HaddyGraceDesigns

I don't feel qualified to write about adoption, there are Mamas who have walked harder, longer roads than I have. My journey has been short, and fairly uncomplicated. We've gained the sweetest 2 year old you ever did meet.  Maxwell, Days after we were introduced to him. Jan 2014   However, I am going to write about a few of the feelings that I, as a mom encounter in the past 10 mo. these feelings completely blindsided me! I was in no way prepared for any of them. When our son was first placed with us, we embraced having an 18 mo. old, none verbal little boy in the house. The honey moon period lasted a few short weeks, in those honey moon weeks I felt like I really wanted this child to be mine, And then the hard things hit, Forcing me to face the fact that this baby boy had missed out on so much in his short life, forcing me to recognize that emotionally he was no where near 18 mo. Anger at his Birth parents, Why didn't they... why did they..... ...

Reality has come crashing in my friends, Cruel harsh reality!!   I always thought I'd be a cool Mom.. Wasn't that one art my of the reason to start our family when we were barely in our twenties?? So that we'd have energy to keep up with them, and have similar interests, and share clothes, and like the same movies, be able to have fun with their friends..   But something happens... When your firstborn stands taller than you, and turns into a teenager (I am not talking 13, I am talking when they become mouthy, and Mom knows nothing anymore,) You as a parent will suddenly become completely and 100% grown up. No matter how young of a parent you are, you become hopelessly mature,  you take things seriously, elections are serious, (you can't deny any longer that you are voting for people that will affect the world your children will be adults in.) The carefree young parent is history.. You can see the young adults your offspring are beco...

As if the Challenge of living on a budget isn't enough, us Moms we also have the Challenge of making healthy meal choices for our families. And Unless your grocery budget is 2-3 times the size of mine you are probably discovering how hard it is to buy healthy foods AND stay within budget. Cereal is expensive, but healthy cereal is even more expensive!! It's upsetting when I look at the ingredient list of something I have spend our hard earned money on and find ingredients of things that I don't recognize and can't pronounce. That's why Cereal is one of the items I have decided to eliminate from our grocery list.  However what to have on hand for a quick breakfast?? Granola to the rescue!!!! For my Birthday my sister gave me a small Jar of Chocolate Granola, It didn't look like much, but lets say I was pretty much HOOKED after the first bite! Here you go!! 3 cup rolled oats 1 cup chopped walnuts 1 cup rice crispies Mix together in a bowl. ...