2012 year end review

January

We started the 2012 with sweet Rayleigh turning 1! Not much else happened in January (that I can remember or have pictures to show!)

February

February is always a hard month for me, especially the 1st few days.

Grampie got very sick and passed away in February. This picture was taken by one of my cousins. I love it!

MK with her cousin Cameron sitting with Grammie. This might have been in March....

Madelyn ran the Gasprilla's Children race for the 2nd year in a row. She is already started asking me about her next race.

March

Grampie's memorial service was the 1st part of March. While everyone was together, we took the opportunity to take pictures. Here is me with my Dad, my siblings and their children (and Nat too!) There are several birthdays in March, but they are all grown-ups, so not much celebrating was done and there surely aren't any pictures!

I think I blogged about work once or twice in the few blog post I did in 2012. This is a picture of my awesome team. Since the transitions, I don't get to work with most of these awesome ladies any more. I miss this team!

April

We went to Disney World for Madleyn's 4th birthday. She had a blast! We had several family members go with us. This picture is at her birthday breakfast at the Grand Floridian Hotel. She got picked to help open the restaurant with Mary Poppins. We liked it so much, we upgraded our tickets to annual passes. This has definitely been the year of Disney. We have been to the parks 5 or 6 times since April.

Prior to Disney, we had MK a small party at the local park. This is really the only picture I have from the party. She had lots of fun.

Relay for Life was again in April. Our team decided we would be taking a year or more off from Relay. This picture was with us and our trophy! This was my 3rd official year on the team and 4th Relay with them. They/we have won the spirit award for the last 8 years!

May

Madelyn made Mother's Day cards for all her grandmothers and great grandmothers. We didn't tell them and surprised them with mail! That's all the pictures I have from May. I don't know why we didn't take more pictures in May!

June

Madelyn had her 1st (of many I'm sure) dance recitals. She loved it and had such a great time! She dances ALL the time.

We also welcomed this little guy into the family! Daniel was welcomed by big sister Rayleigh and parents Cheryl(Wes's sister) and Kenny. MK and Wes made the trip to Alabama shortly after his birth to meet him. I couldn't go because of work.

July

July was a quiet month for the most part. MK spent the 4th with cousins. She loves hanging out with them. We are lucky they live close enough we get to spend time with them!

August

August brought another new family member! Sweet Analise was welcomed by big brother Matias and parents Jason (my brother) and Natalie.

Madelyn officially started Pre-K. It is at the same daycare she has been attending since she was 18 months old, so it was not much of a change. It's crazy to think she will be starting Kindergarten so soon! She is so smart already. She reads on a 3rd grade reading level and does math on (I'm guessing) at least a 1st grade level.

September

We went to Alabama in September to help my Mom move. She got a new house that is so much better than her old house. All her out of town siblings happen to be in town that weekend too! This is my grandma with all 7 of her children. They do not all get together often enough!

The little kids had a water gun fight in the backyard. The "little kids" as we call the younger generation always have fun playing together.

October

October is always a busy month for us. Of course we got lots of pictures!

Mom had a house warming/blessing. This is her picture wall that Natalie and I did thanks to inspiration from Pinterest!

The weekend we were there was also the boys birthdays. There birthdays are one day apart so we try to celebrate them together! This was a very last minute thrown together party. The kids had lots of fun and that's all that matters. These three kiddos love each other!!

We went to Disney for Matias birthday. The top picture is Madelyn waiting to get her face painted at Hollywood Studios. She was so excited and happy to get her face painted. This is most definitely one of my favorite pictures of the year!

Here are out Halloween pictures. Of course there are a ton more! Madelyn was Merida from the new Disney movie, Brave. Matias was a Prince and sweet little Ana was Snow White. Because Matias' birthday is so close to Halloween, the kids got to wear their costumes while at Disney as a test run.

November

We went to Alabama for Thanksgiving. We didn't take very many pictures... who knows why! We did do some family shots with the Hubbards. This is the 3 grandkids on that side of the family all in their Alabama gear.

