she is the bomb.

Meet my sister.

Aka, the machine... aka, the boss... aka, paperwork nazi... aka, my superhero... aka, rockstar... aka, list master... aka, bad ass... aka, the bomb...

Or you can call her Jenna:)

I seriously don't know what I would do without her.  Last weekend she made an emergency trip to Louisville, just to make sure I kept my sanity.  I was feeling a little (okay, a lot) overwhelmed by our adoption to-do list.  I honestly had no idea how we would get everything done amidst the chaos that is real life.

So... in comes Jenna.

She seriously has a special gifting.  She flew in super late Friday night and stayed until Tuesday afternoon.  What she was able to do in 4 days would have taken me 4 weeks.

In 4 days... she completely took over my Etsy shop... finished posting all of my jewelry... took me to get my fingerprints done (again)... helped us fill out 2 loan applications... filled out 1 grant application... found us a primary care doctor... booked our doctor appointments... sent emails on my behalf... prepped any Etsy orders that came in... updated my blog... ordered adoption announcements... helped prepare dossier paperwork... the list could seriously go on and on.

She is the bomb.

Really.  

I love you Jenna-benna... thank you for ALL you do.  PS... don't forget your cape.

embracing july {monthly goals}

{image source}

It's so crazy to think that just barely a month ago, sweet baby girl wasn't even on our radar.  In last month's goal post I even talked about "the closer we get to receiving our adoption referral..." 

...but never in a million years did I think that just two days later we would receive that very phone call!!! God's timing is so perfect.  June's goals were created with me and Lance in mind... our little family of two.  But now, July's goals are created with a sweet baby girl in mind... our little family of three:)

mail in // our dossier.

The dossier is the big sha-bang as far as paperwork is concerned.  It's the mac-daddy of adoption papers.  Basically the dossier is a big compilation of a bunch of really important paperwork that gets mailed over to your adoption country... in our case Uganda.  The dossier has to be received in order for any travel dates or court schedules to even be considered.  So obviously, the dossier is a pretty big deal.  We still have a doctor appointment to schedule, a few dozen documents to be notarized, and another round of fingerprints to schedule.  One step at a time... 

make // my lunch.
If I'm honest, I've been making my lunch about once a week... twice if I'm feeling crazy.  I would really love to be on a 3-day-brown-bag schedule.  If I actually go grocery shopping, these lunch days end up being some of my favorite for the week... and I save money... it's a win-win.

maximize // my time.

I've been feeling pretty spread thin lately... between work, adoption stuff, and editing photos, there hasn't been much time for anything else.  And I often wonder how in the world we will get it all done... and I still don't know.  BUT... I do know that the Lord never gives us more than we can handle.  So, in the meantime, I'm taking deep breaths and remembering to trust Him with my time.

memorize // scripture.

I'm not that great at scripture memory.  Okay, okay... I'm terrible at it.  But that's mostly because I don't take the time to memorize it.  This month I want to memorize just one verse.  Just one.  That's it.  Will you join me?  Just one verse... your choice.

What about you?  What are you focusing on this month?

In case you're interested... or super bored at work... here are my previous monthly goals: January, February, March, April, May, and June.

you should probably be shopping...

We've updated the Etsy shop...  and items are moving quickly!!  And every single penny goes straight to bringing our sweet baby girl home!!

Now go.  Go shop your little heart out.

thankful thursday {link up}

{Link up your own Thankful Thursday post below...}

This Thursday I am thankful for...

1) Shop progress.  In an effort to raise some funds for our adoption fees I am selling some fun items in my Etsy shop!!  I have some jewelry listed (all handmade by me)... as well as some of the badass woodwork that my dad has been doing.  He has some gorgeous bowls listed and some really cool writing pens.  Please take a look and spread the word... ALL shop proceeds go directly towards bringing home sweet baby girl!!!

2) Little Cat.  I am so thankful that my Little Cat is home.  I didn't realize quite how much I would miss him if he were gone.  Our house just isn't the same without him.

3) My sister... who just happens to be flying into Louisville TOMORROW night!!!  This was a very unscheduled-emergency-sister-visit...  My parents got a good deal and booked her a last-minute flight after I called my mom mid-panic attack on Tuesday.  I've been a tad overwhelmed with all that we have to do in regards to tidying up our adoption stuff.  It will be nice to have my sister in town for a few days to help me stay on track and hopefully not have a melt down.  Annnnnndddd... we might just paint baby girl's room this weekend:)

What are you thankful for this week? Grab the Thankful Thursday button from the right sidebar and link up your own post below. Be sure to visit the other Thankful Thursday participants and share the love!!

I may be linking up with any of these fellow Thankful ladies:

The Fontenot Four

First Day of My Life
There's Just One Mommy

Lovely Little Whimsy

antique love {mail sorter obsession}

My new office is in this little town in southern Indiana... It's a town that's full of fast food restaurants and about a gabillion antique stores.  No lie.  Lucky for me, I've never met an antique store I didn't like. So, I thought it might be fun to do a little treasure hunt post every now and again... you know, so I can show off my mad antique-hunting skills.  Here's treasure number one...

I'm kind of obsessed with this adorable little mail sorter.  I love everything about it... the yellowed labels... the size of the mail slots... and THAT COLOR.

Love.Love.Love.  

I also loved that I didn't have to do a single darn thing to it.  No painting, no crafting, no repairing... etc.  I found it in a little antique store by my office and I knew exactly what I wanted to do with it the moment I laid eyes on it.  So, in the car it went...

