handsful

Well, I’m a day late in getting this posted – a certain daughter of mine had my computer held hostage all last night.

As busy as yesterday was (running from 6am till 6pm!), we certainly remembered that we were celebrating FOUR months with Dylan!  Honestly, it seems like longer.  Was he ever not here?  His transition into the family has been extremely easy.  Sleeping  and eating issues are gone.  His english  is exploding and he talks in sentences.  He STILL weighs 27lbs. and not an ounce more.  Maybe he’s growing in height?  I’ve got to look back to his initial appt. to check on that.

A new favorite activity…sitting on the edge of the sink and washing dishes.

A few more observations…

* He says I love you – “I lub oo”  – Lainey taught him that one.

* We were at church yesterday, waiting to pick up Abbey and Ethan from their student council meeting.  We were on the playground, and there’s a small climbing wall.  Lainey started up, and Dylan wanted to try.  I immediately told me no, he just wasn’t ready for that. Before I knew it, he was at the top (with me “spotting” him).  I have to learn NOT to lower my expectations of him.

* The other day, I was holding him and he accidently bumped into my chin.  He immediately asked “ooh ok mommy?”  and kissed me. And, this morning he wanted a sip from a water bottle.  I was worried he might spill and he said “I not spill it, I be tareful”.   Interactions like that are becoming common…I love how we can communicate so much easier now.

* A lot happens next month, specifically his surgery on April 26th.  We’ve already been talking a lot about his “new leg” and wearing “two shoes”.  When I took him back to the surgeon last week to check on his broken femur (healing perfectly, by the way), he asked if we were there for his new leg.  If we mention going to the doctor for anyone, he asks if it’s for his new leg.  He’s anxious, though I realize he doesn’t know specifically what’s about to happen.  We plan on getting together with our friends, the Gambils soon.  They have a 5 year old daughter with an amputation/prosthetic leg.  I want Dylan to see and get a better idea of what’s coming.  We’re blessed to have friends willing to share their experiences with us!

So, our next Gotcha Day update will be at 5 months, and Dylan will have had his surgery.  He’ll be BACK in that lovely spica cast, too. Looking forward to that!  (sarcasm…)

Happy 4 months, Dylan!

…only I have to FIND the pieces first.

We’re having our family portraits taken this coming Sunday.  I’m really psyched about it, and stressed to the max…all at the same time!

The gal at www.mycharmingkids.com is driving into town to take them.  Check out her site…her whole family (they have 5 little kids) is taking to the road in an RV this spring and she’s doing photo shoots along the way.  Incredible.

We went shopping today to try and put together outfits.  We’ll use a combo of things we already have, and a few bought things.  See the plaid?  Those are Ethan’s shorts…the whole color scheme is coming from those shorts.  I was unsure how to go about clothing 8 people in somewhat coordinating clothing WITHOUT going the white shirt/jeans route.

MckMama (that’s what she goes by on her site) had her admin send me some links to help, and the biggest suggestion was to start with ONE item of clothing and build around it.  Hence, the shorts.  There are various shades of browns, blues, white, black, red, and even a little pink.  So far, everything is in the browns and blues.  We’ll choose either the red or pink for other items, depends on what we come across as we continue to raid closets and shop.

I had all the clothes we’ve currently chosen on the floor, arranged with tops and bottoms to see where we were.  Then, I made notes on what colors/patterns might work on the rest.  Doesn’t this sound fun?  I don’t think so either.

Why can’t there be people stagers?  Stagers make houses attractive to potential buyers by putting together the perfect furniture and accessories.  Isn’t there someone I can call to DRESS us?!?  ;)

Signs of spring.  Bumblebees are zooming around all the newly blossomed flowers.  The annoying black ants that love our front walkway are back.  (anyone know how to get rid of big, black ants?!?)  Our nebulizer machine is doing overtime, with Ethan’s asthma hitting him hard.  Others are sniffing, allergies gone haywire.  The good, the bad, and the sneezy.

We’re definitely spending more time outside.  This time of year in Florida, we’d already be sweating.  I’m enjoying the nice, slow fade into spring and eventually summer.  Is it just me, or does Lainey look almost pre-teenish in this picture?!  Eeek.

Someone swished his tootsie in Lake Norman for the first time this past weekend.  I held on tight as we stretched his leg into the water…he seemed to have no fear of falling in!

I hope he loves the water this summer.

The kayaks got dusted off , with the boys taking a spin.  They even jumped in the water….brrr.

We’re feeding seed to all the birdies and Mr. and Mrs. Duck daily…several times a day.  Marley stays on top of it all.  Afterall, they are HER ducks.  She thinks they are.

Despite the negative parts of spring, we’re squinting our way through it.  Dodging bees, grabbing tissues, and watching as the world explodes with color.

So, I googled Val Kilmer today.

