Marvelous Mother's Day!

For 37 years, Mother's Day has been about my Mom and Grandma Helen when she was alive. It has become a day to make sure that we all get together and do something (well, whatever my mom wants to do!) and as our lives continue to get busier, this day has been fun. We've been to lunch and the movies, shoppping, hanging out at our house after brunch, and just being together.

This year, my first Mother's Day, I decided to be selfish and I told my mom. I would have breakfast with her in the morning but I wanted to have a day without making decisions, without cooking, without hassle. Oh yeah... and I wanted my husband to step up and plan it so I wouldn't have to think about anything! She was actually ok with that and so our day began.

It was a lovely day full of wonderful moments and special memories. My family surprised me with gifts- a lovely card from my husband, gorgeous sunflowers and a to my sister card from my sister, and to my daughter card with a gift card for Glen Ivy from my parents. Breakfast was Yiftach's specialty: chocolate chip pancakes and then we ventured off as a new family of 3 for the remainder of our day.

We took Mother's Day photos at a photo place and headed to...... THE BALLPARK! Yiftach had purchased seats behind home plate with the cushions for us. We had a ball! Hadarya slept for just over an hour of the 2 hour game and it was great to be so close.



We ended our day with dinner with my mother-in-law at CPK (terrible service so we won't mention anymore about dinner) and dessert at HEAVEN SENT. Ya gotta go check this place out on University and 30th street. The food is divine, the tea superb, the cappuchino scrumptious, and the owner personable. Lachlan was working the cash register and then came to see how everything was and ended up sitting with us at the table and sharing his amazing story of how Heaven Sent came to be. A place to go to hang out. Take out of town friends. Catch up with your husband. Watch Charlie Chaplin movies. You don't need a reason to go. JUST GO!

I had a lovely first mother's day and know that there will be many more lovely days as a mommy!

Baby Bliss

As each day passes I fall more in love with my daughter. The change that took place last week has completely let my heart fall to pieces whenever I am around her and it's all I can do to tear myself away and hold a conversation with another human being when Hadarya's there.

I leave work as soon as possible to be with her and revel in her and play with her. No matter what I do, she loves it! Tonight it was while I was changing out of work clothes into a tank and shorts. She was laying on our bed looking at me and she began to giggle. I had on the tank top and turned towards her and said "whoa, whoa." and she busted up. I did this for 10 mintues with a sway of my hip and sassy look over my shoulder at my beauty staring into my eyes.

After bathtime, we read books and she loved that I used her hand to go over the words and point out the pictures. At 6:50 PM she was ready for 1/2 a bottle and then she refused it... she wanted her pacifier and to go to sleep! She cuddled with me and then sacked in her crib. She is a vision of beauty laying on her side, snuggled with her taggie close to her face and her blanket over her. It's all I can do to not pick her up out of the crib to snuggle bunny with her!

Oh, does it get any better than this? I can't wait for each day and each new thing she learns and does. Summer is going to be a blast!

Legally and Officially Ours

Yesterday, Thursday, May 3, 2007 was our day in court... well, really our MOMENT in court. We have waited for and anticipated and been anxious for the signed documents that would give us final legality for this precious baby girl whom we met the second she was born into this world.

With each step along the way we moved closer to this day: We filed the required paperwork within 10 days to adopt this baby girl, STEP 1. 30 days passed without hearing from the birth mom, STEP 2. We met with the Independent Social Worker who filed papers to locate the alleged birth father, STEP 3. We sought a birth certificate to prove to the court that a baby girl without a given name was actually born on 10-08-06; which took several attempts! STEP 4. We filed paperwork to terminate the alleged father's rights, STEP 5. We waited to hear from the social worker that her searching was done and she filed her paperwork, STEP 6. We received documents in March that the alleged father's rights were terminated, STEP 7. We finally got a date in court to sign the documents, STEP 8. All of this took us 5 days shy of Hadarya's 7 month birthday.

We dressed up in matching color clothes. We went out to lunch. We invited friends and family. We put a bow in our daughter's hair. We drove around and around looking for parking at the court. We waited 20 minutes to be called in to the court through a lovely courtyard where we took photos. We were invited to sit down and our friends tubmbled in behind us.

I think we'd signed our names in two places on two pieces of paper before anyone else got the chance to sit down. And that was our moment in court. It was over before it really started. We were handed our copies and told we could take a photo with the judge.

It was our moment in court and while incredibly significant, this was about the change not the ritual (as put by our dear friend Scott!) and that made all the difference.

Rolls-Royce of Strollers

We purchased a new stroller. Actually, our it's our first stroller purchase as the other 5 we have are all loaners or hand me downs. Now there is nothing wrong with a hand-me down or loaner. But they all serve different stages and different purposes and none of them were working for us at this time.

1. 2 Snap-N-Go's -- both on loan and both are fabulous. The Grandma's use them regularly and as long as Hadarya is asleep or realtively happy to be laying backwards, they are superb. HIGHLY recommended.

2. 1 Peg big stroller -- from great friends from their son who is now over 3 years old. Super for laying her down and letting her sleep. The bar is too far for her to reach with toys as she is still too little and short, so she gets frustrated. The straps are also too big for her tiny size still. She's just not quite ready... more toddlerish.

3. Umbrella ---ditto above. Later on we'll love it, I'm sure!

4. Lightweight 14 lb sit up stroller -- shower gift. This is a great stroller and if she is awake she does well in it. The bar with toys is way too high for her to enjoy and she has to sit very straight, but it's easy and light and works pretty well.

So we've been carrying #1 and #4 in our car everywhere we go to accommodate a sleeping in the carseat child or a need to sit up big girl child. It's getting difficult to manage two in one car at one time!

It turns out that Graco now makes a stroller that matches our car seat in single and double and that means that the car seat would fit right in! Thereby eliminating the need for 2 strollers. We test drove them both at Babies R Us. We listened to advice from our friend (thanks Shauna!) about the hopes that we have to add to our family in the next year and a half and looked at the double stroller. She suggested not buying a single now and then a double in a year.

So that's what we did... we purchased a double stroller in chocolate brown and green that matches our car seat and is beyond any good description. Our daughter is riding in style and comfort beyond what we realized we needed!

Graco has created a stroller by combining the best of all the others! The stroller has the ability to snap in 2 car seats at the same time. OR you can take of the front bar and add snack/drink cups for a toddler. The bottom basket collapses so you can reach it when a sleeping child is in the back. The back and front seats have 3 positions and both have huge canopy covers. The front wheels spin all the way around or lock into place if you prefer. The brake is one bar that controls the whole back. There is a removeable soft sided holder for cell phone, keys, glasses, etc... (pretty large) plus 2 removeable cup holders (so you can wash them). It has regular handles to pushwith your palms down and upright handles to hold on to like a bike (good place to hang shopping bags too!).

While a double stroller might seems sort of extravagant and could not end up being what we need in the future, it really gives us the option to allow Hadarya to stay asleep in her carseat attached and then if she wakes up, to sit up in the front and see what is going on. We can also take along a friend wherever we go and that means one less hassle with another stroller in crowded places.

The best part is how much Hadarya loves it! She sat in the front in our house for 40 minutes playing with the stroller toy that she could reach. She took a 2 hour nap at a noisy outdoor festival and didn't want to wake up because she was so comfortable stretched out in the back. AND... it is a one handed fold that locks immediately. EASY to do while holding a child. I was impressed with the ease in which I could do this with Hadarya in my arms.

So our baby girl gets an amazing new mode of transportation and one that we hope will inspire our minds with positive focus on bringing another child into our family in the near future.