Making Memories Giveaway!

In honour of our third Forever Family Day with Maelyn, I am having my first giveaway!

I enjoy creating short videos that chronicle important events in our lives. For the past few years, I have focused on our own adoption journeys, as well as kid-friendly videos for the girls that helps them to understand their story.

I also enjoy sharing videos with other families who are considering adoption -- I know I loved watching them while we were waiting to become a family of three. :)

Below is a link to a brief example of one of the videos I made of our adoption journey to Maelyn...

https://vimeo.com/69052638


If you would like a video similar to the one above, then I would love to create one for you! It does not necessarily need to be about adoption -- it can chronicle any important event in your life.

The video would be up to 20 minutes in length and can contain written content, pictures, and even video.

To enter the giveaway, all you need to do is comment below by July 5th -- good luck!!

Forever Family Day

Three years ago today we left for China as a couple, anxious to hold our baby in our arms for the first time. When that magical moment happened, it literally took my breath away. This child -- this beautiful, little child -- was to be our daughter forever.

The experience forever changed our lives. We learned with absolute certainty that connection by blood is not what makes a family. We learned that we had a lot of love to give. But most importantly, we learned that when you give love, you receive even more in return.

This year, the marking of this anniversary means something a little different to me. We had the privilege of meeting Maelyn's foster parents when we were in China this past November and the experience was one hard to describe in words. Now, when I think about the day that she became a part of our family, I also think about the family that cared for her for 21 months and had to say goodbye. Maelyn's foster mother said that on that day, they all cried -- Maelyn cried the hardest of them all. The experience of leaving the only family you know and being handed to two strangers must have been scary -- something I couldn't even imagine going through.

Adoption is about losses and love gained. It is heartbreaking and it also has the ability to mend hearts. We are so very blessed by the miracle of adoption and we thank Maelyn for making us a Mommy and a Daddy -- we are hers, forever.

(Here is the link to our post on that day...  http://ourjourneytomaelynwanhao.blogspot.ca/2010/06/family-day.html )

It's all about the mo's.....

Now that Ailee is two years old, we have definitely seen changes in her daily interactions and behaviour. I find it amusing to see Ailee tansition into a more independent little girl who is testing out her ability to control her environment.

Her favourite words right now are 'stop' and 'mo' (her word for no). I find it so funny to ask her questions right now -- her first instinct is to say no to absolutely everything! Sometimes she will catch herself saying no to something she actually wants and will quickly correct herself. Makes me laugh every time. :)

Yesterday, Ailee definitely needed her bum changed -- but every time I asked her, she was adament that she was just fine, thank you very much! Caught a snip-it on video...

It's all about the mo's around here!

Maelyn's Musings

In cleaning up my blog, I found this post from last year that I never posted. Had to post it now -- so much fun to read through!!

Can I just say how much I LOVE this age?! Three is the best age EVER! I love the new things Maelyn comes out with every day and seeing the connections she makes as she learns new skills. Here are some of her latest that have made me smile or laugh out loud....

I realized that I had forgotten to get her the water she asked for. I apologized to her for not getting the water for her....

• It okay, Mama. I not mad at you!

When driving home from daycare she asked me where Daddy was and I told her that he was still at work.

• I love Daddy ko (so) much!

This week she was very weepy. I wiped the tears off her face one afternoon and she said to me...

• Don't wipe my tears! I am trying to cry!

Maelyn is very concerned and vigilent about the rules. She will not do something without asking first -- even the smallest things. However, she also notices the small discrepencies in the way Paul and I parent and will completely play us against each other. Maelyn will adamently tell us what the rules are according to the other parent, or even her daycare workers, to get out of hearing the word 'no.'

• Daddy say ya!
• But Debbie say ya!

Maelyn continues to remind me on a daily basis that her daycare teacher, Debbie, is an expert at doing her hair...

• Debbie do my hair better than you. You not good at it. Daddy really not good at it.

A few sayings from the Fall, just after having turned 4 years old -

Maelyn noticed the difference between our house and Grandma Gabelle's (Gravelle's) house...

• Grandma Gabelle puts her car in the garage. Our garage too messy!

One day, as I dropped Maelyn off at daycare, she yelled out the window...

• Have a good day!

A conversation I had with Maelyn on our way to daycare one morning...

• Why we have to go daycare so much? sigh....oh yeah....Daddy need to make the money. Mommy, you need to help Daddy? Why we need ko (so) much money?

When Maelyn talks about China, she refers to it as...

• My China

Maelyn has been learning the appropriate names for body parts...

• Boys have peanuts

Maelyn loves winning races around the house. But, she doesn't quite get the saying "I am going to beat you." She keeps saying, as she races...

• I gon' beat you up!

I found Maelyn crying in her playroom and asked her what was wrong...

• (Said with full on tears) I'm scared. I am scared because I don't know how to share mybooks with Ailee (anticipating Ailee coming home)

We were giving thanks at dinner one night and Maelyn asked for the following...

• For Ho-Ho (Santa) to bring her presents
• For Ailee coming into our family

May's Random Cuteness

Not happy, after having spilled her chocolate milk.... :)

Ailee absolutely LOVES this bear!

 

The Destroyer was at it again -- decided that she needed a little bit of colour on her arms...

First pigtails...

 

First taste of corn on the cob....yummy!

 

 

Having fun playing with Sydney...

Both of these little monkey love their cars!

 

Time spent with Auntie Jenn...

Hair-tastrophy

This afternoon I was doing dishes and I was enjoying the fact that the girls were playing nicely together in the playroom. I checked on them every five minutes -- but it seems that they can get into quite a lot of trouble in only five minutes.

 

Maelyn came in to ask me something and right away I noticed that something just wasn't right. Maelyn hair looked funny to me -- and then I noticed that what was funny looking was the fact that she was missing a ton of her hair!!

 

I asked her what happened to her hair, but she looked at me like she had no idea what I was talking about. I asked her more specifically if she had cut her hair and she said yes. Then, she showed me where her hair was...

 

Notice the barrettes that are still in the hair?? She cut whole chunks out and the barrettes were still holding in her hair...

Keep in mind, she did not have bangs before this episode...

Hard to see in this picture, but she cut parts of her hair all the way to the back of her head...

Getting her hair fixed by our hairdresser supreme...

Thankfully, by adding layers all throughout her hair, we were able to leave her hair a little bit longer...

I was quite proud of myself today. I stayed calm and reminded Maelyn of the rules we have with scissors and why those rules are important. Once she realized that cutting her hair resulted in her hair needing to be cut short, she had a good cry and felt badly about her decision. We spent some time cuddling and I reassured her that her hair would grow back. We also talked about making better choices in the future.

Once her hair was cut, I decided that we needed to put a positive spin on things and Maelyn and I decided that the perfect way to do this was with an ice cream cone. :)  While we were enjoying our cone, Maelyn gave me a big hug and told me that I was the 'Best Mama in the world.' All in all, a successful end to a crazy day. :)



Celebrating Maelyn's new 'do with an ice cream...