Soccer Game #2

Can you say, "Waste. of. time." ?? After last week, I thought 'the coach' (I use that term lightly) would step it up a bit. I guess she did...she lead them in a warm up routine for all of 3 minutes. It was then time for the parents to take over. In the brochure, it said that parent participation was required. They need to change that to 'parents do everything while the coach stands and watches'. Regardless, all Bella wanted to do was play with mom's dog. I finally had to get out there, with my 2 inch Dansko clogs on, and play with her. If it had been up to her, she would have spent her time balancing on her tip toes and twirling. $35.00 down the drain.

My questions answered....

We finally got the answers to many questions regarding Isabella's birth, adoption, and family in Vietnam. When we adopted, there was much talk about whether it was legal and many people in the adoption community threw BIG, HUGE, GIGANTIC stones at our adoption agency. We always thought that everything was as they said it was but you never know. Here are a few things we found out...

Bella's birth father was 29 years old and her birth mother was 22 years old when they got married. They both grew up in Lang Son. They were married in 1981; they have been married for 29 years.

Isabella has 5 siblings: a sister who is 26, another sister who is 21, a brother who is 18 years old, another sister who is 14, and a younger brother who is 10.She also has a niece born in 2008 and a nephew born in 2009.

Isabella was born at home at 6 am in the morning. Her father was at her birth.

Her birth father has 4 brothers and 4 sisters and her birth mother is the youngest of 7 children; she has 3 brothers and 3 sisters. Her birth father's mother is still alive:)

And most importantly, they WANTED Isabella to be with a family who could care for her and give her the life they couldn't. They are happy, we are happy. Amen.

Boobies

Isabella: I want to buy this dress. I think I will look pretty. (Women's, size 6)
Me: You need boobs to fit in that dress. You don't have boobies yet.

Isabella: I'm gonna get boobies.
Me: When??

Isabella: I'm gonna wish upon a star and get big boobies.
Me: I'll buy you the dress when your wish comes true.

Isabella's new favorite book

I just bought this book for Isabella. It is THE sweetest book I have ever read and it tells the story of a little spider who can't find her mother and discovers that a beetle named Betty is really the mom who she has been looking for. She wants me to read it over and over and over....but I have to skip the page where Miss Spider is almost fed to a bunch of baby birds.

Questionable Medical Advice

I, once again, burned my frickin' fingers on the stove again. And, no, I wasn't even cooking dinner-I was making Rice Krispie Treats. Anyway, they were really throbbing when Nurse Isabella came over. Here were her instructions:

"Mommy, suck on your fingers. No, don't suck on both of them-suck on one then the other. Okay, now blow on both of them. Now wipe it on this cloth."

ME: "Where did you learn how to do this, Bella?"

"At school. In English. Uno, dos, tres."

ME: Huh??

Isabella's 1st Soccer Experience....

and Elisabeth wanted to shoot her! She wouldn't keep her little hands off the ball despite Elisabeth keeping her arms behind her back. She would kick it and then, when it veered the way she didn't want it to go, she would adjust it to her liking. Elisabeth finally gave up and went to help someone else who was more willing to listen to her.

Sleep Tight

My dad sent Isabella this sleep mask-he got it free on Jet Blue. For some odd reason, she can't sleep without it. Once that mask is on, it is nighty-night!!! Works like a charm. I think she has discovered it is more comfortable to wear upside down so that the nose piece doesn't block her breathing:)

A puppy and his best friend

Sick Kids :0

In 4 years, the kids have never had the same illness at the same time. On Sunday, both of them were up at 4:30 am coughing. They seriously coughed every 10 seconds. And guess whose bed they both ended up in?? I finally couldn't take it another minute and put them downstairs together in the big chair to watch TV. After a trip to the doctor on Monday, it was declared they only had a virus. The doctor in me could have diagnosed that but I thought I had better trust the professionals. I am sure Mrs. Meddling Wal-Mart would have been proud of me:)

Meddling Wal-Mart Employee

Elisabeth hurt her finger in gym today. In true Elisabeth style, she thought it was broken and has been 'wondering' how badly it was damaged since she got home from school. After much convincing to buy her a splint (she even got Nurse Rebekah) in on it. Of course, we ended up at Wal-Mart with a clerk who HAD to know WHY she was wearing a splint.

Clerk: What happened?
Me: She hurt it in gym. A ball hit the tip of it.

Clerk: Did you take her to the doctor?
Me: No, I think it is okay.

Clerk: Oh, and you are a doctor?? (in a snotty tone)
Me: She can move it and we consulted a nurse (who happens to live in Alaska and didn't exactly see it).

Clerk: What if it is broken?
Me: It's not.

Clerk: How do you know?
Me: Trust me. It is fine.

Clerk: Are you an M.D.??? Are you a doctor??
Me: No. I am mother who is not paying another 20 dollar co-pay to have the doctor tell me there is NOTHING wrong with her DAMN finger. Now give me my DAMN money and shut your DAMN mouth!!! Okay..I didn't say it using those exact words but she understood what I meant by the nasty look I gave her.

