Nanny Camp

Wonder where Elisabeth is?? She is still at Nanny Camp with her Nanny-my mom. They spent a week in Syracuse, a week in Canada, and now they are back in Syracuse waiting for our arrival. She is a very fortunate little girl to have both a grandmother AND a great grandmother! Luckily, the great grandmother owns a beautiful house on the lake where all of us got to spend our summers. Talk about making memories:)

Movies with a 1 year old are a NO GO....

Todd and I thought it would be a super, duper idea to keep Isabella up all afternoon so she would fall asleep early. We thought that we could then take her to a movie-which she would sleep through. HA HA HA. We arrived at Bruce Willis' new "Die Hard" movie at 9:30 pm with a sleepy baby, a blanket, and a full bottle of milk. Before the movie even started, she had finished the bottle and was ready to play. Twenty minutes later, we were back home :( Todd did go back and finish the movie-well, he tried. He was so tired that he feel asleep the last 20 minutes and woke up to an empty theater!!

While I am typing this, a huge basket of toys and a bookshelf full of books sits alone while Isabella dumps the entire contents of a drawer-pencils, pens, chalk, erasers, glue sticks, and markers-all on the floor. Time for bed :)

Women and Their Ice Cream

Todd has learned the most important rule of life: Don't come between a woman and her ice cream cone. He attempted to take Isabella's ice cream away from her tonight so that he could put her in the car seat and learned quickly that it was a baaaaaaaaaaaaaaad idea! She screamed, turned red, and then started to sob...poor baby, mean daddy. We opted to leave her alone with it and just clean up the car seat after she was done sucking the life out of the cone.

Today wraps up the second full week I have been a stay-at-home mom and it feels really good. I am already getting sad about going back to work in September!! I feel very fortunate that Isabella was so young when we got her....she started going to a private childcare provider 2 weeks after arriving in the US and we really don't think it had a negative affect on bonding. Now that she is a year old, she is starting to realize who is important in her life and is interacting with each of us in different ways. She is so excited when Todd comes home from work and usually cries when he leaves in the morning. During the day, she actually comes over to me and wants me to cuddle her on the couch or in bed. After she wakes up from a nap, she is more than happy to rock until she gets in a better mood. I think I talk on the phone too much because today she took the tv changer and put it to her ear. She may only have 2 half teeth but she knows what a phone is for!!

Happy Birthday, Baby Girl!!

Isabella turned 1 today...and what a day we had :) We took our morning walk to Barnes and Noble in the most horrific heat I have ever felt (okay..it wasn't THAT bad but it was pretty hot), had a bagel and soda, and pranced around in our pretty party dress-the first of many today. Then we headed back home for a little nappy-which she wanted no part of so we read "GO DOG GO" 900 times instead. We met Todd for lunch at Penn State and had lo mien at Panda Express on campus. Then it was off to the pool for a swim with friends (after a quick stop at Baby Gap for a new outfit) and then a 3 hour nap. Isabella LOVES the water and can now jump in and go under. She also learned how to swim under water from me to the ladder and signs 'more' when she comes up for air :) Dinner was at Chili's...chicken and mashed potatoes with ice cream for dessert. It is a good thing we have a closet full of clothes because we changed them many times today...can't have the birthday girl looking dirty!

Celebrating Isabella's birthday was a very different experience than celebrating Elisabeth's birthday. With Elisabeth, I look back at the night I went into labor, how Todd and I walked the halls waiting for my mom to arrive, and how at 11:21 on March 4th we had our perfect little angel (change that "WE" to "I"...I don't recall him writhing in pain and screaming for mercy). I often try to recall what Isabella's birth was like and then remember I wasn't there for it. I imagine her mom gave birth at home (home being a grass hut with a dirt floor) and most likely went back to work in the rice field the very next day. She didn't have the option of a supportive doctor or medicine or TV to help pass the time. She was probably in a great deal of pain-both physically and mentally knowing that she wouldn't be able to keep her little Yen Nhi because they just couldn't afford her. Seven days later, on July 4th, she was taken to the Lang Son orphanage were she began her wait for us to come and get her.

