Love From Ethiopia

And, we're back!

2012-01-13T15:41:00.000-06:00

Happy 2012! Yes, this blog has been silent for 2 years... time flies when you're having fun parenting, working, and playing the game called Life.

Now that the agency we used for our second adoption has been closed by the Ethiopian government, and it's owner put out of business (hopefully forever), I feel that it is safe to open our blog back up and begin again with a life that doesn't need to be protected for fear of lawsuits and harassment.

Where we are now...

TN is 5! TE is 3! Both are happy, healthy, thriving and growing faster than we can possibly keep up with. Here's a year (or so) in review:

TN started Kindergarten last September and is a full-time student. Unsure if we would advance her right to 1st grade, we decided Kindergarten was a better place to hone some social skills and we'd assist on making sure that homework was challenging enough. TN is our rules girl. Some say she'll definitely be the engineer in the family. In addition to having taught herself adding, subtracting and even some multiplication, our 5 year old whiz kid loves making circuits with dad, growing crystals, collecting agates and looking at biological samples in her microscope. She also loves her barbie, weaving, puzzles and crafts. She also loves writing notes to her parents and friends, which are tucked in every book, nook and cranny in our house!

TE is a spitfire! Rules are optional, drama is in! A powerhouse dancer, singer, runner, actress, and cook, she's the one that keeps us on our toes. Finding ways to make even a stool dangerous, it's fun to climb, fly down a slide as fast as she can, exalt in going "faster, faster, faster!" and to rock out to Alvin and the Chipmunks. Even during years of illness, she showed the resilience and strength of a god, happy, entertaining, and always engaging everyone around her.

In the coming months, we'll keep you posted on the things that makes us go "hmmm..." or laugh hysterically. Thanks for sticking around :)

Where we left off...

2010-01-13T22:02:00.002-06:00

So, in catch-up 4, we returned from Ethiopia and that's when all of us fell off the map entirely. Terry returned to work right away and TN moved back into her daily routine of going to daycare. I started maternity leave, home with Soly... and our journey through the medical establishments in Minnesota began.

It was clear that something(s) was terribly wrong with Soly. Her coloring was off and she was pale, she threw up nearly everything you gave her to drink, any kind of formula, and wasn't eating solids of any kind yet. Her tongue was scarred and she still had open wounds on her bottom. Doctors at the International Adoption Clinic (IAC) at the University of Minnesota helped immensely, made an appointment for us right away. First, we started by taking her off of soy and dairy, changing to Nutramigen. Enfamil corporate was great at helping us transition, explaining what was in this chemical concoction called formula and helped us make it the right dose. However, it didn't matter, nothing stayed in our 6 month old, 9 lb little girl in newborn clothes. Next, we went to the feeding specialist, occupational and physical therapy, pediatric gastroenterology, infectious disease, regular pediatrician, and continued with the IAC. Soly and I spent day after day, week after week at doctor's appointments. When not traveling to and from, I was on the phone tailoring her care, updating doctors and nurses, getting medical records transferred, filling prescriptions, getting updates on blood draws, poop tests and getting other medical opinions. At one point Soly and I were spending more than 20 hours per week wading through the medical system.

Finally, after invasive medical procedures, tests here, there and everywhere, we had our diagnosis: Failure to Thrive, severe reflux, microcephaly, chronic salmonella, cryptosporidium, geographic tongue. A few weeks after this, I finally received Soly's medical records from Ethiopia. The agency was of no assistance, I did my own background work on the hospital she was in, located the sister hospital in New York, emailed them Soly's information (all we had) and begged for assistance. Within a week, we had medical records for her. I cried the hardest and angriest tears; her records indicated she was diagnosed failure to thrive at 1 month old. They diagnosed severe reflux at 3 days old. BFAS had known since her first month of life that she was chronically ill yet continued to tell us she was very healthy and that there was no reason to expedite her from the country.

For months, Soly lost weight. Finally, after medications and therapy she began to keep down bottles. Even today, Soly cannot drink more than a 6 ounce bottle without projectile vomiting. We weigh it down with rice cereal to help keep it down. However, at 14 months, she's finally on the growth charts, walking, thriving, running, playing. Except for her physical size, she is every bit the one year old we expect. I will forever be grateful for the medical system here in the USA and the many doctors and nurses that came to our aid, helping us save a baby girl we nearly lost again and again. Also, the love and support from our parents and friends was immensely needed and intensely appreciated.

Our adoption journey for Soly was most painful. However, she is the funniest, happiest little girl ever and we all love her.

Pictures!

2010-01-08T19:16:00.002-06:00

Remiss....

2010-01-07T20:37:00.002-06:00

I've been remiss in posting. I could make all of the excuses in the world, but the crux of it is that going from 1 child to 2 really IS more demanding than I thought, it took a long time to figure out all of Soly's medical issues and how to treat them, between work and grad school and family, life just got the better of me. So here are a few updates:

1) Happy New Year!!!!! I hope that 2010 is much better for us than 2009. Although Soly finally arrived in our arms, our journey to her, getting home and the anguish of her many illnesses took a toll. Here's to a healthy 2010 for everyone in our family and in yours!

2) Soly! Soly is doing so, so well. After months of tests, diagnosis, endless streams of doctors appointments, trips to specialists and various therapies, she is healthy, happy, rambunctious and perfectly wonderful. She started walking at 12 months and within weeks was running us ragged around the house. She dances and sings. Her vocabulary is small but her personality is HUGE. She is a beaming ray of sunshine everywhere. But, she's tiny! Everyone at restaurants, stores, and the general public gawk at her endlessly amazed that this "little baby" walks and runs. She is quite the public spectacle.

3) Terefech! Terefech is amazing and wonderful. Although still shy with strangers, she has a bright and funny personality. She likes to "trick" us by telling jokes. She talks endlessly causing us to give her 1 minute quiet times. She is so, so tall that we skipped 3T and pretty much jumped right to a 4T and girls 5. So much for being 3 and a half. She's 3 and a half going on 30. She's wise beyond her years, has started to read and spell. She loves her sister and her sister loves her... even if TN has reasoned that the Boa Constrictor at the zoo can easily eat Soly. :)

4) The rest of us... yep, we're last. :) You become a parent and suddenly you, as parents, are just not as important. Nevertheless, here we go! Terry was laid off in November and we pulled the girls from daycare. Terry is loving his time at home as stay-at-home daddy. The girls are thriving under his care and they do lots of fun science activities, trips to the zoo and museums, and enjoy their grocery shopping time! I get to benefit from warm breakfasts and hot coffee in the morning, and yummy dinners in the evening. Me? Well, still working (good!). And, almost done with my MBA. 2010 will be my final year at the Carlson School of Management and I soon be looking for a new job in corporate America. For those of you with connections, let me know if you hear of anything.

I've vowed to recommit myself to the blog and will post pictures soon!

Catch-up 4

2009-08-30T19:39:00.002-05:00

We left Ethiopia on Thursday night, instead of our original Saturday time. We were out of soy formula, almost nothing ever stayed down, and what did came out as water. We arrived home on April 17th, after an interesting and adventurous layover in Amsterdam.

Unbeknown to us, we were not allowed to bring the water we bought at the Amsterdam airport, onto the airplane. This gave us somewhat of a dilemma-- Soly could not go long without eating and we had to go through gate security (questions, search, x-ray, gate check, wait on plane) again. We figured there was no way we could make it that long without feeding Soly. Further, Soly's name had been changed in Ethiopia (from Siloty to Soly) and the ticket we had for her had the wrong name. We also wanted to get a bassinet seat for her.

We went to the desk for KLM/Delta to see what we could do about getting the bassinet seat. The woman at the ticket counter kindly asked us for our paper ticket for Soly. I was shocked-- a paper ticket?! We never received a paper ticket for her in the United States and were left with nothing. We asked what we needed to do. She asked us how old Soly was. When I told her almost six months her eyes flew open and her mouth dropped. Who believed this tiny baby in 0-3 month clothes, weighing about 9 lbs was 6 months? We explained she was quite ill... in fact we'd had her expedited through the United States embassy. She quickly found her manager, rallied the forces, issued us E-tickets for Soly and arranged a bassinet seat for us at the front of the coach section. Every woman (they were all women) at the ticket counter came to see Soly, all amazed at how tiny, but beautiful she was.

Our next problem was that we could not bring water onto the plane. When we arrived at the gate, I walked up to a young man stationed at the gate. I asked if we could bring just ONE bottle of water onto the plane, explaining our daughter was very ill and we couldn't sit at the gate or on the plane for too long without feeding her. He first said no, but after I begged and pleaded, he said I could bring 1 bottle of water on the plane. I thanked him and went back to Terry and Soly. About 10 minutes later, he came to us with his manager. His manager said we could NOT bring on a bottle of water, but said we could make 2 bottles of formula and bring them on the plane with us. Again, I thanked him generously.

We also sat next to another adoptive family. She was returning to the United States with her son and new young daughter. We shared stories and talked about our experiences. It's always nice to have someone to talk to, a friendly face who you can identify with and who helps to pass the time.

When KLM started boarding procedures we waited as long as we could to get in line. I made two bottles and we chatted a while. Finally, we got in line and decided to wait it out. Within minutes of getting in line, the manager came over and pulled us out. Terry and I shared looks of fear-- they weren't going to allow us on the plane! Soly's name was wrong, we needed to bring water... What to do?! Alas, this wasn't the case. The manager pulled us in front of all of the people waiting in line at security, rans us through the questions, stamped our passports and escorted us to the front of the x-ray line. As we waited for our baggage to pass, my name was being loudly announced overhead. They were putting us on the plane first!!

We were elated. The attendants on the plane set up the bassinet, showed us how to use it and tended to our every need. Soly got a super cute KLM bib for flying and got a lot of attention! Our flight from Amsterdam to Mpls was probably the most relaxing part of our journey. We slept as much as we could, taking advantage of the bassinet for Soly. We landed in Minneapolis on Thursday, April 17th. Home to our families, our precious TN who we missed too, too much, and to the great unknown.

Catch up 3

2009-08-01T19:44:00.003-05:00

We stayed at Kidane Mehret a bit longer to visit some of the other babies. We were able to take video and pictures for a friend and visit with her son, Addis. He was so cute and alert. All of the babies had their own little, tiny cribs with mobiles above. Some had bottles in their mouths, others were sleeping and still others looking around their room or being cared for by the nuns. We were amazed how many babies could fit in such a little room. We looked at the bed where Soly once lived the first 5 months of her life and then took her from the orphanage and into our arms forever.

The nuns gave us an 8 ounce bottle (?!?!?!), but said she drank a lot less. They then informed us that her bottle had a lot of sugar-- this is how they got her to gain weight. We got in the car and were whisked away back to the guesthouse. It didn't take long to figure out that there was something severely wrong with Soly. She vomited up all of the formula we would give then be hungry for more. We switched to Soy formula and she quickly went through that. Of each type of formula we brought with us, she quickly threw it up. We were at a loss. The agency director said we were just "feeding her too much"... She went on to say that she had "saved" Soly multiple times and that she was "completely" healthy. We knew she was not.

The rest of our trip was a whirlwind of events. BFAS was "not prepared" for us to come, although they had notice. They had not prepared her documents for the embassy and we spent days running around town picking up one document or another. Hospital records were wrong, and had to be redone and re-delivered to the Embassy. The whole process was a disaster.

Within a couple of days, we also determined we would need to leave Ethiopia early. Soly was just too sick to stay. We visited the hospital where she spent so many weeks. The doctors and nurses gasped at seeing her, disbelieving she was actually alive. Each asked for their picture to be taken with her and to email them the picture. It was then we realized how deathly ill she had been. However, it wasn't until I received her medical records, months later, that we realized just how bad it was, and how horribly we had been lied to by our agency about poor, poor Soly's health...

Catch up 2

2009-07-20T09:00:00.000-05:00

We arrived at Kidane Mehret, unsure of what condition our little girl would be in, if she had gained any weight or height, if she was still sick, or what she was ill with. Knowing her size, however, meant we'd had to spend a small sum on new clothes-- newborn clothes, 0-3 month clothes. We'd brought lots of formula, clothing, medication for her bottom. Prepared to spend 7 days in Ethiopia, we'd packed clothes for ourselves as well :)

We walked the steps up to Kidane Mehret. Much like most spaces in Ethiopia, the outside belies what the inside holds. Through an old painted gate, we entered a garden haven. Up curving steps, and into an opening filled with school-aged children playing, laughing, enjoying each other, spending time with the nuns who laughed, played and conjoled with them.

We were introduced to the head nun, Sister Lutgarda, who ushered us into a small and cramped room with an old couch, pictures of Jesus Christ, crosses and all about children's clothing, toys and supplies. We signed the guestbook as we waited for Soly to arrive. Soon, another nun made her way in the room, holding a tiny baby girl, head capped in a white hat. She wore white tights, a white turtleneck and a summer jumper with a giraffe on the front which said, "Mommy Loves Me!" She greeted us with a toothless, brilliant smile.

