A trip to the beach

It's a good thing we lean heavily toward unschooling because there's not much of anything planned or organized going on around here. I'm doing well to sneak in a shower once in a while, much less teach anyone to read or count. But I have been trying to work some things in besides free play, snack time, and folding laundry.

So to go along with our daily art marathons, we've been doing some narration. R talks (and boy can she talk!) and I write it down. She wanted to share a story she wrote about going on a trip to the beach.

Mom, [R], [W], and [N] in the ocean

Mom is keeping an eye on us. Me and [N] and [W] are swimming. [N] is swimming, [W] is swimming, and I am swimming. [W] is taller than [N]. Birds were flying everywhere! Daddy saw the birds, too. They were beautiful! It was beautiful more than a whole wedding. Everything was beautiful. It was like a magical dream that ever happened. It felt like we were in heaven. The weather was hot so we went swimming. Daddy watched us. It felt so much like a dream. Mama was swimming, too. She was trying to keep an eye on us. Mama leaded us through the wide sea, taking us from step to step. It was like a miracle. It felt like we maked a great story. The [our last name] family, we loved it. We had a great time. We are going to stay until Tuesday. It was Sunday. We were going to spend the night. There were even grown up beds. Mom and Dad picked which grown up bed we would sleep in. We stayed all in the same room. [N] slept in the middle. We all slept in the same bed. Us kids slept in the middle. Our whole family came, too.

Fall is coming!

As the temperatures drop (it was only 95 today!), we are slowly coming out of our summer hibernation. I had a good chuckle the other day reading a magazine with an article about reorganizing your shed for the winter by moving the gardening stuff to the back and bringing the snow shoveling tools to the front. Well, in the alternate universe of the desert Southwest, we're packing away our swimsuits and busting out the trowels and seed catalogs. For the next several months, we'll live outside as much as we can, hike, visit the zoo, go for walks, and do our lessons while we lay in the grass. And on top of all that bliss, we'll enjoy as much homegrown buttercrunch lettuce as we want. So here are some recent pictures of us celebrating the end of our summer hibernation.


Savoring the last popsicles from the freezer


Look! They're sharing something!


Showing the little kids how it's really done

Happy to be outside

Getting the garden ready to plant

W watering herself instead of the plants

Dirt, glorious dirt

A little comic relief

Thank God for a funny husband. He keeps me laughing and can crack me up about the most frustrating things. So besides the jingle I mentioned yesterday that sums up W's and Noah's current relationship, we're coming up with new versions everyday.

Anytime you want mom I want mom also
Anytime you want mom I want mom more

Anything you can yell I can yell louder
I can yell anything louder than you

Anything you can throw, I can throw farther
I can throw anything farther than you

You get the idea. I'm sure these aren't as funny just reading them, but really, it's gotten to the point where one of us just hums the tune and I pee my pants. So much for not laughing at your kids when they misbehave.

Our family mobile

Sorry for the almost month-long silence. It's certainly not for a lack of good intentions. I've composed about twenty posts in my head, but I can't seem to find the time to actually type them up. When someone finally invents the telepathic blog, I'll be the first one to sign up.

Anyway, we're all doing well and everyday gets a little easier. I still can't believe how quickly Noah is adjusting. Within about 10 days of being home, he had gone from all Dave to all me. Now he has balanced out and goes to either one of us very comfortably. He's getting used to two sisters who want to play with him, hug and kiss him, and show him everything they know. Needless to say, he gets a little overwhelmed at times.

I can't remember where I first read the analogy of the family being a mobile, but I came across it again when I recently read "There is no me without you" by Melissa Greene. Every time a child joins the family, the mobile has to completely shift and rebalance. That image is so spot on. We are all learning new things about each other and figuring out what works and what doesn't. R is very protective of her "mama time" with me and she and I have been going on dates every week. She's struggling to figure out how to be a helper without mothering her siblings. Meanwhile, my sweet, gentle, polite little W has become a hitting, kicking jealous ball of emotions. Poor thing. (Jenni, I now understand what you were talking about when Little Miss L became Little Miss Stinker when C was born). Her new motto seems to be "Anything you can do, I can do better." I actually find myself humming that tune throughout the day. I know this is just part of each one of us reshifting and rebalancing our own piece of the mobile. I just had no idea that W would spend half her childhood in time-out to get there.

