Where's everyone from?

Ok, so I have had my blog since august of last year & I've had lots of visitors here & I love knowing that you all enjoy popping in every now & again but what I'd love to know is, who you all are & where you're from? It would just be nice to know when I'm looking at my site counter & I see someone from Tempe Arizona, King City Ontario, Northville Michigan, Dodge City Kansas, Cherry Hill New Jersey, Ogunquit Maine, Hopkins Minnesota, Seattle Washington, Hendersonville Tennessee, Cleveland Ohio, Fredericton New Brunswick or even Los Angeles California ( & the list goes ON AND ON...) that I can say " OH I KNOW WHO THAT IS!" and smile. =) So, if you would all love to say a little 'hello' on the comments section & let me know who ya are & where you're poppin in from, I'D JUST LOVE IT! =)

Thanks Guys!

-Amy
(who is now off for her weekly sunday date with TiVo & DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES! *grin* LOVE THAT STUPID SHOW!) hehehe

pssst... for those of you ever toying with the idea of visiting good ole' Bean Town (AKA: Love that Dirty Water... BOSTON YOU'RE MY HOME!) be sure to check This out! It's a GREAT BOOK of places to see, things to do and FUN TO BE HAD in BOSTON! And the BEST PART IS, it's ALL KID FRIENDLY DESTINATIONS! *grin*

Shhh...

... Bear and I are down for the night but will be back tomorrow with more fun & games, we PROMISE! G'night everyone!

Friends came to PLAY!

This is a picture of Me with Momma's friend Lisa & her kids, Christina & Joey! Lisa is one of Momma's oldest friends from when she was a little girl! It was great to finally meet her & Christina & Joey played with me lots & lots! They even brought me some fun presents too!! THANKS FOR VISITING GUYS! LET'S DO IT AGAIN SOON!!!

Grandma Pam's YELLOW SWEATER!!!

This beautiful sweater was HAND MADE for me by Grandma Pam! (Emma, Abi & Sam's Grandmother!) and I wanted to have Momma take a picture of me in it because I LOVE IT AND IT FITS ME TO A " T " !!!!! Not to mention it looks GREAT paired with my Red Floral Robeez's that are Momma's favorite! =) Thanks Grandma Pam! I LOVE MY SWEATER SO MUCH!!!!!!!!!!!

Why I blog... ( & toddler tissue antics! )

Why DO I blog? Well, I've been asked this many times from family members & friends, strangers & online pals etc... Well, there are several reasons why I blog, but the biggest ones are the following:

I blog for those of you toying with the idea of adoption.
I blog for everyone just starting their paperchase, for those in the midst of the paperchase, for the families who just received their I171's in the mail...
I blog for everyone who is just about to be DTC or who has been DTC & is waiting for their LID.
I blog for those celebrating their LID.
I blog for everyone just beginning the "BIG WAIT" and for those of you smack in the middle of it feeling like there's no light at the end of the tunnel...
I blog for those families who've recently received their precious referrals and are now floating on cloud 9...
...and those of you waiting for your TA so you can boogie on outta here & go to China to bring your babies home!

I blog for ALL THE REASONS why I READ A BUNCH OF BLOGS while I was at EVERY ONE OF THOSE STAGES I just mentioned.
I lived vicariously through other people's adoption milestones until mine could get underway...
I was hooked on every picture, every post, ever little tidbit of info I could get my hands on to sustain me during that LONG PROCESS we lovingly refer to as International Adoption.

How long was my process you ask?

Oh, about this long:

Dec 03': Knew I wanted to adopt, started saving up $ to begin the process.
Jan- March 04: Researched agencies until I fell in LOVE with Faith International Adoptions out of Tacoma, Washington.
April 04': Got the LAST SINGLES SLOT FOR 2005' and paid my registration fee to get the ball rolling! *did a happy dance around my house*
April - Dec 04': PAPERCHASING (ugh)
Dec 04': My Dossier was ready to go and was due to leave with their monthly DTC batch, but due to an oversight, was unfortunately left behind as the others were sent off to China. At the time I was pretty peeved but after much thought, I knew in my heart that my Ruby wasn't ready just yet, and that she's doing this in her 'own time'... so I told them to just send me along with the Jan group rather than try to expedite my Dossier on it's own. I didn't want it traveling 'solo' I guess.
Jan 14th, 2005: FINALLY DTC!!!! *more happy dancing*
Jan 31st, 2005: LID!!!!!!!!!! *nearly drunk with happiness*
Feb-Sept 2005: THE BIG WAIT!!! (That's where all the BLOGS that I've loved over these past few years came into SERIOUS play & kept my sanity IN CHECK!)
Sept 7th, 2005: RUBY'S REFERRAL!!! (GOT THE CALL ON HER 1ST BIRTHDAY!!! HOW KEWL IS THAT?!?!?!)
Oct 11th, 2005: TA!!! (Travel Approval)
Nov 16th, 2005: TO CHINA I GO!!!
Nov 17th, 2005: Arrive in Beijing
Nov 20th, 2005: Flew from Beijing to Nanchang
Nov 20th, 2005: GOT'CHA DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Nov 21st, 2005: Official 'Adoption Day' !!!
Nov 28th, 2005: Consulate Apt.
Nov 29th, 2005: Actually went to Consulate & swore Ruby in as a US Citizen!!
Nov 30th, 2005: HEADING HOME w/a DREAM COME TRUE!!!

So, as you can see, this process is NOT for the FAINT AT HEART nor the IMPATIENT! So, back to the original reason for this posting...?

THAT IS WHY I BLOG!!!!! FOR ALL OF YOU!!!!!!!! =)

May you all realize that your children will come to you in their own time, just as Ruby did for me. Of that much I'm sure! And hopefully in the meantime, you can get a kick out of Ruby's and My life full of silly toddler antics!

(A-hem... for example: As I was typing this post, THIS is how Ruby passed her time...) HAHAHAHA

All the expensive fancy toys on the planet & my child discovers the JOY of a BOX OF TISSUES! hee hee, good thing I have extra boxes stashed! hehehe

My Very Talented Nanna "T"...

Ahhh... there I am fast asleep with my two best friends in the world: Bear & Dog. You'll see over me is an adorable HAND KNIT pastel rainbow sherbert type blanket made for me by my WONDERFUL & TALENTED, Nanna "T". ( Momma's Aunt Allegra ) Now, not only did I get a special blanket but you'll notice that both Bear and Dog are covered as well! Yup, that's right, she made TWO BLANKETS! One for me and ONE FOR MY FRIENDS!
And Momma says we sleep the same, each with one foot OUT of the blankets! *grin* hehehe

I LOVE YOU MOMMA! (psst, I love you too Miss Ruby Cate!)

Why I love my playroom... by Ruby Cate Pei Mu

It may not be fancy with pics on the wall, it might just look plain with no 'fancy' at all.
But this little girl who came from a'far, is happy so long as I have: BALL IN A JAR! *grin*

FUN STUFF PEOPLE! SEE FOR YOURSELF!!





I don't know why Momma gets SO CLOSE to me, but I think it's just so she can show everyone how pink my big 'ole cheeks are... (what she doesn't realize though is that they're really probably that pink from her CHERRY CHAP STICK she ALWAYS wears & then plants THOUSANDS of KISSES on me with those SAME CHERRY CHAPSTICKE'D LIPS OF HERS!) You know, I've ben thinking, we really gotta get my Momma a hobby! (or a husband, whichever comes first!) Anyone out there have any suggestions or know any cute single men? HELP!

hee hee

I'm sorry, what's that? I look what?

No, no... I don't look cute in this sweater, I MAKE THIS SWEATER LOOK CUTE! *grin*

THAT'S RIGHT!!!!!!!!! CHECK ME OUT, SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO ADORABLE! (Momma says that I'm a LEO at heart! hehehe I think she's right! ) hehehehe WOOOO HOOOO

Good Day SUNSHINE* (*with just a touch of BedHead!)

21 lessons to live by:

My good friend Jamie sent this to me today and said that she thought it was worth passing on, and I have to say I completely agree. Twenty one small sentences, each with it's own big message... & on that note, I say to you all, Goodnight. =)

-Amy


ONE. Give people more than they expect and do it cheerfully.


TWO. Marry a man/woman you love to talk to. As you get older, their conversational skills will be as important as any other.


THREE. Don't believe all you hear, spend all you have or sleep all you want.


FOUR. When you say, "I love you," mean it.


FIVE. When you say, "I'm sorry," look the person in the eye.


SIX. Be engaged at least six months before you get married.


SEVEN. Believe in love at first sight.


EIGHT. Never laugh at anyone's dream. People who don't have dreams don't have much.


NINE. Love deeply and passionately. You might get hurt but it's the only way to live life completely.


