Our Bathing Beauties

When the boys were little, I had their "bathtub" picture taken. My niece and nephew also had these same pictures taken and they adorned the kids bathroom wall with some Anne Geddes tub pictures. I finally took Kamryn to get her famous bath tub picture to add to my wall. On the phone, the lady at the portrait studio asked how old Kamryn was and when I told her, she didn't think she'd fit in the galvanized tub. Kamryn is a peanut though, so of course she fit no problem. She actually cooperated pretty well! Here are Hunter's, Lauren's and Gavin's tub pictures too!

A School Girl Now!

Kamryn started her mom's morning out program at St. Peter's Church this month. I am happy to report that she is doing just fine at drop off. Of course the first few times, Suzy and I made sure we were following each other so Kamryn and Anna Li could see each other and go in together. That really seemed to help. Seeing the two girls together, Suzy and I just have to giggle because of course we think our girls look so cute and little and sweet carrying their backpacks that are practically bigger than they are.

Kamryn is so smart;) The first day we weren't in the carpool line together, she totally figured out where we were and what was going to happen even though we were pretty far back in the carpool line. She got very weepy and sad, and oh how that tugged on my heartstrings. The ladies said that she stopped crying before she even got to the classroom. More recently, she has "bonded" with the one gal who comes to the car and now reaches for her and even waves goodbye to me.

Her teacher, Miss Laurie, says that Kamryn is always so happy. I just think to myself, "yes, that's my girl!" (I bought the ladybug sweater while in China, isn't it cute?!)

Our First Girls Weekend Away

Last weekend, Kamryn and I went to visit my aunt Linda who lives in Omaha, Nebraska. Linda has generously offered to take the time to create our travel scrapbook with our pictures from China. Doing that long distance can get tricky, so a trip was in order so I could help her "outline" the pages. At our FTIA reunion, I purchased a cool Chinese scrapbook and several "China" papers and diecuts,etc. from the gal who owns scrapandtell.com. Linda and I have also hit many stores so we were very successful and actually mapped out 37 pages full of pictures with coordinating papers. All during naps and after bedtime of course. Now her project is to embellish and create. I can't wait to see the final book. Thanks again Lin!

Can you really believe that Kamryn and I got on another airplane only 9 months after getting home from China? If you've done the trip, you know what I mean. (I don't mean to scare those of you still waiting, you just do what you have to do) However, I vowed it would be a very, very, very long time before we did that. Plane ride aside, I began to wonder if I am crazy to travel alone with a very energetic almost 2 year old who won't sit still and then have to change planes on top of it. She flew for free as a lap child, but after switching planes in Chicago, she wanted nothing to do with my lap or any of the toys I packed to entertain her. The poor lady who was sitting next to us that flight got water spilled all over her, thanks to Kamryn. Stickers from Linda helped a bit on the trip home, even if she did stick them on my face, her face and in our hair. Kamryn generated alot of attention at O'Hare by doing somersaults and dancing at the terminal while waiting for the plane. She is not shy at all. She had no problem walking up to a guy eating McDonald's and just smiling at him until she got a fry. She is super friendly and super sweet until she doesn't get what she wants. (no comments please!) I wonder what some people were thinking while she was crying, arching her back in my arms trying to wiggle her way out of my grip while we were waiting in line to board. Delilah witnessed a mini tantrum in Indy when we got home and were waiting for our luggage. Kamryn does not want to be confined, she wants to roam like a free spirit. (Thanks Delilah for picking us up at the end of our trip! I can't wait to return the favor and pick you up when you get home from China!) Oh, I got a picture on my cell phone of Kamryn in the cockpit of the plane, but I don't know how to transfer it. Our flight back to Indy was delayed so Kamryn charmed the pilot as well as we waited to find out which gate we were supposed to be at. He offered the photo shoot, and unfortunately my real camera was packed since I really packed lightly for a change.



