on my camera as I found my sister's fancy camera way more fun :)  Here are some favorites (raw version without editing).

My sister and I accident wore identical color outfits.

New family tradition thanks to HGTV, a photo of the girls (and me)

coming down the stairs on Christmas morning. 

Santa brought Maya her TinkerBell

Makenna finally awake to open some gifts

Santa was good to the girls this year! 

On the way to Ethiopia!

I am on the plane writing this message. To be honest, I have had the goal to write this for many weeks, but the time simply got away from me.

I am on a trip to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia to spend a week with a group of amazing people from Olivet Lutheran Church. We have a busy agenda planned with the boys at Kolfe at the center of our week.

The boys hold a special place in my heart and I hope that through our visit a strong bond and relationship can be built to finally take the sponsorship program with Hopechest to the level that all parties expect.

I will be blogging our trip so be sure to check back often this week. On the agenda in addition to the boys at Kolfe are Ethiopia Reads, a trip north to the rural part of Ethiopia and another orphanage, and the Alert hospital (you can read more about this hospital and the people that have built a community around it here.)

Makenna Update

Merry Christmas everyone!  I hope you are all having a wonderful day!

I wanted to give you a quick update on Makenna.  From my previous post, Makenna had been admitted to the hospital last Monday for an infection in her leg.  On Thursday night we spoke with the "bone" doctor who said everything is looking good to him and that he is giving us a green light to go home on Friday (yesterday).  Obviously it is the news I wanted to hear.

Fast forward to Friday morning...the hospital peds doctor came to visit Makenna and said he wanted to make a call to the infectious disease doctor from another hospital to talk over Makenna's case.  He did and told me we would have to stay through the weekend.  Um no.  Not going to happen.  I expressed my concerns and opinions which made the doctor have to think (yep he told me he had to think).  Well he left the room, checked a few more things, and came back to tell me the original plan would stay in place which meant we could go home!!!!  As you can imagine, I was so relieved. 

We got home shy of 2pm yesterday in time for Makenna to take a nap, me to take a hot shower, and all of us to get ready for church. God is good!  I am so happy Makenna is home and can celebrate her first Christmas at home with family.

Thank you for all of your prayers.  We are not out the woods yet and have a few follow up appointments but I feel like we are on the right road for recovery. 

P.S.  Thank you to Aunt Cherrie for the beautiful dresses!

Christmas, Hospital?

In case you didn't know, I am an open book.  I have always been and can't really help it.  We have had a very crazy and scary week.  I thought about not blogging about it but I need to as it helps me cope.  My blog's purpose is so many things and sharing the ups and not so great moments of parenting is one of them.

On Monday night we admitted Makenna into the hospital and she has been there every since.  We thought Makenna had a fractured ankle but the foot doctor on Monday confirmed otherwise.  With various doctors consulting, we were told she was being admitted to the hospital for an infection in her leg.  These past few days consisted of tests, blood work, a lot of poking, etc. to figure out the root of the issue.  We won't know the results for 48-72 hours but we are closer.

Unfortunately Makenna's first Christmas as part of our family will be spent in a hospital.  That saddens me greatly as I want her home with her family.  I am praying she will be released on Saturday at the very latest.

While hanging out in the hospital for 2+ days, I have observed and realized a few things that I thought I'd share.  Here are the ones I have discovery so far: 

• Doctors are not Mr. McDreamy
• It isn't possible to save on calories eating at the hospital cafeteria especially for Dave as he found the monster cookies
• Being in the hospital around Christmas is actually not so bad as Makenna has been spoiled with toys, Santa Claus visiting, carolers singing and we got a free meal from Granite City
• Absolutey nothing is on regular TV which confirms my life can not survive without TiVo
• The chair beds are very uncomfortable to sleep in
• Nurses can be "extra" nice once you get to know them on a personal level (they seem to pay more attention and will do little favors for you, wink)
• Important to get all the Christmas stuff done early as you never know what will happen

Please keep Makenna in your prayers and please pray she will be able to go home soon.  It has been hard juggling everything but we are very thankful to have a great support system.  Family begins to arrive today which will be wonderful.