TEN.. In disagreements, fight fairly. No name calling.


ELEVEN. Don't judge people by their relatives.


TWELVE. Talk slowly but think quickly.


THIRTEEN. When someone asks you a question you don't want to answer, smile and ask, "Why do you want to know?"


FOURTEEN. Remember that great love and great achievements involve great risk.


FIFTEEN. Say "bless you" when you hear someone sneeze.


SIXTEEN. When you lose, don't lose the lesson.

SEVENTEEN. Remember the three R's: Respect for self; Respect for others; and responsibility for all your actions.


EIGHTEEN. Don't let a little dispute injure a great friendship.


NINETEEN. When you realize you've made a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.


TWENTY. Smile when picking up the phone. The caller will hear it in your voice.


TWENTY-ONE. Spend some time alone.

Do Not Disturb

Blogger books & ICE CREAM WITH A FRIEND!

Check THIS OUT! Blogosphere: Best of Blogs
It's a new book that you can't even order online! It's apparently only in Borders Books, which I HATE! I'm a Barnes & Noble girl myself!) It's a book of THE KEWLEST BLOGS CURRENTLY OUT IN CYBER SPACE! I wonder how many of the blogs I read on a daily basis (somewhat religiously) are included in this thing!? I MUST GO OUT & FIND IT LIKE, YESTERDAY!! Maybe my best friend the LIBRARIAN, can help a sistah OUT! ;) SHE CAN FIND ANYTHING! You just 'wonder aloud to yourself in her company' and *POOF* the next time you see her, she hands you a STACK of INFO on whatever it was you were wondering out loud about ! (neat trick eh?) HEHEHE I love you JEN! *smile* If I should find this book I'll keep you all posted & dish out the details of who's who in THE BLOGGER WORLD! =)
For now, Jen & I have a date with some Green Monster Mint ICE CREAM! ONLY FOUND IN BOSTON! hehehehe

Zia's Bella Bambina!

Baby Isabella stopped by with my sister in law Leanne for a visit & Auntie Jen held her so Auntie Amy (Zia) could snap these cute pics of her! =) Man is it the weirdest thing ever, she looks JUST LIKE MY BROTHER ADAM!

=)

A vision in PURPLE!

MMMMMMMMMM BANANA BREAD!!!! *drool*

Ok, so I'm on the phone with Lisa, and I was telling her how I just made Banana Bread from SCRATCH today & she said 'OMG YOU'RE GONNA PUT THAT ON THE BLOG RIGHT?!?" so I said " hmmm, ok, why not!"

So Lisa, this is for you & EVERYONE ELSE OUT THERE who appreciates YUMMY RECIPES! This one happens to come from my Aunt Allegra (Ruby's Nanna T.) and it's my families FAVORITE! I hope you all enjoy it very much! ( it's best served with TEA!) hehehe But then again, isn't everything? hehehe


Aunt Allegra's Banana Bread

1 1/3 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/3 cup oil
3 mashed bananas

measure out dry ingredients in large bowl. Beat together eggs, oil & vanilla. Add to dry ingredients & mix well.

Pour into greased & floured loaf pan & bake at 350 for about 1 hour.


ENJOY!!!!!!!!

=)

ps. Ruby had some of this tonight & ABSOLUTELY LOVED IT! GOOD JOB LEGRA! EVERYONE LOVES YOUR BANANA BREAD JUST AS MUCH AS WE ALL LOVE YOU!

Love,

-Amy & Ruby Cate

Fun At KID'S STOP!

Man do I LOVE KID'S STOP!!! I have SO MUCH FUN THERE! This ball pit thing is THE BEST! Momma, we NEED TO GET ONE OF THESE FOR MY PLAYROOM!!!!!!!! PLEEEEEEEASE???



Hello little blue friend, I'VE MISSED YOU! Now, let's find Red & Yellow & Green & we'll have ourselves a BALL! *grin*


Here's Green...



Ooh, TWINS!



Oooh, CHECK ME OUT! I wasn't there more than 45 minutes & already THE BOYS ARE KISSING ME!!!!! This cute little number's name was HUNTER! HI HUNTER! Hopefully we'll meet again sometime soon IN THE BALL PIT! hee hee



Awwwwwww SHUCKS, am I BLUSHING???? hehehehe



Hey Hunter, RIGHT BACK AT'CHA BABE! (blowing kisses)



Danny was perhaps a 'tad bit jealous' of the 'going's on' in the ball pit with me and Hunter BUT he's a trooper, figured if he can't beat em, he'd just JOIN EM...



