The aunts save the day!

Of course as soon as I saw the darkness of the less than open minded woman at the grocery store yesterday, God showed me the light of the blessing we have in family.

I was talking to my sister-in-law, Sara, this morning and she mentioned that she'd been catching up on my blog and had seen the entry from yesterday about my chance encounter. We have recently learned that our nephew on Steve's side of the family needs glasses (he's a toddler). His sister, who is five, also has glasses. She went on to tell me that our other sister-in-law, Jodi, had emailed her to say that their eye doctor suggested that her daughter be tested at age 2 as this might be a hereditary thing that would affect her as well. Sara's first thought was to ask Jodi if she'd told me so that we could have Kailin tested right away....and when I mentioned that to Jodi, she said that her gut instinct was to do the same thing. Ha!

That reminded me of a story from awhile ago. On my side of the family, we are congenitally missing two adult teeth on the bottom. It sounds harmless enough, but it's actually a real pain - it alters your bite and if you don't fill the holes, then it can really affect your teeth. My sister was talking about it with her dentist and said, "Gee... I hope my niece doesn't have this problem - it's such a pain!" and then she laughed and of course he asked why and she said, "well because my niece is adopted!" I later related this story to our family Dr. (who used to be my sister's doctor and who is also Kailin's doctor) and during the middle part she was giving me an odd look as if she didn't understand why Katie would have been laughing about it and I said..."because Kailin isn't genetically related...." and she laughed and said, "I just don't even think of her that way!"

It warms my heart to know that my children are loved and accepted as full members of our family and that the fact that they are adopted is never foremost in anyone's mind. THAT is far more important than any chance encounter could ever be. Not all adoptive families are as fortunate in that respect and I am thankful to God for giving us such an amazing support system. There will always be yahoos out there challenging the way our family is formed and challenging my kids to defend who they are - but knowing without question that those challenges won't come from those closest to us is worth more than words could ever say.

Also, I finally made the oatmeal raisin cookies I've been craving for weeks, and those will make any day look brighter!

A chance encounter...

This blog is all about honesty, so I'm laying it out. Keep in mind that this incident involves my children and I am one seriously protective mama bear! I normally try to be very tolerant of people and give people the benefit of the doubt and be a proactive educator - not a cranktastic pointer out of mistakes...this is not my most Christian-like behavior

The kids and I were in the grocery store. A woman approached me and exclaimed, "How old are your kids?" So I told her. She said, "They're beautiful!" I thanked her. That's where things went south. "You know, my brother did that." I played dumb.... but my hackles were up. "Did what?" In a very hushed voice...."adopted." I said (in a normal voice), "Oh, my kids know they're adopted." (and I secretly thought - how the heck do you know that my husband isn't Asian?????) She says, "Oh, and it's much easier in your country than where my brother adopted." (and certainly she must know...) I took the bait and asked which country he'd adopted from. "South America." (I resisted the urge to tell her that South America is a CONTINENT and that there are many adoption programs among the countries that make up South America.) "Which country in South America?" "Bogatash." (Here I resisted the urge to ask her if she meant Bogota, which would be a CITY in the country of Columbia. I let it go.) "And it's a lot easier in your country (would that be America or....again, resisted urges to just ask her what country she assumed my kids were from) than in South America." I sort of smiled and started to walk away. Of course she followed me... "In your country you just take some gifts (now I'm presuming that she has assumed that 'my country' would be China. In South America, you have to take tons of cash or they'll just sell the baby to someone else." I did give her the benefit of the doubt here and assume that she was talking specifically about corruption in some countries in South America (I do not claim to know ANYTHING about adoption in S.A.- that may be alleged corruption and not actual) and was NOT implying that I "bought" my children for the price of a few gifts - or for any price. In any case, I didn't want to get into any of it in front of my children. She had a few more choice comments I won't detail here, she ended this lovely interchange with "Well he's really cute - oh, and she is, too." Lovely.

A day to remember...or not so much.

Yesterday was a day. A real, true blue, test of my mommy courage, patience, and fortitude. I failed on all counts. Thankfully, I've picked myself up, brushed myself off and forged forward into today. I've decided today will be a better day and either as a result of that or pure dumb luck, so far so good.

The day (yesterday) dawned early for me as I was up with Colby for an hour and a half through the night. The poor kid couldn't breathe. Perhaps that gory discussion about the quality of his snot is in order now? Ha. Just kidding. He cried and cried so I rocked and rocked and then I gave up and brought him downstairs to lay with me in the overstuffed chair. He tried and tried to get comfortable and fall asleep, but he failed and failed. He'd almost get there and then he'd try to shift and he'd be awake again. After an hour or more, I gave up and determined that if he was going to be crying regardless, perhaps at least one of us ought to try for some sleep, so I took him back up to his crib where he promptly fell asleep. Go figure. Guess he just needed some loves.

Anyway, Kailin was in our room at her usual time and thereupon began the ugly part of the day. She came in wailing that she couldn't find her green softie. I was too tired to go look for it, so I tried to dissuade her. It sort of worked. I showered and we went downstairs. We were supposed to be having a big fun day with the Lemms yesterday where I would have the luxury of not having to rush home since Steve had dog training anyway. I was excited. With the boys back next week, and no minivan, my freedom will be restricted to walking distance so I'm trying to take advantage this week as much as I can.

The kids had other plans. Both were fussy and out of sorts (read - they fought about EVERYTHING and BOTH wanted to be held CONSTANTLY - not optimal while I'm trying to rush around and get us ready to leave for the entire day). Kailin told me (while standing in our bathroom upstairs) that she needed to go potty. Then proceeded to pull her pants down and stand and pee on our bathroom rug. It was not one of my finer mommy moments. Instead, it was the straw that broke the camel's back and I totally lost it. I lost it enough that I apologized later for handling it poorly. I have failed to do the laundry in a timely fashion and she'd just peed in one of her two remaining clean pair of pants. That's no excuse, but there it is. I managed to pull it together and get out of the house mostly on time. Both kids slept on the way and I was glad for it. They both needed it.

All was well and then there was lunch. We decided to go to Pizza Hut for their buffet since kids 3 and under are free. It was a bit chaotic with 2 adults and 5 kids 5 and under, but we managed just fine. We also talked about how we had, 15 years ago, enjoyed a much more peaceable lunch at that very Pizza Hut while being "code 9'd" from school during 5th period. Little could we have guessed then that we'd find ourselves back 15 years later with 5 of our 6 kids. There was a table not far from us that appeared to have 2 or 3 high school students sitting at it. They were glancing over at us periodically. I think they thought the kids were cute, but I also think they thought we were a bit nuts. A part of me wanted to go over to them and say, "Give it 15 years, ladies...." Ha ha. Kailin at 3 pieces of pizza, some breadsticks, and some cinnasticks. Colby ate 3/4 of a piece of pizza and refused the rest. Do you see the problem here? He got really fussy toward the end of lunch, so I ordered a milk for him. I dumped it into his bottle and gave it to him. He took a couple of swigs and refused it. He likes his milk warm, so I determined that he was rejecting it because it was cold and shoved it back in. He drank 1/3-1/2 and then rejected it again. I gave up. Not long after that, we piled into Katie's car and headed for her house. Colby threw up twice on the way there. Abort remainder of afternoon plans.

We didn't even go into the house. I just moved our car seats back to our car and headed for my mom's to nap the kids. She wasn't home and I was explaining to Kailin that Nai Nai was at work, and we wouldn't see her til later. She started wailing, "then I want to go to WORK!!!" It made me wonder if she thinks that "work" is one big place where she could find Nai Nai, Daddy, Grandpa, and all the other people whom I have to explain are not at home all day like we are. We got to my mom's and I went to put the kids down. I didn't have any juice (my normal option for sick kids), so I figured I'd just go ahead and try the rest of his milk. I figured I'd better warm it this time, and when I dumped it into a cup to warm it, I figured out why he threw up. It was bad. Nice Mommy move. And I made him drink it!!! Bad mommy!!! After he napped, he was still running like a faucet, but chipper as could be. My mom got a good visit out of it anyway!

My mom was talking to Kailin about her birthday (why, I don't know - it isn't until July). They were talking about how she'd have a party and my mom was asking her if this person or that person would be invited. Of interest, Auntie Katie is invited, but Uncle Nick and Henry are not. Her brother gave her pause but she did decide to invite him after all. The funniest was when my mom asked her if her daddy would be invited. She said, "YES!....He's a good boy!" and the emphasis was equal on good and boy - she wasn't saying he was well behaved - it was as if she was making a comment about his overall character. We laughed so hard! It's true, but still funny coming from her!

What a day!!!! I'm glad that today turned out to be much more mundane!

