Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Monday, December 19, 2011
Pictures!
Sweet Katie is 9 months old and just so completely adorable. We got 3 new pictures today. I am only posting 2 since the third is with her foster mom and out of respect to her I am not going to post it.
Friday, December 9, 2011
3 year check up
I took Kiya in for her 3 year check up. It has been one year since we have seen her pediatrician. Kiya (knock on wood) doesn't need to see her regular doctor often. She gets the sniffles or a slight fever but nothing we haven't been able to manage. That said she does see a few doctors every 12 weeks so I think we are good on the doctor visit quota.
So here is what we learned while at Kiya's yearly check up.
1) She is VERY tall. Everyone couldn't believe just how tall she was. She wasn't being super cooperative so at a minimum she measured in at 39.5 inches tall but is likely closer to 40 inches maybe more. On record she is 39.5. That puts her well into the 90th percentile for height.
2) She is super skinny. She weighed in at 33 3/4lb in cast so we have to subtract about 3lbs. She is in the 25th percentile for weight once you adjust it down to factor out the extra weight the cast adds.
3) She has super dry skin in the winter. The doctor wants us to really work on it and keep in touch if our ideas don't work. We are using the Aveeno baby lotion twice daily with a layer of aquaphor on top and that seems to be working.
4) She is a trooper when it comes to getting shots. She just got the flu shot this year but was so great. One scream and done. Of course the princess sticker helped :)
5) Scoliosis and her treatment were definitely on the agenda. We got caught up on the casting and the progress or should I say lack of progress. We discussed long term what could happen and at what point we are willing to stop casting and go to bracing and or surgery. She and I both agree that as long as Dr. H agrees to keep casting her that we will cast as long as we can. Then if feasible we will brace to allow her time to grow and get older before pursing rod surgery. Our ultimate hope is to not have to have surgery at all but if we do then we would hope to be able to delay it so we could do permanent rods and not growth rods. We are so far from this point in Kiya's treatment but it was nice to lay it all out there too.
6) Ok I saved the big issue for last. The heart murmur. We discussed it at length and she listened a few times and heard nothing. She is of the opinion that it is possible that Kiya has a benign flow murmur which can't present in children when sick, stressed or dehydrated. It is harmless and something she will outgrow. She does not feel that an EKG or an echo cardiogram are necessary at this point but will support us if we decide differently. She also said that if she did have an actual heart murmur it wouldn't be heard sometimes and not others. At this point we can't do tests in cast so come cast off week in January, we will go back and see her doctor again and see if she hears the murmur when Kiya is out of cast. We will decide at that time if we need to pursue further testing.
So here is what we learned while at Kiya's yearly check up.
1) She is VERY tall. Everyone couldn't believe just how tall she was. She wasn't being super cooperative so at a minimum she measured in at 39.5 inches tall but is likely closer to 40 inches maybe more. On record she is 39.5. That puts her well into the 90th percentile for height.
2) She is super skinny. She weighed in at 33 3/4lb in cast so we have to subtract about 3lbs. She is in the 25th percentile for weight once you adjust it down to factor out the extra weight the cast adds.
3) She has super dry skin in the winter. The doctor wants us to really work on it and keep in touch if our ideas don't work. We are using the Aveeno baby lotion twice daily with a layer of aquaphor on top and that seems to be working.
4) She is a trooper when it comes to getting shots. She just got the flu shot this year but was so great. One scream and done. Of course the princess sticker helped :)
5) Scoliosis and her treatment were definitely on the agenda. We got caught up on the casting and the progress or should I say lack of progress. We discussed long term what could happen and at what point we are willing to stop casting and go to bracing and or surgery. She and I both agree that as long as Dr. H agrees to keep casting her that we will cast as long as we can. Then if feasible we will brace to allow her time to grow and get older before pursing rod surgery. Our ultimate hope is to not have to have surgery at all but if we do then we would hope to be able to delay it so we could do permanent rods and not growth rods. We are so far from this point in Kiya's treatment but it was nice to lay it all out there too.
6) Ok I saved the big issue for last. The heart murmur. We discussed it at length and she listened a few times and heard nothing. She is of the opinion that it is possible that Kiya has a benign flow murmur which can't present in children when sick, stressed or dehydrated. It is harmless and something she will outgrow. She does not feel that an EKG or an echo cardiogram are necessary at this point but will support us if we decide differently. She also said that if she did have an actual heart murmur it wouldn't be heard sometimes and not others. At this point we can't do tests in cast so come cast off week in January, we will go back and see her doctor again and see if she hears the murmur when Kiya is out of cast. We will decide at that time if we need to pursue further testing.
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Kiya turns 3!
It finally happened. My sweet baby girl is officially 3 years old. Her birthday was just a few days after Thanksgiving. We celebrated with the family on Thanksgiving day. She even got all dressed up in her party dress and sparkly shoes which she LOVES. The dress lasted about an hour but the shoes lasted all day. Seriously have a girlie girl.
Great shot of her blowing out her candle. She wanted pink cupcakes so on top of a turkey, this momma made cupcakes for her little princess. The dress was gone by this point and back to cheering on the Packers. You can't see it but she still has her sparkly shoes on.
The first time in 3 birthdays with little miss that she actually dug right into the frosting and managed to eat almost 2 cupcakes. Well I should say, one whole cupcake and all of the pink frosting and a few small bites of the second cupcake.
Me with my little girl. Man I love this kid and while she can be a handful some days, she is truly the best. I am a lucky momma indeed.
Monday, December 5, 2011
Catching up
So I know it has been awhile. I have been a tad busy with work, life, etc. So this is catch up post number 1.
I was honored to go on my very first Mom's weekend. It was seriously one of the best weekends of my life. I went with Catie, Chrissy, Sarah and Kelli my fellow cast moms from Chicago Shriners. It was our first get together outside of the hospital.
We went to some remote really dark state park in Indiana. So glad I wasn't driving alone it was really dark.
That aside the weekend was full of laughs, tears and some serious bonding. There was that initial fear would things be awkward since we usually only see each other in the confines of the hospital on cast day. Within 5 minutes that fear was gone. We all just clicked. We got it. We got each other. Our bond may have started with the plaster cast that our kids share but it goes so much deeper than that.
We shared. We confided. We supported. It was awesome. Oh and we had more fun that I had had in awhile. It was amazing and silly. We saw the new Twilight movie. We ate junk food. We drank wine. We had a blast.
This time it was 5 of us and hopefully next time there will be more. It was a much needed time away with some really great women that are like sisters to me. I cannot wait until we can do this again. I still hate scoliosis but I am glad I get to walk this path with such amazing people. People who are a phone call or text message away on the good days and the bad.
I left the weekend feeling connected and really blessed.
I was honored to go on my very first Mom's weekend. It was seriously one of the best weekends of my life. I went with Catie, Chrissy, Sarah and Kelli my fellow cast moms from Chicago Shriners. It was our first get together outside of the hospital.
We went to some remote really dark state park in Indiana. So glad I wasn't driving alone it was really dark.
That aside the weekend was full of laughs, tears and some serious bonding. There was that initial fear would things be awkward since we usually only see each other in the confines of the hospital on cast day. Within 5 minutes that fear was gone. We all just clicked. We got it. We got each other. Our bond may have started with the plaster cast that our kids share but it goes so much deeper than that.
We shared. We confided. We supported. It was awesome. Oh and we had more fun that I had had in awhile. It was amazing and silly. We saw the new Twilight movie. We ate junk food. We drank wine. We had a blast.
This time it was 5 of us and hopefully next time there will be more. It was a much needed time away with some really great women that are like sisters to me. I cannot wait until we can do this again. I still hate scoliosis but I am glad I get to walk this path with such amazing people. People who are a phone call or text message away on the good days and the bad.
I left the weekend feeling connected and really blessed.
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Update on our sweet baby girl :)
WE GOT NEW PICTURES!!!
She is pulling herself up to a stand :)
I was so grateful to see these pictures today. I did make me think about the wait. Hopefully the months will pass quickly. I can't wait to hug and squeeze her.
Thursday, November 10, 2011
Inside look...guest post
I wrote a guest blog post...here it is.
http://www.chicagonow.com/portrait-of-an-adoption/2011/11/i-had-missed-the-call/
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
We are...
I love these kids. I love these women like they are my family. But I still hate scoliosis.
Sunday, November 6, 2011
Update on cast life
On October 24, Kiya got cast #5. We have been casting for over a year now. It has taken me a little while to figure out what to write about this topic.
Kiya as always is amazing and bounces back to her self very quickly. It didn't seem to be as quick this time but she was at preschool the next day.
Cast life is what it is. I hate it and yet there is a peace about it. For the most part I don't have to worry about her back when in cast. Cast free weeks are a tad stressful. Her back always looks so great when we first cut her out of her cast and then we spend the week watching and just waiting for it to be curvy again. I hate that part.
Going into cast day, I didn't need an x-ray to tell me what I already knew. We hadn't gotten any correction or if by some miracle we did it was minimal at best. The x-ray did nothing but to confirm that and as if scoliosis was trying to rub it in, the doctor said as much. He said, "well we really aren't getting a change here. Still about 60 out of cast and basically straight in cast." He was frustrated. I was frustrated. Her spine is just so flexible which is good but we really need it to hold. Some, any correction even just a little.
The doctor always told us that it could take 3 or 4 or more casts in a row to really start seeing some change. While this was cast number 5 it is really only cast number 4 in a row. She seemed to stay straighter out of cast for longer this last time so maybe when we take this green cast off she will stay straighter for even longer. Maybe.
So what do we do now? The same thing we have been doing. We know deep down that surgery may be in Kiya's future. We will cross that bridge when we get there. We aren't there yet. We know kids that have had 15 or more casts so we aren't ready to give up. We refuse to.
Cast life is doable. Kiya does great. She understands her cast life. She knows that she takes bubble baths in the laundry room sink. She knows she has to wear pull ups at nap time just in case as her cast can't get wet. She knows that she has to wear a bib while eating meals just to make sure food doesn't fall down her cast.
We left the hospital with a grumpy toddler sporting a green cast. We also left with a new issue. One of the doctor's heard a heart murmur. This has come up exactly twice in Kiya's life. The same doctor heard the murmur two casts ago. Nothing was said last cast and then this cast she heard it and it was confirmed by another doctor. My father in law took a listen and he didn't hear it. It is a bit of a mystery at this point but one we are taking seriously. Kiya has her 3 year check up in a few weeks in which we will address the issue with her primary doctor and ask for a referral to a pediatric cardiologist for an EKG and echocardiogram which may need to wait until cast off week but we shall see.
Kiya is asymptomatic for anything seriously being wrong so there isn't an urgency but regardless we will have in looked into.
That is where we are, in a cast, frustrated but dealing with it. I hate scoliosis but will not stop fighting it.
Kiya as always is amazing and bounces back to her self very quickly. It didn't seem to be as quick this time but she was at preschool the next day.
Cast life is what it is. I hate it and yet there is a peace about it. For the most part I don't have to worry about her back when in cast. Cast free weeks are a tad stressful. Her back always looks so great when we first cut her out of her cast and then we spend the week watching and just waiting for it to be curvy again. I hate that part.
Going into cast day, I didn't need an x-ray to tell me what I already knew. We hadn't gotten any correction or if by some miracle we did it was minimal at best. The x-ray did nothing but to confirm that and as if scoliosis was trying to rub it in, the doctor said as much. He said, "well we really aren't getting a change here. Still about 60 out of cast and basically straight in cast." He was frustrated. I was frustrated. Her spine is just so flexible which is good but we really need it to hold. Some, any correction even just a little.
