First Hair Cut

... at least on US soil.

First Swim

We've got a little fish on our hands!

And someone who would rather splash fish than be one.

Grateful

Family came...

and a delicous turkey was eaten.

Games were played...

and parks were visited.

Technology was introduced..

and memories made!

Lil'O was our Thanksgiving kid and ate turkey, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, cranberries, and dressing.  We were pleased and impressed!

We have lots to be grateful for!

Book Review

The hubs is a big Crichton fan.  Lil'O... not so much.

On a more serious note, here are some adoption books we have read so far and our thoughts.

By far my favorite has been Parenting Your Internationally Adopted Child: From Your First Hours Together Through the Teen Years by Patty Cogen. (Thanks for the recommendation Jessie and Denny!) It covers such practical things such as, issues with sleep, eating, eye contact, regulating emotions, and building resiliency.  Another great feature is that it addresses all issues from the child's point of view, which seems like such an obvious thing, but many books seem to focus on the parents' perceptions.  It also speaks about helping your child set down survival skills and learn to pick up family skills.  I haven't even finished it yet, but I can tell that the minute I finish, I'm going to have to go back and start again.  It's a real gem of help.

The Connected Child by Karyn Purvis was also really great to read.  I particularly liked reading about disciplining kids and dealing with behavior problems without destroying the trust that has already been built. 

Adopted For Life by Russell Moore is a good book if you are on the fence about adopting, want to read about a beautiful adoption story, or want to start an adoption ministry at your church.  However, it doesn't have much to offer in the way of dealing with issues your children may be experiencing once home.

Twenty Things Adopted Kids Wish Their Adoptive Parents Knew by Sherrie Eldridge is helpful in that it is written by someone who was adopted and can write with first-hand experience and emotion. This book was helpful in knowing or anticipating what kind of fears our children will experience, as well as times they will grieve.  I will warn you though, the tone of the book is pretty bitter.  It seems like Sherrie grew up in a family that tried to sweep all adoption issues under the rug, and her book is a warning against doing just that.

Scott Simon's Baby We Were Meant for Each Other is one family's memoir of their adoption stories from China.  It's a sweet read, and is more on the chicken soup side, rather than giving advice for arising issues. 

Successful Adoption: A Guide for Christian Families by Natalie Gillespie was worthless.  This book was probably outdated by the time it arrived at the publisher.  The internet is your best friend in looking up agencies, countries, paperwork, and issues surrounding adoption.  Maybe I shouldn't be so hard on it, though, since we did read it and then successfully adopted....

Love in the Driest Season by Neely Tucker is another family memoir that I loved reading.  It speaks to the tenacity of crazy love that parents experience even before kids are "theirs".  We had someone ask us during the process if we ever thought about giving up, that it was too hard.  It was a mind-blowing question.  Leave our sons?  No.  It didn't cross our minds. 

What about you?  Any  favorite books you could recommend?  They don't even have to be adoption related, I promise! 

S-Man's current favorite is Dr. Seuss's ABC book.  (Thanks again Megan and Peter!).  The other night we were reading it, and were on the page with the letter "D".  S said, "I'm coming W!" Hilarious.

Other favorites have been Galimoto and Do you do a Digeridoo?

Lil'O still loves to look at the photo album we left for him in July. Too sweet! We wanted him to be able to see our faces every day, since we knew we wouldn't return for a month or two.  

We need better help...

Maybe No, Maybe No

English is hard.
After I told S about the tongue on his shoe, he asked where the nose was.

"No stuck!"  I reply with, "good job!  Not stuck!"  He gets the hang of "not" and says 5 minutes later, "not book".  I reply, "no more books.  We are done." Then we are playing again and Lil'O almost falls down.  S says, "not fall down!".  I reply, "yes, he didn't fall down." S finishes drinking his water and then says, "didn't water".  "Yes, babe.  No more water." And around and around we go.

Yesterday we were in the back yard and the neighbors dog stopped barking.  S declared the dog to be off.

He also insists that all types of beverages other than milk and water are forms of apple juice.  He was so super excited to see lemonade the other day and shouted, "pink akkle juice!"

Happy Thanksgiving!

I will praise God's name in song and glorify Him with thanksgiving. Psalm 69:30

Reasons to Love Grandma...

Her name is also super fun to say.

She is your number one fan and loves watching your tricks.

She lets you play in her big white van.

She got high speed internet and learned how to Skype just for you.

She brings you presents.

And you love it when she holds you!

We love you grandma!  Thanks for always loving on us and praying for us!

Reasons to Love Grandpa...

His name is super fun to say.  Grrrrrrrrandpa!

He lets you shave.

He knows about diggers.

He takes you to the playground.

He draws with you and makes you masks.

And he's good at reading books.

We love you grandpa!  Can't wait until we see you at Christmas!

Grrrrandma and Grrrrrandpa!

Grandma and Grandpa came down from Missouri to meet their Grandsons last weekend.  Big Man S is still talking about what a great time we had.

The boys got to play farm with some real farmers.  I think S and O will be pretty impressed some day to see that grandma and grandpa have real tractors and animals.

Cutie-pie family shot!

Wool, Copper, or Desk Sets?

The Hubs brought these home and I was momentarily stumped.

Ah yes. I love you too, dear. Happy Anniversary!

Last year at this time he was working hard at a second job delivering pizzas to earn extra money for our plane tickets to Ethiopia.  When he brought home a delicious pizza with pepperonis in the shape of a heart, I reacted similarly. I am terrible with dates.  Next year, I know I'll remember and actually have a gift or at least a kind word for my amazing husband.

We got to celebrate by going out for frosties and fries sans kiddos.  Thanks for babysitting grandma and grandpa!

Winston Park

Happy National Adoption Day!