Winner, winner!

I feel like we all just ran a marathon and are at the finish line jumping and yelling for joy! YAY Corey and JoJo. Can't wait to meet you and have a lovely photoshoot. Best wishes on your adoption journey.

congratulations to cory and jojo.


after 1,890 total votes, they are the winners of the kim orlandini photography and the r house photo shoot!

i hope all the couples are feeling loved.
after all, there was quite a bit of voting going on! you can learn more about their hope to adopt by clicking on their names below:

brian and chriss
ron and darcee
jared and devin
spencer and jessica

and a HUGE, HUGE thank you to my sensei, kim orlandini and her generosity and this amazing giveaway. you are fantastic! i love learning from you.


i asked cory and jojo to share a little bit about themselves with us so that we could get to know them better.

We are so excited that we won! We are also very thankful to so many people who posted the photo shoot on their facebook and on missionary moms and we think that's how we won.

We started dating in 2007 and were married almost a year later, on May 24th, 2008. We have been married a little over 2 years and have enjoyed every minute of it.

We love being around each other and really enjoy going to sporting events together. We both have a love for the Medical Field and Anatomy.

Cory and I both work and go to school. Cory will graduate in April with his bachelors degree in exercise science and will continue on for his doctorate degree in Physical Therapy. He is a supervisor for a care giving center and takes care of mentally disabled adults. JoJo has two semesters left in her nursing program and works at a little college in American Fork, UT as a Campus Coordinator. She works closely with the teenagers and loves to be around them.

We are both are very excited to adopt and our profile will be posted on
itsaboutlove.org at the beginning of October. We cannot wait to be chosen by birth parents and to start our family by the miracle of adoption!

Thank you so much for this opportunity!

kim orlandini & the r house photoshoot giveaway: time to vote

mrs. r and I sat at her kitchen table this morning.

We looked at everyone's entries and finally let random.org decide who the finalists would be.

Now it is time to vote!
Thank you to all those that entered their friends, family and friends of friends!

You are voting for a couple to be the models of a photo shoot conducted by me that gives me a teaching opportunity with mrs. r (one of my students) that focuses on posing. the winning couple will get a free photo shoot and CD of images to use however they would like--hopefully in promoting their adoption!


Here is what to do:

1) Read the nominations below and select the person you want to vote for. However, if you can't decide, I have set it up so you can vote for more than one person. I know some of you will have an impossible time choosing. you can vote for more than one person, but you can only cast your vote once. You can also cast your vote on mrs. r's blog. in the end, we will add the results together to determine the winner.

2) Instead of leaving a comment, look at the top left of my blog. You will see a poll box there entitled "Kim Orlandini Photo Shoot Contest." Vote for the couple(s) you are cheering for there. Entries in this poll and on mrs. r's blog are the only ones that count. (That means no Twitter, Facebook, text, email, or blog comment entries.)

3) Tell people about this contest and get them to vote for their/your favorites! feel free to use THIS post to explain what is going on and what you want your favorite couple to win.

In fact, here is a little something you can copy and paste and pass on:

hello! i wanted to let you know about a contest going on for one of my friends who is hoping to adopt. they are eligible to win a free photo shoot and CD of images to help with their adoption profile. please help __________ win by casting your vote on the top left corner of the r house and simply me. no need to sign in, no email required, just a quick press of a button. thanks so much!

*You can only cast your vote once at the r house and once on kim's blog, simply me.

The finalists are:
(In random order.)

Ron and Darcee

A little bit about them from the person that nominated them:

I am nominating the couple linked below. I have not met them personally but know of their story through some mutual friends. They recently experienced a failed adoption where they actually had the baby boy home with them for a few days and then the birth mom chose to parent. It has been crushing for them as you can well imagine and I pray that good things come their way. I think a photo shoot would be a great new start for them. They are a beautiful couple and I have heard such great things about them.

Spencer and Jessica

A little bit about them from the person that nominated them:

I'd like to nominate Spencer and Jessica. Jessica is a dear friend of mine. I have long, LONG looked up to her.

She sings so beautifully and is a stellar pianist. I can honestly say I NEVER saw Jessica upset, sad, or without her beautiful smile. She was always so kind to me. It seems she is one of those people you just thirst for their company, so they're surrounded by many.

