Calendar for a cause

Our agency, FTIA, produces a wonderful wall calendar every year featuring the kiddos that they helped bring home to their forever families. One hundred percent of the calendar proceeds will support FTIA’s humanitarian aid projects, helping children in need overseas.

Kamryn is going to be in the calendar! This is her third year in a row. Mary Grace will be in next year's calendar too and hopefully some of Kamryn's travel buddies and Indy playgroup friends as well. Needless to say, I've placed my order! (& the order for extended family that has expressed an interest.)

If you are at all interested too, please visit FTIA's website. Tomorrow, Oct. 31st is the last day for pre-orders and then calendars will be available for as long as they have them.

Shopping, haircut, and carving a pumpkin

Kamryn and I were shopping one day at Children's place and she picked out this outfit all by herself. Even the headband. Which she wore to school on her head but when I picked her up, it was hanging around her neck and looked more like a scarf.
















Hmph. She does not like stuff in her hair. I struggle to keep any bows, clips or anything on her head. Luckily I've trained her to now at least hand them to me when she takes them off so that they do not get lost.

I stopped by my hair salon last Thursday after I picked Kamryn up from school just for a free quick bang trim for me. As we were sitting there waiting for my stylist, out bee-bops this adorable little Chinese girl with the cutest hair cut ever. After exchanging phone numbers with her mom (we love to make new friends!), I made an appointment for Kamryn for that next Saturday with my stylist.

So goodbye long hair . . .



















We didn't go as short as the other girl we saw because Kamryn has a colic in the back of her head and Colette (my hair stylist) was afraid if we layered it too much, it would make a big hole in the back of her head.
















I won't ever get her hair to look as good as Colette did. I think the trick is in the blow drying of the hair. I have such a hard time styling it while blowing drying it . . . I need three hands. Kamryn has never let me blow dry her hair either. But she sat okay for Colette. We'll see if we ever find the time or the patience to do this at home.
















She was all stylin' and we stayed home that night. Brendan and Kamryn helped Kevin carve a pumpkin. Scary of course to go with our new wreath.

Not Scary Enough

For Brendan's liking . . . He told me he doesn't like Halloween cute.

I love my "fall" decoration for the front door, but I took it down to be more in the "Halloween spirit." These friendly ghosts are all I could find in my boxes of stuff.

So, I decided to make a new "scary" wreath for the front door.




















It's still not scary enough for Brendan, but hey, I don't want to really scare people away;) Plus, it's a good compromise from the gross scary stuff that he really likes.

Check this out!

FALL FESTIVAL - Kamryn

Click on the link above to see how Kamryn is one of the new stars for the day on myadoptionwebsite.com. My friend Chrissie's daughter, Carley, was the star of Day 2. Isn't she so cute?

Oh golly, then after reading this fun stuff and copying down the yummy recipes, for kicks go to the sidebar on my blog and click on "read about our time in China" to see one of the very first pictures we got of Kamryn! Oh my, how she has grown!

The Amazing Panda Adventure

Last night we all went to Blockbuster to get some movies for "movie night." It was the perfect night to just hang out in front of the T.V. The boys picked out an oldie, Red Dawn. We all watched it with the exception of Kamryn who watched Cinderella.

Kamryn and I stayed up for a double feature. I happened to stumble on a movie called, "The Amazing Panda Adventure." Has anyone else ever seen this one? It was a very good movie with great footage of China and adorable pandas. A ten year old boy goes on a trip to China and ends up on a journey to rescue a baby panda taken by poachers. Kamryn and I really enjoyed it. I am thinking that it's one I want to keep in our movie library. I even learned something from it; the legend of how the panda got its colors.

The panda used to be all white. A panda and a girl were friends and she was the youngest of four sisters. The panda helped her herd her sheep and one day a tiger came. The tiger attacked the panda and the girl tried to save him but she was no match for the tiger. The tiger killed the girl. The pandas wore black ashes on their arms as a sign of mourning. They were so sad that the ashes got in their eyes because they cried so much. The sisters missed their youngest sister so much too so they jumped into the river. The next day a mountain appeared with four peaks. It is said that this mountain, called the Four Sisters, are there to stand guard to watch over the pandas.














