... and a good time was had by ALL!

Tonight was, in a word? FAN'DAMN'TASTIC!
(not sure if that's an actual word... but guess what, ON MY BLOG IT IS!!!)

Sparky's pot-luck party was truly a great night & I finally got to give 'real life hugs' to both:

Katherine & Arianna!!!




and Karen & Gwen!!!



(Both of these incredible women are friends that I've heald dear in my heart for well over a year now as we all initially met through our Jan 05' DTC Yahoo group)

Also, tonight, I got to meet lots of new faces & hear wonderful stories of love & patience & adoption & forever families!

(plus there was CAKE!!!)


*grin*

I brought my camcorder but never once used it because there was just so much going on that I didn't have time, but as you can see, I DID (obviously) snap some pictures* ...

(*one very hysterical picture of one very specific body part of one very sexy friend of mine,
was unfortunately NOT allowed to be uploaded... I PROMISED I WOULDN'T!)

'BUTT' if you use your imagination, I'm sure that in 'THE END' you'll find that you'd leave all this 'BEHIND' without so much as a second thought, ok well... perhaps just a second thought (after all, when it's cute, it's CUTE...) but certainly not a third or fourth thought!!!)

*evilgrin*

I LOVE YOU KAREN!




RUBY AND I WOULD LIKE TO FIRST THANK Lisa & her hubby 'R' (aka: Ruby's boyfriend) FOR BEING KIND ENOUGH TO LET US RIDE DOWN THERE WITH THEM!

SECOND, WE'D LIKE TO THANK BOTH Donna & Bob FOR OPENING THEIR HOME TO US AND EVERYONE ELSE WHO WAS THERE TONIGHT, IT TRULY WAS A GREAT TIME!!!

And last but certainly NOT LEAST, Ruby & I would like to say thanks to Marisa for sharing her fantastic blog with us, and we'd like to also thank Isadora for not only helping us with a little more 'signing' as she's clearly FANTASTIC at it but for also letting Ruby play with her car keys for what seemed like FOREVER! She really had a BLAST! I'd love to learn more signs if you're ever up for teaching me a few... since it's just a wonderful way to communicate with Ruby until she learns to be a 'professional motor mouth' like her Momma. ;) LOL
Both of you ladies were SO FRIENDLY & WONDERFUL and I just wish you much luck & happiness in your future together & on your journey to adopt... that baby will be one very lucky little soul to have you both as parents!


Oh, and by the way... I COMPLETELY EXPECT TO SEE COPIES OF THOSE PURPLE PIMP PICTURES!!! (Thanks to Johnny for sending that hot little number along for some of us to model!)
HEHEHE

(toddler time didn't allow me much 'photo op's,
and I MISSED THE PURPLE PIMP FEST DAMNIT!)

SOMEONE BEST HOOK ME UP & FAST! *grin*

Dancing with Ellen...

Same great taste, DELICIOUS NEW LOOK!

Ok, so it's not terribly different but I did pick 'rainbow sherbert' colors in honor of SPRING BEING RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER!!!

When I first started this blog, I picked all pinks because I figured little girls love pink, so let's go with pink... right?

Puuuhleeezze! Let's get real, how POMPOUS of me to assume that all little girls love pink. Honestly, my little girl likes pink but she also likes blue and yellow and orange and hell, she'd wear puke green if I put it on her!



Personally my favorite colors are RED & PINK together, but I know that tends to rub a lot of people the WRONG WAY hehehe so, I'll spare you that.