The doctor always told us that it could take 3 or 4 or more casts in a row to really start seeing some change. While this was cast number 5 it is really only cast number 4 in a row. She seemed to stay straighter out of cast for longer this last time so maybe when we take this green cast off she will stay straighter for even longer. Maybe.
So what do we do now? The same thing we have been doing. We know deep down that surgery may be in Kiya's future. We will cross that bridge when we get there. We aren't there yet. We know kids that have had 15 or more casts so we aren't ready to give up. We refuse to.
Cast life is doable. Kiya does great. She understands her cast life. She knows that she takes bubble baths in the laundry room sink. She knows she has to wear pull ups at nap time just in case as her cast can't get wet. She knows that she has to wear a bib while eating meals just to make sure food doesn't fall down her cast.
We left the hospital with a grumpy toddler sporting a green cast. We also left with a new issue. One of the doctor's heard a heart murmur. This has come up exactly twice in Kiya's life. The same doctor heard the murmur two casts ago. Nothing was said last cast and then this cast she heard it and it was confirmed by another doctor. My father in law took a listen and he didn't hear it. It is a bit of a mystery at this point but one we are taking seriously. Kiya has her 3 year check up in a few weeks in which we will address the issue with her primary doctor and ask for a referral to a pediatric cardiologist for an EKG and echocardiogram which may need to wait until cast off week but we shall see.
Kiya is asymptomatic for anything seriously being wrong so there isn't an urgency but regardless we will have in looked into.
That is where we are, in a cast, frustrated but dealing with it. I hate scoliosis but will not stop fighting it.
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Perfectly Perfect
We have a budding perfectionist on our hands. Kiya is a pleaser and she likes to get things right and tends to get more than a little frustrated if she doesn't.
Things are getting better but we run into it a lot at night while we read books. Kiya has memorized a good number of her books and likes to read along with us or do it by herself. Her current favorite is Good Night Moon. She sometimes forgets a word or says the wrong word. When she would get stuck, we would jump in and help her which we soon learned was a BIG mistake. She would get really really mad and refuse to read anymore.
So now we ask her if she wants us to help her and then we help. This perfectionism is also coming along with her new found love of independence. She has to do everything by herself. To her credit she is really good at a lot of it. She can get herself mostly dressed and undressed by herself. Shirts are a little harder with the cast but she is working on it.
Last night when we went trick or treating, she insisted on walking by herself. She didn't even want to hold our hands. She was strutting down the street and kept trying to catch up to the bigger kids.
My little girl is growing up. She is full of ideas, opinions and fun little stories. She is dramatic and creative and silly. She also has become obsessed with the show Olivia. Olivia likes to say perfectly perfect along with a handful of other phrases that Kiya now repeats and mimics.
So we try and tell our budding perfectionist, that perfectly perfect is trying her very best. She is I think starting to get that. She said last night, "Mommy, I did it. Perfectly perfect. I try my best." It was adorable.
Stay tuned for some fall/Halloween pictures for Wordless Wednesday.
Things are getting better but we run into it a lot at night while we read books. Kiya has memorized a good number of her books and likes to read along with us or do it by herself. Her current favorite is Good Night Moon. She sometimes forgets a word or says the wrong word. When she would get stuck, we would jump in and help her which we soon learned was a BIG mistake. She would get really really mad and refuse to read anymore.
So now we ask her if she wants us to help her and then we help. This perfectionism is also coming along with her new found love of independence. She has to do everything by herself. To her credit she is really good at a lot of it. She can get herself mostly dressed and undressed by herself. Shirts are a little harder with the cast but she is working on it.
Last night when we went trick or treating, she insisted on walking by herself. She didn't even want to hold our hands. She was strutting down the street and kept trying to catch up to the bigger kids.
My little girl is growing up. She is full of ideas, opinions and fun little stories. She is dramatic and creative and silly. She also has become obsessed with the show Olivia. Olivia likes to say perfectly perfect along with a handful of other phrases that Kiya now repeats and mimics.
So we try and tell our budding perfectionist, that perfectly perfect is trying her very best. She is I think starting to get that. She said last night, "Mommy, I did it. Perfectly perfect. I try my best." It was adorable.
Stay tuned for some fall/Halloween pictures for Wordless Wednesday.
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Wednesday, October 12, 2011
Sigh.....
The game of 20 questions started this past week from a few people. I was bombarded with questions about my children, scoliosis, adoption, Ethiopia, Korea and more. It was kind of overwhelming, kind of annoying and really really frustrating. I actually felt bad for the question askers as their view of life and the world is so very sheltered and judgemental.
I bit my tongue a little during the conversation due to the environment we were in but it was so hard. I had so much I wanted to say and either couldn't find the words or was just trying to be polite. Well this is my blog and I don't need to be polite here.
First things first, my husband and I chose adoption. No we cannot have children biologically yet we are blessed with 2 beautiful little girls that are our own. Yes my children are my own and yes I love them as much as I would had I given birth to them.
Ethiopia is beautiful. No it is not gross or horrible. I can't wait to go back and no I am not crazy for wanting to go back or wanting to share all of Ethiopia with my daughters. Poverty does exist in Ethiopia and it is heart breaking to see yet Ethiopians were smiling, welcoming and truly wonderful people. I cherish the time I spent there and I grew as a person. Futhermore, I did not save my daughter. She lost so much. Wait why explain....chances are if you are reading this you understand and if you don't understand then I doubt I can explain it well enough that you will.
Yes I want to see Kiya's mother again. Yes I would love for Kiya to meet her mother and no I am not worried that she will take Kiya away from me. No Kiya is not HIV + and even if she was it is none of your business. Not once did I ever worry about getting HIV while in Ethiopia. Seriously, I was asked this.
No I don't think it will be easier not knowing Katie's mother. I actually think it will be harder. I am excited to experience Korea and saddened that I will likely never meet sweet Katie's mother. The adoption process is long and no I just can't go to Korea and claim my child. To my knowledge, Katie does not have any medical conditions and it wouldn't matter if she did.
No we did not know about Kiya's scoliosis when we brought her home. Even if we did, it wouldn't have mattered. Kiya is my daughter. She has a curvy back. We will deal with it as a family and no I never thought about suing my agency for not telling me. They didn't know either. I am just grateful that Kiya had amazing nannies to take care of her and help her grow. And now has an amazing doctor to help her grow straight.
I am exhausted just thinking about all of this. The askers were just so overly curious and clueless. Adoption is hard. Scoliosis sucks. That said I am blessed to be a mom. I wouldn't change things. Sure I wish I could wave a wand and make Kiya's back straight but she is my little princess curvy back and all so it is what it is.
I am hoping the askers have had their fill and will move on to someone else. I am not sure if they start it again that I will be able to bite my tongue. To be fair I don't think they truly understood the depth of their questions. I really do think they were very curious and hadn't been exposed to a lot so they see my life from the outside and it doesn't make sense so they asks questions. Fair enough to some extent I suppose but my life makes perfect sense to me.
I think this would have been different had it been the first time I was asked inappropriate questions. I wish it was the first time....sigh...and I wish it was the last....sigh.
I bit my tongue a little during the conversation due to the environment we were in but it was so hard. I had so much I wanted to say and either couldn't find the words or was just trying to be polite. Well this is my blog and I don't need to be polite here.
First things first, my husband and I chose adoption. No we cannot have children biologically yet we are blessed with 2 beautiful little girls that are our own. Yes my children are my own and yes I love them as much as I would had I given birth to them.
Ethiopia is beautiful. No it is not gross or horrible. I can't wait to go back and no I am not crazy for wanting to go back or wanting to share all of Ethiopia with my daughters. Poverty does exist in Ethiopia and it is heart breaking to see yet Ethiopians were smiling, welcoming and truly wonderful people. I cherish the time I spent there and I grew as a person. Futhermore, I did not save my daughter. She lost so much. Wait why explain....chances are if you are reading this you understand and if you don't understand then I doubt I can explain it well enough that you will.
Yes I want to see Kiya's mother again. Yes I would love for Kiya to meet her mother and no I am not worried that she will take Kiya away from me. No Kiya is not HIV + and even if she was it is none of your business. Not once did I ever worry about getting HIV while in Ethiopia. Seriously, I was asked this.
No I don't think it will be easier not knowing Katie's mother. I actually think it will be harder. I am excited to experience Korea and saddened that I will likely never meet sweet Katie's mother. The adoption process is long and no I just can't go to Korea and claim my child. To my knowledge, Katie does not have any medical conditions and it wouldn't matter if she did.
No we did not know about Kiya's scoliosis when we brought her home. Even if we did, it wouldn't have mattered. Kiya is my daughter. She has a curvy back. We will deal with it as a family and no I never thought about suing my agency for not telling me. They didn't know either. I am just grateful that Kiya had amazing nannies to take care of her and help her grow. And now has an amazing doctor to help her grow straight.
I am exhausted just thinking about all of this. The askers were just so overly curious and clueless. Adoption is hard. Scoliosis sucks. That said I am blessed to be a mom. I wouldn't change things. Sure I wish I could wave a wand and make Kiya's back straight but she is my little princess curvy back and all so it is what it is.
I am hoping the askers have had their fill and will move on to someone else. I am not sure if they start it again that I will be able to bite my tongue. To be fair I don't think they truly understood the depth of their questions. I really do think they were very curious and hadn't been exposed to a lot so they see my life from the outside and it doesn't make sense so they asks questions. Fair enough to some extent I suppose but my life makes perfect sense to me.
I think this would have been different had it been the first time I was asked inappropriate questions. I wish it was the first time....sigh...and I wish it was the last....sigh.
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Presenting.......
Sweet Baby Katherine, our little Katie,
Kiya's baby sister.
We got the green light to share pictures and her name. So here she is. She was 4 months old in the first two pictures which where her referral pictures.
We are still hoping to have her home by next fall. She is getting so big and her hair so curly. She is Korean/African American and her mother named her Katherine. She is a perfect fit for our family. Our little Katie. Kiya just loves her already and so do we.
Life with Kiya update
Life with Kiya is amazing, tiring, fun, exhausting and wonderful all at the same time. She is hands down the loudest, goofiest kid I have ever met. She loves to laugh, dance, sing and be bossy.
I just love watching her learn and grow and yet everyday I am reminded that she is not my little baby anymore. She is a big girl full of big opinions. I had some ideas of what she might dress up as for Halloween. We have tutu's and flowers so I was thinking princess or ballerina but oh no. The last few days we keep hearing, "I dress up like Foofa, mommy." So thanks to some savvy Internet shopping, Foofa will be the costume this year.
The week before Halloween, Kiya will head to Shriner's for cast #5. I can hardly believe it. We have been casting for a year. Whew....what a year it has been. I am so grateful for all the friends we have made a long the way. We sadly won't be at cast #5 with any of them but don't get me started on that one. Kiya will be in this horrible pink cast as I call it for the longest time yet, exactly 3 months. It is so gross and so tight and well I can't wait for it to be gone. Word at the dinner table is that purple will be the next color so we shall see.
Just around the corner is Miss Kiya's 3rd birthday. She is all 3 and going on 16. I have so far found 3 to a challenging age. She is strong willed and at times defiant. She has started to talk back. She is so very smart and while that is great at times it is not. She has an amazing memory. She can recite entire books to us. Her current favorite book to "read" to us is Barnyard Dance. She knows all the words and insists on doing it all by herself. When she is done she just gets this huge grin and is just beaming. I love it.
She is now over Dora. She loves her Dora toys but will not watch the show unless it happens to be on and it is bedtime then she will ask to watch it in order to stall. She has acquired a new favorite show, Olivia. Sigh. If you have never watched it Olivia is a very dramatic young pig who loves to exaggerate, be on the bossy side and is super creative. Kiya is by nature a very dramatic child anyway so I am not shocked she likes Olivia I just hope the drama factor doesn't increase. There is only so much drama this mama can handle.