That smile has lasted to today. No matter how ill, even while throwing up, Soly will flash you a brilliant smile which makes you feel as if the world is forever going to be okay and fills you with joy.

Catch up

2009-07-17T10:43:00.002-05:00

Our trip to Ethiopia in April was a whirlwind tour. As before, we arrived late in the evening, waited for our luggage, obtained our visas and took in the smoky, spicy smell of Addis Ababa. We did not know if we would meet Soly that night, or sometime the next day. But, this time we were ready to go with the flow. Tired but exhilarated to be in Ethiopia again, we boarded a taxi and made our way to the BFAS guesthouse, Nootol.

It was a beautiful house close to the airport. We ate a late dinner and headed to bed. Sleeping into the early morning hours, we awoke to the enchanting sounds of the call to Prayer. We had arrived the week of Ethiopian Easter. At 4 am, the sounds of soothing chants pulled us slowly awake and lulled us back into sleep. At 7 am we awoke for breakfast. At 10 am, we were picked up and escorted to Kidane Mehret Orphanage to meet our baby girl.

We knew Soly had been ill multiple times while in Ethiopia. Each time parents returned, we asked for pictures and updates of our dear daughter, and were repeatedly, month after month, told that she was in the hospital. Each time, we frantically called the agency who did not know and didn't have updates for us. Finally, 4 weeks before traveling, our friends traveled to pick up their baby girl and demanded to see Soly in the hospital. She was able to bring us back detailed information about Soly, along with pictures and video. She was small, frail, ill. Born at 6 lbs and 19 inches, at 5 months, Soly was a mear 9 lbs and unknown number of inches. The 6 month clothing we sent for her was so large you could barely see her body.

We received our court approval and officially became her parents on March 27th. Knowing she was critically ill, we pushed for an expedient Embassy date and were rebuffed by the agency, who repeatedly told us she was "healthy" and didn't require an expedited date. I'd had enough, emailed and called Senator Amy Klubuchar's office and pleaded for assistance to get Soly through Embassy quickly. Amy's office staff were miracle workers, jumped on the case and had an answer for us within days: they would expedite our case, we could go immediately. 36 hours later, we jumped on plane to Ethiopia to get our baby girl. Little did we know the adventure, heartbreak and reward we were about to incur.

Welcome back...

2009-07-09T11:57:00.002-05:00

Thank you all for your patience as I privatized and closed the blog to the general public.

In a series of unfortunate events, we have learned that our last adoption agency, BFAS, has started reading blogs and is suing families for telling the truth about their adoptions. As you know, our adoption of Soly has been difficult and full of roller coasters, including finding out that she is quite ill with multiple diagnosis. Our agency was aware of her illnesses and failed to inform us about any of them. Had we known, we would have been better equipped and prepared to treat her here in the United States. Because I disclosed, publicly, that Soly was ill and said that I did not recommend the agency, Better Future Adoption Services has threatened litigation against us. Thus, our blog had to be invite-only.

Now that our blog is private, I will be sharing more about our family again. I look forward to sharing with all of you again and being honest and open.

Thank you all for the love and support you have shown along our way to building a beautiful family.

Privatizing Blog

2009-06-25T19:57:00.002-05:00

On July 10th, this blog will become private and you must be invited to see this blog. If you would like to see this blog, please email me privately or leave a comment. Please send me your email address so I can add you to the "safe" list. My email is sarasolace at gmail dot com (insert symbols in the appropriate fields) or leave your email in the comments section if you are comfortable.

Thank you for your understanding.

Sincerely,

Sarah

Posts, posts, posts...

2009-06-23T10:22:00.002-05:00

I apologize for the long times between blog entries. Life has been quite hectic, a little sad, very busy, somewhat frustrating, and somehow still rewarding.

TN and Soly are best buds. Soly always smiles to see Nerys and Nerys always wants to hold Soly, giving her hugs and kisses.

Soly is a smily, happy baby. As some of you know, Soly has been diagnosed with several severe illnesses. We have been working tiredlessly to help her. Doctor's at the University of Minnesota and Gillette Children's Hospital have been helping her, trying to work out exactly what the problems are and how to best help her get better. She is very tiny for her age, just 13.5 lbs and 24 inches at 7.5 months. She has difficulty keeping food down. We have finally found one formula she is able to not throw up, but it appears she has signficant internal issues which prevent her from extracting the nutrition. We are attempting to figure out what this is.

Through it all, even when throwing up, Soly smiles. It is so hard to have such a happy baby who "looks" healthy but definitely isn't. While we struggle, feel pain for our beautiful daughter, we also love her with all of our hearts and know now that our family is complete.

Please keep Soly and our family in your thoughts and prayers. I will try to keep everyone updated as we know more.

Happy Birthday, TN!!!

2009-06-02T07:38:00.003-05:00

TN is 3 today!! I just can't believe how fast our amazing first daughter is growing, learning and becoming her own little entity. Happy Birthday, Terefech Nerys! Mommy, Daddy and Soly love you!

Baby Girls :)

2009-05-28T13:02:00.003-05:00

It's about love...

And helping each other out...

Smiling through the tough times...

And celebrating being together...

When your child imitates you...

2009-05-23T21:57:00.002-05:00

You learn more about what you do that you can possibly imagine.

So, I was in the house grabbing last minute items to take with us. Terry, TN and TE were in the car waiting. Apparently, TN was not waiting so patiently as she exclaimed, exasperated, "Come on, Mom!!" Terry thought this was pretty funny.

The next day, TN her babydoll, CeCe, in the car. I can hear her telling her very clearly, "Come on, CeCe, come on. That's enough."

Today, we're on our way back from our day-trip to the cabin and TN says from the back seat, "Come on, movie! Get going!"

ROFL. Well, Terry and I had a short discussion about how that I maybe need to stop begging the traffic lights to turn green and to get TN moving along. No more "come on!!!" coming from me. I have to be more patient. Sheesh.

Happy Belated Mother's Day!

2009-05-19T11:01:00.001-05:00

Funny things...

2009-05-06T14:37:00.002-05:00

Recently TN has come up with some doozies. Trying to not laugh or trying to figure out where the heck she pulled some ideas out of her hat from great. Others are just situationally amusing.

1) TN went to bed at about 7:45. At 8:30, hard crying comes from the bedroom. I rush in and concerned, ask her what is wrong. She sobbed, "I lost my booger!!!" Sympathy eroded quickly and I erupted in laughter.

2) Last night I was telling my friend Kurt and I were sitting at the kitchen table talking about TN's funny little moments and how I thought #1 took the cake for the week. Just then, TN walks out of the bathroom carrying the plunger for my yeast infection medication... hmmm... We kinda had to reconsider #1.

3) We were sitting at dinner the other night when I said that I needed something. TN looked at me very seriously and asked, "Why do we need a need?" I stared at her before blubbering out some cryptic answer about feelings and how we have to fulfill them, etc. I'll do better next time.

4) I was sitting talking to Soly telling her, "Say mamama. Say mamama." TN pipes in loudly, "Mom! She DOESN'T TALK!" Thanks, TN.

5) This week, TN explained to us that her body was filled with glue. We asked her why and she said, "So I stay all together." After casting glances at each other, we decided to fill TN in on the truth. Bones and muscles hold our bodies together, not glue. "So, I don't have glue in my body?" she asked. "No, just blood." I said. She looked really disappointed and said, "oh, okay." I actually felt guilty about dashing her belief about glue holding her body together...

My babies

2009-05-02T14:33:00.003-05:00

Home Again!

2009-04-21T12:08:00.002-05:00

Hello All! We are home again! How different could two adoptions be? Well, about as much as possible it seems. Although glad to be home, finally, with baby Soly, we are facing an uphill battle in the quest to find a source of food she can keep down. While her health suffers, she is still the smiliest, happiest 6 month old ever. Weighing in at just 11 lbs and about 21 inches, most folks think she is a newborn. As with TN people are surprised to learn she is much older than she looks. But, let's now waste too much time-- I know you want pictures :)

Leaving!

2009-04-07T22:27:00.003-05:00

We're out! Unexpectedly we were expedited through the process and are leaving for Ethiopia on Friday afternoon. Unbelievable!!!

I'm so excited to meet Soly and to be in Ethiopia again. See you in a week!

This beautiful little girl is our newest amazing baby!

You Are My Sunshine

2009-04-06T21:36:00.002-05:00

Tonight, I lay in bed with TN, doing our regular bedtime routine. We cuddled up in bed with 2 books, Puff the Magic Dragon, singing it together, then reading "What Mommies Do Best". Then, fan on, lights off and we lay in bed together for "just ooooone minute."

Lately though, I've been singing TN songs as we lay in bed. So, we started with twinkle, twinkle. My little quiet, alto voice nearly whispering into her little ear. Then she said, "Sunshine, please mom?" So, I sang her favorite song:

"You are my sunshine, my only sunshine.
You make me happy, when skies are grey.
You'll never know dear, how much I love you.
Please don't take my Sunshine away

The other night dear, while I lay sleeping
I dreamt I held you in my arms.
When I awoke dear, I was mistaken,
and I lay my head down and cried

You are my sunshine, my only sunshine.
You make me happy, when skies are grey.
You'll never know dear, how much I love you
Please don't take my sunshine away."

I sang it once as held her in my arms. Then, as I sang it to her again, she rolled over to face me. She slipped one little arm under my neck, and the other over the top side of my heck, her nose nestled against my face as I whisper-sang the song to her. I finished the song and whispered in her ear, "Good night, Nerys. I love you." "Good night, mommy," she said, "I love you, too." And I held back tears wondering if I could ever love her more... my baby. My first baby.

Soly Update

2009-04-04T10:53:00.003-05:00

Hi everyone, thank you for your patience!

Soly was officially our daughter on March 26th, a few days earlier than expected. It was this extra time that was supposed to allow us to get through Embassy on April 9th. This plan fell through and we are awaiting assistance from the U.S. Embassy in D.C. and our Senator, Amy Klobuchar, to assist us in getting Soly home as soon as possible.

We'll let you know when we're on our way to Ethiopia! Thank you for your love and support. Please pray for our little Soly and her health as we wade through bureaucracy.

One week

2009-03-24T19:28:00.002-05:00

One week from today, we are scheduled to go through court in Ethiopia and officially become Soly's parents. We are excited, worried, and hope beyond all else that the process is smooth, and she sails through with no problems.

We received new pictures of Soly a couple of weeks ago and she is so beautiful. It's amazing how children can look so different from one another. Soly is tiny, with huge brown eyes, a small little nose, and straight black hair. She has tiny feet and hands, and a pudgy little tummy. She has this amazing gummy smile that makes her cheeks puff out; her little tongue peeks through her diminutive, puckered lips.

Soon, we hope to hold that little body in our hands, feel her tiny fingers grasp ours and look into those deep brown eyes in person.

Oy Vey!

2009-03-20T20:31:00.002-05:00

Life in the World-Revolves-Around-Nerys household has been one rollercoaster after another lately. I find myself taking steps backwards here and there wondering what the heck is coming up next.

TN seems to have hit puberty and developed bi-polar disorder at the same time. She has developed a flare for the dramatic and has become quite good at starting to cry, but has developed no capacity for shutting off the tears. One morning what started as fake, whiny, I'm-not-getting-my-way turn on the tears moment turned into a 20 minute session of gasping sobs, flying tears and a runny nose. We were late to daycare that morning. Sometimes she just starts to cry and we ask, "What's wrong?" and she says, "I don't know!"... Couldn't we have at least waited until 12 or 13 for this? A co-worker, Marcia, said, "oh, they're like this from about 2-4 and then again from about 12 through their teenage years. This will give you an idea of what puberty will be like." Yikes! And, we'll have TWO girls!

Speaking of our second little one... she finally left the hospital after two weeks. She had suffered from a diaper rash which broke open and caused a very, very bad infection, and hospitalization. The court date is but 10 days away, and we ask for your well-wishes, thoughts and prayers as we plan our travels to Ethiopia in the next few weeks. With any luck all will run smoothly from this point forward and our little Soly will be in our arms soon.

Soly

2009-03-06T17:49:00.000-06:00

We learned yesterday that Siloty has been in the hospital again. She was very ill with difficulty breathing. We are not sure of her diagnosis at this point. Our godsend, Melissa, is bringing us pictures, video and information about her on Sunday, so we can learn more. We knew she had lost about 15-20% of her weight, but is now catching up again. As of today, she weights 9lbs 4 ozs, so she's still a bitty little girl.

We are very scared for her and sad and frustrated there is no way we can help. We cannot hold and comfort her. We are glad the agency is helping to make sure she is getting good care in a hospital.

Please send good thoughts her way and pray that we get an earlier court date so we can get our little baby home.

Why?