So we're having a great time and getting into a groove. Having two toddlers is kicking my behind, but I think I'm past the barely-treading-water stage!


Learning to love books


Out for a walk (thanks, Sonja, for the truck!)


Splashing at the park


Drying off at the park

Home!

Yes, we're home. It was an adventure getting here, but we made it.

Noah was great on the plane. He slept a huge part of the way and loved the toys we brought. But our flight from Guangzhou took off late and we arrived in LA about 1 1/2 hours later than we expected. By the time we made it through immigration, our final flight home was long gone. So we checked out all our options, and decided to stay the night, or rather a few hours, at a budget motel before trying to go stand-by on the next earliest flight.

Along with another family we traveled with, we caught the 11 pm shuttle to some of Inglewood's finest accomodations. Even before we got to our room, I was second-guessing my decision to leave the lice kit back in Guangzhou, but I kept reminding myself that we weren't staying long. So after the world's most expensive 4-hour nap, we headed back to the airport.

Fortunately, we were able to get on the first flight Saturday morning! I think I was a bit giddy at that point and I showed pictures of R & W to anyone who would humor me. Oh, you need to see my boarding pass? Sure, sure, but first, look at my sweet daughters who are dying to see me!

And I was dying to see them. I've never been so happy to see two little people! Unfortunately, I've spent the last three days in bed and we haven't been able to each other as much as we were hoping. I started feeling pretty icky on our last day in China and, sure enough, I came home with strep throat. Argh. But I'm on drugs and feeling much better. And our church family has been bringing meals! Poor Dave, however, has been taking care of three kiddos and trying to get over jetlag. Going back to work will be a break for him.

And despite not being very hands-on the last few days, Noah is really doing so much better with me. He is really warming up and letting me take care of him. He won't let me snuggle him yet -- that's still Dave's gig -- but I can't believe how he's coming around. I think it made a huge difference when he saw R & W snuggling me and letting me do things for them. I could see his little gears turning ... "Hmm, those two little ones let the big one hug them and feed them. Very interesting. Maybe that one with the red hair is not so bad after all."

Well, I'll post more pics when I have more oomph. For now, here's a picture that Dave took this afternoon.

First English word

I almost forgot. Pork Bun Boy said his first English word yesterday! He's been yakking alot, and we've debated whether he's imitating our English or mocking my Mandarin, but this was clearly English. In the dialect of Homer Simpson, but still English. I managed to capture it on video...

Headed home

Dave and I, along with Pork Bun Boy (aka Noah, Ning, An Ning), are headed home tonight. I'm either going to have to learn to steam buns or get reeeeaaal friendly with the take away counter at LeeLee's. This boy can put away the pork buns like you wouldn't believe.

Anyway, sorry for not posting much this week. I'd love to tell you that we've been out and about and way too busy, but that's not true. After a couple of days, the humidity crept in and started to rust my gears. So what have we been doing? Well, let's see. Eating, playing, napping, playing, eating, playing, and then going to bed. We've been having a great time! We've actually used the play room here at the hotel which we've never done before because the weather has been so lovely on our previous trips. We did go to the playground down the street twice, but we didn't stay long. Just long enough to get some good photos ;-)

I'll admit I did do a little shopping and found a great teapot. On each trip, we've bought a teapot from an older gentlemen who owns an antique shop near the hotel. He used to be a government employee and now he sells things that he collected during all his travels. At least that's his story and he's stickin' to it. This time, we bought a YiXing pot with silverwork on it. It's lovely. I should have taken a picture of us at his shop like we've done before, but I didn't think to this time. I'll blame it on my rusty gears.