She is still talking about her baby sister. So much so, we shared with her preschool teachers that Kiya does in fact have a baby sister on the way. We shared with them baby K's name so when Kiya talks about her they know what she is talking about. And we discussed with them the words we are using at home to describe our wait to bring baby K home so that we are all on the same page.
Lately, we have also been getting reports about her day at preschool. From the back seat of the car, she will tell me, "Bradley walked away from the table. He wanted to read books" or "Lilly was crying. She had tears. She no eat her crackers. She was sad." We got one report of "Henry hit me." I asked her, did Henry hit you? She said, "yes." I asked her what did you do then, "I push Henry. Walk away Henry. Walk away." We then talked about how we don't hit or push.
Kiya has made some great little friends in preschool. She likes to hold hands with some of the other little girls and she gives them hugs before she leaves. Her best friend is a little girl named Lillian or Lilly. Kiya likes her so much that she named her pillow pet Lilly. Too cute. She also likes her baby sister so much that she named her elephant after baby K.
I could go on and on about sweet Miss Kiya. About her true love/obsession with all things flower related and baby related but that could take pages. Kiya at 3 is going to keep me on my toes, test my patience and make me smile. She is such an amazing kid. Just last night, she asked me to come lie in bed with her for a few minutes. I love it and it was just a few minutes and then she asked me to leave. Those few minutes are so precious to me. She has asked a few times before and I always oblige because I know all too soon that those requests will be no longer. I am one lucky mama that much I know for sure.
I just love watching her learn and grow and yet everyday I am reminded that she is not my little baby anymore. She is a big girl full of big opinions. I had some ideas of what she might dress up as for Halloween. We have tutu's and flowers so I was thinking princess or ballerina but oh no. The last few days we keep hearing, "I dress up like Foofa, mommy." So thanks to some savvy Internet shopping, Foofa will be the costume this year.
The week before Halloween, Kiya will head to Shriner's for cast #5. I can hardly believe it. We have been casting for a year. Whew....what a year it has been. I am so grateful for all the friends we have made a long the way. We sadly won't be at cast #5 with any of them but don't get me started on that one. Kiya will be in this horrible pink cast as I call it for the longest time yet, exactly 3 months. It is so gross and so tight and well I can't wait for it to be gone. Word at the dinner table is that purple will be the next color so we shall see.
Just around the corner is Miss Kiya's 3rd birthday. She is all 3 and going on 16. I have so far found 3 to a challenging age. She is strong willed and at times defiant. She has started to talk back. She is so very smart and while that is great at times it is not. She has an amazing memory. She can recite entire books to us. Her current favorite book to "read" to us is Barnyard Dance. She knows all the words and insists on doing it all by herself. When she is done she just gets this huge grin and is just beaming. I love it.
She is now over Dora. She loves her Dora toys but will not watch the show unless it happens to be on and it is bedtime then she will ask to watch it in order to stall. She has acquired a new favorite show, Olivia. Sigh. If you have never watched it Olivia is a very dramatic young pig who loves to exaggerate, be on the bossy side and is super creative. Kiya is by nature a very dramatic child anyway so I am not shocked she likes Olivia I just hope the drama factor doesn't increase. There is only so much drama this mama can handle.
She is still talking about her baby sister. So much so, we shared with her preschool teachers that Kiya does in fact have a baby sister on the way. We shared with them baby K's name so when Kiya talks about her they know what she is talking about. And we discussed with them the words we are using at home to describe our wait to bring baby K home so that we are all on the same page.
Lately, we have also been getting reports about her day at preschool. From the back seat of the car, she will tell me, "Bradley walked away from the table. He wanted to read books" or "Lilly was crying. She had tears. She no eat her crackers. She was sad." We got one report of "Henry hit me." I asked her, did Henry hit you? She said, "yes." I asked her what did you do then, "I push Henry. Walk away Henry. Walk away." We then talked about how we don't hit or push.
Kiya has made some great little friends in preschool. She likes to hold hands with some of the other little girls and she gives them hugs before she leaves. Her best friend is a little girl named Lillian or Lilly. Kiya likes her so much that she named her pillow pet Lilly. Too cute. She also likes her baby sister so much that she named her elephant after baby K.
I could go on and on about sweet Miss Kiya. About her true love/obsession with all things flower related and baby related but that could take pages. Kiya at 3 is going to keep me on my toes, test my patience and make me smile. She is such an amazing kid. Just last night, she asked me to come lie in bed with her for a few minutes. I love it and it was just a few minutes and then she asked me to leave. Those few minutes are so precious to me. She has asked a few times before and I always oblige because I know all too soon that those requests will be no longer. I am one lucky mama that much I know for sure.
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Culture shock round 2
So we finally got our travel information for South Korea. Don't get too excited it is just a packet of info telling us what to expect when we get there. We are figuring we have 10-12 months before we travel.
Travelling to countries outside of North America was something I had never done until we went to Ethiopia. It was an awesome experience to be some place new, some place where I wasn't the majority, some place so welcoming and beautiful. I loved Ethiopia. It was an eye opening, life changing moment. You can't go to some place like Ethiopia and see what we saw and not come home a changed more grateful and aware person.
Korea is going to be different from Ethiopia but culture shock all the same. Things are much more formal in Korea. We will be packing dress clothes. As in Dave will need to pack a tie or two and maybe depending on the time of year we travel a sport coat. I will need to pack business attire and/or a dress or two. Who knew.
The trip itself will also be much less structured. In Ethiopia we had an hour by hour itinerary. Korea we will not. We only have to be in Korea for 3 days. We will likely spend a few days before our official arrival date sight seeing.
We want to soak up as much as we can while in Korea and the packet gave us some ideas of things to look into. We have lots of things to figure out like will we stay in the guest house or will be stay at a hotel? Are we going to uses taxis or the subway? Will we dare try McDonald's or Baskin Robbins while there or try and eat mostly Korean food? Which to date I haven't yet tried but no worries I will and I am not at all worried about it. I wasn't really with Ethiopian food either. I knew once we decided to adopt from Ethiopia that I needed to jump in and just be adventurous. I am not typically an adventurous eater but that is changing and my dear husband and my children have helped to broaden my food horizons.
Included in the packet was info about how our first meeting with Sweet Baby K and foster mom will go. I got teary eyed just thinking about it. We will be allowed to photograph and video tape the meeting. It will last about an hour. Baby K will go home with her foster mom after that meeting. We likely won't see her again until the day we are to return home. This was hard to read. Really hard. I am not going to want to let her go once I see her and yet I understand that this will be very emotional for her foster mom as well.
At this time in Korea, it will be almost certain that we will never meet Baby K's birth mother. This breaks my heart but culturally it is not deemed okay at this time. There are steps being taken to maybe change this but as of it that isn't the case. This will be tough. One of my most cherished memories will always be the 20 minutes or so that I was able to be in the same room with Zinash. I won't forget a moment of that meeting. It is something so precious that I can share with Kiya. We can travel to Ethiopia and see her again. I won't be able to do this with Baby K. We will have her foster mom. We plan to cherish that relationship and do with it what we can. It is just different.
Ethiopia and Korea are so very different. Our daughter's stories are so very different and yet we are all a family. We have a tie that binds us all together. It's called love.
Travelling to countries outside of North America was something I had never done until we went to Ethiopia. It was an awesome experience to be some place new, some place where I wasn't the majority, some place so welcoming and beautiful. I loved Ethiopia. It was an eye opening, life changing moment. You can't go to some place like Ethiopia and see what we saw and not come home a changed more grateful and aware person.
Korea is going to be different from Ethiopia but culture shock all the same. Things are much more formal in Korea. We will be packing dress clothes. As in Dave will need to pack a tie or two and maybe depending on the time of year we travel a sport coat. I will need to pack business attire and/or a dress or two. Who knew.
The trip itself will also be much less structured. In Ethiopia we had an hour by hour itinerary. Korea we will not. We only have to be in Korea for 3 days. We will likely spend a few days before our official arrival date sight seeing.
We want to soak up as much as we can while in Korea and the packet gave us some ideas of things to look into. We have lots of things to figure out like will we stay in the guest house or will be stay at a hotel? Are we going to uses taxis or the subway? Will we dare try McDonald's or Baskin Robbins while there or try and eat mostly Korean food? Which to date I haven't yet tried but no worries I will and I am not at all worried about it. I wasn't really with Ethiopian food either. I knew once we decided to adopt from Ethiopia that I needed to jump in and just be adventurous. I am not typically an adventurous eater but that is changing and my dear husband and my children have helped to broaden my food horizons.
Included in the packet was info about how our first meeting with Sweet Baby K and foster mom will go. I got teary eyed just thinking about it. We will be allowed to photograph and video tape the meeting. It will last about an hour. Baby K will go home with her foster mom after that meeting. We likely won't see her again until the day we are to return home. This was hard to read. Really hard. I am not going to want to let her go once I see her and yet I understand that this will be very emotional for her foster mom as well.
At this time in Korea, it will be almost certain that we will never meet Baby K's birth mother. This breaks my heart but culturally it is not deemed okay at this time. There are steps being taken to maybe change this but as of it that isn't the case. This will be tough. One of my most cherished memories will always be the 20 minutes or so that I was able to be in the same room with Zinash. I won't forget a moment of that meeting. It is something so precious that I can share with Kiya. We can travel to Ethiopia and see her again. I won't be able to do this with Baby K. We will have her foster mom. We plan to cherish that relationship and do with it what we can. It is just different.
Ethiopia and Korea are so very different. Our daughter's stories are so very different and yet we are all a family. We have a tie that binds us all together. It's called love.
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Baby Sister
Sweet Baby K also known to Kiya as baby sister is now 6 months old. She is 15.1lbs and over 26 inches long. We got new pictures again this month and are just so in love. Her hair is starting to get really curly and man oh man she is adorable.
That said, Kiya keeps talking about her baby sister. She wants to look at her pictures. She wants to take her to the pond. She wants her home. So do we.
So how in the world do you explain to an almost 3 year old that we have to wait to bring home her baby sister? Kiya knows that she lives far away and will tell us that.
It makes me sad. We understand (sort of) why we have to wait but Kiya doesn't. It is so hard. She really wants to play with her baby sister.
We show her the pictures. We talk about her. We tell Kiya that she lives in Korea with her foster mom and that we have to wait awhile to bring her home. Are we doing the wrong thing? Should we have kept baby sister to ourselves for awhile.....
Why oh why does adoption have to be so hard......
That said, Kiya keeps talking about her baby sister. She wants to look at her pictures. She wants to take her to the pond. She wants her home. So do we.
So how in the world do you explain to an almost 3 year old that we have to wait to bring home her baby sister? Kiya knows that she lives far away and will tell us that.
It makes me sad. We understand (sort of) why we have to wait but Kiya doesn't. It is so hard. She really wants to play with her baby sister.
We show her the pictures. We talk about her. We tell Kiya that she lives in Korea with her foster mom and that we have to wait awhile to bring her home. Are we doing the wrong thing? Should we have kept baby sister to ourselves for awhile.....
Why oh why does adoption have to be so hard......
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
We made it
We all survived our vacation. Traveling with an active toddler is no easy feat. I am pleased to report that Kiya was a fantastic traveller. She did really really great. I was so proud of her and so relieved.
We did have one moment where timeout was necessary in the Denver airport. She tried to run off and thought it was super funny even though we had been very clear how far she could roam.
