I typed this last on April 25th and never posted it, so here it is.
Today was a beautiful day and so what did we do on this beautiful day outside? We went to the zoo! We had planned to go with some friends, Max and Elle, but Elle wasn't feeling well. So we waited until daddy was out of class and had him join us. It was sunny and 75. There was a bit of breeze and eventually some cloud coverage. We wanted to make it to the zoo before we moved. Adayla has always loved the zoo and today Tally was interested in seeing the animals. Her little feet would get a kicking and she would just smile.
I would have to say that Adayla's favorite animal is the elephant. When we read books and see a pic of an elephant, she used to say mom can you do the elephant noise? She realized that only Daddy does the elephant noise. And so she now says when we see a pic of an elephant, when daddy gets home...can he do the elephant noise? Today we were prepared to come upon the elephants, she got so excited and said, "Daddy do the elephant noise!!" Later we went to see the Lions and Tigers (shizi and laohu), this is the place where many times we have had lunch on a bench. As we passed the bench today, she went to sit down and said Mom lets have some sandwiches. She doesn't forget.
Anyways the animals were really active and we had our best view of the pandas. I will try to post a few pics soon!
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Lotta poo-poos, Lotta poo-poos....
For those of you that have seen the lotta pee-pee dance, tonight Adayla did the lotta poo-poo dance tonight. Actually, there wasn't any dancing involved. The girls were taking a bath and I was cleaning the rest of the bathroom while they were playing. Adayla shouted Tally is Stinky!! Which didn't make me look because that is what I tell them when it is time for a bath. After she repeated it a few times, I looked, and say lotta poo-poos. Tally had definitely done her business in the bathtub and must have felt much better because she continued to play! Meanwhile my little neat nut, Adayla, was freaking out and starts screaming. I pull Tally out and Adayla hops out. We moved them to the shower and really cleaned them up. Adayla eventually calmed down and wanted to keep looking at the poop in the tub. After they were all clean, I got to do the honors of cleaning out the tub. The rest of the night, Adayla kept saying, "Tally pooped in the bathtub!" I am sure this is a typical story for any mother, but we had never had this happen before. What a way to spruce up the evening!
As for the rest of the day, we did a little grocery shopping in the morning. That means buying cereal by the cart full. You can get most things in Shanghai, but American cereal is 10-12 bucks a box! We have a consumables shipment and that will be a good part of it!
Tally continues climbing up the stairs like crazy. She loves it, probably because we keep bringing her immediately back down. She can make it all the way to the top! She has started cruising along things, but no interest in walking on her own. She loves to eat (probably the cause of all that poo!) Tonight we had chicken wraps and she ate the shell, cheese, and the chicken. She has learned to quit screaming for food and does her "more please". Which has evolved to mostly clapping, but we know what she means and she doesn't have to cry.
Adayla is just a funny little independent person. If she spills water on her shirt or pants, we must take it off and get a new one. She still obcessively takes toys around in a plastic bag or purse. Along with asking everyone's birthdays, she is know curious as to how old everyone is. She is very sweet and tells everyone Tally is 11 months. It is amazing how much she is listening to us. Because we have been talking about what month people's birthdays are, we taught her the months of the year in a song. She will gladly sing this for you upon request. The people in nursery have repeatedly told us how much they love her in there, she is very helpful and sings all the songs. Tonight Tim was studying for his last military test and she told him she wanted to study also. Tim told her she could sit by him only if she was very quiet. She grabbed a book and read over and over while sitting quietly next to him. That is my blurp for tonight, I just don't want to forget some of the funny happenings around here. :)
As for the rest of the day, we did a little grocery shopping in the morning. That means buying cereal by the cart full. You can get most things in Shanghai, but American cereal is 10-12 bucks a box! We have a consumables shipment and that will be a good part of it!
Tally continues climbing up the stairs like crazy. She loves it, probably because we keep bringing her immediately back down. She can make it all the way to the top! She has started cruising along things, but no interest in walking on her own. She loves to eat (probably the cause of all that poo!) Tonight we had chicken wraps and she ate the shell, cheese, and the chicken. She has learned to quit screaming for food and does her "more please". Which has evolved to mostly clapping, but we know what she means and she doesn't have to cry.
Adayla is just a funny little independent person. If she spills water on her shirt or pants, we must take it off and get a new one. She still obcessively takes toys around in a plastic bag or purse. Along with asking everyone's birthdays, she is know curious as to how old everyone is. She is very sweet and tells everyone Tally is 11 months. It is amazing how much she is listening to us. Because we have been talking about what month people's birthdays are, we taught her the months of the year in a song. She will gladly sing this for you upon request. The people in nursery have repeatedly told us how much they love her in there, she is very helpful and sings all the songs. Tonight Tim was studying for his last military test and she told him she wanted to study also. Tim told her she could sit by him only if she was very quiet. She grabbed a book and read over and over while sitting quietly next to him. That is my blurp for tonight, I just don't want to forget some of the funny happenings around here. :)
Monday, April 23, 2007
Please bless.....