Having had the tremendous privilege of celebrating Isabella's birthday with her, I can't help but to be thankful for many people... thank you Mom and Dad for making our dreams come true, thank you Mary Nguyen for keeping me going and finding my dream, thank you to my sister for all the nights I called whining and crying, thank you World Child for having such a great agency, and thank you Elisabeth for helping me convince Daddy that this was a good idea:) With all of your help, love, and support you made our dreams come true!

The Partying Has Begun....

Isabella's 1st birthday is 24 hours away! My beautiful baby girl will be become my beautiful big girl....who walks, talks, and throws many, many tantrums a day. When she can't pound my computer keyboard, she puts her little fists down at her side and screams as loud as she can while her face turns beat red. I tried the good ole time-out .... she almost fell off the chair and on to her head. Guess I will just have to let her scream. We have gotten ourselves on a quite a little schedule, though....up at 7, walk at 8 to Barnes and Nobles for a drink and bagel and a little re-arranging of their book shelves, back at 9, nap until 10, shower and get ready for lunch out with whomever will meet us, back to bed around 1 until 3, play until daddy comes home and then dinner out. Can you tell I hate to cook?? During that time frame, I read "Go Dog Go" (the boardbook version) about 25 times. As soon as I lay it down, she picks it up, puts it on my chest (speaking of my chest and the picture below, it is quite big but not THAT big), signs 'more', and then lays her head on the pillow. How can I resist that??

Tonight we dined at the Porter house. We celebrated Dave's birthday (on the 26th) and Isabella's birthday (which is on the 27th)....they were born exactly 58 years and 1 day apart:) We had salad, steak, baked potatoes, broccoli casserole, cheesy noodles, bread from Panera, angel food cake with strawberries and a cookie cake. It was yummy!!! Isabella had her first taste of presents and wasn't that interested. Thank goodness there were about 6 other kids to help open what she didn't want to!

Elisabeth is still in Canada with my mom...there was quite a scare with mice but have it under control now. They went swimming in the lake and to see "Evan Almighty"... I am hoping she is missing her Mama a little bit but I think she is having too much fun!

38 and Feeling Great!!!

Today I turned 38 years old and it was a wonderful day. The only thing that was missing was Elisabeth and my mom being here (I included a picture of them anyway)...she decided to visit my Mom for a much-needed 'Isabella break'. After a phone call from her and a beautifully sung "Happy Birthday", Todd and I took Isabella for a walk and had breakfast at Barnes and Nobles. Then we went to AAA and got her pretty picture taken for her new US passport. At the post office, they wanted all of her documents (certificate of citizenship, official name change, and US adoption paperwork) PLUS her Vietnamese passport to send in for her new US passport. I about died! I don't think John, the postal worker, knew how long and hard I worked for those documents and that I would have NO clue how to replace them. He finally handed me her old passport but kept the rest-AND he put a staple through them all. UGH!

Our next stop was to Moyer's Jewelers for a new Pandora bracelet. If you have never experienced a Pandora bracelet before, GOOGLE them! I got the silver bracelet with an angel (for Elisabeth because she is my angel) and a butterfly (for Isabella because she flew into our lives) and a pink charm for Todd because they didn't have a golf club or a computer and pink is the stone for October. Then I had lunch at Joyce's house (she adopted twins from Thai Nguyen and is in the process of adopting 2 more), home for a nap, then to out of dinner with 2 other friends, and then a final meal at the golf course with Todd. I am 'fooded's out! While at dinner, Isabella learned how to slap Todd in the face (in front of his golf buddies). Quite cute. And she screams while she does it. In her defense, it was 9 pm and she had just about had it with all my celebrating. My night ended with bathing her, reading her a book, and putting her into her crib. What a way to end my day:)

Thank you to all who remembered my birthday and for all the beautiful gifts....

How Do Stay-At-Home-Mom's Do It???

