Dear Tuesdays, I wanna love you...

but I just can't. Sorry.

Tuesday is what I like to call my "this is what it would be like if you were a single mom" day. I honestly don't know how you single moms do it.

Tuesdays are the day that my husband is at school all day. He hates Tuesdays too. He leaves here before 8am, then doesn't get home till after the kids are in bed, usually, 8:30ish.

That means that the usual 5:30pm break I count on, no, live for, doesn't come! Even if he just takes them out to jump on the trampoline while I finish making dinner, it is a much needed break to keep this mama sane!

So what usually ends up happening is that I get frustrated, the kids gets hungry, they get bored, I start something, they interrupt, so I get mad, do a little scolding, then there's some crying, you know the drill.

Stay with me, there is a good message here somewhere...

Today, I was determined to make Tuesday "if you were a single mom, you could totally do this" day.

So, after a very long day with my early rising, short napped and grumpy two year old, we picked her brother up from school and headed home. They watched a little TV, colored, played with ink and stamps, jumped on the trampoline, ate dinner, then we went for a walk, came home, bathed/showered, read books, brushed teeth, said prayers, then went to bed.

After not having time to eat lunch, I finally ate dinner at 8:30 as my husband was walking in the door. It was the first time I had sat down all day.

I know most moms (and dads too!) go through this same routine, or worse, every single day. I certainly know I am not the only one with a busy life and two kids in tow.

But on this Tuesday, I am grateful. Grateful, yes, that it's over!

But also grateful for what I have. I have been blessed with a wonderful husband and two of the most amazing kids in the world.

And even though it's easy to say that, sometimes I have to remind myself.

Especially when the word "mama" has been used 100 times in a row by two very persistent kids who don't understand that when a phone is pressed to my ear, it means I'm talking to someone!

Then my mind wanders...and I think of all the children in the world with no homes, no parents, no family, nothing to call their own. No food, no clothing, no shelter, no one to watch after them or keep them safe. It's heartbreaking.

So the truth is, yes, I hate Tuesdays.

But somehow, today, I've managed to be grateful for them too.

I really am one lucky mama and would happily make every day a Tuesday if I had to, in order to have these three most precious people in my life, with a roof over our heads, food on the table, toy bins overflowing, warm beds and enough love for eternity.

Thank you God for allowing me to be their mother and wife.

(And by the way, as amazing as I think this picture turned out, it was THE only one I could use because a certain little someone with a determination to outsmart me, because she didn't want to take pictures, strategically placed her tiny hand on her brother's, well, her brother's tooshie in every single shot! No wonder she stood still so long for these and giggled, now I know what she was doing. That is so Zoey.)

A boy and his Dog.

Hoping this fluffy guy, actually named 'Dog', hangs on a little while longer as it doesn't look like someone is quite ready to give him up!



Who knew a missing tooth could be so cute!
And apparently, with the right color shirt and good lighting, his eyes are blue!

One Little Monkey Jumpin' on the Bed.

Don't worry
she did NOT fall off
and break her head!

The dress, the hat, the flower, the hair, the garden...

It all just makes

for some beautiful pictures

of my beautiful little girl!



Can you tell my new camera arrived

and I have been

LOVE, LOVE, LOVING it??!?!?

The Many Faces of My Adorable Boy.

Last Swim?

We're thinking today might well have been our last dip in the pool this season! (Not including our polar bear swims at Thanksgiving and Christmas of course!)

Yes, down here in the south, you can still swim in September!

So I thought I'd take some "last swim for the summer" pictures!

I also thought it was a good chance to mess around with Lightroom, the photo editing software, that I'll need when my brand new camera arrives next week!! VERY excited about that! :0)

And these photos just prove how crazy Texas weather can be! As I'm typing this, the temperature outside has dropped a good 15 degrees and it is now pouring down rain! Good thing we jumped in when we did!

Giving Back

A while back I wrote a book review on a book that made a huge impact on me. I soon read the follow up book to that one, that once again, became so impactful.

For a while now, I have been thinking about what more I could be doing to help.

I Wish for You A Beautiful Life and Dreaming A World are two books that I highly recommend to every adoptive parent and adoptee from South Korea. We should read about what some of these birth mothers go through. For me, it changed the way I thought about their decisions. Additionally, the proceeds from the sale of these books, is donated directly to Ae Ran Won.

From what little I know about my own history, it is possible that a home like this could have helped my own birth mother in her situation.

I feel in many ways as though it is my calling, my duty, my honor, to help facilities like that of Ae Ran Won, an unwed mother's home in Seoul that provides services to woman who either choose adoption for their child, or to keep them and raise them as single mothers, something that is a long way away from being accepted in the Korean culture.

Not too long ago, I recieved this response from the director of Ae Ran Won after inquiring about what I could do to help.

Dear Kimberly, My Kyung:

Thank you for reading 2 books, I wish for you a beautiful life and Dreaming a world.

Aeranwon has supported the mothers to get their self-reliance for keeping their chidren. According to last year's statistics, 82% of the mothers chose raising babies instead of giving babies up for adoption. So Aeranwon needs funding.

Fund raising for the unwed mothers and their children in Korean society is very difficult because of a lot of prejudice and discrimination toward them.
If you help raise funds for them it would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you so much.

Sincerely,
Sang Soon Han
Director of Ae Ran Won

Because I am not independently weathly, nor have unlimited funds to give, I have decided to do anything I can to help raise funds to give to Ae Ran Won.

To put into perspective what the money is used for:
• $300–500 can support one mother’s schooling or vocational training for a month.
• $100 (less than $3 a day) can feed a baby for a month.
• $50 (less than $1.67 a day) can buy baby supplies for a month.
• $30 (less than $1 a day) can buy a textbook for a mother’s education.

A portion of the proceeds from every sale in my Etsy Store goes directly to Ae Ran Won to use however they choose. But now through the end of October, for every hat sale in my store, I will personally make an additional hat that will be donated to Ae Ran Won.

Many of the birth mothers who come to Ae Ran Won for help, leave everything behind, including their families and jobs and possesions. My hope is for these birth mothers to have something to be able to put on their babies at birth. And whether they ultimately decide to go on and raise their own child, or choose adoption, it will hopefully be a keepsake to remember their time at Ae Ran Won.

The hat style that I will be making is currently out being photographed, but I will post a picture of these adorable newborn hats as soon as I have one! I appreciate you taking the time to read this post, and hope that you will help me spread the word. I would love to send at least 30 hats and hope to have them completed to send by the end of the year.

I wish there was more that I could do personally, but for now, this is my way of giving back.