Sleeping with a goat...

Ever had the desire to sleep with a goat? Or maybe a kangaroo? Kailin comes into our bed every morning around 5 or so. She's up for the day and rather than have her screaming in her room like we used to do, we'd rather have her in ours, quiet, while her brother sleeps. Once in our bed, she is physically unable to hold still and rest or sleep. Both kids were up last night and we were both exhausted this morning. I was hoping that she'd rest awhile or even deign to sleep. Not so much. As her knee or foot jabbed into my back for the 90th time inside of 5 minutes, I determined that if I'd ever had any desire to sleep with a goat or a kangaroo in my bed, it's long gone now!

Colby awoke with a nose that runs like a faucet and I can't tell just yet if it's his teeth or a cold. I could launch into a discussion about the qualities of his snot, but I think I'll spare you all the gory details and just say I'm not sure. Owing to the wakefulness in the night and the fact that my wonderful husband let me sleep until 7, we once again missed church. The plan was to go and if I'd gotten up on time, we would have. I still feel like I could use another 8 full hours of sleep. Ugh. Wish I could allow myself to nap when the kids do - but I covet that time to get other things done. I should get over it already, right? ha ha.

I saw God today...

I saw God today in the face of my brand new nephew. Henry Steven James Vallee was born last night at 8:56pm. He weighed in at 8lbs, 13oz and is 21" long (he may have lost a few ounces overnight, but I doubt he lost any height - even though Kailin one time shrunk between Dr. appts...). Although he had to be, in the words of my sister (his mom), "evicted" after failing to vacate after his assigned move out date of April 19 (and after, according to her, paying rent only through that date) he is a precious little boy whom I know will delight us all and amaze us with all the places he will go in life. I'll post some pictures of him here as soon as I get the go ahead from my sister.

I also saw God yesterday - a LOT. Remember that word problem I gave you all? Well the answer is that all will go well and the mother will actually not be driven crazy at any rate because apparently unbeknownst to me or anyone else the underslept 2.5 year old and the surprisingly awake 14 month old cancel each other out and the three of them will have a very pleasurable outing to Target. To TARGET. My intention was to go to Target and then run to Kohl's to do a couple of returns and then head home. As we were leaving Target, it began to sprinkle.

My first thought was "Scrap Kohls. Why press your luck with the kids and now it's raining." My second thought was "What are you teaching your kids if you run home and hole up every time it rains a little?" I should've gone with the first thought.

My ability to hear anything on the radio during a car ride is significantly impeded by my daughter's need to ask a running stream of questions anytime we enter a vehicle and/or her need to listen to songs from Curious George incessantly. Such was apparently the case when they were announcing that a MONSOON was due to arrive...oooh....about the time we were comfortably tooling about in Kohls. It was raining harder than I ever thought possible and we watched water pooling in the parking lot of Kohls as we stood forlornly near the exit. I've never felt so powerless to do anything but nothing. Alone, there was no way for me to get the car without leaving the kids, and no way I was going out in the pelting, driving, SHEETING rain with Colby on my hip and trying to drag poor Kailin along behind me at a pace I'm sure her little legs couldn't match. Thankfully, it finally let up a bit and we made a break for it. Kailin found it entirely silly that we were wet and Colby found it silly that Kailin was silly, so it all ended with us giggling and laughing in the car. (That's a nice ending, isn't it? I won't include the part after that where I called my husband to see if our basement needed bailing (it didn't, thankfully) and begged him to have peanut butter and jelly ready to go for the kids when I got home because the silliness turned into some not so slight testiness (really, I can't blame them - we'd skipped morning snack and it was almost noon by the time we got home.)) Getting back to my subject line, though, I was truly marveling at the fury of that storm and what a huge contrast it was from the weather when we arrived at Target just an hour or so earlier. God's power is amazing!!

Anyone who knows me knows that I adore God's creatures. Almost all of them. I'm not too keen on frogs. They can exist - but I prefer when they exist away from me. I love to hear them chirping away in the spring, but at a distance. I'm also not so keen on worms. I don't mind angle worms. Once they're big and fat and have that weird collar thing, I'm out. I'm generally someone who saves the worms stranded on the sidewalk before they dry out in the sun, but the plethora of (in my opinion) disgustingly large night crawlers I found under our garage door yesterday morning was almost too much to handle. One was crawling on the driveway and I bravely asked Kailin if she wanted to touch it. She yelled "NO!!!!" and I was secretly delighted. Well that had nothing on my experience last night.

I went out with a friend of mine yesterday afternoon and was headed home on a rural highway around 10 (sounds like the lead in for a horror film, doesn't it?). Another barrage of monsoons had struck during the evening and I was noticing the vast number of small sticks littering the road and wondering if the winds had done that much damage to the trees. Then I noticed that there were far more sticks littering the road adjacent to the crop fields. Yeah, you guessed it, they weren't sticks at all. They were WORMS. Enormous, gigantic, disgusting WORMS. I truly cannot impress upon you the size of these things. UUUUUGGGGGHHHHH!!!! I didn't even want to drive over them!! (One, on principle - I hate killing anything and two, because it was just DISGUSTING!!!)

I'm glad to report that today was frigid with hurricane force winds, but I have no further worm or monsoon incidents to report. And I got to see my nephew!!

Another dreary spring day....

Good thing the April showers bring May flowers (and don't get me started on what late April SNOW FLURRIES bring, but I'd sure like to know what good will come of the truly yucktastic weather we're slated for on Sunday!).... because it's as thick as pea soup with fog out there today and rainy again.

Here's a word problem for you. I'll let you know the answer later on this weekend. If you take an underslept 2.5 year old and a normally good sleeping but awake strangely early 14 month old and put them in a car with a chronically underslept mom and they are all traveling toward Target at 65mph, at what rate will the mom go insane?

Given the dreary weather today, I thought I'd give you all some pictures of the kids from this past weekend when we went to the park together.

The power of two...

I know I've commented before on the passage of time, but today the power of two struck me. Two weeks ago today we arrived home and the lives of my entire family changed irrevocably. Two weeks before that, we hadn't even left yet, had no idea what it meant to parent two children, had never seen Taiwan, and didn't truly know how blessed we'd be by adding Colby to our family. Two months ago we hadn't heard about our final decree yet and were still wondering and hoping about when we might travel to Taiwan, and two years ago, we didn't even have Kailin home yet and were eagerly anticipating our trip to China to bring her home. What a change two years has brought us!! What blessings we've received in those two years. It leaves me wondering how different our lives will be in two more years. Kailin will be in 4k and Colby will be the age that Kailin is now. Life will surely be different!



I'm sure the capacity of my heart has at least doubled since Colby came home. I love him just as much as I love Kailin and I love her, if it's possible, more than I did before we left. I've seen in her the ability to be sweet and tender and considerate of her brother in a capacity I thought was beyond a 2.5 year old (I've also seen her be creatively mean in a way that I thought was beyond a 2.5 year old - ie; slowly applying pressure to toy forks planted firmly on her brother's foot - it took him a lot longer to squeal than if she'd jabbed him). Her ability to trust us that this new member of our family is here to stay and not to question whether he should be here or when he's going back shows me that we are truly her parents in her mind as well as in ours. (Not that kids don't ever question their parents - it's hard to articulate what I'm trying to say here.)



The power of two does indeed amaze me.

I can see clearly now...

I can indeed see clearly now - and without ordering a new contact. The missing one never did show up, but after I wore my old contacts for a day and was uber annoyed by my right eye and wondering how I'd make it a week in my glasses (without sunglasses) in spring, I had a vision...oh, I mean - it occurred to me that my new contacts were a reduction in power from my old ones. My right eye is always "worse" than my left and if I was traveling at 32 m/sec away from the train station, I should probably meet up with Bill in approximately 7 minutes. Ha ha ha. The bottom line is that I tried my old left contact in my right eye and my new left contact in my left eye and I can see perfectly. I'm sure the fit isn't the best, but it's comfortable and for now I'm just sticking with it.

Today was, as promised, a better day!! I took the kids to Penney's for pictures. I'm thrilled to report that we got some great ones of Colby and some fantastic ones of Kailin. I'm dismayed to report that we got NONE of the two of them that were workable. Oh well - you can't have it all and it was the Colby pics I was really after. Since I can't post those pics here, I thought I'd post a pic of them wearing the adorable hats and mittens that my mom's cousin made for them. Kailin is IN LOVE with them. She tries to wear them whenever she can!