10 Things About Us That Sums Up Our 2010

1. We became a family of 4 as we welcomed home Makenna in January
2. Maya turned 3 and Makenna turned 1
3. We got to see lots of family over the summer and got to attend the ND State Fair
4. Attended the EKC picnic and saw many of our travel mates from 2007
5. Bought a new car that has room for the kids, dogs, and our stuff
6. Numerous walks around our awesome neighborhood
7. Lots of fun playdates for the adults, I mean for the kids :)
8. No changes in jobs, house, or anything life changing (minus #1)
9. Posted many great blogs about the girls and parenthood - great memories to share with the girls
10. Celebrated Maya's 3rd Forever Home Anniversary and Makenna's Baptism

We may not have gone on any lots of vacations or did anything super exciting but we did have a great 2010.  Merry Christmas to everyone.  I hope you have a wonderful holiday with friends and family.

Christmas Party

The girls' had their annual daycare Christmas party on Friday and parents are invited to come.  Their daycare usually has one event per month and they usually coincide with a holiday or event like Mother's Day.  The events are on the cheesy side but I love them and I try to attend every single one. 

At the party, Santa paid a visit to each classroom.  Makenna wouldn't go near him but Maya sat right on his lap and graciously took her gift (okay she literally took her gift).  After Santa left, the kids sang the song "Jingle Bells" and then we had snack.  On our way out, Maya and Makenna each received a gift from daycare to take home.  Spoiled girls!

We did decide to let the girls open their gifts before going to bed.  Wow did they get a lot of really neat stuff!  I have to admit, it is really unnecessary but certainly appreciated.  The daycare we attend is for all income levels so I think it is really nice they do this as some kids probably don't get much for Christmas.

These are the best pictures I got - I have come to the conclusion it is impossible to get a nice photo of the two girls together.  Oh well.  I did get a cute one of Maya with Santa.  Check out Maya's beautiful hair too.  Side story: the same mother who made a rude comment about Maya's natural hair the last time Maya wore it to daycare couldn't say enough nice things about it on Friday.  Oh good grief.  I had to resist my eye roll.

Christmas Concert - Peder Eide

Last night we had the honor of attending a free will concert of Peder Eide at our church. Peder has been to Olivet for the past 12 years and this is the first year we had attended. Thanks to our friends Evan and Teri-Lee who watched Makenna for us, we were able to enjoy the Christmas concert with Maya.

Confession: I really don't know much about him and I don't know his music but I did know that I wanted to know more about him. I heard he is amazing and I found that to be true last night. The entire concert was about Christmas and he sang only Christmas music. Peder talked about how wonderful it would be if we celebrated Christmas year round. He talked about giving and showing compassion not only in December but every day/month of the year. He talked about how one act can make a huge difference in lives. Personally, I think he is dead on when he says that one act can make a huge difference. I know that is true because I am seeing it with my own eyes with my two girls, with sponsorship of our son in Ethiopia, and with organization in my community such as United Way and Salvation Army.

Peder is a father. He and his wife made the decision to adopt their two youngest children, the youngest from Ethiopia. Peder talked about his adoptive son while promoting the group from Olivet (including Dave) who is leaving soon for Ethiopia on a mission trip as well as when he introduced a Christmas song he wrote.  This song really hit home to me and I couldn't help but let the tears fall down my cheeks.  Dave told me not to cry when the song began but no can do.  I couldn't help myelf.  Adoption is my life and it has changed me for the good.  Listen to their story and this song, grab a tissue as you may need it!

Wordless Wednesday - Silly Face

Christmas Around the Corner

YIKES!

Last Friday I decided to take a half day off from work and spend the afternoon getting some necessary stuff done such as laundry, grocery shopping, and wrapping Christmas gifts.  I really dislike using my pecious vacation for things like this but it certainly helped decrease my stress level as we had once again a busy weekend.

