A little Q&A Part 2

Okay....more answers to your lovely questions!

From the fabulous Janna who asked:

1. Who taught you how to sew?

2. Which part of your triathlon are you most worried about (swim, bike or run)?

3. How did you and your husband meet?

Oh and will that pouch hold diapers? :)

To answer #1: My Gramms for the most part! The rest I kinda just gathered and had plenty of trial and error through! :)

For #2: I have to say the swim. I am not worried about the distance, but the water....I am NOT a fan of swimming in lakes. *shudder*. And I have to say I have a little anxiety about the bike, even though I LOVE riding my bike, I decided ( with my sister's suggestion) to go check out the bike route for the race....bad idea for me. I am better NOT knowing what I am in for and just bite the bullet the day of. Get the distance training in and just go for it, but my sister is opposite. She likes it all mapped out. BUT! Then, I have had three more weeks to think about some daunting hills....let's not think about it any more shall we?! ;) I know I am as ready as I can be though....and I am just gonna imagine I am in a swimming pool....not a warm icky lake....

OK....and for #3: My hubby and I actually met through mutual friends in HS. Then we starting going to the same church, became good friends and a year later started dating....been together ever since! I know, not a super exciting story by any means, but I'll take it!

Oh, and no, it won't hold diapers. It's just a little zippy pouch great for cosmetics or the like. :)


AND, for the total random bonus:

I absolutely hate doing dishes. Despise it. However, I do not mind putting them away.....I know, totally weird.

Some Q&A Time Part 1

Okay, so you asked and I promised to answer!

So here goes....with just some added bonus info for fun. :)

Andrea asked:

what is something that gives you daily (or almost daily) inspiration?

Without a doubt, my son. He has inspired so much from the beginning of Little Bird. Actually, without him Little Bird wouldn't exist!

Other than my fun side-kick son, nature, textiles and different fabric prints can sometimes spark an idea that then starts morphing into more of a project of some sort.


And Craft Micahroni asked:

My question is, how close are you to bringing your little one home?

Well, closer than we were last week, but with two trips (trip one coming up SOON just next month!) and a court date, it's still going to be a while. However, we do think it will be by years end...

K, last one for the day...

eileensideways asked:

u are standing in line to buy a book, what book are you buying?

Ah, great question! Being in both the adoption mind set as well as crafting, I will need to pick two!

This one:

Sewing Bits and Pieces: 35 Projects Using Fabric Scraps

AND

This one:

Adopted For Life

Oh! AND...she also asked:

if u didn't know how old you were, what age would u want to be? and why?

I think 27. It was just a great year that I can remember. My little boy was then turning two and becoming quite fun! It was also a good year in learning a lot more about who I was and where I was going, both as a wife and mother. Yeah, I liked that year....and the ones after have not been too bad either! ;)


OKAY and a totally random "get to know more about Jaime than you ever wanted to" bonus:

I love chinese food. When we go to eat chinese food, I cannot eat without using chopsticks! Why? Because I grew up going at least every one of my Gramms birthdays to a chinese restaurant and when I was 7, my cousin Mark and I decided to try them out. I've never stopped using them since! And my son? He started using them at about 4yrs. :)

This Day...

This day, ten years ago, I married the love of my life! A decade together...wow.

In ten years we have had

-joy
-sorrow
-laughter
-pain
-a child through birth
-mourned not being able to have more when we wanted
-learned God's incredible grace and timing truly is not our own
-the journey of bringing home a child through adoption
-learned again how God's timing is perfect, not ours
-more moments than I can recount here together in this amazing life of marriage

We have grown in ways I never knew we could...or would.

We have learned to bend and sway with the gusting winds life can sometimes bring into a marriage. We have learned to choose to love each other through it all.

I cannot imagine my life without this man. My partner in this journey.

I love you babe. I cannot wait to see what the next decade and beyond brings for us. Happy Ten Years Together!

Drum roll please......

OK, it's about time I draw a winner and start answering some questions!!!

First, the winner courtesy of random.org is....

Number 6! Who happens to be Denise who asked:

"I'm new to reading your blog so you may or may not have broached this subject before. My question is: what led you to choose to adopt from Russia as opposed to other foreign countries?"

Congrats and great question! Give me a holla at kinelska(at)gmail(dot)com with your contact info so I can send your goody to you!

To answer your question:

We knew we wanted to adopt from Eastern Europe somewhere (being part of my heritage is that) and through searching actually learned about the country of Kazakhstan. We knew about Russia, of course, and even know others who have adopted from there. Just never really thought, "oh hey! let's go there". We decided on an agency and through learning the different requirements and travel expected (already having a child at home to consider as well), Russia ended up being the best fit for us all around. Travel especially seemed much better, as with the first country we considered, 6-10 weeks away from home just wasn't going to work for us.
We are really happy we decided on Russia and have enjoyed learning so much more about it than we ever knew before. The culture, language....it's been a truly joyous, and at times with the delays, a frustrating experience. But! We know it will be worth it!

