A Blond, A Redhead and a Brunette

Garage Sale

2011-05-02T07:56:00.001-07:00

What: Garage and Moving Sale

When: Friday, May 6th, rain, snow or shine 8:30AM-7:30PM (other sales also in neighborhood)

Where: Crismon house 1922 Missouri Drive NW

Directions: from 14th Ave. North, go 1/2 mi. North on 2nd St. West; turn left onto 20th Avenue by Lutheran Church of Our Redeemer; go all the way down to the bottom of the hill; at the bottom of the hill turn left onto Missouri Drive; look for the 2-story blue house

What's for sale:

*Kid's clothing blowout! Boy's sizes 3T-6, Girls' sizes 18 mo.-3T All clothing is clean and in MINT condition. Casual clothes, dressy clothes, and Halloween costumes.
*Ladies' clothing sizes petite large and 12 short.
*shoes
*baby blankets
*potty chairs and training pants (some never worn)
*toys
*books
*floor-length blackout burgundy drapes (6 panels)
*floor-length navy blue drapes (8 panels) and 4 valances
*nautical decor
*small TV
*lamps and shades
*changing table pad that fastens on top of a dresser
*complete set of children's size 0 Tae Kwon Do gear. Includes pants, shirt with Ultimate Kicks logo, hand and foot pads and elbow pads. Fits child approx. age 5-7. Worn only two months. Paid over $100, asking $25.
*bedding and queen bedspread/shams/dust ruffle
*electric leaf blower
*much misc.

Three Birthdays

2010-09-06T20:23:00.000-07:00

Collin turned eight on Aug. 1st. We celebrated with a party at the local bowling alley. He invited several friends from his class. Cami turned three on Aug. 23rd. We had a small party at home with family and a cake with special non-dairy frosting made by a local cake decorator. Finally, on Aug. 31st, I turned, um, well let's just say it's between 30 and 40 and leave it at that.

Craig and Collin made me a carrot cake with carrots they grew in our garden. Delicious!
What's in the bag?
Cami with her cake.
It's a rare treat for a lactose intolerant child to eat frosting. Jen D. did a fabulous job making this cake.
Collin made Cami a crown for her birthday. He thought this was a critical accessory.
Collin's bowling party.
The bowling alley has banned cake. We had a birthday pizza instead.
"So, do you think I can get this spare?"

Revisiting Nebraska

2010-09-06T19:55:00.001-07:00

My grandparents lived their entire lives in northeast Nebraska. Consequently, I spend many childhood summers in the communities of Norfolk, Hadar and Pierce. The city park in Pierce was the site of many walks and playtime adventures. When my grandpa passed away this past July, I took my oldest son to revisit the areas where I had spent so much time as a child. I'm amazed at how much things change in 25 years.

Contemplation by Cox Lake, Pierce, NE.
Spire of Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hadar, NE. My parents were married here in 1970.
Gazebo in Gilman Park, Pierce, NE.
Path through the birches.
Arboretum entrance.
Pathway through the cottonwoods.
Collin in a tree that has seen many seasons.
Boat launch on Cox Lake.
Pierce Museum.

Centennial Lakes Park

2010-08-17T18:58:00.001-07:00

If you're on Facebook, this is basically a repeat of an album I have on there. Last year on a trip to Minneapolis/St. Paul, we accidentally stumbled upon Centennial Lakes Park. If you're ever in the Twin Cities area, take the France Avenue exit off I-494. Head north on France Ave. To your right, you'll see an office complex with a Macaroni Grill restaurant. Behind the restaurant is an urban oasis.

Summer So Far

2010-07-22T12:14:00.001-07:00

Craig and the boys on their annual father/son campout with friends.
Cami with her only great grandparent.
My parents celebrated their 40th anniversary July 18th.
This is how I found Cami after her nap: underwear on head, shorts on arm, shirt around neck. I guess you have to have something to do while you're trying to go to sleep???
Fourth of July
Collin joins in the "polar bear" 7AM plunge at diabetes camp. He's in the middle wearing the plaid swimsuit.
Our camper at Lake Herman State Park.
Visiting Prairie Village in Madison, SD.

Just a spoonful of sugar . . .

2010-06-01T20:01:00.001-07:00

does not help the medicine go down. Collin dislikes the taste of his liquid antibiotic. In order to make the medicine taking process more tolerable he came up with his own solution. He pinches his nose shut with a plastic clip. Apparently, this diminishes the unpleasant taste.

April Twin Cities Pics

2010-05-03T19:13:00.001-07:00

Finally got around to posting pics of our most recent Twin Cities excursion. Wonderful trip (except for the hotel fiasco mentioned in the next post).

Collin and Evan in front of the waterfall at the Rainforest Cafe at the Mall of America.
The kids pony up to the bar for a photo. Evan holds the tail of his barstool.
Gorillas were our dining companions for the evening. We fit right in.

Giant tortoise at Underwater Adventures. Note the size of Cami's hands in comparison.
Entering the underwater tunnel.

This is as close as I'd care to get to a shark.
Or a ray, for that matter.
Nickelodeon Universe at the Mall of America.
The Jackson St. Roundhouse in St. Paul.
All the kids in our group plus two kids at heart.
The kids got to operate a signal.
Snowplow.
We boarded this caboose for a ride.
Some lucky little people got to ride in the engine.
The turntable.
Walking across the turntable.
Red roundhouse doors.
Car restoration in progress.
Two people can "drive" a fire truck.
Sometimes you need four people to drive a fire truck.
Passengers board fire truck for cruise around neighborhood.
Most of the time, however, one person can drive a fire truck.
Putting out fires.
College reunion plus one future college student.

Just a False Alarm

2010-04-11T14:32:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we met friends from college in Minneapolis. The weekend started out beautifully. Ate supper at the Rainforest Cafe. The kids were enthralled with the talking apes, fish, waterfalls and artificial thunderstorms at the cafe. Also went to the Underwater Adventure Aquarium. Evan in particular LOVED the aquarium, especially the sharks. Then we did some rides at Camp Nickelodeon.

Met the others in our group Sat. morning. Visited the Jackson St. Roundhouse. What a hidden gem! The kids went inside restored RR cars, worked crossing signals and even got to sit in the engine of a real diesel train for a short ride down the track. The diesel pulled a caboose which held the adults and any kids not able to fit in the engine.

After lunch we drove to the Minneapolis Firefighters' Museum. The kids squirted water at a fire, got chased around by a large remote-controlled hydrant, climbed on various types of fire trucks and took a short ride on a real fire truck around the neighborhood.

One of the families in our group had to leave that afternoon. They wished they could stay another night, but the life of a pastor required them to lead church services the next morning. The rest of us would later regret not leaving with them.

When we returned to our motel, we noticed that a fan was blowing on the first floor carpet and the window was open at the end of the hall. Didn't think too much of it. Swam in the pool. Due to the obvious fact that not all five family members fit in the shower simultaneously, Cami and I went up to rinse off first. It was then that I discovered that we had no hot water. It wasn't even lukewarm. I had the coldest sponge bath of my life as did Cami. I warned Craig and the boys when they returned, so they skipped the rinsing altogether. Phoned the front desk. We were told the entire hotel had no hot water and that a plumber was on the way.

Around 7PM Craig asked the front desk for an update. He was told, "Three hot water heaters, twenty minutes to fix each, hot water should be back in service this evening."

Socialized with the remaining two families and went to bed. Meanwhile, the hotel was filling to capacity with athletes in town for the Special Olympics. Cami, who usually doesn't sleep well in strange places, didn't fall asleep until 10:30. At 12:30 AM, we were awakened by the deafening screech of the fire alarm. Craig woke up confused and was desperately trying to shut off our alarm clock while I yelled, "Fire alarm! Fire alarm!" until he got the picture. One of us had the sense to grab the room key while the other grabbed the car keys. We ordered the kids to put their shoes on, grabbed our purses and wallet and headed out. The special olympic athletes were terrified. We sat in our van, thankful that we had left our coats in the vehicle and that it wasn't winter. We waited. We wondered how many people hadn't grabbed their room keys. A police car, at least two ambulances and fire engines arrived. After about 15 minutes we were told we could return to our rooms. No reason for the alarm was given. We thought maybe one of the special needs persons had pulled it. As we were settling the kids back in, I told Craig I had a bad feeling it was going to happen again. We were just falling back asleep when the alarm went off again. The kids had been pretty calm the first time, but now they were screaming. My friend was worried about her baby who wasn't old enough to cover his ears. This time I went downstairs by myself. The firefighters were standing on the first floor in the same area where the fans had been blowing on the carpet. The door to a mechanical room was open and steam had filled the first floor hallway. The steam from the malfunctioning water heaters had been tripping the alarms. So much for the 20 minutes per heater fix.

Went to the front desk and asked if the alarms could be stopped. They said a plumber and someone from the alarm co. were on their way, but they couldn't guarantee this wouldn't keep happening. They also said we wouldn't have hot water by morning. We were staying at the Fairfield by Marriott. Frustrated, I called their sister hotel (Courtyard by Marriott) on the same block. The time was after 1AM. I explained the situation and the Courtyard would not offer us a deep discount. Thinking I'd have the same luck, I walked to the Hyatt on the other side of the parking lot. The desk clerk told me that if we could get the Fairfield to foot the bill, he'd give us a room for "free."

I returned to the Fairfield. The general manager had been summoned to the hotel by this time. She agreed to pay for the Hyatt room and also agreed to let us keep our belongings at the Fairfield until check out time in the morning. We grabbed what we would need to shower and left along with the other two families. We were unable to get a crib for Cami, who had miraculously slept through the WHOLE thing. We laid her on some couch cushions on the floor. It was 2AM before we were settled down. Our friends' baby woke up at 4AM for a feeding, so they got even less sleep.