He used to be THAT actor for me.  Well, one of them.  Kiefer Sutherland was on the list, too.  You know, the actors that you thought were “cute”.  Most of my friends swooned over Tom Cruise….he seemed too full of himself (still is, I believe).

I was commenting on a friend’s FB question (fav actors and their movies) – and I couldn’t remember the name of one of his films I like (Real Genius) and a current picture of Val popped on the screen.

Guess I’ll have to remember the way he used to look.  No offense, but he’s not aging as well as he’d probably like.

It’s interesting how time works…I still feel like that teenager sometimes (no hysterical laughing, please).  Hearing my old tunes, 80’s movies, etc.  Then, it takes me by surprise when I see how we’ve all aged on the outside.  Oh well…I’ll look forward to heaven, when we’ll all look however God chooses and we won’t care about it one bit.

Hope you enjoyed my little Saturday morning observation.

Not all orphanages in China are the same…some have more resources, some have less.   A lot depends on what part of the country they’re in, and how much outside support they receive.

Lainey’s orphanage was located in a very poor city and, though I think they did their best, it was lacking in many things.  At least in Lainey’s room, there was no stimulation on the walls.  There were no toys that we ever saw (we were told they were put away unless it was playtime).  And, the nannies were told to avoid making attachments to the children – they were rotated regularly to keep this from happening.  This might be the same in all orphanages, but I’m not sure.  Given the circumstances that Lainey came from, she has done amazingly well and is thriving.

After learning that Dylan was from Luoyang, CWI in Henan province, we researched as much as we could, trying to get a glimpse into what kind of care he might be receiving there.  We were thrilled to learn that the Half the Sky Foundation worked in Luoyang, to provide the children with individual attention and stimulation.  Specially trained volunteers through HTS work with the children in programs like “Baby Sisters” – working with infants to provide stimulation and early play skills, and “Little Sisters” – preschool play and activities to develop their bodies and minds.

We were told that, after Dylan’s adoption was complete and we were home from China, we could request the reports that had been written by the HTS volunteers.  We received these a few weeks later, and I was amazed at what we saw.

Forgive the picture of a picture, but…this is a baby picture of Dylan.   The reports say he is 3 months old here.  Funny thing is, our initial referral for Dylan says he was abandoned in January 08.  Which would have made him 6 months old.  ??  We weren’t completely surprised by this, because several others with children from Luoyang told us they had similar experiences with the orphanage and HTS reports conflicting.

He’s 9 months here, and it’s quite obvious it’s him.  I love seeing these, but it also makes me sad that we missed so much of his life.  We received a 6 month photo, too, but I’m not posting it.  We’re honestly not sure it’s him – maybe they mixed up the photos?  He looks much older than 6 months, the face isn’t quite the same…Oh well.

15 months.  Oh my, is he cute or what??  Are you noticing that the nanny is always the same?  I love that HTS did this, giving him someone to bond with for a long period of time.  When Dylan saw these pictures, he called her “momma”.

about 20 months.  That’s our boy.

About 2 years.  Sitting on the potty.  This is the first photo/report of him being in the HTS preschool program.  Look at the adorable baby fat on his neck.  Gracious.

The other photos look very similar to one we already had from his referral.   We also received quarterly reports, which contain precious information on his time with the HTS nanny.  She documented each “session”, what they did, what YuHai played with, and what she was focusing on that day.  Things like improving his head control when he was a baby, and teaching him the parts of his face or how to put on his shoe by himself when he was older.  We have written reports from Fall 2007 through Fall 2010.

I am extremely thankful that Dylan had this amazing head start, and the love of a Half The Sky volunteer.  I wish I could tell her thank you for all that she did for our son. We now have a deeper history to share with Dylan.

If you get a chance, check out this amazing organization and the work that they do.  www.halfthesky.org

I think I’ll go swoon over his baby pictures for a little while longer.  :)

While walking through our little downtown around Christmas time last year, we found out the the local artist’s guild was having a youth art exhibit in March.  Three of our kids decided to get artsy and turn a project in.  Lainey and Dylan weren’t quite old enough, and Ethan…well, he told me when he was 4 that he hated arts and crafts at preschool.  That’s not changed.

Last night was the reception for the artists.

Abbey poses with the beautiful photo she took of a flower in our yard last spring.  A bee is contentedly drinking right on top.

Marley decided to do a colored pencil drawing of her latest passion…birds.  Specifically, a blue crowned conure.

Payton is our cartoonist and he’s good (if we do say so ourselves).  His favorite character is “Harry the Stick Dude” and here he’s drawn Harry in 9 of his favorite personas.   I like the gangster one the best.

Our kids didn’t win any ribbons, but it’s okay.  They got to see some amazing art by other kids like them and hopefully it will inspire them to keep creating, if they so choose.  We’re glad they wanted to have the experience, and we loved seeing their art on display!