Richmond parents desperately seeking baby to make their life complete!

Richmond, VA native Lauren Hall has been through every fertility treatment available, and after exhausting her options, is seeking to adopt an infant with her loving husband. They are seeking a private adoption through people like you!

If you know of someone who is expecting who is considering adoption, PLEASE contact Lauren directly at: laurenhall@comcast.net. Help make their dream of parenthood come true!

Kids Layne: The Road to Upscale Resale of Children's Items!

What: Kids Layne is an upscale children's consignment and overstock sale featuring ONLY top of the line labels from exclusive boutiques.

Our next sale is February 6-8, 2009

What’s New in 2009:
· Kids Layne will be selling overstocks from some favorite labels.
· We are offering year round clothing so that you can have access to even more clothing and are able to buy ahead for future seasons.
· We are branching out into new product arenas and will be accepting both overstocks and consigned high end strollers, Kettler tricycles, bedding and whole room decor (example: room sets that include bedding and artwork).
· For Extra Busy Moms: We are offering a new service where we will pick up your items, enter them on an inventory sheet, and prepare them for the sale

· We offer several options to make shoppers eligible to attend the presale on Friday Feb 6:
a.) Consign with us. Go to http://www.kidslayne.com/ to find out how to consign.
b.) Forward our flyer-to friends, your PTA or preschool. Contact us at kidslaynebiz@comcast.net to find out what to do.
c.) Post our flyer. Again, contact us at kidslaynebiz@comcast.net

Brands include: Chez Ami, Daisies and Doodlebugs, Florence Eiseman, Gymboree, Lily Pulitzer, Ragsland, Silly Goose, Sweet Potatoes, Vive La Fete, and Zutano just to name a few

Where: Flexible Solutions Office Building 1518 Willow Lawn Drive Richmond, VA 23233

When: February 6-8, 2009

Why: We stock only the finest labels in children's clothing and other items so that you do not have to dig through mounds of clothes like at other consignment sales looking for the best items. Because we stock only the best labels, the hard work has already been done. For parents looking to recoup some of their investment on those special pieces that their child has outgrown, then there is no better place to consign than at Kids Layne consignment sale.

For more information: Go to http://www.kidslayne.com/ or call Jennifer Kaufman at 804.986.4255

RichmondMom.com readers are thankful for. . .

Tell us and earn a chance to WIN a $25 gift certificate to one of our partners:

http://survey.constantcontact.com/survey/a07e2efvdnjfni994iw/start

(Note: all comments are anonymous)

Here's what other Richmonders have told us:

• "My Daughter will not walk until she is four. My daughter can not talk and will not for years. My daughter has so many appointments every week that are so draining (for her). My daughter can not go many places without it being very hard (on her). My daughter has Cerebral Palsy and I am SO THANKFUL to have her, she is the best thing in my life."

• "I'm thankful for the health of my family and unemployment benefits."

• "I am thankful that I have legs that are strong enough to get me through my third marathon. I also am so thankful for the wonderful friends I have made during marathon training. Their tremendous support and encouragement keep me going even when my legs tell me to stop. Training for a marathon is such an awarding and unique experience, and I am so thankful that I have had this amazing experience and have had the opportunity to meet so many fantastic people."

• "My wonderful son. Having a home and being able to provide for my family."

• "I am thankful for my parents and my siblings who are always there for me. I am thankful for my health and strength. I am thankful for my healthy and sharp grandmother who is still able to cheer on her great-granddaughter at a 3 hour soccer tournament! I am thankful to have a job I enjoy. I am thankful for my friends and family who support me no matter what. Most of all, I'm thankful for my daughter who inspires and amazes me everyday!"
  

The Children’s Home Society of Virginia is offering a free orientation on Dec. 16 for people interested in learning more about adopting children from foster care. The event will be held from 4 to 6 p.m. at the Richmond office of Children’s Home Society, 4200 Fitzhugh Ave.

Participants will learn about the steps to adopt and can review photos of children awaiting a permanent home. For details, call (804) 353-0191 or visit http://www.chsva.org/.

There are nearly 1,600 children waiting to be adopted in Virginia. Most are living with foster families and attend public schools. All have risky futures without a permanent family.

Founded in 1900, Children’s Home Society of Virginia is a non-profit, licensed adoption agency that has placed more than 12,500 children in new homes. The agency’s mission is to find permanent, loving homes for all children and to provide counseling to birth and adoptive families.