At 8AM Cami woke up and asked, "Where's my crib?" We showered at the Hyatt, collected our things from the Fairfield, and checked out of both hotels. Craig was offered a choice of the second night being free or a voucher for a free stay at the same location in the future. He passed on the voucher.

I wasn't feeling well, probably from stress and lack of sleep. The baby in our group was unhappy and the parents were wiped out. We scrapped church and our Sunday afternoon plans and headed home.

To sum up the rest of the winter . . .

2010-04-04T19:11:00.001-07:00

Santa came and plowed us out.
Collin and his fellow den members received badges at Cub Scouts.
Sometimes life comes at you. Especially if you're two and you didn't want to nap earlier in the day.
They had to scoop out the windows on the south side of the boys' school so the kids could see outside.
Over and out. The boys test a helicopter at the Big Boy Toy Show.
Evan took his first plunge off the diving board.
We got new neighbors. (wild turkeys)

Easter 2010

2010-04-04T19:03:00.001-07:00

Collin and Evan locate their baskets.
Cami is growing up so quickly.
Out of seven shots, this was the only one with all three kids looking at the camera while sitting in an appropriate manner.
"If I could just reach this one last egg . . ."
Cami puts her stash in her basket.
Grandma's egg hunt is complete.
Jenny and Craig

Chinese New Year

2010-02-18T18:46:00.000-08:00

It's the Year of the Tiger!

Feb. 14th marked the beginning of the Year of the Tiger. Due to the other obvious holiday which falls on the 14th, we celebrated Chinese New Year on the 13th. Chinese New Year is a movable holiday, falling in January or February. To the Chinese people, it's the equivalent of Christmas. In other words, it's a REALLY big deal in China. We ate in the HyVee dining room, wearing red for CNY while surrounded by others wearing red for Valentine's Day. After dinner, our adoption group headed to a private room for CNY festivities. Cami was the youngest Chinese child present. Many of the girls wore traditional Chinese silk dresses. We opted for a washing-machine friendly velvet Panda shirt instead. The kids had a great time doing crafts, learning more about the Chinese culture, and just running around. Pics in the next post.

Chinese New Year Pics

2010-02-18T18:33:00.000-08:00

Wearing red for CNY
Cami does graffiti on the Great Wall.
Dumpling making demo
Chinese yo-yo in action
Collin and Evan make crafts.
Chopstick/Marshmallow relay race
The ladies do a fan dance.
Cami gets into the fan dance.
Pin the Tail on the Tiger, of course.

Three's a Crowd

2010-02-06T19:53:00.000-08:00

Found out something interesting about hotels that won't let a family of five book a regular room. We've run into this problem and I know I'm not alone. If you've ever had troubles with this, you need to check out my story on www.minnemom.com. Minnemom is a blog published by a woman in (surprise!) Minnesota. Her target audience is families with children who like to travel. The title of my story is "Three's a Crowd."

It's a Marshmallow World in the Winter

2010-01-18T11:28:00.000-08:00

For those of you not on Facebook (I shared this there already), Cami is now joining the sibling rivalry bandwagon.

I picked Evan up from kindergarten this morning. He told me he made a snowman art project. When we got home, he told me he'd taken special care to put the snowman in a side pocket of his bookbag. I removed the snowman and set it on the kitchen counter where I thought it was out of Cami's reach. The snowman was constructed with large marshmallows which were held together by toothpicks. The facial features were drawn with permanent marker. I went down to the basement and soon heard Evan crying hysterically and saying Cami's name. I couldn't imagine what she could have done to make him cry so much. She's too little to beat him up. I went upstairs to discover that she had removed a stepstool from the bathroom, dragged it into the kitchen and used the stool to get on the counter and consume his snowman. Thank the Lord she pulled the toothpicks out of it first! Evan was crying and Cami responded, "Momma make you anudda one."

Chillin'

2010-01-10T20:00:00.001-08:00

Apparently, Evan was in a very relaxed state of being. This reminds me of how our cats used to lounge on top of the sofa.

Trip Pics

2010-01-10T19:33:00.000-08:00

We did not get reprimanded for taking this photo.
With John, our fabulous chauffer
Prior to boarding the ship.
Central atrium on ship.
Notice how the waterslide attendant is dressed. Brrr.
Tanker in harbor
Lighthouse in Tampa Bay
Too cold for water in the kiddie pool
Let's try mini golf instead.
Ahhhhh
Collin in the surf
Our ship anchored off Grand Cayman
The crew on the beach on Grand Cayman
Typical architecture on Grand Cayman
How long would you want to be in this lifeboat with 140 other people?
Approaching Cozumel
The long dock leading from ship to shore
In between two Carnival ships
Christmas tree in square in Cozumel
Nachi Cocom beach club in Cozumel
Nachi Cocom
Wacky decor in the casual restaurant. I think it's supposed to look like squid.

Setting Sail

2010-01-10T14:31:00.000-08:00

Last week we embarked on our latest adventure. We took all three kids on a Carnival cruise.

Due to bad weather, we left a day early and spent the night in a small motel halfway between here and the Twin Cities. Upon arriving at the airport the next day we discovered I had left my keys at the motel. Fortunately, the owners located our keys and have kindly agreed to mail them to us. Discovered that airport check in has been completely reconfigured since Delta took over Northwest Airlines. Even though we've flown out of here many times, we managed to get in the wrong line THREE times trying to check in. Got properly checked in and got into the security line and soon discovered we weren't given a boarding pass for Cami. Went back over to the proper check in counter and obtained the boarding pass. Undressed five family members in order to go through security. Got settled in at our gate and began to eat a lunch I'd packed. To my horror, I discovered we had unintentionally snuck a sharp paring knife through security. I had brought the knife with the intent of slicing apples in the car and had meant to leave it in the car. I was shocked that: #1 We could have ended up in jail. #2 If we got this through security, who knows what else must make it through security and possibly onto our plane. Craig disposed of the knife promptly.

Our flight went well. We were picked up by a hotel shuttle and spent the night at a hotel in Tampa. I experienced the coldest shower of my life the following morning. No need for caffeine after that.

Craig's good friend, John, picked us up and took us for breakfast. He then drove us to the cruise terminal. The employees took pity on us with three kids and ushered us through the VIP line. Nice. Waited in one more line and then we were on the ship for lunch. We were not prepared for the brisk 56 degree weather in Tampa and froze through lunch. Turned out that we were in for a week of record breaking cold temps. Had only packed one warm outfit each for the trip home. After lunch we unpacked and participated in the mandatory muster drill. The kids had to wear bracelets the entire cruise indicating the location of their muster (lifeboat) station. Went on deck to watch the ship set sail. While we were waiting, several people on land approached the ship and photographed it. To our surprise, a ship's employee got on the PA system and loudly reprimanded a poor little old lady on land for taking pictures of the ship. I'm not sure why they didn't like this. Were they concerned she was going to steal the ship?

It was smooth sailing until we got out of Tampa Bay and then things were rough for the rest of the trip. I had my motion sickness patch behind my ear and never took it off. It worked well except for the not-so-great side effect of blurry vision which resulted in my inability to read printed words unless held at arm's length for the duration of the trip.

Our first day was a day at sea. The kids swam in a warm salt water pool. The kiddie pool at the back of the ship had a couple of water slides, but was not sheltered from the wind and was too cold to use most of the time. The four hottubs were always packed.

We discovered there's not much to do on a ship at night unless you're into hitting the bars and the casino. They had three shows during our voyage. We enjoyed watching those. Having quiet reading time is my idea of a thrill these days, but I was unable to do that due to my blurred vision situation. I think Craig got quite a bit of reading done.

We played a few rounds of mini golf. The boys enjoyed the kids' club. Cami freaked out when we tried to leave her, so we didn't get much "date time" in. Evan chose to eat with the kids' club most nights. He decided pizza in a casual environment with fellow 2-5 year olds was way better than having to sit still in a grown up dining room for 1 1/2 hours. Collin enjoyed it when they dimmed the lights and had the waiters dance in the grown up dining room. Cami charmed the waiters. She danced with them and impressed them with her extensive vocabulary. She also wowed the judges at the opening night family dance party with her awesome dancing. (We didn't know she had this skill.)

We had two ports of call: Grand Cayman and Cozumel. We chose beach excursions both times because we didn't think sightseeing/shopping with kids would go well. Grand Cayman was about the only time the temps were comfortable in swim attire. The boys loved the surf, but Cami screamed every time a wave washed over her feet. She chose to dig in the sand further back on the beach. We only had 2 1/2 hours of beach time on Grand Cayman and had to ride a tender back to the ship. Cozumel was COLD. Here, we didn't have to ride a tender, so we ventured out on our own and found a quiet, reasonable private beach club. The waves were too rough to do much wading. Evan threw sand in the water to "feed the sharks." He also threw sand at his siblings which resulted in Cami screaming and Collin sitting on him and pushing his face in the sand. This, of course, resulted in Evan screaming and pretty soon we had the attention of the whole beach. Both boys ended up on separate chairs in time out and Cami fell asleep from the trauma of it all.

Our last day at sea was also cold. All the moms sat on the pool deck in jeans and jackets with towels wrapped around their legs. We were off the ship around 9 AM the next day. We chose to self-disembark (lug all our own stuff) and the process went better than we expected. Spent about four hours in the airport when our flight was delayed an hour. Circled above the Twin Cities 30 min. waiting for a runway to be plowed (again, my patch came in handy). Heard a blizzard had hit our area, so decided to spend the night in Minneapolis. Drove home the next morning and swung north to avoid bad roads. Locked our remaining set of keys in the car when we stopped for lunch. The police came to unlock our car, and fortunately, the process only took about 20 min. It took about 5 1/2 hours to do what was usually a four hour trip, but we are home and safe and that's what matters.