2009-02-24T19:51:00.002-06:00

Why? Why? Why? Why? Oh. What? What's that? What's that? Where'd it come from? Why?

See a theme? We have formally entered the Question Everything period of life. She doesn't want to know if it's a red car anymore. No, she wants to know if the car drives itself? Why is she driving it? Where is she going? What is her name? Is she going to Target? I, of course, know nothing about the stranger in the car next to me, much less why/where/what/how, etc. "I don't know" is not a sufficient answer. As a parent, I *should* know everything. About everyone. And every situation. Alas, as (ah-hem) wise as I am, I do not know all. Omniscience is not yet a skill of mine. I also do not read minds. I know, you're shocked. My child is too.

Then, there are the topics that we don't really want oto cover... yet. Or, at least not in detail. TN wants to know everything, and I mean details. I couldn't bring myself to actually give her the word for the bump between her legs. I couldn't adequately explain how the baby got into lots of women's tummy's. Why do people throw up? Where does the pee come from? What does blood do? How do you explain these things to two year olds.

I assume we'll pass by these subjects again in the near future. Hopefully I'll have better answers than I do now. Until then, umm, suggestions are welcome :)

Adoption Update

2009-02-18T19:06:00.002-06:00

So, as you know, we have a referral for a beautiful baby girl named Siloty. Siloty Ezri is now 3.5 months old and in Ethiopia still. While we had hoped and expected to be home with her by now, this was not to be. As with all international adoptions, there can be bumps on the road and we've run into a few of those.

Things are looking up though! We have an official court date of March 31st and are very, very, very much hoping to pass through court the first time through. If we get through Ethiopian Court, SE will officially be our beautiful daughter and we will be able to leave for Ethiopia around 2 weeks later. By mid-April, we hope to be traveling to meet our new baby.

TN is very excited to have a little sister. Our friends Melissa and Ryan will be bringing some clothes and a cute little note to Siloty. TN added a note too, and it looked something like this ^<>&><^><^, Love Nerys. :)

Melissa rocks the house and will be meeting our little one and bringing us an update. Shout out to Melissa: YOU ROCK!! We hope your trip rocks and your meeting of Sifan is amazing and wonderful. We can't wait to meet the new addition to your family!!!!

It's turning to pee!

2009-02-10T09:00:00.000-06:00

TN is obsessed with how things work. So, we've been telling her. This has put us on a crash course with explanations about any and all things related to body (where'd that pee come from?) to mechanics (Does the car drive itself?).

Thus, we have explained, as much as possible how any of these things work. When she asked how she got pee, we explained that when she drank her lemonade it went into her tummy, then to her kidneys (pointed to where they were) and then her bladder (pointed to that, too) and told her that it comes out as pee-pee. Her take on it was that coffee/lemonade/water/ice all turn into pee... like in the cup you are drinking from.

This led to our first scientific experiment with 2.5 year old TN. We put crushed ice into a glass cup and waited. We waited patiently. The ice turned to water. Connection made. Then, we drank the water. We talked again about stomach to kidneys to bladder to pee pee in the potty. Voila, we have a child semi-familiar with the workings of the body and how ice is frozen water.

When we got to talking about the car... well, this was different. Of course, the cars these days kinda do "drive themselves". But, I told TN, "Mommy's feet and hands tell the car what to do". TN sat quietly in the back seat. Looking through the rear-view mirror, I could see her processing. "Mom?" she said, "your feet don't have a mouth!". Indeed. After expaling the fine workings of the left peddle (brake), right peddle (go!) and the steering wheel. She said, "And theeeen it goes by itself." *sigh* "Yes, Nerys, then it goes by itself."

TN makes brownies

2009-02-06T09:00:00.000-06:00

TN made brownies. We love our new kitchen and it has inspired a plethora of cooking and baking. Now, with a reliable stove, full-size stove/oven, a new mixer and space to store real kitchen equipment we've been quite busy.

It's been a while...

2009-02-01T20:41:00.002-06:00

Sorry about the long lapse in posts. Life has been pretty hectic around here.

I was sick with my Meneire's Disease, with dizzy spells and have beem home a lot trying to be on the mend. That lasted about two weeks and I am now just trying to stay on top o fit.

We've also had some roadblocks with our second adoption; we were hoping to be home with Siloty Ezri by now, but the court system in Ethiopia is backlogged and this has slowed our journey. Our new court date is March 31st, so far from now. If all goes well and we get through court, we should travel in mid-April. Siloty will be 6 months old... We are still very excited to meet her, but mourn the time we have lost.

TN continues to amaze and inspire. She now counts from 1-15 on her own, knows her abc's by heart and has memorized so many of her books that we hardly have to read them to her at all. Her capacity for picking up language and ideas is astounding. Rationale, reasoning and logic seem to be her new loves... connecting the dots, putting things together, and spending hours figuring out how something works. We have also taken to cooking together. It's the next blog to come!

Please give us your hopes and prayers as we move forward with our journey's in life. We hope all of you are doing well this new year!

Come on Mom!!,

2008-12-30T09:00:00.000-06:00

As soon as I opened the door, TN came rushing over, "Come on, Mom, come on!" Puzzled, I looked at Terry who shrugged and smiled, "She has something to show you." TN grabbed my hand and rushed me across the house and into the bathroom. She flung open the toilet bowl seat and proudly declared, pointing for emphasis, "I made green poop!!!" My eyebrows raised, I looked at Nerys, looked at Terry, started laughing and told her she did a great job. "It's Green!!!" she said again. Then she asked if she could flush it. You see, she had made the green poop earlier in the evening and SAVED it for me to make sure I could see the green poop, too. What a sweetheart.

You never know what you're coming home to, I guess.

Happy Holidays!

2008-12-28T20:47:00.002-06:00

This year, Santa became a major household topic. TN read about santa, sang about santa, told us what santa wears and was ready for him to come. However, on Christmas morning, TN ignored all the gifts that mysteriously appeared under the tree, choosing to read books and play with toys she already had. Soon, she noticed a beautiful rocking chair Grandpa W made for her and has since spent a lot of time in. I'll post pictures soon!

TN was lavished with beautiful clothes, some of which she spent a lot of time layering one piece over another. She was... plush... She received puzzles and books, coloring books, and awesome tools to play with. Now, she spends much of her time hammering away at "nails" and figuring out how that darn screwdriver works. Ah, the mysteries of building and pounding.

We enjoyed our wonderful Christmas with friends and family. Thank you everyone, for making the holidays so special.

On January 7th, it will be Christmas day in Ethiopia, where our little Siloty will celebrate with her care-center infant buddies. We wish she was home with us and will think of her half way around the world...

Parenting Two?

2008-12-21T08:56:00.000-06:00

On December 4th, Siloty Ezri turned 1 month old. So hard to imagine a baby so small, after bringing home TN at 14 months. Soon, we'll bring SE home to our family, joining TN and SE as sisters, making us a family of four.

Sometimes I am so excited to get SE home I can't stand myself. Sometimes I am so nervous about parenting a toddler and an infant that I wonder what the heck we were thinking! But, more often than not now, I try to imagine what our household will actually be like. I imagine that maybe TN will be jealous? Or will she want to be with SE all the time? Will they be friends as they get older, or be sibling rivals at each others throats?

I know there are no answers and that I'm coming up with hypotheticals that cannot be predicted. Nevertheless, here we are, preparing for SE to come home to MN, introducing her to a whole new world. Hopefully, we can be as good of parents to two children as we trepiditiously hope we are with one.

Crying Hand, Fever Hand

2008-12-18T08:00:00.001-06:00

Thanks to F and C W who gave TN the greatest gift ever... a crying, feverish baby who needs band-aids, shots in the rear and who has all the right equipment for the checking of tonsils. TN, after many weeks, has finally named her CeCe.

TN LOVES THIS DOLL. She carries it everywhere, kissing her little head, telling her everything is okay and patting her on the bottom. It is absolutely adorable. CeCe sleeps with her, goes to Target, in the car, in the truck and everywhere she possibly can.

What is so funny is seeing and hearing all of the things we have said and done to her over the year come spilling out in her own actions and words. If you ever wonder how it is you really parent your kids, get them a doll and see what they do. I now feel confident that we are doing at least SOME things right.

Thanks W clan for the great doll. TN now has her own crying hand and fever hand (squeeze them and the appropriate actions occur) and is a great two and a half year old mommy.

Siloty

2008-12-14T10:03:00.002-06:00

We learned on Thursday that our baby girl, Siloty was in the hospital in Ethiopia with the flu. We were so concerned and worried for our 5 week old little girl. Good news arrived yesterday that Siloty is out of the hospital and is doing well. We'll even get new pictures soon!!

It's hard to describe how horrible it is to know I had a five week old in the hospital thousands of miles away from us. I was in Texas on a business trip; Terry and Nerys were in Minnesota. Regardless of our geography, there was nothing either of us could do for our little one, execpt put our faith in the doctor's and nurses caring for out little one so far away. All went well.

Now, we wait for our court date and the chance to meet our little one in February. We will name her Siloty Ezri, meaning My Prayer, Helper and Aid. She will be about 3 months old at homecoming, so tiny. But, as FW says, she is strong, she's a fighter and will be ready for her mommy and daddy soon.

Thank you all for your thoughts, prayers and hopes as we sent loads and loads of positive energy towards our little one in Ethiopia.

Drop Trow

2008-12-10T08:00:00.000-06:00

So, recently, TN has decided that whenever her bottom has a problem she should drop pants and panties immediately to investigate the issue. We're not sure why, as everything APPEARS to be fine. Nevertheless, whenever the girl has an itch or a twitch, she suddenly drops trow in the middle of wherever

The kitchen
The living room
Grandma's...

We're waiting for the day she drops everything in the middle of target or something. Nevertheless, those great body parts are the subject of many conversations lately. It means we spend time checking things out, decide everything is alright and the panties and pants back up, ready for play.

Gotta love two year olds. Everything is an investigation and no one is spared playing the role of investigator or becoming the investigatee.

Mary had a....

2008-12-04T20:46:00.002-06:00

TN sings songs. A lot of songs. Recently, it has become more fun to make up new words to songs rather than sing them as designed.

Mary had a little.... lemonade.

Mary had a little.... cow race (we've been playing cow racing on the new wii)

(saving the best for last) Mary had a little.... nipple.

It's so fun to teach your kids the real words to body parts. You never know when they're going to, umm, pop up.

Fall and Halloween Fun

2008-11-15T07:00:00.000-06:00

Announcing...

2008-11-14T17:22:00.002-06:00

The referral of baby girl Solity, born November 4th, 2008, weighing 6 pounds, height 19 inches. She is a beautiful little girl with dark black hair and enormous dark brown eyes. She's got 10 little fingers and ten little toes, each long and slender; she has the biggest newborn feet I've ever seen! She is amazing and we look forward to getting a court date so that we can share her picture with you.

We are so excited and TN is ready to travel to Ethiopia... So are we!

Thank you for your support, once again! We look forward to sharing more about our growing family soon.

S, T and TN

Catching up

2008-11-08T13:29:00.002-06:00

Hello everyone,

I'm sorry for such a huge delay in writing recently!

TN has grown so much and experienced her first Halloween where she got to knock on doors and say "trick or treat!" She had a of fun and she was a beautiful princess. She received many compliments and did a great job saying thank you. We had such a beautiful night for weather and it was so fun to play with her. I'll be posting pictures very soon.

TN continues to boggle our minds. She is such a dynamic child. She has this amazing sense of humor and is so smart it boggles the mind. Terry brought home a huge globe for her many months ago and she loves to play with it. She frequently drags it out of her room to play. She now knows how to find countries on her own. She knows these by heart:

Brazil
Japan
South Korea
Turkey
Yemen
Oman
Saudia Arabia
Ethiopia
Kenya
Madagascar
Australia (and Sydney and the East Australian Current)
Iraq
Iran
Sudan
Zimbabwe
Botswana
Afganistan
China
Thailand

She can also find Minnesota and Iowa (where mommy and daddy are from).

A new era

2008-11-05T09:45:00.000-06:00

Rosa sat so that Martin could walk.
Martin walked so that Barack could run.
Barack ran so that my children might fly.
-- author unknown

A thing about pull-ups

2008-10-16T19:00:00.002-05:00

They are not reusable, folks.

Don't wash them.

They do weird things to your child's clothing and to your new, fancy, front-loading, bought-on-clearance-super-cheap-but-super-awesome, water-saving washer.

*sigh* Alas, one of the last pull-ups TN will ever wear, now that she is potty trained (!!!!!!), has been washed. I really didn't intend to wash it, but know this: The silica gel/whatever the heck that stuff is in those diapers can get REALLY, REALLY wet. They can get so wet, in fact, that they burst open the seams, spilling jelly-like substances all over your clothing, washer drum and then clump up and flop around inside the washer.

