Happy Hopper

It made me smile this morning to see Rex so happy and full of energy.  He didn't even have time to get dressed because he was so busy having fun.

IAC 221 & 222 Results

The following referrals were issued in IAC session 221 held on May 15, 2012:

1) Spanish dossier from June 2009 referred a male child aged 4 years and 10 months

2) French dossier from August 2009 referred a male child aged 2 years and 3 months with features in health status

3) Italian dossier from June 2010 referred sisters aged 6 years and 11 months &  4 years and 1 month

4) Italian dossier from February 2011 referred a brother and sister aged 3 years and 3 months and 2 years and 1 months with features in health status

5) Swedish dossier from August 2011 referred a waiting child (#1275) with a profile on the MOJ site

6) US dossier from December 2011 referred a female child aged 1 year and 11 months with features in health status

7) Italian dossier from January 2012 referred a male child aged 8 years and 7 months

8) Belgian dossier from March 2012 referred a brother and sister aged 12 years and 5 months & 4 years and 6 months

9) US dossier from March 2012 referred a waiting child (#1458) with a profile on the MOJ site

10) Italian dossier from April 2012 referred a waiting child (#1688) with a profile on the MOJ site

11) US dossier from April 2012 referred brothers aged 2 years and 3 months & 3 years and 1 month with features in health status

12) US dossier from May 2012 referred two waiting children (#1163 & #1714) with profiles on the MOJ site
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The following referrals were issued in IAC session 222 held on May 30, 2012:

1) US dossier from May 2009 referred a female child aged 2 years and 3 months

2) Spanish dossier from June 2009 referred a female child aged 2 years and 4 months

3) Spanish dossier from July 2009 referred a female child aged 1 year and 9 months with features in health status

4) Spanish dossier from July 2009 referred a male child aged 3 years and 11 months with features in health status

5) Italian dossier from August 2009 referred a male child aged 6 years and 5 months

6) Italian dossier from September 2009 referred female twins aged 6 years and 5 months

7) French dossier from February 2010 referred a male child aged 1 year and 5 months with features in health status

8) Danish dossier from January 2011 referred a male child aged 6 years and 7 months with features in health status and a family history

9) Italian dossier from April 2011 referred a waiting child (#1639) with a profile on the MOJ site

10) Italian dossier from April 2011 referred a waiting child (#1663) with a profile on the MOJ site


11) Italian dossier from September 2011 referred a brother and sister aged 7 years and 6 months and 8 years and 8 months


12) Italian dossier from September 2011 referred a female child aged 8 years and 8 months with features in health status


13) French dossier from November 2011 referred a female child aged 3 years and 1 month with features in health status


14) Italian dossier from February 2012 referred a female child aged 7 years and 10 months with features in health status


15) Italian dossier from February 2012 referred a waiting child (#1694) with a profile on the MOJ site


16) French dossier from March 2012 referred a female child aged 10 years and 8 months


17) US dossier from may 2012 referred two waiting children (#1070 & #1605) with profiles on the MOJ site


18) US dossier from may 2012 referred a waiting child (#1337) with a profile on the MOJ site


19) US dossier from may 2012 referred a waiting child (#1658) with a profile on the MOJ site

Emilia - Thirty-One Weeks Home

Saturday marked twenty-nine weeks home for Emilia.  With the reunion of families who have adopted from Bulgaria, it's been a whirlwind, crazy busy week here, so I don't have much to report for my little girl.

Stylish girls always carry matching water bottles.

Overall, Emilia is doing well. She's really healthy and sleeps through the night.  She must be in some kind of growth spurt because she wants to eat often and a lot.  She likes toast with blueberry jam and has started drinking orange juice. I am in the process of taking her off her nutritional supplement.  I make it now with soy or almond milk instead of water and only half the powder.  The calories are about the same, but financially it's more affordable.  She has not minded the change at all.  I think I will always keep a can of the supplement on hand though for those days where the quality of her intake is less than stellar.

Brave girl who played in the big pool.

Thanks to Ms. Shelley for helping.

