Merry Birthday to Me, I'm 3

Sofia 2009

Happy New Year to our friends and family!

Hope everyone enjoyed their holidays. Seeing Christmas through the eyes of a three year old has rekindled our enthusiasm. We kicked off the season in early November by taking Sofia on her first train ride to visit Santa Claus at Macy's (cough cough Marshall Fields.) Sofia loved looking at all the beautiful window displays, writing and mailing her letter to Santa, and seeing the spectacular 45' tree in the Walnut Room. Because it was early in the season, there was no line to see Santa. Sofe had "Ho Ho" all to herself. Another lesson learned after many years of standing in 2 1/2 hour lines with anxious, energetic boys. Sofe told Santa she wanted a tubby for her babies and then asked him how he gets down the chimney. He was SO great explaining everything to her. She talked about it for days. We saw many more Santas throughout the season however, none could compare.

Dear Santa,

Please bring me a tubby for my babies. I was a very good girl (most of the time)!

Love, Sofia XXOO

Santa #1 The Real Deal They have fairies and "hot chochee" in here.

I'm speechless...

Stop Mr. Pigeon, I have French fries for you.

Santa #2 Did you get my letter Santa Claus you know..Sofia...Indiana....tubby..?

Santa #3 No pressure but are your elves working on that tubby?

Santa #4 About that tubby...

There's always one isn't there? Santa #5 Kinda thin for a tubby

Our little princess turned 3 on November 25th. Sofia sends a big thank you to everyone for the many generous gifts and happy birthday wishes. Special thanks to our friends the Hollis' for the beautiful crystal butterfly. Sofia insisted we put it up high so our cat would not break it. Anyone who followed our travels in Colombia would understand the significance behind the butterfly. I was very touched by their thoughtfulness. Thank you guys for the very special gift, it's lovely.

American Girl here we come!
Here comes my cake!




My new doll has curly hair just like me

Sofia had such a GREAT birthday! Originally, I planned a simple mommy/daughter day at the American Girl Store. Thanks to Tia, Lauren, Niki and Sofia B., it became the best party ever. When the big girls learned about our birthday plans eyebrows began to raise, wheels began to spin, and in the blink of an eye, we had three extra girls along for the ride (with parental permission of course.) Can you believe the selfless trio offered to miss a whole day of school to spend with lil Sofe? The girls enjoyed shopping and eating lunch with their babies. They doted on Sofe all day and searched the entire store looking to buy her the perfect gifts. Thank you girls for your generosity and for making the day so special. We finished the day with a family dinner at one of our favorite Italian restaurants. Everyone sang Happy Birthday to Miss Sofia (again.) Then it was home for princess cake, more singing, more presents, and bed.

Sofia picked a princess cake. She had a hard time deciding between this and Batman.

We enjoyed our Christmas break together. Thankfully, everyone remained healthy this year! We had breakfast with Santa, decorated the tree, attended several Christmas parties, went sledding, made snow angels, baked cookies, (alright alright they were Pillsbury ready to bake but, it still counts) we exchanged gifts, AND celebrated the birth of Christ.

OH MY GOSH, I got my tubby!!!!! Santa how did you know???

I got a new baby from my Nonna

Santa didn't forget our Lexie girl

Big thank you to Joe and Mike for their help in the sledding department. It seems Miss
Sofia LOVES the snow! She will spend the day outside if you let her. I guess sledding is not that tiring when you have a daddy and two teenage brothers to carry you up the steep hill time after time. I asked her why she does not climb up herself and she told me, "my yegs are too tired." Now once they're at the top of the hill, Sofe is somehow able to muster up the energy to grab one of just two sleds. She gives herself a little scoot, and down she goes by herself, leaving the boys behind. Ed told me that there were times when the sled started to go down the hill without her and Sofe instinctively ran and jumped on like a seasoned sledder. They came home very cold and tired but, I was ready with the hot chocolate. Sigh...I'll miss this time off with the family, no more vacation days for at least six months :(

Joe received acceptance letters from both of the colleges where he applied. Now he just has to make his final choice before May of 2010. Regardless of the choice, I know he will be fine. He is an intelligent, responsible young man. It truly seems like yesterday we were registering him for kindergarten.

Well , I guess that is all I got. We wish everyone a peaceful, joyous and healthy New Year.

Busy Little Bee

Hi Everyone!

Thought I would give a quick update before I get lost in the holiday madness. We have had a lot of fun these past few weeks. We visited the pumpkin patch, picked apples, met up with some California faves, crashed a few Halloween parties and went trick or treating. Whew!!

