I'm Here!

Sorry about the long absence. Our computer died a horrible death a couple of weeks ago. One truly does not realize how much they use and depend on their home computer until it is loss. A couple of trips to best buy and some money spent and we are back online with our new dell laptop.

Christmas has come and gone. Although tomorrow we have one last family get together. We have lots to look forward in the New Year - everything from the historical inaguaration of our new President, hope that our economy will turn around, to Tyler and Amelia getting a year older and Paul and I celebrating our 5th wedding anniversary.

I seriously just set up our new computer about 10 minutes ago. I will post some photos after I get used to this computer and figure out how to do it. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Halloween and Rock and Roll

Whew - it's been awhile since I've posted. Not much is new with us. Amelia had fun trick or treating, she was Minnie Mouse. Tyler wrapped up his football season and is itching for basketball to start. Here are some pictures to get you up to speed on the happenings of our household.


Halloween 2008:



Rock and Roll:




These photos were taken this weekend. Ryan was around and liked playing drums with Tyler. But whenever Tyler struck the drum, Ryan would close his eyes. Tyler would play some rhythem and then Ryan would try to copy him. I think Ryan has a future as a drummer. Trav and Ang - you may want to sound proof a room in preparation for that day. Take it from me, having a drummer in the house can be a headache (literally) at times. In one photo, Amelia is trying to play guitar with one leg in the air.

Happy Adoption Day!

Two years ago today we met our Amelia. There are moments when it seems like it was just yesterday but most of the time, it feels as if she has always been a part of our family. There is a book called "the Motherbridge of Love" that is based on an anonymous poem. The book is published by Barefoot Books and illustrated by Josee Masse. It's a beautiful book and both in words and illustrations. I'd like to share the text with you now.

"Once there were two women who never knew each other.
One you do not know. The other you call mother.
Two different lives shaped to make you one.
One became your guiding star; the other became your sun.
The first one gave you life; the second taught you to live it.
The first gave you a need for love; the second was there to give it.
One gave you a body, the other taught you games.
One gave you a talent. The other taught you aims.
One gave you emotions; the other calmed your fears.
One saw your first sweet smile; the other dried your tears.
One found a home for you that she could not provide.
The other prayed for a child; her hope was not denied.
And now you ask, of course you do, the question others ask me too:
This place or your birth place - which are you a daughter of?
Both of them, my darling - and two different kinds of love."

It's official!

Our house is on the market! We found another home we like (that is double the square footage) and it's time to move on up in this world and out of our little starter home. If you know anyone who is looking - send them to our realator! Wish us luck!

Who lives in a pineapple under the sea?

I made chicken patties last night for supper. Amelia started eating before the rest of us. When Tyler came upstairs to join us, he asked Amelia what she was eating. She held up her sandwich and said "a Krabby patty." Yup - she watches a little too much Spongebob.

Young Love

Tyler went on his first "date" on Friday night. He and his friend, Andrew, had plans to meet their respective "girlfriends" at the bowling alley on Friday night. When Tyler got home I asked him how he bowled and he said he had the lowest score of the 4 some. Paul asked if he kissed his girl friend and Tyler didn't give us an answer. I wonder what that is supposed to mean?

Edited to add: I got the scoop from Tyler tonight. He didn't have his first kiss yet. He got a cool reception from the girl after bowling so he's not sure where they stand. Don't y'all miss the days of junior high dating?

Little Miss Sassy Pants

Amelia cracks us up constantly. Just now she whispered in Tyler's ear "I was love you forever, you will always be my sweet boy." Then 30 seconds later she said to her dad "stop singing, I don't like it when you sing." Yep - she wears the pants in the family.

The other night, she wouldn't let me get her ready to go to a "girl party." So I took her just the way she was - dirty from day care. On the way there I think she felt bad but yet didn't want to apologize so she said "mom, I still look beautiful." I said "yeah, you're pretty cute." To which she said "I'm a lot of cute."

Her favorite way to start a sentence is by saying "actually . . . . " Tonight I asked her something and she said "personally, I do like it." She is such a little miss know it all.

The photo I posted is of her and her uncle Troy in a jam session. Amelia loves to play the harmonica.

The leopard and the pandas

I bought this costume for Amelia before she even came home from China. It's a hand made leopard costume. I thought she could wear it on her first Halloween but it was way too big last year. Considering Amelia has gained 4 lbs since last year and grown 4 inches, it is still too big. She had fun wearing it and playing with her pandas.