Now, all that said, hopefully you'll find the new look refreshing & pleasing to the eye... and don't blame me if you end up gaining a few extra lbs cus you ran right out & bought a tub of rainbow sherbert! HEHEHE

Now, as far as the headers concerned... will I ever change it? Probably not as it's an actual cover of a book I hold near & dear to my heart. One that was given to me way way before I ever filled out the first piece of paper that became my 'paperchase'. It's really become Ruby's Mantra through all this... She came to me in her OWN TIME (not when I was bitch'in and moan'in about where the hell referrals were...) she was placed in my arms IN HER OWN TIME which happened to end up being OVER TWO MONTHS after referral, two months that all I did was stare at her chubby little face & fall madly in love with her every minute, of every hour, of every day until the moment we were face to face, both of us crying...
Ruby- tears of fear & uncertainty.
Momma- tears of joy and relief.
We finally found each other, my little girl & me...
In that instant, we became a 'Forever Family'.

She's become so much a part of who I am and how my life unfolds day to day that, although I KNOW that there was a time before Ruby, I honestly can't remember it... It's all a blur now so to those of you in the midst of every conceivable stage that comes before where I'm at now... trust me, once you lay eyes on the little soul who is to be your child, you'll never remember any of this as anything more than a 'blur' I PROMISE YOU.

I Love You...

Pssst...

... hey you, yeah YOU, the one LURKING! You know who you are... COME OUT & SAY A LITTLE HELLO every once in a while would ya? I really work hard on my blog to keep it fresh & filled with pictures & silly 'Ruby Stories' and I LOVE hearing that you're all enjoying your visit so, don't be afraid... c'mon, I don't bite (although Ruby may if you go anywhere near her mouth, as she's teething like MAD currently)!
Just say a little Hello & let me know where you're checking in from, it's SO MUCH FUN to see where everyone is from & how they came to find my little corner of Blogland!

Io e Nonno... insieme per sempre!

Ti Amo Tantissimo, Nonno!!!

"We want DINNER! We want DINNER!"

Bear's 1st Bath...

Ok Bear, now I have to get your head wet, ok?
Be Brave!

I know it's scarey but you can do it pal, be BRAVE!


Doing good, hang in there... almost done!


Awwwwww Bear, I'm SO PROUD OF YOU!
(and between you and me,
I can't BELIEVE that Momma actually let me take you IN THE BATH! kewl huh?)

Awww Bear, I love you.

Me & my shadow...

More Bathtime Giggles!

GOOD TIMES!

So, you all want to know what it is I'm doing this saturday? Well, first I'm going to dodge a punch from Karen for that post I just did of her & her potty mouth, ;) but really I'm going to be enjoying myself at 'Casa De Sparkey' for our second blogger 'POT LUCK DINNER'! The first one was great but little miss Ruby didn't let us stay too long as she was Cranky Pants De'jour! LET'S HOPE THAT SHE CAN HANG OUT JUST A LITTLE LONGER THIS TIME CUZ EVERYONE, AND I MEAN EVERYONE IS GONNA BE THERE! I really hope that the sheet cake I'm bringing will FEED EVERYONE! CAN'T WAIT TO SEE YOU ALL THERE...

ESPECIALLY YOU KAREN MY DEAR!

(below is the Post originally blogged by Donna...)

Calling All Massholes (and anyone close to being a Masshole)

Well,we did it. We went to our first potluck dinner with area adopting families. Kikalee and her husband R were our gracious hosts. The food was great. The company even better. Fun was had by all.

We met Ruby and her mom. Those cheeks! I wanted to eat them up. Tammy & Tim were there along with Carrie and her husband. Deberoo and her charming husband drove from far away AND we were able to help them celebrate the referral of their very beautiful daughter. Congratulations! It's time to start blogging so we can obsess stalk share in your excitement.

Anyhoo, the next potluck gathering will be at Casa de Sparky. If you are interested in joining the fun just e-mail me at sparkybear45@yahoo.com and I'll give you the details.

Please NO SERIAL KILLERS

Areola with a side of Balls please...

Ok... while on the phone this morning with my dear friend Karen...