I, of course, only realize this once the clothing is all nice and "clean" and ready to be put in the dryer. Then, I spent 1/2 hour shaking out all of the clothes, throwing them piece by miniscule piece into the dryer. I then spent some lovely time getting to know the shiny silver drum of the washer, carefully pulling, scraping, and caressing clumps of silica/whatever the heck that stuff is off of the drum. You know, that stuff falls into the holes of the drum of your washer making it quite difficult to remove. But, I think I got the job mostly done and threw in another load of laundry (a few towels, just in case). We'll see what happens to them in about 23 minutes.

So, a word to the wise, oh ye new parents, do not wash pull-ups. It's not a good thing, and I don't have to be Martha Stewart to know it.

In ways you don't expect

2008-10-06T12:36:00.004-05:00

As adoptive parents to a child of color (which I've written about here and there), we tried to think of everything that might come up. This includes what other people might say, how to react, how she might discover race, racism, skin color, and the ways we are different and the same. As we all know, however, we can't predict everything.

Last night, I was sitting on the rocking chair, my bare feet resting on the floor near TN. She touched by foot and said, "Mom, somebody colored on you!". I looked down, confused at first, and quickly ascertained that TN was looking at the purple blue veins everyone can readily see through my melanin-free skin. I told her that no one colored on me. In fact those were my veins and that daddy and TN had veins too.

TN checked her dad's feet first. Sure enough, he had veins also. She proceeded to peel off her socks as quickly as possible to find her own veins. After searching top and bottom she declared, "Somebody took mine!". Indeed, through her chocolate skin, no veins could be seen. We never thought she'd discover the color of her skin this way! I assured her that she had veins just like Mommy and Daddy. After doing some quick thinking, Terry and I turned her hands palm side up, where her hands and wrists are lighter. There, we all found some of TN's veins--veins you could SEE and she was satiated. No one had taken her veins (which is good for all of us!).

It's fun to see ways that TN connects to the world. She never asked why we couldn't see her veins (perhaps because we worked quickly to discover a few she could see), but I'm sure this day is coming soon. Until then, some of us are the color of brown crayons and some of us are the color of yellow or white ones. Just ask her, she'll tell you. For now, she doesn't know all of the socio-economic-political-identity issues that come with these monickers of color, and we're okay with that.

Pictures!

2008-09-27T16:07:00.004-05:00

I promise...

2008-09-26T16:37:00.002-05:00

To get to pictures up tonight of TN at the wedding! I'm sure we got some good ones and can't wait to see them myself!

Also, I promise to tell you that we are officially waiting for a referral for a baby sister... We are officially waiting for the referral of a baby sister!!!

New names TN has suggested:

Baby Sarah

White Baby (hmmm.....)

Pink

But not:

Terefech

Nerys

Elmo

or Terry... Because those are other people's names... Apparently, my name doesn't count.

Too funny.

Wedding!

2008-09-24T17:55:00.001-05:00

We had a wonderful time last weekend at Chad and Angie's wedding (our nephew got married!). TN was a flower girl and looked amazing! As soon as we get pictures loaded onto our computer, I'll post some here.

Congratulations to Chad and Angie!! May you have a beautiful, loving and laughter filled life together!

I'm getting a baby sister, mom

2008-09-17T14:20:00.002-05:00

Last night, TN wanted me to cuddle her before she went to sleep. So, I sat on the floor with her cuddled into my chest as we rocked back and forth. The swirling rainbow nightlight made patterns on the ceiling and cast a pinkish glow to the room as I cuddled with my baby.

"Mom?" TN said as she looked in my eyes with that tired, glazed over smile.
"Yes, Nerys?" I asked.
"I'm going to have a baby sister."
"Yes, Nerys, you are. You're going to be a big sister."
"Yep. Mom, I'm going to cuddle with baby sister."
"Oh, she'll love that, Nerys. You will also be able to rock her and sing her some songs if you want."
"Yep. And, I'll give her a bottle."
"Yes, Nerys, baby sister will be very happy when you give her a bottle."
"Go get baby sister now?"
"No, sorry, we have to wait a few more months."
"Sorry, mom."
"It's okay, Nerys. Right now, you are my little baby and we'll cuddle. Close your eyes, Nerys. It's time for night, night. I love you."
"Love you, mommy."

*sigh* I wish every night were as peaceful and wonderful as this night.

Dad, you suck!

2008-09-12T21:07:00.005-05:00

This evening we were on our way to Ethiopians for Ethiopians for a little get together, playing and language learning with other adoptive families. As we're pulling out of the driveway and heading down the road, TN pipes up from the carseat, "Dad! You suck!" Terry and I cast disturbed and questionning glances towards each other, clearly thinking, "No way did she just say that."

Then we asked her to repeat herself, "Dad! You suck!" followed by, "Mom, you suck!" I start laughing (because it's pretty funny, but don't worry, I didn't do it aloud). Then she says, "Dad, I suck too!" Then I really start laughing. She repeats it one more time before we figure out that she is saying, "Dad, you're stuck", "Mom, you're stuck", "I'm stuck too". After I get done laughing, I explain.

Quite a few weeks ago, TN decided that while I was driving home with her from daycare that I should hold her. After 3 days of attempting to explain that I couldn't hold her while I was driving, I finally told her that she was stuck and that I was stuck too. Our seatbelts made us stuck. This worked and ended days of sobbing and begging from the backseat.

I guess tonight, TN forgot her "t's" and as it turns out, we all suck.

I told TN she just got blogged. Too bad that doesn't mean anything to her yet...

Missing her

2008-09-04T20:01:00.002-05:00

There are some days, as a parent, when I sit and stare at TN's picture on my computer at work. There is nothing I want more than to spend they day with her, playing, cuddling, and laughing. Sometimes, in fact, I want to be with her so badly that my heart aches. It's days like these that the guilt of having her in daycare hits and I feel like perhaps I am failing her as a parent.

There are trade-offs as a parent, there is no doubt. We could forego my income and the benefits that it gives our family, and devote all of my time and energies to her. But then, I know that I would likely not be the best stay-at-home mommy. I get so much out of my work: the challenges, the interactions with other educated professionals, the feeling that I am helping others throughout the States.

On the other hand it is so good to know that TN is acquiring good social skills, playing and learning in a structured environment with a few other friends at daycare. I know that she is safe, warm and loved at the very small care environment she is in and that she equally loves her care provider. All of these things are reassuring.

With the debate raging about Palin, McCain's VP choice, women have polarized to one faction or another: Stay at home and be a "responsible" parent or be "irresponsible" and leave your child in the care of others. Sure, the argument is more complicated than that (e.g., Palin has a child with special needs, a pregnant teenage daughter and a son going into the military), but surely one could make some of the same arguments about being the parent of an adopted child, needing perhaps more parental energy and care than a biological child.

Regardless, the pressures on parents today, especially (it seems to me) mothers are starting to feel the heat again about making a choice between career and children. As we head towards our second adoption, a second daughter and child in our life, this brings the issue into focus once again. I don't know that there is a "right" answer to this question. In fact, I think the answer to this question probably varies family to family and perhaps in even child to child within a family.

I think we have made the right choice, for our family, for this child, in this moment. That doesn't mean the situation won't change in the future. One of the beauties of life in these United States, regardless of political affiliation, is that we still have the right to make choices that are right for our own families.

Hear Ye! Hear Ye!

2008-09-02T16:48:00.003-05:00

We would like to take this opportunity to announce that we are beginning a second adoption of a baby girl from Ethiopia. We are very excited to welcome a new baby girl home sometime in January of 2009.

Of course one of the major discussions at our household is names. We have included TN in on our naming discussions. She is excited to have a baby sister, so here are her suggestions (remember, she's 28 months now) for baby sister names:

1. Coffee: TN's favorite beverage. She also suggested coffee in amharic form: Buna
2. Pete: TN made up this word. It's one in a long list of words she has now "made-up" that are actually real words. She laughed hysterically when we repeated "Pete" and thought this was a good idea.
3. Darwin: Our cat
4. Fezz: Our kitten
4. Ooo-oooo: Her favorite sound from the They Might Be Giants "No!" soundtrack for children.

We'll keep you update on names and the newest upcoming addition to the family!

Thank you for your love and support!

The Cure for a Cold

2008-09-01T13:40:00.003-05:00

Poor TN woke up all congested on Saturday morning. The poor girl sounded miserable andwas losing her voice, but was up running around, playing, laughing and having fun. Nevertheless, I warmed up some water, added some honey and lemon and begged the child to drink it. She avoided it, of course, like the plague.

So, I told her that if she drank the water with lemon and honey it would make her nose feel better. She said, "Okay!", ran over to the couch, picked up her sippy cup and shoved the straw right up her left nostril... Not exactly what I had in mind.

After laughing my ass off, I asked her if she felt better, to which she proclaimed, "yep!".

So, next time you get sick, just shove a straw up your schnozz and all should be well. :)

Bic!

2008-08-22T07:01:00.000-05:00

TN is making up words. She finds this to be an extremely hysterical pasttime as she gets others to repeat her new made-up word.

A couple of weeks ago, TN started saying "bic!" and then waiting for you to repeat it back to her. As soon as you do, she's bent over in stitches laughing at your use of this clearly not-real word. It was during this same time period that she spent a couple of days over at Grandma and Grandpa's house. She kept walking up and telling them, "bic!". They struggled and wondered what this word was! What was this girl trying to communicate to them? What did she need or want? So, Terry gave me a call-- I was in Miami-- and said, "Umm, maybe you know the answer to this question. TN has been saying this 'bic' word all weekend and Aggie and your dad and mom are trying to figure out what this means. I think its driving them nuts." I started laughing on the other end of the phone, explaing that it means roughly... absolutely nothing. It has no meaning, she's just trying to get people to say unreal words because its funny. Poor D&J spent a weekend trying to muster up the meaning of bic, only to find out it meant absolutely nada.

As these word games of hers continue, we laugh and laugh. This is the best game ever invented. Just ask TN.

Who's Yo Momma?

2008-08-19T14:50:00.004-05:00

Now that TN is a super-speaker, and everyone thinks she's 3, she's started asking some very interesting questions. Once in a while her 2-year old slang is hysterical and/or embarrassing depending on the situation.

TN has taken to saying, "Who's Yo Daddy?" and "Who's Yo Mama?". More often than not, she now walks around pointing at strangers saying, "That's not yo mama!" or "That's not yo daddy!" While it is funny when we are alone, it did pose a certain problem for daycare a few days ago.

Tammy took TN on a walk. They happened to be behind an African man who was also walking down the sidewalk. TN is talking away when she abruptly says, very loudly of course, "That's not yo Daddy, Tammy!" Tammy said, "No, you're right, that's not my daddy". TN then exclaims, "That's my daddy!". The man then turns around, looks at TN and says in a heavy accent. "No, I am not your daddy." Poor Tammy was about ready to melt into the sidewalk as TN confirmed that this man was, indeed, not her father.

But, it never fails that we get into a public place and TN is pointing to everyone in their brother loudly proclaiming that everyone in the store is or is not her daddy or mommy. It usually draws quite the giggle and laugh from passerby's... but then, I've also seen the eyebrows go up as people start to wonder what the heck is wrong with this kid? She doesn't even know her parents!

Oh well, TN thinks it's all fun and games. These lovely experiences usher us into the two-year old phase... how to embarrass your parents. :)

Happy Famiversary!

2008-08-05T19:25:00.004-05:00

Yesterday we celebrated our first famiversary!!!! Believe it or not, it has been ONE WHOLE ENTIRE YEAR since we came home. We miss our beloved friends we met in Ethiopia and all of their amazing children, we miss the sites and smells of Ethiopia and all her beautiful people. I think about TN's Ethiopian family and talk to her about them even though I know she doesn't yet understand. Someday she will, though, and I want to make sure that they've been an ever present, positive and loving entity in her life even if she doesn't remember them.

It has been such a beautiful, rewarding, and amazing year. I love being a mommy so much words can't express... Terry is a fantastic and wonderful daddy. It's so fun to watch TN and Terry wrestling on the floor, or TN "jumping" on dad's tummy and chest. My favorite thing about being a family? If TN spies Terry and I exchanging hugs and kisses, TN grabs our legs and says, "Nerys hugs too!!" So, we pick her up and squeeze her between us with great big hugs; then we each shower her with kisses. She squeals with delight and yells, "again!" I can't help but beam at these endearing and fun family moments. I am blessed beyond words to have TN in our family, and to have her love us as much as we love her.

Happy Famiversary, Family!!

TN about 1.3 years ago, just before we traveled to Ethiopia.

TN a few weeks ago. A beautiful, super-smart and funny little 2 year old. We love, love, love you TN!