I had to google this legend to see if it is true. I did find it out there and also found out that the Four Sisters Mountain is also called the Siguniang Mountain and is located in the Sichuan Province where the earthquake hit. There is even a book I stumbled upon called the Legend of the Panda by Linda Granfield. Amazon didn't have any copies available but Alibris.com did. So I bought it brand new. There are 6 brand new copies left. Hurry!

Fair Oaks Farm

I'm sure I've mentioned Fair Oaks Farm before. Not only is it a fun place to go in Fair Oaks, Indiana - www.fofarms.com - but it is exactly halfway from our previous home in Indiana so it's a great place to meet up with our Indy friends!

(Do check out the website! It's a nice daytrip!)
















Yesterday we met up with our friends Carol and Rob and their family. It was so nice to spend the day with them. The boys had so much fun bouncing outside and climbing the rock wall while the little ones rode the train and went for a tractor ride. Inside they watched a movie about cows and milk and enjoyed a cheesy dinner and homemade ice cream for dessert. We were so close to seeing twin cows being born, but we left the birthing barn about 5 minutes too soon. Oh well, we did see the babies after that. It's probably better that the kids didn't witness that. What an education!

















































We are so glad that our kids still get along so well even though they don't see each other very often. In fact, they didn't want the fun to end and even before the visit was close to being over, they started sweet talking us parents into the idea of a sleepover. Well lucky for them, and lucky for us, I remembered that Grandma, Grandpa and Aunt B. were driving down to Indy the next day (today) for a visit with Aunt B's daughter & family. So the boys won and had their overnight and an extra day together with their friends. Mommy was a bit jealous that she couldn't jump in their car and spend the night too! Kamryn and I are getting ready to go pick up the boys at Grandma, Grandpa, and Aunt B's house soon.

Animals from afar (AKA ZOO)

Kamryn and I finally made it to the zoo this season. We went with some new neighborhood friends a few weeks ago on a school day. Yes, we went without the boys while they were in school and daddy was working from home. The boys aren't thrilled with the idea of walking around the zoo anymore so it worked out perfectly.

It was a tad bit chilly the day we went, but the animals were out and Kamryn enjoyed looking at them from afar!

Having Fun in the Sun

Look at those smiles! Aren't all of these girls just too cute? Kamryn and I love our Friday morning time with friends. It's been so nice out lately that we've been able to be outside whether it's to a park or to the St. Charles scarecrow fest!
















Thanks Kerry for telling us about the Scarecrow Fest. What a fun time to walk around and look at all the creative scarecrows. The girls loved the Horton Hears a Who and the Little Mermaid display. I liked the mechanical scarecrow riding the bike and the "Chercrow" - yes a Scarecrow with metallic silver boots on and all decked out to look like Cher.
















They even had a petting zoo but Kamryn was not thrilled to feed the hungry, aggressive goats. She seems to like animals better from afar.

My Little Helper

I cleaned out the fridge tonight. We save leftovers, but I don't know why we continue to do so because we are not a leftover family. Leftovers tend to sit in our fridge until they aren't so appetizing anymore. Honestly, to us, they are not even appetizing the very next day.

As I was washing the tupperware tonight, Kamryn chimed in, "Mommy, I want to help you!" So she grabbed a towel and dried every piece. Can I tell you how nice it is to have someone in the house who WANTS to help?! I won't ever tell her no to helping me with the dishes, even if it means I need to dry the floor afterwards.

Soccer Fun

A couple of Fridays ago we were invited to join our friends at an indoor soccer place for a soccer party. Everyone had a ball! (no pun intended!) Sophie and Kamryn had fun pretending they were playing soccer and the boys, well, they did have fun playing soccer. Brendan even scored a goal! The dads even got out there and although Kev didn't play soccer, he did throw around a football with one of Kris' nephews. Us moms did what we do best; chit chat and talk some more since the kids were all entertained.

