Thursday, August 27, 2009

Favorite Food Fridays-Saffron Chicken Paella

Here's what we had for dinner last night. This is one of Gareth's all-time favorites. We like to have it with a green salad and fresh fruit salad for dessert. Don't let the brown rice put you off! I don't really like the flavor of brown rice, but thanks to the saffron and chicken broth I don't even notice it in this recipe. Saffron is kind of expensive, but this recipe is so good, and it doesn't take much.

Saffron Chicken Paella

1 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2 in. pieces
1 T. extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 c. whole-grain, quick-cooking brown rice
3/4 c. roasted red peppers (from a jar), drained and thinly sliced
2 c. chicken broth (I prefer to make my own using boiling water and Better than Bouillion Chicken Seasoning)
1/2 t. saffron
3 T. chopped fresh parsley
salt and pepper, to taste

Take saffron strands, crush them as finely as possible and place in a bowl with 1 T. boiling water.
Heat olive oil in a large, straight-sided skillet over medium-heat. Add chicken and onion, stirring often, until onion is softened, about 5 minutes.

Stir in rice. Add red peppers, chicken broth, and saffron; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer , stirring occasionally, until most of the liquid is absorbed, about 30 minutes. If paella has excess moisture, cook uncovered for 3 to 5 minutes . Stir in parsley, season with salt and pepper and serve.

Enjoy!

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

From the Classroom

So far, so good on the homeschool front! Noah was upset with me on Saturday and Sunday, because we didn't do school. I'm praying that we can approach it with this kind of attitude for the whole year!

Here's what we're learning this week:

Bible-We are continuing to focus on creation. The first half of the week will be spent looking at differences between sea and land. We are using the "Magic School Bus Catches a Wave" dvd and also a dvd put out by Dorling Kindserley to explore the oceans and ocean life. The last half of the week we will be looking at God's creation of land-based plants and animals. On Friday we will have a field trip to the zoo and then do some drawing and writing activities about what we learn. In the classroom, we will be looking at plant life cycles and learning about the different parts of plants.

Math-We are reviewing counting by 10's, place value, and tally marks. We are introducing <>.

History & Geography- This week we are continuing our study of what things make us different and unique from everyone else. We are really focusing this week on the internal traits that make us unique and emphasizing using our God-given loves and talents to serve Him. We are still working on our book all about Noah.

Language Arts-We are continuing to reviewing alphabet formation, consonant sounds, and short vowel sounds. In spelling, we are working on words that begin with c or k and words that end with -k or ck. In vocabulary, we are working on definitions for words taken from our science lessons. In reading, we continue to work from Noah's reader and are supplementing with books about plants. Especially exciting to Noah are the books we have checked out about carnivorous plants! Noah's hand writing is going smoothly, as I think he is being to recognize that doing it neatly the first time is easier than having to erase it and start again!

Science-We are continuing to study our sense of sight. In particular this week, our ability to detect shapes. This gives us an opportunity to review all of our shapes learned last year. We are also looking for shapes in our environment and learning how man uses shapes to do work (think the tire, etc....).

American Sign Language(ASL)-This is definitely the highlight of the day for all of the children. It is so much fun to see them using the words they learned last week, and Gareth and I are enjoying learning them also. This week we will be learning playtime signs.

I had originally planned to do ASL one week and American history the next, but the munchkins are enjoying them so much that they want to do both. So, we are going to go ahead while enthusiasm is running high. This means that we will finish our Liberty's Kids series early, but we will always be able to borrow them again and review later in the year.

Our church is blessed with an active Homeschool Fellowship. My first meeting was last night, and it was great to get together with other women who are sharing the same struggles, challenges and joys. While there, I was able to take advantage of discount-priced tickets to take the children to the local Performing Arts Center to see "Charlotte's Web" in October and "Buffalo Soldiers" in February. This group will provide a monthly support group meeting for me, lots of field trip and educational opportunities for Noah, access to books and resources, and the chance to see and hear what other people are doing that works well for them. Each month will have a different speaker or topic for discussion. I am really excited about this opportunity, and the fact that some of my favorite friends are there is GREAT!

The other exciting activities that we signed up for this week are AWANA on Wednesday nights and Children's Choir on Sunday nights. Rosie is disappointed to not be starting choir with the boys, but I have promised her she can start as soon as she has her birthday.

Right, now that we've had a break, I'm off to help Noah finish his homework.