It's Okay to be Different

2008-07-26T11:22:00.002-05:00

Children's author Todd Parr has a book called, "It's Okay to be Different." In it, he describes different family attributes, like having different mom's and dads, or being adopted. He also talks about being a different color and having lots of different friends. TN has pretty much memorized the book and loves saying who has glasses and who doesn't, who in the household is adopted, and who isn't. Today, she was reading the book with her dad. Terry read the part where it says, "It's okay to have big ears!". TN promptly reported, "Dad has big ears!" I laughed til I almost peed my pants. Terry looks at me and says, "What? Do I have big ears or something and didn't know it?" No, I'm happy to report Terry doesn't have big ears (and it would be okay if he did), but apparently TN thinks so!

Stay Young

2008-07-20T07:46:00.000-05:00

And start doing it early.

Thanks, National Geographic!

Swimming

2008-07-15T07:42:00.001-05:00

It finally hit 90 here in MN, so what else is there to do except set up TN's first pool and go for a dunk in the water?

Hey Mom! Where's the Charmin?

2008-07-10T07:23:00.002-05:00

Nerys went to the bathroom.... And came out with our empty TP dispenser and some new TP. I guess we'd been negligent in keeping the TP dispenser full and ready to use in case someone, say, wanted to use it. And, since nothing gets past TN, she brought (literally) this to our attention by bringing everything to.... The living room. That's right, I turn around and TN is dragging the TP dispenser from the bathroom into the living room where I could assist in solving the problem.

Notice that this dispenser still has one, single, lonely piece attached to it. No problem, TN hastily removed the offending piece, put it in the trash and declared the TP roll ready to be removed.

We now have all the supplies neccessary for changing the TP: Dispenser? Check! New TP? Check! A cleaned off cardboard TP roll to be removed? Check!

Now, if TN could only get that roll off....

No problem. Mom successfully removes and replaces TP roll (hence, no pictures) and TN sets off to put the TP back in its rightful position.

Pick it up, "Oo, Mom! That's heavy!" she says.

She lugs it back to the bathroom...

And back into its rightful position. Thank you TN, for helping us see the error of our ways and helping to correct the TP problem. We'll try not to leave an empty roll in the future.

TN Enjoys the Summer

2008-07-03T08:41:00.005-05:00

Swimming, smelling the flowers and blowing bubbles with Grandma...

Is she too hot?

2008-07-01T11:57:00.008-05:00

Many people hold to the notion that children are color blind. This is especially said when children of differing races or ethnicities do something cute, such as hug each other or play with children in "mixed" groups. The adults in their lives frequently comment on how the children play together "even though" they are different; they love unconditionally. I suppose this might be true up to a certain age, but eventually children do come to notice in one way or another, that the children they are playing with don't look the same as they do. Sometimes this happens in a positive, protective way, other times by neutral and casual observation, and at still other times in a way that is negative or derogatory.

At daycare this week, one of the children asked the daycare provider, L, if TN was too hot. L knew what was coming next and asked casually, "Why do you ask?". The little girl, three and a half year old A, said, "Because TN is black and black gets hot in the sun." This observant little girl knew that when she wore dark clothing, she got warm-- sometimes even hot! So, she suspected that being in the sun made TN too hot also. She wasn't being racist, but she was definitely recognizing color. L responded that TN was fine and that if she got too hot, she'd come and tell L and L would help her. A good response which satiated A's concern about TN.

TN doesn't yet "know" that she is a person of color. While she has noted that her skin is brown, it's a neutral and casual observation linked largely to the color of crayon she was currently using to color a picture. While I have gotten glaring looks from all spectrums of the human color continuum, TN hasn't quite picked up on those negative observations yet. In different instances we have experienced those who assume that my partner is brown and that assumption may have an attached evaluation of good or bad. In other situations, it doesn't matter who my partner is; as a white woman, I should not be raising a child of color. I can deal with these idiosyncracies of the public's "feelings" and personal philosophies about our raising of TN. Soon, TN will have to deal with them too, and I will be a good role model, stand-up parent, and have an ear to listen when she needs to talk about issues of racism. Hopefully, my examples will ease the process of her transitioning and fending for her own dignity and respect. Afterall, there will come a time when I am not with her to help. How I wish she didn't have to deal with these issues, but eventually she will.

When we became the honored parents of TN, we also became a household of color. With this knowledge it is our responsibility and obligation to act on her best behalf, defend her and stand up to those who dismiss, offend, or in other ways negatively interact with TN or promote racism in general. This is complicated in a society ruled by not offending others. It is especially difficult when at times the comment is a look, stare, or glare that is imbued with negative meaning or disapproval. Nevertheless, we work with in the parameters that we accepted when deciding to adopt from Ethiopia. Until then, its' important to remember that:

1) TN is not an exception rule. It isn't okay to talk about how "bad" people of color are in general, but make an exception for my daughter. My daughter is a person-- a person of color who deserves respect and honor. As an example, it isn't okay to tell us a story about such-and-such and what terrible thing they did... oh, and they were black. Is this important to your story?? Probably not. It doesn't matter what negative actions people take; that this person is a person of color is almost always irrelevant to the action they took. Everyone does bad things sometimes.

2) It is not okay to tell jokes about people of color-- stereotypes that uphold and perpetuate negative, cultural, and social institutions aren't acceptable.

3) Be prepared. I am actively and willingly obligated to take you on about racism. I am also willing to remove my daughter from your presence, unabashedly, in order to prevent her from being harmed-- emotionally or physically.

4) Let's talk! Do you have questions about racism and race? Do you want to talk about racism and how to avoid being racist? I'm not perfect in this arena, and I don't think anybody is. I'm guilty of using phrases I'm not entirely familiar with, such as "being at the bottom of the totem pole"-- Did you know this is a position of honor and not a position of lowest person? I made this mistake in a classroom once and was immediately called on it, in a very educational and respectful way. And, I try never to use this comment now. But, I also learned something this day: It's possible to combat racism in an educational and enlightening way, and not in a way that bring the "offender" down.

So, let's talk. If you have questions, I may or may not have answers... but it's best if we learn together instead of degrading each other. Racism is part an unfortunate part of our lives. Let's learn to take racism down together. It's okay for things to get too hot, as long as we can come together in the end to cool things down.

Cute things heard recently

2008-06-19T21:26:00.002-05:00

This morning, TN woke up bright and cheery as usual. I sat her down on the changing table, took and took off her jammies. When I got to her diaper I said, "Girrrrl, you're wet!" She said, "Holy Buckets!"

Last weekend, Terry went to Iowa to help his family who were struggling with the flood which deeply affected their businesses and lives. TN and I spent the whole weekend talking about the fact that dad was in Iowa. It took me most of the week to convince TN that each morning this week dad had gone to work, and NOT to Iowa. Well, this evening, we're shopping at Target. TN is in a cart in the middle of the aisle while I peak at a pair of shoes for her. Suddenly, she says, "Mom! Nerys go Iowa!". The lady passing by starts laughing, for this is quite an odd thing for a 2 year old to proclaim... what two year old wants to go to Iowa??

Sing, Sing A Song!

2008-06-14T12:41:00.002-05:00

TN has begun to sing... and read. We've sung these songs and read these books so much that she now repeats the words in a super-cute, sing-song cadence. She even imitates the tones, pitches and voices used to sing and read. D&J returned from a 2.5 week vacation in Alaska only to find a two year old who sings and reads. Poor Grandma and Grandpa are sure she grew too much while they were away. How can a little girl who "only" talked several weeks ago suddenly be a "reading", singing big girl in so little time?

I'll give TN this, she's a smart little one. She's ready to read every book in the world and to read it back after a few sittings. If you say a word once, it becomes an instant part of her vocabulary. Now she wants to sing the ABC's fifty times in a row and it's too funny to listen to ellemmenoopeee all in one little blurred phrase. And when she gets to the end of the song, she is so, so proud of herself. And, so she should be. We're proud of her, too!

Toad Foo

2008-06-08T12:00:00.004-05:00

TN has developed an affinity for Toad Foo. She especially loves Toad Foo when it has been sauteed with sesame oil, Shitake, button, portabello mushrooms and low-sodium soy sauce. She doesn't particularly care if we consume Toad Foo over brown rice or rice noodles, as long as there is a steady supply of Toad Foo in which she can stab her fork, she is very happy. Just in case you haven't interpreted yet, Toad Foo is Tofu, that lovely firm soy-based product that comes in a massive block water soaked block. It is also her new favorite food. I just want to thank the Toad Foo producers of the world for the alternate protein source for my meat-hating, veggie-loving 2 year old.

Let the Birthday Bash Continue!

2008-06-04T09:02:00.003-05:00

This is TN in the morning crinkling up her nose when I asked her if she looked cute:

TN loves her cake and eats it, too!

She's 2!

2008-06-01T20:16:00.005-05:00

Happy Birthday, Terefech Nerys!

Today, you turn two and celebrate your first birthday with us. Last year, we celebrated your birthday buying toys and scrapbooking supplies, preparing for your journey to us. We cried because we could not be with you, but talked about our hopes and wishes for our future, together, as a family.

This year, you light up our lives with your laughter, jokes and charm. Your beauty is compared to none, and compliments your bright personality and your amazing capacity to learn and grow. Tiny little you has grown to a robust and active little girl, running, jumping, singing, and climbing over every possible obstacle. You are independent and have such a strong desire to learn that we find ourselves trying to keep up!

We've been telling you for a week that today you get to have cake. We're pretty sure you think you get to have pancakes for your birthday, and I think we can accommodate that.

Happy Birthday, Nerys. You are an amazing little girl that we are honored to have as our daughter, our forever baby...

It's Official...

2008-05-24T08:24:00.005-05:00

TN is a toddler. Laughing, running through the house, tripping on unexplained objects, talking a mile a minute (as long as no strangers are around), growing out of clothing so fast I'm surprised there are clothes in the dresser that still fit her and now... riding a tricycle. Ah, yes, we have graduated from walking to peddling in a rapid fashion.

So, we bedecked the child in a tricycle helmut, which came with knee pads and elbow pads. Quick guess: Which objects in this list are the most popular with TN? That's right, one cannot travel inside or outside of the house without wearing the knee and elbow pads. Thanks, once again, Sesame Street marketing. We appreciate your due diligence in protecting our children. FYI: Do not wear the helmut inside. When you fall flat on your face, that little piece sticking out...well, it does bad things to necks. So, the new rule is: no tricycle helmuts in the house. We learn these things eventually... as new parents...

Here are pics of beautiful TN, who turns two in only nine days time.

100th Post!

2008-05-12T09:46:00.002-05:00

If you've stuck with me alllllllll this while, congratulations! You've just started reading your 100th post. And, how nice that it coincides with Mother's Day. Happy Mother's Day to all of you new, up-and-coming, waiting, and been-there mommies!

Last year on Mother's Day, Terry woke me up with a gift... blue bibs. I laughed at him, cajoling his choice of blue. So confident was he, that our new bundle of joy would be a boy. Ahhh, only a few weeks later brought us the gift of a precious baby girl.

This year I had my baby in my arms to celebrate with. Off to Fasika to have Ethiopian food for lunch with Popop and Gramma (aka, grammy, granny) who weren't fishing (whenever you ask, TN will tell you confidently that they are fishing). We met another mommy there with her Ethiopian children and it was nice to sit and talk with her and her son for a bit.

It has been an extraordinary journey and I thank you all for your love and support. Being a mommy is even better than I thought it would be. TN is the most amazing child, laughing or crying, sleeping or awake. It's amazing to hold hands with my daughter when we walk down the sidewalk, or practice going under the blanket to be in the dark, and then out of the blanket into the light. It's a joy to see her stand up! No hands! And then so big! all as she is precociously perched on her bicycle seat. As much of an effort as we put into making her safe, she finds ways to climb onto furniture and toys in a most unsafe way. But, the smile on her face as she reaches towards the sky is enough to light up a stadium. Little does she know that she does so much more than that by lighting up our souls.

Happy Mother's Day!

ZOO!

2008-05-05T07:23:00.007-05:00

A few weeks ago, we took a trip to the MN zoo to see the animals and visit with our friends J, A and E. TN and E had a great time playing together, but mostly checking out the animals at the zoo. Here's a few photos from our trip.

The classic stick-your-head-in-the-hole picture. Instant farmer, just like that.

Smile at the goats! Or, enjoy being really high up on top of dad's shoulders.

Looking for wolves.... or quiet contemplation.

Saying Goodbye

2008-04-28T15:11:00.003-05:00

On Saturday, we put our 8 year old cat to sleep. After struggling to control her diabetes, her organs started to fail and we lovingly held her as she took her last breath and slept forever. As we wept over her, our first baby girl, we said our good byes and gave her back to the earth. She lies nestled under the lilac tree to happily chase birds in her life after death.

She and her brother were our first adopted "babies". It took us months to name them both, so one wore a blue piece of ribbon and the other wore pink ... collectively, they were named Baby Boy and Baby Girl. Baby girl finally got a name, Ellis, but most of the time we still called her Baby Girl. The poor girl suffered as we brought baby TN home, not thinking too fondly of this crying, then crawling, then walking creature who'd invaded her space. It was harder to control a toddler than it was her big (physically!) brother. But, every night when the TN went to sleep, Ellis would reappear to snuggle into our laps, nestling her head in our hands as we rubbed her ears. She'd bury her head in the crook of our elbows and purrrrrr as we stroked the softest fur on the planet. Her brother looks for her now, but seems somewhat soothed to lie on the last clothes we wore before laying her to rest. They must still smell of Ellis and bring him some measure of comfort.