Here's a list of things we learned on vacation:
1) Kiya is very likely allergic to blueberries. We have suspected as much but it was definitely confirmed. No blueberries, no blueberry yogurt :( I feel bad as she loves them but they just don't agree with her.
2) Nap time is not a necessary thing anymore. It is still preferred by mom and dad and teachers but Kiya seems to be the dictator of this one so we shall see.
3) Children's museums with water rooms are Kiya's absolute most favorite things. She has never had so much fun and she didn't even get wet which is a huge bonus with her cast.
4) Sleeping in a hotel room with a toddler makes for early mornings for the whole family.
5) Baby cereal is GONE! Kiya has now chosen yogurt and fruit for breakfast which is fine with me. She will also eat Total cereal when she feels like it. Next up I might revisit the oatmeal things but for now I am content with her eating yogurt and fruit.
6) Pinkberry=AMAZING
7) We actually found good beer in California. Didn't think it was possible but we did.
8) Kiya loves cheese just not California cheese.
9) We definitely did not have enough time to do all that we wanted to and it may be a few years before we can get back.
10) Family vacation was super fun, tiring and very worthwhile.
We did have one moment where timeout was necessary in the Denver airport. She tried to run off and thought it was super funny even though we had been very clear how far she could roam.
Here's a list of things we learned on vacation:
1) Kiya is very likely allergic to blueberries. We have suspected as much but it was definitely confirmed. No blueberries, no blueberry yogurt :( I feel bad as she loves them but they just don't agree with her.
2) Nap time is not a necessary thing anymore. It is still preferred by mom and dad and teachers but Kiya seems to be the dictator of this one so we shall see.
3) Children's museums with water rooms are Kiya's absolute most favorite things. She has never had so much fun and she didn't even get wet which is a huge bonus with her cast.
4) Sleeping in a hotel room with a toddler makes for early mornings for the whole family.
5) Baby cereal is GONE! Kiya has now chosen yogurt and fruit for breakfast which is fine with me. She will also eat Total cereal when she feels like it. Next up I might revisit the oatmeal things but for now I am content with her eating yogurt and fruit.
6) Pinkberry=AMAZING
7) We actually found good beer in California. Didn't think it was possible but we did.
8) Kiya loves cheese just not California cheese.
9) We definitely did not have enough time to do all that we wanted to and it may be a few years before we can get back.
10) Family vacation was super fun, tiring and very worthwhile.
Friday, September 9, 2011
Vacation check in
So we are few days into our California vacation and so far all is well. Kiya has had some moments but for the most part has been nothing shy of amazing.
She did beyond amazing on both of our flights out here. She was a little loud but at least she was happy loud. She has now had M and M's and she is in love.
She conquered the public restroom with zero issue. She has been stellar in telling us when she has to go potty. Truly amazing really. We haven't attempted airplane bathrooms but we will if need be.
She is sleeping well in her inflatable toddler bed. Naps are mostly in the car but she is doing all right.
We went to the Children's museum today with some old co-workers who have kids Kiya's age and she had so much fun. She was all over the place and the kids were super cute and thanks to a waterproof apron and bib she had an amazing time in the water room and left not wet at all. I was secretly dreading the water room. I read up about it online, I came prepared with her bib. I just wasn't sure if it would work. I looked at the under 4 years old area and said no way. All the kids in that area were soaking wet. Granted they were quite a bit younger than she was but still freaked me out. The older kid area however seemed doable. She had a blast. I am glad I let go a little and let her have fun cast and all. She LOVED it. We have video and the joy was so worth the slight risk of her cast getting wet.
Kiya has been addicted to infant oatmeal/banana cereal. We didn't bring any and nor have we bought any since we have been here. She will willing eat Rice Krispies now. And then there is fruit and her new obsession bread and butter. She can pack that stuff away as we witnessed tonight when she ate almost 3 pieces of sourdough bread with butter. She still ate her fish and even saved room for some vanilla ice cream.
Tomorrow we are heading to the city (San Francisco) for a baseball game and touristy stuff. Another long day so hopefully all will go well.
Three things I am so grateful I bought on amazon that have truly helped make this trip successful are her inflatable toddler bed. It takes a crib sheet, has sides so she won't roll out and came with a pump. Second is the travel bag for her carseat. It fits her Britax seat along with her fuzzy blanket and the toddler travel bed. Lastly, her fold up potty seat. AMAZING. It folds up and fits in a gallon size bag. It has worked in every bathroom from park to restaurant to airport we have tried. It is sturdy, has handles for her to hold on to and would be nearly impossible to pinch her skin and best of all it was less than $10.
I will try and post pics and video soon but that may have to wait until we get back next week. And now back to enjoying my glass of wine while hotel bound with a sound asleep toddler.
She did beyond amazing on both of our flights out here. She was a little loud but at least she was happy loud. She has now had M and M's and she is in love.
She conquered the public restroom with zero issue. She has been stellar in telling us when she has to go potty. Truly amazing really. We haven't attempted airplane bathrooms but we will if need be.
She is sleeping well in her inflatable toddler bed. Naps are mostly in the car but she is doing all right.
We went to the Children's museum today with some old co-workers who have kids Kiya's age and she had so much fun. She was all over the place and the kids were super cute and thanks to a waterproof apron and bib she had an amazing time in the water room and left not wet at all. I was secretly dreading the water room. I read up about it online, I came prepared with her bib. I just wasn't sure if it would work. I looked at the under 4 years old area and said no way. All the kids in that area were soaking wet. Granted they were quite a bit younger than she was but still freaked me out. The older kid area however seemed doable. She had a blast. I am glad I let go a little and let her have fun cast and all. She LOVED it. We have video and the joy was so worth the slight risk of her cast getting wet.
Kiya has been addicted to infant oatmeal/banana cereal. We didn't bring any and nor have we bought any since we have been here. She will willing eat Rice Krispies now. And then there is fruit and her new obsession bread and butter. She can pack that stuff away as we witnessed tonight when she ate almost 3 pieces of sourdough bread with butter. She still ate her fish and even saved room for some vanilla ice cream.
Tomorrow we are heading to the city (San Francisco) for a baseball game and touristy stuff. Another long day so hopefully all will go well.
Three things I am so grateful I bought on amazon that have truly helped make this trip successful are her inflatable toddler bed. It takes a crib sheet, has sides so she won't roll out and came with a pump. Second is the travel bag for her carseat. It fits her Britax seat along with her fuzzy blanket and the toddler travel bed. Lastly, her fold up potty seat. AMAZING. It folds up and fits in a gallon size bag. It has worked in every bathroom from park to restaurant to airport we have tried. It is sturdy, has handles for her to hold on to and would be nearly impossible to pinch her skin and best of all it was less than $10.
I will try and post pics and video soon but that may have to wait until we get back next week. And now back to enjoying my glass of wine while hotel bound with a sound asleep toddler.
Sunday, August 28, 2011
3 more months
I have 3 months left of having a two year old. I must say time has more than flown by. We started out with this perfect little peanut and now I have a full fledged little girl. She doesn't even look like a baby anymore. Sigh....
We were very lucky. The terrible twos weren't really an issue. We had the occasional meltdown but nothing that didn't pass in a few minutes. We did have to put her in timeout maybe a handful of times and each time she sat quietly waiting for it to be over and then was fine.
As we say goodbye to the two's and hello to the three's a lot of things have changed. Kiya is still sassy and sweet but now has developed the whine. Oh yes, we have a very whiny kid right now. I am hoping it is a phase and it will pass QUICKLY. I mean it is really sweet when she says " Mommy, snuggle. Mommy snuggle." But when she says it while we are driving the car or trying to go grocery shopping it can be a little much. And the drawn out whiny voice...wow. She has mastered it.
She has also become more defiant. No has returned as one of her favorite words and she is becoming sneaky. We have had to do time out a couple of times recently for talking back. She is so full of life and sass...she has her own ideas and those don't always line up with what mommy and daddy need for her to be doing.
We are also proud to say she is daytime potty trained. Sure there is still the occasional accident as in one or two every few weeks but that is age appropriate. She is also getting better about telling us when she has to go and she has been better about telling us she has to poop too. She is such a big girl now.
She is also conquering her cast. She doesn't have the same range of motion or even sight as other kids her age so things like pulling up or pulling down her pants are a tad more challenging. She has now mastered taking off her shorts (and night time pull up) and she is getting better about pulling up her underwear. She is also putting her own sandals on.
She is doing very well in preschool. She knows the days of the week and the months of the year. She is singing all the time and really is quite good at it. We can't wait to sign her up for dance but most places want her to be 3 when she starts the class so we have to wait for the winter/spring sessions. Her teachers are so proud of her and impressed with her singing, writing and more. They say she listens very well and follows directions well. Glad she is going that for them....not so much here sometimes.
Then in January we have to register or at least try for 3 year old preschool at our local private school. They don't take many kids so if that doesn't work out she will stay at her current school and we will try the private school again for 4k.
I am ready and not ready in this weird way for Kiya to grow up. I love seeing her develop and learn and yet part of me misses my little peanut. Nothing I can do to stop or slow time so horrible 3's here we come :) I am slightly terrified to see what she comes up with next.
We were very lucky. The terrible twos weren't really an issue. We had the occasional meltdown but nothing that didn't pass in a few minutes. We did have to put her in timeout maybe a handful of times and each time she sat quietly waiting for it to be over and then was fine.
As we say goodbye to the two's and hello to the three's a lot of things have changed. Kiya is still sassy and sweet but now has developed the whine. Oh yes, we have a very whiny kid right now. I am hoping it is a phase and it will pass QUICKLY. I mean it is really sweet when she says " Mommy, snuggle. Mommy snuggle." But when she says it while we are driving the car or trying to go grocery shopping it can be a little much. And the drawn out whiny voice...wow. She has mastered it.
She has also become more defiant. No has returned as one of her favorite words and she is becoming sneaky. We have had to do time out a couple of times recently for talking back. She is so full of life and sass...she has her own ideas and those don't always line up with what mommy and daddy need for her to be doing.
We are also proud to say she is daytime potty trained. Sure there is still the occasional accident as in one or two every few weeks but that is age appropriate. She is also getting better about telling us when she has to go and she has been better about telling us she has to poop too. She is such a big girl now.
She is also conquering her cast. She doesn't have the same range of motion or even sight as other kids her age so things like pulling up or pulling down her pants are a tad more challenging. She has now mastered taking off her shorts (and night time pull up) and she is getting better about pulling up her underwear. She is also putting her own sandals on.
She is doing very well in preschool. She knows the days of the week and the months of the year. She is singing all the time and really is quite good at it. We can't wait to sign her up for dance but most places want her to be 3 when she starts the class so we have to wait for the winter/spring sessions. Her teachers are so proud of her and impressed with her singing, writing and more. They say she listens very well and follows directions well. Glad she is going that for them....not so much here sometimes.
Then in January we have to register or at least try for 3 year old preschool at our local private school. They don't take many kids so if that doesn't work out she will stay at her current school and we will try the private school again for 4k.
I am ready and not ready in this weird way for Kiya to grow up. I love seeing her develop and learn and yet part of me misses my little peanut. Nothing I can do to stop or slow time so horrible 3's here we come :) I am slightly terrified to see what she comes up with next.
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Fearless
I always had a feeling that Kiya was fearless. This kid doesn't seem to be afraid of much. She LOVES to climb and LOVES to rough house with Daddy. Nothing stops this kid. Not big dogs, not heights, not her casts, nothing.
So today we went to a festival in our town. It is kind of a big deal around here. Kiya had had a bad night. She was SUPER constipated (over share I know but true). We opted for no nap since she slept in past 9am.
