Life With Briana

August 1, 2026

My Surprise Realization ~ The Connection Of "The Phantom Of The Opera" Musical To "The Lost Boys" Musical

I made a recent surprise realization.

I follow a couple of social media accounts for "The Lost Boys" Musical and on one account, there was a post that mentioned a performer named Ben Crawford. I wasn't sure who Ben Crawford was, so I googled his name under images. An image that I posted on my blog back in 2019 popped up. I had blogged about me, Doug and Bri seeing The Phantom Of The Opera on Broadway. I recognized the picture immediately. In that blog post, I said that the Phantom's voice made me cry. That is how good he was and how much his voice moved me. For some reason, his name didn't stay with me (but it should have - shame on me).

I came to the realization that the Phantom we saw in 2019 was Ben Crawford and he is now in The Lost Boys.

He plays the main character Michael's abusive father (who is a hallucination) and is also in the ensemble. He is also the understudy for the character Max. I had NO idea that was him. He obviously wore a mask in Phantom, so I didn't really know what he looked like.

Our attendance at that "Phantom of the Opera" performance put the Broadway bug into my sweet girl. She loved that show. She loves musicals but especially musicals on Broadway.

I wish I had known beforehand that we were seeing "our" Phantom again.

Phantom Ben Crawford...

His voice is beautiful...

He was Phantom for 5 years - starting before the pandemic and then coming back after it.

And now, he is in "The Lost Boys"...

This is a video of the scene "The Secret Comes Out" which happens right before the intermission. It is when both Sam and Michael start to realize that Michael is now a vampire after drinking vampire blood (half-vampire) and Michael hallucinates his abusive father - played by Ben Crawford (this video was obviously secretly recorded by someone, so the quality isn't the best, but it shows the whole scene). This is one of my favorite scenes from the show...

Ben Crawford has one song that he is featured in on the LB soundtrack and it is "You Belong To Me (Reprise)". He sounds amazing on it.

As soon as I figured this all out, I told Briana. It was very exciting putting two and two together.

Both shows - Phantom and Lost Boys are in my top 3 favorite musicals (Hamilton is top 3 as well).

Wish I had known this earlier, but I'm happy to know it now!

Here is a list of musicals that we have seen over the years (the ones I have blogged about)...

I had seen a number of musicals before Briana came into my life, as my parents were musical fans as well as Doug. I saw national tours of Phantom, Fiddler On The Roof, Wicked, Cats, The Lion King, Spamalot and Beauty And The Beast - before becoming a mom. And as a child with my parents, I saw Peter Pan (with Sandy Duncan) and Sophisticated Ladies (which I did not enjoy because I was just too young to get it). So to have a daughter who has a huge appreciation for musicals is a big win for our whole family!

July 30, 2026

19th Briana Day Anniversary AND The 20th Anniversary Of Waiting For Briana/Life With Briana (Including A Thank You Video From Me)

19 years ago today, Doug and I met our beautiful Briana (Jiang Ai Juan) for the first time in Chongqing, China at 4PM in the afternoon (China time) on July 30th, 2007.

It was an emotional, joyous, overwhelming, terrifying day for all of us...

We cannot imagine our lives without our beautiful Briana. She was our miracle and gift on that day - and she still is.

Our almost 20 year old will be starting her third year of college in September. It seems unbelievable.

Here is our China travel video once again...

And here's to 19 amazing years!

BUT - there is more.

Today is also the 20th anniversary of this blog ~ Life With Briana (formerly Waiting For Briana).

This was my very first post...

I had no idea that exactly one year later, I would be holding Briana in my arms.

And who would have thought that I would be here still after 20 years. This is what I looked like 20 years ago...

This is me and my friend Kathy back in 2006 consignment shopping and dreaming about our girls (and we are still friends to this day). This is a picture from the second post I ever published. Kathy is the one who encouraged me to create a blog and join the China adoption community blog world. And this blog changed my entire life. I connected with so many people from across the country and in other countries who were on the same path I was. I have met some of them. I am still in touch with many of them on other platforms. Some of my closest friends today are also in the China adoption community.

But I am pretty much one of the very last people from the community still here on Blogger.

I have the first 10 years of this blog printed out. I have 10 years not printed. I would rather try to find a way to save my blog virtually at this point then print anymore of it out. I have more scrapbooks and blog books than any one person truly should and I know Briana will be super overwhelmed with what to do with all of them one day.

Since it has been 20 years of you all only being able to read my written thoughts, I thought it would be a nice change for me to speak to you on video for the first time instead...

Thanks so much for reading for all these years. It means so very much to me.

July 22, 2026

The First Half Of July

July has been a somewhat overwhelming month so far. From trying to get Briana's apartment set up to my dad's back surgery. And just some other life things that have had me starting to realize I need to alter some my perceptions and/or expectations. Sometimes what you put out there just isn't always what comes back to you. I'll just leave it at that.

Of course, July 4th happened this year. To be honest, with the orange dementia patient hijacking and destroying everything that was the 250th - I really didn't feel like celebrating. I wasn't going to completely ignore it, but I wasn't going to do jumps and cartwheels.