Okay...I have officially been on summer vacation for 2 days. I have cleaned up at least 1000 times, tried to put the baby down for a nap 2000 times, started art projects with Elisabeth 100 times, stepped over the pile of laundry in the hallway 1500 times, and gone out to eat for every meal. I am exhausted. It is easier to work! Last year, as I was lounging by the pool drinking a Diet Coke and reading my romance novel, I should have appreciated the easiness of it all. NOT that I don't enjoy every minute of having Isabella in our lives, but WHEW!! This stay-at-home- mom stuff is rough! Todd comes home and the upstairs and downstairs look like a bomb went off. He just got the old 'don't think I don't work all day just because I am home now' talk. And the 'I am not your slave so pick up after yourself' talk. I think he may need to hear those talks a few more times.

Enough about me and my needs, on to the kids....Elisabeth has successfully completed 4th grade and is moving on to 5th in September. She is on her way to Canada with my mom for Nanny Camp. Length of stay is debatable. She would like it to be for the entire summer-I want her home with us for at least a week or 2. When someone asked her why she was coming back to State College in 2 weeks, her response to them was, "Because SHE (pointing at me) is going to miss me too much!" Right on , Pumpkin :)

Isabella has 1/2 a tooth, is walking everywhere, is in the 75% for height and 50% for weight, hates eating table food unless it is dairy or junk, had her 7th haircut 2 days ago, signs 'mama', 'dada', 'eat', 'finished', 'baby', 'more', and 'please' and NOT when you ask her to, says 'up', 'mama', 'dada', and 'hot' and is the 1 of 2 best thing that every happened to us, Elisabeth being the 1. She is starting swimming lessons (with me-ugh!) next Monday - she loves the water and hopefully will learn how to swim in 1 lesson so I can stop watching her at the pool :)

All in all, I think we will have a wonderful summer. I just need to let the house go to pot and enjoy the kids :)

(The last picture is of Isabella with the Corrie and Clarre Porter....they are 4 years old and were adopted from Thai Nguyen before the shut down.)

No Dentures Needed!!

Guess who has teeth?? FINALLY!!!! Isabella, at almost a year old, finally has a tiny tooth peeking through. I can't imagine the amount of germs that child has swallowed over the last 3 months from us sticking our fingers in her mouth. She got a fever Friday night and was miserable all day Saturday and Sunday. I figured she was getting yet another cold but SURPRISE! The oldest living baby without any teeth has one!

Other good news....we only have 5 days left of school until summer vacation! WHOOPEE!! We are going to be traveling like mad for the next 2 months. We are flying to Colorado to see my brothers, sister-in-law, and nephew in the beginning of July and then to Florida to see Todd's parent in the beginning of August. Somewhere in there we will be spending time with my grandmother at the lake in Canada, seeing my brother in Maryland, and hopefully seeing my sister who lives in Alaska. At least we won't be waiting for 'THE CALL" like last summer :) We have our baby safe and sound at home with us now!

The great thing about being an 'older' parent (I am 38-I know, NOT that old) of a baby is that everything they do is funny. What used to stress me out when Elisabeth was this age (I was 28) I find extremely humorous now. We left Isabella in the kitchen yesterday-thinking it was safe. Next thing we hear is splashing- she had dumped most of the dog water onto the floor, which she was sitting in, and the rest she was drinking right out of the bowl. Normally I would have screamed and thought about the mess I had to clean up but yesterday I ran for the camera-laughing. Elisabeth was so disgusted with Isabella and me that she yelled "THIS IS NOT FUNNY, MOM!" and stomped out of the room. That made me laugh harder! Then, at dinner, she was sitting in her highchair eating buttered bread, crackers, cookies, a muffin, and finally some baby food. I was trying to get dinner ready when she up-ended the pudding cup (which I thought I had put out of her reach). The next time I looked, she was COVERED in vanilla pudding which stuck to the bread, cracker, cookie, and muffin crumbs. Just when I was about to sigh LOUDLY, she signed "MOMMY". Chances are, she didn't mean to sign this but I almost started to cry :) She knew exactly how to get herself out of trouble!

PS I would have taken pictures of all of this but the camera was in Todd's car!

Update After a Long Wait

For all you millions of people out there (I am speaking to you, Jennifer :) that check my blog every single day, I apologize for not making any new entries in a very long time. I started my own Yahoo! Group for World Child International (our adoption agency) and that has kept me quite busy.