Speaking of pounds, I just got off the treadmill. I dusted it off a couple of weeks ago after not using it for about two years. I am hoping I can be disciplined enough to work out several days a week and hopefully lose some pounds.

Not much else is new with us. Tyler might have his first girlfriend. But shhhhhh don't tell him I told you! He would be so mad at me!

Mothers - hug your babies a little bit tighter

I attended the wake of a 4 month old tonight. She died at day care. She seemed to just stop breathing and the family isn't sure what happened yet. My heart is breaking for her family. I graduated from high school with her mom. The baby's great grandmother told me that the parents got to hold her today for one last time. They rubbed her body with lotion and dressed their daughter in her pajamas, one last time. But instead of laying her down in her crib, they had to put her in her coffin. This is something no parent should ever have to do.

Little Cailyn, I'm sure tonight the angels in heaven are arguing over who gets to hold you in their arms. May God give Cailyn's family to strength and perseverance to get through this difficult time.

And mothers, hug your babies a little bit tighter, kiss their tiny heads a little more often and snuggle them just a little bit longer.

Are you ready for some football?

Tyler had his second game of the season today. He has changed a lot from last season. He's mean, he's tough and he's ornery. Am I disappointed in this change? No way! Last year he was the biggest but gentlest kid on the field. This year, he is a force to be reckoned with. On Tuesday the opposing team had 4 guys guarding him by the end of the game. Tyler was understandably frustrated that he couldn't move on the field but understood that it was good for his teammates, because 3 of them were not being covered. Today he shoved the QB after the whistle blew, just to make a point. Lisa - you'd better to Scott to send some recruiters, only 4 more years until he's a senior!

Here are some pictures. He is number 62 or as Amelia identifies him "the one with the brown legs." The last shot is his teammate Aaron in the end zone. I anticipate that sports illustrated will be calling me with a job offer after they see this shot.

He was crabby when I spoke with him after the game. I asked him what was wrong and he said he wasn't going to run his mouth. I asked what that meant. He said the guy he was guarding was a jerk and he wanted to leave it at that so he wouldn't say anything inappropriate. For those of you who know Tyler well, he must have been mad. This is as mean as he gets.

I've emailed his schedule to his aunts and uncles. If any of his great-aunts or cousins want his schedule, let me know and I will forward it to you.

Tyler is the one with his arms wrapped around the QB.

Here Tyler is the 2nd from the right on the line.

Here he is the big guy in the huddle (on the left)

I love this one, he is the guy chasing red #18

3 year check up

Today Amelia had her three year check up. Well, her 38 month check up since I procrastinated in scheduling her 3 year well child check. At 38 months of age she weighs an even 26 pounds and is 35 inches tall! She recently went through a "growth spurt" and is finally on the American growth charts - 10% for height and <5% for weight. She was so brave when it was time for shots. She didn't cry at all until the nurse left the room. Then the tears fell down her cheek and she needed to cuddle with her mama. But after a hug and a kiss, she was all better and was ready to go shopping (her favorite past time). She helped me pick out some new jeans for her big brother and some other things we needed for around the house.

Paul got some bad news today. His mother has been living with ovarian cancer for the past two years and will have to go through chemo for the rest of her life. Today his dad was diagnosed with lung cancer. The family doesn't know a lot yet but because of his dad's age, it sounds like surgery is pretty risky. I guess they are going to talk about his options on Monday. Please keep Emmett and Joann in your prayers.

Amelia's first day of school

Here are some pictures of Amelia's first day of school. I have to apologize for the quality of the photos. I left my camera in the car over night so the lens was steamed up. The first is a photo of her leaving the house. The second was taken at school. I caught her at an awkward moment. It looks as if she was terrified but really, she was excited. She had a great day at school and said that they had crackers for a snack and played on the parking lot (she meant playground). She would like to go to school everyday! She has been weaning herself off of her afternoon naps in recent weeks and months but tody she took a two and a half hour nap. She was exhausted!

First day of school

Tyler at his judging.

Amelia inhaling cotton candy

Amelia and the big pig she was dying to see.

The merry-go-round.

Today was Tyler's first day of school after a busy labor day weekend. We were at the state fair on Friday and Saturday. Tyler won a blue ribbon for his project. We met up with some fellow adoptive parents and Amelia made two new friends, Maddy and Charlotte. Then we were off to the lake for one last hurrah and sadly, the maple leaves were starting to turn colors and fall off of the trees. Today Tyler was back in school. He had a good first day. He saw his friend Austin, who is now in the same school as him, likes his teachers and started football practice. Amelia will not start school until next Tuesday. We have her open house and conferences on Thursday of this week. She is brushing up on her counting skills and abc's. However, often if you ask her to say her abc's, she starts counting in Chinese. The number one in Chinese sounds like "e" and two sounds like "r", thus the confusion.