Chinese language and more

Not only are we learning Chinese language, but we are also learning about the Chinese culture in class. Moon Festival was not too long ago and Helen LaoShi (teacher) brought in moon cakes for a snack. You will all be surprised to hear that I actually ate a sliver of a lotus seed paste flavored moon cake. It wasn't too bad but I prefer chocolate cake. Maybe those round ding dongs will be a nice substitution for my family next year since Kamryn didn't like the moon cake at all. (great idea Megan - check out what Megan did for her daughter's class!)






















It's so nice that Helen mixes things up during class. We all get up and exercise and count in Chinese while we are doing that. She sings songs with the girls and lets them dance around. She offers a snack and makes them ask in Chinese, "May I please have 3 pieces of cracker." Then she'll count out the crackers in Chinese. Of course thank you is said in Chinese then by the girls. This past week Helen gave the girls a Dora DVD in Chinese to borrow. Kamryn loves to watch it.

We were given a book and CD of the lessons too so we can practice at home. The songs are catchy, and we hear Kamryn singing the Chinese songs often. The boys will often ask me, "Is Kamryn speaking Chinese?" Good thing I am taking the class with her so that I know it is not just toddler babble. I am glad to tell the boys, "yes, she is."

That's Chinese!

We finally ventured down to Chinatown. The boys both complained that they didn't want to go but on the way home they admitted they had more fun than they thought they would. Just look at their genuine smiles in the pictures.
































As we drove down the street trying to find parking, Kamryn got very excited and started saying, "That's Chinese! That's Chinese!" She recognized the Chinese characters on all the storefronts. All this Chinese started rolling out of her mouth! We were pushing her down the street in the stroller and she was saying "Ni Hao, Wo Jiao Kami" and waving to everyone so excitedly. It was so funny.

I guess the Chinese language lessons are paying off. Kamryn and mommy have been taking Chinese language lessons now for about 10 weeks. It's amazing how natural it is for Kamryn to repeat the Chinese words. She can hit the tones perfectly. I, on the other hand, have a hard time sounding right. Heck, she almost speaks Chinese better than she does the English! (just kidding) She does know the difference. One day while I was in the laundry room I could hear her playing with her dollhouse. She was setting up the dolls saying, "This is daddy or baba."




















































She obviously LOVES Shanghai Soup Dumplings too. I didn't even know what they were until we got home from Chinatown and I googled the restaurant that we ate at. I think it's a newer one there - Lao Shanghai. The restaurant did get great reviews online and we enjoyed it too!

So there we are sitting in this quaint little one room restaurant (which after reading one review I noticed it said "Kids: No" - oops) and out comes this dumpling looking food. I thought, bummer, the pot stickers we ordered aren't fried enough for my liking;) Well, it wasn't the order of pot stickers.



We obviously didn't know what we were doing because the waitress came over to our table and told us to scoop out the dumpling with this spoon and then pour the soup over it and slurp it from the spoon. Well Kamryn really loved eating these just right off her plate. So we let her. She ate the majority of them although all the guys tried them too. (yes, even Brendan!)



What I learned online later is that Shanghai soup dumplings (also known as xiao long bao), are filled with ground pork and chicken broth. The secret to eating these steamed, juicy dumplings is to grab the tops of the dumplings with your chopsticks (don't poke them in the middle) and carefully place them on top of your soup spoon so that you don't lose the broth. Then you nibble off a tiny piece of dumpling skin so that the soup can pour out onto your spoon. They taste best dipped in vinegar and topped with slices of fresh ginger. (who knew? I guess we live a sheltered culinary life.)