Emilia continues to do things her way, exploring and learning what she wants and leaving the rest for me to fret about.  Maybe I should join the unschooling movement and worry less.  She's always on the move and into something.  Her latest fancy is climbing into the one and only kitchen drawer that doesn't have a child-lock, so she can reach things on the counter.  Emilia is a feisty little girl who lets you know what she wants even though she only says four words.

Emilia has been calling in a lot more cuddles lately and sometimes she even gives me a spontaneous kiss.  She can imitate sounds when she wants, but she does not want 97% of the time.  In recent days I have heard an eee for eat when I was trying to get her to ask for the next bite and a ppp for pig when we were looking at a book.  We are considering placing Emilia into preschool two days a week come fall and also enrolling her in speech therapy to see if she will participate.  Other kids and someone not a parent asking her to develop skills might be just what she needs.

Rex - Forty-Five Weeks Home

Today marks forty-five weeks home and forty-seven weeks out of the orphanage for Rex.  The last two weeks around here have been really busy with lots of summer activities, so I have not taken as much note as I should of Rex’s development.  Hence, this may be short.

Rex continues to receive 21 hours of therapy a week and is learning new things all the time.  He has mastered stomping in imitation and during the song If You’re Happy and You Know It.  He also looks at books when they are read to him.  His matching skills are improving and he is getting quite good with inset puzzles.  Rex independently and spontaneously signs eat, drink, finished, spoon, music, swing, light, go and he’s working hard on the signs for spin, jump, and sandwich.  Certain signs like cracker are still hit and miss where sometimes he walks up and signs it because he sees I have a bag of tortilla chips out and sometimes he signs it to request something entirely different from a cracker or chip.  This is not uncommon as he still lacks so much language for all of the things in his life, so he is trying to request with the words he does have.

Rex moved the rocking chair

from the window to this spot

so he could watch Youtube better.

Climbing is Rex’s big thing at the moment.  If it can be climbed or even if you think it can’t, Rex is at least going to make an attempt.  I had to take away all of his step stools because they were like a gateway drug to much more dangerous endeavors, like trying to scale the loft banister or the deck railing.  He is really keeping me on my toes.  Rex has been sensory-seeking for about a week, but I am proud to report that he is finding outlets to handle his needs.  He’s been asking to swing a lot or spin in his saucer and he goes onto the trampoline and jumps on his own when he needs it.  He did 570 consecutive jumps a few nights ago.  His strength, stamina and muscle tone are just so improved.

Kicking back in a quiet place

We took Rex to the pool last week and he did better than expected.  He dipped his feet and was very interested in watching the big boys jump in.  He laughed out loud every time his face got splashed.  He will be doing a lot of swimming at his summer camp in August and then at least weekly swims at his preschool.

 Too hot at the campground?

Rex’s tantrums have decreased greatly and it’s been over ten days since he had a real melt-down.  Now when there a little episodes, typical for toddlers, he appears to understand when we tell him to calm down and really tries.  He rarely hits himself anymore either and when he does, it’s completely half-hearted.  Rex has been sleeping through the night and waking up happy which is huge because he often used to wake up violently with screaming and auto-aggression.  I know these behaviors might resurface when his schedule changes for preschool, but for now we are happy that when he awakens, he knows where he is and he feels safe.  There have been mornings where I have walked into the room and Rex was just quietly lying on his bed wide awake, taking his time to get up.  On other mornings I only know he’s awake because I hear the bathroom fan come on as Rex plays.

He found the source of the music

at the campground dance

In food news, Rex ate grapes one day when he was very thirsty and we did not have a drink on hand, but he has refused them since.  He loved the blueberry lemon cobbler I baked and is eating a variety of sandwiches now.  I am trying out different toppings and spreads to see what will work in his lunchbox in the fall.  Rex was just crazy about the pies that his grandma made over the fire at the campground: toasted bread, pizza sauce, cheese, pepperoni… what’s not to like?  We were there for three dinners over the course of a week and I think he ate seven pies.