We ate some sweet corn and I do mean all of us. Miss Kiya shared my corn on the cob with me. It was so cute and messy.
We then decided to take her over to the little carnival section. We asked her if she wanted to go on a ride and she said yes. So I went and bought some tickets. $13 bucks worth thinking we may give some tickets to others. We went on this bumblebee ride first. It reminded me of the Dumbo ride at Disneyland. She got a little nervous when the bee jerked before the ride started but once we started it was all smiles and laughs.
The kid was hooked. Next we went on the swing ride. She really LOVED that one. We quickly blew through the tickets. She was tall enough to go on some rides by herself but given it was her first time I went with her. I had fun too so it was a win win. She only had to be 36 inches tall to ride some rides by herself. We stood her up next to the chart and she was a tad over 38 inches.
After we realized just how much fun she was having, we just had to buy more tickets. And thus we did. The joy on her face was priceless. She did think though that we were at the park. She kept saying "I like this park. This park is so fun. I come back on Monday." When we were flying high in the air she kept saying, "I go up high. I like to go up high. Weeeeee"
I have had so many fabulous memories with my fearless Kiya that I will cherish and today goes down as another great memory. We had a great time as a family. If I could hit the repeat button on today, I totally would. I so completely love being Kiya's mom. She is nothing shy of amazing and I am so proud of her.
So today we went to a festival in our town. It is kind of a big deal around here. Kiya had had a bad night. She was SUPER constipated (over share I know but true). We opted for no nap since she slept in past 9am.
We ate some sweet corn and I do mean all of us. Miss Kiya shared my corn on the cob with me. It was so cute and messy.
We then decided to take her over to the little carnival section. We asked her if she wanted to go on a ride and she said yes. So I went and bought some tickets. $13 bucks worth thinking we may give some tickets to others. We went on this bumblebee ride first. It reminded me of the Dumbo ride at Disneyland. She got a little nervous when the bee jerked before the ride started but once we started it was all smiles and laughs.
The kid was hooked. Next we went on the swing ride. She really LOVED that one. We quickly blew through the tickets. She was tall enough to go on some rides by herself but given it was her first time I went with her. I had fun too so it was a win win. She only had to be 36 inches tall to ride some rides by herself. We stood her up next to the chart and she was a tad over 38 inches.
After we realized just how much fun she was having, we just had to buy more tickets. And thus we did. The joy on her face was priceless. She did think though that we were at the park. She kept saying "I like this park. This park is so fun. I come back on Monday." When we were flying high in the air she kept saying, "I go up high. I like to go up high. Weeeeee"
I have had so many fabulous memories with my fearless Kiya that I will cherish and today goes down as another great memory. We had a great time as a family. If I could hit the repeat button on today, I totally would. I so completely love being Kiya's mom. She is nothing shy of amazing and I am so proud of her.
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Baby K and other updates
Sweet Baby K is now 5 months old and just as cute as ever. We just got new pictures and measurements. She is just too adorable for words really. I can't wait to share her pictures.
She currently weighs about 14.5lbs (28th percentile) and is about 25 1/4 inches (55th percentile) and her head circumference is in the 22nd percentile per CDC growth charts anyway.
I wasn't expecting the new pictures so soon but it was a nice surprise. It has been one month since we first saw her face and now I have 7 fabulous pictures to stare at.
We also finished being fingerprinted by USCIS. We have our I171h already. We still aren't really sure what the next steps are but we know we anxious to get the ball rolling. I know time will fly and our house is so not ready physically for a second child. We need to remodel the basement, get new carpets, paint and I could go on.
In other crazy news, instead of quitting my job which I still will when Baby K comes home, for now I applied for a promotion. It gets me out of the day to day bank sales and more into management. We shall see if I get it or not. I have the peer support. I hope I do. The extra money would be nice especially with all the home projects.
We are also preparing for a vacation. We haven't been to California in 2 years and decided why not take Kiya back to California. I am a little nervous about traveling with a potty trained/training toddler. We have been telling her we are going on an airplane and that she has to sit in her seat and be quiet. We also let her pick out a special travel bag which mommy will fill with special surprises. She picked a little Dora back pack on wheels. So far there is a my little pony in it. There will be a magna doodle, some paper markers, snacks, and other little things she loves including beads and rubber spiders and snakes. Yeah I know. My girlie girl LOVES rubber insects and reptiles and yet also LOVES all things pink and loves to wear beads. We just roll with it. Doesn't bother me in the slightest though the rubber insects are kind of gross.
These next few weeks will be busy as I should find out if I get the promotion at work and we have to get ready for vacation. Fun stuff.
She currently weighs about 14.5lbs (28th percentile) and is about 25 1/4 inches (55th percentile) and her head circumference is in the 22nd percentile per CDC growth charts anyway.
I wasn't expecting the new pictures so soon but it was a nice surprise. It has been one month since we first saw her face and now I have 7 fabulous pictures to stare at.
We also finished being fingerprinted by USCIS. We have our I171h already. We still aren't really sure what the next steps are but we know we anxious to get the ball rolling. I know time will fly and our house is so not ready physically for a second child. We need to remodel the basement, get new carpets, paint and I could go on.
In other crazy news, instead of quitting my job which I still will when Baby K comes home, for now I applied for a promotion. It gets me out of the day to day bank sales and more into management. We shall see if I get it or not. I have the peer support. I hope I do. The extra money would be nice especially with all the home projects.
We are also preparing for a vacation. We haven't been to California in 2 years and decided why not take Kiya back to California. I am a little nervous about traveling with a potty trained/training toddler. We have been telling her we are going on an airplane and that she has to sit in her seat and be quiet. We also let her pick out a special travel bag which mommy will fill with special surprises. She picked a little Dora back pack on wheels. So far there is a my little pony in it. There will be a magna doodle, some paper markers, snacks, and other little things she loves including beads and rubber spiders and snakes. Yeah I know. My girlie girl LOVES rubber insects and reptiles and yet also LOVES all things pink and loves to wear beads. We just roll with it. Doesn't bother me in the slightest though the rubber insects are kind of gross.
These next few weeks will be busy as I should find out if I get the promotion at work and we have to get ready for vacation. Fun stuff.
Sunday, August 7, 2011
12 years
12 years ago today I married my best friend. This last 12 years has been one heck of a ride. It is so much more than I expected and so much different than I dreamed. I have this amazing little life and while it wasn't the life I thought I would have it is the life I love and wouldn't change.
Sure we don't always see eye to eye and there is the occasional fight but one thing I know for sure is that through thick and thin, love conquers all.
I am truly blessed. I married a very smart man who just happens to be an amazing father. I knew he would be but I didn't know just how truly wonderful he is. Kiya has him wrapped around her little finger and I just know Baby K will as well. He was meant to parent these girls.
So while these last 12 years have taken us on a crazy ride full of ups and downs. We did it and we did it together. We survived it all still intact and the proud parents of 2 amazing little girls from two very different parts of the world.
I am sure we will still have our share of arguments but one thing will remain the same. Love will get us through. Life is crazy. We have lived crazy and kept on going. Together we can conquer anything as long as we do it together. I am grateful I found the person I can conquer life with. We truly needed each other to get through the last 12 years and we will need each other in the next 12.
So to the love of my life, thank you. Thank you for being there. For being such a great dad and for working so hard so we can have the life we do. I am not sure what us girls would do without you.
Sure we don't always see eye to eye and there is the occasional fight but one thing I know for sure is that through thick and thin, love conquers all.
I am truly blessed. I married a very smart man who just happens to be an amazing father. I knew he would be but I didn't know just how truly wonderful he is. Kiya has him wrapped around her little finger and I just know Baby K will as well. He was meant to parent these girls.
So while these last 12 years have taken us on a crazy ride full of ups and downs. We did it and we did it together. We survived it all still intact and the proud parents of 2 amazing little girls from two very different parts of the world.
I am sure we will still have our share of arguments but one thing will remain the same. Love will get us through. Life is crazy. We have lived crazy and kept on going. Together we can conquer anything as long as we do it together. I am grateful I found the person I can conquer life with. We truly needed each other to get through the last 12 years and we will need each other in the next 12.
So to the love of my life, thank you. Thank you for being there. For being such a great dad and for working so hard so we can have the life we do. I am not sure what us girls would do without you.
Saturday, August 6, 2011
The heavy stuff
This blog breaks my heart
Ethiopian Adoption Truth
Adoption is not for the faint of heart. Reading the stories, listening to my fellow adoptive parents has opened my eyes to the sad realities.
I cannot honestly say that for 100% sure everything we learned about Kiya's life pre-adoption is the truth. That is a hard thing to swallow. I want to believe it. I have the words in writing and on DVD but how do I know that is the truth? Will I ever know? If we hire our own translator while in Ethiopia maybe but maybe not.
We learned recently that the orphanage where Kiya spent her first few weeks was one of more than 10 orphanages closed in Ethiopia. I don't normally talk about adoption ethics on here but this was just too much. Ethics have been on my mind for awhile. It was one of the major reasons we made the difficult decision to not adopt from Ethiopia again.
Things in Ethiopia adoptions are a complete mess. There are investigations, orphanage closures and worst kids and families both adoptive and birth caught in the middle. It is tragic. Agencies are lengthening timelines, asking families to consider other adoption avenues. This is not boding well for Ethiopian adoptions. I cringe a little when someone tells me they are starting an Ethiopian adoption. Don't get me wrong a piece of my heart will always belong in Ethiopia. I fell in love. I can't wait to show Kiya the beauty that is Ethiopia. The corruption, the lies, the falsified paperwork and stories is all just too much.
How am I supposed to explain this? How will I answer the tough questions? Our 2 daughters adoptions are so very different. How am I supposed to explain that? I know this post may not make sense but I had to write something. I just couldn't keep it to myself anymore. My heart is breaking. I feel for all of the families caught in the middle both birth and adoptive. I pray that a system will emerge so that ethical adoptions could continue in Ethiopia but I am not sure that is even possible.
Sigh.....double sigh.....
Ethiopian Adoption Truth
Adoption is not for the faint of heart. Reading the stories, listening to my fellow adoptive parents has opened my eyes to the sad realities.
I cannot honestly say that for 100% sure everything we learned about Kiya's life pre-adoption is the truth. That is a hard thing to swallow. I want to believe it. I have the words in writing and on DVD but how do I know that is the truth? Will I ever know? If we hire our own translator while in Ethiopia maybe but maybe not.
We learned recently that the orphanage where Kiya spent her first few weeks was one of more than 10 orphanages closed in Ethiopia. I don't normally talk about adoption ethics on here but this was just too much. Ethics have been on my mind for awhile. It was one of the major reasons we made the difficult decision to not adopt from Ethiopia again.
Things in Ethiopia adoptions are a complete mess. There are investigations, orphanage closures and worst kids and families both adoptive and birth caught in the middle. It is tragic. Agencies are lengthening timelines, asking families to consider other adoption avenues. This is not boding well for Ethiopian adoptions. I cringe a little when someone tells me they are starting an Ethiopian adoption. Don't get me wrong a piece of my heart will always belong in Ethiopia. I fell in love. I can't wait to show Kiya the beauty that is Ethiopia. The corruption, the lies, the falsified paperwork and stories is all just too much.
How am I supposed to explain this? How will I answer the tough questions? Our 2 daughters adoptions are so very different. How am I supposed to explain that? I know this post may not make sense but I had to write something. I just couldn't keep it to myself anymore. My heart is breaking. I feel for all of the families caught in the middle both birth and adoptive. I pray that a system will emerge so that ethical adoptions could continue in Ethiopia but I am not sure that is even possible.
Sigh.....double sigh.....