Linda has two wonderful golden retrievers, Amanda and Maddie. They loved Kamryn and she really took to them too! She was hesitant at first since she was outnumbered, but soon enough Kamryn felt comfortable enough to tease them, hug them and play with them. I think Kamryn must have felt like a star in Omaha because proud Aunt Linda took us to her office so her friends could meet Kami and more friends came to the house to meet her too! Linda didn't "baby proof" her house, but Kamryn showed us what to put up high and out of her reach like the decorative apples which became balls. She truly amazed us though when drink coasters with a wooden block on top of it became a teacup and saucer.






Hopefully it will become a tradion, to go away for a "girl's only" weekend. The boys will probably endorse it as well because according to Brendan, when asked why certain chores weren't done and what did they do, his answer was "We had fun!" with a huge smile on his face. Well, Kamryn and I had fun too!

Impromptu Visit

This weekend, my mom and Aunt Bernice came down for an impromptu visit. It was a nice surprise to see them! After checking the newspaper for "things to do" this weekend, we decided to check out the Elk Farm festivities in Atlanta, IN on Saturday morning. We all went on a hayride, the boys did a corn maze and we all saw the huge Elk. We ate popcorn but passed on the Elk burgers. It was fun!

Grandma and Great Aunt Bernice ended up babysitting then so Kevin and I could quickly run to a furniture store to purchase a new kitchen table set. Well, 3 hours later with nothing purchased, we came home! You would think that it would have been a simple task, especially since I spent all last weekend doing the prep work and visiting every furniture store in the Indy area to narrow down our choices. Needless to say, everyone was tired Saturday night. My brain was mush, and Grandma and Aunt Bernice were pooped after spending the afternoon with Kamryn.

Kamryn was extra energetic and crazy this weekend because she's on an oral steriod to kick this inflammation thing going on due to some nasty virus she's been fighting all week. Last Sunday her temp read 105.6 at 3 o'clock in the morning! I was ready to go to the ER, but we managed to bring the temp down somewhat until I could page the doctor on Monday morning (since it was the holiday). We finally ended up in his office on Thursday. Now the rest of us are feeling under the weather too, so I'm sure it is viral and we've caught the same bug.

Actually, I'm feeling a little blue too with many others I'm sure as September 11th shows up on my calendar. My friends husband was in a play about Sept.11th (which I saw) plus the boys and I have been watching the specials on the Discovery Channel. It is just so sad to hear everyone's stories. These were real people with real lives and it could be any of us at any time. Check out this

website on Monday to read the stories written by 2,996 volunteer bloggers to commemorate the each of the lives of the 9/11 victims.

Make Offer? No Way!

Kamryn is very curious and always doing something. She rarely sits still. The contents of my desk drawer (or any drawer really!) are not safe from Kamryn's little hands. The other day she found old garage sale stickers in the desk. Before I knew it, she had stuck them all over herself. I had to giggle because the one front and center said "MAKE OFFER." Even on the days that I'm going on little sleep or days that she is clingy and whining or the ones where she is nonstop climbing on top of the kitchen table and getting into things, I would never consider putting a sticker on her saying "Make Offer." Those are the days I need a sticker that says "Make Offer to Babysit." Watch out before you offer, because I just might take you up on it!

Getting in a Groove

The boys have been back at school for 2-1/2 weeks now and they are finally getting in a groove with the homework and morning and night time routines. Kamryn and I have been going to Lifetime Fitness more regularly; I've been paged after only 20 minutes most times. Today she started crying as soon as we walked into the club. As hard as it was, I left her in the childcare area lying on the floor kicking and crying hysterically. I thought I'd get paged after only 10 minutes for sure but to my surprise, I didn't get paged at all! So after 40 minutes, I raced down to the childcare area to see her playing happily with the toys. We'll see how it continues to go. I sure hope okay though because after Labor Day she starts a moms morning out program at a local church on Mondays and Wednesdays. And with that program, the ladies come to the car and get the children. Hmmm, already dreading that. But maybe she's finally understanding that yes mommy comes back for her.