Here's a quick one for the night.....We went over to a family's house from church (he is actually a Mormon AF Chaplain and so they knew a bit about Tim's parents), anyways really fun family. The mom runs the nursery and so Adayla was quite comfortable with them. So as we were about to eat dinner, Adayla volunteered to say the blessing, and we never really know who she is going to pray for each time. Usually just a few people in our extended family, but not tonight as we are having dinner with others, she says, "And bless Dora and Boots." Then she finished her prayer like normal. How truly sweet little kids prayers are!
Saturday, April 21, 2007
A few pics.....
Here are a few pics of the girls from a recent b-day party. The rest are from Shanghai and some of the views from our new place, I should have let you come take your own pics, but here is something for you to get excited about when you visit. The place we are living is on the 31st and 32nd stories of the building. We have 4 bedrooms and an office. We have a great guestroom with it's own bathroom. It is comforting moving over there knowing where we are going to be. Enjoy the pics, I will post some soon from the girls vacation. Sorry about how random they appear, I am still getting the hang of this blogging thing!
Adayla at her friend Ian's 3rd Birthday party, she loved the icing and ice cream.
Adayla and Tally in the Soft Play Room at Ian's birthday party. They loved it!
Those tannish buildings with red roofs is our compound. We are the tall building on the far left, our buildings look short next to Jin Mao and the World Financial Center.
A local and typical street vendor selling a few varietys of meat they cook right there.
Adayla at her friend Ian's 3rd Birthday party, she loved the icing and ice cream.
Adayla and Tally in the Soft Play Room at Ian's birthday party. They loved it!
One of the local streets (more of an alley) during lunchtime....really crowded, but lots of fun!
Those tannish buildings with red roofs is our compound. We are the tall building on the far left, our buildings look short next to Jin Mao and the World Financial Center.
Does anyone want to go grocery shopping? This is very typical at a Chinese market, among other things......
This is the historic part of Shanghai, The Bund, beautiful at night and just across the river and up from our apartment.
Tally at Ian's birthday party, she loved it! She crawled like crazy all over and went down the slides.
A local and typical street vendor selling a few varietys of meat they cook right there.
View from our balcony, the "ball" building is called the Pearl (Shanghai is called the pearl of the Orient), we are hoping in the short time we live there that that brown cleared patch doesn't become a building that blocks our view! The Pearl has a museum and a few restaurants and is about a 10 minute walk from our place.
Another view from our place....the Jin Mao, one of the world's ex-tallest buildings and the new World Financial Center, will be the world's tallest building for a period of months before another building somewhere else is completed.
View of the river from our balcony, notice the never ending tall buildings......
Our compound, pic taken from the upstairs balcony garden area. It is amazing the amount of green area we will have, not like the rest of Shanghai.
Home again, home again
Well we made it home!! I actually posted from home last time, but hadn't written since Shanghai. We were so glad to make it home!!! Especially Morgan and the girls.....you know you are having a bad flight when the flight attendant sings a lullaby to your baby. That alone wouldn't have been so bad, but give me 2 grumpy girls who didn't sleep much the night before and a mom who had slept probably only 4 of the last 48 hours....that was not a good mesh! But we survived and are enjoying these little girls again.
In the hotel room the night before, Adayla would not go to sleep. She was bouncing around the room, on the bed, turning lights on and off, and just making her jet lagged mom crazy. I really thought I might have to hurt her, so I told her Adayla I am going to spank you....and I did (at least a little one). She turns to me and says, "Mom, are we still best friends?"
The big news is that we actually got orders last Friday!!! (For you non-military...no one will begin to talk to you about moving without them, not movers, not appointments, not flights, NOTHING!) So needless to say, we were thrilled to finally have them. We have movers scheduled, passports mailed, and flights booked to China for the 21st of June! We have been clearing out our stuff, after being in China, we realized we won't take much of our stuff with us. So Morgan has been doing her work on Craigslist, we decided it isn't worth it to store some of stuff for two years, even though the military pays for our storage. There are lots of fun things we will bring back from China and it will be fun to have a fresh start.
As for the girls, they are back into the routine of Virginia. Adayla has had to retaught of all things that she is not supposed to say....thanks Josie, she told on you every time! She keeps telling us about when she is going to go to China. The other day I asked her, how to do you get to China? She told me, "You take a left, and then a right!" There is no concept there of distance, but as long as we are all together, that is what matters!