Well, off to finish packing. I'd say that we'll see you all when we get home, but I'll be too busy for a while smooching on my girls. I'm counting the hours and minutes until I see them! And I know you're just here to see pictures of The Boy, so here he is...

At the medical exam

In the swanky playroom

At the playground

Pork Bun Boy

Did I mention he's also fond of congee?

A few steps forward...

and no steps back! Yes, we are making some seriously good progress here and I have the photos to prove it!

We're having a great time and Ning is really relaxing with me. He still won't hold my hand when we're just walking along, but he comes and takes my hand and leads me to whatever he's asking for. It's wonderful. He also lets me hold him when Dave goes to the bathroom. I'm dying for him to let me hold and snuggle him, but I'll take whatever I can get right now. He loves the wheels on the bus song and totally cracks up when I sing the verse about the people going up and down.

Here we are putting on his shoes. Yes, that's really him sitting on my lap! And he's learned that we take our shoes off when we're inside, so he has started coming to me to take them off every time we return to the hotel room.

Here we are sharing a little kiwi this afternoon.

Here we are visiting the old Chen house. It's a museum now, but it used to be a house of the Chen family (the largest surname in Guangdong province) used for studying for the imperial exams and for ancestor worship.

Ancestors, schmancestors, I just want to run around!!

Isn't he adorable?! We took red couch photos this afternoon, and almost all the others are a total blur. He's all boy and doesn't want to sit still for a second. That plane ride home is going to be a lot of fun ;-)

We have the medical exam tomorrow and then we'll spend most of the afternoon deciphering the US immigration paperwork.

In Guangzhou

We flew to Guangzhou today and it is hot, hot, hot. Boy, howdy, is it hot. And uber humid. I'm sporting the biggest mop of frizzy curls that you ever did see. I can hear my nephew now saying, "Hey, man, I like your wig."

We had a good couple of last days in Nanjing. Thursday night, we got a cab and went to the old city gate. On the way there, our cabbie hit a guy on a bike. We wondered when that would happen. As crazy as the traffic is here, the odds were pretty good it'd happen at some point. The cyclist was none too happy and, after cussing a blue streak, a police officer arrived. We pulled off to the side, the cabbie pulled a wad of cash from under his seat, and it was settled right there. At the city wall, we climbed a whole bunch of steps and walked around on the top. It was nice outside, not crowded, and we enjoyed some time with just the three of us. We headed back to the hotel during rush hour and had a heck of a time getting a cab. We finally got one after walking a few blocks.

At the top of the old city gate

Friday, we went to Purple Mountain to visit Dr. Sun Yat-Sen's mausoleum. We climbed all three hundred bajillion steps. And wouldn't you know it, Ning loves stairs, but he wanted Dave to carry him the entire way. It was totally worth it as the view from the top was incredible. Friday evening we went for a celebration dinner with the rest of our travel group. It was in a very glitzy part of town and the food was wonderful. We had a long day of traveling today, so we ate an early dinner, gave Ning a bath, and put him to bed early. I'm pooped out so I'm about to join him.

Halfway up to the mausoleum (Yes, we're idiots and took our stroller)

We have made some progress in the day or so. Ning has stopped screaming bloody murder when Dave goes to the bathroom, and today he actually sat in my lap while I put his shoes on. He still goes ballistic if I hold his hand or pick him up, but I really do think we're getting somewhere. I keep reminding myself that he just met us six days ago. And I'm praising God for a husband who encourages me and keeps me laughing.

Heading to the airport. Can you believe how cute they are?

Little stinker

We’re doing okay, but it’s been a rough couple of days. Tuesday afternoon, Ning decided that I was chopped liver and doesn’t want much to do with me. Every once in a while, he’ll interact with me, but he’s very nervous about getting too close. He is great with Dave, but he definitely wants to call the shots when it comes to engaging me. One minute, he’ll throw the ball to me; the next minute he is hitting me and saying “bu, bu bu!” I’m trying to keep my perspective and remember that he didn’t ask for a new mama. He wants the one back at the orphanage.