I probably won't be doing any more cruises due to my need for continuous motion sickness meds, but Craig and the kids had a good time despite the temps. Now we're ready to get back into our usual routine. Pics to come in the next post.

The Incentive Spirometer

2009-12-07T19:29:00.000-08:00

Cami using her incentive spirometer
The incentive spriometer

Cami has been going to a speech language pathologist for the last couple of months due to her excessive drooling. She was soaking through three to four bibs a day and we're pretty sure she's done teething. The speech teacher informed us that she has weak muscles in her mouth. We believe the weak muscles were caused by the large size of the nipple holes on the baby bottles in China. The babies don't learn how to suck properly with such large holes. We've been doing various stretching exercises with her mouth. Part of her treatment involves sucking on straws and blowing. Cami was given the device pictured above to help her blow. She blows into the tube, which causes the ping-pong type ball to rise. There is a gauge on the side of the spirometer to show how high the ball rises. Now we have to keep Collin and Evan from using the spirometer. They think it looks like a lot of fun.

A New Twist on an Old Song

2009-12-02T19:06:00.000-08:00

This morning Cami was singing happily in her room. Craig and I were busy doing chores when all of a sudden her sweet little voice caught our attention:

"Da farma in da dell. Da farma in da dell. Hi ho da dairy oh, da farma in da dell.
Da farma needs a drink. Da farma needs a drink. Hi ho da dairy oh, da farma needs a drink."

Craig commented that if the farmer had a bad crop, he probably did need a drink.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2009-11-26T12:29:00.000-08:00

Collin and Evan with our homemade Turkey headgear.

Wishing all of you a Thanksgiving filled with God's richest blessings.

The "Ballerina Machine."

2009-11-26T12:15:00.000-08:00

The controls which operate the Ballerina Machine and the keys to unlock said controls.
Evan entering the Ballerina Machine
Almost made it in
Evan is now inside the Ballerina Machine
Exiting the Ballerina Machine
Locking up the Ballerina Machine "so strangers don't get inside."

As the weather continues to cool down and the days grow shorter, we find ourselves spending more and more time indoors. The boys used their imaginations and concocted "The Ballerina Machine." They created their machine by pushing together their Thomas the Train playhouse, their toolbench, their picnic table, a set of baby keys and one of Cami's toys. After all these items are pushed together, one must turn the machine on and maneuver through the various segments. I needed to know the purpose of this machine, so Evan and I had the following conversation:

Me: "What's this?"
Evan: "My Ballerina Machine."
Me: "What do you do with the machine?"
Evan: "You go through it."
Me: "And when you come out, have you been turned into a ballerina?"
Evan: "No, Mom. We go through it because it's fun." (Duh!)

I'm not sure where this idea came from. The only thing I can think of is that the boys view ballerinas as the antithesis of masculinity (my apologizes to any male ballet dancers reading this), so a boy going through a ballerina machine is the silliest thing on earth. In fact, this is so much fun, the Ballerina Machine is assembled on a daily basis.

With creative juices like theirs, you can see why I have to cover an abundance of gray hair.

Check It Out!

2009-11-09T12:49:00.001-08:00

If you're in charge of preparing the cuisine in your family, you HAVE to check out this website:

www.crockpot365.blogspot.com

I don't know about you, but with three busy little people, anything that can go in a slow cooker is a sure hit with me. The lady who blogs on this site has all kinds of recipes for slow cookers, a cookbook you can order (might have to do that) and she's got a great sense of humor to boot.

Typical Household Happenings

2009-11-06T20:03:00.000-08:00

Halloween. It was impossible to get all three kids to look at the camera. This was the best we could do. Collin's eyes were closed.
Cami's in the process of potty training. I put a potty chair in the middle of the living room floor. Collin decided she needed some privacy, so he built a wall out of cushions. The picture turned out blurry, but given the sensitive nature of the photo, that's probably for the best.
Modest? Me? Nah!
Who says you can't wear your swimming suit as a ski mask?

Pretty in Pink

2009-11-06T19:59:00.000-08:00

If you happen to have noticed, most planned pictures of our children are taken with the kids posed in front of the fireplace. We're not very creative when it comes to photography. Cami was given this adorable coat and I wanted some photos of her in it before she gets too big to wear the coat. Craig was going to shoot the usual in-front-of-the-fireplace photo when I suggested he take her outside. I think the pictures turned out beautifully, so I hope you don't mind me showing off our little lady in pink.

Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch . . .

2009-11-06T19:48:00.000-08:00

Painting the pumpkins
The whole gang on a hayride.
Cowgirl Cami

While Craig and I were enjoying our break in Lanesboro (see previous posts), Grandma and Grandpa K took the kids to the I.A.G.'s (International Adoption Group) annual fall party. This year, one of the I.A.G. families hosted the event on their farm. The kids got to paint pumpkins, ride ponies and take a little hayride. Grandma and Grandpa reported that everyone had a good time. The photos are courtesy of our wonderful, thoughtful, friend Jeanne H.

Men in Uniform

2009-10-30T19:11:00.001-07:00

Collin Sports His Tiger Cub Scout Uniform
Evan's Homemade Robot Ensemble

Collin had his second Tiger Cub Scout pack meeting. This is held at his school and consists of all the cub scouts from his school. This was the first time Collin wore his uniform to the meeting. The pack meeting is not to be confused with the den meeting, which is comprised of a small group of boys. The den meeting usually meets in a private home. I was never in scouting growing up, so I'm learning about this as I go along. Collin and Craig also helped collect food for a scouting food drive. They drove the food to another location where it was sorted. All together, the pack collected 2,000 items, which were in turn donated to the Salvation Army food pantry.

On to other news. Evan has quite the active imagination. This probably comes from being a second child who has had to come up with ways to amuse himself since he has never had 100% of our undivided attention like his older brother at one time experienced. Lately, he's been fixated on robots. He asked us to create a robot costume for him. The above picture shows the results of our efforts. It's no masterpiece, but he was pleased with the results. He does his best to keep his costume out of reach of his younger sister when he's not wearing it.

Bullying Seminar

2009-10-27T16:49:00.001-07:00

Last week I attended a bullying seminar sponsored by our local school district. The speaker, Trudy Ludwig, is the parent of children who were bullied during their elementary school years. She has written several books on the subject and speaks all over the country. Here's what I learned from her talk:

-9/10 elementary students have been bullied
-bullying happens once every seven min. on the playground and every 25 min. during class
-kids ages 8-15 rate bullying as a bigger problem than racism, AIDS, or peer pressure to try drugs, sex and alcohol
-bullied children are five times more likely to suffer from depression than their non-bullied peers

-There are three groups involved in bullying: aggressors, targets and bystanders

-There are three types of bullying: physical, verbal and relational.
-Relational bullying involves manipulation in a relationship. Examples are betraying secrets, gossip, the silent treatment, sending nasty e-mails, forming an exclusive club, pretending to be friends as a means to an end, etc. Relational bullying is the most harmful form of bullying.
-Girls target their own friends. Boys go outside their friendship circles.

-Not worried because your child isn't a target? Bystanders suffer the same symptoms as targets.
-Symptoms of bullying include: school phobia, head and stomachaches, anxiety, poor problem-solving skills and feelings of helplessness.
-School absences due to the effects of bullying account for 160,000 absences a day in the U.S.

-Girls with abusive friendships gravitate towards abusive romantic relationships later in life.
-Boys like to exchange friendly insults with each other. A boy who is bothered by such insults often becomes a target.

How to stop the bullying:
(Younger kids)
-Say to the bully, "Stop! I don't like it when you say that. If you do it again, I'll report you." Then WALK AWAY.
-Say, "So? Whatever! Who cares?"
-Act like a three year old and ask, "Why?" Ex. "You're fat?" "Why do you think I'm fat?" "Because you look fat." "Why do you think I look fat?" The idea is to get the bully to give up.
(Older kids)
-Turn an insult into a compliment. "You're fat!" "Thanks!"
-Agree. "You're fat." "You're right, I am fat." ( Be careful what you agree with on this one.)
-Change the subject by turning around and complimenting them. "You're fat!" "Cool shoes! Where did you get them?"
-Use humor to make the bully laugh.

What not to do:
-Fight back. This can just cycle out of control and go on forever or until someone really gets hurt.
-Ignore. They will just increase the level of their insults until you crack.

Whatever tactic is used, ALWAYS WALK AWAY and tell a grown-up.

If you ever have the opportunity to hear Trudy Ludwig speak, please go. The hour she spoke flew by quickly. She captures her audience and arms them with practical information.

Baby, It's Cold Outside

2009-10-10T08:45:00.000-07:00

When was the above picture taken? This past March perhaps? No. This morning! I'm used to having snow from November-April. Usually it starts shortly after Halloween and we settle in for the winter. Six months of snow is bad enough, but yesterday I received the shock of the year when it started blizzarding sideways around supper time. In the afternoon the temps were in the 40s (cold enough) and the kids and I played in our winter gear in the park. There was a dark blue cloud on the horizon and I assumed that meant rain was coming. Nope. We were in for a good old fashioned snowstorm- nine days into October! Not only did it snow, but it actually accumulated. We were going to the pumpkin patch today, but I'm thinking any pumpkins left are probably mush right now. I brought in the pumpkins we did have from the garage so they wouldn't freeze.

This morning the temp was 20 degrees when I got up. I'm so not ready for this yet. The boys, however, were very excited to go outside for a romp. Where was my husband during all this time? Tent camping! He wanted to take the boys with him, and I nixed that idea when I heard the temps were going to get close to the teens during the night. I'm so thankful I insisted that they stay home.

