Carpet Art

I would have to say it turned out pretty well...

I had painted my toes and instead of carrying the polish all the way back to my bathroom, I decided to be lazy and put them on the fireplace. I had the thought that it would be bad if I dropped them, but thought that wouldn't happen because I would be the only one touching them. I had 3 polishes, 2 clear (base coat and top coat) and 1 hot pink. I went to put them away later that evening, and low and behold DROPPED ONE! Which one did I drop? Of course the one that would do the most damage!!!! Tried to remove it, but only made it look worse. So above is the result because that looks better than some orangey-pink mess. I do have to say it's somewhat growing on me...

Ballerina

Disclaimer: Some pictures on the blog are from my camera, meaning that they are not very good. Be happy that you get to see some! I just don't lug around or pull out my big camera all the time. Remember, it could be worse. The other option would probably be no pictures at all :)

VBS

Ellie went to Vacation Bible School for the first time this summer! The Summit was having VBS at night, so we decided to go to another church for VBS during the day. She had a tough time dropping off the first day (she had never been to this church before and knew no one in her class), but after that she was very excited to go each and every day. It was weird for me not knowing what all was entailing her day and what she was learning, so I definitely had to check it out a few times (by attending the large group time) and ask a bunch of questions to Ellie (and eventually the teachers since Ellie only confused me). She had lots of fun, and Ainsley and I had some fun time as well. The week sure did fly by and keep us busy, but it was completely worth it.

Here is a picture I got of Ainsley one day when we got to spend some time, just the two of us. Look how big she is getting! What a cutie :)

New Beds!

We have put the girls in the same room... in BUNK BEDS! Ainsley has now officially moved up to a twin bed, and she's doing FABULOUS.

Ellie is on the top

Ainsley is on the bottom

The ladder is not attached, mostly because we don't want Ainsley going up and down, but it also keeps Ellie from going up and down which creates a lot less frustration for everyone.

The girls love sharing a room, and do so pretty well. They both go to sleep fairly quickly, depending on the night and if people are over, however they do like to talk to each other before going to sleep. They wake each other up when one wakes up before the other after nap or in the mornings, but they mostly get enough sleep (usually 1.5 hours at nap and 12 hours at night). I have some really good sleepers!

We all are loving having them together! It gives Zach an "office" during the day so he doesn't sweat like a pig in the garage, and in the winter he won't freeze like an ice cube! This also makes us one step closer to being ready to bring home our baby brother! The crib is all his, whenever his time comes to be welcomed into our home :)

Zach's Birthday!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DADDY! We are so, so, SO thankful to have such a wonderful, handsome, intelligent, faithful MAN in our lives. I continually feel that I never show Zach how much I appreciate, respect, and love him enough... EVER. He is such a great father and caring husband, I knew I needed to give him something to show that.

I kept it a surprise, well mostly. I was struggling in deciding exactly what to do. The options included: zip lining, tickets to Circus de Soleil, or something better. I figured out what this something better was by looking at the bucket list we created about a year ago. As I was looking into this something better, he walked in and caught me. I thought it probably was given away, but I still played it off.

I told Zach that we would be eating breakfast out for his birthday and then dropping Ellie off at VBS before he went to work. I had asked him a few days before what his morning schedule looked like, which he then told me was mostly clear. Well I found out the morning of his birthday that he decided to fill it up. BAD! I had scheduled his surprise for the morning of his birthday, so I flipped out a little bit on him. Awful birthday start, but he forgave me quickly and rescheduled his calls (secretly thinking he might be getting what he caught me looking at). After breakfast and on our way to his surprise, he asked what he was doing. I told him to guess in which he responded with sky-diving (not his surprise). I completely led him to believe he was right, and he immediately started freaking out. Zach has never wanted to go sky-diving until a few weeks ago which he made a comment he wanted to. So I played off that until he started to sweat, I then felt bad and told him his surprise... A FLYING LESSON! He was completely stoked and we headed to the airport.

The plane:

The pilot:

Zach has taken a huge interest in flying since he travels a TON. He used to have a tiny fear of it when he first started traveling for business, but once he overcame it, he became VERY interested. He would watch videos, research, and have discussions with pilots about his new found interest. He has expressed multiple times how he would love to be a pilot, hence why it was an item on his bucket list.

