LL Cool Fam!!

It's really hard to contain such coolness in this family of three!! Marley's coolness is even exploding out of his hair!!

It's hard to compete with Master Marley's cool factor...but we try!!

All three of the Marcos clan is going through some hair changes...Marley's is getting big and beatiful, Dad's is growing and I cut and colored mine...all by myself!!

Just Can't Get Enough

So the kid absolutely loves to read!! And he knnows that in order for me to read to him, he has to sit on my lap! Sometimes the urge to read overtakes anything that either he or I are doing! Lately he has taken to pushing me to the couch so I can sit and read to him...but sometimes he will want me to read wherever I am sitting...even on the toilet! I love his expression in the first pic..."don't distract her from reading Dad!!"

YUmmmm....knobs....

Marley is refining his palate and apparently likes the taste of brushed steel knobs!! Don't judge!!

TOMS Shoes

The shoes are great and the cause is even greater! I ordered three pairs of shoes yesterday, 2 for me, 1 for Marley. The shoes that go to the Ethiopians are actually made in Addis Ababa! So, not only does TOMS give people shoes, they also give people jobs! What a wonderful thing!!

Sweet Sleep Seized Suddenly

Dad took Marley to a soccer game yesterday while I got a hideous haircut! Apparently they played pretty hard, becuase he crashed out before he could even eat his dinner...at 5pm! Poor little guy slept until 9 this morning!!

Our First Thanksgiving

So many things to be thankful for this year...one big thing obvioulsy! I was reflecting on the last year, the last two years actually...that's when it all began! Two years ago in November the booming voice that woke me in the middle of the night urging me to "GO" forward with the adoption; a voice so clear and deep I started the following day. Two years ago we began the roller coaster known as the adoption process; ironically enough we met with our social worker at a Starbucks in Little Ethiopia to turn in one of our many applications.

Two years ago friendships were tested and true colors came out loud and clear in those we chose to help us along the way! So many ups and downs for 16 long months...and I know that 16 months doesn't seem like that long to some who have already been waiting longer! Two years ago at Christmas I remember crying at my computer because I already wanted my little boy to be in my arms...wondering how I would ever survive the wait! Last year, I thought I would lose my mind as we inched closer to a referral and dealt with the toughest decision of our lives.

It's funny how when you are in the middle of the something and you know there is a lesson to be learned, but you just can't figure out what it is until you are through it; when you reflect on it afterward it seems so clear... I learned something on Sunday night while watching, of all things, Evan Almighty.

When I pray for something, God will undoubtedly test my desire to really have it! In my case I prayed for patience, and instead of being given the calm and serenity that comes with peace, I was tested like never before to listen to my intuition, discuss with my husband and put my impatience aside; something I am not good at doing. But now, one year later, I look at my little boy, my darling little guy who has been mine before and all along; I know we made the right decision, and I learned that having patience, although perhaps not gratifying, is something I am thankful to know I have, and chose to exercise.

So this Thanksgiving I am thankful for being tested, I am thankful for being bent and almost broken during this most trying of adoption processes, because ultimately I have been rewarded with the ultimate gift...my family, my new friends, my being complete and perfectly content! I am happier than I have ever imagined possible!

Fourth Meal

You know the drill...it's late at night (and by late I mean 6:30), you're getting ready for bed, or in this case a bath, and all of the sudden you feel the urge to splurge! Well the urge overtook Marley right before bath time, so he had naked snack before his bath! Made for real easy clean up!!

I think this will be his senior year baby photo!! He'll love that!

Minneapolis Here He Comes

We've booked our flight and hotel and the mister looks like he's ready for the cold! He's a snow angel if ever I've seen one!

He's so Strong!!

The shirt had to be taken off otherwise he would've ripped right through the sleeves!!

Handsome and Helpful!

He is such a huge help around the house now!! We have since cancelled our housekeeper!

Partying Like A Rock Star

This is Marley's girlfriend! Her name is Grace; we call her princess Gracie! She and Marley go to the clink together and Gracie is the daughter of our friends Dylan and Lindsay, we work with Dylan! Mike thinks Grace is the cutest little girl he has ever seen and apparently so does Marley...unless Dad is trying to hold Grace and then Marley hates her...but that's another post!

