Author * Speaker
A couple of months ago, I went to Steve’s company holiday party dressed like an Amish nun. I didn’t mean to. The dress code was “classy cocktail,” which I interpreted to mean, Like you’re coming from work, only a step up. I found a cute preppy dress from Tommy Hilfiger. It was a little big, […]
Read MoreThe real stuff about our money conversation since we adopted The Cherubs has nothing to do with budgets. It has to do with the long process of realizing what makes the kids feel safe, and me figuring out how to be the kind of Mom they trust to take care of them. I realized how […]
Read MoreBy the time we started the process that led to adopting the Cherubs, we were in a better financial position than when we had Princess Peach. Steve had recovered the lost ground on his career trajectory. We’d bought a two family house in the suburbs with Steve’s parents. And I took a part-time job in […]
Read MoreI smiled when I saw this question from Liz. It reminded me of our Home Study application, which asked, “How do you think adopting will effect how much money you have?” To which I snarkily replied, “We’ll have the same amount of money. We’ll just spend it differently.” That’s both the whole answer and entirely […]
Read MoreThis will seem like a lighthearted post about hobbies, but it’s actually about survival. It’s only in hindsight that I recognize the unexpected things that kept me sane during the tough parts of our foster care/adoption process, and what I see now is that when things get tough, I pick up a random hobby. It’s […]
Read MoreToday’s question is from Tsedal: How did adoption impact your marriage? Like a cyclone followed by a tidal wave. Steve & I have been through some tough things in the 12 years we’ve been married, but nothing has come close to the challenge of adopting from foster care. Nothing. There was one night, back when we […]
Read MoreI’ve become one of those people who posts pictures of food. I don’t know how this happened, except maybe that food (and dinner in particular) has been such a nightmare for us for so long. But last week, the kids liked every meal we made. (I’m going to leave that as a stand alone line, […]
Read MoreOne of the things that happens all the time since we adopted (besides conversations about bodily functions and questions like “Can we pl-eeeeeze put a zipline in the back yard???”) is that people tell me of their own adoption dreams. I can’t tell you how many times someone has shared some version of, “I’ve thought […]
Read MoreI know this will shock you, but not every moment in our household is delightful and heartwarming. This was especially bad in the first year, when I so regularly found myself in situations I had no clue how to handle. Can you go to some random park with your friends? How should I know? […]
Read MoreThis weekend we watched #2 Cherub sing and dance in Oompa Loompa splendor in her middle school musical. It was SPLENDID. The show was hilarious and fun (thankfully less creepy than the Tim Burton movie) and there were some astonishingly good moments for us as a family that I want to capture and remember. First, […]
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Trish Ryan 