Buzzzzzz

Chilly Chilly Chilly
Sofia really enjoyed trick-or-treating this year. We taught her to say trick-or-treat and then to say thank you. It went perfectly at first. However, many of our wonderful neighbors wanted to chat with Sofia. She got confused when they didn't immediately give her a treat. She looked at me and said, "Mommy I say twick or tweat and no gum." She calls all candy gum. Once she knew a treat was in her immediate future she was ready to chat away. Sofe loved seeing the dogs in costumes. She asked everyone without a dog why they don't have one. We made it to about 40 houses before calling it quits. It was very cold and she was looking tired.

Over the years, I have learned how to beat the crowds at the pumpkin patch. You MUST arrive at about 2:00 PM on a weekday. The buses are leaving with the school children and parents are still at work. I picked a beautiful 65 degree fall afternoon to spend with Miss Sofia. We had a great day and literally had the place to ourselves.

Me and mommy
Ready to watch the pigleys race!

Hey, shut the door!Giddyup Charlie

Sofe was telling us that she wanted to go apple picking like Calliou. Naturally, I used that as my excuse to play hookey again the following week. The boys (including Ed) had too much going on to join us. We went on a hayride, picked some tasty apples, jumped in the leaves, rode the train, went to the petting zoo, and ate some fresh pumpkin donuts. They were still warm and so yummy!



Sofe is exactly 36" tall and weighs about 33 pounds. She tells us she is just right.
Bumpy Ride
Three Cheers for Sofia!!!

Sofia has been named an honorary member of prima Lauren's book club. They meet monthly and adore Sofe. She had so much fun decorating pumpkins and sugar cookies with them. Before Sofia, I never tried a cookie with sprinkles that were 1/2" thick. Delicious!!

The girls played a game to see which team could wrap themselves up like a mummy the fastest. Another game right up Sofe's alley. They also had themselves a little dance party, ate tacos, and roasted marshmellows outside. What fun.

We also had the opportunity to join Tia's first grade classroom party. Sofia is very close with my sister, Patti. Sofia loves to go to school to see her favorite teacher. Sofia wore her costume and walked in a parade with all the other children. She made a cute Halloween picture frame and a scarey spider. The spider was made from a chocolate donut and had legs made from pretzel sticks. Boy, these room mothers today have the cutest ideas. Sofe was super excited to see one room mother in particular, our dear friend Lisa. Lisa has been our original adoption coordinator since 2004. We are so grateful for the support she has offered us over the years. We LOVE her!

My Tia Loves Me!Mommy, it's Miss Lisa!!

And Alejan-dra-dra too!!


We had a great day at the Chicago Children's Musuem with one of our favorite California families, the Adelman's. We also got to meet Alejandra's very devoted grandparents. Mark and Debi were in Colombia adopting at the same time we were. They were lifesavers. They translated for me and helped care for Sofia while I completed some last minute paperwork. In addition to the girls physical similarities, Little Miss A has many of Sofe's mannerisms and interests. I remember how the girls held hands during a cab ride in Colombia. In my heart I believe they are soul sisters. I was so anxious to see how they would get along. It appeared to be an immediate connection. They ran off together and hid inside the coat lockers. Almost every picture I snapped of the girls together is the back of their heads. They are double trouble. I was able to capture one decent picture before I lost my camera that day. Sadly, with no working backup camera we were unable to get a family picture together. Guess that is an incentive to get together again. On a brighter note security found my camera a week later. As hard as she tries, Sofia can not say Alejandra. She refers to her as Alejan-dra-dra. I think it is cute. Now, whenever she sees a new picture of her BFF, she says, "Oh my Alejan-dra-dra."

Sofe may be the only handy one in our house.

The Adelman's gave Sofia a beautiful crocheted hat with interchangable ribbons. Sofia loves it and always wants to see herself wearing it in the mirror. She has temper tantrums when I tell her she can not wear it to bed. Thank you again Alejandra, we have received soooo many compliments on it!

Drama Queen (notice, no tears)

The boys are very busy in school. Joe is taking five AP and two honor classes this semester. He has very little free time. All the college applications are in and he should be hearing something in December.

Hello Mr. Bones

We have some busy weeks approaching beginning with Sofia's third birthday. Then there is

Thanksgiving, shopping, visits with Santa, Christmas and New Years. I am always a last minute shopper but this year I'm making a vow to start early. Hopefully, no one will be under quarantine this season.

Enjoy the holidays XXOO