On Saturday Maya came with me to Joann Fabrics so we can make fun pretzels like these:

Which Makenna enjoyed eating :)

We also put up the tree - finally!

and thank goodness for shatter proof ornaments!

And on Sunday Maya participated in her first ever Christmas program at church.  She did such a wonderful job and looked adorable as well.  I was a proud mama!  After the program we enjoyed some holiday cookies and visited with some friends of ours.  Nice way to spend a Sunday afternoon.

Did I mention Christmas right away the corner?  Did I also mention that means Dave is leaving very soon for Ethiopia?  Yikes!  I am still breathing and I am still hanging on.  I am ready for this holiday as I love it.  Who couldn't love Christmas and spending time with family?

Recap

This week has been crazy trying to get everything done.  It seems the days and weeks are just too short and my list is way too long.  I'm sure many of you are feeling the same way.  Here is a short recap of our week.

Last Saturday we joined some friends to visit Santa and decorate cookies with Mrs. Claus.  Maya said she had fun and Makenna made it through most of the event before having one of her out of the blue melt downs.  I tried getting a picture of both kids with Santa.  Key word is "tried".  

  


On Sunday we participated in this month's adoption play group.  It had been awhile since we had gone so it was nice to see everyone again.  We enjoyed some yummy food at our local Pizza Ranch and got to meet some new friends.  Apparently my community is much more diverse with adult Ethiopians than I had realized as we got to meet two wonderful gentlemen who are eager to get involved in our adoption group.  How wonderful to have them apart of our lives and to be there as role models for our Ethiopian children!  We were fortunate to have them speak to us about Ethiopian Christmas and the traditions.  I have to say I learned a few things and our children learned that Ethiopians do not believe in Santa Claus (oops).

The rest of the week consisted of gymnastics, church activities, Insanity workouts, fighting with Maya (sigh), and trying to get some last minutes gifts made and ordered.  

Tuesday was a rough morning for Maya and myself.  My high stress level combined with Maya's 3 year defiant self was not a good mix.  Later at work that day, I listened to one of my favorite artists, Ryan Starr, and heard this song.  I think it fit the mood and the week perfectly. 

Crazy Week!

For those of you dying to read another post from me (ha ha), I promised to update soon.  This has been a crazy week for us as we are trying to get ready for the holidays and for Dave's trip.  There never seems to be enough time in the day and week. 

I'll leave you with a picture of Maya with Santa :)

Reminder That One Can Make A Difference

It seems whenever I need a reminder of our responsibility to all of the children of God in this world, Katie Davis shows up. Katie is a young woman who founded the Amazima ministries. She gave up her material belonging, friendships and closeness of family to move to Uganda to start a sponsorship program to send children to school. In doing so, she has became the mother to 14 young girls, but unfortunately only 13 of them are with her today.

Below are two videos that show Katie providing a face and story to the staggering statistics that make up so much of the world's underprivileged youth. They are long, but even taking in a few minutes will prove to be a reminder of something greater that remains for all of us, and the potential of one person (you?) that can make a difference.

Commit to Being Fit

In case you are new to my blog or maybe simply forgot or chose to ignore, Dave and I are committed to living a fit life. What does that mean? It means we are choosing to exercise and instill good behaviors to our two daughters. We are attempting to eat well as much as we can along with following our current exercise program, Insanity by Beachbody.

Because Dave and I love Insanity and the other Beachbody workout programs, Dave and I decided to sign up to become a Beachbody coach. We realize being a Beachbody coach is not for everyone but let me tell you why we decided to do it and the benefits we receive from it.

• We receive product discounts – 25% off!
• We get to meet and get to know other Beachbody coaches as well as other individuals who are also committed to being fit.
• We get to help others achieve their fitness goals.
• We get to participate in Beachbody conference calls and get access to a lot of cool information to help us succeed in our fitness journey.

