OK, OK... More pics and a thank you to the McKenzie Crew!

I've been called out by Holly for not updating !!! Here are some pics from the last couple of days.

But, first a shout out and thank you to Julia over at the McKenzie Crew for sending Gabriella these adorable kitty slippers and socks. She said she figured since Bing was her buddy, she needed kitties on them :-)


Here is her best Bugs Bunny face.





Cheeeeese


This is how I found her asleep during her nap.


She got the giggles while I was changing her.

Doesn't she look like I caught her doing something here?


She loves making this funny face now.




Here's that face again.

Tagged for Weirdness

OK, I've been tagged a couple of times. I'm going to do this one and I'm still thinking on the other one(it's a toughie Muriel!!).

This one was from Farrah.

I'm supposed to name 6 weird things about me.... As weird as people may think I am, I had a hard time with this one. So, keep the laughter to yourself if it's corny.

1. I hate frogs. I'd rather run across a snake than a slimy frog. But, I love cute little pictures of frogs and stuffed ones etc.

2. I'm not exactly a neat housekeeper, but I can't stand a dirty kitchen! I can't go to bed after a party until I've cleaned the kitchen(and that can take a while).

3. If I play a game or something on the computer for too long, I won't be able to turn it off in my head when I try to go to sleep that night. One of the many things that can keep me from sleeping. Ah, the joys of insomnia.

4. The older I get the less tolerant of the heat I get. Yet, I love living in Florida.

5. I love to watch blood and guts on TV. Not reenactments, but the real thing like surgeries, ER stuff,etc. Does anyone remember the show where they used to show all kinds of surgeries? I loved it!

6. Now, given #5 above, it's certainly weird that I will pass out from the most minor of injuries,etc. I once had a pretty minor cut and passed out cold while Ferdy was cleaning it up. Not the first such incident. I was told by a dr. it's called a vagral nerve response where for any kind of injury, your body sends the blood to the injured area and away from your brain.

I'm not going to tag anyone as this seems to have made the rounds. But, if you're a reader and are so inclined, consider yourself tagged!

Daddy's Little Girl

Gabriella and daddy went to a Corvette show today. Gabriella is going to have to love football(the Steelers) and Corvettes. Hopefully daddy will be able to finish his 1966 Corvette that he's restoring by the time Gabriella can drive :-)



Sarah, you were right... she was posed in a 'Vette. One that's just her size.


Since mommy had the day to herself(my first full day since she came home!), I went shopping! But, of course, I didn't buy a thing for myself, only for Gabriella. Having a girl is some kind of dangerous! I know all the Guatemama's can certainly attest to that(Ginger and Sig in particular!).

Using Up Those 9 Lives

This would be why Bing is sometimes lucky I don't kill him! This is my dining room sideboard that he decided was a nice place to take a nap.



Gabriella is getting stronger and stronger every day. And not just physically. She can be pretty darn strong-willed too!!

Just Another Day

I can't think of a catchy title, so..... Just some pics from the last couple of days.

This is her favorite toy because she can get up on her knees and play.


She now just wants to pull up on everything. And that means climbing all over me like a monkey when we're on the floor.





Of course, Bing has to get in on the action.... I'm thinking he may need his own blog soon as he's becoming famous!

Happy 10 Months!

Gabriella is 10 months old today. It's hard to believe that in just 2 short months she'll be a year old already. I was looking back at some pictures of when she first came home and she has changed so much. Especially in the hair department!

Then ....



And today....

When Daddy's Away.....

The cats will play.

Happy Spring!

What, you mean it's only January??? Well, here in Florida it's hot!!!!!

Gabriella isn't too sure of the grass. It's funny because she just sits there and moves her arms, but doesn't attempt to go anywhere. It's the only place where she doesn't crawl away! So, mommy and daddy were able to pull some weeds while she marveled at the grass and leaves.




This looks like it has good fiber in it.

Pretty in Pink

I was finally able to get a barrette into Gabriella's hair!

Hey, who's out there?? Want to come and play?

To Sleep, Perchance to Dream?

Sorry I haven't posted for a couple of days. It's been kind of hectic as Gabriella has definitely decided to mix things up with her naps. Most mornings, she doesn't sleep for more than 30-45 minutes now(vs. 1-1 1/2 hrs before) and afternoons are hit and miss. Never the 2 hrs it used to be and many times she is just flat out refusing to nap in the afternoon. Last night we had a repeat of the last post and she fell asleep in the high chair again since she hadn't napped in the afternoon. Fortunately, this time she had eaten almost all of her dinner first. The good news is that when she does go to bed early, she still sleeps right through until at least 7 am. In fact, the other night, she slept for about 13 hrs! She did sleep for about an hour this afternoon, so hopefully she'll stay awake through dinner and a bath tonight.