December

We went to Disney to see Santa. Why not see the Jollies Man around at the Happiest place on Earth! We also got passes to Legoland given to us. Madelyn had a blast riding the roller coasters. I love the expression on her face in this picture!

Every year MK's daycare does a Christmas program and all the classes sing. This was the 1st year they put them on risers like this. They lined MK's class up with tallest in the back. She of course was 3rd from the end. Only 2 boys in her class are taller than her! The riser was not very big and she could not dance like I know she wanted to. They did a great job! A bonus, my mom happen to be in town this weekend and got to see her and Matias sing!

This was from a holiday party at a friend's house. She was so cute all bundled up in her warm clothes. Too bad she only needed them a few days!

Christmas season wrapped up with lots and lots of gifts for MK! This is one spoiled little girl!

We ended the year with MK's 1st sleepover! She had 3 friend over for a New Year's Eve party. They were great and got a long so well. 3 of the 4 of them made it til midnight.

I hope everyone had a fabulous 2012 and is looking forward to a wonderful 2013!!!

Madelyn Kate is 4

I've been meaning to do a post about MK since her birthday, but life has just gotten in the way. I finally sat down and asked her a list of questions I plan to ask on (or around) her birthday every year. I can't wait to see how her answers change.

We were not planning on having her a birthday party because we were taking her to Disney World. A few weeks before her birthday she told me, "I don't want to go to Disney because I want to have a birthday party". We were originally moving the last weekend of March and ended up not moving, so I had a a surprise party. The above picture is her and her friends at her party!

Here are the questions I asked her:

What is your favorite color? pink

What is your favorite toy? Madyson bear This is a bear that was sent to us on a flower arrangement that MK has recently found and taken everywhere with her

What is your favorite fruit? strawberries

What is your favorite tv show? Dinosaur train

What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? sandwich I then asked what kind of sandwich and she said "all"

What is your favorite game? Pretty Pretty Princess

What is your favorite thing to wear? Rapunzel dress

Favorite snack? Cheez-Its

Favorite animal? Monkey

Favorite song? ABCs

Favorite book? Charlotte’s Web

Who is your best friend? Ian Pass

What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? French toast sticks; cereal

What is your favorite think to do outside? Play hide and seek

Favorite drink? Apple juice; milk

Favorite Holiday? Halloween

What do you like to take to bed with you at night? Pillow pets

What do you want to be when you grow up? Work on the computer

Where is your favorite place to go? Alabama

What is something Mommy always says? Go to timeout

What is something Daddy always says? Go to sleep

And what blog post is complete without pictures?!?

MK and Tink on her birthday! She was disappointed the other fairies were not there, but was excited to see Tink.

MK and Handy Manny at Hollywood Studios. She had lots of fun at the Disney Junior area.

This was a few weeks after her party. The dress is made from bandanas. She loves posing!

Trying on her costume for her 1st dance recital, which is this weekend (June 1). She dances ALL the time and is pretty good with the lingo too.

Other things about MK at 4:

*She can read pretty much anything

*She likes to play dress up and Barbies

*She has a thing for Pillow Pets (she has 8 or so)

*She can do simple math, mostly addition

*She loves to draw and write

*She can work the computer by herself and likes to play PBSKids.org

*She has become more aware of Madyson and sometimes talks about her "baby" sister. Other times she is her big sister.

I'm sure there is a TON more, but this is all I can think of right now.

Anniversaries

I'm back! at least for one post!! We'll see how often I visit.

The most dreaded week of my life is fast approaching. I guess it's not really the entire week usually, just a few days of it. Last year the 1st week of February was by far the worst week of the year, possibly the last several years. I'm optimistic that this year will be better. For those that are wondering what in the world I am rambling about, the 6 year anniversary of Madyson's death is fast approaching. I saw this

on Pinterest the other day. It is oh so true. I do miss my sweet girl every day. It makes me sad to know MK will never really know her sister. It makes me sad to think of all the 1st we didn't get to have with her. Then I remember those 10 months we did get to have with her. Seeing her do more than the doctors thought she would. Watching her turn her head to look as she heard her Daddy come into a room and started talking. So many things she could do!!