Right now Beachbody is allowing you to sign up as a coach for free through the end of 2010. Starting in January, it is a $40 sign up fee. In addition to the sign-up fee, there is a $15 monthly charge to maintain your website. Small change if you are taking advantage of the 25% off on all the products (especially Shakeology which is a meal replacement shake – yummy!).

If you are only interested in the exercise programs or Shakeology, we are here for you! We have tried many of them and have written several reviews under our fitness tab along the navigation bar so please check it out.

I have learned many people have P90X at home. If you have ordered something through Beachbody then you have been automatically assigned a Beachbody coach. Did you know that? Whenever someone buys something for the first time, the Beachbody site automatically assigns a coach to you for free. You see, you pay nothing for having a Beachbody coach (which is very cool). Regardless if you have a coach or want to sign up for the first time, we’d love to be your coach. If you are interested is changing your coach, please follow the simple steps below. If you have not signed up or have not purchased anything yet, please go to the site at beachbodycoach.com/DHELD to sign up and to purchase.

To change your assigned Beachbody Coach, send an email to Coachrelations@teambeachbody.com. Include the following:

• Your name
• Send the email from the email address you use to log into TeamBeachbody.com
• The name or the Coach ID of the Coach to whom you want to switch (our Coach ID is 57999)
• You can also call: 1-800-240-0913 and make the coach change over the phone.

If you are interested in learning more about how to become a Beachbody coach or any of the products, please contact us! We would love for you to become a part of our fitness family and we would love to help answer any questions you may have.

You can contact us via our blog by using our contact form, or visit our Beachbody site at beachbodycoach.com/DHELD.

Upcoming Trip to Ethiopia

I am full of emotions. Dave's trip to Ethiopia is coming up very soon which means he is leaving us. I am nervous. I am nervous for him and his group.  I am nervous about being home without him and not being able to just pick up the phone to call him.

I am also scared, anxious, jealous, envious, happy, and excited.

Dave gets to take a group of men, women, and youth to Ethiopia and make a difference in lives. How cool is that? Dave gets to visit Kolfe and see our sponsored son again. Dave gets to see Korah again as well as see some of the amazing individuals we have gotten to know from our last trip. Seriously how cool is that? I am so impressed and proud of Dave for bringing this opportunity to our church and getting others to back him. Thankfully Dave has some amazing people to help coordinate this trip as he certainly could not have done it alone.

But you see... I am left at home. I do get to be with my girls which believe me is wonderful. I don't leave my girls very often so leaving them would be extremely hard on me. I need my hugs and kisses each day! I just wish I could be in both places at one time.

I want to go to Kolfe and see the young men. I want to visit the most gracious people ever in Korah. I want to smell the Ethiopian air, eat the amazing food, and share my love of the country with the group from my church. I want to be there too.

I am also nervous to be home alone for so many days. I never sleep well when Dave is gone. And what if something goes wrong like we lose electricity or get a major snow storm??? Too many unknowns for me and it makes me nervous, scared, and anxious.

I know I'll be okay.  I know I'll take good care of the kids and I know that I have friends in town to help me if needed.  I know.  However, I still have my emotions and I am who I am.

A Day Late For An Issue That is Everyday

I feel like a shallow person at the moment. Instead of calling awareness to World Aids Day yesterday, I posted one of my favorite recent photo of my two girls.

Many of my blog friends did post great information and videos that I hope many of you were able to watch. Last night Dave played a few at home and wow were they powerful! Although it is a day late, it is never too late to bring awareness to this topic. Please watch these videos of an amazing family who is determined to make a difference and change our perception of HIV/AIDS. Kudu’s to this family for doing what they do. I applaud them and admire them.

Wordless Wednesday - Love This Picture

Here Comes Christmas!

This past Friday during my awesome 4 day vacation from work, I spent the afternoon decorating the house for Christmas.  I couldn't sleep the night before as I was too excited to get started and had way too many ideas flowing through my head.  I really enjoy decorating as I find it a lot of fun.