Last Sunday, Grandpa Mike and Grandma Dianne visited on their way back down to Florida. We went to P.F. Changs for dinner (Chinese bistro) much to the boys dismay, but Kamryn LOVED it! She devoured a spring roll and ate alot of rice. She loved it so much that yesterday I took her to another local Chinese restaurant for lunch. The staff was very friendly and even talked Chinese to us. They had Chinese music playing and pictures of Chinatown on the wall. I was transported back to our trip to China and all I could do was hug and kiss on Kamryn more than the usual the rest of the day. "China" has given me the sweetest little girl who brings a smile to everyone's face because she is quick to smile and full of personality. I really hope that someday we can go back to China with Kamryn so that she can understand more about her birthcountry.

Kamryn says Hi!

Kamryn loves the computer and just wants to say "Hi!" to everyone out there checking in on her, especially to Uncle Marc who gets a BIG HAPPY BIRTHDAY HELLO today! She's getting great at sign language and knows how to sign "computer" among many other words. We'll ask her word after word, and she does the right sign. It cuts down on the whining and it's helpful when she's walking around the kitchen signing "eat" because then I know she's hungry! She's one smart cookie!

We had her lead level tested again and it is down to 10 now. When she came home from China it was 18. We are relieved that the lead is leaving her little body. She loves fruits and vegetables so that helps that she is eating healthy. Her new recent favorite is blueberries and clementine oranges.

I took her to the doctor yesterday because ever since our trip to IL she has been waking at night screaming. It's been off and on, and my gut instinct was saying "teething or separation anxiety" but since it's been a month now, I was starting to panic that maybe her ears were infected. They are okay of course. The tubes are still in and look good. So now instead of rocking her or sleeping on her bedroom floor while holding her hand through the crib, I have the doctors okay to let her cry it out. I guess the sooner I can do that, the sooner she'll get through this. But some nights it's so hard to hear her sound so frightened. She calms down immediately when I just give her a hug. She is such a sweet, happy, fun girl, and we're blessed that she has bonded with us remarkably well. We've been together 8 months now and soon enough she will have been in our home longer than she was in China.

Shopping anyone?

It's the funniest thing to watch . . . Kamryn will walk around with a shopping bag and put her toys in it. Then she'll hang the bag over her arm and look at me and wave "goodbye" like she's all done shopping and going home! It's the cutest thing . . . and honestly, I have not shopped with her too often since she will not sit long enough to endure a real shopping trip. It must be in the girl DNA.

P.S. Happy Birthday Linda!

A Day at the Fair

Kamryn went to her first Indiana State Fair on Thursday. I probably wouldn't have braved it on my own, but once we were there we met my friend Jeanette and Alice. I don't know why I even attempted to bring the stroller though because Kamryn wouldn't sit in it, and if Alice's daughter Jenny wasn't in it, I was carrying Kamryn and pushing the stroller! She can definitely be so stubborn at times. At lunchtime, Kamryn wanted the lid off her sippy cup. I gave in to avoid the tantrum, and she spilled water all over my lap. So then I walked around hoping to dry fast! The cutest part of the day was when Kamryn and I shared a yummy ear of corn on the cob. When she'd go to eat it, I would too on the opposite side and she thought that was funny. Hearing her giggle is music to my ears.

Kamryn loved seeing the baby ducklings and baby chicks but was very intimidated by the loud roosters! We happened to see a momma cow and her baby only one hour after giving birth. We saw the baby walk on wobbly legs. The day was great practice for Kamryn making her animal sounds. (She can moo, quack, and tries to oink)

As if a morning at the fair isn't enough for me, I went back that same evening with the boys. It was nice to walk through the fair without 21 pounds on my hip! The boys climbed a rock wall, played mini-golf and did some rides. Again, I got a little wet since I did the waterlog ride with them. It was a fun day!

