It's been a tuff morning...

lounging on Ponto Beach in Encinitas. Here's some pics of the view...




Here's Christine kicking back...


I had forgotten how relaxing it is to just lay back on the beach and snooze.

Back, but heading out again...

I had a really nice time up north among the pine trees. I had my bedroom window open at night and it was great to hear the wind blowing through the trees. It was pretty warm up there during the day (high 90's), but it cooled way down at night. Here in Phx it's been really HOT (112 degrees) and there is no cooling down. It's getting to that time of year when it stays hot all day and night.

I didn't really get any digital scrapbooking done. I messed around a little bit with some pages, but was having a MAJOR mental block. I think I need to sit down and really think about how I would like to set up Lauren's first year book, which will also serve as a life book. Where do I want to start? What do I want to say? I need to get my thoughts in order before I start. If anyone is putting together a similar book, I would love to hear your ideas.

This Thursday evening after work, I'm heading to Carlsbad, CA with a friend of mine. She's house sitting for a friend of hers who lives really close to the beach, so I'm hoping to get in some major relaxation and some sun. We also got tickets for Sea World, which should be fun because I haven't been there in years. I'll be there for almost a full week of fun and sun!

I hope all my Blogville friends don't think I'm constantly running off and leaving my poor hubby behind. Joe started a new job this past year and only has five vacation days left this year, which we are saving for a trip. I, on the other hand, have TONS of vacation time so I figured I might as well use some up and have some fun. Sorry, Joe!

Heading up north...

Well, tomorrow I'm taking off half day and heading up north with a couple of friends. My friend, Kim, has a cabin up in Heber, AZ (pine country). We're going to chill out, watch a couple of chick flicks on DVD, and do some scrapbooking. Since I'm into digital now, I'm taking my laptop up to start on Lauren's 1st year book. I downloaded some fun new digital kits from DigiChick and I'm looking forward to trying them out.

Hope everyone has a great weekend. I'm leaving you with this totally adorable otter video. The otters are actually holding hands....watch all the way through cause the cutest part is towards the end.

Just like potato chips...

I can't stop at just one! Since today is Wednesday (my favorite day of the week since I'm off at 12n), I wandered into Target to pick up some basic essentials. This, of course, took me past the baby clothes section. Since I've heard of other people getting great deals there lately, I walked on through to find several clearance racks. SCORE!

I picked up this adorable Classic Pooh dress...



and these separate pieces for just $2 to $4 each. Who could pass this up, right?



I got all sizes 18 and 24 month this time. I'm taking the advise of everyone who responded to my last post and I'm returning the 6 month and the plain 9 month onesies to Carters. I am keeping the two onesies with the cute sayings on them in size 9 month since my friend Shannon, mommy to twin 2 year old boys (Jack & Palmer), turned me on to these handy little onesie extenders from One Step Ahead. These look great for extending the length and getting more use out of onesies, especially if they are worn with skirts or pants so the extenders won't be seen. Shannon, thanks for the great tip! I'm definitely ordering these.

Clothing size question...

I wandered into Carter's on Sunday afternoon (I know, dangerous thing to do) and found some really cute outfits.

I thought these two onesies where too funny to pass up...


and I thought this sleeper was pretty cute...


and I LOVE these shirts and matching curduroy skirt...


My question is I got the sleeper in 6 month and all the rest in 9 month size thinking they would fit while in China. For those who have BTDT, do you think this size will work? I figure even if Lauren is almost a year when we get her, she'll probably be pretty small and wearing smaller sizes. Was that the case in your travel groups?

16 months and fun nursery finds...

Today is our 16 month LIDversary and we are still plugging along.

There isn't much to say about the wait, except to complain and whine and I just don't feel like doing that today. I do still like to at least recognize the monthly milestones, as it does help to see that we are actually moving forward even though it sometimes doesn't feel like it.








Joe and I stopped by HomeGoods on Friday evening to check out their children's section. They only have one aisle of kids stuff, but there always seems to be a great find.

They didn't disappoint us this time either. We picked up this great wall clock for only $12.99 that totally matches our nursery decor. See how nicely it goes with the wall color?

I've got to give Joe credit for spotting this clock, since it was tucked behind a bunch of other stuff.


We also got this adorable wooden, stacking train. I love the colors and I know that kids love toys that stack. We couldn't pass this up for only $9.99.

Last, but not least, Happy Father's Day to all the new Dads out in Blogville! Hold your baby tight today and remember how blessed you are to have them in your life. Also, I'm thinking of all the waiting Dads today too and hoping your day comes soon to hold your baby for the first time. I know I can't wait to see Joe holding Lauren.

New books...

by my favorite children's author, Karen Katz. While surfing Amazon the other day (a dangerous thing), I discovered that she has a book called My First Chinese New Year. Well, of course I had to have that one. Also, this cute lift-the-flap book, What Does Baby Say, was calling Lauren's name too.



I love the illustrations in her books...they are brightly colored and so adorable.



If you search "Karen Katz" on Amazon, tons of adorable books will come up. Counting Kisses is my favorite so far, but these are really cute too.

Can't wait for our turn...

This video is making the rounds, but I thought I'd post it for those who haven't seen it yet. It's by Holt International adoption agency and it features families meeting their children for the first time. Grab a hankie...

Referrals are in...

Well, it's official...after weeks of waiting and hoping for a bigger referral batch this month, they only got through another 6 days of LID's.

This is the same amount of days they referred last month and the month before it was only 2 days. Unfortunately, we don't know how many actual matches are being made, so we can't tell if they are actually referring the same number of children each month or not.

There are 102 days between Nov 7th (where they left off this month) and our LID. If they were to continue to refer only 6 days each month, we wouldn't have our referral until December 2008. Someone PLEASE let me that's not REALLY going to happen...that would be a 34 month total wait. If they could step it up to 12 days a month, we could have our referral in March 2008. I'm trying to get it to sink in that this may be our best case scenario (a 25 month wait), which is really hard to accept.

As much as I'm happy for those who are receiving their referrals this month, it's getting harder and harder as the months tick by to keep a positive attitude and really enjoy looking at all the referral photos rolling in. Sorry to be such a bummer, but referral day just isn't as much fun as it used to be.

Duck, Duck, Goose...

No...duck, duck, duck, and GIANT duck!

I was at Bath & Body for their big sale this afternoon and got this great big rubber ducky. It's 10" long and 9" tall and totally adorable. It rang up for just $4.50, so I just had to get it for when we decorate Lauren's bathroom.

I'm wondering if Lauren will play with it in the tub or if she'll be scared of it. Guess we'll find out sooner or later.


Ok, still waiting for referrals....come on CCAA!!

Good weekend and Target find...

We had a really good, relaxing weekend. Yesterday we had dinner at Michele's place and had a great time visiting with Kim & Scott and their cuties Jenna & Jadyn, Nancy, Brian & Lily, Megan & her daughter Mia, Heather & Damon, and Laura & Dan. I had a ball with all the babies and I left thinking how much I can't wait until we have Lauren. Thank you, Michele, for such a wonderful dinner and fun night.

Today, Joe and I headed out to the movies (we haven't been to one in forever) and saw Knocked Up. This is directed by the guy who did The 40-Year Old Virgin. If you liked that movie, I think you'll like this one too. You can see a preview here. I love the characters and it's pretty darn funny too.

After the movie, we did some shopping at Target (God for bid I miss a weekend) and we found some really cute knobs for Lauren's nursery furniture. Check them out here.

Well, it's back to work tomorrow....can't wait for referrals!!!! Come on CCAA, we're ready and waiting!