We did visit the orphanage yesterday (Wednesday) and that was difficult. Before we even got off the bus, he spotted his Half the Sky nanny and was crying and reaching for her. She scooped him up and cried pretty hard. They are obviously very attached. Dave and I decided to go with the flow and not get too uptight about it all, but we stuck right next to him no matter who was holding him. We suspected from his confidence and outspokenness that he was well-liked at the orphanage. Our visit confirmed that. He was a little prince! And I think he got to do whatever he wanted. Dave calls his gait the I’m-large-and-in-charge strut. Boy, do we have our work cut out for us! Anyway, no fewer than ten nannies scooped him up and kissed all over him. He was smiling and lapping it up. We were able to see where he slept and they gave us the little card that marked his crib. Lunchtime came, and he ate two bowls of rice porridge with vegetables and meat. He’s definitely a good eater.

Saying goodbye was extremely hard. We all cried, and his nanny gave him back to Dave just before we hopped in the elevator. When we got down to the bus, the nannies were leaning out the window calling his name and waving. He cried for a good bit, but then fell asleep in Dave’s arms. It was a very emotionally exhausting morning.



As tough as that was, I think it actually helped him. He seemed more relaxed yesterday afternoon. I know the nannies talked to him during the visit about his new mama and baba. They seemed to be emphasizing that and encouraging him to go with us. I wonder if he feels like he got a kind of permission from them that leaving was okay and this whole thing isn’t a mistake. I love that he was so loved there, and I know if he attached to them, he can attach to us.

We visited the provincial museum this morning, and we have a free day tomorrow. I’m going to keep making myself available to him and pray that he’ll let me in soon.

Happy Adoption Day!

He's offically ours and he's still doing really well!

Last night, we went and ate at a noodle place and then played some more. He was talking a blue streak and was even singing some songs. I'd give anything to know what he's saying. I can make out "xie xie" and "bu" (which he says alot!), but other than that, I'm at a loss. At bedtime, he wanted nothing to do with the crib in the room so Dave held him for a few minutes and then laid him down between us. He slept really well and didn't wake at all during the night. Every once in a while I would wake and think "what is that noise?" and then I'd realize it was him sucking his middle fingers.

This morning we had to wake him early to be picked up at 7:40 for the adoption appointment. He was not happy about that at all. But during breakfast he perked up and ate well. We went with all the other families to finalize the adoption and it seems like it took a long time. We took the ball with us and he ended up being a little showoff throwing it around and laughing. He's a busy little guy! (Thanks, Kathy and Grace, for the Curious George shirt. That's what he wore today for adoption day because it fits very well what we've seen of his personality so far.) He played with the woman who brought him yesterday (we learned that she's not a nanny, but the person in charge of international adoptions from his orphanage), but he wouldn't go to her. He's definitely perferring Dave today and doesn't want me to hold him much, but he's still making good eye contact and letting me feed him. He also makes sure that we're all together. If I get very far from him and Dave, he calls out "mama!"

Right now he's napping and we're going to get out and explore the area more this afternoon. Thanks for all your prayers and good wishes -- we can feel the love all the way over here.

Ning rocks!

We met Ning today and everything is going really well. We arrived at the civil affairs office a little after ten and he was already there. One of the nannies was showing him the photo album we sent. We got him to sit in my lap with some milk and a snack. He wouldn’t look right at us but I caught him stealing a glance every once in a while. He smiled when I pulled out a book! We knew we were perfect for each other! He sat still for a long time and then he finally started crying. He is very attached to his nanny and was crying and reaching for her, but I kept talking to him and holding him. He has obviously been very loved and he knows how to be comforted. Even though he wanted out of my arms, he still let me pat him and be close to him. When I told him he could put his head on my shoulder, he did. He eventually fell asleep but then we had to wake him to have our picture taken for the paperwork. Bummer.