Here are some shots from his flight:

downtown Raleigh:

RBC Center:
Landing:

Zach loved it. He now can say he has flown a plane, although he's not quite sure how he like handling a big machine thousands of feet off the ground. I think I scored a few brownie points here, but I am so glad Zach enjoyed his gift and felt loved and special.

We ended this special day, upon his request, with a cookie cake (complete with the only candle we had that I could find):
HAPPY BIRTHDAY MY LOVE!

Ainsley's Favorite Questions

I have mentioned how Ainsley loves to ask where everyone is. I had my camera out and ready to capture her asking one day. Here is the result. Pay attention to what she calls Ellie, and also Zach's long hair!

Script:
Me: What did you say?
Ainsley: Where's Daddy?
M: Where's Daddy?
A: Yea.
M: He's back in the bedroom.
A: Oh. Where's mommy?
M: Where's mommy? Where's mommy?
A: Right here, there.
M: I'm right here.
A: Where's Ellie?
M: Where's what?
A: Where's Ellie?
M: She's sleeping.
A: Where mommy?
M: Right here.
A: Where's Annie?
M: Where's who?
A: Me.
M: Where's Annie?
A: Yea.
M: Right there, right there!
A: Where's Ellie?
M: Ellie's sleeping.
A: Oh.
and then the rest...

July 4th Celebration!

We LOVE, LOVE, LOVE celebrating Independence Day. We tend to take advantage of what this day actually means, so I'll take a moment to really appreciate a few things about being an American. What a huge blessing it is to live in America where we are free to talk about our faith, free to worship and attend church, free to pray, have many kids, have many opportunities such as schools and jobs, and the list goes on...

We had quite a busy weekend celebrating the fourth of July! We had a cookout with the neighbors, where we stayed up really late to get in some fireworks.

Saturday, we went to a celebration in Fuquay-Varina. There were kid rides, bouncy things, music, and awesome fireworks. Ellie and Ainsley both rode the elephants and both LOVED it! Another late night, but we had a lot of fun with our friends, the Dortch's!Not sure how Ainsley ends up getting a picture with Katie and not mommy, maybe mostly because mommy is the one behind the camera all the time! On Monday (July 4th), we tried to go see the Durham bulls baseball game with our small group from church but it was storming, so we decided to go to dinner instead. The game ended up being cancelled, so it worked out well except so many restaurants were closed and we were driving around Durham in about 4 different cars trying to find an open restaurant we ALL wanted to eat at. We ended up at Cheesecake factory at about 8:00pm with a 30 minute wait. Another late night... although I did get one picture with the girls AND me!! It's terrible, but at least it exists!


It sure was a busy weekend, but we had lots of fun. HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!

Back Porch Improvement

We have made our little back porch a more comfortable spot! We bought new furniture, a few plants, and I made a few pillows.


Doesn't it look cozy?? It is MUCH better than the before and much more enjoyable!

Playing in the Sprinkler

We had some fun in the sprinkler on a hot day:

Sprinkler 1 from Laura Hanlon on Vimeo.

Sprinkler 2 from Laura Hanlon on Vimeo.

(The baby in the background is little Gerry)

Four Years

Started off with some fruit, thank you honey :)

Ended in downtown Winston-Salem. We ate a wonderful dinner, spent the night, and enjoyed a cool, rainy day reading in Krankie's coffee shop. Such a relaxing time, with the love of my life.

Four years. I'm not going to lie, this year has been the hardest for me. I think mostly just because of being physically, emotionally, and spiritually drained and running around chasing after two little girls. It hasn't been easy being married, but our love for each other only continues to grow.

I can say that I am thankful for such an unconditional love and very committed marriage. Zach continues to love me despite my selfishness and many flaws, he continues to be fully committed and always puts our marriage first. Although I would never ask for these hard times, I know that it's the hard times that make your love stronger and deeper. I only hope that this is the beginning and for many more years with my man, good times and bad.