Collin the Cub

2009-09-22T19:38:00.000-07:00

Tonight Collin officially became a Tiger Cub. His first pack meeting was held at his school. I'm fairly ignorant about these things, but I've been informed that this is the first step in the scouting program. He received a neckerchief (sp?) tonight. He's been excited about this for some time. Hopefully, this will pan out for him since our athletic endeavours have not faired so well.

Pics from Lanesboro Trip

2009-09-22T19:13:00.001-07:00

No less than seven deer ventured into the back yard of the B and B while we sat outside
Labyrinth in the backyard of the B and B
Preston, MN was a little slice of Americana on the Root River Bike Trail
The Root River Trail is on an old RR bed. This is one of the many bridges we crossed.
They had to cut through some rock for the original RR bed.
Leaves strewn on the path
Waterfall over the dam in Lanesboro
Looking out over the Root River Valley
This is an endangered species.
Typical examples of architecture in Lanesboro
Downtown Lanesboro
This church is on the same hill where our B and B was situated. Notice how high this was compared to the rest of the town.
Looking down the hill from our B and B
Hillcrest Hideaway Bed and Breakfast
Hwy 16 from Lanesboro to the Mississippi Valley is gorgeous
Bridges over the Mississippi in LaCrosse
Friendship Garden in LaCrosse
Fountain in Friendship Garden

An Escape

2009-09-22T07:29:00.001-07:00

Well, after two years (I know it's been longer than that for some of you out there), Craig and I finally got away for a long weekend without the kids. We weren't sure we'd be able to go. I didn't pack until the night before because things were looking iffy. In the four days before we left, the following happened:
-My dad got sick (he and mom were supposed to babysit).
-Our truck started making funny noises (mechanic said the problem wasn't critical and we could still drive it)
-Cami had GI problems
-Evan complained of a tummy ache (ended up being nothing)
-The babysitter we'd hired to help my mom on Sunday cancelled
-The babysitter we'd hired to help my mom on Saturday fell ill (she got better and was able to help)

I've decided that from now on, as much as I like bed and breakfasts, I need the flexibility of a motel cancellation policy so we're not out our money if we have to cancel.

Anyway, we drove about 5 1/2 hours to Lanesboro, MN. Check it out at www.Lanesboro.com. We stayed at a B and B with four guest rooms. The B and B was great. The breakfasts were yummy . The hosts were friendly. The other guests were nice. We had a two room suite. The only thing I didn't like was that our room was immediately next to the kitchen where the hosts could see our comings and goings- not a lot of privacy. They had a resident kitty who enjoyed the company of strangers. The B and B was situated in the middle of town on a San Francisco type hill. The road to get up there was basically vertical. The advantage was that it was quiet on top of the hill. Walking up the hill in dress shoes at night, however, was rather interesting.

Friday night we went to see a performance by a professional-grade theater troupe of "The Odd Couple." It was very well done. Saturday we biked 20 miles on the Root River Trail to Preston, MN. The trail took us through meadows, forests, over the river on old RR bridges several times and through cut rock. It was mostly level. Every kind of biker imaginable was out: Serious bikers from the MN Bike Club, elderly people out for a leisurely ride, families with babies in trailers making frequent stops (been there), long trains of ladies more interested in visiting with each other than biking, etc. It was challenging returning up the hill to our B and B with jelly legs from biking. Saturday afternoon we browsed through some of the quirky shops in Lanesboro. Saturday night we ate dinner in a restaurant where we'd never take our kids. It was one of those places where you pay a high price for a small bit of food arranged artistically (sp?) on your plate.

Sunday we drove to Winona and went through the neighborhood where I grew up. We were going to stop and knock on the door of my old house, but it looked like the owners had company. I'm awed how the neighborhood had changed from a pasture-like setting to a wooded setting. Trees grow a lot in 30+ years! We drove past some other nostalgic locations in Winona and then drove along the Mississippi to LaCrosse for lunch and shopping. Craig fell asleep on a chair in the mall while I shopped. We then drove down to the Mississippi and walked along the river. We took the scenic ride back home.

Lanesboro is beautiful. It is located in hill country. The hills are covered with trees just beginning to change into their autumn hues. It's a completely different atmopshere from where I live now- which was just what I needed.

Grandma and Grandpa basically survived with the kids. Let's just say that Evan got a DQ treat for good behavior and Collin was not so fortunate.

I'll post pics later in my next post.

Beverages for the less refined individual

2009-09-05T09:34:00.000-07:00

Thursday evening we were at a party. Craig was getting the boys something to eat when they announced they were thirsty. Craig asked them what they wanted to drink and Collin replied, "HICK juice."

"Hick juice?" Craig asked. He had no clue what Collin was talking about. "I've never heard of hick juice."

But Collin insisted that there was indeed hick juice and that he wanted some. Finally Craig asked him to point to what he meant. Collin led Craig over to an assortment of boxes of Hi-C fruit juice.

Collin is in first grade and it's been drilled into him for a long time that when he doesn't know a word, he should sound out the letters to figure out what the word says. So, to him Hi-C should be pronounced "hick."

We got a kick out of this.

Pretty as a Picture

2009-08-31T19:45:00.001-07:00

Last Friday was picture day at school. Not something you'd normally expect to happen the first week. It's caught me off guard in the past. This year I wisened (is that a word?) up and got the boys' hair cut the week before school started. I wonder how long it will be before they protest the concept of matching outfits?

Cami is Terrific Two

2009-08-31T19:29:00.000-07:00

A pink princess cake for the little princess.
Cami dives into her cake.
We did a little ice cream cone pinata bashing.
We had a few takers for face painting.
Evan is enjoying the gift opening more than Cami.

Cami recently celebrated her second birthday. We kept things pretty low key for her first birthday so as not to overwhelm her right after she arrived from China. So, this year we had a party at a shelter house in the park complete with a pinata bashing. The weather was chilly, but still decent by our standards. Due to the approaching darkness and the ease of transporting unwrapped gifts to the van, we opted to open gifts the following afternoon.

To my disappointment, something went awry with our digital camera in the park, and very few pics came out clear.

I wonder where Cami was born two years ago. I wonder if her birth mother is thinking of her today. I wonder if she knew before she was born that she'd have to give her up. I wonder how much time she was able to spend with her. I thank her for the gift of Cami Chen Chen.

Two Firsts in One Day

2009-08-26T07:01:00.001-07:00

Evan's First Day of Kindergarten
Of course, Collin had to have his picture taken, too
My big boys go to school
Evan's first day of soccer

Yesterday was a day of firsts. It was Evan's first day of morning kindergarten. I thought he'd cling to me when it was time to line up, but he surprised me by getting in line like a big boy. After hearing "I don't want to go to preschool" all the way to preschool for the entire first semester last year, I was shocked to hear "I LIKE school" when he flew out the door at 11:30. Daddy took him today and reported that he RAN to get in line when the bell rang. So far, so good.

Collin had his first day of first grade. He now has to go to school all day, so he was apprehensive about this. Lunch, in particular, was a scary prospect. He balked about getting in line until I walked away to help his brother. Then he got in line when there was no audience for his mini-meltdown.

After school, Evan had his first day of soccer. He can't run very fast, but his heart seems to be in it and he tried hard. We ordered the smallest shirt size possible, but it still looks like he's wearing a dress with leggings. We won't tell him that.

Pics from Minneapolis Trip (journal in next blog entry)

2009-08-23T21:29:00.000-07:00

Pergola Gardens at Minnehaha Park
Minnehaha Falls
Longfellow Gardens
The deadly surrey
Entering Como Town Amusement Park
Evan puts out fires.
The boys got their drivers' licenses . . .
after driving miniature cars.
Cami on a kiddie ride
Evan buzzes down a zip line.
A woman's work is never done. Cami found a sand play area.
Entering the Minneapolis Sculputure Gardens with the Cherry on a Spoon in the background
The infamous Cherry on a Spoon
I didn't get this one. I think this was an empty coat, a pair of lips and a body without arms.
Memorial Arbor
Collin swings under a sculpture while Evan had a meltdown
We walked through arches of greenery inside a conservatory
The conservatory
Inside the conservatory was a giant fish sculpture made out of small pieces of glass.

Minneapolis Excursion

2009-08-23T21:14:00.001-07:00

This weekend we met Grandma and Grandpa K in the Twin Cities for our final outing of the summer. Our agenda was as follows:

Day 1: Departed after Daddy finished morning walk-in clinic. Arrived around 1:30PM at our hotel in Eden Prairie. G and G arrived about an hour later. We then carpooled to the Mall of America where we hopped the light rail train. The kids hadn't ridden on a life-sized train before. Going through the tunnel under the international airport was extremely thrilling. Evan wanted to do the "monkey bars"- the handles dangling from the ceiling for standing passengers to grab. We got off the train at the 50th St. /Minnehaha Station and walked into Minnehaha Park. We viewed the falls and then boarded a double surrey for a VERY eventful cycling experience. Cami got strapped into a baby seat on the front of the surrey. Craig and I pedaled while the boys tried to "help." Cami dropped her sippy cup on the ground and we rode over the top of it. Evan's shoe fell off and he had to run back and get it. Evan almost fell under the surrey and had to be strapped in like his sister. We had to get out and push the thing up the hill a few times. We had to yell at an innocent family to get out of the way when we were careening down a hill and didn't know how to stop. We then had to profusely apologize to this family and explain that we didn't know what we were doing. We walked through the Pergola and Longfellow Gardens. We ate at a delicious fish restaurant in the park. Collin actually consumed fish (there was nothing else on the menu) for the first time in his life. After supper, we boarded the train again for the trip back. We were thankful to be headed in the opposite direction as the loads of Vikings fans going to the Metrodome. The cars heading in the opposite direction contained a sea of purple.