So he just hauled himself up into the ball pit & brought a good book for company... DANNY'S JUST KEWL LIKE THAT! =)



I'm sorry, what? ... I've exceeded the maximum 'ball pit limit' for play time? AW MAN!!!!!



Awww COME ON! I'm cute, can't we break the rules just this ONCE? Look, I'll do a trick for you, watch this: "TOUCHDOWN!!!!" wasn't that worthy of just a few more minutes? ;)



HA HA! I KNEW You'd see things MY WAY! =) Now, where is my FAVORITE BALL?



I know you're in here SOMEWHERE.... hmmmmmmmmm ... come to me little ball, IT'S TIME TO PLAY!




Ahhhh, my little squished green friend! YOU'VE COME BACK TO ME!!!!!!!!! Now I shall KISS YOU!



Oh stop it, you're embarrassing me! It was JUST A LITTLE KISS! hehehehe
Ok, maybe it was kinda silly, but I'M JUST A SILLY KINDA GAL!!!! ;)



WOOOOOO HOOOOOOOOOO THANK YOU KID'S STOP FOR ANOTHER FUNFILLED AFTERNOON IN THE BALL PIT!!!!!!!!!! (next time can we make sure that Hunter is gonna be there again? ) hehehehe

I'm not alone...

... so my bestest friend in the world also has herself a 'night time friend'... allow me to introduce to you, Squeekey!! She's had her friend far longer than I've had William Bear but both are MUCH LOVED! Hell, both came with us to the Cayman Islands a few years ago when we went for a vacation! They're world travelers! =) I guess Ruby's Bear is even a world traveler as well seeing as how he trecked his toosh half way across the world for little miss Cheeks. =) hee hee

Ok, now I want to know WHO ELSE OUT THERE had a 'CHILD HOOD FRIEND' they just still can't SLEEP WITHOUT?! C'mon people, Karen & Myself and Jen can't be the ONLY THREE! I know for a fact that Ruby's 'name sake' Catherine (in honor of the 'Cate' in Ruby Cate) has herself a TOBY bear from the 70's... I'd post a pic but I couldn't find him on ebay, so unless Aunt Catherine sends me his pic, you'll just have to imagine him. SO LADIES... cough up the details, because THIS SINGLE MOMMY WANTS TO KNOW! =)

WOOOOOO HOOOOOOOOOO

-Amy

NOGGIN ROCKS!!!* (*updated with PICS of Miss Ruby's BOOTS!!)

(below is a picture that Momma and I drew together using Noggin's DOODLE PAD! isn't it NEAT?! It's a pic of Momma pulling me in my new SLED that I got for CHRISTMAS! ) YIPPEE!


JACKS BIG MUSIC SHOW!!!

WELCOME TO RUBY'S FAVORITE HALF HOUR OF MUSIC & DANCING!!!

Click on the link above to be transported to a world where it's fun to be silly and dance and wiggle & sing & JUST HAVE FUN! =)

Ruby's favorite songs can be found by clicking on 'Mel' the dog & the videos are listed by a little image of each video, she likes Grumpy (the 5th image in from the left) and her ALL TIME FAVORITE IS BOOTS!! (13th in from the left, pic of a pair of red rubber boots!)


When that song comes on I DANCE EVERYWHERE AROUND THE HOUSE IN MY LADYBUG BOOTS THAT NANNA BOUGHT FOR ME SPECIAL!!!!! THANK YOU NANNA I LOVE MY BOOTS!!!!!!!! =)

And just when you think that you've had all the fun you could POSSIBLY have, the Schwartzman Quartet


arrives & ARE THESE LITTLE FELLAS A HOOT! I think Momma loves them more than I DO!

(The Schwartzman Quartet is an a cappella puppet singing group that stops by once an episode to sing a theme-related song to help solve the dilemma faced by the friends. They just knock on the clubhouse door out of the blue and happen to have a related song up their sleeves. They’re a well-coordinated group with striped turtlenecks and freckles. They definitely have a fresh-faced 1950s look and sound to them. )

ENJOY EVERYONE!!!!!! =)

Noggin is ch. 223 here for us in Boston, check your local cable guide to see if your provider has Noggin & if you don't get it, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR, CALL & ORDER IT TODAY!!! Best television for preschool kids HANDS DOWN!