Before I start any project, I have to mentally think about it and plan it out in my head.  It works great except for when you want to sleep as my mind doesn't shut off very easily.  I had all sorts of ideas and wanted to spend very little on supplies which meant using what I have around the house.

I decided to decorate the main part of the house - kitchen, dining room, and main living room.  I opted to not put up the Christmas tree for now as I am afraid Makenna would grab it and pull it down.  Instead I decorated in places where little hands can not reach.

I love to decorate with ornaments specifically red, silver, and white.  I used them everywhere in my decorating.  Below two pictures are of my corner built-ins in my dining room.  Each have glass door but I just opened it for the picture.

 Below pictures are a ledge on top of my windows in my kitchen - the garland was cut to size, a string of white lights, and I added some berry picks to the mix.  I then made some arrangements out of ornaments.

 Back in my day, I was an inventory planner in the Christmas department at Target headquarters in Minneapolis, MN.  While working there, I obtain a lot of really cool decorations which I still have and use.  Below is the 5 piece village set Target had one year.  I actually planned out the inventory and purchased it for all Target stores.  It was only right I took home a set of my own.  Isn't it adorable? I decided to display it on top of our wine cabinet in the dining room.  I used empty shoe boxes for the back two houses.

I don't have photos but I made my own piece of wall art for a wall in the kitchen.  I used an unused 16x20 frame, wrapped the back in red foil Christmas paper, added some ribbon as a border, and threw on the words HO HO HO on it.  Kind of looks like a bad bulletin board but I like it.  Nice to do something original and be a little creative.

Anyone else decorate this past weekend?  Hope you enjoyed it as much a I did.

Girly Maya

There is no dispute.  Maya is a girly girl.  Sorry Dave.  Maya loves wearing dresses and tights or skinny jeans with her boots.  She loves to wear lip gloss and she loves to style hair, my hair.  Maya also loves having her nails polished with sparkling nail polish. 

This morning after breakfast Maya picked out her colors (usually two colors as the sparkling color must go atop of the base color) and got her nails painted. 

Did I mentioned Maya is a girly girl?  I think I did.  Smile.

A little hard to see - base coat is red with blue sparkling nail polish on top

Look at that smile - she is letting them dry while take her picture

Maya insisted I take a picture of her with her head tilted

‘Tis the Season

To be Jolly. Fa La La La La La La La La

I hope all of you had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I hope all of you took time to be thankful for all the wonderful things in your life. We enjoyed our day very much. Our original plans of spending time with family fell through but instead we got to spend the day as a family and enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving meal with good friends. We are thankful.

Now it is time to look ahead. I am thrilled to say Christmas is a mere 29 days away. Woo Hoo! Christmas is by far my favorite holiday of the year.

Who couldn’t love:
• Christmas Lights
• Christmas Decorations
• Christmas Carols
• Christmas Spirit

I love all of it. I am not a Black Friday shopper by no means but I love hitting up Target in the late am. This year we got an awesome night sleep, got ready, and headed to Target. It was so busy but I didn’t care. I loved it. I loved being surrounded by others and I was in such a great mood. It feels great to be in the holiday spirit.

Now I am busy nesting at home. I’m not sure exactly why except maybe because Christmas is only 29 days away! And maybe because Dave is leaving me right afterwards for Ethiopia. Regardless, I am nesting and am loving it.

Off to tackle more of my list…

Wordless Wednesday - Beads, Beads, and More Beads!

Being Thankful

Thanksgiving is only a couple of days away and it is a day to give thanks.  It is a day to remember and to maybe verbalize things you are thankful for such as good health, family, and a feast on the table.  But why do we wait an entire year to be thankful?  Why not be thankful year round? 

As I think about all the things I am thankful for, I can not help but think of the people in Ethiopia.  I can't help but think of my girl's birth families, the boys at Kolfe, the families who call Korah home, and all the street kids.  I can't help but think of the little boy and girls in the orphanages and the beggers in the streets.  These people work hard everyday to survive, literally.