The little mail slots were the perfect size for all of my miscellaneous scrapbook supplies... stickers, washi tape, adhesive, ink pads, and all of those Project Life cards.  My new find sits perfectly on the end of my desk, and I was able to fill it up pretty quickly:)

I've thought about using some little vintage numbers to add some detail to each of the slots, but I'm in no rush.  For now I'm completely content with the yellowing labels that are already there:)   I love everything about this piece... so adorable, no??

Are you a fellow antique-lover?  Have you found any vintage treasures lately?

weekend festivities

This weekend...

...Litte Cat went missing... 

It was catastrophic.  Thursday morning Little Cat went MIA... I didn't start freaking out until Saturday... which is also when I made these fancy signs.

...we ate our first egg sandwich...

With our very own fresh backyard eggs.  And they were delicious.  You really can tell a difference, swear.

...on Saturday Little Cat was still missing...

 And this was about when I started losing it.  I went to the animal shelter Saturday morning... BIG MISTAKE.  If you ever just need a really good cry, go to your local animal shelter.

...I played an intense game of Mexican Train...

Yep, our dinner parties consist of dominos, wine and baby monitors.  Don't be fooled, people were dancing on the table right after this picture.  I kid, I kid.

...yet another friend moved away...

Our dear friends Bekah and Andrew packed their bags and left for NYC this weekend.  We celebrated with good food, lots of laughing, snow cones, and mexican train.  It was bittersweet.  You will be missed B.

...Little Cat came home...

YAY!!!  LC made his way home late Saturday night... you know, right after I put up all of our signs... He came inside and ran straight to his food and water and seemed pretty hot.  We think he might have been trapped in someone's garage or something.  Regardless, we are SO GLAD he is home.

...I busted out the spray paint...

I forgot how much I love spray painting projects... such instant gratification.  More on this project later though:)

What about you??  Anything exciting this weekend??

etsy shop open for business!!

 

It's been a loooooong time since I've listed anything on my old Black Tag Studio Etsy website... but all that is about to change!  Slowly but surely, jewelry is going up in the shop!  Everything is handmade by me.  All shop sales will go directly to our adoption fees... and trust me, there are plenty of them...

Please take some time to visit the shop and look around.  Be sure to keep checking in, as I will be adding several more items throughout the coming weeks!!

dear baby girl {letters from the heart}

Dear sweet baby girl,

How is it possible to love someone so much, so fast?  Ever since we received that phone call two weeks ago we simply can't stop thinking about you.  

We talk about you all the time... wondering what you are like... what your favorite foods are... how big you are... what your hair is like... if you have a favorite caregiver... what your name will be... how long before you come home with us... and it goes on and on.  

I pray for you every morning on my way to work.  Your daddy has your picture saved as his wallpaper on his phone.  Your Mimi couldn't contain herself and already mailed you a package full of adorable new clothes and your very first dolly.  Friends and family have already started planning your arrival, as many of them have been praying for you long before they ever knew you.  You are already so, so loved by so, so many... and that makes us so, so happy.

Hurry home sweet girl, hurry home.

Love,

your mama

thankful thursday {link up}

{Link up your own Thankful Thursday post below...}

This Thursday I am thankful for...

1) Progress.  Ever since finding out about sweet baby girl, we have been steadily pushing through the paperwork.  In the past two weeks, we have completed our I-600, paid the I-600 application fee, finalized our home study documents, completed our agency registration documents, knocked out a few dossier checklist items, and heck... we even notarized some forms at a housewarming party we went to last weekend.  We are pushing through.  It definitely helps when you have an adorable picture to look at for motivation:)

 2) Tomato plants.  We finally got our tomatoes planted in the beds this past weekend!!!  Tomatoes are pretty much the only thing that I care much about in regards to all this gardening business.  I love tomatoes and you just can't beat homegrown.  Apparently the chickens like tomatoes too... well, at least tomato leaves anyways.  It didn't take long before we had to put netting up.  Either way... I'm pumped about eating some tomato sandwiches soon!!!

3) Pretty commute views.  Aka... sit-on-the-bridge-in-traffic-for-forty-minutes-view.  Don't worry, I was perfectly safe while taking this picture... I think my car might have even been in park at this point (yep, it was that bad).  I rarely get stuck in traffic on my drive to-and-from the office, but if I do... it's usually on the bridge... which I'm okay with.  Bumper-to-bumper traffic isn't nearly as bad with the Ohio River and the Louisville skyline to keep you occupied, so for that, I am grateful.

What are you thankful for this week? Grab the Thankful Thursday button from the right sidebar and link up your own post below. Be sure to visit the other Thankful Thursday participants and share the love!!

I may be linking up with any of these fellow Thankful ladies:

The Fontenot Four

First Day of My Life
There's Just One Mommy

Lovely Little Whimsy

things that make me happy...

On my happy list lately...

...fresh cut flowers from our front porch...

...cherry limeades at work...

 ...downs after dark...

...pretty thank you cards...

...an anonymous strawberry fairy...

...my new Uganda necklace...

 ...awesome antique finds...

...quality time with the girls...

 ...my handsome husband...

...my new project life kit...

(and the most appropriate 3x4 card ever)

The past couple of weeks have been beyond exciting around here... I am constantly reminded of how much I have to be grateful for.  We simply can't stop thinking about our sweet baby girl and we have been so encouraged by how all of our friends and family have responded to our adoption news.  Baby girl is already so, so loved... and that makes me so, so happy.

What's on your happy list lately?