Before I sign off for the evening I must make a confession. Tyler and I are the world's worst cat sitters. We are looking after Traci and Willie's fur babies this week while they are on vacation. Yesterday when we left, I locked Mel in the garage. The poor cat had no food, water or liter box for about 22 hours. When I opened the door tonight, she made a mad dash to the liter box and then drank a healthy amount of water. Poor Mel! I am so sorry kitty! Yesterday when we checked on them their carbon monoxide detector was going off and I must have gotten all flustered.

Have a good week!

Photos from July

A little Ditty

A little ditty about Jack and Amelia. Two American kids growing up in the heartland. Isn't this photo adorable? Jack's grandma snapped it at the county fair.

My Awesome finds!

This weekend the kids and I headed up to the lake for a relaxing weekend. My mom, Amelia and I went into town to an antique store. You would not believe what I found. The first is a frame painting - an original painting from China. The second item is an Asian inspired table. They both look great in Amelia's room. I got an incredible deal.

Pictures from China

We have really been enjoying the Olympics. When I came home from work for lunch today, Amelia asked if Michael Phelps was going to be on tv tonight. She has become quite a fan. The Olympics are espeically meaningful because they are being held in Amelia's birth country. I posted some pictures of our trip to China. The first two are photos we took in front of venues. The second two are the drum tower where the horrible tragedy happened to a MN family during the Olympics. The last one is a picture taken on Amelia's adoption day. It's been almost two years, can you believe it?

Olympic Fever!

We've been faithfully watching the Olympics at our home. Amelia decided that she was going to be in the Olympics some day. At first she thought she would be a diver but then decided not to because she doesn't want to get her eyes wet. Next she thought she would be a gymnast. She watched the women's prelims and mimicked all of their moves until the balance beam. She then decided that it was too dangerous to do flips on a balance beam and she might fall off. She went back to diving and thought she could handle getting water in her eyes if her mom was her diving partner. I reassured her that she didn't need to be an Olympic athlete if she didn't want to. She said she wants to be in the Olympic some day as long as mommy comes with her. So she is back to gymnastics and our living room floor has been turned into her mini-Olympic venue.

I couldn't get my slideshow to work so here are some random photos from our vacation.

Where have we been?

I gave my cousin Lisa's new husband a bad time about not keeping their blog updated and he reminded me that my blog is still stuck on "tada." We have been super busy this past month. In early July we headed to the Bemidji area and spent some time at a resort. While there, we met up with one of my favorite people in this world, my friend Ingrid, her son, and some of Ingrid's family. After a few days "up north" we headed down to the Taylors Falls area and spent some time on the St Croix. My brother Troy met up with us on our last day of vacation and we spent a peaceful (well - except for when I yelled at Paul for steering us in the wrong direction) 3 hours canoeing down the St Croix.

After vacation we were busy throwing together a small celebration for Amelia's 3rd birthday. Mixed in with all of this were swimming lessons for both of the kids and football camp for Tyler. Then is was on to my cousin Lisa's wedding (which was a beautiful and fun filled affair). We finished off the month at the County Fair, well the kids and I did. Paul was busy at church with day camp, a hog roast and golf outing. Tyler scored big time at the fair and won 8 blue ribbons, one red, one grand champions, 2 reserve grand champions and 2 honorable mentions. Needless to say, this means we will be heading up to the state fair later this month.

Here are some pictures to show you what we've been up to this past month. Enjoy!

Tada!

I don't have much time to write but wanted to shout from the roof tops that Amelia is potty trained! She's had a couple of accidents but I think it's safe to say that 90% of her poo poo and pee pee is making its way into the potty!!! Yeah Amelia!!!

The World's Best Big Brother!

I think the pictures say it all!

Catching up

Memorial weekend we headed up to the family cabin. It rained a little bit and even hailed part of the time we were there but we were able to enjoy some time outdoors.
Although the day I took Tyler, Ryan and Amelia down to the water to throw rocks, it was a little windy.

Ryan and Amelia had fun preteding they took Grandpa's truck out for a night on the town. After crawling around in the dirty truck all day, they ended up in the tub.



As you can see, Amelia was super excited about her bath!

We plan on going back to the lake this weekend for Ryan's birthday party. Hopefully the weather will improve soon and we can start enjoying more time outside.