Mia Does, Indeed, Save the Day

We have just returned from a most nightmarish experience in Maryland with broken hearts. The baby we have been waiting for and into whom we have invested so much emotional energy and so many financial resources is not ours after all. After days of rocking, caring for, and loving her we feel a huge loss. One of the hardest parts (as it is with most trials) is shifting what we'd imagined would be. We worry about her future and wonder about what quality of life she may now have, because instead of spending eternity with her as our daughter and Mia's sister, her birth mother chose to parent and we got to make our way home with an empty car seat.

The morning that the non-adoption decision was made, I went outside to "run" the frustration out. Feeling so disheartened I just wandered around aimlessly until Ispotted this barefoot baby and her handsome dad coming to rescue me:

...and she made it okay.

Big Rock Backyard

Just behind our new property is a beautiful hike to the rock-climbing of the century. It is originally named "Big Rock." We have made good use of this activity during the last few weekends!

Our April 2011 General Conference...

looked like this:

April 2011 General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints

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We have been willing in the spring by spending a lot of time outside. Mia has a whole "outside" routine. After going to visit Izzy and Winnie, she RUNS down the hill to the "jump" (trampoline). Here she is cruising down the slope!

Gma K's friend, Doug, who is a former Math teacher, got this awesome wooden cutting set for Mia. She has got all the names of the fruits and veggies down, and, as was Doug's intention, is subliminally learning her fractions.

One of our parks is exclusively for toddlers. It has these fun climbing rocks! While there, we got to meet with Mia's beautiful birth mother, Asia, and her cute son, Nemo.

Nemo is 18 months older than Mia, but with her hair, they are close to the same size!

Grandma K always begins the birthday season for my family. We went to Texas Roadhouse for her dinner, and I could hardly believe her courage while the staff sang to her and set her on this saddle. Mia wanted to get in on the action:

We have been washing and prepping all of our baby things for our new addition!

Mia thought the Boppy worked better as a clothing accessory. She danced around with it on her shoulders all day!

Since we have been at Grandma & Grandpa R's house, we've had party after party with the cousins. Mia is in heaven when Talan and Sydney come to visit!

Aunt Arianna's 13th birthday, which followed Uncle Ethan's and Gma K's, was celebrated at one of our favorite winter destinations: the giant indoor water park. Mia slept well that night!

Smelling the pansies only to feign delight at their non-smelliness:

Mia loves the reaction she gets from Mom when slimy hands meet newly washed hair.

A sweet moment between our two girls:

Featured here is one of Mia's many pole-dancing moves, complete with subtle smile.

On the same note, here is some nearly nude table dancing to

Sesame Street:

Dr. Ghee-reg

Last week, we were so privileged to attend one of Greg Mortenson's lectures. As one would expect, it was incredible. My sister, who joined us, commented that he is not the most stellar speaker- it is true, he did not schmooze the audience. His content, however, was inspiring and informative. We were elated as we left. He was just the way we envisioned him...an ordinary, matter-of-fact guy with an extraordinary heart and drive.

David and I both reveled in Three Cups of Tea and Stones into Schools, as does everyone who reads them. His overarching theme is to create peace by empowering through education. His particular focus is on educating girls (a wholly un-Talibani effort) because he adheres to the belief that women have great influence. It is a familiar principle, and one that we often hear about every Sunday in Relief Society.

Since not all of us can spend 80% of our lives jaunting through the Himalayas to distribute our resources, what does Mr. Mortenson suggest we do in our own corner of the world?

1. Spend time asking questions and listening to the wisest people in our lives...our elders. They know stuff. Our culture is lacking in sincere interest for our history, the rich lessons we can learn from the past, and those who have witnessed these things first-hand.

2. Hold education in high-esteem and express gratitude for the easy access we have to it by taking advantage of it!

3. Sesame Street answer: accept and appreciate differences in each other. Fight to dissolve barriers and ignorance.

4. Invest these principles into rising generations!

5. Check out these organizations:

http://www.penniesforpeace.org/

http://www.ikat.org/