Day 2: Went to Como Park in St. Paul. Rode every ride possible at Como Town. Almost every ride is age-appropriate for preschoolers. Talked with a mom who had a daughter Cami's age adopted from Guatemala. Instant connection. Her daughter didn't sleep for a year, either. Hit a few parts of the zoo. Returned to the hotel in hopes of resting. Kids weren't interested in resting. Went to eat at Romano's Macaroni Grill in Edina. The kids were able to sit in a viewing area and watch the culinary events in the kitchen. Took a walk behind the restaurant and accidentally stumbled on a free hidden gem: Centennial Park. Gorgeous! And I didn't have my camera!!! All seven of us paraded through a sidewalk maze while being stared at by an elderly couple. Went through fabulous formal gardens, swung on grown-up swing, saw a wedding, saw model boat from a miniature yacht club on a lake, listened to classical music piped in via a sound system, walked under and over arched bridges. Walked around three small lakes connected by a stream. If you ever head to the Twin Cities in the summer, you MUST see this park!!!

Day 3: Went to church. Parted ways with my parents who were going to the Renaissance Festival. Went to the free Minneapolis Sculpture Garden. Amazingly, we found it very easily off I-394. ( I was prepared for much arguing and getting lost in the van.) Craig carried a whining Evan on his shoulders the whole time. Left after an hour and headed home.

More From the Strip Artist

2009-08-23T21:05:00.000-07:00

The other morning I head Cami making happy noises in her crib. I headed to her room to get her out. While I was walking down the hall, I heard this scraping sound coming from the other side of her wall. What on earth???

I opened the door and was greeted with the sight you see in the above photo. Cami had just ripped a HUGE section of the bear border wall paper off the wall. I was absolutely SHOCKED.

Now, normally, I would have been really upset about this little event. However, we were planning to transition her gender neutral nursery (formerly occupied by the boys) into a pink little girls' room soon, anyway. I've actually bought all the stuff for her new room. She has saved us a ton of work with the dreaded wallpaper removal process.

Funny how two boisterous little boys slept in that same crib in the same spot and never touched the wallpaper border.

So, if you ever have some ugly wallpaper you want taken down, forget the vinegar, fabric softener, etc. Just give us a call and we'll send Cami over!

Fu Reunion

2009-08-15T20:07:00.000-07:00

Bridge over the Missouri River
The Iowa Welcome Center is in an old boat
The Fu Girls connect
Cami and Olivia's first encounter since China
Enjoying a picnic lunch
The boys found a baby swing that still fits them
Of course, both had to have their pictures taken in it

Today we sojourned to Sioux City, IA to meet up with Max, Lisa and Olivia. This was a midpoint for us to meet. They were one of the four other families who were in our travel group to China. We shared the Gotcha Day experience together. We have not seen them since we parted ways at the O'Hare Airport in Chicago last June. Olivia was the oldest baby in the adoption group and Cami was the youngest. The girls are six months apart in age, but as time passes, the age gap becomes less apparent. Olivia filled out nicely and is an adorable young lady. The Fu girls enjoyed staring at each other in their strollers. All the little girls in our adoption group had the surname Fu. This is derived from the name of the orphanage in charge of supervising their care - Fuzhou Social Welfare Institute. Children adopted from this institution are forever known as "Fu Girls." There is even a national Fu reunion held annually.

We originally planned to do some swimming, but the clouds were iffy all day, so we filled the time by visiting a couple of parks. Despite the attempts to burn off as much energy as possible, Cami stayed awake almost the entire day.

We hope to reunite with Max, Lisa and Olivia yearly as they are the closest family in our travel group geographically.

Le Chef

2009-08-14T19:46:00.001-07:00

Collin disappeared into the basement today and returned sporting the above ensemble. He thought it was necessary to dine on his lunch while clothed in full chef's regalia. Notice the cooking utensils in his apron pocket. He wore this for the duration of lunch before dumping it all on the kitchen floor for mom to pick up later.

Collin is seven now and it's dawning on me that sooner rather than later he's going to be way too cool to wear cute little costumes around the house.

In other news, Evan decided yesterday that he needed to urinate in a plastic drinking cup. He went into the bathroom, peed in the cup and dumped the contents into the toilet. This, of course, horrified me. I had him place the offensive item in the dishwasher and sent him to time out.

Then Craig got one of those "You wouldn't believe what your son did now" calls at work. His reaction was to laugh and state that this was a perfectly normal male behavior. "Did you pee in a cup when you were little?" I asked. "Probably," he answered. Hmmm.

Now, this is where my female thinking comes into play. Why on earth would you want to pee in a cup when we have four perfectly suitable bathrooms? Also, wouldn't it be more effort to pee into the cup, dump the contents into the toilet and then put the cup in the dishwasher than it would be to just pee in the toilet in the first place?

And men say they don't understand women.

Some Deep Thoughts on a Situation in China

2009-08-10T19:44:00.000-07:00

One of the reasons I started this blog was to discuss international adoption. Tomorrow the Assoc. Press will probably start blitzing the internet, newspapers and television with a breaking story regarding a little girl in China. I don't want to mention the names of the family members here, because people are googling the name of this little girl and it's a pretty touchy situation. I don't want to have a lot of strangers posting comments on my blog.

A husband and wife who are both architects and live in a suburb of Washington D.C. went to China to adopt a preschool age girl. They received mixed reports as to whether or not she had TB. They headed to China under the impression that everything was OK with her. I don't understand all the medical logistics, but to make a long story short, the Centers for Disease Control would not let them bring the child back to the U.S. until certain lab tests come back, which could take anywhere from two to six months. Due to the meds the girl has been on, she is not contagious to others on the airplane. The family claimed they didn't have enough money to stay in China any longer than their original two-week plan, so they left this little girl with an American family living over there. They specifically mentioned the need for both of them to work and pay their mortgage. They videotaped their final moments with this little girl. The footage can be seen on YouTube and elsewhere on the internet. As you can imagine, she does not react well when she is removed from her parents. I could not get myself to watch the whole tape, but those that did said it was "heart wrenching."

I signed a petition this family started to get some of the rules to change to allow adopted children of U.S. citizens with certain medical conditions to be allowed to return to the U.S. with their parents. As I understand it, this situation would not occur if the child was biological.

How did all this make me feel? Well, shocked. Shocked that the parents left this little girl in China. According to the parents, she was abandoned by her birth parents (as was my own daughter), then abandoned by her foster family and placed in an orphanage. She then spent two weeks with her parents. Her parents reported that she was very terrified anytime they took her out in public. She made some progress in attaching to them during the two weeks she was in their custody. Then- the parents left her to return to the U.S. So, she has now lived with five different caregivers.

Here are my concerns:

1. When these parents return to China to reclaim their child, be it in two or sixth months, it's pretty safe to assume (due to her behavior while they had her and her experiences of being bounced from caregiver to caregiver) that she is going to have major attachment issues. She is old enough to know what is going on. Is she ever going to be able to trust that any adult is there for her for the long run?

2. These parents claimed they could not stay in China longer because their credit cards had been maxed out. They did not even stay one extra day. Every parent going to adopt from China needs to have an emergency back up plan. What if a typhoon hits while you're there and you're stranded? What if there is an earthquake? What if your child picks up a virus while you're over there and requires hospitalization? What if you're too sick to get on the airplane for the flight home? International adoption is so full of risks.

3. The mortgage the parents need to work to pay off is for a $550,000 home. They live in a suburb where the cost of living is VERY high. We have personal friends who lived close by who can attest to this. Now, maybe they have to live there because their families are there. I don't know. I'm just not sure why anyone would want to live in a place where you have to spend that kind of money to buy a decent, livable house. This is why we have chosen to live in the midwest.

4. According to the parents' blog, they thought that by remaining longer in China, they would "probably" lose their jobs. They left so quickly, that I have to wonder if they even took the time to discuss the possibility of some kind of leave with their bosses. Could one of them stayed behind while the other parent returned to work?

I know, I haven't walked in their shoes. I've been called "harsh, judgmental, cruel, etc" on the international adoption forums for my opinions on this.

I wholeheartedly agree that the Centers For Disease Control needs to change some of their policies. They are not the good guys here, either. This child is a victim of govt. red tape and American materialism.

I just have a hard time with a society that places a job and a house before a child. I think of all the people whose children are diagnosed with terminal diseases. How much time do they miss from work? God will provide! He may not provide what WE think He should provide, but ultimately, He knows what we REALLY need.

I'm sorry this post has been so deep and political. I'm really struggling with this right now and I can't stop thinking about that poor little girl in Guangzhou.

Thanks for letting me share my heart with you.

Hide and Seek

2009-08-10T19:39:00.000-07:00

This morning I was cleaning up after breakfast when I noticed that the boys had disappeared from the kitchen. Their breakfasts weren't finished, so I called for them to come back. No response. I checked downstairs in the rec room. No response. I hadn't heard the outside doors open and close, so I was pretty sure they weren't out there. I then headed upstairs. I heard giggling coming from our closet. Upon entering our closet, I noticed that the clothes hamper was wiggling. I opened up the lid to discover two little boys inside. How they both fit in there when it was 1/3 full of clothes baffles me. They must have some contortion skills I did not know they possessed. Anyway, it was so cute, I had to take a picture. Then everyone was herded downstairs to finish breakfast.

Something I Need to Get Out of My System

2009-08-06T19:31:00.000-07:00

I'm just bursting with excitement and just telling Craig isn't enough of an outlet. This may also be premature, but it's looking like I HAVE ALL MY SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHING POSITIONS FILLED FOR THIS FALL!!!!! WHOOOO HOOOO!!!! PRAISE AND THANKS BE TO GOD WHO HAS LED THESE PEOPLE TO MAKE THESE DECISIONS TO HELP!!!

