Krafty Korner: Bibs in Blue

We have made multiple bib and burp sets in various colors.

This is the latest collection in blue and Danish linen. .

Krafty Korner: Kids Clothes

This is another little creation that Jose' made. It's a basic reversible jacket (size for 12 to 18 months). He did a fantastic job with all the tiny details.

Family Traditions... Rock a Bye Baby

This rocker has been in my family for generations. I admire the antique red paint that is worn around spindles and arms. I contemplate about the stories that were told by my Great Grandmother as she rocked her children in this sentimental piece of furniture.

We used this rocker as a corner stone for our nursery. It has given us great creative inspiration. This object has also sparked conversations about family traditions.

Jose and I have begun to think about our history as it relates to our growing family. We discuss our Anglo and Hispanic cultures and ponder about our child’s biological culture. We consider how best to blend all of these into one united family. This conversation has developed into an ongoing list of hopeful family traditions. In addition, we want to include traditions that are important to our child’s Birth Parents. Our mission is to ensure that our child knows all the facets that make him or her very special.

Nursery Bedding - Crib Sheets

We decided to break down and buy crib sheets. It's more trouble than it's worth to try and make fitted sheets. In addition, they would never fit properly. Our vendor of choice was Babies-R-US because they had 100% cotton khaki gingham fitted sheets. They are really nice because the maker used a quilting stitch as an added embelishment. Total cost was $46.76 for three fitted sheets. We had a 20% coupon and used a Visa reward points gift card. This brought the total out of pocket cost to zero dollars for this purchase.

Nursery Bedding - Crib Skirt

We should put this project under the title Almost Homemade. We cheated by opting to buy a Babies-R-Us basic white crib skirt. The $17.99 Koala Baby Dust Ruffle was much cheaper than a Simplicity pattern. This was a great foundation for our project. Caramel linen fabric and red cotton bias ribbon was added to this inexpensive skirt for a full look that will puddle onto the floor. The double rolled finished edges were time consuming but very essential for a custom look. Total project cost was $38.00 including Babies-R-Us off the rack crib skirt.

Nursery Bedding - Blanket

Nursery bedding is expensive! We have looked in stores and online at these little sets and their outrageous price tags. We have a problem spending $500.00 to $1500.00 on a crib ensemble that will most certainly be covered in poop, pee and vomit. Let's face it... diapers leak and kids get sick.

After much thought and debate we decided to make our own crib bedding. The accent fabric we have chosen is called Topsy Turvey Circus Toile (sage). It's fun, classic and fits into our gender neutral nursery. The accompanying fabrics are: caramel linen, white oxford cloth, khaki gingham and red cotton piping.

We did however succumb to the retail gods. The blanket pictured below is from Bambini Carini and was a splurge. The cost was actually reasonable because of the workmanship and cable knit backing. We also thought the purchase would give us some creative inspiration. Take a look online at http://bambinicarinionline.com/blankets-c-27.html to view Carini's other great finds.

FYI... we set a project goal of $125.00 for all materials (excluding Carini blanket). Look for upcoming pics as we complete this creative task.

Upcoming Adoption Agency Events

Family to Family Adoptions Inc.
Children's Fashion Show and Fair
When: Sunday March 1, 2009 at 1:00 PM
Where: Pecan Grove Plantation Country Club
3000 Plantation Dr, Richmond, TX 77469
RSVP: jennifer@fam2fam.org or call 281-342-4042
Tickets are $10.00 per person. This event features informal modeling of Kelly's Kids clothing. In addition, KidsPrints will be demonstrating memorization techniques for your child's hand or foot prints. Kids can enjoy balloon sculptures, face painting, cup cakes and costumed characters. Silent auction items will also be available. Come and enjoy the festivities, food and family fun!
Proceeds go to assist the Birth Parent Scholarship Fund.
____________________________________________________
Family to Family Adoptions Inc.
Art Auction
When: Sunday April 19, 2009 from 2PM to 6PM
Where: Pecan Grove Plantation Country Club
3000 Plantation Dr, Richmond, TX 77469
RSVP: max@fam2fam.org or call 281-342-4042
You are cordially invited to attend an Art Auction by Perry Berns Gallery of Dallas, Texas. Perry Berns Gallery has pledged 25% of the event proceeds to be donated to Family to Family Adoptions which is a 501c3 non-profit. Wine and hors d'oeuvres served. Come enjoy this first time collaboration between Family to Family Adoptions and Perry Berns Gallery.
Proceeds go to assist the Birth Parent Scholarship Fund.

Our Adoption Agency

We feel very fortunate to have found a locale adoption agency that is willing to work with us. It is not easy finding an agency that excepts same sex applicants and truly understand the dynamics of non-traditional families. Our needs can be different from heterosexual couples and the legal aspect alone can be daunting.

Our agency's staff put us at ease from the beginning. They did not ask us to use forms geared to heterosexual couples. You know... Mother's Name / Father's Name or Husband / Wife. They had forms for us stating Parent One / Parent Two. This small gesture made us feel that our agency understood our goal and we fit into their mission.

Our adoption agency is small and has a wonderful track record with both traditional and non-traditional families. They work with a limited number of waiting adoptive families. The average wait time for an adoptive family is six months. This is the average but I have not met or talked with an adoptive family that has waited longer than 12 months. Our agency responds quickly to questions and keeps us in the information loop. Our social worker always responds to emails and phone calls within a couple of hours.

The latest technological advances will not be found on our adoption agency's website. This is not important to us. What we have found is a caring staff and involved social workers that understand the needs of their clients. Family to Family is truly dedicated to personalized service for all parties involved in the adoption process.