Since she is just the epitome of greatness to me, I'd love to nominate her and kind of give her a little gift (through you guys) to show how wonderful she has been to me.... and help her on her adoption journey. :) I know all too well how painful and hard just waiting and waiting is, perhaps this will help her feel like she's doing something wonderful to bring baby home. :)

Chriss and Brian

A little bit about them from the person that nominated them:

Hi there! I'd like to nominate Chriss and Brian. They are wonderful sweet people. Chriss has had a hard time staying pregnant. She has had one miscarriage after another trying because she wants so much to be a mom. She has always doted on children. Brian is a favorite with my children. If my kids don't get to see them for a while, one of my children will say, "I want to see the Chriss and Brian." Chriss and Brian have been through the wringer. They have just submitted their paperwork for adoption and are holding fund-raisers for the future fees. Hope you pick them!

Devin and Jared

A little bit about them from the person that nominated them:

I want to nominate my friend Devin and her husband Jared. Devin and I
met over 7 years ago on a church history tour. We became instant
friends and later because roommates just before I got married. Devin
is just an amazing person, she has one of those warm, bubbly
personalities and love everyone. She has been an awesome love and
support to me when I needed it! She is currently in nursing school
while they patently wait to adopt. They are such a cute couple and
deserve this!

Cory and Jojo

A little bit about them from the person that nominated them:

I am so excited to nominate a couple that I think is TOTALLY deserving of the photo giveaway. And it also feels awesome to "pay it forward" after we won the last contest like this!

Anyway....I want to nominate Cory and JoJo.

They are two of the nicest people you will ever meet. Cory is my husband's cousin and he also served his mission in my hometown. My family, especially my little brother got to know Cory well and just think the world of him. I had a special love for Cory even before I really got to know him just because of the influence and friendship he provided my brother. Cory and JoJo anxiously awaited their second anniversary so that they could apply for adoption through LDS Family Services and just finished their home study in the last week and will finish all of their training and be approved next month. I have enjoyed sharing thoughts and feelings about the process with JoJo and she has become a great friend! I know that they will be incredibly loving and amazing parents (anyone who is around them can tell that right away!)

I personally know how stressful and overwhelming the whole adoption application process is and I can tell you that when we won a photo session it made the process so much more fun and less overwhelming. I want the same for Cory and JoJo!



GOOD LUCK TO EVERYONE!

Now, go get your vote on!


Full Disclosure: mrs. r (Lindsey Redfern) is a dear friend of mine. I am her photography teacher. I was not compensated for this post, but, as explained, I will be the sensei on the shoot. She is also co-owner with Leisha Kelsey and me of the r house couture.

contest for adoptive couples to win a free photo shoot

Photo of the R Family in the last photo shoot I did for them and Wasatch Woman Magazine.

Recently, one of my all-time favorite photography students, mrs. r, asked me for some help with posing couples. She was really struggling. All of her photos were starting to look forced and odd. I believe her exact words were "Help me, Obi Wan Kenobi. You're my only hope." How could I turn down such a plead for help?

Because I am an incredible teacher (or sensei as my beloved student calls me), I told her that we should find ourselves some models and go out for a practice shoot. Soon we came up with a great idea to benefit a family and our common passion: adoption.

{r great idea}

We are looking for a couple who is hoping to adopt that is in need of a photo makeover for their adoption blog, pass along cards, adoption profile and/or self-esteem boost that are willing to be our models. We are looking for a couple that does not have any children yet and this person would need to be willing to travel to the Salt Lake area on their own to have their photos taken by both mrs. r and myself.

The winner of this little contest will receive a CD of the images taken at the shoot to use however they would like.

{do you know someone that would be perfect for this?}

Here's what to do.

Think of a family that you know that is hoping to adopt. (Sorry, but this time around, no nominating yourselves.) If you don't know any, check out the extensive list I have on the left sidebar. Email me (kimsueellen at gmail dot com) a picture of them (if you don't know them personally, right click is your friend!) and tell me why you think they should win, why you love/admire/adore them and/or why they are fantastic. Just tell me of their general awesomeness and deservingness. This family needs to be able to come to the Salt Lake area for the photoshoot ...but the person who nominates them can be from anywhere.

Get thinking quickly, you only have until Sunday night (September 19th) at Midnight MST to nominate the ones you love. Also, check out mrs. r's blog, the r house for more chances to nominate. She is running this contest as well!

mrs. r and I will read all the nominations then proceed to be utterly overwhelmed and hand it over to random.org to select the finalists. The finalists will be posted on Monday morning (September 20th) of next week.

