Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween to our friends near and far! I hope you are all warm and safe.  It's probably going to rain on our trick-or-treating adventures this evening but we will press on!!!

Noodlebug is currently on costume number two.  This past weekend, he got fixated on the idea of having a Charlie Brown costume.  So, thanks to a sale t-shirt from Michael's and some fabric paint, we made one.  He is wearing that costume at school and will change into his Ghostbusters costume for Trick-or-Treating.

Here are the Pinterest-inspired treats we brought to preschool today:

 

I walked around with them playing the Ghostbusters theme song on permanent rotation on my iPhone so that they would have appropriate musical accompaniment.

 

Since my life always feels like a 3-ring circus, I thought I would make it official:

 

 

Have a wonderful Halloween!!!!

Alphabet Glue Win and Something New

I have been a fan of Bird and Little Bird's ALPHABET GLUE e-zine for quite some time. Each issue is stuffed with activities, printables, and book recommendations.  I have been stockpiling issues until Noodlebug got big enough to try some of the activities.  The release of the latest issue (volume 9!) was accompanied by a wonderful giveaway!  Annie offered a wonderful assortment of crafting materials and supplies perfect for making projects from the Alphabet Glue archives.  And I won!!!

Noodlebug and I had such fun unpacking the box!!!

A real treasure trove!!!
It will be hard to decide what to make first!  Thank you so much, Annie, for all the wonderful goodies!

And here is a little work-in-progress on my crafting table:

This is a project from Brave Girl Art School. I am woefully behind but I keep plugging away!!!  The background color is actually navy blue.  The colors are a bit off due to lighting. 

My Story

(unknown source)

Okay, deep breath.

I was adopted through a closed adoption when I was three months old. I lived temporarily in foster care until the adoption went through.  There has never been a time I haven't known I was adopted.  It has always been just another characteristic for me: brown hair, fair skin, adopted, freckles, etc.

As the only child of an only child, I come from a very small family.  I've had a wonderful life with wonderful opportunities and blessings.  My parents always told me that my birth mother gave me up to give me a better life.  And she did.

Today, the majority of adoptions are open adoptions.  Families have different levels of contact with each other but, at the very least, they have names and medical history.  I had none of that.  But being a part of a closed adoption allowed me to be 100% a part of my family. There were no divided loyalties and there was no confusion.  I've had curiosity about my birth family off and on over the years but I have never had any real need to seek them out.  If I wanted to, I knew I could always go to the agency I was adopted through and begin the process for contact which would include counseling sessions.

The world is changing.  Privacy is getting harder and harder to find. Many government records are getting digitized.  A few weeks ago, I received a message through Facebook from someone claiming to be a member of my birth family.  I was immediately suspicious.  This family member had gotten involved with a researcher who makes it her business to track down members of closed adoption triads.  Using government documents and records that were online, the researcher was able to locate  me.  I contacted my adoption agency and they were able to confirm that this was indeed my birth family.    Because I am very public person and because I chose not to change my name when I got married, I was pretty easy to find once they had a name.

Since then, I have been dealing with the fallout of all of this.  There have been lots of conflicting emotions and I feel confused a lot of the time.   The hardest part was that any choice about this matter was taken away from me and my birth mother.  There was no process. There was no counseling. Just a Facebook message. Not how I would have chosen for this to happen.

As I feel my way through all of this, many issues have arisen that I didn't expect. I'm not the only one involved. There is my birth family and then there is MY family.  Especially my mother.

In the end, though, I am reminded of how adoption changed my life and that of my parents and extended family.  I am reminded of all the blessings and all the opportunities I have been given.  God put me in this family and told me to bloom and I have tried to do so to the best of my ability. So, as I was work my way through all of this, I am meditating on one of my favorite sayings:

Bloom Where You Are Planted

Homemade Halloween 2012

We love to play dress-up at our house.  I always try to keep several yards of felt in a variety of colors in case inspiration strikes and we need a quick costume.  The downside is that Noodlebug now uses me as a bespoke costume service.  I probably shouldn't have let him know that I could do costumes on demand. 

Recently, he asked me for a "Bob" costume.  I could not figure out what he was talking about.  He has very limited exposure to television and only PBS at that.  And we don't really have anything related to superheroes in our house.  In spite of that, he gets exposed to a lot of things at preschool.  I kept asking him questions trying to figure out who "Bob" is.   I finally figured out that "Bob" fights with Batman.  In other words, "Robin."  (He also calls Eeyore from "Winnie the Pooh" by the name of "Jorge.")

He kept asking me for me a Robin costume for his dress-up trunk and I finally broke down and whipped something up.  I made a basic open sided tunic and we used the belt and gloves from his Prince Philip costume from last year. It's hard to see in the photo but I also added a yellow felt cape.

The mask needs a bit of work. I was in a hurry to get it done and I'm not happy with the eye holes.  The whole mask is felt and attaches using velcro in the back.  Although this is not his official Halloween costume, we wore it to an event yesterday.  It was comfortable to wear and I like that it is adjustable. Everything is sewed down except for the decorative elements on the front. I didn't like the way the thread was looking and used hot glue for the "R" symbol and the yellow ties.

I wonder what costume I'll be making next.  Thank goodness for felt!!!

Isaiah 41:10

"Don't be afraid, for I am with you. Don't be discouraged, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand."


Something very painful happened in the last few days that has shaken the bedrock of my life.  It is going to take a little time for me to sort through my feelings and figure out how I want to move forward.  I can't tell you what happened at this time. I CAN tell you that my family is all healthy and well including myself.

I could use any prayers and good thoughts that you can send my way.  Posting may be sporadic for a little while but I will still be here....reading all of your blogs and comments and enjoying the things you share about your lives.

(image source)

Welcome October!!!

I love Fall.  It's my favorite season. And I love Halloween too.  Noodlebug and I spent some time getting out Halloween decorations this weekend. We are both suffering from colds so actually putting the decorations out will be a work in progress.

As I unpacked the boxes, I came across some old friends:

(Mrs. FinkWinkle from Hippie Dog Creations)

 

(Witch beeswax crow from Jennifer Conway)

(Halloween Pixie Witch from CariKraft)

(Honeycomb ornaments from CariKraft)

(Halloween Party Cat from HippieDog Creations)

It was like seeing old friends again as I unpacked all of these treasures.  They were all purchased before Noodlebug was born.  As I pulled them out, I realized that many of these people don't blog anymore. Or they have completely changed their focus.  The blogging world is an interesting phenomenon.  I have been blogging since 2003.  When I first started blogging, blogs were more like public journals.  I don't think any of us even thought about their potential as moneymaking devices.  Now, the blog world has completely changed. Many bloggers who were my early favorites have disappeared into the ether.  Those that survive seem to care less about monitizing and more about sharing. Once blogging becomes work and takes over people's lives, they tend to drop it.  I tend to blog when it suits me and never put any pressure on myself about it. I don't care about numbers or followers.  I just love sharing and connecting with other people.  And I have found so many treasures through blogging. (see photos above!)  It won't be long before I'll be unpacking the Christmas boxes where more blogging/Etsy treasures await!!!