Shopping in Chinatown took me back to China although the prices weren't as low like in China. Brendan wanted a wooden sword, Matt wanted a cap gun keychain thing, and Kamryn, my princess, wanted a mini wooden sword covered in jewels so she could be like Mulan. So I bought my princes their goodies and the princess a sword and a really cute stuffed panda bear eating bamboo.

Mamma Mia

Kamryn's new favorite music to listen to in the van (when a DVD isn't playing) is the Mamma Mia CD, one of the gifts Dianne gave me for my birthday. (love it! thank you!) Kamryn has her favorite songs too. Today she told me "No honey honey how you thrill me" I had to giggle. I didn't realize she is really learning the words! Her favorite current song is Dancing Queen.

Another day she told me "not Daddy's song, I want Mommy to sing." I figured out that she didn't really want me to sing but she wanted to hear the song sung by the female singer. She prefers the female singers to the male singers but not her momma's voice because she tells me to stop! If only I could be so lucky to sing and sound good!

In the Spring of 2003, I actually drove up from Indy to see the play Mamma Mia with my Home Interior friends because I had won a contest. What I remember the most from watching the play was feeling a void in my life at the time because I didn't have a daughter. (and feeling guilty for it because I have two wonderful sons who were the world to me then and now!) I remembered really paying attention to the relationship between the mother and daughter and thinking that although I have that with my mom, I won't have that type of relationship with a daughter. This was just one of the many "signs" that my heart was on it's way to China.

When the movie came out this past summer, I was anxious to see it again to see if I would feel any differently watching it now or if I would remember one particular part that really moved me the first time around. I really didn't remember the whole story line and had slightly forgotten it was about a search for the girls' father.

I saw the movie Mamma Mia with my friends Kris and Heather on my birthday in July. On the way to that movie is when I talked to my mom about my dad not feeling well after his surgery. I was hesitant to go to the movie but mom assured me that my dad was fine.

I silenced my cell phone and instead of throwing it in my purse and forgetting the outside world, I had my cell phone in my hands throughout the whole movie. I jumped during the movie when I saw Kevin call me. Why was he calling unless it was an emergency? I fumbled in the dark and sent him a text message wondering if all was ok. I was nervous he heard some bad news from my mom or something happened to the kids. He replied he accidentally hit my number. Relief. Until the next morning when my mom did call me and tell me that my dad was in the hospital with a blood clot in his lung. I had a strange feeling that night before . . . my instincts are usually right on. (thank goodness he is doing fine today!)

I did enjoy the movie, and more so than I enjoyed the story the first time around because I wasn't sitting there wishing for something I don't have.

Anyway, the reason I bring this up months later is because I do find it a bit . . . I don't know the right word . . . ironic, funny, comforting . . . especially for my adoption friends, that as I am watching this movie about a girl in search for her real father, I am worrying about my real father . . . and the farthest thing on my mind on my birthday is my birth mom or my birth father. To tell you the honest truth, I don't ever recall really spending lots of time on my birthdays thinking of "them."

Maybe that's more a momma thought because yes, I do wonder what it was like for Kamryn's birth mom on the day that Kamryn was born. But I will silently wonder and let Kamryn have her own thoughts. Our birthdays are wonderful celebrations of us coming into this world created by our God. I love the cross hanging in Kamryn's room given to her by my friend Laura. It says, "God danced the day you were born." I like to remember that.

I may be a bit self centered on my birthday because I don't think about the two people who helped create me. I think about ME:) Yes, I do thank God that I am here. I am thankful that I have a loving mom, dad & sister who have always loved ME and continue to celebrate ME for ME. That's what's real.

My Guitar Hero & Band Boy

Brendan is taking a new direction with extra-curricular activities. He wants to explore the world of music! He has started taking guitar lessons and also just joined the 5th grade band where he'll learn the saxophone. I hope he likes band because it will be a great way for him to make new friends. And he'll have to give up recess a couple of times a week to practice!

