Big give-away! Great prizes for a great cause!

Reason for this giveaway.... My good friends Richelle and Nathan (and their sweet daughter Y) are moving to Soddo, Ethiopia for two years to work as children’s home directors. They have wanted to do this for as long as I’ve known them –that is a LONG time!—and they finally have the opportunity. If you know them, you know they will do amazing things. If you don’t know them, then trust ME, their friend of 10+ years…they will do great things!

While they will be getting a stipend that will cover their every day expenses for life in Soddo, they are raising funds for their US-based expenses like moving and health insurance. You can donate to their fund by clicking the donate button on the upper right hand corner of this page.

Want to learn more about the Haines family and their upcoming work? You can friend them on FB @ “Haines go to Soddo”, check out Aerie Africa’s blog or website, or Richelle’s blog.

And, now for some housekeeping…

The giveaway will run until Sunday, May 1^st at 5:00pm CST. At that time, little Y (with a little help from her parents) will draw the winners. Video of the drawing and a list will be posted here on this blog and on my FB page by 7pm on the same day. The first name drawn will be our GRAND PRIZE WINNER! All remaining winners will choose the prize they want in the order that they are drawn.

Email me at sarabosaw at gmail dot com for details on how to enter this giveaway!

You can earn two extra entries if you cross-post the link to THIS page on your blog or your FB page (one each). Just let me know you did so by commenting here or emailing me.

ALL items have been donated... THANK YOU to the donors!

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Grand Prize: WOW! Winner’s choice of either iPod Touch 8GB or Nook Color w/WiFi

or

1. Custom, handmade doll by my talented friend Ruthanne. You can work with Ruthanne to choose gender, skin tone, and fabric for clothing. Adorable!

2. Personalized, custom-embroidered Beach Towel, just in time for summer! Donated by Jill atStitches So Sweet. Be sure to ‘like’ her FB site and join her mail list for updates and sales! Jill has so many great items for sale, all customizable!

3. Custom Applique Initial Shirt by Jennifer at LilBluBirds! Winner chooses gender, size and initial. (Check out Jen's sold items on her Etsy site for more of what she does...she's been a LITTLE busy lately, wink, but has STILL graciously donated to this raffle. THANK you!)

4. Custom Applique Africa shirt by Jennifer at LilBluBirds. Winner chooses gender and size.

5. Appliqued 18 month Africa Onesie for a girl by Jennifer at LilBluBirds.

6. Handmade Cards by Meghan – set of 8 one-of-a-kind cards made by my pal and former preceptor (!), the fabulous Meghan. Thanks, Meghan!

7. Hand-stamped necklace made by my buddy Shannon who just returned from Ethiopia herself, meeting her sweet son! Winner can choose one pre-made necklace at her Etsy site! Image is sample only and not guaranteed in stock.

8. Set of three bath salts, handmade by Sarah F. Two jars of lavender and one eucalyptus, made with sea salt, Epsom salt, and Vitamin E oil. Perfect to get rid of that winter weather skin! Sarahblogs here about family and adoption and will be listing some handmade goods on Etsy soon, so check back.

9. Gift basket from Belle Butters. Thanks to Tasha for donating three of her popular handmade butters: Double Agent butter, Whipped Shea Butter, and Orange Dream Cream Butter. For the hair or body… and the reason my boy’s cheeks are so dang kissable! Check out her store for more products and info.

10. Toms Shoes Gift Card (value $50) - The best part is… your donation just doubled! For every pair of shoes purchased, Toms donates a pair to a child in need!

11. iTunes Gift Card ($20)

12. Starbucks Gift Card ($20)--donated by my mom. Thanks, mom! : )

13. Framed, signed photograph by the talented Marisa. Thank you, Marisa for this gorgeous nature print! Frame is 11x14” and matted photograph is 8x10”. Marisa blogs here about kids art projects and lessons.

14. Custom Bottle-cap Necklace and Bow by Libby Lou's! Check out their FB page "Libby Lou's Bottle Cap and Scrabble Tile Jewelry and Accessories". So many options... itinials, characters, flags, holiday themes...That super cute model is my cousin Libby and the talented bow-maker is my aunt Chalon. : )

15. Hand-made cards by one of my besties, Heather. Set of 6. I’ve been the lucky recipient of her handmade cards for years… what a treat. Heather blogs here (occasionally, but will be blogging more soon I am promised!)

16. Traditional, authentic Ethiopian handmade basket and scarf imported by none other than Richelle. (Also, see Richelle’s blog for more Ethiopian goods for sale!)