Enough of the sappy stuff. I've made myself tear up and know I'll need the tears next week. Next week is also my 7 year anniversary!! We share it with my grandparents. This makes it extra special to me. Wes and I have been together since January 2002. 10 years! He drives me bananas but I can't imagine spending the last 10 or next 10 (or the follow 100 either) years with anyone else. We've been through a lot together. He works so hard to provide the best for MK and I. We miss him terribly when he's gone. Luckily we get to see him at least weekly (most of the year anyway). This is us just before Christmas.

here is my grandparents taken just before their 50th Anniversary back in 1999. Just kidding, I can't find the picture already online and am too lazy to hut it down and scan it tonight. Maybe this weekend, or at least before our anniversary I'll get it scanned.

I'm done blabbing for now, but hope to come back next week and do a blog on what's happening at work. It's too much to add to this blog.

I've been super crafty lately. I have been very inspired by Pinterest. Since joining this site I have made several things. Today alone I made MK a dress and tights. Enough words, here's some pictures.

I made this a few weeks ago and did not like how they turned out. You couldn't really see the letters. I painted them white today a like it so much better. The letters just POP off the pages now.

MK helped me make her shirt. The ghost are her feet print in purple paint. She had fun helping me.

Take one of turning Daddy's shirt into a dress for MK. The arm holes were a little small and she did not like how it fit. I cut the sleeves off and came up with this....

I think you can tell from her facial expression she likes this one so much better!

Here is a Rapunzel wig I made MK from a tutorial I found on Pinterest.She loves it and has wore it a lot.


I have found a ton of ideas I can't wait to try. Come back often and see what else I come up with !

I'm still trying to figure out why it is called the "terrible twos" because 3 is ten times worse than 2 was!! MK had 3 fits in the twenty minutes between getting out of the bath and into the bed! Good grief, she was insane!

In other news, Austin came to visit last night. They played pretty well together and both ate lots of spaghetti. Then they took a bath together. Aren't the cute in their hood towels?!?

October is one of our favorite months in the Hubbard house! Is it too early to wear Halloween shirts yet?!? I went to my cousin, Chrisy's house a few weeks ago and we started working on Halloween shirts for the kiddos.

This is MK's new shirt! I won a free photo shoot from a local photographer, Studio 846. Right after we won, she advertised for Halloween mini-sessions. I asked if we could do that for our free session. We will have Halloween/3.5 year old pictures taken on October 1st. Great way to start the Halloween season! My mom is making MK a shirt/tutu to go with her witch shirt.

MK is going to be Alice for Halloween. The day her costume came in she wore it and had me call her Alice all afternoon and evening.

I think she will get to wear it at least 3 times. We are going to Alabama to celebrate Super Y and Monkey's birthdays the end of the month. While we are there, Opp will have their trick or treating. Time of Wonder (daycare) has a Halloween parade and party on Halloween every year. The kids get to wear their costumes to daycare and then they have a parade to the offices in the complex. It was fun last year, so I know it will be a blast this year. Then of course she will get to wear it to go trick or treating on Halloween!

Did I mention all the people born in October?!? Lots of birthdays coming in the next few weeks!

Angel-versaries

Today is the angel-versary of some very special friends sweet little baby. It is always a bitter sweet day to remember. It got me thinking of my sweet Princess Angel Butterfly. She should be in kindergarten this year. It doesn't seem like its been that long!


Look at that sweet baby! I miss her sooo much!!

Just in case you know others who have lost a child and are afraid to ask them about the child, don't be! We (as parents of angels) like to know others think of them as often as we do. Don't be afraid to ask or share memories of them. I can't wait until MK is old enough to really understand and know about her sister.