We went over to see our friends the Lemms after our photo appointment and the kids had a great time playing together. Colby ate (this is noteworthy) a whole helping of macaroni and cheese, a helping of apple sauce, half of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, some strawberries, and then begged for some tortilla chips while I was eating my lunch!! Both of my kids crashed on the way home and Kailin declared 5 bites into dinner that she was too tired to eat and needed bed. Off to bed she went. Colby wailed his way through dinner (UNHEARD OF). We thought maybe he just wasn't hungry, but upon inspection at bedtime, he's getting yet another 2 teeth!

Right up until that point, though, he was in the best mood today. He laughed and giggled and played games nearly all day. I love to see his personality emerging and he is a true ham. He's happiest if he's making you laugh.

Steve poses the question, "Are you Yoda?" For the reason behind the question, you'll have to contact him.

An ugly sort of day...

The weather told it all. I woke to a grey and foggy day. I thought it was supposed to be nice. The weatherman told me that it would be 76 inland today, but as always, "cooler by the lake" (except in the winter when it is "warmer by the lake"). This meant 64 for us. I can deal with 64. I still wasn't enjoying the fog. The fog was apparently an omen. I don't really believe in omens, but I do believe that it set the mood - consciously or subconsciously. Kailin was having a mean sort of day (mostly inflicted upon her brother, I'm afraid). He was having a whiny sort of day (partly due to his teeth, partly due to his sister, and partly due to his age, I think). As a result, or perhaps independently, I was having a nervous breakdown sort of day. Not really. I was just less patient and a bit more on edge than anyone would have liked. Ick. The fog lifted about 4pm and we took the kids outside. Some minor skirmishes erupted, but mostly we all had a good time and Steve (mostly Steve) and I got the garage cleaned out. Both kids removed their shoes and played barefoot in the grass for the first time this year. I thought that the mood had lifted with the fog, but it returned about the time Steve left for dog training. Both kids were beyond whiny - tired and hungry - and the dogs were growling and huffing at every little thing that moved outside. Ugh! I'm glad to say that it's 7:32 and both kids are sleeping soundly and tomorrow will be a better day!!!

Mysteries of the world...

Does this ever happen to anyone else? It's the middle of the night. I'm semi-awake. I need to use the bathroom. I am reluctant to crawl out of my nice, warm bed. I close my eyes for a minute and immediately return to sleep whereupon I have a lovely dream about using the bathroom (someone once told me that if you dream about doing it, chance are that you ARE doing it - luckily, that has yet to be my experience!!!). I am roused again by the now slightly more imminent need to use the bathroom. In my middle of the night stupor, I repeat the cycle. This happens several times - always with increasing urgency for the task at hand. The dream is always quite lovely with the feeling of relief and then the reality is always filled with a bit of dismay and some dread - so WHY don't I just force myself out of bed the first time and avoid the whole thing?? Ha. A mystery of the world.

My other mystery is much less entertaining, but a mystery to me nonetheless. I fall asleep on my left side. Every night. Barring illness blocking my right nostril or some other malady making that uncomfortable, this is my protocol. There is no more comfortable position I can think of, it seems, than my left side. However, sometime in the night this all changes. I know that nearly everyone changes position in the night, but I have a mental change. Suddenly during the night, the best sleep position in the world (by far, hands down, without a doubt....) becomes either side, curled up with my legs bent - in somewhat of a tight little ball. I'm not cold. I'm not trying to return to the womb (I don't think....). It's just what feels best. The mystery is this - I can, if I wake in the night, fall asleep in this position, or I can rouse slightly and this is what I choose to fall back into dreamland, but I CANNOT fall asleep from the get-go in this position. WHY is that?

Ponder these mysteries today in your free time (ha ha ha - like anyone I know has free time) and let me know what you think. A 1000 word essay on each question ought to do the trick. Or in the words of one of my favorite movies of all time (A Christmas Story)... I'd like you to write.... A THEME. I really would not like you to write a theme or an essay (aren't they one in the same?). As much as I enjoy editing (just ask my sister), I have no time to properly grade your paper and would likely be slow to return your grade and I don't want any of you losing any sleep.

A proud day and a sad moment...

I don't know whose child I took to Chinese school on Saturday, but it wasn't my daughter. The child I took to school had her turn at being the "mailbox girl" (a day which I dread because it has, in the past, involved one of us forcing her to go up by her teacher and prodding her to open the stinking mail box and remove ALL of the contents before RUNNING for the sidelines and refusing to pick out a sticker to mark that she'd done the duty) and did great! She walked right up (okay, a little verbal prodding from me), took some stuff out of the mailbox and returned. When I told her to go get the rest of the stuff out, she went back up and then even stayed to pick a sticker! Further, this mystery child also shouted out the answer (in CHINESE) to the "rat question". She was darn near entirely participatory and I'm just sad that it's taken her til 2 weeks from the end of the year to do it! I was SOOOOOO proud of her and lavished kisses and hugs and praise on her.



My sad moment came in the car on the way home. She was talking to my mom on my cell phone and she said, "Stay right there, I'll see you tomorrow!" That would've been a cute thing (and it was), but it was the fact that she said "to-morrow" and not "my-o" that made me have a melancholy moment. She can say fish and fix now as well (although shish and six still prevail unless she's thinking hard about it). I'm thrilled to see her language developing, but sad to say goodbye to some old friends. I think I might have to out and out cry when nimitation goes away.



In fairness, I don't want to ignore my other baby. He is starting to show us some of his personality (aside from the human garbage disposal side) and he delights in being chased and in chasing. He knows what he wants and is frustrated when he can't communicate it (even more so when he can't get it!). He is a snuggle bunny nearly anytime you will allow him to be. One of my very favorite things in the world is how he reaches around and squeezes my neck with his fat little hand when I pick him up after he's been sleeping. It's so tender and it warms my mommy heart all the way through.

Some things I love....

I was thinking about the little things in life (and some not so little) and decided to make myself a little reminder list of the things I love (and now you all get to know as well!). I'm trying to work on appreciating every day life and not focusing so much on waiting until x happens and then I'll be really happy... I want to be happy in the here and now. I'm not going to state the obvious like my kids and my husband and my family and friends (well there, now I did....) - this list is for the little things I sometimes take for granted - God's little blessings that sometimes slip right by me.

1. I love that it's warm enough now for me to take the dogs out in the morning in my pajamas and slippers without donning a hat, mittens, ear muffs, a scarf, boots, and an enormous winter coat (which goes hand in hand with loving that the overall chance of them having an accident while I'm getting dressed to take them out is now mostly eliminated!)

2. I love that whether through nature or nurture (I'd love to think nurture, but as we've only been nurturing Colby for a little less than 3 weeks...it's probably nature....pooey!), my kids will eat whatever is put in front of them. (yeah, the picture is chocolate crackers which any kid will eat - but I thought you'd enjoy a picture of my messy little guy in his messy glory) I had a coupon for a free dish at Noodles and Co. and we used it last night. I stood there and tried to decide what to order for my kids and I couldn't bring myself to pay $3.95 for plain buttered noodles that I could make just as easily at home for less than $3.95. I also couldn't bring myself to do just that because I knew I had a hungry, cranky boy at home (Colby, not Steve) who would probably melt down into a puddle of goo if he had to wait even 10 more minutes for supper. (and I do realize that I could have CALLED home and had Steve make the kids noodles with butter, but we eat out so rarely that I wanted to treat them as well....) Then I realized that I didn't NEED to order the plain buttered noodles or mac 'n cheese. My kids love flavor. I ordered them pesto cavatappi. Not perhaps the most adventurous, but see comment above about piles of goo - I wanted a surefire home run. I wasn't wrong. Both kids gobbled it down (garlic and pesto and mushrooms and all) with gusto - and their side of carrots and peas as well. For lunch they snarfed down broccoli, carrots, water chestnuts and pea pods. So many of my friends, despite their best efforts otherwise (chalk another one up for nature - drat!), fight with their kids over every meal. It makes my life so much easier not to have to do that.

3. I love that my husband is such a fantastic dad without even trying. Yesterday he was rolling on the floor, playing with the kids and no one had to ask him to do that. He was literally on his way down to the basement to do some work when Kailin grabbed his hand and said with more excitement in her voice than I could possibly convey here, "YOU want to PAY wif ME????" I said, "I'll do it honey, you were headed downstairs..." and he said, "Oh, the basement will be there later." I love that man! I know you're probably thinking "well, duh..." but some dads aren't like that and I think my kids (and I) are blessed that they have one who is.