I am thankful.  I am thankful for my family, my friends, the roof over my head, the food in my cupboards and refrigerator.  I am thankful for my job, the car I drive, and the clothes in my closet.  I am thankful for my education, my church home, and the ability to be compassionate towards others. 

I am thankful but not just today or in two days.  I am thankful year round as I know how wonderful and good I have it.  You see unlike many people who don't know where their next meal will come from, I do.  I know I will have 3 meals, I know I will sleep in my bed tonight, I know I will get up and be able to shower in clean water.  I am thankful.

Let's not be thankful for one day only but instead be thankful everyday of the year.  Remember all the good things in our lives.  I do.

"You're Adopted" - Sony Playstation Commercial

There is a new commercial out for the Sony Playstation gaming system which is pretty funny. It is of a family playing a golf game and the mother is beating everyone so the family goes to great lengths to distract her during her swing including running a blender, shaking keys and blowing a vuvuzelas (side note - these things are not going away after this summers World Cup). Then the grandfather says just as the mother is in the middle of her stroke "You're Adopted."

So at work, I had a co-worker watch this commercial with me and provided him no context to what it was a about. At the point of the grandfathers phrase, "You're Adopted" he laughed out loud. It was the one line in the entire commercial that made him laugh. 

So I asked him what about that phrase made him laugh and he explained that it is an often used phrase for a joke, such as a sibling telling the other they are adopted. It was then that I asked him, but why is that funny?

I am asking all of you as well, why is it funny to tell someone they are adopted?

If your young daugther saw this commercial and heard that phrase and looked up at you and asked, "Daddy, what did they mean by "You're Adopted", what would you say?

I don't believe that Sony was trying to be intentionally derogatory with the statement, but I think you need to look further and understand that the reason the joke is 'funny' is just that - it is meant as a put down.

I am trying not to be overly sensitive,, but my experience with my co-worker confirmed the uncomfortable feeling I had with the commercial and I felt it is important as a conspicuous family to educate others on this topic.

Would love to hear others feedback on this topic. Do you feel the same as I? Do you defend Sony and the use of this phrase? Maybe you think I am overly sensitive? Let us know by leaving a comment.

And if you want to let Sony know your comments, you can send the to scea_media_hotline@playstation.sony.com.

A "ME" DAY

No

+ No

= ME

This day is almost all about me (besides Makenna's follow-up ear appointment and Thanksgiving lunch at the girls' daycare). I plan to spend the day doing what I want to do. Holiday shopping, window browsing, and spending the evening catching up with some girlfriends. I feel like I won the lottery!

Hard to Say Good-Bye

It is true.  My kids are growing and there isn't a thing I can do to stop it.  Sad but true. 

I have slowly been going through all the baby stuff in the house and trying to decide what to do with it all.  We decided to try to sell some of the good stuff on Craig's List in hopes to find it a good home and to get some extra cash in our wallet.  We have sold only a few things so far.  Although I am happy to see my house become less cluttered, I can't help but to be sadden by it.  I personally find it hard saying good-bye to something that both of my girls used due to all the memories.  I feel like I should call in the cluttered expert, you know the one that used to be on that show on TLC?  Well anyway, I know it is only a material object but it was my girl's material object. 

I can say good-bye to most of the baby stuff in my house even with all the memories except for one item.  This particular baby item brings back so many memories for both girls that I can not see it go.  I will probably hold onto this item for a long time. 

Do I need it?  No. Do I used it?  No.

Doesn't matter.

What is it?  My Baby Bjorn.

We bought this before we left for Ethiopia to bring Maya home.  It was our saving grace while in Ethiopia with both Maya and Makenna.  I actually carried both of my babies through the many airports as Dave's back could not support them.  I soathed Makenna in it countless times while home on maternity leave as she needed to be close to me. 

This Baby Bjorn means to much to me and brings back too many wonderful and heart ache moments with both of my precious daughters.  No way can I say good-bye to it.  Not now anyways.

Is there anything you have kept due to sentimental reasons?