Yesterday was a wonderful Thanksgiving.  I have so much to be thankful for.  I could go on and on about all that, but I don’t have the time right now.  Today is my wedding anniversary.  What better way to spend it that Black Friday shopping right?  Nope.  Not only did I get to do that, but we are also shipping out this evening to Florida to visit Disney World!  Whoo hooo!  The trip is in honor of Genevieve’s first birthday, despite her only being nearly nine months old.  It was the only time our schedules worked out.  However, while we are there, I will also turn 30.  Love it!  Why?  This means I get fast passes on my birthday!  How cool is that?  Very!

However, I am super over the moon about my birthday gifts!  I was sent on a wild goose chase compliments of my dad.  One head scratching clue to the next sent me all over their house.  Finally I arrived at the finish line to find this:

http://www.wolfcamera.com/product/SLR1208.htm

Oooh!  And this:

http://www.wolfcamera.com/product/541531257.htm

It also came with a big bad lighting kit, a backdrop support system, backdrops, classes so I don’t have to wear the manual around my neck, and a handy carrying case.  I could have peed myself I was so excited!  Love, love, love it! 

Ok, off to playing with my new “toys!”

I said I wasn’t going to watch it, but I did.  Interested in your thoughts?

I was in Bar.nes and N.ob.le yesterday when a magazine cover caught me off guard. It wasn’t one of those guilty pleasure gossip mags, but the Ec.onomi.st. Scratching your head yet? The headline was this:

Check out the article here.

The short version: Infertility has great benefits economically.

A snippet:

“Slowing fertility has other benefits. By making it easier for women to work, it boosts the size of the labour force. Because there are fewer dependent children and old people, households have more money left for savings, which can be ploughed into investment. Chinese household savings (obviously influenced by many things, not just demography) reached almost 25% of GDP in 2008, helping to finance investment of an unprecedented 40% of GDP. This in turn accounted for practically all the increase in Chinese GDP in the first half of this year.”

That’s just lovely. However, I would rather have less money to plunk into investments. I want my investments to come in the forms of hugs and kisses. I understand that’s not what your magazine is all about. I just feel the need to point out that there is more to life than dollar signs. Not to mention, not every woman wants to work. Some choose to stay home. Having children isn’t chaining me to my home. I could still go forth and be a part of the work force. There are plenty of wonderful day cares I could send my children to, just out of person preference I don’t.

Regardless, it was an unemotional look at how fertility rates are effecting global population.

I want to know how it is that everybody seems to know somebody who was adopted, yet shows like The Forgotten last night make such stupid comments about it. Somebody should have spoken up! Rest assured, I am real. My husband is real. My children are real, and so is my love for them. We are Braden’s “real family.” The media needs to get it right! Anybody else catch that?

Follow previous instructions with ID #169488295.  Thanks!

We aren’t sure what is taking so long for Braden’s approval, but Genevieve is ready to be voted for!  Would you mind taking a second?

http://family.go.com/gapcastingcall/entries/TheWinksFamily/319488981/

You can come home any time now.

Please oh please tell your son that condiments belong in the fridge, pee goes in the potty (not your shoes,) and that he does not need tools to take apart the fridge.  It is functioning quite nicely as it is.  While you are at it remind him that his food is for him not his baby sister.  Kindly teach him that toys are not for running into his mother or to be used at weapons of mass destruction.

I love you,

me

I really could use to dye my hair.  I’ve had to dye it for a couple of years now, or I have this beautiful silver hair that decides to sprout from the most visible locations that frame my face.  I’m just a little to young to be sporting silver hair.  My toes are also quite neglected, but rest assured they will be tended to before next Thursday.  Why next Thursday?  We leave for our cruise then!

I’m staring at empty suitcases, lists of all the needed items, and scratching my head.  Where to begin?  When going on a cruise with small children, you truly have to be on top of your game.  If you forget something, you can’t run out and get it.  If you run out of diapers, wow, you are just out of luck!  I can only imagine the MacGuyver type moves it would take to remedy that situation.  So, I truly need to get on top of that situation soon.

I’m so excited to go back to Jamaica.  It was the first country I visited as a little girl.  Other than our friendly neighbors to the North.  We spent nearly every weekend in Canada growing up.  I’m looking forward to climbing Dunn’s River Falls again, but this time with my husband.  My parents are watching the children while we head out to do that, and enjoy a beach party.  The next day we’ll hit up the Cayman Islands for beach fun with the kids and my parents.  We have adjoining rooms, and this should make things a lot more fun.  We can let the kids sleep in one room, and we can relax, play cards (during down time) watch tv, etc in the other.  This will be key during nap times.