4. I love that my daughter loves to create pictures and other projects for specific people (none of whom are usually me...to my dismay). She decides in advance who the picture will be for and then carries out coloring or creating with that person in mind. It's not uncommon to be asked, "Does so and so like green?" so that she can make appropriate color choices. She thinks of others often, and I think she will grow to be a very loving, giving person. Yesterday while Colby napped, she was busy creating beautiful pictures for her dad and for my mom (Nai Nai). She's also really developing her imagination and wouldn't you know - she makes the BEST coffee I've ever tasted? I love to see her little mind work and I'm trying really hard in these challenging days as she adjusts to a brother and having to share her parents and toys 24/7 to remember how much I like who she truly is and how much I love that she's got such a personality, even if it's sometimes hard to like her current behaviors.

I won't promise that I won't be revisiting this list at some point - as I notice things that I love and don't want to forget, but I think I'll close for now before I bore anyone into a coma and before I have to think too hard about what else I love - that defeats the purpose of the list. Also, my daughter, whose pajama pants have fallen down again to reveal her tiny little nudie, has a "big giant swamwich" for me to eat, and it looks tasty - blankets and pillows and all! I hope I'll get some coffee to go with it!! (since I wrote that last sentence, she has given up on the too big pajama pants and has shed those and her socks, but donned her crocs - it's quite a vision, I assure you!!!)

Appearances can be deceiving...

Yesterday we had our friends Julie, Jonah, and Brooke over to play. What do you see here? Two younger kids (Brooke and Colby are about 3 mos apart in age) who are not able to get along socially because they're too young? And two older kids (Jonah is almost 4 and Kailin is 2.5(and change)) who are getting along great, having formed a strong friendship and having the social skills required to mediate some of their own disagreements and differences of opinion? WRONG. What you actually see is Colby having a sympathy cry along with his friend Brooke. It was hysterical. Brooke came up to Colby, squatted down, and started crying for no reason! Within a couple seconds Colby was wearing a frown and a minute after that, they were squalling in unison - for no apparent reason! They either played independently or got along great all day despite their relative social inexperience.

The older two fought like cats and dogs all day (as they are frequently wont to do....) and this picture was a rare amiable moment. We swear they will end up married someday - they are constantly switching between being very caring and sweet toward each other and being annoyed by each other. We can't wait until they're able to hash it out themselves without constant intervention from the moms!! We had a good laugh about what would happen if adults fought the way kids do - have a slight disagreement or misunderstanding and just let 'er rip - scream in the face of the offender!!

All in all, though, we had a great day (as we always do when they visit) and we moms truly enjoyed watching our kids play together.

We had our friends Leslie and Mia over for dinner last night and that went well, too. Kailin and Mia met at Cricket School - Mia is Kailin's first friend where I wasn't friends with the parent(s) first. (Good thing Mia's mom is so likable! I thank my lucky stars that I don't need to grin and bear it when they come to play!) The girls usually get along pretty well and last night was no exception - right up til the end where they were both tired and ready for bed. Neither one was very interested in playing with Kailin's new brother - but that was okay because he wasn't particularly interested in playing with them, either! I was able to have a great (read very therapeutic) chat with Leslie while the girls played.

Another bath attempt this morning, so wish me luck. We have an open house this Sunday so we'll be commencing to clean and organize the house today. We'll need all the luck we can get on that front!!

Splat!

Colby slept MUCH better last night - waking only at 9:15 (I think he got hot under his blanket) to swig a couple more ounces of his bottle (he only took about half at bedtime since poor planning on my part had dinner running up to bedtime again and he was pretty full), and then assumed the position (butt up) and drifted off. He slept til 7:00 this morning and I'll take that any day!

His sister, however, reported to our room sometime around midnight. In my dazed and confused state of mind, I had her crawl in next to me. She went immediately to sleep. So did I. The next thing I remember is a very very loud BANG! and Steve saying "What was that????" It was Bubbee (Kailin). She fell entirely off the bed and never woke until she hit the floor with a loud splat. I peered over the side of the bed and there she was - splayed out like the splat puddle on a cartoon. I said, "Are you okay?" No answer. I said, "Come back up here..." and she crawled back up on the bed - still mostly asleep. I'm so glad she wasn't hurt!! I told her she needed to sleep between us (which I'd have told her to begin with if I'd been in my right mind) and then we spent the next 2 hours trying to get her to stop thrashing around and go back to sleep. At 2:30, I'd heard Steve say "Lay still and go to sleep!" enough times to rouse me out of my wakeful/sleepy dreamlike state (in which I was always putting her back in her own bed) and got up and put her back in bed. We needed to locate chicken and after a stern talking to, he agreed to stay in bed for the rest of the night and Kailin agreed to make sure he did.

It's time to stop fooling around and get my kids dressed (and I think I smell something coming from the one who still wears diapers).

A gentle reminder, a revelation, and an admission

Today was GORGEOUS and it was a gentle reminder that the bleak days of winter should soon be behind us and that spring is indeed budding. It refueled me and lifted me up. The kids and I took a long walk with our neighbor and her daughter this morning and then had a WONDERFUL lunch with our dear friend, Rachel, at a local custard place. For those of you who haven't ever had frozen custard, my sympathies! It's like ultra-rich and creamy ice cream. Today's flavor was banana walnut chocolate chunk - YUMMMMMMMM!!!! Rachel snapped this shot of us all enjoying our custard (even Colby seems to have an ingrained love of the stuff - I think he could've polished off a double scoop all on his own!) and we realized it's our first family picture together. I think it's a fine one!

My other reminder today was a song I heard on the radio this afternoon (while enjoying some alone time running errands). It was "I saw God today" and if you can stand country music, I highly recommend giving it a listen. The gist of it is that a guy stopped to smell (or see) the flowers and remembers that although he goes to church and reads the Bible, God's thumbprints are everywhere if you open your eyes. It gives lots of good examples of God's handiwork in everyday life and it was a good reminder to me to open my eyes and count my blessings! These days are rough, but I adore my little family and I know there will be many more wonderful days ahead than there are somewhat gloomy ones right now.

The revelation comes in the form of dinner. I have, for all of my life, HATED corn dogs. I'm a textural eater and corn dogs are horrid. Well...corn dogs were horrid. They still are horrid for me, but I don't mind eating them. Not on the top of my list, but my husband (and daughter - who delighted in the idea of a hot dog ON A STICK!) is thrilled that they can now be an occasional menu item.

The admission is that after doing battle with Life is Stupid...oh, I mean Life is Good... since DECEMBER and sending back 3 shirts and a purse, my latest exchange (another shirt) arrived late last week and I have to admit that I love it. It's really really soft and comfortable and I might someday have to give in and get another (if they make some more colors that look decent on a pasty white girl).

A bad moon on the rise...

*I started this last night, but as you see the day unfold, you'll understand why it wasn't posted until this morning*

The day started promptly at 5am when Steve's alarm went off and I heard Kailin's door shut at the same time. Sure enough, not 15 seconds later our door opened. In she came...."Mom?" I tried to get her to snuggle with me for awhile (while Steve showered) but no dice. She squirmed like a worm the whole time.

Her brother, in contrast, slept until 7:20 and then was tired enough by 8:40 to be put down for a nap! Notice I said, "be put down for a nap" NOT "take a nap". He was not, in fact, tired enough to take a nap. He was only tired enough to scream his fool head off for 40 minutes, rest for 20 (during which I don't really believe he even slept) and then scream for me to come and get him....grrr....

But before that happened, we did have a very successful second attempt at a group bath. Well, I wasn't among the group....maybe two can't be a group... Anyway, my new tactic was to wash them both immediately in their entirety so that if we had a repeat peeing incident I could just whisk them from the tub and into fluffy towels immediately and avoid the screaming about being cold. I washed, they played, I rinsed, they splashed... and all was right with the washing world. Colby was done, so I got him out, lotioned him up, and dressed him just as Kailin requested extraction. It was perfect. It couldn't last. ha ha.

Resuming the story at the 20 minute "rest", Kailin didn't get nearly enough mommy time. That set the stage for the perfect storm, I think. At 10:30 we left for the doctor's office since we were going to walk. Oh, right, that was the PLAN. At 10:50 we left for the doctor's office and had to shake a leg to make it on time. Kailin trooped on along on foot while I had Colby in the carrier. Got checked in and new insurance card presented (my dear husband didn't do that for Kailin's Hep A shot just before we left..."they said I didn't have to pay anything..." YES - YOU don't have to pay anything, but it's not a freebie - they're going to bill SOMEONE!" so we had a lovely bill when we got home and I had to call and ask them to resubmit.) and Kailin commenced asking whether it was our turn yet or not every 37 milliseconds. Finally, it was our turn and we headed back. Colby was totally mellow - just looking around... Got him measured and weighed without too much fussing - he's 32" tall and weighs 24lbs 14oz. That puts him at 75% for height and 60% for weight. Shorter by percentage than his sister was when she came home (90%) but FAR heavier by percentage than she was (20%). They're actually comparable in height/weight percentages now. She was 75/60 for her age at her last check-up as well. Not that it matters a bit - just a point of curiosity, I guess. Dr. looked over Colby's records and we formulated a plan of attack for his continuing shots and a couple of catchup ones he'll need (again, by comparison, Kailin JUST finished catching up at her 2 year appt after having been home for 16 mos. Colby will be done at his 18 month appointment after having been home for only 6 mos). 3 shots yesterday. Poor boy. I can honestly say that I've seen each and every one of his teeth now, and that his lungs are LARGE and functioning perfectly. Poor guy! Luckily, like his sister, as soon as I picked him up he was right with the world again. Got him dressed and we loaded up and walked home. Both kids were hungry and tired, so the trip home was a little less peaceful than the trip there.