She is saying dada all the time now. The only thing that keeps me from being jealous is that it isn't in context. All day long, everything is dada.
Enjoy pics from today.

No Dinner Tonight

This is the result of Gabriella refusing her afternoon nap two days in a row and taking very short morning naps to boot. She was sound asleep about 3 bites into her dinner. We got her out of the chair and she was out. So, we skipped her bath and put her to bed early. Let's see how early she gets up tomorrow.

Some Little Miss G

So it's not all about me today, here are pics from yesterday and today.

Mommy, pleeeeeease let my buddy Bing in! I promise I'll clean up all the cat hair!

Yes, mommy, it IS more fun to play with all your toys upside down and knocked over!


Mommy, could you at least comb my hair before you take a bunch of pictures of me???

I'm It Again

Ginger tagged me for this little meme. I in turn tag Tricia and Michelle.

1. FIRST NAME: Alleen
2. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? Yes. My dad's name is Al and my mom's name is Kathleen. So, Al-leen
3. WHEN DID YOU LAST CRY? Hmmm. All out cry or just tear up? I tear up every day because of Gabriella(no kidding!). Or if I read a particularly moving blog post and I've seen a number of those on people's blogs lately. Heck anything can get me going.
4. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT? Pastrami. But, I usually go with turkey.
5. KIDS? Gabriella Marie, 9 1/2 months
6. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON, WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? Yes, I think I'm pretty alright! I have my crabby moments, I'll admit. But, I care deeply for people.
7. DO YOU HAVE A JOURNAL? No, just my blog
8. DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT? Who, me????
9. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? No, got them out right before starting college.
10. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? No way!
11. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? Raisin bran and cheerios
12. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? Usually no. And I almost always wear sandals.
13. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG? Yes, but I have some very weak moments. But anyone who has gone through an international adoption is strong, damnit!
14. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM FLAVOR? Coffee Almond Fudge
15. SHOE SIZE? 6(used to be 6 1/2 - how do your feet shrink??)
16. RED OR PINK? Pink!
17. WHAT IS YOUR LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF? Procrastination and impatience. Yeah, I know, they would seem to not go together.
18. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? Of people no longer with us - my dear friend Connie who lost her battle to cancer about 4 years ago. She would have been so happy to meet Gabriella. Her wish was always to see me have children. But, I'm sure she can see us :-)
19. WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING? Jeans capris. No shoes right now.
20. LAST THING YOU ATE? 1/2 Frontega chicken sandwich, 1/2 Fuji Apple Chicken salad at Panera
21. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? Silence on the baby monitor :-)
22. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? Burnt Sienna(not really, but I always thought that name was funny!)
23. FAVORITE SMELL? Fresh rosemary.
24. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE? My mom
25. THE 1ST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE THAT YOU ARE ATTRACTED TO? Eyes and smile
26. DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS TO YOU? Yes! She's got a precious baby girl waiting to come home forever!
27. FAVORITE DRINK? Diet Coke with Lime and coffee
28. FAVORITE SPORT? Basketball(but honestly, I'm not into sports at all)
29. HAT SIZE? No idea! I think I look terrible in hats.
30. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? No, just reading glasses that I never wear since I quit working, even though I spend a ton of time on the computer and should wear them!
31. FAVORITE FOOD? Italian and homemade macaroni and cheese(see my previous tag post)
32. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS? Happy. The sappier the better.
33. WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING? Peach,pink,melon and white stripes(vertical since I don't want to look fat!!)
34. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED AT THE MOVIES? It's been so long I couldn't tell you. It might have been Open Water(yeah, that long ago) and it was the worst movie EVER!
35. SUMMER OR WINTER? Summer - pool and beach time.
36. HUGS OR KISSES? A big 'ol warm, fuzzy hug.
37. FAVORITE DESSERT? Key Lime Pie and Tiramisu
38. WHO IS LEAST LIKELY TO RESPOND? Why, neither!!
39. MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND? Both!! No pressure.
40. WHAT BOOKS ARE YOU READING? I read magazines anymore. People(I know, I know!), For Women First, Redbook, Ladies Home Journal and Baby Talk.
41. WHAT IS ON YOUR MOUSE PAD? A big, fat watercolor cat and it says: I am Me, I am just me. I'm a little like other cats, but mostly I am just me.
42. WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON T.V. LAST NIGHT? The end of Entertainment tonight, some of Emeril Live and the news.
43. THE FURTHEST YOU'VE BEEN FROM HOME? Hawaii
44. WHAT'S YOUR SPECIAL TALENT? I gotta say, I'm not so talented.
45. WHEN AND WHERE WERE YOU BORN? December 4, 1966 in Melbourne, Florida
46. WHO SENT YOU THIS? Another guatemama.