...out of her mouth came not only the word Areola but soon to follow was another word I like to call, Balls!
Yep, you read this right, the words Areola AND BALLS both came trottin' out of that girls mouth during our conversation! Now, I can't elaborate on how they made their way into our little phone chat but let's just say this, JUST WHEN I THINK THAT I AM QUITE POSSIBLY THE FUNNIEST PERSON I KNOW, a little ole' sweet sounding SOUTHERNER WALTZES IN WITH HER AREOLA AND BALLS AND STEALS MY THUNDER! I don't think you know just HOW FUNNY you ARE KAREN! *grin*

And anyways, you give me words like you did today & I have an OBLIGATION TO ALL THAT IS FUNNY to take it and RUN LIKE HELL WITH THAT!!

LOL I LOVE YOU GIRL! ALWAYS A FANTASTIC CONVERSATION WHEN IT'S WITH YOU!
(and as I type this, in my ear I'm hearing, albeit a slight whisper: " omg Amy, you're such a horrible, horrible friend... *sigh* I'm gonna take a REALLY BAD PICTURE of you THIS WEEKEND and POST IT ON MY BLOG!")
hehehe That's kewl with me, one good blog deserves another, but don't you think before you worry about blogging bad pictures of me that you might wanna get to that pile of laundry you've been putting off? *grin*

HA!

YOU KNOW YOU LOVE ME GIRL & DITTO FOR ME!!!
*big cheezy ass Italian loudmouth grin!*

CAN'T WAIT TILL SATURDAY! ;)

THIS PAIN IN THE ASS, HORRIBLE, AWFUL FRIEND HAS A GREAT BIG HUG,
WITH YOUR NAME ON IT!

*smiling*

Isn't She FUNNY?!? *

*Note: If there is nothing above then currently 'YouTUBE' is working on their site & once finished my video will be back up & available again, so check back soon! Thanks!!!

Dog Heaven

Nothing, and I mean NOTHING,
is more comfortable to my dear old friend,
than a FRESHLY FOLDED, TOASTY WARM,
PILE OF (Ruby') LAUNDRY STRAIGHT FROM THE DRYER!
Thanks Ebby...
You're always there to lend a helping 'paw' or two...
...or four!
I love ya Pal.

Phonecall to CHINA! *updated chop/100 babies pics*

Wooo Hooo!! Just got off the phone with Susan and it was SOO GOOD to hear her voice & know that everyone's doing WELL! Will & Olivia were sound asleep as we chatted but it was great to be able to share a few more tidbits of info on Guangzhou & the shops in the area with her... just easier to explain things verbally than to draw a map! (trust me, I tried that, I can't draw maps, see for YOURSELF!!! hehehe)

I sent her pictures of the Chop ladies who I gave ALL my business to while in Guangzhou, because unlike every other salesperson there, they didn't try to crawl up my ass & set up camp!

They were SO FRIENDLY & CASUAL about everything & didn't try to sell me something I didn't want! THOSE ARE THE PEOPLE WHO GET MY BUSINESS! =)


This is Ruby's Chop... =)
(monkey on top for her birth year)

The chop ladies also sell this 'wall hanging' & it's called, "100 babies"
It's SO CUTE!!! I bought one for Ruby's room but shame on me, I haven't hung it up yet!

Check it out up close...

Then there was this little store PRACTICALLY RIGHT NEXTDOOR TO THE WHITE SWAN
& that's where I got my FAVORITE JEANS for little miss Ruby!


They're simple & have adorable ruffles at the bottom of each leg...


These sweet little red flowers on the front left pocket...


and they're made by PO.P whatever THAT IS? But IT WORKS!

AND THE BEST PART IS the WAIST IS ADJUSTABLE!!! I bought SIX PAIRS, two each of a size for this year, two for next year & two for when she's 3!!! YOU CAN'T GO WRONG WITH A GREAT PAIR OF JEANS THAT FIT TO A T & CAN BE READJUSTED OVER AND OVER!!!

I couldn't remember the name of the store, but as you can see I DID TRY & draw Susan a MAP!

(sad... yes I know but HELL AT LEAST I TRIED!)