Monday, August 24, 2009

We Have Room

As Gareth and I talk and pray about our next adoption, I find stories like this one so challenging. I encourage you to check it out: http://vimeo.com/4613189

Sunday, August 23, 2009

HAIR

Do you remember these pictures? Rosie had been home about 6 weeks, and she was just getting enough hair to play with.
Putting finger coils in took 2 hours back then.
Thought you might like to see Rosie's hair today. Now, it only takes me about an hour to put finger coils in. Which is just as well, as Rosie wants coils almost every day. She loves for Mommy to put on a "signing time" dvd and play with her hair (and I think she loves the amount of attention her coils generate when we go out).
It's amazing how quickly it it's growing.
Look at our little princess! Doesn't she just melt your heart?

God is good! We seem to have found our new "normal", and have figured out what was behind the behavior issues we were seeing a month ago. I'll try to post an "all things Rosie" update and give you the full scoop later this week.

Saturday, August 22, 2009

Pre-School According to Rosie

I love picking Rosie up from pre-school! Her English is really coming along, and it cracks me up to hear her version of what she did that day. Here is how Thursday's conversation went.

Mommy: Rosie, did you have fun today?

Rosie: Yes, Mommy, fun, very fun.

Mommy: What did you do?

Rosie: Stool (school) like dis (this), Mommy. Tooties (cookies), apple juice, baby play (playing with the baby), play lots, story-Bible, cut, codor no (I didn't color today), write-yes! Like that, Mommy.

Friday, August 21, 2009

Favorite Food Fridays-Easy Cheesy Focaccia

My family loves fresh, homemade bread. I love making bread. But, once the school year starts, I sometimes struggle to find the time or enthusiasm for bread baking amongst the myriad other activities of the week. I have a bread machine to help out with the kneading and rising, but I still like to do the shaping of the loaf by myself and bake it in my oven.

This recipe is a perfect solution for those afternoons when I find myself craving bread but without much time. I found it online, tweaked it to suit personal tastes, and the result is super easy and super yummy.

Easy Cheesy Focaccia
1 1/2 c. warm water
3 T. olive oil (plus extra for drizzling)
1 1/4 t. salt
3 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1 T. instant yeast
1/2 c. sharp cheddar, finely diced
1/2 c. coarsely grated Parmesan
Italian Seasoning
Garlic Salt

1. Lightly grease a 9x13 pan and drizzle 2 T. of olive oil in the bottom.
2. Combine water, olive oil, salt, flour and yeast and beat at high speed with an electric mixer
for 60 seconds. (Batter will be sticky!)
3. Gently stir in cheeses.
4. Preheat the oven to 375.
5. Scoop the batter into the prepared pan, cover and let rise at room temperature until batter is puffy (approximately 1 hour).
6. Gently poke the dough all over with your finger.
7. Drizzle lightly with olive oil and sprinkle with Italian seasoning and garlic salt (use very, very sparingly)
8. Bake the bread for 35-40 minutes or until golden brown.
9. Remove from oven, place pan on cooling rack and wait for 5 minutes. Then turn it out and serve.

We love to eat this dipped in marinara. It also makes great sandwiches! If you want to switch it up, try using different cheeses, or change the seasonings. (Try using all cheddar and garnish with very thin slices of red onion and rosemary instead of the Italian seasoning and garlic salt.)
Enjoy!!!!!

Thursday, August 20, 2009

Book Review: God's Little Princess Devotional Bible

I've had this book for ages now, but given the busyness of the summer, just haven't managed to get it reviewed (Sorry, Thomas Nelson. I really do LOVE your book review program!)

But, I finally decided I just had to knuckle down and write the review. So, here goes:

Having just added a little princess to our family, my book choice this time was the "God's Little Princess Devotional Bible" by Sheila Walsh. The princess was in love with this book from the second it arrived (probably has something to do with the crown and jewels on the cover), and I love it, too. This book is worth every penny of the $16.99 MSRP.

Small princesses (probably mostly the 6-10 year old kind) will love the Beauty Secrets (think inner beauty), Bible Princesses, My Hero (Scripture promises), Take a Bow (easy scripts and props to act out the story with Mom), I Adore You (songs, scripture and worship activities), Royal Truths, Down In My Heart (Scripture Memory), Princess Charming, and Worthy of Love (ideas to show how a princess should love her "royal subjects": family, siblings, friends and those in the community) articles written alongside the Bible stories.

Moms of little princesses will love how this book helps them to understand Scripture and internalize the true secrets to being beautiful inside and out. And, I personally love how the Take a Bow section is written to include Mom in the fun and learning.