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner?

If he didn't crack me up so much, I'd probably smack him to within 8.9 of his 9 lives.... sigh...

Gabriella is really on the move now! She's crawling away and I can't turn my back for even a moment. So much for those quick potty breaks!

We moved her crib down to the lowest position yesterday since it's only a matter of time before she can pull herself all the way up.

Playing with one of her Christmas toys. The first time she hit the button on the train and it took off, it scared her to death!

2006 in Review

Since 2006 was a pretty big year, I figure I'll do a year in review.

January 27 - The first post on my blog! A review of where we were in the process:

We officially signed on with an agency at the end of November with a request for an infant girl and thus the official paperchase began.

We had our homestudy visit in December and were waiting on the final copy of the homestudy.


February 4 - We received our I-171H

February 11 - Dossier sent to Guatemala. We're officially waiting on a referral.

March - A whole lotta nothing but waiting and going crazy!! I resorted to nothing but pictures of the cats and the pool.

April 7 - The day we had been waiting for!!!! We received the referral of Gabriella, born March 14, 2006. She was a tiny little peanut (4 lbs 7 oz at 2 1/2 weeks old), but cute as can be.

April 12-14 - I drove from one end of the state to the other to get our Power of Attorney documents quickly certified and authenticated and off to Guatemala to get the ball rolling on the process.

April 28 - DNA is done!

May 5 - Entered Family Court.

May 27 - June 4 - We are in Guatemala for our visit trip. We spent the weekend in Antigua and met our precious angel on May 29. We had the time of our lives and Gabriella was such a perfect baby. A piece of our hearts left when we had to say goodbye to her on June 2. But, we knew she was in good hands and we prayed we'd be back soon to bring her home forever.

June 8 - We got Preapproval from the US Embassy and exited Family Court in record time!

June 23 - Entered the black hole known as PGN. We steeled ourselves for the hardest part of the journey and prayed for no previos. The current average was around 6-8 weeks if no KOs occurred.

July - July was spent finishing the nursery. My baby shower was also in July and was such a special day.

August 9 - Got THE call!!!! OUT, OUT, OUT of PGN!!!! I had been really beginning to stress over being in PGN and just when I couldn't take it anymore, we were released.

August 22 - PINK!!!! Our Embassy appointment is Monday, August 28. She's coming home!!!!!!!!!!

August 24 - August 30- The pickup trip. We're a forever family and life will never be the same.

September - Gabriella turns 6 months old, Ferdy has a birthday and we are enjoying being a family. The transition was amazingly easy for Gabriella and she's such a good baby.

October - Uncle Charlie comes for a visit and baby's first Halloween.

November - Gabriella is baptized on the 19th and she meets lots of new people! We enjoy Thanksgiving at some friends' house. Gabriella visits Santa for the first time and is as happy as ever.

December - Mommy turns 40(ick!) and Gabriella enjoys her first Christmas! We close out 2006 the happiest and luckiest people ever. We've been blessed many times over to have this special angel be our daughter. She's the light of our lives.

Blessings to everyone for 2007!!!

LEGACY OF AN ADOPTED CHILD

Once there were two women who never knew each other. One you do not remember, the other you call Mother.

Two different lives shaped to make you one. One became your guiding star, the other became your sun.

The first one gave you life, and the second taught you to live it. The first gave you a need for love. The second was there to give it.

One gave you a nationality. The other gave you a name. One gave you a talent. The other gave you aim.

One gave you emotions. The other calmed your fears. One saw your first sweet smile. The other dried your tears.

One sought for you a home that she could not provide. The other prayed for a child and her hope was not denied.

And now you ask me, through your tears,the age-old question unanswered through the years. Heredity or environment, which are you a product of? Neither, my darling. Neither. Just two different kinds of Love.