So, goodbye our first baby girl. We miss you very much, but hope there are many mice and birds in your second life to keep you happy and content, and a warm blanket on a soft, smooshy bed for you to rest after a hard day of play. We love you.

Language... comparisons and politics

2008-04-20T21:38:00.004-05:00

TN's language has developed so fast that it's hard to keep up these days. You'll notice that quite a few of my posts are about TN, talking and language development. Call it a fascination I have, and try not to think of it as a critique, for this is not the intent. Language acquisition is a phenomenal thing to me and TN provides me with plenty of stimulus. Lately, TN has found it enjoyable to compare who has what and to self-correct her word order.

TN: "Mom, Nerys no necklace?"
Me: "No, Nerys is not wearing a necklace."
TN: "Mom necklace wear it?"
Me: "Yes, mom is wearing a necklace."
TN: "Mom? Daddy no necklace wear it?"
Me: "No, daddy is not wearing a necklace"
TN: "Nerys no wear necklace."
Me: "No, you are not wearing necklace"
TN: "Nerys no wear necklace, okay?"
Me: "Okay."

As you'll see in this dialogue not only does she do a lot of comparing: Who wears what, but she also changes the order of her words. Lately it has been a riot to listen to her practice sentance formation and saying things "right". This isn't something we've taught her to do, really. It's just that when she tells us something, we tend to say it back to her in the proper tense and order. Some might call this a reflective listening exercise. Either way, this habit of ours has rubbed off on her.

Also, we're attempting to expand TN's vocabulary. In doing so, we took cues from Hillary Clinton who, on two separate occasions, used the word "excoriate" during her speaking engagements. We've decided that since Hillary thinks that EVERYONE has uber-collegial vocabulary and linguistic skills, then surely our two year old should probably be able to say this word, too. Thus, in addition to using fun words like "attached" (as in, "Yes, mommy's hair is attached", e.g., please stop pulling it out of my head), which she appropriately uses, we also have taught her the word excoriate. She's very close to being able to say it. When she does, we'll send a tape to Hillary... perhaps it will help us send her the message that if you want to reach "The People" who's "voice" she insists on using, that she's speakin' the wrong language. In the mean time, TN will be the smartest, most well-spoken Kindergartner in the whole world...in three years. Thanks, Hil.

Pink!

2008-04-07T21:00:00.004-05:00

TN knows her colors. Yes, all of her colors, but she has a favorite. I don't know how this happened, but my little girl's favorite color is Pink. It's the one color I've dreaded my whole life. I avoid it like the plague. Yes, yes, I painted 3 of her 4 walls pink. And, yes, the crib sheets are pink. But, you know, one wall is brown, and the crib sheets have brown polka dots and striping. She could have picked brown for a favorite color. It seems reasonable that this could happen, but it didn't. The color of choice is pink, pink and pink. You might wonder how we know her favorite color is pink? Allow me to share.

It wasn't just that she went to REI with daddy and picked out hot pink suede Merrell's. It's not that they are the only shoes she wants to wear. It's not that most of her clothes are pink (mostly not purchased by me, for the record!). It's not even that when I did her laundry last week that I pulled out all pink lint from the dryer. No. It's that whenever we ask TN, "What color is ________?" Her first, immediate answer is "Pink!". If we say again, very seriously, "TN, what color is that?" she says, "blue" in a really disappointed way.

There is this sense that she just wishes that everything could be pink! Last week I walked into her bedroom to get her out of bed and she said, "mom shirt orange?" I confirmed that my shirt was orange. TN said, "mom shirt orange. Yuck. Off." I said, "you want me to take my shirt off?" She said, "yes. Orange, yuck, off" I said, "What color shirt should I wear?" She said, "Pink!"

I'm sure her tastes will change with time. After all, she did start eating green vegetables eventually... surely, her favorite color won't be pink forever, right? Until then, I'll continue to pick pink lint out of the dryer and make sure that she has enough pink socks to last each outfit throughout the week. After all, it's important to satisfy the need for our little one's favorite color, pink.

TN enjoys life... A Pictorial

2008-03-28T12:53:00.006-05:00

TN discovered that you can "drum" your heals on the side of the bench (pronounced "bunch" for those of you learning toddler-speak). It is very fun!

Also, it is funny when you can stand on your head and peak through your legs at Gramma W. In fact, you can look at anyone through your legs. This is amazing. Try this at home. You'll like it too.

Hey There! What's up? Oh, it's Mom!

Remember those glasses I told you about earlier? Well, I can wear them upside down, too. This way, they don't slide off of my nose. I love my glasses.

Where Is....

2008-03-26T13:32:00.002-05:00

TN is strongly identifying with names. Most of our conversations lately gather around "rules" and "where is____?"

This morning at 3:00 am, TN woke up and was doing the whiny crying thing. You know, not crying, but kinda that fake crying thing that just lets you know they need some attention? So, I get upstairs and TN greets me with, "daddy work?"

Me: "no, daddy is sleeping. It's still sleepy time, not work time."
TN: "no daddy work? Sleeping?"
Me: "yes, it is still time for sleeping."
TN: "yes, sleeping"

Bleery eyed, I rubbed her back and rocked back and forth before asking her if she was ready to lay in bed again. She whispered, "yes.", and so I laid her back down where she promptly went back to sleep. I was awake for another hour. Funny how that works.

Last week, TN was convinced that everyone was hiding. When I asked where daddy was, she would say, "hiding." It was a point of fact, not a question or ponderance. The week before we had a discussion about Popop (my dad). I told her that Popop had gone fishing.

"Fishing?!" she said from the back seat, sounding at once exasperated and shocked.
"Yes, fishing," I said.
"No!" TN said, "Fishing naughty! Popop naughty!"
I said, "No, fishing is okay. Popop will bring you some fish to eat."
"No! Naughty Popop fishing!" TN said.

After several rounds of this, knowing I was losing the battle, I gave up. Apparently fishing is bad, although I'm sure my father would beg to differ.

Either way, fun conversations like this have given rise to guesspeculating on where people are and what they are doing. Each morning, we go through the list of people she knows and she guesses where they are... Each morning we confirm or deny where someone might be. One thing always remains the same though: No matter what, my brother is always sleeping (Sorry, Chuckles!).

Playing House

2008-03-15T14:04:00.003-05:00

TN received a Fisher Price doll house for Christmas from Grandma and Grandpa W. We didn't open it for several months because it seemed a bit old for her. But, last month, we exhumed the house and its family from the box and set it up in the living room. It's pale pinks, blues and yellows now grace our living room floor. Originally the set came with a caucasion mom, dad and baby, two pink chairs, a yellow kitchen table, a kitchen set and a potty. It has now grown to also include a baby crib, lamp, rocking chair, baby papasan chair, puppy, living room set, armoire, and television. TN loves this toy and roleplays important parts of her own life over and over. There was only one thing really missing...

For months Terry and I looked for an African American family for the house, but could not find one. We looked in store after store, on the Fisher Price website and even called around. We could buy an entirely new house with an African American family, but that meant buying all of the pieces and the whole house again. We didn't need a whole new house! If we could buy a grandma and a stroller (white, of course), they why couldn't we just purchase an African American family. It simply wouldn't do to have an entirely white family living in the house, when our family just doesn't look like that.

Terry finally found the African American Family. On the Fisher Price website you can purchase the African American family not as a toy accessory, along with lamps, kitchen sets, etc. No, the African American Family is a "part", as in a piece to "fix" the original toy kind of part. Frankly, I'd searched the FP website rather extensively, but never thought to look for a black family as a "part". There's something about this that bothers me, and I can't quite put my finger on it. Rather, I feel that this family of color (mom, dad, baby) should be available just like any other accessory. Our family is not made up of faulty pieces. Our outside skin may not match, but we are not broken.

The big picture is, I'm upset about this now, but TN doesn't care. She loves her new family members just like the original ones that came with the set. Now she has two mommies, two daddies and two babies. They all use the potty, eat broccoli at the table and rock in the chair. She's not at an age yet where she knows that her skin is brown, and that our skin is peach and that someday she'll have questions about that. But, we care that she has representation of herself, in this house, in her toys, and that those images are positive from the start. So, it may have taken a while to find our family of color to play with, but it was worth it just to set the stage for the future.

Dear Aunt Julie,

2008-03-01T14:55:00.009-06:00

Thank you for the Super Fabulous glasses and hat for Valentine's Day. Since I love hats the mostest, this has become an essential part of my wardrobe. Additionally, I am now obsessed with glasses and am SOOOO happy that everyone in my close and extended family (but not my mommy) wears them! Because my mommy does not wear glasses, I have mommy put them on just for fun. Thank you for helping my mommy become a glasses wearer too. To show you just how much I LOVE my new wardrobe accessories, here are a few pictures.

Love, TN

p.s. I have also discovered that pants can be tied around the neck for a lovely scarf-like accoutrement. Hooray! And, look what a totally cool, hollywood kind of twinkle I have in my eyes. I couldn't have done it without you, Aunt Julie.

Aunt Julie, here is proof that you can walk, wear a glasses and a hat, a dress and pants, and look VERY cute at the SAME time.

And finally, although Mommy does not want me to post this picture, here she is sporting those cool shades. I am so excited that I am flipping backwards laughing.

Potty!

2008-02-21T20:31:00.003-06:00

TN became interested in the potty a few weeks ago. One of the children at daycare has been potty training, which sparked her interest. But, being in the bathroom while mommy and daddy do their business has also been very interesting. So, now that she has the language to tell us she is ready to go pee-pee or poop, we caved and bought a potty.

Her's looks something like this. The first day we introduced the potty TN was great! She excitedly made pee-pee and it didn't take long to figure out what a reward system was for her. Not toys, not stickers, not snacks. No, TN wanted to wipe. That's right, the honor of using time-tested, soft TP is the greatest reward on earth for making pee-pee or poop on the potty. This, of course, was not what we expected, but it sure works for us!

She's a bit young for potty training, and we don't expect any mastery anytime soon, but she sure is enthusiastic about using her potty. She let's us know when it's time to go, when she has finished, that she wants to "wipe, mommy", "flush mommy", and "wash hands, mommy". Most funny though is that she waves to the toilet and says, "bye, pee-pee!" as it washes down the toilet. Maybe the novelty of the potty will wear off soon, but so far, so good and it's fun to see her grow up so quickly!

Laughing it Up

2008-02-07T09:15:00.000-06:00

I don't think 21 month old children are supposed to get sarcasm, much less practice it. I guess we could call it a joke. Further, no one else who lives in this house (hahaha) is EVER sarcastic. Never ever. I swear. As such, we're not sure where she picked up this skill.

So, TN understands that some things are hot, such as food cooking on the stove, steaming oatmeal, the oven/stove in general. She also understands that some things are cold, mostly snow and ice. However, mostly she understands that things are either hot or not hot. One day, she walked up to Terry with a piece of string cheese, pointed to it and said, "hot?" And before he had a chance to answer, shook her head and said, "nooooooooo!" in that teasing, bantering kind of lilt that let you know she was totally kidding. She then laughed and took a bite out of her cheese ("cheeeeesz!"). She does the same kind of thing with her colors too. She tells us an object is one color, then laughs and tells us the correct color. She's just too funny.

TN finds the humor in most things in life. Grandma JB taught TN to say "cha cha cha" and stomp her feet three times. TN thinks this is hilarious and will spontaneously walk up to us, stomp her feet and say, "cha cha cha!!", then laugh hysterically at herself.

I don't think TN could be more fun or more funny. She's such a hoot to be around and we can't wait to see her develop more humor!

Snow 2

2008-01-31T20:18:00.000-06:00

We tried sledding again, this time making a more concerted effort not to face plant the poor girl in the snow. Taking advantage of one of the snow-melt days, we ventured across the street to the sledding hill and TN and daddy went for a spin. It turned out much better this time!

Before you go sledding, you get all your gear on and clear your nostrils. This is VERY important.

Right before going down the hill, you smile and wave to your adoring fans (all adults, children and infants are adoring fans.)

When you return from the bottom of the hill, you smile again, relishing in your accomplishments of the day.

zzzzzzzzz...

2008-01-27T21:15:00.000-06:00

Those of you in our small inner circle know that TN slept with us, in our bed downstairs, for the first couple of months she was home. It helped her feel safe, helped us know she was breathing and well, and also allowed us to repond to her needs very quickly. While it was nice sleeping next to her all night, getting kicked started to be an issue. So, we tried transitioning her into a crib in her room, but that was an utter failure. We felt the best solution was to bring her crib downstairs and transition her there, and finally move her upstairs to her own room again.