Our little princess needs to learn a little more English before we can take full advantage of this book together, but I can't wait 'til she can! I highly recommend this book to parents of young princesses everywhere!

Liberty's Kids Giveaway

In case you couldn't tell from my last post, our family LOVES Liberty's Kids! And, I love my friend Melissa ! Having seen my post from earlier today, she e-mailed me to let me know about a give-away of the Liberty's Kids DVD at the Blue House Academy ! I probably shouldn't tell you about it, because it will just be more competition, but it's such a great series, I just couldn't keep this to myself! So, head on over, leave her a comment, and may the best blogger win!

From theClassroom

Hurrah for the first week of school! Noah and I have had a good time together. I am encouraged to see that he doesn't seem to have forgotten any of what we learned last year, and although it was a little tough on him to sit and concentrate for the full time on Tuesday, he was back into the swing of things by Wednesday.

I thought you might like to see what we are studying each week, so here's what we are doing this week:

Bible-focusing on creation, specifically this week on day and night. We have used this as a springboard to look at how the sun and moon affect tides and seasons an have looked at what would happen without the sun.

Math-We are reviewing number formation, sets, number lines, and have reviewed counting by 1's to 100.

History & Geography- We will be studying family units and community this year. We started this week, by looking at our place in history as a special creation of God and each individuals uniqueness and special gifts. We are also using this as a springboard to talk about man's relationship to God. We are making a book all about Noah, and tomorrow we will be using our lesson to move us into art, making a life-sized picture of Noah for him to decorate with his physical features.

Language Arts (Reading, writing, spelling, vocabulary, and hand-writing)-We are reviewing alphabet formation, consonant sounds, short vowel sounds, rhyming words, alphabetizing and punctuation. We have a reader that we work from and are supplementing our reading diet with books that expand on what we are studying in science. We are also working on oral story-telling. This is Noah's most difficult subject, as he does not enjoy practicing hand-writing for very long. We tend to break up our language arts lesson into small chunks spaced in-between our other lessons.

Science-For the first part of the school year, we are studying our 5 senses. This week we have been studying the sense of sight. In particular, our ability to detect color, which we could not sense without our eyes. We have experimented with blending primary colors, looked at how we use color to tell us about the world around us, and today we were looking at how God has given animals the ability to use color to camouflage themselves as they hunt for their prey or hide from their predators. Noah has really enjoyed science today. I found several great books about animal camouflage. It was so much fun to see Noah so excited about what he was learning that he didn't put them to walk to the van when it was time to go pick up Nathan and Rosie! I think the sight of him with his nose stuck in a book while trying to stay on the sidewalk is my favorite image of the week. He read to me all the way home.

We are also studying American Sign Language(ASL)and the founding of America this year. These are our "for fun" subjects. They are DVD-based and there is no handwriting involved! We have ASL one week and American history the next.

Noah saw someone using sign language last year, and he wanted to learn it, too. Last year we learned the ASL alphabet, and he wanted to continue learning this year. I found the "Signing Time" DVDs last year, and we LOVE them. They are such a great educational tool. Written by a mother who wanted to teach ASL to her daughter so that she could communicate with her deaf cousin, these are fun and colorful and there are LOADS of them. Noah loves them, and Nathan and Rosie do, too. I am playing these in the evenings while Daddy and I clean up the kitchen after supper so that we can all learn together. This week we are studying words related to meal-time.

For American history, we are using the "Liberty's Kids" DVDs. PBS outdid themselves when they made these DVDs. Liberty's Kids is an animated series that visits all of the major events that led up to the making of our Constitution and into war with England. They are fast-paced and exciting, but (at least the 10 episodes we have seen so far) remain true to history. And, as a family who has both American and British parts, I love the fact that one of the main characters is a young Englishwoman who illustrates the difficulties for both sides without watering down the abuse of power that led to our founding father's seeking liberty and independence. Hearing Noah describing the "intolerable acts" cracks me up. And watching the 3 munchkins dressing up and acting out their favorite scenes is priceless. What a fantastic way this is to instill a love of history in our kids! Whether your children are homeschooled, private schooled or public schooled, I can't recommend these DVDs enough. A major bonus for us is that we our using the sign language DVDs from our local library, which is free and renting the history DVD's from netflix, so this is also a very inexpensive option. I would love to own these DVD sets, but being able to borrow or rent them is still a great second option.

I am enjoying myself so far (early days, I know), and I nearly burst with joy this morning when Noah told me that even if he could go to school somewhere else, that he would rather learn with me!