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Adoption update
We have sent in our official acceptance paperwork and it is already on its way to Korea. That is the good news. We are still waiting to hear from our specialist as to what we can expect now, when we can send our first care package and when it becomes really official.
So because there are a lot of unknowns and to protect our baby girl, she will be called for the time being Baby K and we won't be posting any pictures of her. You will just have to trust me that she has a full head of hair and is just plain adorable.
Baby K does have a name here at home and among family. It is the name she was given by her birth mother. Her birth mother chose for her an American first name and then a Korean middle name. We aren't going to change it. We love it and we love that it came from her mother.
For now we also aren't sharing all of the details about sweet Baby K. Some details will for sure come out and other's will stay private but for now it will be private.
This adoption is so very different. We likely won't meet Baby K's mother possibly ever. We will meet her foster mom and family which is amazing. She isn't in an orphanage as was Kiya. Things are just different. One big difference is Baby K weighed at 3 months what Kiya weighed at 6 months. Kiya was well loved and taken care of by the nannies at the care center. Baby K gets a mom figure that takes care of her. A person that she can attach too.
I am anxiously awaiting to hear what the next steps are in this long part of the process besides just waiting. We know we are being fingerprinted by USCIS in a couple weeks so that piece will be done.
So while we wait we will talk about her and look at her pictures. Kiya insists on looking at her pictures all the time. She also insists that "baby walk now". She also said today in the car that she wanted to play with Baby K. I think she is going to make an amazing big sister. It will be an adjustment and I suspect the first months home will be a challenge but in the end. I think Kiya is going to like have a sister to play with. They will be about 2 1/2 years apart in age.
Ok I am officially rambling. I am just so excited to hear the squeals of two beautiful little girls in this house. I am very blessed.
So because there are a lot of unknowns and to protect our baby girl, she will be called for the time being Baby K and we won't be posting any pictures of her. You will just have to trust me that she has a full head of hair and is just plain adorable.
Baby K does have a name here at home and among family. It is the name she was given by her birth mother. Her birth mother chose for her an American first name and then a Korean middle name. We aren't going to change it. We love it and we love that it came from her mother.
For now we also aren't sharing all of the details about sweet Baby K. Some details will for sure come out and other's will stay private but for now it will be private.
This adoption is so very different. We likely won't meet Baby K's mother possibly ever. We will meet her foster mom and family which is amazing. She isn't in an orphanage as was Kiya. Things are just different. One big difference is Baby K weighed at 3 months what Kiya weighed at 6 months. Kiya was well loved and taken care of by the nannies at the care center. Baby K gets a mom figure that takes care of her. A person that she can attach too.
I am anxiously awaiting to hear what the next steps are in this long part of the process besides just waiting. We know we are being fingerprinted by USCIS in a couple weeks so that piece will be done.
So while we wait we will talk about her and look at her pictures. Kiya insists on looking at her pictures all the time. She also insists that "baby walk now". She also said today in the car that she wanted to play with Baby K. I think she is going to make an amazing big sister. It will be an adjustment and I suspect the first months home will be a challenge but in the end. I think Kiya is going to like have a sister to play with. They will be about 2 1/2 years apart in age.
Ok I am officially rambling. I am just so excited to hear the squeals of two beautiful little girls in this house. I am very blessed.
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Cast # 4
This post has been brewing in my head for a few days now. I just needed a few days to sort it out and well celebrate the good news of our soon to be baby girl.
Kiya got cast #4 this past Tuesday. It was a VERY long and draining day. Kiya as always was such a trooper. In my heart, I was hoping for just a little even a smidgen of correction in her curve. That was not to be this time. Her stubborn little curve gained 4 degrees. So we started the day at 66 degrees and once again our doc worked his magic and she is holding at 15 degrees in cast. Amazing. Her flexibility is what keeps me going.
I was devastated by the news that her curve got worse. It was a tough blow. However, not only did I have my wonderful husband, I had some dear friends there to help pick me up. And Linda, our nurse to insist repeatedly that all is fine and that I shouldn't be worried. I am so grateful that Catie, Tracy,Sarah and Rachel were there to pick me up after the news of her curve. I am not sure what I would do without these amazing women that I am so honored to call my friends. Catie has been down this road with her iron man and her hope and his progress is such an inspiration to me. Sarah just gets it and well Rachel is so sweet and dealing with her own cast day stuff and yet there she was to be a support.
So after the shock of that news and a nice breakfast chat with Tracy, it was time to get to Miss Kiya. She is usually pretty grumpy post anesthesia but once again my amazing girl just rolled with it. She was a little out of it and a little mad but once she got her crackers and some juice she was much better. I can't thank Tracy enough. She was right there by our sides encouraging Kiya to eat and drink and getting her more crackers. I just met the woman in person that day and wow. So grateful to her for being there when she didn't have to be and for her care and concern for me and for Kiya. I am lucky to have met her.
Kiya was sporting her new pink cast and was ready to get to the tape. She was even helping the nurses tape her cast. She sat so still and was just amazing. I was so proud of her. All was well until it was time to trim the shoulder straps. From there the day was a blur. Kiya was hysterical. I was a mess and the new latex free tape was TERRIBLE. It just became too much at one point.
I hate scoliosis and I hate this cast. There is extra fiber glass, crappy tape and it is so tight. I will be shocked if we don't have sores under her arms.
I hate that sweet Kiya has to deal with this and yet deal with it is what she does. She is truly amazing. She was up and running around that afternoon. She even went to preschool on Wednesday. She asked to go. She had a great time. She went accident free in her new big girl underwear. We had our first post cast laundry room bath and she was totally fine. She rarely if ever complains. She is such a superstar.
So where do we go from here....we keep on casting. That is what the doc says and that is what we will do. So here is to the next 11 weeks.
Kiya got cast #4 this past Tuesday. It was a VERY long and draining day. Kiya as always was such a trooper. In my heart, I was hoping for just a little even a smidgen of correction in her curve. That was not to be this time. Her stubborn little curve gained 4 degrees. So we started the day at 66 degrees and once again our doc worked his magic and she is holding at 15 degrees in cast. Amazing. Her flexibility is what keeps me going.
I was devastated by the news that her curve got worse. It was a tough blow. However, not only did I have my wonderful husband, I had some dear friends there to help pick me up. And Linda, our nurse to insist repeatedly that all is fine and that I shouldn't be worried. I am so grateful that Catie, Tracy,Sarah and Rachel were there to pick me up after the news of her curve. I am not sure what I would do without these amazing women that I am so honored to call my friends. Catie has been down this road with her iron man and her hope and his progress is such an inspiration to me. Sarah just gets it and well Rachel is so sweet and dealing with her own cast day stuff and yet there she was to be a support.
So after the shock of that news and a nice breakfast chat with Tracy, it was time to get to Miss Kiya. She is usually pretty grumpy post anesthesia but once again my amazing girl just rolled with it. She was a little out of it and a little mad but once she got her crackers and some juice she was much better. I can't thank Tracy enough. She was right there by our sides encouraging Kiya to eat and drink and getting her more crackers. I just met the woman in person that day and wow. So grateful to her for being there when she didn't have to be and for her care and concern for me and for Kiya. I am lucky to have met her.
Kiya was sporting her new pink cast and was ready to get to the tape. She was even helping the nurses tape her cast. She sat so still and was just amazing. I was so proud of her. All was well until it was time to trim the shoulder straps. From there the day was a blur. Kiya was hysterical. I was a mess and the new latex free tape was TERRIBLE. It just became too much at one point.
I hate scoliosis and I hate this cast. There is extra fiber glass, crappy tape and it is so tight. I will be shocked if we don't have sores under her arms.
I hate that sweet Kiya has to deal with this and yet deal with it is what she does. She is truly amazing. She was up and running around that afternoon. She even went to preschool on Wednesday. She asked to go. She had a great time. She went accident free in her new big girl underwear. We had our first post cast laundry room bath and she was totally fine. She rarely if ever complains. She is such a superstar.
So where do we go from here....we keep on casting. That is what the doc says and that is what we will do. So here is to the next 11 weeks.
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Guess what......IT'S A GIRL :)
We got the call on Monday afternoon. We were shocked, thrilled and super excited. It was about 4pm when I saw that I missed a call on my cell phone. I saw the phone number and my heart skipped a beat. I just knew. This was the call about our son. The day we had been waiting for.
When I called back and started talking with the social worker, she first confirmed that we were open to adopting a boy or a girl to which I responded yes. She then said well, I have some news about a referral for you. It is a baby girl. At that point, I probably should have pulled over as I was in tears. We knew it could happen but really thought we were going to have a boy. We had even started a list of boy names.
As we started to hear the details, things just clicked. This little girl fits in our family. We listened. We discussed. We sent the email of info to our international adoption doctor, the same one we used for Kiya's referral. We waited.
Our doctor called us at 6:15am on Tuesday. We were up and packing to head to the hospital for Kiya's 4th cast. I spoke with her for a few minutes. All medical info seemed in line and good. She is in the 50th percentile in most metrics. She is obviously well loved by her foster mom.
For now she will be called Baby K. She is currently 4 months old and doing very well with her foster mom. She has chubby cheeks and a head full of hair.
We now settle in to wait again. It could be up to 14 months before we travel to bring her home. Kiya is in love already. She sees her picture and says baby sister. Melts my heart every time. We showed her the picture right before we left to head to Chicago. When we stopped at the oasis for food, she asked if we were picking up baby sister now. So we told her no. I think the adoption will allow for a more open dialogue about Kiya's adoption. I know she will be a great big sister. Though this morning we asked her if she would share her toys and she said, "no my toys. not K's toys."
Never dreamed I would be blessed enough to be a mom to two beautiful girls, Kiya and baby K.
Time to shop for her first care package :)
When I called back and started talking with the social worker, she first confirmed that we were open to adopting a boy or a girl to which I responded yes. She then said well, I have some news about a referral for you. It is a baby girl. At that point, I probably should have pulled over as I was in tears. We knew it could happen but really thought we were going to have a boy. We had even started a list of boy names.
As we started to hear the details, things just clicked. This little girl fits in our family. We listened. We discussed. We sent the email of info to our international adoption doctor, the same one we used for Kiya's referral. We waited.
Our doctor called us at 6:15am on Tuesday. We were up and packing to head to the hospital for Kiya's 4th cast. I spoke with her for a few minutes. All medical info seemed in line and good. She is in the 50th percentile in most metrics. She is obviously well loved by her foster mom.
For now she will be called Baby K. She is currently 4 months old and doing very well with her foster mom. She has chubby cheeks and a head full of hair.
We now settle in to wait again. It could be up to 14 months before we travel to bring her home. Kiya is in love already. She sees her picture and says baby sister. Melts my heart every time. We showed her the picture right before we left to head to Chicago. When we stopped at the oasis for food, she asked if we were picking up baby sister now. So we told her no. I think the adoption will allow for a more open dialogue about Kiya's adoption. I know she will be a great big sister. Though this morning we asked her if she would share her toys and she said, "no my toys. not K's toys."
Never dreamed I would be blessed enough to be a mom to two beautiful girls, Kiya and baby K.
Time to shop for her first care package :)
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Cast free and mixed emotions
I copied this from a post I wrote today for our luckycast blog:
We cut off cast number 3 today. While it was cast 3 in reality it was more like cast two since we had to take such a long break between cast 1 and 2. But regardless the blue cast is now in the garbage.
Sweet Kiya, aka my string bean, is itchy, bruised and slightly off balance but is looking straighter. I am so excited for her to be able to enjoy summer toddler fun minus the cast for one week anyway. She will get to run in the sprinklers with her friends and take baths and enjoy.