Back at the hotel, he wouldn’t let me put him down or sit down, so I walked him back and forth like a baby in the middle of the night. He didn’t want anything to do with the cars or ball we had for him. I just held him and he cried off and on for a long time. He fell asleep again and I lay down with him.

After we napped, we ate a little something and he shared a sandwich with me. He was looking at me pretty regularly and would calm down when I told him everything was okay. He wasn’t talking, but he understood my poor Mandarin and responded to it. So at least I’m able to ask him about food, drink, and being hungry or tired.

Eventually, we got on the floor and played ball and blew bubbles. He started laughing and smiling. It was heaven! Then he really started talking! He was pointing to the pictures and saying, mama, baba, jie jie, and An Ning. He is incredible. He also finally let Dave hold him, too, and is very comfortable with him.

We just got back from the store because he needed new shoes. He did really well. I carried him there and back, and my arms got a workout. I’m guessing he weighs about 28-30 pounds. He’s a solid little dude. Way bigger than his barely-older sister. He carried his new socks around the whole time and pointed at things and smiled. When we were leaving the store, he leaned over and kissed me! He is so stinkin’ cute. Right now, he’s sitting on Dave’s lap sucking his two middle fingers and relaxing.

Really, we could not have asked for a better day. I’m so thankful that he’ll let us comfort him and feed him. I’m hoping that as he grieves and adjust, things continue to go this well.

In Nanjing

We arrived in Nanjing today after a long but smooth trip. We barely had enough time in LA to catch our flight, but we pulled an OJ Simpson and arrived at the gate just in time to board the shuttle bus out to the plane. We plopped into our cushy seats and breathed a sigh of relief.

We are in a different part of the city than last time and we like it much better. It's surrounded by neighborhoods and local shops instead of downtown construction. It's a perfect spot to get out and walk around. We walked to a supermarket today to buy diapers and an unbrella. I got to practice my teeny Mandarin repertoire and I was understood! Of course after that I didn't understand much of what was said in return, but hey, it's a start.

Tonight we're eating dinner with our travelmates. Tomorrow we go to meet Noah and I can't wait.

16 days and counting!

We got news today that we get to leave in 16 days to bring Noah home! Woohoo! Yipee! Yahoo! Supercalifragilisticexpealidocious! Exclamation point!

Our first lapbook

We finished our first lapbook today and had a blast doing it. I say "our" lapbook because neither one of has ever made one, and since R is only five, I did just as much work on it as she did. She has a never-ending list of things she wants to study, but she was able to settle on sea horses. We spent most of the week reading books and looking up cool facts about sea horses (did you know that the father carries the eggs and pushes the babies out when they're ready?!?) R's favorite part was coloring a bajillion sea horses. In the lapbook, I wrote the questions and she wrote the answers. She also did all the glueing, but for some reason insisted that I do the cutting. She's already talking about what we'll study next. You think she'll be this excited about calculus?

Table for five, please!

Praise God! We got the phone call today from our agency that we have final approval to adopt Ning, aka Noah! We have our travel meeting Monday and we hope to leave in about four weeks. We're off to sign paperwork this afternoon. Please pray for speedy travel approval.

As I type, the girls are in the background squealing with joy!

Lil' W's first sentence!

We were playing in the backyard tonight and feeding Dora the Explorer. Dora ate a few bites of lettuce and then headed back to her cool dugout under the slide. I asked her if she was really done eating, after all she had practically chased Dave down to get something to eat, but she ignored me and kept plodding along. Lil' W wanted to contribute something to the care of our family pet, so she ran over to Dora and said, "_ora, eat!" (You know she's not fond of initial consonants)

Now that, folks, is a sentence! Trust me, I earned a BA in English and just attended the state homeschool convention. I know a sentence when I hear one, and that one counts.