Good Health Seminar-win Pilates lessons! 11/20

Progress Physical Therapy Staff Present: Good Nutrition for Women, from Childhood to Adulthood!

11/20/08, 10:00am

Progress Physical Therapy

5300 Hickory Park Drive

RSVP: 804.270-7754

http://www.progressphysicaltherapy.com/

Dr. Christa Galvin-Cox

Enter for a chance to win 4 Pilates classes!

Richmond Moms are thankful for. . .

What are you thankful for?

All we hear about is falling stocks, lost jobs, tight times. Surely there is more to life! Tell us. One respondent will be chosen at random for a $25 gift certificate to one of Richmondmom.com's partners. You may also answer anonymously if you wish: http://survey.constantcontact.com/survey/a07e2efvdnjfni994iw/start

Here's what readers are telling us:

"I am thankful I have my health, 2 healthy kids, a healthy husband, 2 healthy cats a wonderful new Beagle!! I am also thankful that I still have a job right now. It may not be a great job, but it's still a job!"


"My Daughter will not walk until she is four. My daughter can not talk and will not for years. My daughter has so many appointments every week that are so draining (for her). My daughter can not go many places without it being very hard (on her). My daughter has Cerebral Palsey and I am SO THANKFUL to have her, she is the best thing in my life."


"I am thankful for my parents and my siblings who are always there for me. I am thankful for my health and strength. I am thankful for my healthy and sharp grandmother who is still able to cheer on her great-granddaughter at a 3 hour soccer tournament! I am thankful to have a job I enjoy. I am thankful for my friends and family who support me no matter what. Most of all, I'm thankful for my daughter who inspires and amazes me everyday!"


"I'm thankful for washing machines, dishwashers, microwaves, hairdryers, indoor plumbing, and all the other "machines" that make my life as a mom easier! Seriously, I am WAY thankful for my family. Period."


"I am thankful for that little voice that ask me to snuggle with her one more time before I start my crazy day."


"Of course I a thankful for my wonderful husband,my beautiful two boys, family and friends...But I am also truly thankful for other mom's who relate to the frustrations of being a mom and appreciate getting away from my beautiful boys to have a little "ME" time.:)"

Adoption: A grafted tree. Celebrate National Adoption Month!

Author: Nicole Unice (Richmond mom-of-three, dreamer, doer.)

My parents had always talked about adopting. Their desire sprung from their belief in the call to love all of God’s children, especially the forgotten. We were already a big family: with an 8, 6, and 5 year old my parents certainly didn’t need more activity! But the dream of adopting persisted. Even though they pursued international adoption, obstacles blocked their way for years, both financial and logistical. Just as they were about to give up, a strange twist of events: my parents received an unexpected inheritance check that covered the cost of international adoption and a call from an orphanage in Korea—they had just picked up an abandoned toddler and we were a match for placement. On that day, our family was “expecting”; instead of an ultrasound we had a grainy photo from a Korean orphanage.
His delivery took place in the JFK airport one spring evening in April. I shivered with excitement at the airport gate, surrounded by the sights and sounds of people and change. My little brother and I pressed our toes, our bellies, our palms and our noses against the cold glass window, peering out into the night sky, straining to be the first to herald the appearance of the plane that carried our new baby brother.
At long last, the plane lights, and then the mechanical stork appeared. We squealed with joy, and waited those last agonizing moments for the hanger door to open and the babies to be paraded in; we were not the only family adding to our number that night. In they came, held in the arms of Korean women caretakers that hardly seemed bigger than the children themselves. As babies transformed from orphans to sons and daughters, tears and laughter and gut-level joy filled the air. On April 24, 1984, our family tree grafted on a new branch, in the form of a round-faced, brown-eyed Korean baby boy named Stevie.
The next few days were not unlike a newborn baby coming home from the hospital. He ate, he slept, and he clung to our mom. But some things were different. He spoke words in Korean…Oma, Apba. He looked shocked. Like a frightened and wounded animal, he would sometimes fold over on himself and even bite. He was terrified of water.
Becoming an adoptive family changed our family tree. Gardeners graft trees together, particularly fruit trees, to create new fruit and to strengthen the roots of the existing tree. The roots of one tree nourish the bud of another, creating something new in the process. To be an adoptive family is to be the roots for a tender bud. But the original tree must be cut in order to allow the new bud to join. Adding to our family wasn’t easy. Money was tight. Dynamics changed and created strain. Faith was tested. But like only family can, we came together, learning to practice grace with one another in the midst of hardship.
More than twenty years later, after a good meal with family, Stevie gets up from his seat and makes a silent pilgrimage around the table. Stopping in front of each place, he reaches down for a bear hug. Maybe that comes from deep within, from the places in him that remember being cold, and hungry, and alone. I don’t think of my family as an adoptive family. I think of my family as one tree. Two very different branches grafted together, creating something entirely unique, beautiful in its own way--scars, roots and all.

