A Whirlwind Month

I have been a bad blogger this month.  I apologize to all of you who wake up every morning eager to hear the details of my crazy life.  (Yup, that's you, Mom & Dad! ;)  

November has been a whirlwind.  Instead of blogging, I've been trying to survive the time change with a three-year-old (why on earth can't she be as excited about an extra hour of sleep as I am?), muddling through the newest twists on our adoption journey (LOTS more on that before the end of the weekend - promise!), and hosting company for 12 of the first 13 days in November (8 people + our tiny house = Fun with more than a touch of craziness).

Here's a little peek into our jam-packed month.  My mom and dad arrived just in time to take this little "Halloweena" around the neighborhood "trickory treating".  (You gotta' love the way three-year-olds see the world!)

The rest of my parents' visit was filled with exciting things like raking leaves...

...tickle wars on the dining room floor...

...and posing on the porch for one of my signature photo shoots.  (No, everything in the Midwest is not tinted light blue - that would be the white balance on my camera on the wrong setting.  Oops!)

I love. love. love. this last picture of Lil' Miss and my parents!  My dad smiles in 1 out of about 350 pictures, so this is really a rare shot! ;)

We also had fun celebrating my mom's birthday with an all-you-can-eat Amish dinner (seriously yum!), hanging out at our local coffee shop, and doing a little shopping.  Two days after my parents left, we got to see some more special people.  The Black family, our good friends from Pennsylvania, came for a few days.  We had a great time catching up with them, and Doug got a buck so that made his vacation. :)

Unfortunately, I did a horrible job taking pictures while the Blacks were here.  BUT...I did squeeze in a photo shoot on the porch (with my camera on the right setting! :).  

Here are Lil' Miss and Miss M (their youngest), modeling the new shirts we got for them at Childr*n's Place.  (No, my daughter really doesn't need any new clothes thanks to my garage sale addiction, but I fell in love with this shirt.  It says "Daddy is my prince".  Is that a refreshing message, or what?  LOVE it!  Way to go Childr*n's Place!)

Here are all the kids on the porch.

And, just for fun, here's a shot taken the first time the Blacks met Lil' Miss.  (Where does time go?!?)

So, there you have it: our whirlwind of a November.

But...I'm back on the wagon.  Check this weekend for an update on our adoption.  I have some big things to share.  (Unfortunately, they don't have anything to do with the long-waited special needs list.) I'm also going to post my adoption-related birthday wish.  My special day is next Tuesday, and there's a something big I would love all of you to do for me that day.

See you this weekend!