From Monday until Friday (September 24rd) at Midnight MST, voting will be open for you to vote for one of the 5 couples that you think should win. Or all of them, if you'd like.

The winner will be announced on Saturday and will need to schedule the shoot before October 29th.

{here's a little BONUS to this awesomeness}

The person who nominates the winning couple will also win a little goodie from the r house couture. It's a win-win-win. So get those nominations in and help pay it forward!

{GOOD LUCK}


disclaimer: this post was written for kim by mrs. r. kim's computer is sick today. please keep it in your prayers or hope that is passes and is put out of its misery so that she can get a MAC--that's what i am praying for. ;)


full disclosure: mrs. r (Lindsey Redfern) is a dear friend of mine. I am her photography teacher. I was not compensated for this post, but, as explained, I will be the sensei on the shoot. She is also co-owner with leisha kelsey and me of the r house couture.

Hoping to Adopt Again--Jeremy & Leslie

Meet:

Leslie and Jeremy

Leslie and Jeremy are the proud parents of a sweet little three year old Emmy.
They long to welcome a sweet new addition to their family of three.
Emmy is excited to be a big sister and prays for her birth mother every night, as well as the birth parents of her little brother or sister she and her mom and dad are earnestly searching for.



They are a family who loves to have fun, and enjoy all the time they can being together.
Jeremy is crazy about Survivor, while Leslie can't get enough of American Idol.

I like Jeremy because he LOVES One Republic...and I love Leslie because she loves the smell of home-made cake. Have I ever mentioned that -I- LOVE homemade cake?


SO, go and take a look at their sweet profile and catch a glimpse of their blog.

Little Claire de Lune Winner!

...Mary!

Mary (MEM) said...

How beautiful- (lullabies on the harp AND helping orphans)!

And at the risk of sounding like a total brown-noser I have to agree with Natalie's comment, YOU'RE beautiful too, Kim!

Thursday, March 25, 2010 8:38:00 AM

(Apparently brown-nosing totally pays off...either that or she and random.org have an in...lucky number 7!)

Mary, e-mail me at kimsueellen [at] gmail [dot] com and I will have Emily send over your new CD!

Thank you to everyone who entered.

Let's do this more often shall we?
xoxo

Giveaway: one Lone Harp, helping thousands...

...firstly, let me introduce you to Emily.


(the irony of this haircut, is that every young boy in my neighborhood has it...hmm.)

a.k.a 'Emily, Emily, Emily, Emily, Emily...'
(as I serenaded her all through high school Senior year (channel Cheers' "Kelly, Kelly, Kelly, Kelly" by Woody))

I freaking love this lady with ALL of my heart.

She has been such a good friend to me all my adult life. Like this day:



She introduced me to this man's work.
Love her for it.
It is because of her I am friends will ALL of these people.

Let us discuss how big of a heart she has?

It is huge.
I look up to her in SO many ways.
She is gorgeous, INSANELY smart, talented and giving.

She has recorded this AMAZING CD called:



Little Claire de Lune
Lullabies on Harp

She compiled these songs that! she! played! on! the! harp!
(she has been playing for over 20 years!)

For what?
To make millions?

Well, yes.

For herself?

NO!

To help thousands of children in Bulgarian orphanages.
*tears*

Specifically for:

One Heart Bulgaria

The images will stun you, will break your heart, and I guarantee you will not be able to turn off the computer until you have purchased this CD.

I. Dare. You.

You know of my love for adoption.
I cannot look at that site without wanting to hop on a plane and bring
all of those littles home with me.

So heavy.

Will you help?

Get your CD here.
(there is an amazing sample song at the bottom)

or email Emily:
emilia.kelly@gmail.com

Leave me a comment, Emily is giving a CD away to one lucky reader.

mrs. r just schooled me on how to do a giveaway so here:
(thank you lindsey...borrowed text from her blog. xoxo)

If you would like to enter this giveaway, here is what to do:

• Just leave a comment and include your email address so I can contact you in the event of your winning.
  

Extra entries available:

...leave an additional comment with your email address for each extra entry.