In talking with her & explaining where it was, she knew the store but she couldn't remember the name either LOL so it's NOT JUST ME! hahahaha Anyway, I hope that she'll get a picture of the front of it so that I can stop feeling like a tard that I can't remember the name of the place! I MEAN COME'ON, I BOUGHT A ZILLION PAIRS OF JEANS FROM THEM! hehehe

SUSAN! SO GLAD TO HEAR YOUR VOICE GIRLIE & KISS O'S PRECIOUS CHUBBY CHEEKS FOR RUBY & ME AND GOOD LUCK TOMORROW WITH THE CHOP LADIES & THE JEANS!!! LET US ALL KNOW HOW YOU MADE OUT!!!!!!!!!

Sending you *HUGS* from across the world!!!

-Amy & Ruby Cate

XOXOXOXO

Momma & Ruby's Tea for Two...

How cute are these adorable Snowman Mugs??
Ruby's Aunt Emily (the one who made her fantastic 100 Good Wishes Quilt) works at Crate & Barrel and these adorable Mommy & Me Mugs were her gift to us this past Christmas! WE LOVE THEM! Ruby's mug is just a wee bit smaller than Momma's mug and we both had TEA in them this morning!
Ruby LOVES TEA!
(I know, she shouldn't have the caffiene,
but once in a while, a few sips is ok for a special treat...
maybe I should start making decaf for her.)

Mornin' Y'all... *UPDATED Pluffies Link*

Ruby here! (Ok, so we don't say Y'all up here in Boston but I thought I'd throw that in there for my buddies Karen & Gwen & Susan & Olivia! And ALL my SOUTHERN & MIDWESTERN blogger friends! -Johnny, you too cuz Momma says she has a crush on you! shh-
HOLLA'!)

So, I'm here blogging about my friends... that's right, MY FRIENDS ARE GROWING IN NUMBERS!

Started out with my best friend Bear, and then along came Dog, and after him came Monkey (cuz Momma said I was born the year of the monkey so she had to adopt him for me...) and then came Pupper.)

I love these friends SO MUCH and I thought I'd share with you all a link to a page where you could get your very own 'TY Pluffie's friend' for your little one! Momma says the're great because they're C-H-E-A-P and cuz they're SO SOFT & THE PERFECT SIZE FOR LITTLE HANDS! Plus, she says cuz they're so inexpensive, you can easily buy MULTIPLES of them so you'll always have a clean one ready for hugs & kisses! (they're machine washable & dryer safe!)

So, with that said... here's a link to where you can get yourself your very own Ty Pluffies! This time, this link actually is to a working site where you can really ORDER yourself some Pluffies!!! =) Thank you to Shannon. S. for bringing that previous 'bum' link to my attention! =)

ENJOY!!!

Sound asleep...

... Bear kisses.

(Today's Festivities: teething, low grade fevers on & off , world's nastiest cold complete with 'faucet' nose and all around unhappy short person. My poor little punkin' had a long day & is in bed early with her best friend, who has NOT left her side all day long!
Thanks BEAR, my little girl is very lucky to have you.)

Good Times...

"Ok Nonno... so I think we should listen to this this purple record first!"

"hmmm, I dunno, what does that say? I've never heard of this song...?
Wait a minute, I can't even READ! DUH! what am I even thinking!"


"You're so SILLY Nonno! I'm having SUCH a good time!"


"Wait right there! I have something FUN to spice up the party..."


"A FUN PARTY HAT!
Ok, so it's technically an orange halloween 'bowl' but ON YOU IT LOOKS FANTASTIC!"

"Awwww Nonno, you are so silly, I love you!"
(but maybe we should wash this bowl before we give it back to Momma to put candy in it...)

Shot night...

Mon, Wed & Fri of every week,
of every month,
of every year,
for the rest of my life,
since being diagnosed early summer of 04'.
It's just life (with MS) & it happens.
It happens whether we were prepared for it,
or not.
... life happens.