Speaking of the children, which I do often, both are great! Luckily the swimming pool in our neighborhood is open so we are there every afternoon for 2 hours. Elisabeth usually has a friend to swim with and I have the privilege of carrying Isabella around in the water. She hasn't yet figured out how to take a drink of the water without submerging her entire face. Even with sunscreen, they are both getting quite dark. Obviously, they (at least one, that is) didn't inherit it from me...I am still glowing white! Everyone knows, though, that white is the new 'tan' :)

We are off to Syracuse for the Memorial Day weekend. There are a bunch of adoptive parents and soon-to-be-adoptive parents who are meeting up with us at Onondaga Lake Park. It should be fun!

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all! We had a great day....church, lunch, soccer, and dinner out :) Elisabeth's team won and Isabella learned how to pluck the heads off all the dandelions and eat them. What a day!

Summer Heat

Can I tell you how much I dislike the heat?? It is only the middle (almost) of May and it is already up to 80+ degrees here in PA. Luckily my car and our house are both air conditioned. My offices at school are NOT. I don't know why I even do my hair in the morning-by mid afternoon my bangs are little curly knots. UGH! There are only 4 more weeks of school left until I can spend my days lounging at the pool with the kids.

Speaking of kids, both are doing fine. Isabella is a little pistol and Elisabeth is seeing the value of shutting her door and keeping her things up off the floor. Isabella, at 10 months, is now eating mainly table food, drinking from a sippie cup, taking a few steps on her own, saying 'mama' and 'dada', sleeping through the night for 11+ hours, and taking 2 naps a day. Those are all the positive things. Here are the not-so-positive ones: climbing up the stairs with no fear of falling back down them, screaming in the highest pitch possible because she wants something, turning red when she doesn't get what she wants, spitting out her food into her hand and then putting it back in her mouth-MANY TIMES, chewing on anything and everything on the floor including pennies, paperclips, dog hair, and old cereal. I am not complaining and I would never want to send her back :) but it would be nice if she would just lay in my arms, looking lovingly in my eyes while she babbles "Mama". I didn't expect her to be so independent so soon....I liked my needy, little baby!

Elisabeth, at 10 years, is a super big sister. She plays soccer 2 times per week and is learning her multiplication tables. We just put another twin bed in her room so that her friends, when they com over, will have a place to sleep. I suggested moving the crib in there and making Isabella's room a play room but that didn't go over too smoothly. A pre-teen needs her space :)

Our Trip to Maryland

On Friday, we (Mom, Isabella, Elisabeth, and I) took a trip to Maryland to see Blake (my brother who just returned home from Iraq). Although WE were quite happy to see him, I am not sure how happy he was to see us. Having 4 girls descend upon a bachelor may not qualify as a 'good time'. He did see to our needs, though, by driving us to every mall within a 45 mile radius. We hit Ikea, Baby Gap, Carters, OshKosh, Bloomingdales, Macys, and many, many shoe stores! We also made time to eat - surprise, surpise for those who know me :) We went to a great Italian restuarant the 1st night, Chipolte and California Pizza Kitchen on Saturday, and DuClaw on Sunday. YUMMMMYYYYY!!!! No need to tell you that I am on a diet, AGAIN! The kids were so great we stopped by the Hershey Chocolate Factory on the way home and did the famous tour. Oh...and we had enough room in our stomachs to wolf a burger and fries from Fuddruckers:) I ran out of baby food and formula on the ride home so Isabella ate a brownie covered in icing for dinner...her carseat shared ;)

Wings and Soda

Elisabeth and Todd's favorite thing to eat is wings...and now Isabella has joined the pack! We went to Quaker Steak and Lube on Friday and she tried wings for the 1st time with the sauce! She loved them! She also learned to kiss....full on the mouth! You don't realize what she is doing until she is sucking your lips :) Next step is to teach her how to aim for the cheek!

I am also posting pictures of Elisabeth and Todd playing soccer-he is her coach for the soccer team she is on. Also a favorite past time they share....while I do my favorite past time-sitting on my hinney.