Father's Day Interview

2011 Father's Day Interview from Laura Hanlon on Vimeo.

Giggles with Papa

We spent a little time with Papa for Father's Day. I am so thankful for such a wonderful dad and grandfather he is. A father has a tremendous role in a child's life, and he definitely did in mine. I was so blessed to have a father who was always there for me, spent a lot of time with me, loved me, supported me, encouraged me, and taught me truth. I love you dad, and so do my little ones! They sure do always laugh with you.

Being goofy

Thumbsuckers
Loving their Papa

First Dance Class

Ellie started dance class on Wednesday and she LOVED it! To say that she was excited about dance class would be an understatement. She had been waiting for this day since her birthday because this was her birthday gift from our families. She would have worn her leotard and tights everyday and night if I let her. Since she wasn't allowed to wear them, she insisted the night before that her dance bag must "sleep" next to her. The day we bought her tap shoes, she insisted the next few days that she must wear them EVERYWHERE (which of course is not allowed, but she continued to persist no matter how many times I said no. I did let her wear them at home). The morning of, the first thing she asked to do was to put on her dance clothes. She could barely eat breakfast, yet alone do anything else that morning except bug me until I eventually gave in and showed up 20 minutes early to dance class. It's only a 5 minute walk from our house, so we walked there and watched the dance class before hers. She did pretty well in class, but she was a tad shy and had her moments where she got distracted. I think she will warm up next class and follow along a little better.

Ainsley and I stayed and watched the whole class. Ainsley didn't want to take her eyes off the dancers, she would push people away if they got in her way! We are excited for next Wednesday!! Here's a few pictures I got:

Lining up for class:

Learning a few dance moves:

18 months

picture taken by friend, Christie Matta

Sweet little Ainsley, just a bubble of love and life and now 18 months old! I really enjoy watching her personality unfold and how she takes in this big world around her. You haven't seen much on this blog recently, and it's because these two girls keep me busy and I tend to just enjoy the moments without the camera. Ainsley definitely keeps my hands full, she loves getting into everything and following everything that her sister does! Although she is full of life, she stops to give me hugs and kisses every once in a while, this lights up my days.

Facts about Ainsley at 18 months:
-has been a little slow with her vocabulary and annunciation, but now she is fully taking off. I can't fully understand what she says a lot of time, she mostly mumbles sentences. She's picking up a few words almost each day, so it's getting easier and easier each day!
-very interactive, she likes to asks questions and answer questions. She also loves to wave at strangers, and make you laugh in any which way she knows how.
-new thing is to ask where everyone is. If I go get her in the morning she always asks where daddy is and where Ellie is, if Zach goes to get her when she wakes, she asks where mommy is and where Ellie is. It never fails. If we go out during the day to a store, she typically asks at least 10 times where daddy is. If ANYONE is missing out of the 4, she must know over and over again where they are. Love how she just is bonded to our family.
-definitely is attached to our family, all 3 of us. She doesn't like separation from us unless she is with her sister. She is perfectly fine if one of us is with her, but if all of us are gone, she gets upset. We never experienced this with Ellie, although Ellie is the most attached she's ever been and mostly with her sister.
-has freckles! Maybe she'll be like mommy??
-loves to sing! She actually is pretty good and stays on key
-loves to color, sits longer than Ellie does most of the time and will cover the whole page!
-loves shoes, not sure if this is because Ellie loves shoes and she is just copying her older sister, but she loves to go get shoes and try them on (anywhere and everywhere and anyone's)
-loves food, will eat most everything you put in front of her.
-gets along with her sister well. She has finally stopped finding so much joy out of aggravating her sister every moment she can. They play together very well most days, although Ainsley is much more independent than Ellie.
-loves books still. As soon as she wakes up or comes home, she goes and picks up a book. She is just as content reading them herself as she is you reading to her (but don't get me wrong, she LOVES when you read to her).
-has already peed and pooed on the potty! She is very interested in the potty and loves to sit on it. She is also really wants to wear panties. I usually find her at least once a day putting on a pair of Ellie's underwear. I'm not ready to train her yet, let's hope she will wait.
-likes cats more than dogs. Sorry Ainsley, we are NOT getting a cat.
-went to the doctor. Her stats: 25% height, 50% weight, and 80% in head circumference. 24 lbs of BEAUTIFUL.

