handsful

Our friends are in Ukraine right now, adopting this beauty named Nadia.  We’ve been friends with Jim and Kristin for years…they have 3 other children and felt called to add Nadia to their family.  Their youngest child, Josi, has Down syndrome and so does Nadia.  They found her on Reece’s Rainbow (www.reecesrainbow.com), which is an international Down syndrome adoption ministry started by the mom of a child with Down syndrome.  We are so happy for our friends, and even happier for Nadia – her future held little hope until her forever family found her.  Now, she’s a member of a very blessed family. 

Follow the rest of their journey at their blog – listed in my sidebar as “Kristin – Nadia”.  :)

At least that’s what Jamie and Adam tell us everytime we sit down to watch one of our favorite family shows, MythBusters.  In case you’re not familiar, the show attempts to re-create common myths and folklore, judging them as confirmed, plausible, or busted!  It’s educational, and they seem to spend a lot of their time blowing things up…how can you go wrong? 

The myth that intrigued us this time was whether or not using profanity makes you more tolerant to pain.  They put their arms into bowls of ice water (that was the pain part!), and then timed how long they could keep their arms in without using swear words and then while using swear words.  We decided to re-create part of the test.  NO, not the swearing part! 

The kids were interested to see if they could keep their arms in ice water for the 3 minutes max that the mythbusters did.  Of course, Randy jumped in on this, too.  I wasn’t feeling too well that night, so I passed.  Plus, I hate being cold. 

Randy went first, and lasted the 3 minutes.  He said it was most definitely painful up to about 2 minutes, and then the pain leveled off some. 

Abbey timing him on her phone.  Lainey wondering why we’ve all lost our minds. 

Pain rising, must remain calm…

Payton was next, and was a little blown away by how cold it was!  He squirmed and wiggled and exclaimed the whole time.  His first try was 48 seconds.

Lainey had to play, too.  She lasted 22 seconds!

Marley’s time was 29 seconds.  No wonder she’s usually the first out of the pool. 

Ethan totally put on his game face and lasted the whole 3 minutes.  Have we ever mentioned he was competitive? 

Same with Abbey, 3 minutes.  Not sure if she’s competitive as much as she is stubborn…she wasn’t going to let her dad out-do her in something! 

On a second go-round, Payton got serious and lasted all 3 minutes.  Marley tried again too, but only made it 51 seconds.  The girl doesn’t like being cold!  (like her mama)  Lainey also went again, and went 39 seconds. 

It was a fun experiment (to watch!), and surprising how their personalities came out in their results.  And, we promise…no swearing took place!  :)

Some have asked for a few shots of the inside of the house.  I kept waiting till it was uncluttered and put together.  Who am I kidding?  Here’s the inside of the house…

Foyer, what you see when you walk in the front door.  That room upstairs is the master. 

Rooms to the right of the foyer…dining and living?  Very much not figured out yet. 

The foyer leads into the family room.  Randy watching the Braves…they’ve been crazy good lately! 

The family room then goes into the eating area and kitchen.  We got Payton a cartooning book at the homeschool conference, he draws constantly now.  Marley is working with Lainey on her new handwriting book.  She loves to copy and practice writing her letters now. 

The kitchen.  Abbey sneaking on my computer to check FB.  I really like the kitchen, but it’s small.  Can’t open the pots and pans cupboard if the dishwasher is open…can’t open the drawer with the pot holders if the oven is open.  :)  But, there’s tons of cabinet space and the pantry is bigger than my last one.  Can’t complain too much! 

That’s all I’ve got for now.  No shots of upstairs yet.  We are renting this home for the next 6-12 months, depending on (1) when we sell our FL house, and (2) when our travel for Dylan falls.  We are very thankful to be in such a nice house while we wait for more permanent things to fall into place.

Lights + water jumping in time to music + kids

= dancing!

the boys conduct the water orchestra…

while the girls dance and laugh.

Randy watches the show…wonder what he’s thinking?

The first thing we’ve bought for Dylan!  Couldn’t resist the sale rack at Old N*avy the other day :)  Size 2T, 27-30lbs. 

With our update last week, we received current measurements for Dylan.  Here are his stats:

24 1/4 lbs.

33.5 inches tall

18.5 inches head circum.

I looked at an online percentile calculator to see how he compares to other kids his age.  For his height and weight, Dylan is in the 3rd percentile for both weight and height…so, 97% of other kids his age are bigger than he is. 

For fun, I checked Lainey’s percentile stats.  Right now, she weighs about 38lbs and she’s 39 inches tall.  So, she’s at the 75th percentile for weight, and 37% for height.  I also looked back to see how old Lainey was, when she weighed what Dylan weighs now (at age 2 years 10 months).  She was 1 year 8 months old.  :)

I’d love to find some way to predict, based on a normal growth curve, what Dylan might weigh when we travel to get him.  Anyone know how to do that?

When we realized we were going to be able to rent this home on Lake Norman, we decided we’d try and get a couple of kayaks…Abbey has lots of experience on them from marine science camps, etc. and the other big kids were eager to try.  We’re considering them our moving in presents to ourselves :)

By now, you’re bound to be getting sick of water pictures! 

Randy and Abbey have a special relationship…here, Abbey is sharing some “water” with her dad. 

…and, “helping” him into the lake.  What a sweetie. 

Randy wanted them to practice tipping over, to make sure they’d know what to do if (when) it happens.  Marley needed help tipping hers! 

she can flip it back over, though.

Here comes a back buster!  The lifevest helped break the fall. 

Like my new tee? 

Abbey tried to help me into the lake, too. 

And, I’m ending with this.  She’s fearless with those floaties :)

I knew our agency requested an update on Dylan last week…they routinely ask the orphanage for new pictures/measurements 3 months after the Letter of Intent is sent in.  Orphanages aren’t required to send anything – some do and some don’t.  I was so happy to see these pictures and info in my inbox today! 

Notice the concentration and that amazing stack of blocks!  Love the split pants and this is also another shot of him using his small leg (knee?)  for support.  Randy isn’t thrilled with his choice of football team, though :)

This one melts me…I think I see a dimple?! 

There were current measurements included, which I still have to convert from metric.  Here’s the info they gave us:

health is good – can express his wish and request – potty trained, but needs diaper at night – knows red (this makes me laugh…he’s a NC State fan already!)

They call him Yu Hai – He is outgoing (Abbey loved that) – He is in the orphanage (he could have been transferred to foster care, I’m glad they confirmed where he was) – He received our care package – he eats noodle, rice, and drinks juice.

We are thrilled to have this new information on our son!  We seem to be on schedule to have our dossier go to China next week, and families “usually” travel about 4-6 months after that.  We’re still guessing November…we’ll see!