So, I hope that answers your question well! If not, I am always happy and willing to "talk adoption". It's my heart and we know we will adopt again in the future, whether domestically or internationally. :)


Thank you to all who entered! I will be answering the rest of the questions starting next week! And, if you missed the giveaway, but still want to ask a question go for it! I might even do another drawing for another fun little surprise!

The Turning of Thirty Two

Ya know, I don't feel like I am about to turn 32. I know it is not an old age by any means, but I just don't feel that age. The age I did love though, 27! Not sure why, but it was a pretty good year.

The past two years I have done things like 30 random things and 31 flavors or some such. This year? I am not sure. I am thinking perhaps you guys could ask me 32 questions! Not that there are necessarily 32 people even reading this here blog, but perhaps we can make it work.

So, ask me anything! It can be about adoption, how I got started sewing, who my greatest spiritual influence is....whatever!

OH! Aaannnd, for for each of you that asks a question, you will get an automatic entry into my little giveaway! What am I giving away?! Well this cute little zippy pouch! That's what.


I must say, this fabric makes me want to just live in a cute little village, or town or street just like it! Colorful houses, adorable gardens and all! How about you?

For a BONUS entry:

*tweet or facebook (or both) about this giveaway

*tell me your favorite coffee (or tea) drink

Remember to leave a separate comment for each!

**UPDATE: Extended until Monday! I will draw a random winner Tuesday!**

I will choose a random winner next Friday, May 21st! OH! and this is open too ALL, international as well. :)

Bleachy Tees!

I have a new obsession. Well, it might not be new, but it sure is fun! And it's been a good distraction from all the adoption craziness going on here lately....

So, what is this new obsession? Well, it's making t-shirt designs with a bleach pen on some plain jane tees! Sound fun?

Here is how I go about it:

Take a plain tshirt (or a print one, whatever you like really)

Get your bleach pen

Like so:

I used a tshirt form from Hobby Lobby I got a while back. You could also just put freezer paper on the other side of the shirt to prevent any bleeding from the bleach pen. Make sure you don't draw the design bigger than the paper or form or you will have some bleach action on the back of the shirt too!

Now, here is where you can do one of two things: you can trace the design you want with chalk first and then trace over that with the bleach pen. OR, you can just freehand it. I did both ways and for some reason the chalk one turned out more blotchy. Not sure why, maybe I will test it out again to see if maybe it was just a fluke. However, do what works best for you. :)


Monster Surfing

Fun Robot

Then, I let it sit for approx. an hour on the shirt. Basically make sure the color is actually changing on the shirt where the bleach pen is. Then, pop it in the wash and then dry and VOILA!

Fun new and super personalized t-shirt!!!

Now, I just need to stop finding tshirts to do this to. Before I know it all my son's t-shirts will be bleachy designed!

Today

Ahhhh.....I feel like I can breath again.

And this is a good thing compared to yesterday. Yesterday felt like a nightmare. A horrible, no good, very bad nightmare. The nightmare, unfortunately, isn't over, but I am still hopeful. And not a false sense of "everything is just gonna be great and fine and OK!", but just a peace. A peace that truly surpasses all understanding.

I went back to the fabric store (with coupon in hand!) to get the other fabric I found yesterday. Funny thing, I ended up choosing another one! I liked it better. I even texted the pic to my hubby to see what he thought. I love my iphone. And guess what? It was ON SALE! I didn't even need my coupon. Bonus. Aaand...it didn't rain buckets on me! The sky was dark, but just tiny drops and I did not get drenched walking to my car.

I also love that I feel mostly me again! I know that might sound completely odd to some, but if you know me in real life, you know I am a pretty positive person who is typically pretty happy and excited for others and their good news. Yesterday though? That me was buried under potential grief and pain that was just so dark. I did not like being there in that dark place. It's just not me.

But sometimes I think we all need to just be let to be mad. To be angry and hurt and let it come out. To be able to express it and be OK with not wanting to talk or be reminded of the pain that was bearing down so hard on me yesterday. The fear and pain are still there, but I am able to let it go and let a peace wash over me. I am able to breath today.

I was also able to see cute little girl stuff and not burst into a mess of tears. That is a super improvement over yesterday! I cannot promise I won't tear up on occasion, but ahhh. Breathing feels good.

It feels good to feel more like me again.

I hope no matter what your day is like, that you are able to breath and have a peace too.

Happy Weekend and many Blessings to you!