That was 4 months ago. This weekend, we finally moved her crib upstairs-- she now sleeps in her own room. To me, our room seems suddenly empty; no sounds of her jostling and repositioning in the night, no sighs and babbled sleep talking. Having TN in our room for months wasn't always great for sleeping, no late night conversations between Terry and I that we used to have. But, now it suddenly seems too quiet and I worry about what I am missing. It was so heartwarming to hear her say, "HI!" in the morning when she woke up. As I would open my eyes, she'd be waving her good morning message. "Up?" she'd say, indicating that it was time to go upstairs. Sometimes she'd say, "night night all done!" I'll still hear her mini-messages over the baby monitor, but I won't get to see her smiling face and waving hands.

I know most people don't bring their babies home and have them sleep in their bed and then in their room for months on end. However, I have to say that I am so happy we took these steps, encouraged bonding by sleeping with us, having her so near we could respond quickly to her needs. I think these steps made our relationship as a family stronger. I miss my little girl sleeping downstairs.

Hat?

2008-01-20T20:08:00.001-06:00

TN has a collection of hats. While all have the potential of practical application, few have had the opportunity as they have become objects of play. So, here's a blog in celebration of... The Hat.

Who taught her that?

2008-01-14T21:21:00.000-06:00

Over the holidays TN discovered word upon word upon word. Someone (hey you parents out there) should have given us the "don't teach her this word" list. One of the words we taught her was... poop. Yes, poop. We thought it would be good (silly us) if she could tell us when she had made a poo. We also taught her the word toot. You know, passing gas, breaking wind? At first she had the words correctly appropriated. But, then, something went wrong.

So, Terry and TN accompany me to the doctor. At the women's clinic. Yes, yes, probably not the best place for a toddler and a husband, but... that's another story. Nevertheless, here we all are at the women's clinic. Seated to our right are an older woman and her husband. They are probably in their early sixties and the woman is thinkin' TN is soooooo cute. We're reading TN books when two younger women enter the clinic and sit directly to our left, several seats away, and kitty-corner across the room respectively. Do you have the picture? So, we continue to read books. And suddenly, TN says VERY LOUDLY, "POOOOOP?! Poop! Poop!"

The older woman on the right starts laughing, because this is justifiably funny, but the two younger women stare at us in abject horror. They are mortified that our little 18 month old is announcing her poop. Clearly, they do not have children. The woman on the right, however, clearly has experience with this sort of thing and thinks its pretty funny. And, well, Terry and I laugh and say, "shhhh..." and so TN says, a bit quieter, "poop" all the while arching back and grabbing her bottom just in case we have missed the point. We thank her for using a quiet voice and express that we understand. We also learn that poop also means toot. No, little TN has not pooped in her diaper, she's just let a few little toots loose and wanted to let us know. Very kind of her to do so, of course. Perhaps not the best of environments in which to practice the word poop. However, she definitely got her message across.

So, to all of you parents out there who have pre-verbal children... don't teach them the word poop. :)

La La?

2008-01-08T14:00:00.000-06:00

No, she's not singing yet. And, no the teletubbies have not invaded our home (okay, they have...). La La is Elmo. That's right, that furry little red-furred Sesame Street character has a new name.

For those of you not in the Sesame Street loop... here's the scoop. Elmo has a song that goes something like this, "la la la la, la la la la, Elmo's World!" While I don't like most corporate characters (disney, nickelodeon, etc.) invading my home, I don't mind Elmo. As such, TN owns a small Elmo doll and an Elmo cell phone ("Vone!"), which sings the title song (see above). She also watches Sesame Street on occassion... okay, she's not a television fan, so mostly she listens to Sesame Street while we make dinner.

The other day, she walks out of her bedroom carrying Elmo. We say, "Is that Elmo?" TN, "La La." "Elmo?" TN says again, "La La". Okay, well, poor Elmo is now a teletubbies character by the name of La La. So, she spent most of the day putting La La night night, burying Elmo in a huggies wipes box, and riding with Elmo in her lap while she sat in the Huggies box. Who said we needed toys? Any household object or container will do. When she forgot where she put La La (aka Elmo) she asked, "La La?"

So, here we are with our uber verbal child now making up names for characters. Too cute. On the positive side, at least I can say that she is transposing one PBS character for another. :)

Go Obama!

2008-01-04T12:36:00.000-06:00

Okay, so this post isn't as political as it initially seems.

On the CHSFS board, one of the members highlighted what a great day this is for our brown children. And I have to agree. It's not about if you are democrat, republican or independent... or other. It's about finally having a person of color with the potential to lead our nation. It's about finally having a person of color, a brown man, to give our brown children a person to look up to: a Brown president.

It's also about finally celebrating all of the achievements Brown Americans have made for our country; those who already stand up and represent. In Minnesota, we count amongst them Keith Ellison, the first Muslim elected to Congress, who is also Brown. But, across the nation we are finally looking at, and talking about, the other great leaders of color who have stood up for the American Dream: Condeleeza Rice, John Conyers, Jr., and many others.

While I do support Obama, I also support what his representation means to me, and to my child, as she grows and looks for people who look like her, to look up to.

Last Post of 2007

2007-12-31T12:49:00.001-06:00

Happy New Year's Eve! 11.5 months ago we posted our first blog about adoption. By March I was droning on and on about how long this is taking and my hopes and dreams for the future. By the beginning of May I was in dire straits, so anxious to hear who our new family member would be. Low and behold, May 18th we received our referral for an 11.5 month old baby girl, Terefech. We celebrated and you shared in our joy. Many of you contributed donations for the care center and helped us prepare by hosting and attending baby showers. We brought TN home on August 4th, overjoyed and overwhelmed. The months have passed so quickly we barely blink and TN has grown an inch or two and learned a bazillion new words. A few days ago, we celebrated our first Christmas as a family of 3, and tonight we celebrate and give thanks for a new year which includes our daughter, Terefech Nerys.

Happy New Year, Everyone!

Celebrating

2007-12-18T21:21:00.000-06:00

It's only a few days until Christmas. Our first as a family of three, as parents. It's hard to know how to mark this special occassion... we wonder what traditions to start, which to keep from our family of origin, and how to make this season special from this point forward. Nevertheless, time will pass and we will determine the future in due course, over time. And, as the years pass, TN will likely tell us what she wants out of these special occassions.

Happy Holidays. I hope that all of you, who have supported and loved us through our amazing, wonder-filled and inspiring year find peace, love and joy in your annual celebrations.

Ah Wu Wu

2007-12-10T20:47:00.000-06:00

What TN lacks in physical prowess, she makes up for in cognitive acumen. Our delightful 18 month old knows how to use her words. Surpassing her age expectations and showing a tremendous learning potential after being here a scant 4 months, having never heard English in her past, TN now speaks almost 60 words.

She tells us when she is hungry, speaks in multiple word sentences and likes to tell us stories... of course her stories are peppered with "words" we do not understand yet, but she likes to talk. A lot. She now points across the room and says, "dat ting?" or "that thing?" meaning, "What is that? What is the word?" She studies us with rapt attention, staring at our mouths, her lips and jaw practicing the subtle movements speech requires. She then attempts the word again and again, mostly until she is satisfied with her own pronunciation.

Her new favorite word is bubbles (which now sounds a lot like bub bo, emphasis heavy on the bo, where her voice raises in pitch as if to emphasis her finger pointing, rather than vice versa). She learned num-num this weekend, which she now uses every time she would like to eat. All liquid beverages are "pop!" which she says in a slightly squeally voice. Diaper (dii ter) means its time for a change, and she likes to tell us when she toots (tooo oot?!). So, I guess her basic needs are covered... she even likes to tell us when she is "home". :)

Each day TN brings a new word to our world, causing us to do much problem solving and hard listening... did you hear that? Did she just say...? The best one, however, is Ah-wu-wu... I love you.

Let It Snow!

2007-12-04T22:03:00.000-06:00

Nerys briefly experienced snow over Thanksgiving, when we received a trace... enough to lightly salt the windshield of the car. She grabbed it and looked at me, seemingly perplexed by this white stuff that was cold and melted. Somehow in her 18 month old mind she'd determined this wasn't how things were supposed to be. Little did she know the things to come.

First, there is the pesky snowsuit, hat and mitten combination that never fails to turn a toddler into a colorful statue of sorts-- immobile, too hot, and cloistered. Also, you cannot easily remove yourself from this predicament.

Then, well, there is your inexperienced, first-time parents who do a more horrible thing to you. Beware: Scary first time parent mistakes illustrated below.

Of course, a couple of weeks later it happens that we get a BIG snow fall. That's right, our first real dumping of snow, enough to plentifully cover the hard ground and brown grass, enough to plow and cause misery on the roads. We excitedly proclaim this to be "Nerys's first snow!" and go about the normal child preparedness drill. First: warm under clothes. Second, does that snowsuit fit? It looks like it will fit. Well, we'll just try it on. Okay, well it's a bit (lot) tight, but it'll do for now so we can take pictures (pictures are VERY important). I vow to purchase a more adequate pair of toddler snowpants. Nevertheless, with beautiful TN properly stuffed into her snow suit, hatted, mittened, bundled to the core, we set out into the snow.

Terry finds our first sled we bought together a decade ago and properly affixes a rope. Being good parents, we place little TN in our ancient, blue plastic sled and set off... down the hill. All is well and fine, mommy is taking pictures, daddy is pulling the sled. Except then Terry decides that he is going to run down the hill. The sled hits a bump, TN bumps too, but lands rather sloppily in the sled, and promptly bounces right back out, face planting in the fresh new snow... all the way down to the leaves and grass below. Hmm... A cute scene turned horrible wrong, our poor TN is shocked. She is shocked and then she is mortified. She mortified and then sobbing while mommy digs the snow out of the hat flaps and wipes TN's face with mittens until she is nice and dry. And then, well, snow time is over and we have forever recorded that we totally ruined that which is... Nerys's first (really bad) snow.

At first, things went really well!

Being good parents, we do take a picture of the results of our faulty moments also (I'd dried her off already!).

TN and Dad do good sledding together!

And so we give Thanks...

2007-11-22T10:24:00.000-06:00

Although this time of year is typically used to give thanks and relfect on the good, it is also so close to New Years, and those pesky resolutions, that it becomes easier to reflect on what hasn't quite gone your way, rather than what has. I have certainly been guilty of committing this injustice to the Thanksgiving holiday.

This year, we have many reasons to give thanks. So, on this day, I do:

I give my biggest, joy filled thank you to TN's birth parents and family in Ethiopia. Without their painful sacrifice to give TN a better life we would not have such an amazingly beautiful daughter to gaze upon each day.

Next, I give thanks to the people of Ethiopia whom enriched our lives so fully and gave new meaning to giving and how to live life fully. Without them, we might not have discovered the true meaning of giving.

We give thank you's to all of our wonderful, supportive, loving, caring, and giving family and friends without whom this year would not have been possible. We love you more each day and appreciate all that you do for us, and little TN. Thank you.

And finally, we give thanks to TN, who has enriched our lives more fully than thought possible and will bless us all the days of our amazing lives.

Finding Parenthood

2007-11-18T11:06:00.000-06:00

We've been home for a little over 3 months now, which is hard to believe. Sometimes it feels like we just got home and are constantly figuring out this little one in our home. Sometimes it feels like she's been here forever, and I can't imagine a time when she hasn't been with us.

At first, parenthood seems like a novelty. It seems like things change every day: I can dress her up, just like I practiced when I was a child; she can play new toys everyday, make new discoveries, and I discover the burning joy of random, excitement filled hugs and kisses. Sometimes, parenthood seems like a burden: doctors appointments, can't wait to get to sleep but can't because she is awake, finding a way to get the chores done and be entertaining... the latter of which Terry has been far more successful at than me.

Whether in novelty time or times of burden, TN is a joy to behold. I love watching her sleep, giggle at her antics while avoiding sleep, her discovering that you can hide toys up your pant legs, and that formula that comes through the nipple on the bottle is the perfect device for "coloring" on the carpet. We call them milk dots and as she makes them she says, "dot, dot, dot...". While at times annoying, I can't help to find this quite funny as she focuses intently and patiently for each "dot" of milk to come out. Who knew milk dots existed, better yet that they could be so fun?

We learn new things from TN each day. I've learned how to play again. I've learned to love intensly and overwhelmingly again and have marveled as tears sometimes come to my eyes as I laugh at her or just make eye contact. I will mourn the days when I no longer cuddle her in my lap to take a bottle, as she gazes into my eyes, and gently caresses my face, and I hers. Soon, these intimate moments will end and I know that my little one will be off running around, no longer so much interested in these mommy moments. But, I do not dwell in the future. I hold onto these little "baby" moments and grow in the wonderment that is parenthood.

Things they should have asked in the Homestudy

2007-11-12T17:19:00.000-06:00

How will you bathe your child?