I hope to do a blog on what we are up to sometime next week. Stay tuned!

New beginnings!

Again, I've waited forever to blog again! Since the last time I blogged, I've accepted a new job. I'll try to explain child welfare in Florida, then my new position will make a little more sense.

Sometime around 2001 the state of Florida began privatizing the child welfare system. They took bids from various agencies across the state to provide the services. In Hillsborough County (where Tampa is), the contract went to Hillsborough Kids, Inc. (HKI). They in turn have contracts with several agencies to provide various services. I currently work for one of those agencies, Camelot Community Care, Inc. in the adoption unit. I was hired as an adoption case manager in Feb. 2009 and have been the family finder for adoptions since July 2009.

Now, I'm going to tell you what family finders is. Family finding is a philosophy and way that child welfare should be done! It helps kids in foster care remain connected to their family. All to often in child welfare, a parent will tell workers that they have no family. The workers take them at their word and the kid ends up in foster care. In 2008 the Foster Connections Act was passed. It requires that ALL relatives up to the 5th degree (which is great aunts and uncles) be notified with in 30 days of a kid entering foster care. I'm pretty sure this is still not happening in most places. I have been working the back end of cases. I work with children that are available for adoption because their parent's parental rights were terminated by the courts. In the past, all relatives were told they could no longer have contact with children once their parent's parental rights were terminated. This is just a silly way of thinking! For the last two years I have been digging through case files looking for names of relatives that use to have a relationship with these kids. I have also met with lots of kids to see who is important to them and who they want me to find. Family Finding is not about a placement for kids, but lifetime connections.

Now to tie this all back together for you (if you're still reading at this point). I have taken a position at HKI as a Family Finding Coach. HKI is part of a research grant that is gathering data on family finding done with a coach versus family finding done without. I will be assisting others in doing family finding, while teaching them to make it part of their everyday work. I am looking forward to this new opportunity!

Sorry for no pictures this time!

May was not quite as eventful as April! We are finally settled in our new apartment. I need to take some pictures of it. MK's room is a fairy haven, Tinker Bell is everywhere!

We went to Alabama the Wednesday before Memorial Day. We had a lot of to do while we were there. Thursday night my brother-in-law, Johnathan graduated from Charles Henderson High School.


Boppin with MK and Rayleigh after graduation.

MK waiting on Boppin to graduate

Sweet Rayleigh at graduation

MK had lots of fun and didn't really want to come home. She got to play with Alaina and Emma and stayed up WAAAY to late every night we were there!


She discovered dress up at Alaina's. She has played several times since we've been home. She also likes to play with Alain's cooking stuff better than her own!

MK as Rapunzel

MK swimming with Emma. These two had a ball playing together.

It was a great trip home, other than my continued headaches. I bumped my head on the trip up (on Wednesday) and have had pretty severe headaches since. I went to the ER on Saturday because the headaches had me in tears 2 different times that day. They did a CAT scan and said it didn't show anything. Thankfully as soon as I feel the pain starting, I can take some Tylenol, Aleve etc and they will go away. The pain is also becoming less dull, so hopefully it's getting better.

We joined the Loyal Order of the Moose/Women of the Moose a month or so ago. We have been going to the Moose Lodge on Sunday's for Game day. It has been a lot of fun. MK LOVES it! She has got to try so many new games. She has gotten pretty good at croquet and frisbee. She tried fishing for the 1st time today and could not get enough of it. I see more fishing in her future!

Fishing! (don't worry there was no hook on her line!)

Golfing with Daddy

Winning at Croquet. She has been appointed chairmen of the Rules committee, so we often play by MK rules. They change often!!

A few weeks ago we took MK and Ian to see Disney on Ice presents Toy Story 3. I made them both shirts to wear. They took a while, but turned out adorable!

I think they both loved it. MK says her favorite part was the Barbie part. The entire time Barbie and Ken were on the ice, she would look at them, then look at Ian. I'm not sure if she was trying to tell Ian he was her Ken or just to see if he was as interested as her. It was too cute either way!