Birth Family Update

We did receive video from Bonnie but I cannot figure out how to upload it to be able to send it to anyone. I thought I would want to post it on my blog but have decided against that. On the video, Isabella's birth father, mother, grandmother, and aunt leave her a message. It is pretty moving and very personal...it will be nice to have for her as she gets older. We did show her but, as with any 3 year old, she paid attention for a short time and then started playing again. Elisabeth seemed to be the most emotional about it. After watching, she started to cry. She realized how much Isabella is loved in Vietnam and is scared she will want to go back there to stay. It touched my heart because I realized that even though they fight like cats and dogs most of the time, she truly does love her to pieces.

A Perfect Pair

An iPad and a great cause!

I follow an awesome blog and right now, if you donate to Child Survival Program in Kenya, you could possibly win a brand new iPad!!! Check it out by clicking on the following:
My Charming Kids

Piper and the EGG

My mom sent Piper, my sister's French Bulldog, a large plastic egg for Easter. It drives him crazy that he can't tear it to pieces. He doesn't have any toys because he destroys them all...except for this one!

More news....

Isabella is an AUNT!! Apparently, her 2 older sisters have babies now:) And...the 20 cousins are just on her FATHER'S side...her mother is one of 9 children. Wow.

I am not sure what we are going to do with this information but it is really nice to know everything we can about her birth family. If Isabella wants to be part of it all, it will be her choice. If she doesn't, that is fine with us too. We just want to be prepared and ready for whatever it is she decides she wants to do when she is older. For now, she definitely shows interest and will bring "Mother" and "Father" up in conversation. To her, they are more like extended family - not mommy and daddy and Elisabeth.

People ask me why we choose to go down this path. I am not doing it for anyone but Isabella. If it were up to me, I would probably want to keep her all to myself and never, ever share her with anyone. I want to be known as her one and only mom. The fact is, I am not her only mother. There is another woman, many miles away, who chose to give birth to her and then give her a better life by giving her to us. How can I not acknowledge that? For those that don't understand, I guess you have to be in my shoes.

Great news on the birthparent front:)

Bonnie and Son made it to Lang Son!!! From her quick email, it sounds like it was a rough trip with all the rain the area has had. I know that they took pictures (but she accidentally left her camera there!!), took video, and spoke to them at length. Surprisingly, Isabella has a GRANDMOTHER!!! AND...over 20 cousins that live right in their village. 20!!! I have 2, Elisabeth has 2, and she has 22!!!

Bonnie is extremely busy but will be returning the States. I am sure I will hear more soon. Trust me, it is killing me but I have to be patient:)

Easter 2010

We went to Syracuse this weekend. Amazingly, we haven't been there since January!!! It was a great weekend full of food, fun, and shopping....and NO bunnies, per Isabella's request:)
















Panic set in last night when I was filling the kids' Easter baskets. Elisabeth had just enough things but Isabella ONLY had 3 things of candy. That was it. (I was going to give her the new Chipmunks movie but after I dropped her on her head in Walmart last week, she got the movie a little early.) I contemplated running to Target or Wegmans to buy her something else. I started looking around the bedroom and found the following: a new, but boring, Gap sweatshirt, a new curtain for her bedroom, and a bottle of suntan lotion spray. Voila! Her basket was complete. And do you know what her favorite present was??? To bottle of suntan spray. Unreal.

While searching for Easter eggs that Isabella had absolutely NO interest in finding because she was holding her can of spray, Elisabeth located a different kind of egg..in the shape of an empty beer bottle LEFT OVER FROM CHRISTMAS!!! Someone in the Elizabeth Connors' household needs to dust behind her pictures;)

Postponed, AGAIN!

The trip to Lang Son was postponed again due to rain. UGH! I was a little disappointed, to say the least, but understand that when it rains in Vietnam, it pours! Here's hoping they can get up there tomorrow!!

The Meaning of Easter

A thought hit me today....most people don't have a clue what Easter truly is. People all day said "Happy Easter" but do they understand how it came about and why we celebrate this special day? It certainly isn't for the bunny and the chocolate....something far greater happened hundreds of years ago that we need to remember every day of our lives...

"The meaning of Easter has gone astray in modern times. Many people only acknowledge it as a family gathering with an Easter egg hunt and a visit from the Easter bunny for the children. This isn't the meaning of Easter at all. It is a joyous occasion celebrated by Christians who know in their hearts and are willing to share with others the news of Christ's sacrifice on our behalf.

The meaning of Easter goes way beyond the physical attributes of the celebration, too. Easter is a time to renew one's faith and to feel the energy of Christ's gift in one's heart.

The true meaning of Easter is the gift of grace. We were undeserving of the sacrifice Jesus Christ made.

Jesus Christ and His resurrection is the true meaning of Easter."

by Kimberly Ripley

Oh, the things she says....

Yesterday, we all sat down to watch Isabella's brand new and most favorite movie "Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel". Immediately, she becomes Brittany, I am Jeannette, and Elisabeth is Eleanor. Because I have seen it 3 times already, I decided to a little nap at the end of couch she was sitting on. All of a sudden, I hear:

"Hey, Jenanette!! Move your chipmunk feet and give me some of that damn blanket!"

Trip Postponed

Bonnie and her family ended up NOT visiting our birth parents today because they ran out of time. Bonnie and Son are on their way now, as I write this, and I will have news when I wake up in the morning:)