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

First Day of School

We survived our first day of school. The kids were so excited, mostly about the fact that they have backpacks! Look how big my Noah has gotten this summer.

How cute are they?

No tears from Nathan and Rosie when we dropped them off. They couldn't wait to get settled into their classrooms! Mommy was the only one doing any blinking and sniffing. But, I am so grateful to have found a pre-school that will partner with us in continuing to bring up our children "in the nurture and admonition of the Lord".


Hard at work. While the little munchkins are at pre-school, Noah and I work on Bible, Math, History&Geography and Language Arts at our local library.

Anything that we don't manage to get finished at the library, we finish at home in the afternoon. Then, it's on to science. Here's Noah, experimenting with blending primary colors and recording his findings.

Right, I'm off to fix breakfast so that we're ready for Day 2!

Monday, August 17, 2009

Ready For School



My emotions keep swinging back and forth. One minute I'm excited about starting school and learning all that we have set before us for this school year. I think we have got a great curriculum chosen and I have tweaked it here and there to add activities and projects and books that I think will really make this an exciting learning adventure for Noah.

But, then, I think about all of the things I haven't got done this summer that I wanted to, and how much busier life will become, and how little patience I have in view of how much I need to homeschool, and I feel overwhelmed and so NOT ready to start.

So, I was especially blessed when Noah brought me this letter on Saturday. It thrills me to know that he is excited about another year of schooling with Mommy. (Looks like the decision to really make a focus on vocabulary and spelling was a good idea, though!)

For me, this school year is a training and teaching process, too. Here are my educational goals for the year:

1. To homeschool enthusiastically, doing the job that God has given me for this period of my life with my whole heart as unto the Lord.

2. To concern myself only with ensuring that I am being obedient to God and to my husband.

Last year was a miserable year for me. I never managed to get past the fact that the decision to homeschool turned out to be such a controversial one. I was isolated from the homeschool community where I might have found support, because I didn't join them in an attempt to not offend friends and acquaintances who dislike homeschooling. I was offended by family and friends who questioned whether I was capable of teaching my child. I was isolated from homeschoolers who didn't like it that I was emphatic about the fact that I do not believe that homeschooling is the only educational choice you can make for your child if you truly love them and isolated from others who believe that choosing to home educate your child is a choice to not be a light and witness to the world around you. I was frustrated by the frequent attempts to get me to choose to "unschool" or to "unit study" or to "Charlotte Mason method" my educational style. The decision to homeschool meant that I lost a few "friends", lost a mentor, lost sleep, lost much of my joy, and spent many afternoons and evenings trying to hide my tears from Gareth and the boys.

And so, this year, I am making a choice. I will not apologize for doing what Gareth and I believe is what God wants for us in regards to Noah's education at this time. I will seek to do my very best to provide Noah a top-notch education, and I will do it with humility and grace towards those who don't agree with our choices, but I will not hide or make apologies for the choices we are making. The choice to home educate wasn't easy and got lots of opinions from lots of sources. The choice to put Nathan and Rosie in half-day pre-school wasn't easy, and it has also garnered criticism from some arenas. But, I am confident that those choices are God's best for us at this time, and as such I need to not worry about man's opinion but to focus on ensuring that I am serving God whole-heartedly in the job He has given me for now, seeking only His approval.

Thank you, Granny!

Hi Granny Jackie

Rosie's dress finally fits her, and she loves it! The boys wanted to wear their cowboy outfits to church yesterday, and Rosie loved finally being able to wear her dress and pinafore.


Rosie says, "Tantas, Danny", which is AmhariAmerican for Thanks, Granny!

Sunday, August 16, 2009

ABCD

Rosie's English is improving everyday. Her language capabilities are astounding and sometimes amusing. My current favorite is to hear her ask for music. If she sees a CD, she'll ask me, "Mommy, what's that". I'll remind her that it is a CD. To which her response is, "Mommy play ABCD please".

Saturday, August 15, 2009

Favorite Food-not on Friday

Okay, last post for the day. I need to do some housework and have promised Gareth some of his favorite cookies. Which inspired me to share this recipe. This is one I created myself, and it has been a big hit with my dear husband and the many mini munchkins.