I love the squishy hugs and the pure joy that encompassed her once we got the cast off. She was so mad when we were trying to cut it off and once it was off you could just see her face light up in pure joy.
This week of free is always a little strange for me. I try to enjoy all the hugs and fun and yet I watch and wait to see if/when her back will bounce back. I pray that it doesn't but we just don't know. That is the worst. She looks so straight right now. So straight, tall and skinny.
So we head to Shriner's on the 19th for supposedly a pink cast. She keeps saying she wants a pink one. She said that last time and we came home with blue.So we shall see.
Kiya truly amazes me. Nothing stops her. No sooner than we cut off her cast did she stand up and try to awkwardly walk away. She was a little off balance. After her bath she was back to running. She is nothing short of an inspiration. She is 2 1/2 and has a beautiful outlook on life. I love her goofiness, her stubbornness and her dare devil spirit. All of these traits are serving her well on this journey we are on. This kid has taught me so much about life and I am truly honored that I am her mom. I am so very blessed in so many ways.
We cut off cast number 3 today. While it was cast 3 in reality it was more like cast two since we had to take such a long break between cast 1 and 2. But regardless the blue cast is now in the garbage.
Sweet Kiya, aka my string bean, is itchy, bruised and slightly off balance but is looking straighter. I am so excited for her to be able to enjoy summer toddler fun minus the cast for one week anyway. She will get to run in the sprinklers with her friends and take baths and enjoy.
I love the squishy hugs and the pure joy that encompassed her once we got the cast off. She was so mad when we were trying to cut it off and once it was off you could just see her face light up in pure joy.
This week of free is always a little strange for me. I try to enjoy all the hugs and fun and yet I watch and wait to see if/when her back will bounce back. I pray that it doesn't but we just don't know. That is the worst. She looks so straight right now. So straight, tall and skinny.
So we head to Shriner's on the 19th for supposedly a pink cast. She keeps saying she wants a pink one. She said that last time and we came home with blue.So we shall see.
Kiya truly amazes me. Nothing stops her. No sooner than we cut off her cast did she stand up and try to awkwardly walk away. She was a little off balance. After her bath she was back to running. She is nothing short of an inspiration. She is 2 1/2 and has a beautiful outlook on life. I love her goofiness, her stubbornness and her dare devil spirit. All of these traits are serving her well on this journey we are on. This kid has taught me so much about life and I am truly honored that I am her mom. I am so very blessed in so many ways.
Monday, July 4, 2011
Happy 4th of July
Every year we try and spend the 4th of July up at the lake house. We watch fireworks from the boat and hang out with friends and family. It is always a lot of fun and this year we let Kiya stay up to watch the fireworks. Some of the pictures are blurry but she just moves to darn fast :)
Kiya loves to be tickled. She just loves to laugh so she would run to me and I would tickle her and scoop her up. Below is one of my most favorite pictures with Kiya.
Loving the boat ride. Hating the life jacket. She kept asking for the boat to be bouncy. She loved it when we went through choppy water from another boats wake.
Kiya loved the boat. Loved the fireworks and she really liked Uncle Andy's girlfriend. The red beads might have had something to do with that and then the seeming endless spinning of ropes but she keeps talking about her.
The best parts of the weekend for me were playing tickle monster with Kiya, watching fireworks on the boat, spending time with family and my most favorite part came on the boat ride home after fireworks when Kiya came over to me and said, "I sleep on mommy now." I picked her up and we snuggled the rest of the way home. It was a perfect mommy/daughter moment.
We had one unfortunate experience just before we left. Kiya was running in the house which is a no-no. She had sandals on which is a no-no as she isn't as stable on her feet (my bad but it was hot) and well she and the coffee table met face to face. Literally. She tripped and smacked her face on the table leg. Her eye is super swollen. She has a cut above her eye and on the side if her nose. Her top lip is swollen and she had her very first bloody nose followed by a second one today. She looks terrible but her mood now that we are out of the moment is fine. She was pretty hysterical and way over tired after it happened and the sight of that much blood kind of freaked her out even more. No stitches necessary...do love having a doctor in the family...and time will heal her wounds. Just hope they heal before we head to Shriners and have to explain to one very opinionated and not so friendly nurse why my toddler has scratches and bruises.
So hope you all had a wonderful 4th of July. We did minus the coffee table experience. So glad Kiya is old enough to share in the fun of this holiday and that she loves the boat and the fireworks.
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Bad blogger.....still
So I had hoped that having the laptop back in action would mean I would blog more again but such is not the case apparently :(
Here is what is going on in no particular order.
1) We refinanced our house. Pretty painless but super happy with our new low interest 15 year mortgage.
2) We got our fingerprint appointment for the Department of homeland security. It is July 22nd....3 days after cast day.....could be interesting trying to get time off work that week.
3) Kiya's cast cut off date is in less than 2 weeks. Yeah for summer fun for a week.
4) Cast number 4 goes on July 19th. Pink is said to be the color but she said that last time and we left with blue. I am more than ready to see this cast go. It is GROSS.
5) Kiya is doing GREAT in her preschool class. Drop offs are getting better and she is having a blast. She can tell some of the days of the week and is getting really good at using scissors. Water days have been no issue and she is starting to make progress in the potty training department again. Amazing what spending her days with kids her age and older can do. She is even going poop on the potty again.
6) The pugs are well lazy. Sebastian loves to be outside in the mornings when it is cool and Badger has taken up digging in the front yard again.
7) We are rapidly approaching our 12 year wedding anniversary
8) We are getting closer to realizing our second child. It has been almost 2 months and by my estimation we are #2 or #3 on the wait list for a son. OMG.....crazy that my phone is about to ring with amazing news.
So that about sums it up.
Here is what is going on in no particular order.
1) We refinanced our house. Pretty painless but super happy with our new low interest 15 year mortgage.
2) We got our fingerprint appointment for the Department of homeland security. It is July 22nd....3 days after cast day.....could be interesting trying to get time off work that week.
3) Kiya's cast cut off date is in less than 2 weeks. Yeah for summer fun for a week.
4) Cast number 4 goes on July 19th. Pink is said to be the color but she said that last time and we left with blue. I am more than ready to see this cast go. It is GROSS.
5) Kiya is doing GREAT in her preschool class. Drop offs are getting better and she is having a blast. She can tell some of the days of the week and is getting really good at using scissors. Water days have been no issue and she is starting to make progress in the potty training department again. Amazing what spending her days with kids her age and older can do. She is even going poop on the potty again.
6) The pugs are well lazy. Sebastian loves to be outside in the mornings when it is cool and Badger has taken up digging in the front yard again.
7) We are rapidly approaching our 12 year wedding anniversary
8) We are getting closer to realizing our second child. It has been almost 2 months and by my estimation we are #2 or #3 on the wait list for a son. OMG.....crazy that my phone is about to ring with amazing news.
So that about sums it up.
Sunday, June 19, 2011
Preschool Update
Kiya had a GREAT first week in preschool. She can't stop talking about her friends and her classroom, "La Playa." Her new teachers reveled in just how well she adjusted.
We faced one old and one new issue during this transition. The old issue being her over dramatic clingyness at drop off. I mean she grabs on to our legs and doesn't want to let go. Sure enough a teacher comes to get her and she walks a way to go play or do art or read and is just fine. It is an academy award winning performance. I would be worried about it but her daily reports all say that she had a great day and when we pick her up she is super happy and silly.
The new issues was splash day. In her old room splash day was Thursday and Kiya is with nana and papa on Thursdays so there was no issue. Now her new class has splash day on Tuesday. Due to her cast, Kiya can't run in sprinklers. Well she can once in July after cast cut off. I called her teachers to talk about options and they are going to bring out a water table so she can splash around and play. She will wear a bib and it will be fine. I was so excited that they came up with a way for Kiya to play with her friends and not miss all the summertime fun.
Week one down. I am excited to see what week 2 brings. She will encounter her first splash day.....so that could be interesting. She hasn't had to deal with sprinklers ever before as she wasn't walking last summer and now this summer she has a cast. For the most part she is a reasonable kid for a 2 1/2 year old anyway so I am hoping it works out.
We faced one old and one new issue during this transition. The old issue being her over dramatic clingyness at drop off. I mean she grabs on to our legs and doesn't want to let go. Sure enough a teacher comes to get her and she walks a way to go play or do art or read and is just fine. It is an academy award winning performance. I would be worried about it but her daily reports all say that she had a great day and when we pick her up she is super happy and silly.
The new issues was splash day. In her old room splash day was Thursday and Kiya is with nana and papa on Thursdays so there was no issue. Now her new class has splash day on Tuesday. Due to her cast, Kiya can't run in sprinklers. Well she can once in July after cast cut off. I called her teachers to talk about options and they are going to bring out a water table so she can splash around and play. She will wear a bib and it will be fine. I was so excited that they came up with a way for Kiya to play with her friends and not miss all the summertime fun.
Week one down. I am excited to see what week 2 brings. She will encounter her first splash day.....so that could be interesting. She hasn't had to deal with sprinklers ever before as she wasn't walking last summer and now this summer she has a cast. For the most part she is a reasonable kid for a 2 1/2 year old anyway so I am hoping it works out.
Monday, June 13, 2011
Preschool
My baby girl is officially starting the transition to preschool this week. I can hardly believe it.
We are super excited for her. She is going into the classroom that we wanted her in back when they tried to transition her before and it went horribly wrong.
This time we are hoping things go much better. She has multiple friends in this room that she asks to play with by name. She has spent some time with the teachers in that room and seems to enjoy them.
She is going to start learning to write her letters, count to 20 which she kind of does anyway but skips a few numbers sometimes, learn to use scissors and so much more. She is so ready for this.
She was the second oldest kid in her old class and only one of 3 girls. Most of the boys were 18 months old or slightly older and 1 of the girls was barely 13 months old and still drinking out of a bottle. Once this very young toddler entered the room Kiya seemed to regress a little. None of the boys were using the potty all that well and obviously the little one wasn't so Kiya hasn't been doing so great in that department lately either.
She totally knows when she is going to go and will announce it while sitting on the potty. She says "I go potty now. Yay!" and then she goes. So she completely gets it but is being stubborn. I really need to find the pull ups that let the kids feel that they are wet so that recognition starts. We have the kind that the pattern fades when wet but that does nothing for Kiya. I can't seem to find the other kind. Will have to keep looking.
So Kiya was going to spend a few hours in there this morning and then a few more on Tuesday and by Friday she will be fully transitioned into that classroom.
Fingers crossed that my long note to her new teachers is understood. We just have certain rules with her cast. No sand, limited water play, limited time outside when super hot and please don't let the cast stand in her way. She doesn't. I put it all in writing for them.
We are super excited for her. She is going into the classroom that we wanted her in back when they tried to transition her before and it went horribly wrong.
This time we are hoping things go much better. She has multiple friends in this room that she asks to play with by name. She has spent some time with the teachers in that room and seems to enjoy them.
She is going to start learning to write her letters, count to 20 which she kind of does anyway but skips a few numbers sometimes, learn to use scissors and so much more. She is so ready for this.
She was the second oldest kid in her old class and only one of 3 girls. Most of the boys were 18 months old or slightly older and 1 of the girls was barely 13 months old and still drinking out of a bottle. Once this very young toddler entered the room Kiya seemed to regress a little. None of the boys were using the potty all that well and obviously the little one wasn't so Kiya hasn't been doing so great in that department lately either.
She totally knows when she is going to go and will announce it while sitting on the potty. She says "I go potty now. Yay!" and then she goes. So she completely gets it but is being stubborn. I really need to find the pull ups that let the kids feel that they are wet so that recognition starts. We have the kind that the pattern fades when wet but that does nothing for Kiya. I can't seem to find the other kind. Will have to keep looking.