Both kids wolfed their lunches down and it was time for a nap (them, not me - although I could've used one!). Colby yelled for about 25 minutes and then slept for about 45 - so better than earlier, but not enough, I'm afraid. Kailin didn't yell at all, and slept for 2 hours which she desperately needed. The plan when the kids awoke was to go to Best Buy and try to exchange my digital photo frame (turns out the one Steve got me APPEARS to accept a USB drive but does not actually do so. In addition, it will only display 161 pictures no matter how large a memory card you put in it.) and pick up a few needed odds and ends at Target. Kailin decided to pitch a MAJOR fit about her shoes and I sent Steve to Best Buy alone and I kept the kids and stayed home. It took poor Kailin (I can say that now - not then) 35 minutes to cry herself out and come to me for a hug. I was holding her on my lap while Colby toddled around. The phone rang. I carried her with me to get it and while I was talking (to a very nice woman from church who was telling me that they're going to bring me two meals next week!), Colby fell down and needed a hug, so I put Kailin down to grab him and then we started all over again with the enormous screaming tantrum. Ugh. I finally got her calmed down again and decided to take the kids outside for some distraction.

It was beautiful, but a chilly breeze (that sounds much more picturesque and gentle than "A freezing gale") was blowing hard off the lake so we didn't last too long out there. While we were out, though, Colby tried out our little Radio flyer foot trike and it was really cute. It doesn't have pedals, but he couldn't grasp the concept that he needed to pull his feet back forward again, so he was propelling himself forward until his feet hit the back wheels and then sitting there until I manually moved them. ha.

Colby made it clear to me immediately upon coming in that Daddy or no - his dinnertime was NOW. That child can EAT. He wolfed down about 9 crackers, ate a bowl of chili, a #3 jar of sweet potatoes, and a #2 (#32?! THAT would be a big portion!!!) Hawaiian Delight and was STILL mad when we took him out of the high chair! His sister ate 2 bites of chili and refused any more of anything. Not good. Both kids were beyond tired so we started the bedtime routine. Neither child went down easily and somehow while putting Colby down, I lost my contact. I thought it was still in my eye somewhere, but I didn't dare to get up and check because about that time he was finally settling in. Turns out it wasn't in my eye and despite searching on hands and knees over the whole area between the rocking chair and our bathroom, I'll be calling today to order a new right lens. UGH. I JUST got it before we left for Taiwan and they're about $85 a piece. Seriously - where can a contact just disappear to? Is it partying with all of our single socks someplace? I hope it's having fun wherever it is because it's a big pain in the rear to me!

Came downstairs and it wasn't long before I swore I heard Kailin's door close. Sure enough we soon heard "sniff...sniff...." from the top of the stairs. I asked her what was wrong and she said, "can you sit wif me?" I told her no. (That sounds really mean of me, but our experience has been that she will NEVER fall asleep if you stay in there. I think she knew I sat with Colby and that's why she asked. She said, "you can't sit wif me?" and it broke my heart. Luckily she wasn't crying or I would've been a goner for sure. She asked me to get her stuffed chicken from downstairs and that I could do, so I tucked her and chicken back in with strict orders to both to go right to sleep with no more fooling around and no more out of bed (and a side note to chicken not to be playing with Sausage the ostrich, either! - that got a big grin out of my little darling and mended my heart a bit). I thought we were done. Colby thought otherwise. I promptly came downstairs and fell asleep on the couch at 8pm.

Having not had much of his bottle (owing to having eaten a rather large dinner, I suspect), he was up at 11:30 for a bottle. I was soooo out of it that I woke Steve and asked him to go in. Colby fussed off and on til 12:30 when Steve came back to bed and declared that he was done - Colby was in there bouncing and playing (and we know he's on the right time as he's been sleeping through the night for almost a week already so that's no excuse!) and it had been an hour. Well, he wasn't bouncing and playing anymore. He was screaming his angry fool head off. After half an hour he was asleep again, but an hour after that he was fussing off and on, so I got up and went in. I figured I'd give him some Tylenol and some love (in case his shots or his teeth were bugging him) and it worked. He went back down after I rocked him to drowsy and has been sleeping ever since (it's 7:15 now).

There were happy moments in our day, too - Kailin telling Colby to be brave at the Dr.'s office - and trying to hold his hand (he was having none of that), or her laying on the kitchen floor with him and playing games with his feet making him giggle (couldn't reach the camera fast enough for that one). I don't mean to downplay those or to forget them or fail to appreciate them. Indeed they are what is getting me through the day sometimes and giving me hope for a better tomorrow. They are just a very small part of our day right now. I'm glad to know that it won't always be this way. It's a huge adjustment for us all - and probably most of all our dear Kailin. Her world is turned upside down and she's been away from us for 2 weeks. I try to keep that in mind, but I don't always succeed.

I know this was a long and over detailed post - but it was for me. I figured that it will either a. convince me that we do not actually want a #3 or b. will show me how far we've come in a short time (when I can post in a week or two that things are just SOO much better) and fuel the fire for a #3. Ha ha ha. Seriously, though, there is so little I remember of the time just after we came home with Kailin (probably due to sleep deprivation and also the fact that I had mono!) and I don't want to forget this time. (or maybe I do....)

Not a shining moment...

We had a great walk this afternoon. Colby kept throwing his arms up over his head as if he were on a roller coaster - and it was making us all laugh. He also growls. Seriously growls. We've heard it before, but today on our walk he growled at a bunch of dogs! It cracked me up!!

Of course I spoke too soon about having had a great day. Steve went back to dog training tonight which left me to put both kids to bed. It shouldn't have been that big of a deal, but I was a little concerned since Colby's been going to bed before Kailin and we've also been sitting with him at bedtime until he falls asleep. That part turned out to be the least of my issues.

Steve left during the kids' dinner. They were having leftover pizza, carrots, and peas. (As an aside here, I thought we finally found something Colby won't eat. I shoved a pea in his mouth and he summarily reproduced it on his lips. Then he plucked it off with his chubby little fingers and instead of throwing it onto the high chair tray, examined it closely and back in it went. He snarfed down at least a kid sized portion of carrots and of peas - so hooray for another kid who will eat his veggies!!!) They were eating merrily until Steve left and apparently threw the switch on the way out the door. Ha. Kailin immediately announced that she was done and Colby was restless. He, of course, continued eating. Ha ha ha. It was downhill from there.

When he was done, he was DONE. He needed bed. I needed him to be awake for another hour. We pushed it and did pjs...played a bit...but by 6:45 they both needed bed. Both were in jammies already so my plan was milk for both and then bed. Peanut's plan was to ask to go out. New plan was to let Colby cry while I took Peanut out. Peanut's new plan was to reveal the real reason he wanted to go out - he needed to puke. So, he puked in the front hall while I tried to keep my kids out of it. Then I made a mad dash for the paper towel to clean it up while Colby made a mad dash to play in it. GROSS. Kailin was entirely in the way and I was starting to lose my cool. I cleaned up and then ran Peanut out and returned to a mostly hysterical Colby who fortunately calmed down quickly upon my return. We did have a shining moment thrown in when Colby tried to get his cup from the kitchen table and his sister ran over and grabbed it. I thought "here we go..." but she simply put it into his mouth and helped him tip it up. I was so thankful to have the camera sitting on the table! The shining moment faded when Colby tried to help himself and his sister thought otherwise.