Patience is a virtue, or how to keep a waiting mom distracted

Well, it's day 102, but who's counting? I was hoping for a phone call today, but it didn't happen. Good thing too, because we were waaaay to busy to go sign paperwork ;-) We were making cake! The girls have been keeping me hoppin' this week as we try to entertain ourselves inside. It's blazing hot outside, so we decided to increase our carbon footprint and turn on the oven ;-) (I promise that's the last smiley face for today).





So, little R wanted to make a "summer cake" and she
was all jazzed about decorating it. She made some stencil art and taped them on toothpicks. It was all her idea and I think it rocks. We even made a special trip to buy jelly beans. Did I mention that I'm trying to stay busy?

A refreshing conversation

The girls and I escaped to the air conditioning of the mall today -- you can only stay inside for so long playing board games and reading. As we pulled into the parking space, I realized that I was right next to a car driven by a U.S. veteran with obviously different ideas than mine. The car had at least 25 very conservative bumper stickers. Some of the usual ones -- Republican candidate for fill-in-the-blank, and pro-gun rights -- but some were ones I had never seen before. Some sounded a bit angry, some with foul language, and some were just downright mean. Needless to say, I was nervous parking the mommy-mobile with the Obama and "Books not bombs" stickers next to it. So nervous, in fact, that I memorized his plate number should I return and find my tires slashed.

As we walked toward the entrance, a man was coming toward us with a VietNam vets shirt and cap, with accompanying hat pins. I decided to risk it and I told him that I thought I might be parked next to him. He knew exactly what I was talking about. I told him how much I appreciated the freedom I had to even have bumper stickers and was glad that he exercised his right to cover his car with whatever he wanted. Right from the get-go I let him know that I was somewhat more politically liberal than he is, and he let me know where he stood especially when it comes to the candidates for president. But we had the nicest conversation and stood there in 105-degree heat for about 10 minutes! We even shook hands and introduced ourselves. We actually ended up discovering several things (more important than politics) we had in common.

In a climate where many things are expressed in terms of "us vs. them," I was giddy that I could have a conversation with a total stranger about things that matter to us and about which we totally disagree, and still shake hands and say "pleasure to meet you." For a few brief moments, we saw beyond the bumper stickers and were just fellow human beings. Imagine that.

Happy Birthday, Ning!

Our sweet little guy is 2 years old today! Could he possibly get any cuter?

No word yet on when we get to bring him home. We're really hoping sometime in the next two months. I am so excited to have a boy! And while I have doubts that I'll manage to get out of the house with three kids (and two 2 year olds!), I am so ready. If having ants in your pants were an Olympic sport, I could pop over to Beijing and win the gold before we bring him home.

Meanwhile, the girls have moved in together in R's room. W isn't big enough for a bed yet, so we moved the bookshelves and put up the crib that some friends gave us. So far so good. They jibber jabber quite a bit before they get to sleep, but it's funny to listen to them in the monitor. R still comes and gets in our bed in the middle of the night and, without fail, W wakes up a bit later and starts calling for her. It's pretty funny with her sweet voice and drop-the-initial-consonants style of pronunciation.

Anyway, don't hold your breath for us travel soon. We'll let you know when it actually happens.

13 years of wedded bliss

Last Sunday, Dave and I went to a bluegrass festival to celebrate our anniversary. It was incredible! The weather was perfect, the music was perfect, and we had a few hours in the car to talk . . . uninterrupted. That may have been the best part! Actually the best part for Dave may have been seeing Psychograss live. They were really stinkin' good. Now, Psychograss really isn't my flavor of bluegrass, but I did get to meet Tony Trischka and shake his hand.

The band in the first picture is a homeschool family that has been playing together since the kids were little. They started violin lessons in the Suzuki method at age three. They can all play numerous instruments and are wonderfully talented. It was great to see a family having such a good time together.

It was a wonderful day of enjoying each other's company and thanking God for giving me a great husband. I'm really glad that even though I was probably too young and silly to be getting married, God totally knew what he was doing.