So Kiya was going to spend a few hours in there this morning and then a few more on Tuesday and by Friday she will be fully transitioned into that classroom.
Fingers crossed that my long note to her new teachers is understood. We just have certain rules with her cast. No sand, limited water play, limited time outside when super hot and please don't let the cast stand in her way. She doesn't. I put it all in writing for them.
Thursday, June 9, 2011
Sebastian is 11!
In honor of my first baby turning 11, I am posting a bunch of my favorite pictures of him. I know there are more out there and I wish I had his puppy pictures but can't find them. Sebastian is slowly starting to act his age. He has good days and bad. His hearing is not the best though sometimes I think that is by choice. Other days he is running around like a total goof ball. This dog has gotten me through some dark days. He always seems to know when I need a little extra snuggling. He is the best pug. He was so easy and never caused a lot of trouble. Other than the time we caught him peeing on the couch or when he used to climb on our coffee table when we lived in CA. He never chewed/destroyed anything other than a dog toy and a dish towel. He was house trained in 2 weeks. He loves to sleep in clean or dirty laundry he isn't picky. He doesn't snore too loudly for a pug anyway and he loves to go to the vet's office. I even secretly think he likes snuggling with Badger on the couch.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY SEBASTIAN! My biggie P and Kiya's Bassie.
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Thursday, June 2, 2011
35 and life
I have my laptop back so hoping blogging will become more frequent but no guarantees.
I recently turned 35. Yup I am 5 years away from the big 40. How did this happen? Where did the time go? I am not completely sure. What I am sure of is a few things. My life is not anything I thought it would be and yet I wouldn't change a thing.
First off I knew I wanted to get married. I just had to find the right guy. Lucky for me I met him when I was almost 20. I knew pretty early on that this was the guy I wanted to spend my life with. I am pretty lucky. I dreamed of our wedding, our future, our family and so much more.
My wedding was nothing shy of perfect. There were a few little behind the scenes things but all in all it was everything I wanted and more.
I had a job that I loved, a new husband and I lived in sunny CA oh and we got our first little one, our pug Sebastian. He was my baby for so many years and he still is. If you had asked me then that 11 years later I would be living in WI, working at a bank, having just one child and another pug I would have told you all you were CRAZY. If you then told me that I would never get pregnant, travel to Ethiopia and Korea before I stepped foot in more than just an airport in Europe, I would have deemed you certifiably NUTS.
Me not live in CA? No way. Me quit my Student Affairs career, nope not going to happen. Have only one child at age 35, uh no. I wanted to be done having kids by the time I was 30. I was finally blessed with the gift of motherhood just weeks shy of my 33rd birthday while traveling in Ethiopia. My next little isn't yet known to me(hopefully soon) and they won't be joining us here in lovely WI until I am 36.
I am a planner and I had my life planned out in my head anyway. I got married at 23, wanted to have 2 maybe 3 kids by my early 30's at the latest. I dreamed of advancing in my career in higher education and of traveling. When things started to not go my way it was tough. I am a complete control freak and when I couldn't control or fix our infertility it was beyond frustrating but it did teach me a lot. I learned that when my plans don't work out I may be devastated but a door is opening some place else I just need to be willing to look for it.
I have found many doors. The doors that led me to adoption. To international adoption. The doors that led me to my amazing cast mom friends and Shriner's hospital. I am very blessed.
My life may not be what I pictured it would be a t 35 but as I look back I wouldn't change a thing. There were some tough times in there and all of those made me a stronger person. I had to fight through. I was forced to set my plans aside and really dig deep. Really dig to the depths of my soul. Did I want to be pregnant or be a Mom? I wanted to be a Mom. I didn't need to be pregnant. In fact I laugh with friends that I have this amazing daughter and soon to be little one and didn't have the weight gain, back aches or labor. Did I really want to be a career driven Mom or a stay at home Mom? I really really want to be a stay at home mom and we are getting closer to that being a reality. Nothing against working moms but it just isn't for me. I want to enjoy as much of my kids when they are little as I can.
No one wants anything to be wrong with their kids but life happens and as such doors were opened to the world of scoliosis. I wish I didn't have to deal with it yet with it came this amazing group of women that I am honored to call my friends. From each of them I have learned so much. I pray our next child will not have any unexpected medical issues but I know that with life and international adoption there are no guarantees and because I was thrown a curve back the first time I know that I can handle whatever is thrown at me this time.
As I look back at life, I have left some of the planner behind. I cringe when I hear younger people talk about all the plans they have and when they want to have kids, etc. I hope for their sake it all comes true but if it doesn't the disappoint can be a lot to handle. It was for me anyway and took me a little while to get my head back on straight.
I tend to roll with life a little better now which is good. I struggled as a new mom when Kiya wasn't doing things other kids her age did but I just let that go. Kiya is amazing and perfect in her own way. She may not jump and she can't swim or run as fast but I want her to learn from my self inflicted pressure that it is perfectly okay to do things at your own pace.
If my plans had come true I wouldn't have Kiya. I wouldn't be anxiously awaiting for the phone to ring with news of our next little one. I wouldn't be still picking out baby names or looking at flight options to Korea.
I am a very blessed individual. I have this amazing family, great friends and better yet one and soon to be 2 amazing kids. So while life isn't what I thought it would be I am so beyond grateful that life is what it is. I am a very lucky girl.
I recently turned 35. Yup I am 5 years away from the big 40. How did this happen? Where did the time go? I am not completely sure. What I am sure of is a few things. My life is not anything I thought it would be and yet I wouldn't change a thing.
First off I knew I wanted to get married. I just had to find the right guy. Lucky for me I met him when I was almost 20. I knew pretty early on that this was the guy I wanted to spend my life with. I am pretty lucky. I dreamed of our wedding, our future, our family and so much more.
My wedding was nothing shy of perfect. There were a few little behind the scenes things but all in all it was everything I wanted and more.
I had a job that I loved, a new husband and I lived in sunny CA oh and we got our first little one, our pug Sebastian. He was my baby for so many years and he still is. If you had asked me then that 11 years later I would be living in WI, working at a bank, having just one child and another pug I would have told you all you were CRAZY. If you then told me that I would never get pregnant, travel to Ethiopia and Korea before I stepped foot in more than just an airport in Europe, I would have deemed you certifiably NUTS.
Me not live in CA? No way. Me quit my Student Affairs career, nope not going to happen. Have only one child at age 35, uh no. I wanted to be done having kids by the time I was 30. I was finally blessed with the gift of motherhood just weeks shy of my 33rd birthday while traveling in Ethiopia. My next little isn't yet known to me(hopefully soon) and they won't be joining us here in lovely WI until I am 36.
I am a planner and I had my life planned out in my head anyway. I got married at 23, wanted to have 2 maybe 3 kids by my early 30's at the latest. I dreamed of advancing in my career in higher education and of traveling. When things started to not go my way it was tough. I am a complete control freak and when I couldn't control or fix our infertility it was beyond frustrating but it did teach me a lot. I learned that when my plans don't work out I may be devastated but a door is opening some place else I just need to be willing to look for it.
I have found many doors. The doors that led me to adoption. To international adoption. The doors that led me to my amazing cast mom friends and Shriner's hospital. I am very blessed.
My life may not be what I pictured it would be a t 35 but as I look back I wouldn't change a thing. There were some tough times in there and all of those made me a stronger person. I had to fight through. I was forced to set my plans aside and really dig deep. Really dig to the depths of my soul. Did I want to be pregnant or be a Mom? I wanted to be a Mom. I didn't need to be pregnant. In fact I laugh with friends that I have this amazing daughter and soon to be little one and didn't have the weight gain, back aches or labor. Did I really want to be a career driven Mom or a stay at home Mom? I really really want to be a stay at home mom and we are getting closer to that being a reality. Nothing against working moms but it just isn't for me. I want to enjoy as much of my kids when they are little as I can.
No one wants anything to be wrong with their kids but life happens and as such doors were opened to the world of scoliosis. I wish I didn't have to deal with it yet with it came this amazing group of women that I am honored to call my friends. From each of them I have learned so much. I pray our next child will not have any unexpected medical issues but I know that with life and international adoption there are no guarantees and because I was thrown a curve back the first time I know that I can handle whatever is thrown at me this time.
As I look back at life, I have left some of the planner behind. I cringe when I hear younger people talk about all the plans they have and when they want to have kids, etc. I hope for their sake it all comes true but if it doesn't the disappoint can be a lot to handle. It was for me anyway and took me a little while to get my head back on straight.
I tend to roll with life a little better now which is good. I struggled as a new mom when Kiya wasn't doing things other kids her age did but I just let that go. Kiya is amazing and perfect in her own way. She may not jump and she can't swim or run as fast but I want her to learn from my self inflicted pressure that it is perfectly okay to do things at your own pace.
If my plans had come true I wouldn't have Kiya. I wouldn't be anxiously awaiting for the phone to ring with news of our next little one. I wouldn't be still picking out baby names or looking at flight options to Korea.
I am a very blessed individual. I have this amazing family, great friends and better yet one and soon to be 2 amazing kids. So while life isn't what I thought it would be I am so beyond grateful that life is what it is. I am a very lucky girl.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Monday, May 23, 2011
Long overdue adoption update
So apparently people (I mean Leah) still read this blog and informed me that I changed my side bar to say we are officially waiting yet failed to blog about it. So here it is.
On May 10 we were officially put on the wait list for Korea. Right now the timeline for waiting for a referral is as such
0-3 months for a boy
4-8 months for a girl
Once we accept our referral, we will do an acceptance dossier. No worries not nearly the amount of paperwork involved this go round.
From there we wait for a visa and then travel clearance. Here is where the long wait comes in. It is estimated that it could take as long as 14 months from time of referral acceptance until travel clearance.
So far the longest wait I have seen is 10 months. During the wait to travel we can send 2 care packages and request two updates on top of the other updates we will receive.
We are currently on the wait list for a boy or a girl. We know that we will likely bring home a child closer to 2 in age so a full fledged toddler. We are both excited and nervous about this.
In the meantime we are trying to learn as much as we can and wait for that phone to ring. It could be tomorrow or it could be August or heck it could even be December whatever is meant to be will be and we are at peace with that.
At last check there were about 18 families waiting for girls and 8 waiting for boys.
So there you have it.
Stay tuned for Wordless Wednesday...pics of Kiya and Badger just for you Leah :)
On May 10 we were officially put on the wait list for Korea. Right now the timeline for waiting for a referral is as such
0-3 months for a boy
4-8 months for a girl
Once we accept our referral, we will do an acceptance dossier. No worries not nearly the amount of paperwork involved this go round.
From there we wait for a visa and then travel clearance. Here is where the long wait comes in. It is estimated that it could take as long as 14 months from time of referral acceptance until travel clearance.
So far the longest wait I have seen is 10 months. During the wait to travel we can send 2 care packages and request two updates on top of the other updates we will receive.
We are currently on the wait list for a boy or a girl. We know that we will likely bring home a child closer to 2 in age so a full fledged toddler. We are both excited and nervous about this.
In the meantime we are trying to learn as much as we can and wait for that phone to ring. It could be tomorrow or it could be August or heck it could even be December whatever is meant to be will be and we are at peace with that.
At last check there were about 18 families waiting for girls and 8 waiting for boys.
So there you have it.
Stay tuned for Wordless Wednesday...pics of Kiya and Badger just for you Leah :)
Sunday, May 22, 2011
A day at the farm
We took Kiya to a farm today. She wasn't in the best of moods so our trip was short but she did like riding the little tractors.
And the baby cow :)
She was so sweet and just liked petting him. It was cute.
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