Say Goodbye to Summer

Well, today is officially the last day of summer vacation for the boys. We managed to get in some fun times this past week however. We went to Great Times with my friend Carol and her kids. It's a fun family place with bumper boats, go-karts, mini-golf and an arcade. We also went to the zoo one more time, again with Carol and her family. Of course we wanted sunny weather all week, but we weren't so fortunate. So I pulled out the play-doh "for Kamryn" and the boys played with it all day long! Kamryn enjoyed squishing it since she really loves getting her hands messy and feeling new textures.





Kamryn is really babbling more, and it sounds to us like she is saying more words. Besides hi, dada, momma and gege (brother in Chinese), she now makes the animal sound for duck and cow and says "hi guys" we're sure of it! Oh, and she loves eating corn on the cob!



Matt played his first fall baseball game yesterday and his team won! Matt pitched 3 innings and had 2 hits. His team is the Chicago Cubs! How wonderful for him to have a Cubs jersey now too.

Our neighborhood got redistricted, and therefore Brendan will be attending a new school this year. The district gave the 5th graders the choice to finish elementary school at their "old" school so Matt opted to stay with his friends and not go to the new school. So this year will be interesting as both boys will be in different elementary schools and getting on two different buses and bringing home separate fundraisers, etc. We went to Brendan's school last night to meet his teacher and she seems wonderful. Luckily there is another boy from our neighborhood in his class so the transition should be easier. Tonight is the night we get to meet Matt's new teacher.

Tomorrow it's getting up early again to catch the 7:40 am bus . . . we're all dreading that. But it will be good to get back into some sort of routine I guess even though that means adding homework into the mix.

A Day at the Lake

On Sunday we went to our friends Jim & Jeanette's lakehouse for the day. We all had a great time enjoying the sun and water. It was Kamryn's first time on a speedboat, and the boys' first time to go tubing. Kevin even went tubing, but I was chicken and opted not to. My excuse was that I was holding Kamryn, and holding onto her tightly! We videotaped the boys tubing, but I just realized that I don't have any still shots of them in the water. They are looking forward to visiting the lakehouse again! Kamryn loved going into the lake, but was even happy playing with a bucket of water on the dock too!

What a Difference a Week Makes

Didn't I say that Kamryn does not like the water? Well, she's made a liar out of me now. All of a sudden, she LOVES it! Last week the kids and I drove up to Chicago to spend time with family and friends. We went to the Naperville beach pool down by the Riverwalk and she absolutely had no fear and loved playing in the sand and water.

It was great seeing everyone, but you know how that saying goes, there's no place like home? Kamryn didn't sleep very well away from home so neither did I. I just noticed yesterday that she did get her first "pointy" tooth though so she may have been teething last week too. Plus, we didn't stay at one house too long so the moving around was a bit crazy.
Kamryn and her friend Lilly (from Korea) played great together! We've been friends with Tina and her family for many years now. We're friends, our boys are friends and now our daughters are friends too. I'm posting a picture of our younger boys when they were tots (they're the same age) and now a picture of them as older brothers with their new younger sisters. I'm also posting a picture of me and Tina from last year when she had a baby shower for Kamryn. Tina's my "helper" in that she forewarns me about the stages our kids will go through since her older son is one year older than Matthew and Lilly is one year older than Kamryn. She's special for lots of other reasons too;)






My friend Heather has three children. Her son is three and she has twin girls who are only one month older than Kamryn. Kamryn was in awe of the two of them since they are identical and especially when they tried to lift her dress and pull her bow out of her hair! As my friend Sue said, Kamryn was probably saying to herself, "hey get these clones away from me!" Wouldn't it be great to really know what goes through a toddler's head?

My sister snapped a picture of me with my niece and nephews and my gang. Look at baby Gavin! He's such a joy to be around since he so quiet and content. We laugh because he is only 5 months old and feels heavier than Kamryn. We had the extra joy of seeing my Aunt Bernice who is visiting my parents from Arizona.