Got the kids upstairs and tell Kailin we're going to read sitting up tonight (to facilitate her brother getting his bottle). At this point, I'm frazzled and neither kid is getting teeth brushed and I'm really hoping that this is the worst this event will ever be (for whatever reason, the true reality of it isn't coming through....imagine two overtired, wailing children and one frazzled mama - maybe that paints a better picture). I get the book read, get the bottle given, and get up. Kailin is bed and asks for her chicken toy. I give it to her and she asks me to cut the tag off. Well, I have a very fussy toddler in my arms and tell her that we'll leave it on for tonight and cut it off first thing in the morning. Unacceptable. She's been obsessed lately with removing ALL tags from ALL stuffed toys. She begins wailing at the TOP of her lungs. It was just enough to push me over the edge and I snatched the chicken and tossed it (truly I tossed it) into the pile of stuffed animals at the end of her bed and said that she couldn't have it at all then. She ramped up the screaming. I tried to calm her down to no avail, so I told her I loved her and closed the door. NOT a shining mommy moment.

I went in and put Colby down with no problem and then thought that I'd check on Kailin, who was quiet and whom I figured had zonked out and was probably not covered up. She was awake. I went in and bent down to wipe away her tears and told her that I was so sorry that I lost my temper, but that she has to understand that sometimes I need to take care of Colby and can't give her everything she wants exactly when she wants it. I told her that I love her very much no matter what. She looked into my eyes and said, "Mommy, will you sweep wif me?" I told her that I couldn't, but that she needed to get some rest because she needed to help me take Colby to the doctor tomorrow. She said, "I don't want him cry, mama. He needs his sisser." I assured her that he did indeed. Then I came downstairs and commenced to feeling guilty as all heck for losing my temper with her. I'm hoping tomorrow will be a better day - for both of us.

I made you read all this, and now I'll give you the cutest picture of my kids from today.... who could resist these guys??

I also wanted to say that Colby has made huge progress in his walking skills. When we first got him he was still doing what I refer affectionately to as "the orangutan shuffle" where little kids walk with their arms up and don't really lift their feet. Then this weekend he moved on to the "old guy" style. Lift your feet a little and sort of waddle. Today already he's walking more confidently, arms down, and can bend down and resume standing without falling over. How long before he's running all over???

We are the champions....

We've (the kids and I) conquered our first day alone together and we are all still standing!! Steve is working half days these next two weeks, so we had our first morning alone this morning. It went better than expected! Fewer tears than I thought (and NONE on my part - ha ha) and fewer battles.

Colby is coming around. I am almost always just as acceptable as his daddy - except when he's overtired (or angry - that little guy holds a grudge like no other!). Kailin still struggles with the change from time to time, but has done far better than we expected - and her interactions directly with her brother are almost always positive. She still delights in him when he wakes up and likes to go on in detail about all the things she's going to teach him, so I do truly believe that when all this adjusting is said and done - they're going to have a fierce bond. I feel sorry for anyone who deigns to mess with Kailin's brudder!!!

It's beautiful here today, so we're all going to head out for a walk as soon as the kids wake up (not that I'm trying to say we'd like them to wake up earlier than necessary!). I'll try to snap some outdoor shots of the kids and post them later.

Tomorrow he's got his first doctor appointment and I'm really curious to see where he falls on the US growth charts and just how long and heavy he really is. He's got a pair of 12month pants on today, so he's all over the board and I'm just curious about whether he's middle of the road or above average when it comes to height and weight. I'll be sure to fill you all in as soon as I can so that you can finally get some rest. Ha ha ha.

Oh what a day it was!!

**Before I start my regularly scheduled (but not on time by any means) blog post, I have a little "business" to attend to. After we experienced Colby's negative reaction to returning to us from the waitress' arms in Taiwan (in stark contrast to his sister's unwillingness to LEAVE our arms in China.), I wondered if it had to do with the fact that she spoke a language he understood and looked like the people who were his family. Well....at the airport, he walked right up to my mom and asked to be picked up. Our tact with Kailin had been to follow her comfort level, so I let my mom pick him up. He didn't want to come back to me. I talked with our social worker and after we discussed his foster care situation (and how much he was loved), she agreed with me that his bonding process is slower in coming than Kailin's was - he accepts indiscriminately and then refuses us as a way to control the life he feels is beyond his control. To sum up this little novel, we are requesting that no one pick him up even if he asks. You are welcome to kiss his head or his cheeks, give us all a group hug, or play with him on the floor. But please don't pick him up, ask to hold him (even for a minute) or feed him or do anything else that a parent would do. I don't mean to sound like a control freak mom, but this really is the best thing for Colby and for us. Thanks for being understanding. Hopefully it won't be long before everyone can pick him up and give him a squeeze! Without further ado... I bring you today's post..."

I thought before I talked about Friday, I'd post some pics I took of the kids on Thursday wearing the traditional hats we bought them in Wulai. Kailin adores hers and Colby....removes his with fervor (although he didn't want me to wear it either- so he's laid claim to it - just prefers it not to be on his head....)

Also couldn't resist this picture of Kailin having applied bunny ears to her brother. She delighted in the experience - he wasn't so much a fan!

Wow! What a day yesterday was! It started literally as soon as it started. I was just finally falling asleep about midnight when Colby cried. I got up and got him a bottle which he sucked down with glee. He didn't smell like he needed a change, so I put him back in his crib and settled into the rocking chair to wait. And wait. And wait some more while he rolled around and fidgeted. Finally, I decided to just have a whiff again. Sure enough. So I changed him and put him back and within about 15 minutes (including a lovely rendition of a Colby original song), he was out. Back to bed at 1:30. At 3:45, he was crying again. Steve went in, but they had a fundamental disagreement regarding whether Steve would hold him or lay him in his crib. So he cried. Loud. It wasn't a scared or hurt cry - it was just mad. Well of course I got no sleep. At some point I went downstairs and made a bottle and got the teething tablets and deposited them carefully into Colby's room. Steve came back to bed about 4:45 and then Kailin was awake at 5:15. Steve, bless his heart, let me sleep til just after 7.

When I came downstairs my darling daughter screamed at the top of her darling lungs, "MAMA! It's your BIRFDAY!!!!!!!" I just have to love that girl! We had a lovely family breakfast and then I loaded the kids into the tub for a bath. Should've been easy. Wasn't. I couldn't find the baby wash. I resorted to using a baby shampoo we don't particularly care for. The kids played nicely and then fought and then played nicely. Colby was fading fast though, so I washed both kids, but figured Kailin's hair could wait til I had Colby out and dried off since she likes to play in the tub anyway. I turned around to get his towel and Kailin is screaming "Colby is PEEING in my tub!!!" Sure enough. Standing and peeing. I yanked him out and into a towel and started draining the water. I told her to stand up. She screamed that she was cold. I told her that was too bad. (although then I FELT bad) I dried him as quickly as I could and then left him wrapped in the towel on the bathroom floor while I tried to wash her hair. Finally got them both washed, dried, lotioned, and dressed as Steve emerged from his shower. ha ha. The experience did yield some cute pics, though!

When I emerged from my shower, Steve told me he needed to go work in the basement. I wasn't sure what he meant by that. A quick look down the stairs gave me all the info I needed. Water. Lots of water.

The ground is super super saturated and apparently it's saturated to the point that water has come up through our basement floor. Steve spent most of his day cleaning up the aftermath. I know I say it often, but bless that man. He wouldn't let me help at all. My mom came over for the day and he let me play with her and the kids all day while he did the grunt work downstairs. He's still not done - the water is so widespread that we weren't able to move all of the affected "stuff" away from the wet areas. He's got all the standing water up and 1/3 of the basement is dry. He'll shift another third around today and then (barring any further bouts of torrential downpours (or perhaps even just sprinkles at this point)) we should have 2/3 of the basement dry and all of it dry by Monday. The only bad part is we haven't had time to go through all the boxes of wet stuff - so we don't yet know for sure what all is ruined. I am trying to maintain that if it was in the basement to begin with, it must not be very dear to us or it wouldn't be there, so let's hope that holds true. I am comforted a little by the fact that my mom, who doesn't even have a sump pump since my dad took it out 30 years ago and never has water in her basement, also had some water in her basement (although not as much as we did).

On a happier note, Steve and the kids got me an 8" digital photo frame for my birthday! While mom and the kids and I ran out to get plastic bins we stopped and got a 4Gb USB drive so that I can load some of my digitial scrapbook pages onto my new photo frame (and tons of China and Taiwan pictures, too!). I can't wait to play around with it this weekend! My mom gave me money to take to Taiwan before we left, but she couldn't go without bringing me a little something on my birthday. In addition to a dozen beautiful roses, she also brought 2 of my favorites - strawberry mentos and Crabtree and Evelyn Gardeners hand lotion. Woohoo mom!!!

My sister Katie and her husband, Nick, came up to meet Colby and we all had pizza from my favorite place - Bada Bing. Yum!!! My mom brought a yummy raspberry almond torte and Katie and Nick brought vanilla frozen custard. Lo-cal and healthy it was not, but it was one of the best birthday meals I can remember! Colby took to his Uncle Nick like a fish to water and was forcibly trying to remove his sister from the red tunnel so that HE could see Uncle Nick better. That man sure does have a gift with kids! He had Colby pealing with laughter 5 minutes after they met.