I can't even describe how much I love this little girl. Sometimes I get distracted at the amount of work and energy they take, but these two girls teach me so much about life and fill my heart with so much joy and love. I continue to look forward to watching my baby girl grow and explore this world...

My Beautiful Girls

These pictures capture my girls perfectly. Both beautiful, Ainsley being goofy, Ellie loving the camera (when she wants to). I would have to say Ellie is definitely not always like this in front of the camera, it's just only when she wants to be or if she knows mommy will not be happy if she doesn't sit still.

Love these two.

Happy Birthday Nana!

Until I became a mother, I did not understand,
The profound sense of love in a Mother's heart and hands,
As I Whisper, "Mommy loves you", I rock my precious child to sleep.
Small perfection in my arms; sweet breaths, slow and deep.
I now see me as a baby; you're rocking me to sleep.
You whisper, "Mommy loves you, my heart is yours to keep."
At last I recognize your love, as a Mother I now see.
As I hold and love my child, you felt that love for me.
I will always be your baby, despite the years that pass.
You have given me my life, and a Mother's heart to last.
The greatest thanks I can offer; more than words can ever say
Is to give my child the love, you gave me everyday.
Author unknown

Happy Birthday Mom! Thank you for all the love you have given me and continue to give this day. You mean so much to me and I am thankful for you even more this day as I am a mother. What a blessing you are to our lives. We love you very very much. Hope you have a wonderful day and know how much you are loved from each one of your girls.

Daily Shenanigans

We try to have some fun around here...

Daily Activities from Laura Hanlon on Vimeo.

Sorry about the motion sickness, I have a hard time keeping the camera still with a baby in my arms (little Gerry):)

We Love To COLOR!

Ellie and Ainsley have taken a LOVE to coloring! Either on paper or the sidewalk, they both will color for at least 30 minutes at a time. I also highly enjoy coloring, so this is a treat for me as well.

The other day Ellie drew a picture of herself:

Pretty impressive, but I think we have a little bit more work to do...

WAITLIST!

We're on the waitlist! This means that all we do now is wait, wait for the day we will receive a call/e-mail/picture of our little boy. Right now the waiting period has averaged to be 13 months for a referral, but that doesn't mean we will be waiting 13 months. We could be waiting less or more, sounds so nice to have NO clue. It is nice to finally have it out of our hands, and all we have to do is just WAIT.

I am excited to be a little closer to bringing home our son, to have the relief that there is nothing waiting on my side and it's all in God's hands now. I also am excited to enjoy my two little girls and spend the next year or so just enjoying them. With the slow down in Ethiopian adoptions, it really has been somewhat of a relief. We thought we were ready, but life has been CRAZY the past 6 months and we feel that we need some more time before welcoming another child in our family. It's funny how God works. If we hadn't chosen adoption, we would have most likely gotten pregnant and there's no turning that back. But God led us to adoption, which ended up being slower than planned... which ended up being exactly what we needed. I now feel free to work on being a better wife and mother, improving myself before I bring home my son. I feel like this timing is perfect, but I will say that if it lasts longer than 2 years I'm not sure if I will be saying the same thing.

Now I am just sitting back and enjoying/improving the life I have in the present, yet still praying and dreaming about the son who is waiting to be in my arms. I ask that you pray for our family as well, pray for our son to be an orphan whose last hope is our family (I would much rather him be with his family or in his culture, but know that this won't be solved anytime soon). Pray for our hearts and his, for our marriage to be strong and deep, for our children to feel loved and belonged, for our son to welcome us as his family and us to welcome him in ours.

I patiently wait for the day I finally see his face...

Change Your Words. Change Your World.

I've always had a big heart towards the needy/homeless, second to orphans. For some reason, their lives and stories always get to me and I see the helplessness in their eyes. I want to show them hope, give them hope, or just hope that they will find it. I saw this video on the girltalk blog and wanted to share.



It is very interesting, most of us don't realize other's pain and suffering and just a few words can help others or ourselves understand it. Words have a huge impact on people and this video demonstrates how we can help others by the words we choose. If we change our words, we could change our world. I think there is much more to helping those in need, but our words do play a part in it. Great video.