This weekend we went to Grace's house to celebrate her brother Jackson's 3rd birthday...notice there are not pictures of Jackson, that's because our little flirt was only hangin with the ladies! To get their attention, Marley tried out the Hughes method of attraction...I think it worked!
When that grew tiresome, Marley then hopped on his wheels and cruised for a new love interest...

Gracie's older sister Sage...apparently he has something for the ladies in this family!!
I think Gracie got a little irked with Marley's flirtaion, because she pretended to ignore him and fain interest in "The Urban Cheeleader", I kid you not that's what the doll is called. And it sings cheers that aren't appropriate for a high schooler, let alone a one-year-old...but it was a gift...and I won't use this post to go off on my soap box about sterotyping...I'm sure everyone can read between the lines!

To get Gracie's attention back on him, he challneged her to an old fashioned drag race...

And in typical boy fashion, the spirit of competition quickly overcame the desire to flirt...girls have cooties anyway...geesh!!

Fun with Gram and Gitdu!

Last Sunday we over to Mike's parents' house for an early Thanksgiving celebration since they will be fasting on the "Real" Thanksgiving!! Gram made a fabulous turkey and mashed potatoes that marley loved and after dinner we didn't even need to clean him up!! Thanks Obie!! I think we are going to need a dog!!

Dare I say Lionel Richie??

No that the mister's hair is getting so long, we can have tons of fun in the bathtub!! His hair is actually long enough to pull all of it back into a ponytail...but then he looks kinda girly, so I'm not going to immortalize that!!

Make Your Holiday Shopping Count!!

With the state of the economy everyone is looking to save a little money this holiday season and no one has money to spare to donate to a worthy cause. You all know that I am passionate about AHOPE for Children and this year you can save money and make a difference by purchasing your holiday greeting cards from AHOPE for only $12


This year AHOPE is offering packages of beautiful holiday cards to send to your friends and family this holiday season. This is a wonderful fund raiser for AHOPE and it also spreads the word of that amazing things AHOPE is doing.

Please consider purchasing a package of these cards from the AHOPE Store today! Your partnership with us in promoting AHOPE makes a huge difference. The more people know, the more that can be done.

As with all store items, 100% of proceeds support the mission of AHOPE.

You can visit the AHOPE Store at www.ahopestore.org

____________________________________________________________________

You can also go to OneCause and register AHOPE for Children as your chosen cause. Whenever you use OneCause to do your retail shopping (at over 500 on-line retailers) a portion of your purchase will be donated directly to AHOPE for Children!!
And the coolest thing is the Onecause toolbar. When you download it and unknowingly go to a Onecause retailer, you'll get a pop-up letting you now that retailer will donate a portion of your purchase to your cause!!
Just last night Michael and I were making our hotel reservations on Expedia when a pop up told us that if we went to Onecause and used Expedia 1.25% of our purchase would go to AHOPE! So of course we did (and it only took one click and we were on the Expedia site, it was just through Onecause) and we were able to help AHOPE without spending ANY extra money!!
How cool is that!?!?

So, if you're going to shop this holiday season, you might as well shop with compassion!!

Marley's New Best Friend

Working Hard for his MOney!!

You Can't Handle the Cute!!

Helpy Helperton!

Such a sweet guy, not only helps with the dishes, but now he is dusting too!!

Mmmmm....Feet....

Say Cheese!!

Natural Born Athlete

Our little guy loves a ball! He throws really well and quit straight actually! I'm thinking H2o player for sure! But he likes any ball!! Especially if he can play with Dad!

Mmmmmm....Guacomole!!

Cruzin!!

Finally I can get the pictures up of our trip! Before we went to Vegas we stopped at Michael and Cindy's house to hang out with them and their twins! Ben and Seb wore their Halloween costumes all day...totally adorable!!

Halloween Fun!!

We had such a great time in Vegas with my family! And I think our little pumpkin did too!