17. Chicago gift card grab bag - thanks to miscellaneous donors for various Chicago-based gift cards! More details to come.

Email me at sarabosaw at gmail dot com for details on how to enter this giveaway!

Thank you, thank you to all of the donors of goods to this fabulous giveaway!

Sappy Sunday : {My favorite things...}

Okay, I know there are way too many 'favorite things' about Abel, but I have to document some of this crazy cuteness.

Today's favorite thing:

Abel wears one of those rubber bibs with a catcher. Yeah, he's pretty messy. Surprised?

After he finishes his meal he always tips his bib up to see what sweet morsels are left behind. He always acts surprised like, "Hey, wow! LOOK! I found a black bean!!" It's hilarious.

Sorry for the crappy photo quality... the boy moves fast.

Sappy Sunday

It dawned on me when I woke up from our second 3 hour nap of the weekend. (Yep, go ahead and hate me!)

THIS is what I worked so hard for.

This time last year, I was working two stressful jobs and finishing school. I was waiting on embassy... Adoption was stress. Waiting was stress. Work was stress. Life was stress.

This weekend it was just the two of us for the whole weekend. I didn't cook once. I took 3 hour naps. We watched E1m0. We danced. We laughed. We dined out almost every meal with our special party of two. We went to the park.

It was so very worth it.

Random rant-i-ness

I am going to say something. Please, please don't take it out of context and please don't judge based on your own family values (and don't get me started on that term!).

Parenting alone is hard.

I KNEW it would be difficult. Of COURSE I knew that. I still chose it and I still love it. But, some days are hard... some days are REALLY hard.

There are the things I expected like little time to myself, reduced social life, lack of sleep, the "daddy" issue, and ... well, I could go on and on about the things that I had prepared myself for.

The one thing that I didn't prepare for? I'm doing this alone.

I know, it sounds stupid, right? Of course I knew I was doing it alone, but did you know I was doing this ALONE?

The decision-making that happens as a parent... Where will they go to day care? Where will the go to the doctor? Is that doctor meeting our needs? Do we need to be re-evaluated by early intervention? Does... well, you get the point.

I have not one person to discuss these things with who has the same vested interest in my child. Not one. I'm not stupid enough to believe that all of this would be completely better with a partner. I was married before. I know that sometimes they're more trouble than they're worth, wink. I do have my mom (love you) and friends (love you, too) and save-my-sanity-single-momma-friends (you KNOW how I love you) but when it boils down to it... it's just me.

One single momma friend is going through some school decision stuff right now (hello, you) and it has got me thinking... all of that is headed my way.

It just gets harder, doesn't it? Thank goodness for the support I have, but wow... this stuff is so much harder than not getting any sleep.

Bathtub Barbershop

We've got a little problem of fuzzies over here. Also, some uneven spots, especially over his (former) bald spot on the back of his perfect little (read= GIGANTIC) noggin.

I looked around trying to find a kid-friendly haircutting spot, but decided that since Abel would likely freak, it would be too traumatic for both of us. Grandma and Grandpa were in town for the weekend and could offer the moral support, so we had our first 'Bathtub Barbershop' appointment.

Yep, didn't you know? I am now also a barber. And a damn good one!

Before- Abel: 50% cheeks/50% hair

Before

Fuzzy pic of LONG hair

Chopping with my Grandma-assist

Tell me I don't look like a professional!

Sweet baby curls...

After

Loving his new look.

Walk-ins welcome.

Boy, oh boy.

He's a gorgeous boy.
Some days he just takes my breath away.

Sappy Sunday

This week I've been thinking....

1. How did we get here? and

2. How did I get so lucky?

Seriously... how did we get here? Two people from halfway around the world ended up a family? When I think about all the things that lined up to bring the two of us together, it kind of blows my mind. I struggle with the whole 'meant to be' philosophy in adoption. No, I don't think it was meant to be that Abel's birth parents couldn't parent him so that I could. But, do I think there was something divine about our coming together given the situations on both sides of our world? Most definitely.

I am so stinking lucky. I get to live with THIS kid. He's freaking hilarious, and just a little cute! Lots of personality and full of love. This little rascal who had me so worried last year, fretting over his weight, fretting over court dates...what was I NOT fretting over? He is now demanding 'ssssssaaahh (pizza) for dinner (fresh, no leftovers accepted!) and shooting hoops requiring a high five and applause after every slam dunk. Oh, and booty shakin' to Shakira. He is a trip.

And I am, well, I am just plain lucky.

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