I did decorate my house a bit because I do enjoy my July 4th goodies...

So to keep ourselves busy and with Briana luckily having that weekend off of work, we went to her new apartment to bring furniture and assemble it. It was a LONG day.

Heading up to the apartment...

Everything lined up...

Work, work, work...

Briana put this TV stand together herself...

This was the finished product (so far)...

The weather was all over the place that day. It did rain for a while...

B's apartment overlooks her school, especially her freshman dorm.

A rainbow appeared and there was a beautiful sunset that evening too...

Our intention was to watch the fireworks in the distance that are set off yearly in Buckhead from the apartment windows. We had ordered some food in for dinner and when I looked to see what time they would start, we realized they had happened the night before. Good grief.

So we finished eating and just headed home. We were so tired. We did see this pretty view on the way home as we went by the lake...

We just watched firework on the TV...

Bri is still living at home right now because she has to work, but she will move in to the apartment toward the end of August. Doug and I will be going there this weekend to build a little more furniture.

Speaking of Bri's work, I have ordered two sandwiches from her since she started working at Firehouse. Were they gluten-free? No. Did I eat them anyway? Yes I did. I just had to eat some of her sandwiches (yes they were delish)!

July also brought a much needed surgery for my dad. He has had back problems for a very long time and all other options had been exhausted. So, I picked up my mom and dad and took them to the hospital and it was a very long day...

It was outpatient surgery, which is amazing to me. We got to the hospital at 9:30am and didn't leave until almost 6:30 at night. I spent the night at their house in case they needed me - which they did a bit.

I went home the next day to freshen up a bit and grab something they needed, and then I went back to their house (with Doug this time) in the evening. As Doug and I headed back home, we saw not only a beautiful double rainbow, we saw an amazing sunset. The sky was showing off that night...

The good news is my dad is doing well. We won't know how well the surgery worked for a little while. He still has some healing to do. I am hoping this will help his pain and get him walking better again.

It was a draining week, so Mei snuggled up on me one morning - I think she could sense I was a bit depleted...

I will say that with all the life-ing we have had going on, having Tovala has been really great. We can just pop meals into the oven easily and not think too much about it. We love it so much, we are going to set Bri up with it when she is in her apartment. Look at these meals...

From crab cakes to chicken to beef to pork chops to Asian to southwest, it is all really good. I have either loved or liked all the meals I have tried - except for one. And it was these Reuben hot dogs...

I thought they would be fun to order around the July 4th holiday and I even decided to eat the gluten buns. Underwhelming. The hot dogs were hard. Not doing those again.

Doug and I have also had a few yummy meals out over the last couple of weeks...

And Briana made gluten-free peanut butter/chocolate/oreo mini pies...

Very rich but so delish.

And I should have posted this in June, but I missed it somehow. My gardenia bush bloomed for a couple of weeks in my front yard (I love gardenias) and my Christmas cactus decided to give me a bloom as well - which hasn't happened in a long time...

After a very busy couple of weeks, my friend/neighbor Jennifer asked me to come over and swim in her pool yesterday. I had not gone swimming at all this summer and it was time. We had a great catch up and I needed a quiet day.

And finally, someone got her hair chopped today. I absolutely love it! She wanted a summer do and I think it is so cute!

Hope everyone is having a good July so far!

July 20, 2026

Things Are Going To Change

I know you all don't realize this, but my blog will be 20 years old on Briana's gotcha day anniversary. I just realized that exactly one year before I met Briana, I started sharing my life and her life with the world.

I am starting to think about what I want to post on that day - because it is a special day. I am trying to figure out what I want to do.

But after that day, I think I am going to change how I share my life and her life with the world. I will probably share a lot less, but still letting you all know what is going on. I will still post about my trips because I do really enjoy doing that.

My views have dropped significantly over the years and I am pretty much the last woman standing in the China adoption blog community. I am not sure really who is looking at this anymore. I think it has almost become more of a diary for me and a way for Briana to look back at her life if she has any questions about her childhood/teenage years. She'll be able to still "hear" my voice and read all my thoughts about her growing up when I am gone one day. I never thought about it being a gift to her, but I guess it is.

I have been a big champion on building up my friends and family on here. I love sharing how much they mean to me to other people. It is one of the ways I show how I care about them. Lift them up. Show my appreciation. I share on social media as well. But what I am finding is that it isn't reciprocal. With all the pictures and words I share here and on social media, I'm never/rarely acknowledged on anyone's media (if they are active/semi-active on social media). Yes, even when I know pictures have been taken. Yes, I do see them share about others. It is like I am not present at all for some reason, even if have been present or even very present. I'm not sure why that is. I guess they have their reasons. If I sound petty, then I sound petty.

I realize now that after many years, it has become too difficult for me to be the open, continuously one-sided praiser/sharer. Honestly, I don't need constant validation from others, but dang, a shout out once in a while would be nice. I have tried to just not let it bother me, but it does. I am pretty much done now singing anyone's praises on here and on social media except my husband and my daughter (neither of them are active at all on social media - which is totally fine).