It may have started out a bit rocky yesterday, but it was a blessed birthday indeed. God has blessed me with an amazing husband and beautiful children and a family like no other. I am so very very thankful to Him!

Last night was a better night on the Colby front. He went to bed just a little after 7 and only woke once at 3am and didn't even require us to go in there before he quickly nodded off again. He's still sleeping now at 6:45 (as is his daddy). I wish I could say the same for his sister. We let her stay up late playing with Auntie Katie, Uncle Nick, and Nai Nai and of course it was a mistake. She was up at 2:30 wailing that she was ready to start the day and then up at 5:15 (far too early even if she'd gone to bed ON TIME) for good. It's going to be a long one, I'm afraid!

Today we are off to Cricket school as a family (Kailin's classmates and some of our other friends are quite anxious to meet Colby) and then down to Steve's parents to pick up the rest of our laundry that we offloaded on Weds to fit Kailin in the car coming home. Then back home so that Steve's brother and sister in law, Mike and Jodi, and the kids' cousins Olivia and Nicholas can come for a visit. It should be another fun-filled and busy day. Tomorrow should be a little more quiet. Good thing for us that Colby loves the action - Kailin was a mouse when she came home, but Colby's much more of a tiger!

Here they are, now leave me be you people!!

Here are the pics I promised (and which have subsequently been suggested, requested, and DEMANDED).... you know I must love you all because I'm posting this way unattractive pic of me with my kids (still in my puke stained shirt and unwashed, pasty state from yesterday morning when we got to Steve's mom's house).....

We gave Colby the final "are you part of our family" test this morning and I made pancakes. He snarfed them down like he'd been eating them all his life. Now we know he belongs! Of course we haven't hit him with pizza yet, but that'll be soon enough....

We had a good night last night - Colby slept from 6:30-2:30 and again from 4:15-6:40, so that's pretty darn good for a first night at home. Steve says he thinks we got more sleep last night than we did the first 3 nights Kailin was home combined! I agree. He went down for a nice morning nap this morning so I'm daring to hope that by some miracle he's already on our time! Let's hope!

When Karma bites you in the butt (aka - God taught me a lesson about busting my husband's chops....)

We were all packed and ready to go by 7:30pm and Steve hauled our 2 suitcases and 2 very large duffel bags downstairs. Our driver arrived at 8pm and we headed down to check out. For only the second time since we'd arrived, we saw some incoming "traffic". (our hotel, although it caters to business guests and travelers, is available for "business" guests as well.) We kind of looked at each other and giggled a little. The front desk told us we'd already paid for the first 7 days, so they charged us for the remainder and we headed out. We didn't get far before our driver got a call on his cell phone asking us to return to the hotel. Back we went. Turns out we did not pay for the original 7 days (of course the one really sweet guy who had the worst English was on duty on Tuesday night), so we cleared that up and headed for the airport.

Everyone who knows us knows that I LOVE to tell the story of how we boarded the plane in China and Steve turned to me and said, "I'm really sorry, but I'm sick - you're on your own..." I do it in jest because he truly did have a knock you on your butt cold.

Well....now I know the feeling. I had a nervous stomach before we left the hotel. I figured it was nerves about the trip home and took some tums. Hmmm...not so much. We got to the airport and I was really feeling yucky and then as we were waiting to go through immigration/customs I realized that the line had better move quickly or there was going to be a mess. The gentleman behind me in line kept burping audibly and I had to breathe deep to hang on. Sure enough, I busted through immigration and ran for a bathroom. Sick.

I was MISERABLE through the entire trip and was no help at all to my husband. I pretty much slept and puked the whole way home. The man I married is a saint - he held Colby pretty much the entire trip and had 1 glass of orange juice as his sole nourishment the entire trip. Bless that man - and nary a complaint. As of my last "episode" at O'Hare this morning I'm feeling much better and was actually able to eat a little breakfast, a little lunch, and a pretty decent dinner tonight. Hooray for that being over - but I guess we know now that Steve had the stomach flu and not "bad food" the other day. If anyone wants to know which airport is the best to be sick in - let me know... ha ha ha.

We landed in Chicago this morning and were both glad to see the air portion of the trip come to an end. My mom graciously picked us up at the airport and we headed to Steve's mom's for some breakfast and to pick up Kailin. We couldn't have asked for a better reunion. Kailin saw Colby and yelled, "Look! You have my Colby! You bring my brudder!!" and was elated to see us all. Colby was taken with her right away and within minutes they were playing together on the floor. There's definitely some sibling rivalry as one usually squawks a bit whenever the other gets our attention, but that's to be expected in these days of transition.

Colby is certainly more outgoing than Kailin was when we brought her home. He is happy to play on the floor in the presence of strangers as long as Steve and I are within eyesight. He walked up to both of our moms today and didn't mind a bit if they touched him.

After breakfast we off loaded one duffel bag to Steve's mom's car and loaded Kailin's car seat and both kids into my mom's car and headed for home. We got the kids settled and then Steve and I each had a shower and brushed our teeth (noteworthy because never before in my life has it felt so good to do so!). Then we gave the kids lunch and I put Colby down for a nap and Kailin and my mom laid down in her bed. I decided I needed a rest as well and slept from 1-4. Steve is hardcore and stayed up all day so that he can sleep tonight. I think I'll have no trouble.

I'm going to call it a night, but will try to post some pictures of the kids together tomorrow.

Surprise! A last word and some pics...

Here's the turban picture as promised. Not exactly a turban, I guess - but amusing nonetheless!

Today was cloudy to begin with, but sunny soon enough. We ended up having breakfast separately as we lollygagged around packing and playing with Colby on the bed this morning and by the time we both showered it was long past Colby's breakfast time. Before things got hairy, though, we did attempt another bath and he just about decided that he liked it this time (I think by the end he legitimately did). He struck this squat pose for a good majority of the bath - and it was too irresistible to avoid snapping a shot or two.

We took the bus to the MRT and then grabbed a cab to the fabric market. It wasn't what I expected at all - 90% or more of the vendors just had fabric like you'd find in JoAnn back home. We finally found a shop with beautiful brocades and I picked up a meter each of three I loved. I wish I'd gotten more - but I was sure we'd find another shop. I shouldn't have been so sure. There was a darling toddler in the shop who played Ni hao peekaboo with me. We walked around some more and never did find any more fabric, but we did get some red envelopes for CNY and some CNY decorations which are sorely lacking in our house.

We cabbed it over to the handicrafts market - I'd guess it was nearly 90 downtown - and humid. We picked up a few more odds and ends we were looking for and I got a necklace for myself and some chopsticks for Colby for when he's older. I passed on the vases and wall hangings for this trip - we are a little crunched for space at this point and I didn't want to risk breaking anything or adding to our luggage. I did see the verse from 1 Corinthians that we had read at our wedding on a scroll in Chinese and was very tempted to purchase it - and probably should have, but it was $60. We saw this row of parked mopeds on our way back to the MRT and I couldn't resist a shot. We were going to go get some formula (we'll just have to get a small can of whatever to last us til we're home and can change him to cow's milk) and take one last look for a reasonable teapot for me, but Colby was tired and hungry so we came straight back to the room and put him down - we can do those things when he wakes up. Here's how he's sleeping (not sure if you can see it or not, but he's got his butt up in the air....

I also thought you'd get a kick out of what we discovered behind my nightstand.... not sure what to even make of it - craziness for sure!!

A deep sigh of relief!

So I hadn't blogged about this because I didn't want to worry anyone, but two days before we left for Taiwan, our agency called to tell us that AIT was requesting additional paperwork - a letter from our local USCIS stating that we'd met the State of WI requirements to adopt. Well that presented several problems. One - in order to write a letter stating that we'd met the state reqs, the state required us to get an adoption bond ($100). They also required a copy of our homestudy (which luckily our homestudy agency was happy to provide - and update to reference new background checks and approval for a child up to 2 years (just in case immigration or AIT noticed that our old one said approved for a child up to 12 mos at referral (which Colby was) and decided to be picky about him being 14 mos at adoption) and copies of our adoption decrees here in Taiwan (which our placing agency did their best to get as quickly as possible). This stuff wouldn't be too much of a problem to get, but with less than 48 hours to do it all - impossible. So we actually left home not knowing if we'd be catching our flight tomorrow night or stuck here for....well, we didn't know how long. The problem was that WI's protocol for these situations is that THEY issue the letter. USCIS is not involved. AIT, on the other hand, was insistent that the letter come from USCIS. That's what would've taken a year and a day and that's what we saw as the major obstacle. Well.... when we went to AIT on Thursday, they never even mentioned the letter. I figured we were in the clear (we know that they did have a faxed copy of the letter from the state since the state confirmed having sent it, but AIT never made mention of it at all), but I wasn't going to breathe easy until we picked up his actual visa and passport today.