Since 1993, the number of international adoptions in the U.S. has jumped 300 percent, from just over 7,000 to 21,616 in 2003. For more information on adoption, please visit www.adoption.com.

Tabitha Geary rocks because. . .

Everyone is talking about her. This is no scrap-booking, photo-taping, ordinary gal. Her products are memorable and will stick with you for a lifetime (some literally!)

Tabitha Geary is an entrepreneur, a mother-of-five, and her work has been featured by Entrepreneur Magazine, Lifetime Television, Mom Talk Radio, Work Magazine and other national and local outlets.

And, if that just wasn't enough, she's going to Air on Martha Stewart this month. As my mom would say, "For Pete's Sake, that's amazing!"

We think she's fab. And it just so happens there's an open house where you cannot buy a thing but you can view her work:

Sunday, November 16th, 2-4pm

Tabitha Geary Showroom, 506 Libbie Avenue

rsvp Jillslemon@hotmail.com or 804.317.4399

www.tabithageary.com

Great Ladies' and Kids' Stuff-Saturday, 11/15/08

Bargain Boutique
ONE DAY SALE!
Where moms and kids will be
Well Dressed for Less!

Saturday, November 15th
9 AM until 4 PM
Mechanicsville Hampton Inn
7433 Bell Creek Road
Mechanicsville, VA 23111

New and like new women's and kid's clothes, shoes & accessories.

Boys and Girls - Infant to Pre-teen (including Slim, Plus & Husky)
Talbot’s Kids – POLO – Tommy Hilfiger – Ltd Too – The Place – Hartstrings – Nautica - Gymboree – GAP – Old Navy
– L.L. Bean –Lands End…and more!

Women’s Clothing - Misses, Petites, Plus size and Maternity (size 0 to 3X)
Talbot’s – Ann Taylor – LOFT – J. Crew - American Eagle – CHICO’S - Aeropostale - Polo Ralph Lauren – Eddie Bauer –
J. Crew - The Gap – Old Navy – L.L. Bean – Banana Republic – Lands End – J. Jill – Coldwater Creek – Lane Bryant…and more!
MATERNITY (x-small to 3X): Motherhood – Mimi - Duo –The Gap - Old Navy – In Due Time – Oh Baby! – Liz Lange

shoes…purses…jewelry…tights…socks…scarves…hair bows…hats…gloves

For more information contact:
Nicole Fore at 804-310-0678 or http://mail.richmondmom.com/cgi-bin/compose.exe?id=01d887fec54c02034f0db6c3881247978118&new=&xsl=compose.xsl&to=bargain_boutique@comcast.net
Christy Hassell at 804-240-1542 or Sarah Webster at 804-290-0283

Rock Star Momma in town-11/19/08

Skye Hoppus, wife of Mark Hoppus from blink 182, will be coming to It’s Hip to be Round, the clothing and supplies store for mommas-to-be, for a meet and greet, book signing, and sharing her clothing line.

There will also be yummy drinks and catering by local Carytown restaurants as well as prizes and give-aways at the event!


Who: Skye Hoppus - Owner of Childish Clothing and author of Rock Star Momma

What: Meet and greet, Book signing, and Hip items from the Childish Clothing collection

Where: It’s Hip to be Round, 3463 West Cary Street, Richmond, VA

When: November 19th
5:00-8:00pm

Special Events at HalfPints

Special Events! Mark you calendars...

November 22nd, Our fabulous Santa will be with us for pictures by our favorite photographer, Missy Bane...Call for your appointment 364-4202

Silhouettes by Blane Cope November 28th and 29th Call for appointment 364-4202

You voted. . .Michelle Obama will be the mama in the White House

No matter how you voted (53% of you said Obama will win), you had something to say:

"Next Leader will be McCain! Obama has gone too Hollywood"

"At this point...I'm just ready for November 4th!!!"

"Wonderful! An African American and women!"

"Visit http://ivotevalues.com/ to see the differences"

"I think Sarah Palin is just fabulous"

Please get out there and vote and CONGRATS to Kelly McAdams who won a 5807 Gift Certificate!