"Oh ya - Big brother IS Watching..."

Look what was installed across the street from our new house about a month after we moved into our new home...

Do you know what it is?



OK - here are a few hints...(and a closer look)

Any guesses?

(I had no clue what "it" was when "it" was being installed, but I soon found out!)

leftovers....

So what do you think my husband is trying to tell me? (this is what I saw him doing while we were eating our weekly leftovers the other night)



Yep - that is his name "KEITH" he created by using one of our four leftover meals...spaghetti in homemade tuna sauce (my grandmother's recipe).

that night - we also had...
homemade pepperoni pizza
"The Ultimate Party Meatballs" (which are also on his plate...the recipe for these tasty meatballs can be found on Heinz bottle Chili Sauce)
and...
Beef Taco Skillet (from Campbell's Soup Recipes)

I just couldn't resist taking a photo of this masterpiece! After I got a good laugh out of the whole thing - because I just know that "leftover night" is not his favorite, I ran for my camera and snapped a photo...or two...because once the camera came out Francesca insisted I take of photo of her and Daddy too...



Gotta love those "leftover night" suppers! And as my grandmother would always say, "Waste not, want not." And how true that is...

INSPI(RED)

BY YOU. ALWAYS.

"Stay strong, have faith, fight the fight for this little boy who has no voice - YOU are his voice!"

These are just a few words that were written in a card sent to me by one of my best friends, Sara. When I was at my darkest hours of feeling very lost and helpless over this whole process, I was reminded of who I am, what needed to be done, and that I have always been strong enough to fight this fight. Our son is waiting for us in China.

Sara, I know I told you time & time again what our friendship means to me. You INSPIRE me every day on how to live my life! I love you so very much and words will never be able to express how much these simple written words mean to me....and how I so needed to 'hear' them just at 'that' moment...You truly are the best and for that I will be forever thankful that you are a part of my life....(and just so you know, I read that card at least 5 times a day. It is what keeps me going ~ knowing that I have you out there who does believe in me, my family, and our waiting son, Benjamin)

(Here is a photo of Sara & her beautiful daughter, Mya! She is truly one of the best...)

2009 Beach Photos - with Papa & GrandmaC

First Stop - "MotorWorld"







Francesca was super excited when we told her where we were going but as soon as she heard how loud the place was, she was not happy. Good thing I made her ride with me (I know bad mom) because within a few minutes...






(after she uncovered her ears...)







(and away we went..)







(OK she still has her ears covered but soon...)



She truly was loving it! That is her & me having a great time around our first ride of the day...around the track!





Annabelle was just happy to be hanging out with Grandma C and her stroller! She was old enough to ride with a driver, but she is just too tiny (according to the height requirements to enjoy many of the rides).

"So you are telling me, I can't ride many of the rides here because I am too short - what's up with that!"

After that first ride with Mom, Francesca was ready to take on driving all by herself!

Since this was one of the only two rides in the park that Annabelle could ride - Daddy took her for a spin (the great workers at MotorWorld didn't charge us fro Annabelle's ride)!

Francesca had a blast jumping...

up & down!


And than went for a spin on the track with Papa in the driver seat!

(while Mom, Annabelle, and Grandma C took a much needed rest on a near by bench)

and to finish off the day, the girls took a nice ride on the dinosaurs!

Next stop - a dolphin tour!

One of the cargo ships we saw leaving the harbor...

an ocean sunset....

Mom & Annabelle enjoying some time inside the boat's cabin....

while Francesca was running around the deck on the look out for some dolphins....

We did see a few dolphins and it was a ton of fun! But it was getting late so we returned back to Papa & Grandma C house for a good night's rest because the next day we went to the....

BEACH!

hanging in the water with Papa...

Francesca making friends where ever she goes....

Grandma C, Francesca, and Papa!

and our little movie star!

and last but not least a photo of the light house on Cape Henry...

We truly had a wonderful time! Not only did we tackle all of that in just a few days, but we also made time for some amazing meals out, a stop for some ice-cream, a few cocktails for the adults, and some beautiful afternoon drives along the shore line and speciality store shopping sprees! So looking forward to making another trip down before the summer is officially over...

{{{{{{{status report}}}}}}}

After returning from a stay at Papa and Grandma C's house at the beach, we are finally finding a little bit of down time. Once I find a few minutes to upload our "VA Beach 2009" photos, I promise, I will share some with you all. As for our home study status, things are finally looking up in that area of our lives. As of Friday, I did receive another unapproved copy of our home study report to be sent in for a review to our agency (which I think it was sent via email to CCAI later on that afternoon). As of today (Sunday) I haven't heard a word back from CCAI - not thinking I would seeing how it is the weekend - but I am hoping that in the next two days ~ I'll hear something positive. After reading this second copy of the home study, I am thinking our social worker is finally on track and it is looking really good. Only time will tell and I am praying that we do get an approval from our agency and an official copy in our hands very soon to send into the USCIS office to finish up our last bit of paper chase.

This coming weekend, we are expecting a house full! Two of our travel families from 2008 are coming down to the DC area for a get-together weekend! We are super excited and can't wait for all the fun that will begin on this coming Friday (having 6 adults, 9 children and one dog is going to be very exciting to say at the least). So here's to a great week ahead for all of you and as soon as I get those photos download, I will post some to our blog.

D&D ~ a family favorite :)

Every now & than we need a little D&D so we can make it through our day....

Out Our Back Door...

Here is the newest member in our new neighborhood...Who would had ever thought that living only 12 miles outside our Nation's District, you would see this in your back yard almost every single day...! Oh how we are loving it here!!!!

We headed to the beach this weekend to spend some time with Papa & Grandma C at their new house! A little sun, a little sand, and a few - ok - many cocktails is just what we need for the battle we will face this coming Monday...(not one but two social workers in two different states ~ crazy ~ crazy ~ crazy.)