Jam Shortbread

2 cups butter, softened*
1 cup sugar
2 t. vanilla extract*
4 cups all-purpose flour
1 jar of good-quality raspberry jam (my favorite is Simply Fruit)
*Please, use the real deal. Made with margarine or imitation vanilla, these won't be nearly as nice!*

Preheat your oven to 350. In a mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar. Beat in the vanilla extract. Gradually add flour. Drop by heaping Tablespoonfuls into greased miniature muffin cups. Use the handle end of a wooden spoon to make an indentation in the middle of the cookie dough. Fill this with a scant teaspoon of raspberry jam. Bake at 350 for approximately 10 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned. Cool completely in pans and then carefully run the tip of a paring knife around the edges and invert onto a cookie sheet to remove.

Right-my mouth is watering! I'm off to bake.

A Blast From the Past

Those of you who know me, know that I grew up in the backwoods of Missouri. Seriously backwoods! We're talking party line telephones were still in use (a phone call to a friend from church usually held at least one instance of her telling her Grandpa to get off the phone), our nearest town didn't get its' first fast food restaurant until I was 15, when the town did get a stoplight it made the front page of the newspaper, our nearest neighbors were a mile away during our early years there backwoods.

Now, backwoods Missouri is beautiful! But, in the middle of the summer it is HOT and HUMID. And, we grew up without air conditioning. (No, I did not walk 10 miles to school uphill both ways! I'm just setting the scene.) So, in the summer, my brothers and I pretty much lived at the creek. We'd get up in the morning, get our chores done, and head for the swimming hole. I have some great memories of swimming there, so was very excited to take the kids to the creek while we were at my parents' house this last week-end.

I'm really sad that I didn't take my camera down on the first day, as I missed getting pictures of all of the rock collecting, crawdad catching, frog chasing, tadpole admiring, Grandma dunking and "Bucking Bronco tree-limb riding" that was done. But, we had a great time.

On Sunday afternoon, we loaded up the minivan and headed to another area where we used to swim that has much deeper swimming holes (and much colder water).

It was so much fun to share all of the creek-type fun with my kids. And, I love the fact that I am a "cool" Mommy, because I'm not afraid to catch crawdads and frogs to show the boys!



A Day at Silver Dollar City with Friends

Last Friday we met up with my friend,(aka partner in crime during high school) Mel, and her family for a visit to Silver Dollar City. Noah and I are so pleased that they didn't end up moving to Pennsylvania, as it means that we can see each other when we make a trip to Missouri, and Noah and Jacob can continue their friendship.

Here's a few pictures from the day:

Gareth, Nathan and Rosie riding the "Hopping Frogs". Note Mr. Cool riding on the frog behind him. Arms stretched out just to show that he wasn't afraid and didn't need to hold on!


Mel and Jaden on the caterpillars Poor Jaden was recovering from a double ear infection and was too short to be allowed on most of the rides, so it was great when we finally made it to the "kiddy" area where there were some rides for smaller kids.


Ahhh-sisterly love!

The Last Bedroom Picture (For tday, at least)

Hurrah! It's finished! My birthday present is completed. Gareth has finished painting the bedroom and all of the furniture. And, as I found the curtains and bedding on clearance sale, I was able to buy the bedside tables and tiles above the bed (also on clearance), too!

We both love it. It's so calm and peaceful. Very country/shabby chic. I do have a cross-stitch to hang on the wall and a couple of other pictures, so on to saving pennies to have them matted and framed.

A very big (and embarassingly belated)thank you to my lovely family on both sides of the pond for such a great birthday present! I am enjoying it every day.

Another Bedtime Picture


Now, you might be about to say, "Doesn't that girl have anything better to do than to take pictures of her kids while they're sleeping". And, you might have a point. But, they're just so darned cute asleep (and most of the rest of the time, too).

I've been wishing that we could go ahead and put bunk beds in the boys' room and get them into their own beds. I had big plans to do that this Christmas, but a certain "downturn" in the economy, which led to no raise, no bonus and other economic woes in our little family put the kaibosh on those plans. And, really, maybe that's a good thing. I think the little guys might be lost without each other. After all, it would be a whole lot harder (and more dangerous) to get out of bed so that you could go crawl in on your brother's side for a cuddle in the middle of the night if your brother was in a bunk bed!

A Hard Day's Night (Round 2)

Found while making the midnight "just going to go check on the munchkins" rounds.

In His Father's Footsteps

Gareth has officially started his new position as "project engineer in training", which required the purchase of some steel-toed boots for use when he's out at the site. We picked them up in the evening on our July date. Gareth left them in the kitchen and when Noah woke up the next morning he couldn't help himself and put them on.


It reminded me of this picture.


And of this one.