• follow my blog
  
• subscribe to simply me
  
• follow me on twitter (http://twitter.com/kimsueellen)
• tweet about this contest, using @kimsueellen in your tweet! (this can be done once per day.)
• blog about this giveaway, linking back to this post (leave a link to your post in your comment)
  
• email your family and friends about this giveaway (send the email to me too)

for example, if you are already a follower of my blog you would write in your comment:
"already a follower. here's my email: blahblahbla@whatever.com."

then if you tweet about this contest you would make an additional comment:
"tweeted about it today. here's what i wrote: check out this giveaway at simplyme: {link to this post}. h
ere's my email: blahblahbla@whatever.com."

Entries will be accepted until Tuesday, March, 302010 at 11:59 PM MST.
The winner will be announced on Wednesday, April 1, 2010.
No joke.

Hoping to Adopt- Josh & Kenna

Well, hello! We are Josh and Kenna. This year we will be finishing up our 4th year of marriage, and we are currently on the path towards our first adoption. Our path towards parenthood was not meant to be short or traditional, but we have embraced adoption as we have seen it work miracles in our own lives as well as many others. We know this is what years of infertility have lead us to and we are grateful and excited.

Josh & I are easy going individuals. We love being outside, especially the beach. Josh loves to ride the waves on his boogie board and I like to lay out in the sun with my ipod. If we aren't outside, we are inside watching a good flick or engaging in some healthy Wii competition. We love to be active and to spent time with our family and friends.

We can't wait to welcome a sweet little to our family!

If you would like more information about Josh and Kenna, please visit their blog here:

http://shumwayadoption.blogspot.com

Hoping to Adopt- Jared & Mary

Hello from Jared, Mary & Madison!

Jared and I have been married for almost ten years and we became parents 2 1/2 years ago
when a selfless birthmother placed her baby girl in our arms.

Our little girl is such a joy in our life. We named her "Madison" which means "Gift from God".
We are delighted to have our daughter in our life and we look forward to the day when we
can welcome another child into our family through adoption.

We are not a perfect, but we have plenty of love (and laughs) to share. We have opened
our home to three foster children over the years and we enjoy traveling, watching movies,
spending time outdoors, and hanging out with our families.

To learn more about this beautiful family click here.

Scam-a-lam-a Ding Dong

This post dedicated to never having to lie to my children EVER again.
Thank you for the picture Leisha.

Remember this post?

Update here.

You really, REALLY, R-E-A-L-L-Y
don't want to miss out on reading it.

"Chelsia" I just want you to know that I did get your e-mail last year.
(It surprisingly made it past the blockade I built around you and into my junk e-mail folder.)
It was a miracle that we were able to read it.

I had forgiven you at that point.
I still forgive you.
I accepted your apology and was thankful for it.

There was just a part of me that didn't want to give you the satisfaction of knowing that.

Now you do.

Hope you are telling the truth and that you find happiness in your heart and in your life.

Blogging Blitz

Hi there.

I have some schtuff brewing around in my little head.



I need your help tho.

This year I want to do some things differently on this here blog.
My goal is to advocate for adoption more, and to help spread the word that there are SO many parents looking for children, on the flip side, there are also so many children looking for families. I am certain many of you know my good friend mrs. r she is the bomb.
I want to be like her when I grow up, so this is my small way of doing just that.

SO twice a month I want to highlight a family that is hoping to adopt.
Do you want me to highlight you?
Awesome.
Do you want to be added over here:
<-----------------------------------------------------------?
Awesome.

If you have been placed with and or had a baby recently and you are on that list...can I remove you for a little while to highlight those who are hoping for a child right now?

Can you help me to update that list?

Awesome.

email me: kimsueellen{at}gmail{dot}com

Come back soon, for the bloggity blogging blitz is gonna start.
and there is SO much more than adoption going to be talked about.
We will start off with the trial of the YEAR involving my husband.
Hilarity you won't want to miss.

Ready? Set?

GO!

Welcoming 2010 with a Grateful Heart

My heart has been full the last week.
Full of love for a few of my very dearest friends.
Full of gratitude for the miracles that surround us each and every day.
Both the large and the small.

First, I am so thankful to my Father in Heaven for blessing my dear friend Sue.
She has been such a dear and amazing friend to me since I can remember. She had an accident two weeks ago, in which through crazy bits of circumstances almost cost her her life.

I am amazed at the protection that was upon her
these past two weeks.
I was able to spend the afternoon with her yesterday. Seeing her alive, and well made me ever so grateful to our loving Heavenly Father who blessed her and protected her, and allowed me to continue to have the blessing of her friendship on this earth.