My little ballerina

Today Kamryn started her creative movement class. It's a pre-ballet class for 3 year olds. I don't know who had more fun, Kamryn or mommy watching Kamryn! The class takes place at the church where she goes to preschool. They actually have a dance room with a wall of mirrors and a bar just like at a dance studio. There was this big window so the parents could watch. Kamryn liked waving to me and doing extra little exaggerated dances just for my viewing pleasure. It was adorable to watch these 8 little girls dance around. Funny thing was when they were comparing their little skirts and then their ballet shoes . . . proof positive that the class is full of girly girls. We'll see what she likes better, gynastics, which she took over the summer, or ballet. Who am I kidding? At this age, she likes everything!

ILL - INI

Saturday we drove down to Champaign, IL to see the Illinois football game. We went prepared to sit in the rain. I made sure to pack those yellow ponchos we got in Florida one year, and I found my pullover rain jacket from college. It says on it: Pi Beta Phi FIJI Football Block and the year . . . oh my! I can't believe it but it said '88. Yikes! I graduated from college in 1989, and I can't believe it's been almost 20 years since then.

We made it down there in great time and wondered why it always seemed to take our parents longer to get there? Do we just drive faster or is it because we live a bit closer now? We didn't make any stops either so maybe that explains some of it.

We left very early in the rainy Chicago morning. By 7:15am! That's early for us. We drove through lots of rain and lucky for us, as we got closer to Champaign, the skies were clear. It was hot, hot, hot though. (Don't know whose sign this is, but I thought it was neat! They tailgaters didn't mind the photo shoot. Future Illini?)
















We walked up those long ramps to get to our seats in the stadium and when we got settled and started looking around, Kamryn asked, "Which one is Hunter?" It was cute. We went to one of my nephew's high school football games so naturally she thought of him right away. The boys were laughing and explaining to her that this was a different football team.





















Sadly enough, we have not been back to U of I for a football game ever. I guess we got busy with our careers, then kids, then we moved to Indy. Now that we're back in state, I thought it would be fun to do with the kids especially because Matt loves football so much. Brendan enjoyed watching the game though too. Kamryn liked eating.

As I was sitting there, I couldn't help but think of all the memories of my college days in school there. I remember visiting the school when I was in high school and thinking "Wow, I'd love to come here, it's seems like it's full of tradition and a cool place to be a part of." This weekend I was thinking similar thoughts but they were more like, "Wow, I was a part of this a long time ago."

After the game we drove and parked in front of the Pi Phi house. I did ring their doorbell and ask if we could peek inside. (So my 13 and 10 year old sons have been in their first sorority house!) I was pleasantly surprised to see that it looks the same.

We then walked on the quad, and I pointed out which buildings I had lots of my classes in. I told them about how daddy and I used to pass each other on this sidewalk before we were dating and would shyly say hi to each other.

















How many women can say that they are married to the first guy they met the first night of freshman year! It's true! Kevin was roommates with a friend of mine from back home. Tony and Kevin came to my dorm room to hang out that very first night. (we didn't start dating until the next year, but pretty weird, huh?)

In school this year, one of Matt's projects is to list a career he might like and from there pick out an in-state college that offers a program for that career. Amazing that in 7th grade they are already thinking of college. I don't remember thinking about it until High School.

Walking around the campus some things were the same, like the buildings, the big trees, the bike paths, the excitement of a win in the air. But we are not the same. Last time we were there, we were together but single. Now we are married and our three children are in tow. Wow.

Ready to go

Brendan's school had their carnival Friday night and someone was there painting faces. So Kamryn got ready for the Saturday trip to Illinois. It didn't last until then though. It bothered her and we wiped it off before bed.

How Many Apples?

Did we pick? Too many to balance on top of our heads! Not that we tried.

















But we did eat our share while we were picking.
















This was our 2nd annual apple picking outing with the bigger western suburbs playgroup. We really enjoy it and hope to make it back to the orchard with the boys and dad for picking out pumpkins too!

Their sugar coated apple cider donuts are so yummy and worth the trip alone!
















Spending the morning with friends is so much fun!