I will still hang out and spend time with people. I will enjoy the company. I will enjoy the catch ups and the events. I will cheer them on privately. But I am putting the camera down now.

So probably after Briana's birthday in August, I will only share about Doug and Briana and my kitty here - and on social media. I think I have outwardly sung praises of others on my own long enough.

I am considering starting another blog or website featuring something I am passionate about, but I just don't know what yet. To be announced.

Now that I am starting to feel a bit better physically, I have been getting the chance to evaluate other aspects of my life a bit. I have been in survival mode for so many years, and now I have the luxury of getting to think about things other than my health. I guess that luxury has become a bit of a double-edge sword though.

I will be back soon with a post about July. It's been an ebb and flow of ups and downs this month for sure.

July 2, 2026

The Rest Of June

Before I start with the rest of our June, I want to thank you for reading my NYC posts. I enjoy recapping what we do on our vacations - it is like I get to relive my trip again for a few days.

Let me just say that I am the queen of conflicting emotions. Once I am where I want to be vacation-wise (because I don't really enjoy the "getting there" part of things), I am good to go. I enjoy (try to) every part of it. I love being in the moment and trying new things or just relaxing. At the same time, there is a part of me that feels fulfilled being away after a few days and I am ready to go home. And I then love being back home.

Then when I am at home, I enjoy the peace and quiet. But at the same time, I start missing the hustle and bustle and the fun experiences I was having, and I feel like I am settled back into a bit of the mundane. I also have regular life tough stuff that I have to tackle quite often, and when I am on vacation, I can just push all that to the side for a few days. Which is nice. I am focusing on being grateful that I am not in as much in survival mode right now and have the luxury to feel like life is a bit mundane.

I am just feeling off right now. I already mentioned that back in my birthday post.

It has been wonderful having Briana home this month. When she is home, I realize how much I miss her when she is at school. I have a couple more years of her coming back home, and I know she will venture out on her own for good one day. I am trying to wrap my head around all of that.

I have already blogged about our referral day anniversary, my birthday and New York City. But so much more happened in June - my head is spinning a bit.

First, Briana got a new job!

She didn't want to return to Chick Fil A - wanted to try something new. She started filling out applications about two months before school ended. She was a bit nervous because her school didn't get finished until way after the other schools, and she worried that a lot of positions would be filled already by the time she got home. She got two bites. And the one she decided to go for was Firehouse Subs (literally her favorite sandwich place). She went for an in-person interview when she was home for a weekend in May. The manager really liked her and she was totally fine if Briana started work after we got back from vacation.

So now she is a working girl again!

Her uniform reminds me of when I worked at Pizza Hut Express back in the day...

She works hard and this restaurant gets pretty busy. She said she really likes everyone she works with. I am happy she is enjoying it so much. Doug and I went to get a sandwich the other day (we tried not to embarrass her - heh)...

It was an all girl crew the day we visited, and it was really cute when they all yelled "Welcome To Firehouse!" in unison. Another job, another catch phrase. She still can't get "My Pleasure" out of her head. They are assigned to a station (it is like an assembly line) when they arrive at work, and the day I went, she was putting the toppings on the sandwiches. The task she likes the best so far is when she gets the order, assembles the meats/cheeses and puts them into the steamer, and then places the bread into the toaster. She is really good and fast at that part. My sandwich was delish the day I went by the way.

So the next big thing that happened in June was we found an apartment for Briana. I mentioned in a previous post that Briana is done with dorm life.

This was the day we were looking at places...

After thinking and talking and deciding, we finally landed on a place. It felt the safest and most convenient for Briana to get to school. It is a comfortable one bedroom with an amazing view. She seems very happy about it all...

Her new place literally overlooks SCAD. She can see her freshman year dorm from her window.

We went to Ikea on Saturday to look for furniture...

Did we eat something at Ikea? Yes we did...

Ikea is huge and we found a lot of things and it was super busy and it took us hours to get through it. We were exhausted by the end of the day.

Bri has had some down time too to see some friends...

In the middle of all the birthdays and vacation and life changes, Father's Day rolled around. Doug and I went to see my dad on the Saturday before. Unfortunately Briana had to work that day and couldn't come along. We had a nice time on our visit.

And on actual Father's Day, Doug just wanted to chill. I made him pancakes for breakfast and Bri and I gave him his gifts...

I made this collage of Doug and Bri to share on social media...

And right before heading to NYC, we had the large maple tree in our front yard removed. It was beautiful and completely healthy, but it was destroying our grass and very close to messing up our sprinkler system and gas line. So, it had to go. It really looks nice with the new sod, but I am still sad and I do miss my pretty shady tree...

I miss it, but I am getting used to it being gone now. The roots made the yard look so bad and I do love the new sod.

And finally, I bought myself a new shirt. I think it is hilarious and it is such a GenX purchase...

So that is my June wrap up. We will be starting to put furniture in Bri's new place this weekend. We have plenty of time now to get her situated before school starts back up.

I already know July is going to be a bit crazy, so I am bracing for it.