9 Month Doctor Visit

Somehow in the last 3 months, Isabella has gone from the 25th percentile to the 72nd percentile for height and from the 50th percentile to the 25th percentile for weight. The doctor described her as tall and skinny today...when 3 months ago, she described her as short and fat. I am totally confused but completely happy she is healthy and perfectly normal. Elisabeth took great pride in undressing her, sitting her on the 'big person' scale (with her feet hanging off-like her Mama likes to get weighed) and holding her while the doctor listened to her heart. Then we all went to Ruby Tuesdays to celebrate 7 months of being a family (yes, I use any excuse to eat out)...Isabella had peas, cucumbers, cheese, crackers, ham, diet Coke (shhhhhh..don't tell the Dr.), and broccoli soup. Elisabeth dined on peas, grapes, mozzarella sticks, and french fries and a huge piece of chocolate cake for dessert - which she got to enjoy in peace when Todd took Isabella home early :)

Hellion on Knees

What was I thinking when I wanted this child to crawl? Why wasn't I happy with her just sitting peacefully on the rug or wherever I sat her? Now, not only does she crawl, but she pulls herself up on everything! Coffee table, rocking chair, toilet, dressers with drawers that come out too easily, gates, stairs, outlets, and the vacuum cleaner-AHHHHH!!! She not only pulls herself up, but pitches everything on to the floor. Nothing is safe in our house...except her crib and playpen. To all you new mothers out there, listen to what my mother told me-USE A PLAYPEN. It is the only time you have peace of mind. She was in bed today for the 2nd time when Elisabeth and I finally got to sit down and watch a LifeTime movie...our favorite past time. No interruptions for a whole 45 minutes. If anyone was watching "Trophy Wife", email me and let me know what happened :)

Happy Easter!

Easter this year was spent in Syracuse-first the Easter egg hunt, Easter baskets, and then church and lunch. Elisabeth hid Isabella's eggs (filled with Cherrios) in very obvious places but she still needed help finding them. She preferred to pull herself up using the coffee table legs rather than search out her eggs. She also preferred the grass at the bottom of her basket. Elisabeth had a great time, though, helping Isabella and finding her own eggs. Happy Easter to everyone!

Timeline for Travel...Looking Back

I talk to so many people about our experience with World Child International (our adoption agency) and our trip to Vietnam that I thought it would be helpful and less time consuming to post a timeline of what happened when we were there. I will also post the emails/pictures I sent from Vietnam (they will be under the date they were actually sent).

Day 1/2 Flew from Syracuse to Detroit to Los Angeles to Hong Kong to Hanoi, Vietnam (36 hours)
Day 3 Checked into the Guomann Hotel in Hanoi
Day 4 Sightseeing
Day 5 Traveled to see Isabella in Lang Son and file paperwork with the province
Day 6 Sightseeing
Day 7 Traveled to see Isabella again
Day 8-10 Sightseeing
Day 12 Giving and Receiving Ceremony - YEAH!!!!
Day 13 First meeting with INS
Day 14 Apply for Isabella's passport/get passport picture taken
Day 15 Medical appointment for Isabella for VISA
Day 16-22 Sit by the phone from 8 am to 4 pm waiting for a call from INS then go to Cathay Pacific to change our tickets (a total of 5 times!)
Day 23 Move to the Melia Hotel for a change of scenery
Day 24-28 Continue to sit by the phone and wait, swim in the pool, change our tickets
Day 29 Second interview with INS for Isabella's VISA...
Day 30 Pick up VISA and board the plane home :)

Tuesday Update

My sister said that my posts are slightly on the boring side so I promised to only post pictures of the kids. NOT! How can I not brag about my little angels just a little bit?? We will see what her blog is like when she has a baby:)

The pictures of the kids in the tent were taken in a store downtown that sells outdoor clothing. It will probably be the only time they experience a tent-I only do hotels.

Isabella got yet another cold on Saturday and is on antibiotics for an ear infection. Finally, a trip to the doctor's office that ended up being worth the money! A friend was over the other night and when I went to show her how Isabella moved like an inchworm, she got up on all fours and started crawling (Isabella, not my friend:). I couldn't tell who was more proud-us or Elisabeth!