All in all it was a great week, and we were glad to also see my friend Jeanne, Joanne, my first time momma friend Sherri and her new baby Emma, Marc, Cathy, Andrew, Jack and Maddie. Remember our doors are always open and everyone is always welcome here too!

Whew what a week!

It all started during the heat wave we were having at Holiday World in Santa Claus, IN. It's an amusement park and water park about 3 hours south of Indianapolis. The boys LOVED it but Kamryn would beg to differ. She got no breeze from riding the rides and being strapped in the stroller was not her idea of fun. Plus, she doesn't like being in the water either . . . the most she did was sit on the edge of the baby pool and splash her feet. She was a trooper though and went on her first kid-friendly train ride around Mother Goose land.



Our agency reunion picnic was today. It was so much fun to see some of the families that we traveled to China with plus the other families that we've come to know during this journey too. Since we live so close to the park where the reunion is held, we had a little ice cream party at our house last night with the families that came into town early. It was fun to see the girls play together. We are glad that this is an annual thing and already look forward to next year!



The boys took Kamryn on her first carousel ride today. She didn't like it too much. What she loved the most was dancing to the band that was there! The boys enjoyed the mini golf and rock climbing wall so fun was had by all.

Put Your Hands Up

This is what happens when a little girl has two older brothers!

She is constantly amazed at the things they do . . . even the simplest of things like blowing bubble gum and watching Harry Potter movies.

Just say hi

Isn’t it amazing how God brings people into our lives at just the right time when we need them or they need us or we need each other? Meeting the Crandall’s was definitely a Divine appointment. I pretty much stalked them in the hallway at church because they were a family with 3 boys and a little girl from China! This was while we were waiting for Kamryn so I felt a nudging to say hello. Good thing I didn’t shy away and just hope to run into them again. We instantaneously connected and had lots more in common than almost identical looking families.

Sadly, I took them to the airport last Sunday because they moved back to Colorado. We are all missing them so much already. Last weekend was a rough one, with lots of tears and questions from the boys like, “why do they have to move?” We moved here three years ago, and had lots of people asking that same question about us. Heartaches are hard to witness and hard to go through, but in the end, it means that you have loved and been loved, and that’s what we need to keep doing. We need to keep connecting with people.

Interesting enough, connections can also be made without even physically meeting each other. Through this adoption journey, I have special friends that I haven’t even met, but only “talk” to online. These gals simply emailed us congratulations, and through many, many more chats, I can truly say that they are as special as the friends that I spend time with on a regular basis.

If it’s meant to be, you even get more than one chance at a special friendship. Thanks to second chances, Carol & I became friends. Our older boys were on the same spring baseball team. We connected and exchanged phone numbers, but life got in the way, and soon spring turned to fall. Miraculously, our boys were on the same fall soccer team too. We realized it wasn’t luck, and we’ve been close friends ever since.

So on a closing note, remember to stay in touch with those special people already in your life, but don’t be afraid to say hi to a stranger who just may become one of your best friends.

Happy Birthday America!

Happy 4th of July from all us!

A Day at the Zoo

Last Thursday Kevin had the day off, so we ventured to the Indianapolis Zoo. It was a nice distraction for Kamryn who was still not too happy because of her teeth. Kamryn's favorite animals were the ones big enough for her to see from her stroller. The boys enjoyed the meerkats, bearded dragons and the snakes most of all. A few years ago when Brendan and I visited the zoo one day while Matt was in school, we witnessed feeding time at the reptile house and saw a snake eat a mouse. Matt really wanted to see that this time, but the snake wasn't hungry since the mouse lay in his cage untouched. The dolphin show was fun, although it was a little too long for Kamryn who wanted to wiggle away from us in the bleachers and get moving again. Although it was there before the show that we were able to share with strangers (because they asked) about the most fascinating, wonderful journey we've ever taken, our trip to China to adopt Kamryn. Maybe Kamryn will someday nudge someone who is on the fence about international adoption to finally take that plunge.