That's it.

Collin is 7!

2009-08-01T20:25:00.000-07:00

Bouncing off the walls
The birthday boy's Transformers' cupcake
Grandpa's b-day is Aug. 5th, so we had a joint candle extinguishing event
Cami finds crushed cake to be an excellent moisturizer.
Opening presents

Seven years ago today, we greeted a 6 lb. 4 oz. boy with a big, bruised, purple conehead. He's now upwards of 50 lbs and his head is covered with a blond buzz cut. Hard to believe he starts first grade this fall. I won't know what to do with myself! Per Collin's request, we had a party with a few little boys at our local indoor playland. In the evening, Grandma had a joint birthday celebration for Collin and Grandpa K at her house.

Zoo Doings

2009-07-31T19:32:00.001-07:00

Today Craig and Collin were scheduled to arrive home after a week of helping at a local camp. Craig tends to be a little, um, grouchy, when he gets back, largely due to a lack of sleep the previous nights. Past experience has taught me that it's better to get out of the house on the day camp ends. Therefore, I loaded up Cami, Evan and Grandma into the van and we headed to a zoo in Sioux Falls.

While at the zoo, we viewed the usual array of animals. We also rode the merry-go-round and the train. Evan ate a $2.50 ice cream bar. We strolled through the Asian section of the zoo. We also entered Africa where we learned that giraffes only sleep about 35 minutes in a 24 hour period and that this 35 minutes is broken up into several short naps (sounds like a newborn at night). We passed on the $5.00 camel rides. Evan fed the ducks. Grandma warned us not to touch any of the animals in the petting zoo or we might get fatal diseases- so we only looked. We saw the reindeer baking in the 80 degree temps. Cami was absolutely fascinated with all the animals. Evan was a little trooper and only complained once about all the walking he had to do.

We then returned to the parking lot. Somewhere along our zoo treck, Cami lost her happy meal toy she got from McD's. We didn't know this until we got to the van and we didn't exactly want to retrace our steps through the zoo. Evan had the exact same happy meal toy, which Cami wanted, of course. Evan wasn't willing to share his new toy, so you can only imagine the shrieking that occurred in the van. Evan had to go potty before we left, so against my better judgment, I told him to use the mulch bed in front of our parked vehicle. We were in a far part of the parking lot and he was shielded from public view by the van on one side and a tree on the other. A quick scan of the lot showed me that no one else was walking nearby. Evan pulled his pants down and it was then that he said, "Mommy, that man is looking at me." Sure enough, the one other person in the entire parking lot happened to be parked next to us on the passenger side. He also happened to have his windows rolled down. Thus, he had heard me instruct Evan to pee in the mulch, saw Evan's bareness and was probably wondering what kind of weird mother I was. After that moment, loading up the van seemed to take an eternity since I couldn't get out of there soon enough.

The kids fell asleep on the way home and the rest of the trip was uneventful.

Zoo Pics

2009-07-31T19:19:00.000-07:00

Up close and personal with the cheetah.
Cami and the kookaburra (sp?) exchange glances.
Evan said the highlight of his day was feeding the ducks.
This goat is hoping for a snack.
You could pay $8 to pan for a bag of "gems." We passed.
The train ride. Evan had to sit in the front seat, of course.
Sitting like a big girl on the train
Evan kicks the gong.
Something about this arch seems familiar to Cami.

On the Road Again

2009-07-25T20:30:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we caravaned (is that a word?) nearly two hours (OK, that's not very far, but it seems like an eternity with three small children.) with our friends from WI to Storybook Land in Aberdeen. Karl, Lori, Isaac and Emma visit us every other summer. In the past it's always been too hot to attempt this excursion, but summer seems to have bypassed us this year. As a result, we had a perfect temp for a day of reconnecting with our favorite fairy tale characters: The Three Little Pigs, Humpty Dumpty, The Wizard of Oz, Cinderella, The Three Bears, the Three Little Kittens, Paul Bunyan, and the list goes on.

During our visit, we also stopped by the petting zoo, rode a train, rode a merry-go-round, experienced a simulated tornado inside Dorothy's house, followed the Yellow Brick Road, ate ice cream, used a lot of hand sanitizer, enjoyed a picnic lunch, and took a gajillion pictures.

It was a good thing that the weather cooperated this year. Collin seems to be getting a bit big for Storybook Land. He thought it was a little boring. The other kids had a blast.

Storybook Land

2009-07-25T20:06:00.001-07:00

Can you believe we got all five kids to look at the camera?
Emma is caught in the spider's web
Collin and Isaac try out a different kind of teeter totter
Evan with his trusty sidekick, Emma
Munchkin gathering
Chillin out in the hollow log
The Old Woman in the Shoe releases one of her children
Escaping the pirate ship
Cami is still little enough to sit on Bambi
Collin is loved by the ladies
Daddy and Cami enter the castle
Four diggers at work

Halloween in July?

2009-07-25T19:47:00.000-07:00

Last year Evan was supposed to be a kitty for Halloween. When the big day arrived, he absolutely refused to wear his costume. After much cajoling, I did convince him to put it on, but he was by no means happy about it. I have one picture of him in this particular costume, with a big pout, right before we trick-or-treated downtown. We came home, had supper and prepared to go trick-or-treating in our neighborhood. Evan would NOT put his costume on for the second round. When people asked him what he was supposed to be, Craig replied, "A four-year-old who won't wear a costume."

Fast forward nine months. Today, for no particular reason, he went into Cami's closet (I've sinced passed the kitty costume on to her.), yanked the costume off the hanger, and put it on. He wore it around the house half the day, and was disappointed when I told him he had to take it off to eat supper or go outside (didn't want it to get dirty). Now where was this enthusiasm last October?

Regardless of the time of year, he's just so darned cute in this costume that I had to take a picture.

More Out of the Mouths of Babes

2009-07-22T20:46:00.000-07:00

Someone told me I should keep track of all the things my kids say. They can be very mouthy, and a good portion of what they say I'd just as soon never hear again. Sometimes, however, they say something that is so darn cute. Today I heard the following:

(from Collin): Evan didn't want to help Collin sweep up a mess on the kitchen floor. Collin came upstairs and complained, "Evan is being a lazy susan!" (I don't think Collin knows what a lazy susan is???)

(from Evan): I had the doorprize basket for MOPS in the car. In the basket are some lotions, candles, etc. Evan opened the van door (not knowing the basket was inside) and remarked, "It smells like GIRLS in here." (He does not like girls - at all.)

The Rainbow Connection

2009-07-20T19:17:00.001-07:00

I've seen my share of rainbows. This evening, however, for the first time that I can recall, I saw a complete rainbow. Not just the right or left half, but the entire package. Each hue was very vivid. There was even a double rainbow. It was definitely a moment to capture on film. This was a perfect final chapter to a less-than-perfect day. Actually, the day wasn't too bad. There were just the bandaid incident.

Ahhh, the bandaid incident. I phoned a business long distance in Sioux Falls. During my three minute conversation, Miss Cami toddled upstairs, entered our bathroom and pulled open a drawer. Now, this drawer has a childproof lock on it which prevents anyone from opening said drawer more than about three inches. Due to the size of her arms, Cami can still reach pretty far into this drawer. She was able to grab two boxes of bandaids: junior and regular size. She dumped out the contents of both boxes and commenced unwrapping bandaids. Some of them became affixed to the carpet. During this time she also somehow managed to put her two-piece swimsuit on over her clothes. Oh, and she emptied out her pajama drawer, pulled the bedding off her crib and drug the whole works into our bedroom where she placed the items next to her bandaid mountain. I ended my conversation and came upstairs to discover a little girl, wearing a swimsuit, sitting in a pile of clothing and bandaids. My only regret was that I did not have my camera ready.

Vacation Photos

2009-07-11T19:54:00.001-07:00

Our Grand Adventure

2009-07-11T19:32:00.000-07:00

We were privileged to spend a week at Shing Wako Resort in Merrifield, MN (near Brainerd). We rented a cabin on Lake Edward. I spent about a quarter of my life packing for this trip. Seriously. For those of you who have never embarked on such a vacation, renting a cabin at a resort is similar to camping. They supply the bedding and cooking utensils. If you're really lucky, like we were this time, they will also supply the toilet paper. AND, to our delightment, they even supplied dish soap. We were living high! I only needed to pack bath towels, beach towels, paper towels, toys, toiletries, baby items, clothes, swimwear, bike helmets, a stroller, sand toys, fishing equipment, lawn chairs, bug spray, sunscreen and the kids. All this is well worth the effort however because: #1. Once we're there, I buy groceries and cook our own food. It's cheaper and less stressful than taking kids to eat in a restaurant three times per day. #2. A cabin is more conducive to relaxation because we don't all have to sleep in one room like we do in a hotel and I'm not worried about the kids making too much noise and getting us kicked out. #3. We have no set agenda. We can relax (I even got a book read.) and do things at our own pace.

Now that you have been educated about resort vacationing (whether you wanted to be or not), I will share some of the activities we pursued. I have published photos in the next post illustrating some of these activities. We biked the Paul Bunyan Trail (or at least four miles of it). Note to self: Always check to make sure bike rental facility is located near bike trail so your kids are not worn out biking TO the trail leaving them with little energy left to bike the actual trail. We rode some rides at Paul Bunyan Land. I did a little shopping at the quirky stores in Nisswa. The males went hiking. We made some smores at our campfire. We visited an indoor waterpark on one of the overcast days. We got a little sunburned. We got some mosquito bites. We lounged on the beach. We played in the park. We collected a gallon of dead snails and brought them home (I was not impressed). The males rode some go-karts. Cami collected a lot of sand in her diaper. The males did some paddleboating and kayaking. Evan got hit in the head with a paddle. You could hear the scream halfway across the lake. We all ate waaay too much ice cream.