Hopefully I'll get another blog up sooner rather than later!!

April Recap

April has proved to be the busiest month I've had in a really long time! In case you live under a rock and didn't know, I do Relay for Life with Team Go Go at Temple Terrace Relay for Life. April started out with our team's biggest fund raiser. We have an auction and invite all our friends. We raised right at $7000 this year in just a few hours!!

Shot Stop pre auction

Raising money for a good cause! Our fearless leader playing auctioneer!!



The following week, Mom and Aunt Ninny came down on Wednesday. They got to watch MK at gymnastics. Because it is in the middle of the week, not many people ever come to Tampa when she has it. Thursday we woke up early and took MK to school then headed to the hospital just in time for Monkey's surgery. He did great! We worked on packing up the rest of our stuff for the big move on Friday. Friday I signed the lease for our new apartment with the plans to start moving little stuff. When I got to the apartment complex I was told the carpet had not been replaced yet and it would be 3 before we could get in. We went to visit Monkey at the hospital. He was still being a trooper and had to have very little pain meds. (He had crano something or other. The plates in his head were fused together and he didn't have a soft spot, so they went in and separated the plates.)

In recovery just after surgery. Sweet baby! Being in the hospital with all the equipment brought back lots of memories of being there with Maddy.

This was taken on Friday.


Wes got back to Tampa and after a visit to the hospital to see Monkey, we began loading up his plant truck like a moving truck. We had a few friends come help and we got most of our stuff in one load. We knew it would be a late night, so we left MK with Mom and Ninny at Brother's house. Saturday was MK's birthday party. Luckily it wasn't until 3 pm, so that gave us time to get things together. She had a GREAT turnout and got lots of stuff.

It was a Dr. Seuss theme. My mom made her shirt the night before to match her invitation that I had made. This is my favorite picture of her of the day!

Games with Daddy! They played Red Light, Green Light and Duck, Duck Goose

Lori was going to make the cake again this year, but wasn't feeling well. Mom and MK made the cupcakes on Friday night and Lori came and decorated them on Saturday before the party. We made a pull-apart Dr. Seuss hat and then had others with blue icing with fish on top for one fish two fish red fish blue fish. We also had green eggs (deviled eggs with green middle) and then just goldfish.

More eating! The camera died during eating and I didn't get any of her opening gifts. I think someone else did.


Our Relay was on April 15th, which was also MK's 3rd birthday. I got to the Relay site about noon on Friday to help set up the Survivor area. It was a great event! I had to leave at about 7:15 am to go to work. We work 2 Saturdays a year, of course it had to fall the same weekend as Relay and MK's birthday! I got home at about 12:30, so yes I was awake for more than 24 hours (minus the 1.5 hours I slept in a camp chair at Relay). I got up about 3:15 and we headed to Brother's to get MK. We ended up going to Chuck-E-Cheese for an impromptu birthday party for her. Jessica has recently moved to town and treated MK to pizza and fun at Chuck-E-Cheese! Brother, Nat and Mac also went with us. I went to bed the same time as MK! I also had to work Sunday because a co-worker and I have been teaching our adoptive parent classes on Sundays for the last 9 weeks. As you can guess I've been exhausted!!

Team Go Go ready for the 80s Lap. We won the team spirit award again! Team Go Go has won team spirit for 8 out of the last 9 years. We also have been in the top fund raising spot for quite a while too!

Committee members during opening ceremonies.

Our RFL theme was Turning the channel on Cancer. Our team chose CSI as our theme. Celebrating, Surviving, Inspiring! This was one of our campsite signs showing out most wanted. We also had signs showing our missing (former team members). Our team raised over $15,000 again this year!

The following weekend was Easter. We had a low key weekend. We went to Brother/Natalie's for Easter dinner. It was good to hang out with not much happening.

Hopefully I'll be better at keeping update!