"In the washer, of course."

How will you transport your child?

"Why, in the lawn mower wagon!"

Will you take any embarrassing photos of your child?

"Surely not!"

(TN poo's... poo happens)

Will you adhere to all child labor practices?

"Absolutely..."

bee my, bee my baby

2007-11-03T23:06:00.001-05:00

TN was a bee for the first of holidays here in the States. She came complete with a bzzzzz sound she learned in about 3 seconds. It was pretty darn cute. So, we dolled the poor girl up in a puffy bee costume and heading to grandma and grandpa's house. We trick or treated over at the neighbors, but she didn't find that too inspiring. No, the amazing part of the evening is that as many kids as she has ever dreamed of show up on the doorstep!! This is utterly amazing. Not only do they show up, unrequested, but you can look up and down both sides of the street and actually watch them come to you! Halloween is TN's dream. So many children to watch, so little time.

TN has mastered the art of the cheesy grin. She sometimes walks right up close to our faces and shows us her four little teeth while clenching her eyes nearly shut and wrinkling her nose. It's absolutely hysterical.

Conversations in Baby

2007-10-28T20:25:00.000-05:00

We drifted off towards Iowa this weekend to visit with Terry's family. This was TN's first time having a long car ride. Since she usually can't make it even 45 minutes in the carseat without trying to peel herself out, 4 hours was going to be quite the adventure. But, all was well as Terry entertained TN while I drove.

Have I mentioned that TN's word count is almost at 30? She seems to come up with something new everyday. So, we're in the car, and Terry is blowing bubbles at TN. Their conversation goes something like this:

Terry: "Bubbles"

TN: "Dodo?"

Terry: "No, Buuubbles"

TN: "Dodo"

Terry: "Bu bbbb les"

TN: "Dodo!"

Terry: "Well, they're similar... but different."

Me from the front seat: "what?!"

For those of you who do not know what a dodo is...

Needless to say, you understand my confusion from the front seat. So, if any of you can give me a good cross comparison of how bubbles and the dodo bird to the left are "similar", please do let me know. I'm quite interested.

So, we get down a little further into Iowa, when they repeat this conversation, only this time it goes something like this:

Terry: "Bubbles"

TN: "bubba?"

Terry: "Bubbbbles"

TN: "bubba?"

Terry: "Okay. Yeah. We're in Iowa now, so that'll work..."

Me from the front seat: "What?! Terry!"

Okay, I am also laughing nearly too hard to drive. So, bubbles, now comes in the form of bubba.

Here's wikipedia's definition: bubba is often used outside the South as a pejorative meaning low economic status and limited education. The term "bubba" may also be taken to mean one who is a "good ol' boy" who has difficult business and social relationships due to his self-absorbed outlook on life.

So, folks, just for the record: bubbles... bubba... similar, but different.

Celebrating Baby

2007-10-24T18:05:00.000-05:00

On Sunday, we were welcomed to EK's house, the wonderful sister of J Bananie, beloved gramma of TN. We celebrated the arrival of little TN with J Bananie's relatives and friends, all of whom spent time adoring The Baby. We were so honored to be a part of this reunion of friends and family, to have TN's arrival into our lives recognized and celebrated. We can't thank each of you (I know you're out there reading!!) enough for your heartfelt words of love and encouragement. Little Terefech Nerys is more loved than any child on earth.

We'll post pictures of TN worshipping her gifts and wrapping paper soon!

"I love your story about..."

This is a statement we hear so often from people we know and don't know. You know, for so long I thought this little blog of mine was read by a small, intimate circle. Little did I know our blog, our story, our journey, and our lives, have touched so many. So, to all of you strangers and unstrangers alike, thank you for reading. So many of you I do not know, or know only through this miracle called the internet. Alas, I wouldn't recognize many of you if I crossed you on the street, or ran into you at the grocery store, but I know your thoughts and hopes are always with us and I am honored and blessed by your support through our journey called parenthood.

Sarah

Nerys and the Dragon

2007-10-19T14:52:00.000-05:00

Nerys received a gift of a dragon puppet... I think it's a Baby Einstein thing. Nevertheless, here is TN falling in love with the dragon.

Starting Daycare

2007-10-18T14:06:00.001-05:00

Sorry about the lack of posts again; no internet (again) and little TN started Daycare with mommy in tow. For those of you who have traveled down this path, you may understand what a trying time this is.

We decided to do a transition plan. On Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday of this week, we got up early and went to daycare from 8:00 am-10:00 am. I stayed with her while she got accustomed to our daycare provider, Tammy, and the few other children that are there. We are incredibly lucky to have Tammy, who has only 5 children in her care. And, she'll only have 5... none of this 10, 11, 12 kids roaming around with one provider. This was so important to us as TN hasn't yet learned the art of playing with other children, and is so passive she doesn't protect herself. However, she is excellent at sharing... everything, even to her own detriment.

The children at daycare are around her age at 2, 3, 3, and 4. They were excited about "the Baby" that is TN. They gave her hugs and kisses, toys, and showed her how to play with things. It was really fun to watch. I hope this makes it easier for TN to be with other children.

Today, TN was supposed to be in care all day, for the first day, without me. After about 5 hours, and a severe bout of constipation, she came home. Frankly, I was happy to have her back with me. I missed the little one as I sat here at home doing errands. While I had her here with me fulltime for 12 weeks, I didn't get much done around the house; I complained and apologized for not being one of those super-moms who can cook, clean, wash diapers and still have uber-time with baby. But, I sure missed having her here and NOT doing those things :)

I start back to work next week. We'll see how things go. I have a feeling we're going to have quite a few half-days, which is totally fine with me. My top priority is her happiness and wellbeing. I wouldn't make a great stay at home mom, fulltime, but I might be happy to do it part time.

Making Milestones

2007-10-12T21:05:00.000-05:00

Sorry about the long time between posts...no internet makes for no blogging! But, here we are, and my how the time passes and how the girl child we love grows and talks, talks and grows.

To date we are within a hairs breadth of walking. She accidentally stood by herself the other night, which was pretty funny. She was standing at her exersaucer (see pic below) playing the "piano". Daddy was behind her cheering on the excellent rendition of TN Symphony, when I walked in the room. Suddenly, TN decides that it's time to play "so big" with Mommy. She rapidly raised her hands up over her head, leaving her little self completely unsupported. Within seconds she realized she was no longer hanging on. She had an "oh sh*t" moment and threw her hands back on the exersaucer. Whew.... saved by the piano. Since then she has let go more intentionally, which has been fun to watch. It occurs to me that some of these major moments in TN history are meer accidents full of panic and then laughing.

New words include: "moo", "meow", and "uh-oh" (used just before intentionally throwing something on the floor... hmmm). We did have a discussion about how "uh-oh" doesn't count when referring to things you intentionally do wrong. It probably didn't sink in, but might as well keep trying.

New motions include:

1. Wagging the head Yes. Examples include:

"Do you want your bottle?" Head nodding rapidly.

"Do you want a bath?" Head nods rapidly.

"Are you done?" Head bobs up and down.

2. Wagging the head no. Examples?

"Terefech Nerys, no, that is for mommies" Shakes head back and forth, back and forth

"Terefech, what should you be doing?" Shakes head no, no, no, no

"Is that for babies?" No, no, no, no.

It's amazing how fast she catches on to the language and what we mean. Very occassionally she shakes her head yes when she really means no, but those are few and far between. I'm sure I could fire up the blog multiple times a day and write about our now 16 month old wonder... but, alas, there is playing to do!

Speak!

2007-10-03T12:23:00.000-05:00

TN has discovered the power of voice and talking. That's right, our dearest TN can now scream at the top most possible range in the loudest possible voice ever! It is enough, truly, to cause us to cover our ears while she giggles in amazement at the wonder that is... The Voice.

Not only has she discovered pitch and range, dear readers, she now says words! That's right, after a scant 8 weeks home she is now in full throttle talking mode:

"done" which comes out more like "dn", vowel free. Done is said complete with hands in the air and a shrug of the shoulders. Yet another thing we didn't intend to teach. :)

"boom" or "bm", another vowel free word. Boom is used frequently as we are learning to walk. It comes complete with touching the area which has beem bm'ed upon. It's good to be specific.

"eye": Yes, the eye. The cat's have eyes, mommy has eyes, daddy has eyes, TN has eyes, Elmo has eyes, strangers have eyes. Ah, the glory of eyes.

"rub-rub": more like rrrb-rrrb, and is used when mommy applies soap, lotion or hand sanitizer while she rubs her hands together. very cute.

We have not been remiss in teaching her Amharic, the language predomantly spoken in her home country. She now says "asa" which means fish. When you ask her where asa is, she searches all over for it. She loves asa.

Our little (and she is still little!) girl is using her cognitive abilities well. You go girl. :)

Birds are VERY exciting.

The many faces of TN

2007-09-28T15:45:00.000-05:00

Our daughter has discovered a new feeling: Silly. I wish I had a thousand more pictures of her silly faces and keep TRYING to capture the moment but, alas, they are fleeting! But, here's a taste.

8, 13, 12

2007-09-20T11:47:00.000-05:00

No, I haven't lost my ability to count linearly. These numbers represent the amount of time, in minutes, for Nerys to fall asleep yesterday. We've tried the gammet of techniques for falling asleep... including ignoring, which got us up to 1.5 hours to go to sleep on her own. Super. Ugh. So, we are back to touching her and sitting next to her crib, which has greatly enforced the concept of sleeptime. With any luck, we can begin to withdraw our hand sometime this week and still have her go to sleep on her own.

Here are are some of the latest and greatest stats on Ms. TN.

1) She can pull herself from sitting to kneeling and kneeling to standing-- against an object.

2) She can stand, supporting herself with an object, for a very long period of time now!

3) She has discovered silly faces!

So, the next few blogs will serve as a representation of Ms. TN and her forays into toddlerdom.

You too can crawl through the cat's toy box...

You can even get to the middle...

And through to the second hole...

You can even get through the second hole...

but then something happens. Something totally unexplainable.

You get stuck. You can't back up and you can't move forward. Your mommy is laughing at you (not very nice, Mommy!). But then, mommy puts down that darn camera, picks you and the box up and delicately extricates you from your inexplicable predicament. Ahh, relief.

Can I do it again?

The Sixth Week

2007-09-13T20:13:00.000-05:00

We are now in our sixth week home. I can't believe where the time went. I can't believe our little girl has changed so much, grown, adapted, learned, and developed. Of course, then we have all of the changing, developing, adapting, growing and learning her parents have done. So, here's celebrating week 5 with a list of, Who Woulda Thought:

Who Woulda Thought:

1) I would be catching poo as it came shooting out of a bottom?
2) I would be demonstrating "chewing" as a new skill?
3) We would have been scheduling our whole lives over sleep: first nap, second nap, bedtime?
4) I would cry the first time my daughter spontaneously hugged me?
5) We would teach things unexpected; who knew we hummed (mmmmm) or said "oooohhhh" each time we hugged her and that this is what she now does to us with each spontaneous hug?
6) We would spend hours of our day "waiting" for sleep to come to our little one?
7) A child could find the smallest speck of lint on the cleanest possible carpet?
8) That the inside of our mouths is the perfect spot for our baby's whole entire hand?
9) That spitting is so much fun?!
10) That we could love someone as much as we love her?

Love From Ethiopia

And, we're back!

Where we left off...

Pictures!

Remiss....

Catch-up 4

Catch up 3

Catch up 2

Catch up

Welcome back...

Privatizing Blog

Posts, posts, posts...

Happy Birthday, TN!!!

Baby Girls :)

When your child imitates you...

Happy Belated Mother's Day!

Funny things...

My babies

Home Again!

Leaving!

You Are My Sunshine

Soly Update

One week

Oy Vey!

Soly

Why?

Adoption Update

Recent posts of TN

It's turning to pee!

TN makes brownies

It's been a while...

Come on Mom!!,

Happy Holidays!

Parenting Two?

Crying Hand, Fever Hand

Siloty

Drop Trow

Mary had a....

Fall and Halloween Fun

Announcing...

Catching up

A new era

A thing about pull-ups

In ways you don't expect

Pictures!

I promise...

Wedding!

I'm getting a baby sister, mom

Dad, you suck!

Missing her

Hear Ye! Hear Ye!

The Cure for a Cold

Bic!

Who's Yo Momma?

Happy Famiversary!

It's Okay to be Different

Stay Young

Swimming

Hey Mom! Where's the Charmin?

TN Enjoys the Summer

Is she too hot?

Cute things heard recently

Sing, Sing A Song!

Toad Foo

Let the Birthday Bash Continue!

She's 2!

It's Official...

100th Post!

ZOO!

Saying Goodbye

Language... comparisons and politics

Pink!

TN enjoys life... A Pictorial

Where Is....

Playing House

Dear Aunt Julie,

Potty!

Laughing it Up

Snow 2

zzzzzzzzz...