Shing Wako was a nice resort. You could choose from a 1947 rustic cabin, a luxury condo or something in between. We did the something in between. The resort was immaculate and well-maintained. There was not a rusty piece of metal, broken glass, dead tree, rotted board, piece of litter, etc. to be seen. Lake Edward had clear, warm, shallow water. Cami loved laying on her tummy in the "surf." One could venture out 300 feet and still be standing in waist deep water.

The boys did not want to leave. We made it back safely, caught up on laundry, and are now returning to the daily grind.

I see I've published another novel. Until later.

Splish Splash

2009-06-28T19:36:00.000-07:00

In an attempt to keep the boys off the neighbor's new trampoline (freaked out about spinal cord injuries), we bought a slightly bigger wading pool for the boys. I felt sorry for Collin standing all by his lonesome next to the trampoline watching the other kids jump. (I know, I'm a sucker.) The new pool is 10 ft. in diameter and about 2 1/2 feet deep. The sides are too high for Cami to fall in. Shown above is Evan, decked out with swim goggles and the two inner tubes he thought necessary to keep himself afloat. We kept our little plastic 1 ft. pool for Cami. She's still too little for the big pool and would probably be overwhelmed by the boisterous splashing of her brothers in the big pool. As a result, I now sit on my lawn chair supervising the activities in two separate pools. The activity in the smaller pool is much more toned down than the activity in the larger pool.

On a side note, both boys passed their swimming lessons. The third time was the charm for Collin. He graduates to level 3, while Evan moves up to level 2. Hurray!

Out of the Mouths of Babes

2009-06-26T08:13:00.000-07:00

A few days ago, we were in Target looking at Burt's Bees Shampoo. On the other side of the aisle were the cosmetics. Collin turns to me and asks, "Are those for high-maintenance ladies?"

Then, yesterday, we were watching old Mr. Roger's reruns on T.V. There was a gray-haired gentleman on there playing the clarinet. Collin asked, "Is that Beethoven?"

"No," I answered. "Beethoven died a long, long time ago."

"But," Collin protested, "This Mr. Rogers show was made a long, long time ago."

Kids don't have any concept of time, do they? Who would have thought Mr. Rogers and Beethoven were contemporaries?

Making a Splash

2009-06-17T20:10:00.000-07:00

Monday was Evan's first day of swimming lessons. I was fully expecting shrieking, violence, stubborness, etc. I didn't think he'd accompany his class to the designated area of the pool. I didn't think he'd get in when instructed by his teacher.

We arrived at the rec center and waited on the bleachers for the teachers to arrive. I sat there bookended by both boys. We had informed Evan that he would be in the pool at the same time as his brother. Collin's teacher arrived first and summoned Level 2 swimmers. Evan got up to go with Collin's class. I told him this was not his class. Then I held my breath and waited for the meltdown. Nothing. Then Evan's teacher called for Level 1. I waited for him to affix himself to my leg amid very vocal protests. Nothing. He got in line behind his teacher with the other students. They walked like a mama duck and her chicks to the shallow end of the pool. The teacher hopped in the water and asked the children to sit on the pool's edge. She then ordered them into the water. I expected a shaking of the head and a crossing of the arms in protest. Nothing. He actually jumped into the pool! I let out a big sigh of relief. That was MUCH easier than I anticipated.

Evan not only got into the pool, he actually enjoyed his swimming lesson.

I tried to capture the moment on film but I was pretty far away and I'm not very tech savvy with the zoom. I zoomed as far as my limited photographic knowledge allowed. Shown above is Evan's class, seated on the edge, ready for their big plunge. He is the second from the left.

Now, if we could just get Collin to pass his third round of Level 2 . . .

2009-06-16T08:55:00.000-07:00

One year ago today, we got up at 4:30AM and left Beijing, China for Nanchang, China. It was a two hour flight. Our bus broke down on the way to the hotel, but fortunately, the driver was able to fix the problem. We checked into the most beautiful hotel I've ever seen in my life and then set out on the long, hot walk to the two-story Super Walmart. We marveled at the similarities and differences between this Walmart and the one at home. There was a moving ramp with grooves that fit into the grooves of our shopping cart, allowing you to move from one floor to the next. We purchased bottled water and made the mistake of trying to lug it back to our hotel in the heat across busy roads where drivers do not yield to pedestrians. We had lunch and made attempts to nap (didn't work- our minds were racing). At 3:45 we took a ride on the elevator to the sixth floor conference room where we waited anxiously with the other four families in our travel group. At 4:00PM, Mr. Zhou, the director of the Fuzhou Social Welfare Institute, entered the room accompanied by five babies and several nannies. Only one baby was crying. We only had a couple of old pictures of Cami under several layers of winter apparel, so we weren't exactly sure which baby she was. Craig joked that, since we were only used to high-maintenance children at home, the crying one was probably Cami. The first two babies were handed to their mothers. The babies were calm, and one of the mothers was tearful. Then we were presented with the screaming baby. Scream she did. All my preconceived notions of how this day would go were thrown out the window. Craig forgot to capture the moment on film. I paced in an attempt to calm the baby down. I whispered "ChenChen" (name her foster mom called her) in her ear. I took her into the hallway, but the marble floors out there made the screaming seem louder. The hotel employees standing at attention outside the conference room stared. I finally took her down the elevator and outside. She heaved several big sighs (so did I) and then was quiet. The bustling activity on the busy street had caught her attention. We stayed out there a good half hour. When we returned, the orphanage staff was still there and Craig had asked all the questions that I had wanted to ask of them.

Our guide told us Cami might very well scream all night. Fortunately, she did not. The crying had exhausted her. Our guide also told us she'd seen this many times before and Cami would probably scream three days. This she did. Anytime she was not held in a standing position, she got really upset. But, our wise guide was right. On day three, she woke up a new and happy baby. She continues to be a happy baby (unless tortured by her brothers).

Several months after we got home, we were able to contact Cami's foster mother. We found out that she had been taken from her arms at 8:00AM the day we got her. She was driven to the orphanage supervising the foster care and then was placed on a bus with the other babies bound for the hotel. No small wonder she was traumatized.

Today is the one-year anniversary of our Gotcha Day! Some day Cami may choose to celebrate this day rather than her birthday. We will leave that decision up to her.

To this day, I cannot believe our long wait is actually over. It became so much a part of our lives. We are thankful and blessed to have Cami in our family. Had we been even two months later with our paperwork, we'd still be waiting, fourteen months later for her. God's timing is perfect.

I.A.G. and an Apple Tree

2009-06-14T19:00:00.000-07:00

This afternoon I again laid the baby down for a nap. Craig went to a teleconference meeting for diabetes camp. The boys were in the yard. I was getting my shoes on to join them when Collin came into the house screeching (while the baby is sleeping, mind you) that Evan had an axe and was swinging it at him and at everything else. What!?! We had had a previous incident with an axe and I had instructed Craig that all axes must be put in a place where they could not be accessed by small children. So now I'm #1. wondering what's going on #2. wondering how on earth they got ahold of said axe and #3. terrified of what kind of damage the axe and the axe wielder have inflicted. I entered the backyard with Collin behind me to behold Evan chopping at the apple tree with the axe. Upon closer inspection, I discovered he'd taken off a little of the bark, but otherwise the tree looked OK. I confiscated the axe, put Evan in time out and followed the time out with a lecture on all the macabre things that could happen when an axe is used. I then called Craig at his meeting and asked how the boys got ahold of the axe. He said he only hid the small axes and hid the big axe behind the other tools thinking they wouldn't find it. Guess again.

This evening we went to a picnic for members of the I.A.G. (International Adoption Group) in our town. Cami is the youngest of the adoptees present. The adoptees present tonight were from Russia, China, S. Korea and Native American. Collin is not a huge fan of these meetings because he says they're "almost all girls." His affection for the female population has been on the decline lately. He did manage to find a couple of boys to play with and I don't feel for him because our neighborhood kids are mostly of the male variety. Anyway, we all had a nice time. Pictured are: The gang at the smores assembly table, Cami and Abby (age 4) and Cami eating her shoe instead of her pasta.

One Year and One Demolition

2009-06-11T19:48:00.000-07:00

One year ago today we were ten hours into our 13 hour flight from Chicago to Beijing, China. Three of the five families in our travel group were on that flight. Thanks to seatguru.com, we had picked out choice coach seats at the back of the plane with a large space to stretch your legs between the seat and the window and a large space behind us so we could recline way back. The male flight attendant barked at all the old Chinese ladies on the flight and scared us half to death. The long flight did not seem so bad as it was almost like a mini-vacation where I could read uninterrupted, do crossword puzzles and lean against Craig. We flew over the the west coast, followed the west coast up through Canada, crossed over the Arctic where the outside temp was around -59 at our elevation and then down the east coast of Asia, over South Korea until we landed at 3:00 local time in Beijing. Talk about doing a number on your internal time clock. I then learned the real meaning of jet lag, a condition I thought wasn't real. We walked through the beautiful new Beijing airport until we got to customs. My passport was nine years old and the agent questioned whether or not it was me. Thanks, dude. That's what having two boys will do to you. I had aged. I pointed out the date on the passport and he let me through, to my immense relief. We picked up our bags and headed through to the unairconditioned part of the terminal. It was HOT. Craig was feeling the effects of food poisoning from the burger he ate at McDonald's in O'Hare and he had to sit on the floor and rest while we waited for an elevator. Our guide from Bethany, Joy, met us and became our best friend for the next few days. She rocked! We boarded a Bethany bus to the Days Hotel and Suites where even the hardest beds in the world (imagine just sleeping on your boxspring) felt wonderful after 20+ hours of travel.