Well, they made me work for it. Steve decided to stay home with Colby while I went out and about today. I went to the bus stop in plenty of time. No bus. No bus.....no bus....still no bus.... getting a little nervous... no bus.....thinking I might have to take a taxi.... FINALLY a bus! I've never waited that long (here) for one. Bus to the MRT no problem. On the MRT no problem. Show the guards at AIT my appointment letter and passport, no problem. Check the camera in and proceed to second guard. She directs me to the second floor. I tell her that I really think I'm supposed to be on the 3rd floor. She insists. I comply. I wait in line. It's on the third floor. Up to the third floor. Check in at window 8. "Oh, we're still working that. Have a seat and we will call you." Hmmmm..... okay. Wait a few minutes. There are only two other people in the office with me. One arguing with an Asian man behind window #7 and one having a very pleasant exchange with an African-American man behind window #6. Window #7 concerns me. The man usually in charge of visas for adopted kids is Asian and was out of the office the other day when we were in (hence our luck with the letter - I think)(and yes I know that most of the employees working at AIT are in fact Asian and it would stand to reason that a good proportion of them are male. But bear with my panic stricken, neurotic mind here). The man behind window #6 finishes with his client and then says to me via microphone, "ma'am, can we help you? You are the only person left here and I don't see any more files." I explain my business and he says, "oh yes, that's being worked on...we'll be right with you." I say okay and he zips closed the blinds on his window leaving just.... window #7. That man is still arguing with the Asian woman. It's heated, although I have no idea what they're arguing about. I'm already cycling through the things I plan to say if the man behind window #7 tells me that we will not be receiving Colby's visa today. I will tell him that they should have the letter from the state already, that the protocol for WI is that the letter is issued from the state and not by USCIS, that they had our appointment on the books for 5 weeks and chose to give us 2 days notice that we need this letter, and that they should have told me this would be a problem on Thursday as we would've had an additional 3 business days to work on it - so he should do us the courtesy of making an exception to his protocol since our 171-H indicates that the US Gov't is convinced we have met all necessary reqs to adopt. I'm gathering my courage and steeling myself for confrontation as the Asian woman finally storms off when to my delight the man behind window #7 closes his blinds and the woman behind window #8 calls me over to receive Colby's visa and passport and our packet for immigration. Hooray!!!! I know that was a very long winded story, but it's one I want to remember, and it's also good just to let all of that out!

After I left AIT, it was my intention to head to the clothing market and then the fabric market. As I walked toward the MRT station, I realized how much I will miss this place. -How much I have enjoyed this pedestrian lifestyle, how wonderful the people have been, how safe I felt to just head out on my own today, and how I've never wished so badly to know the language in a place I've visited. I do think this is the one place I've gone where they've spoken the least English - but even if most people knew English, I think this place would still have me wishing I could speak more Mandarin than just rudimentary colors, jungle and farm animals, and signs of the zodiac with a few pleasantries mixed in. Perhaps that'll be a goal for the next time we come.

I boarded the MRT and got off on the appropriate stop. I asked at the information booth and learned that it wouldn't be far. The desk was right - it wasn't far and I knew it when I saw it. Bags and bags of children's clothes spread out across tons and tons of storefronts. I did actually feel a little intimidated and there are no pictures as a result. I kind of looked on while people dug through the bags and then I finally saw a cute little tank top and shorts I thought would be just perfect for Kailin. I tried to ask how much they were, but the shop owner would only point to a sign that said, "no sale" (which I'd taken to mean that you couldn't bargain). They refused to sell them to me. I'm still not sure why. I thought maybe you had to buy by the bag full, but I saw other women buying just a couple pieces. I finally just handed them the clothes and left feeling a little stupid. It wasn't what I was really there for anyway. I wandered some, but mostly found adult sized clothes. I saw a cute purse I really liked for $3 and bought it. I finally saw a shop that had traditional clothes - and moreover had some kids clothes in the window. I went in and the shop attendant spoke English. I figured I had it made. Not so fast. They only had WINTER traditional clothes and since Colby will be baptized in June - that won't work. I asked if she knew of any other shops and she sent me down the alley to two more.

I walked into the first one and inquired. The older man and woman began conversing animatedly and then their son (I'd guess early twenties) said, "they said they only have a jacket, will that work?" I said that unfortunately, it would not and then his dad leaped up and began digging through giant bags of clothes. He came up with a red dress for Kailin in size 4 (the size she has now) or one several sizes too large. The red dress does look larger than her China 4, and it was beautiful, so I bought it. They didn't have much for Colby, but did have a little silk vest and shorts set, and with no other options in sight - I bought that too. The son went to Winona State in MN, it turns out, so it's a small world indeed!! They were so accommodating and wanted to badly to help that I was glad to be able to make a purchase there. Across the alley I found the other dealer in traditional clothes and they had stuff for boys and girls. I bought Colby two traditional outfits - one in maroon and blue for his baptism and one in red and navy (my first choice for the baptism, but they didn't have one small enough) for later. Kailin got another dress (size 6 this time) in pink for later. All told, I spent more than I wanted to, but the clothes are of much finer quality than the ones we got in China, and I'd rather spend the money and have them then wait to see if we can find some at the fabric market and come up short. A very kind woman helped translate for me in the shop and as we chatted, I learned that her mother-in-law lives in Ohio! She was quite surprised that we'd come to Taiwan to adopt a Chinese baby. I had to try hard not to laugh at the thought of coming to Taiwan to adopt a Caucasian baby. ha ha. She was so nice to me - as were the shopkeepers. It was hotter than a pistol in there, though - everywhere in the market actually, and as soon as I walked out of the shop I realized that I had a splitting headache. I was pretty much dripping with sweat and hadn't eaten in about 6 hours and was probably also dehydrated. Not a fantastic combo.

I hiked back to the MRT station with no problem (other than feeling nauseated from the headache and sweating like a hog) and thought that I'd try the fabric market anyway, but as soon as I'd paid my fare and boarded the train, I knew I needed to head for home. The problem is that the fare is calculated based on your origin and destination points and I had no idea if I'd gotten the right fare for my "home stop" or not. Plan B. I got off on my original intended stop and looked for something to eat and drink. My greater conscience told me not to go local for this meal, so I was ecstatic to see a McDonald's on the horizon. Air conditioned and just what the Dr. ordered. Back to the MRT and headed for home. I noticed a lot of police presence on the MRT today, so I'm not sure if it was coincidence or if there was some kind of threat or something. I felt safe anyway!

Back at the room I laid down for a bit and between cooling off and drinking some more liquids, my headache left pretty quickly. I learned that Steve was feeling some better and that Colby skipped his morning nap, but had a really decent afternoon one. We decided that dinner with Monika and her husband was out and I called them to let them know. Turns out they're dragging as well, so it all worked out.

We stayed in the room most of the rest of the afternoon, but ventured out this evening after we filled Colby up on rice crackers and cereal. We took a walk down the road trolling for something for me for dinner (Steve was feeling better, but not enough to have dinner). Nothing appealed to me, so we stopped at Dunkin Donuts and I tried a chocolate cake donut with corn sprinkles. Yes, I said corn. Yes, I'm sorry that I didn't have my camera!! It was actually really good. Who'd have thought??

Colby fell asleep in the carrier on the way home and then had a really hard time falling asleep in his bed. Poor guy. He's getting his eye teeth now in addition to the four molars. Ugh. He's a drooling fool! I feel bad for him. We got home to find that housekeeping had been in to clean our room. Ummm.....can you clean the inside of a goat's stomach? I had no idea they'd come in so late in the day or I'd have cleaned up some of Colby's toys - I'm sure they walked in and thought "how can we clean THIS?" but at least we have clean towels now!

No turban picture tonight either - the boys are asleep and I don't know where Steve packed the camera cord. Sorry to disappoint! This may very well be my last post from Taiwan - depending on how busy tomorrow gets. 8 or so is my normal blogging time and that's about the time we'll be leaving for the airport. We're going to try to hit the fabric and handicraft markets tomorrow and maybe Longshan Temple as well. We'll see how hot it is and how Steve is feeling when we awake. If I don't get to blog tomorrow, then I'll talk to you all when we're back on American soil.

For anyone who is planning to visit us this weekend - Kailin does have cricket school on Saturday morning, so we won't be home until 11 or so.