With July approaching quickly, I am feeling very retrospective.  We adopted Rex on July 11, took him out of the orphanage on July 14 and arrived home on July 28.  I cannot believe it has been almost a year… and really what a year it’s been.  There will be a number of posts next month to commemorate the events of July 2011 and to celebrate one year of being a family.

You're Beautiful

I am sure everyone knows how the meaning of songs, books, paintings and other things changes for us as we go through life, gathering new experiences and maturing.  It recently happened to me with a song.

About a week ago, I was riding in the car and You're Beautiful by James Blunt came on the radio.  I don't think I've heard that song since 2008 when my sister and I were driving in Slovakia and she played it repeatedly off a CD.  So, I made my sister mad because, feeling oversaturated with this particular track at that time, I kept changing the words to the song.  My sister, an artist, did not at all appreciate my creativity compared to Blunt's.

Now that I've heard the song again (after the car last week I had to go to youtube and listen a few more times), it has affected me in a completely different way.  The last four years have changed my life tremendously.  I felt compelled to alter the words again because the original lyrics of having this intense moment of connection with a stranger reminded of the first time I saw Rex's face in a photo and the first time I saw him in person.  You're Beautiful turned all about Rex and my becoming a mother through his adoption, an ending different from the one in Blunt's version.  Yesterday morning, when Rex led me back to bed for some cuddles, I sang my adaptation to him.

You're Beautiful

Your life is brilliant.

Your life is brilliant.
Your love is pure.
I saw an angel.
Of that I'm sure.
He smiled at me in a photo.
He was with another woman.
But I won't lose no sleep on that,
'Cause I've got a plan.

You're beautiful. You're beautiful.
You're beautiful, it's true.
I saw your face in a crowded place,
And I did know what to do,
'Cause I want to be with you.

Yeah, he caught my eye,
As they placed him in my arms.
I could see from his face that he was
all alone
And I do know that I'll see him again,
Because we shared a moment that will last till the end.

You're beautiful. You're beautiful.
You're beautiful, it's true.
I saw your face in a crowded place,
And I do know what to do,
'Cause I want be with you.

You're beautiful. You're beautiful.
You're beautiful, it's true.
There must be an angel with a smile on her face,
When she thought up that I should be with you.
Now it's time to face the truth,
I will always be with you.

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father’s Day to my husband, Craig, who is turning out to be a daddy beyond my wildest dreams. 

A daddy who provides for us, who makes us happy, who keeps us sane.  A daddy who changes diapers, gives baths, and brushes tiny teeth.  A daddy who reads bedtime stories, teaches, guides, and sings.  A daddy who tells mama to stay in bed on a Saturday morning to finish her book and then brings her a buttered blueberry muffin to boot. A smart, kind and handsome daddy.

photo credit Sheila Johnson

A daddy who leads the way.

A daddy who shares his gadgets.

A daddy who lets you take risks under his watchful eye.

A daddy who laughs with you.

A daddy who protects you from bad dreams and the monsters under the bed.

  A daddy who sets boundaries.

photo credit Sheila Johnson

A gentle daddy.

A daddy with plenty of love to go around.

 photo credit Sheila Johnson

A daddy who nurtures and protects his children and loves them beyond measure.   A daddy who is adored and beloved in return by the little ones entrusted to him... and by his wife.

Snip Snip Snip

A few days ago, I made an 8 inch change…  8 inches of hair that is.   I got it cut for my third hair donation.  I have donated before to Locks of Love and Pantene Beautiful Lengths.  This time the braids are going to Children With Hairloss which happens to be a charity founded by my friend Yvonne’s mother.  However, I didn’t know of this connection until I started doing some research and linked Children With Hairloss back to Yvonne’s family through a few steps.  Kind of weird how that six degrees of separation thing always seems to work out.

Here’s my hair before:

Here are my braids ready to be donated:

And here’s a strange little self-portrait I took in the bathroom:

I have received many compliments on the new style, but it's going to take some getting used to for me.  I still have to pause and think about who I am seeing when I pass a mirror.  I guess it's only been 60 hours.