It's nice to see that some things don't change! Noah adores Daddy, and I am so proud when I hear him talk about wanting to grow up to be like his Daddy. If only every young man had a role model to aspire to be like!

Bad Blogger

Yes, I know. I am officially a bad blogger. I've been more than a little busy the last two weeks and have neglected the blog badly. But, I've gotten oh so much lesson planning done and I think that the many mini munchkins and I are ready for school to start on Tuesday.

After the blogging dry spell, I'm getting ready to flood you with loads of photos and posts to help make up for the drought around here.

Enjoy!

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

A Conversation with Nathan

Mommy (rubbing Nathan's back to try to wake him from a nap): Is there a Nathan in there?

Nathan (with a little grin, eyes still shut): Yes!

Mommy: How are you, Nathan?

Nathan: Grrreeeaaat! I was hunting for pirates.

Mommy: You were hunting for pirates?!!!

Nathan: Yes, only I couldn't find mine. I did find some of Noahs, though. I whacked one of them. I whacked him so hard his parrot's beak nearly flew off!

A Blessing in Disguise

Gareth came home from work two weeks ago with the news that in order to avoid more lay-offs at work, every employee would be required to take a week of unpaid leave.

This was not immediate cause for celebration, in a year that has seen adoption and travel expenses, a summer that has seen us decide to put our youngest two in a private pre-school, a month that has seen Gareth's truck have trouble and a period of time when I am longing for a REAL vacation (aka not staying home and not counting visiting one or the other of the sets of parents as vacation).

But, God knew what we needed. After a week-end visiting family (where we did have lots of fun-pictures later), this week finds Gareth at home playing "Mommy" while I have the opportunity to work on lesson plans for this year's home schooling. I am already feeling so much more prepared for the year ahead and am grateful for God's provision of just what I needed in order to be ready for school to start, even if the answer to that prayer did come in an unexpected way.

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Food for Thought

"A democracy cannot exist as a permanent form of government. It can only exist until the voters discover that they can vote themselves money from the public treasure. From that moment on the majority always votes for the candidates promising the most money from the public treasury, with the result that a democracy always collapses over loose fiscal policy followed by a dictatorship. The average age of the world's great civilizations has been two hundred years. These nations have progressed through the following sequence:

from bondage to spiritual faith,
from spiritual faith to great courage,
from courage to liberty,
from liberty to abundance,
from abundance to selfishness,
from selfishness to complacency,
from complacency to apathy,
from apathy to dependency,
from dependency back to bondage."

attributed to Lord Woodhouselee (Alexander Fraser Tytler)

Monday, August 3, 2009

Momma and Mommy

When we received the photos of Rosie's first mother a couple of weeks ago, Gareth and I had a difficult time trying to decide when/how to show them to Rosie. In the end, we decided that it would be best to show her now, which would hopefully provide her with an outlet to express some of the grief and loss she has experienced in the last year.

Honestly, I was a little nervous. I am still exhausted from the last few weeks of difficult behavior, and I wondered what else this would bring on. But, I decided that dealing with any difficulties now would be better than allowing them to fester.

With the boys away at Music Camp last week and Gareth at work, Rosie and I had plenty of time to be "just Mommy Rosie", so I took advantage of the quiet setting to show them to Rosie.

With her on my lap, I pulled up the photo on our computer and showed it to her. When I asked her who it was, she pointed at herself and said, "Rosie". So, I pointed at her first mother and asked her if she knew who she was? She smiled and looked at me and said, "Rosie, Momma". I agreed that yes, it was her Momma. She giggled and pointed out her Mommas' headwrap and a scar on her forehead. Then, she wanted to tell me about the old shoes she had on in the picture. After a minute, I pointed at myself and asked who I was. Her immediate response, "Mommy". Then, she pointed at the picture on the computer, saying, "Rosie, Momma" and then putting her arms around me, she said, "Rosie, Mommy".

Our social worker felt that this was a very positive sign of Rosie's settling into our family and her ability to reconcile the events of the last year in her young mind.

And, as for me, I was so pleased. Two women, one Momma, one Mommy, both able to hold a special place in Rosie's life. I love to hear all of my kids call me Mommy, and it feels even more special now when I hear it from Rosie.

We Now Return To Our Previously Scheduled Program...

Sorry for the long absence. With boys away at Music Camp every day, Rosie was more convinced than ever that private time for Mommy at the computer was not the priority.

Then, just as music camp ended, the computer had a major meltdown-so I am just now back up and running. Will try to get caught up with posts over the next week.