Many tears were shed as I marveled in awe of her quick healing. Her accident made me realize just how much I value her friendship, how thankful and lucky I have been to have her example in my life, and I don't want to take that for granted EVER again. I vowed to be a better friend to her and to all of my friends, because life is short...and sometimes life is cut short.

Today is the day to act...to love...to serve.

Secondly, I had the opportunity to spend a few days this week in Washington D.C. with two of my besties.

Leisha, and mrs. r.

Words cannot express the gratitude I have felt for the blessings that the closing of 2009 brought to my heart on behalf of mrs. r and her family.

I was able to witness the sealing of sweet little
Gavin
to his parents and to his big brother Tyson.

Tears streamed down my cheeks the entire night before as I felt the power of such a miraculous event, many of you have read throughout the year.

I, of all people understand the pain and anguish that comes from trial after trial...if you don't know what I am talking about, just go back and read my entire year of 2008.

Leisha, mrs. r and I joke often about how 2008 sucked for me...2009 for mrs. r,
and hoping beyond hope that 2010 is good for ALL of us...including YOU dear reader.

The power of eternal families was once again renewed in my heart as I watched this sweet family become sealed in the beautiful temple. The day was perfect...really it was.
(My photos on the other hand? Maybe not so much...thankful Leisha was there to capture it all with me.)

Life is sweet. I hope you can taste the sweetness that is there.

May 2010 and the years to come bring you much happiness and joy.
Please remember miracles have not ceased.
They will continue to flow....even in the darkest of times.
Hold onto that.

Much love.

I NEED MORE!!!

e-mail me

and I will send you an address where you can send me copious amounts of
YOUR
pass along cards.

I assure you they will be going all over the country...and maybe even the world.

Huggs.

kimsueellen [at] gmail [dot] com

Back to Work--

--ing Out.

I had about two weeks to work out hard between having Millz and before my surgery,
which put me out from almost no exercise for another six weeks.

It has been hard on me.

The last four months have just been one lazy, messy, day after another. Last week was the week when the red light turned to green, which meant I needed to get my lazy ars off of the couch...
(not that it spends much time there anyway with three little ones.)

So, Friday I started my exercise routine, three weeks before I start training for THIS.
(still waiting on word if I got in though, cross your fingers.)
It is not too late to get in on it too...sign up for the lottery...training starts Dec 27!
Get your super fab shirts here.

Anyway, today I tried the Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred.

Holy Bananas.

I got this DVD for a STEAL only $10 on a Target sale (my fave store) and holy mother.

I hurt.

I never realized 20 minutes could hurt so good.

I think I just might be able to get back into this work--ing out thing again.

As for 'real' work?
Ya I've been doing that too.

Check it out here.

Huggs.

They're done! Go and see and buy! Toooooo Cute!

we finally have all our childrens clothing available in the shop.

Guess who was on the front page of etsy?

(I am really glad Millz loves her birth mother)

We totally were this morning! Holla!

Go see our new goodies. Mmmm.

Do ya wanna?

...participate in a surprise?

For the r house?

Baby G's adoption is officially finalized...
and we, her friends want to do something special for her and her sweet little family.

For details and information on how you can participate, please e-mail:

FinallyRsForever@gmail.com

Shhh, it is a surprise, no trying to find out what it is either Lindsey, you just let us a'ight?

Loving and missing her...

Moosh in Indy a.k.a My BFFIRL

Loving this post from her.
Thank you Casey.

Go read her blog and enter her giveaway.

Need Pass Along Cards, Like a Fat Kid Need Cake

e-mail me

and I will send you an address where you can send me copious amounts of
YOUR
pass along cards.

I assure you they will be going all over the country...and maybe even the world.

Huggs.

kimsueellen [at] gmail [dot] com

The Announcement

Introducing Our Etsy Shop:



the r house couture

Read the details behind it here.

YES my friends and I are crazy.
We just sit and wonder how we can pile one more thing in, but we do and we are excited about it!

I just wanted to share with you my favorite necklace from our shop:

I am SO excited about the next phase we are working on, stay tuned...you won't want to miss all of our fun and awesome adoption related goodies.

Beautiful Thoughts

This has been a great topic of conversation lately between me and some of my closest friends.

This has been me.

I felt like she was talking about my heart. WOW.

I have felt this pain, and although our prayers were answered in a different way...families are amazing, and they are forever.

Of this I am certain.

Tears. Tears.