Fast forward to today. Our little Chinese princess somehow discovered how to dismantle her brother's zebra toy box. She removed the large screws and had it in taken apart in large sections. We have no earthly clue how she accomplished this. See for yourself in the picture. She also had her first successful experience with a sitter, minus the presence of her brothers.

First babysitter and a concert

2009-06-08T11:26:00.001-07:00

One of the reasons I started this blog was to share in the ups and downs of international adoption. Getting babysitters is a hot topic issue in the world of IA. There are some moms who put their adopted babies back in daycare after their six week maternity leave is up. There are some moms who don't leave them with anyone, ever, for years. I figured there has to be some sort of middle ground. Of course, all this depends on the individual child. Do they have minor or major attachment issues? Do they have special needs of some other variety?

Through the eyes of an IA child, they behold: Birth mom left me, foster mom left me (or so they reason), how do I know you're not going to leave me permanently, too?

After being very careful for a year to only leave Cami with a select few people (me, Craig and my mom), we decided to attempt an outing together with my parents. Thus, Cami was left with her first teenage sitter. The sitter asked if she could bring her friend and her mom vouched for the good behavior of this friend, so I said, "OK." I figured this would be a good experiment as it only involved about three hours in the afternoon. The sitters wouldn't have to feed the kids meals and wouldn't have to get them up in the morning or put them to bed.

Craig and I then went to see Lorie Line. She hasn't been to town since 2001. Her concert was awesome, as usual. I've never thought Lorie was outstanding in a technical sense, like, say Liberace, but she knows how to entertain a crowd and she appeals to all ages. She played everything from the "Beer Barrell Polka" (not my favorite) to the awesome hymn "It is Well With My Soul" to a song by Coldplay (Chris Martin's band- hubby of actress Gwyneth Paltrow). She has a 17-year-old playing violin in her ensemble, and he was outstanding. I could tell what the economy has done to concert attendance. The last time we went in 2001 the auditorium was full. This time it was about 2/3 full.

When we got home we could hear Cami screaming while we were still in the garage. The sitters said she'd been screaming for the last 20 minutes. 20 min. out of 3 hours really isn't all that bad, but what if we'd been gone longer? I don't know how long she might have continued. The sitters looked exhausted and Cami was exhausted. Collin kept giving her sippy cups of water in his motherly way. Shortly after the sitters left she produced what felt like a 10 lb. diaper from all the hydration.

So now I was in a pickle. I had booked another sitter for this coming Thursday because there is a workshop I HAVE to take to keep my state teaching license. The sitter I booked Sunday was unavailable, plus we want Cami to get used to different people. At the suggestion of a mom on my adoption web forum, I called the mother of Sitter #2 and asked if she could come over and play with Cami while I was home, which she agreed to do. So, the sitter came over this morning and things went quite well. I played with the boys intially and asked the sitter to play with Cami. However, I sensed my presence was awkward for the sitter, so I retreated upstairs and told her I'd come down and referee if the boys had a fight (not that that EVER happens.) I popped in and out of the room so Cami could see that I always return when I leave.

Here are a couple of things I've debated: 1. I've been told to get children used to one sitter. Problem is, one and only one sitter is not always going to be available every time I need a sitter. 2. I've been told adopted children do better when their siblings are left at home. However, our boys are such a handful, I don't know if that would make the situation better or worse?

The plan is to have the sitter come to watch Cami Thurs. while I drop the boys off at the home of an adult friend. I'm praying it goes well for all involved.

OOPS! I forgot to mention that today, for the first time, even after all her "trauma," Cami said, "I love you," to me for the first time. :)

Strip Artist

2009-06-06T19:33:00.000-07:00

Cami is much more talented at dressing and undressing than her elder siblings were at this age. This is not always a good thing. The other day I entered her room after nap time to discover that she had pulled off her pants, ripped off her diaper, peed on the crib mattress and then fell asleep in the pee. I decided to take action before I had worse things than pee to deal with the next time. I read somewhere about a mom who said she had resorted to keeping the diaper on with duct tape. It sounded a bit extreme, but those who think so have probably never cleaned smeared poop off a crib. We decided to put the duct tape over the pieces of tape on the front of the diaper. At the suggestion of a friend, I have photographed this and put it here for all to see. Now you think I'm even stranger than you thought previously.

For the Birds

2009-06-06T19:19:00.000-07:00

We had some leftover birdseed from a craft project that has been sitting around awhile. Craig decided to use it to feed the creatures for which it was intended. Because we do not own a birdfeeder, he put it in a bowl on the ground. As you can see, however, there seem to be creatures other than birds eating from it. It's nice to know we're helping out the local gopher population. Later, a redwing blackbird came along and chased the gopher away.

We are DONE!!!

2009-06-03T14:04:00.001-07:00

This morning a social worker from our adoption agency came. China requires three post-placement visits: six weeks? (can't remember anymore), six months and one year. Today was our one year and final post-placement visit. Everything went very smoothly. I had the boys take turns playing on the computer for 30 min. each to eliminate sibling rivalry. I also told them if they were good, they could have a dollar. The SW was very impressed with Cami's speech and her pleasant mood.

Anyway, she said she was going to highly recommend that the adoption be finalized. Yaaaaaaaaayyyyy!!!! We are FINALLY done with a process we began at the end of 2004.

Evan did have to make Mom and Dad sweat at the very end of the visit. As the SW was getting up to leave, he said, "Do I get my dollar now?!?" Sigh.

This stinks!!!

2009-06-01T13:16:00.000-07:00

Well, today was the kids' first day of summer vacation, and what a day it has been. All was going relatively well until after lunch. I had just tucked the baby in for a nap and was prepared to take the boys outside to play in the sandbox. Playing in the sandbox is something we can only do when the baby is napping. Cami likes to sit on the boys' sandcastles, which, of course, doesn't go over well with them.

I digress. Anyway, I opened the door connecting the house to the garage when a foul odor greeted my nostrils. Skunk! It smelled as if one had just sprayed in our garage. I ordered the boys back into the house. We then exited via another route, out the walkout door in the basement. It is then that I spied a little black and white critter scampering around underneath the spruce trees in our yard. I yelled at the kids to get back into the house, ran upstairs and dialed the number for the animal control officer. I was informed that he was out for lunch and did I want to leave a message? I left my message, but expressed concern that it might be gone before an officer got out here. I then observed the skunk make its way across the road and into our neighbor's backyard. They have a ravine behind their house. I called my neighbor (who also has little kids) to warn her to keep her kids inside, but no one was home, so I left a message. After a period of time and no reappearance, I figured the skunk was long gone, so back outside we went. I settled down into a lawn chair when I spotted the little critter back under the spruce trees again. For a second time, it scooted across the road in front of a car moving very cautiously. For a second time, I ordered the kids back into the house. For a second time, I called the police and requested that someone come out here RIGHT NOW. After about ten minutes, the animal control officer appeared with a gun. I told him where the skunk was last seen and he headed off behind the neighbor's house. He walked the ravine until I saw him take aim and shoot, twice. This happened at the exact same time our neighbors pulled up to their house. They arrived to witness a police officer in their backyard shooting something in the ravine. Great! I ran over to their car to explain the situation. The officer returned and told me he'd shot two and would be back shortly to clean up their remains. I ran into the house to shut all the windows as there was now a horrible stench in the air. The officer returned and put the skunks in sealed buckets while five very curious little boys watched. He informed me that there was a mom and one large baby. He also informed me that skunks can have up to six babies, so there might be as many as five other juveniles at large. Great! He also informed me that 70%, especially in populated areas, are rabid. Great!

I needed to take a nap after this whole experience.This is shaping up to be an interesting summer. To think when I started this blog yesterday I wondered what I'd write about. :)

Female Verbal Proficiency

2009-05-31T10:29:00.000-07:00

So last year we adopted Cami. She resided in China the first 9 1/2 months of her life. We can therefore assume she heard Mandarin and only Mandarin for the duration of her Chinese residency. She has now been home almost a year.

Yesterday, at age 21 months, she reaches into a kitchen drawer and says "Give me a spoon." A complete sentence.

I about fell flat on my face from the shock. You see, our native English speaking male offspring did not speak until age 2 (Collin) and age 3 (Evan). One was tested for speech therapy, didn't qualify, and started speaking the very next week after the testing. The other just completed two years of speech therapy and has now tested out of the program.

So, for me to hear a one year old using complete sentences, with proper pronunciation to boot, about bowls me over. I mean, to hear such a little person speaking in such a manner is mind-blowing. I'd be happy just hearing "Spoon!" or "Soon!" (for spoon) with a little finger pointing at the desired object. The boys at this age would have pointed to the spoon and shrieked "Eh! EH! EHHHHH!!!!" until they got what they wanted.

Hmmm. Guess we won't need to get this one tested for speech.

The Adventures Begin

2009-05-31T10:23:00.000-07:00

The month of June promises to be a busy one. Collin is involved in: A drawing class, zoo education, tennis and swimming lessons. Evan is involved in zoo education, t-ball (his first year) and swimming lessons (also his first year). The guys have a father/son campout planned. We have a picnic with our adoption group. Our adoption agency has scheduled our final post placement visit for this Wednesday. I have a three hour meeting on Thursday to plan out the MOPS year ahead. Oh, and somewhere in there, I will be spending five days taking workshops in order to meet the credit requirements to hang onto my state teaching license.

And, did I mention, Evan started getting a tummy bug yesterday and we usually have these for two+ weeks?

I'm not stressed. Not one teeny bit.