I’m shocked that I have truly managed to loose as much weight as I have.  Ok, I have determination, will power, and the belief that my new dietary changes can and will be our new lifestyle.  However, I just didn’t believe my body would cooperate.  Must be lingering infertility doubts about what my body is able to do.  I’m stoked though!  The total is over 63 pounds.  The numbers are coming slow, but they are steady.  Just how they are supposed to be lost.  I’m now in the 130s, and haven’t been this size since high school.  Wow! 

I will say that it’s quite challenging fitting in exercise around the two children.  We make it work though.  That’s why there are naps, exercausers, and Thomas the Train.  I own that one hour.  The kids get to play independently, and I think that’s good for them too.

I started Christmas shopping the other day!  We scored some really great deals at Kohl.’s.  The toys were 40% off, and then my mom had a 30% off coupon.  They even had some G.eo T.rax train track, that she picked up for Braden for Christmas.  Love it!  I’m all about bargain shopping and finding a good deal!  What I should really think about and look into for Christmas is getting Braden into a class at T.he Li.ttle G.ym.  That would really help him socially, and he would have a blast too.  He’s not so sure about being around other children, but loves adults!  Hmm…I’ll put that on the list with the other nine thousand things that need to be done.  What I’m really looking forward to though, is Black Friday.  Which also happens to be my anniversary this year.  Our 5th wedding anniversary at that.  Hmmm…perhaps my husband won’t mind celebrating on Saturday?

My parents are planning a family vacation for next year.  They have decided to take my brother and me along with our respective families.  We have our passports and are all ready to go, but the big question is to where.  The task was becoming too large to plan for nine people alone.  So, my mom created a game.  Each of us would create a vacation with a complete itinerary, and come Christmas we would all vote.  Of course, my parents have the last say, but usually things end in a very democratic way in our family.  Oooh, and the winner gets a secret prize!

Yesterday we went over to my parents’ house for the day, and while in one of their bathrooms I found an old travel magazine from 2006.  It had a large article about villa rentals.  I scoured through and drooled. It was like taking a whirlwind trip around the world.  I was drawn to this article about Costa Rica.  A few years back, my mom and I took a trip there just the two of us.  It was gorgeous!  I’d love to go back, and this villa just might entice us!  If I win the contest of course!  However, this villa is also an option there, if we have additional family that have stated some interest.

Then, we came across some amazing deals in Jamaica!  This villamade me seriously want to pack up my bags instantly!  The good news is that all of them come staffed!  Whoo hoo!

So, every time that my son manages to completely miss the potty today and hoses my wall and everything else in range, I’ll be dreaming of those villas.  Every time I get hosed by the amazing amount of spit up my daughter can produce, I’ll be dreaming of the laundress the villas have on staff.  I’ll be sure to keep you up to date on where our planning takes us.  After all, it’s nice to dream, right?

On other notes, I’ve lost six sizes now.  So proud, and am 100% confident that my lifestyle changes will allow me to maintain this.  Genevieve is apparently allergic to peanuts and perfumes.  Poor girl!  It appears my sweet son is deathly afraid of the dark.  Today’s mission is to hunt down a child friendly flashlight, yellow at that.  He specifically requested yellow.  We have one, but the dancing lights don’t work for him.  The animal shaped ones contain lead and are out of the question.  This little boy is so much like me that is scares me sometimes! 

Ok, off to exercise and get ready for today’s super adventures in spit up dodging, temper tantrum ignoring, and coaching urination target practice.

In response to an anonymous comment:

A few posts back, I wrote about giving birth post adoption.  I knew that when I did so that it just might be controversial.  I put it out there, and as a result, I willingly opened myself up for scrutiny.  I’m ok with this.  You see, prior to adopting, we did much research.  We read books like this one and this one.  I very much recommend them.  We also read and spoke with many people regarding transracial adoption.  We had no way of knowing whether we would adopt transracially, but we became well aware of different issues that may or may not pop up as a result of doing so.  We spoke with countless family members to see how they felt about it.  While no one single factor made our decision, we were at least looking at a big picture.  We needed to know not only how we felt about it, but make sure our family would be equally as excepting of their new family member.  So, we did our homework.

Here is the comment, and please don’t “go off” on the commenter.  They too have a right to their opinion.  I personally may not agree with it, but it is their’s to have.  Just as I respect their comment, I do hope that at some point they may come to understand (not necessarily agree) the other side of the issue.  I am aware that their beliefs surrounding our family building are a compilation of their life experiences, and therefore will not be blasting them.  Rather, I would like to cultivate a bit of understanding. 

The comment:

anonymous // August 22, 2009 at 5:17 pm