Tally did have an excuse for being so grumpy on the plane, I took her to the doctor last Friday for a double ear infection. She is fine now, thanks to the amoxicillan. She didn't know right away when I got off the plane, she was sweet and gave me a little hug, and then wanted to go right back to Odie. So it means, they were well taken care of in Wyoming! We appreciate them so much for taking the girls for us, we didn't have to worry and the girls enjoyed there time.
Adayla now knows where Grandpa and Jeremy work....at Williams Productions, he's a Coal Bed Methane Engineer and at the local mines, he's a mechanic. It is as clear as day. Adayla did tell me the other day as we drove past some soccer fields, "Is that where Josie plays soccer, I want to go hang out at her soccer game!"
The girls are so funny together, sometimes I think they are like two little boys they way the wrestle around. At first, I thought Adayla was hurting Tally, until I realized Tally was just laughing and laughing. Tally essentially dives into Adayla, Adayla rolls her over and pretty much sits on her. They just giggle and giggle.
Tally doesn't just let Adayla take away her toys or whatever has, as Adayla tugs at it, Tally gets a death grip and then screams at the top of her lungs. The other day, Adayla actually drug Tally around the room, as Tally would not let go. I keep telling Adayla, you better be nice, one of these days Tally is just going to whomp you!
Tally is into holding things up to her ear and "talking". She loves real phones and loves talking to people. She will usually babble at them. I think back to Adayla and she did that same thing at this age, except for a couple of weeks she would say a clear "Hello". Tally is pulling her self up quite quickly and comfortably, but no interest in walking. She figures she gets around just fine crawling. Tim was chasing Adayla around the "track" in our house and told Tally, "Come on!" She started crawling as fast as she could after them! She is very sweet and if you ask her for a big hug, she snuggles on you for a minute.
We did take Tally to the physical therapist on Monday to have her look at her neck, which started sitting straight as of the Friday before. Her head was crooked for about 6 weeks and then one day, she is back to normal. The PT said it was definitely not torticollis, but suggested we get her eyes examined. We plan on getting this done before we leave.
A couple of funnies for the week:
It looked like Adayla had a bit of a black eye (it wasn't) and as I tried to get a closer look, I asked her do you have a black eye? She quickly responded, "No mom, my eyes are brown!"
In our prayers with Adayla the other evening after a long day of Adayla harassing Tally, Adayla was saying it by herself and started to repeat somethings, so I jumped into to help her and asked that Adayla may always be kind and loving towards Tally. Adayla followed that with, so that Mommy won't have to flick my hands!
We have gotten rid of some of Adayla's toys we aren't taking to China with us, promising her that when we get to China she can have some new toys. One of them happened to be her little tricyle. So she now says, mom when I get to China, I am going to get a new bike, PEDAL, PEDAL, PEDAL!
Right now Adayla is very concerned about when everybody's birthdays are and so we talk about whose is when. After asking about Tally, Daddy, and Mommy, she asked when is Binx's birthday followed by when is Maddux's birthday? She keeps us busy, but by this summer she will have her entire family's birthdays down.
In the hotel room the night before, Adayla would not go to sleep. She was bouncing around the room, on the bed, turning lights on and off, and just making her jet lagged mom crazy. I really thought I might have to hurt her, so I told her Adayla I am going to spank you....and I did (at least a little one). She turns to me and says, "Mom, are we still best friends?"
The big news is that we actually got orders last Friday!!! (For you non-military...no one will begin to talk to you about moving without them, not movers, not appointments, not flights, NOTHING!) So needless to say, we were thrilled to finally have them. We have movers scheduled, passports mailed, and flights booked to China for the 21st of June! We have been clearing out our stuff, after being in China, we realized we won't take much of our stuff with us. So Morgan has been doing her work on Craigslist, we decided it isn't worth it to store some of stuff for two years, even though the military pays for our storage. There are lots of fun things we will bring back from China and it will be fun to have a fresh start.
As for the girls, they are back into the routine of Virginia. Adayla has had to retaught of all things that she is not supposed to say....thanks Josie, she told on you every time! She keeps telling us about when she is going to go to China. The other day I asked her, how to do you get to China? She told me, "You take a left, and then a right!" There is no concept there of distance, but as long as we are all together, that is what matters!
Tally did have an excuse for being so grumpy on the plane, I took her to the doctor last Friday for a double ear infection. She is fine now, thanks to the amoxicillan. She didn't know right away when I got off the plane, she was sweet and gave me a little hug, and then wanted to go right back to Odie. So it means, they were well taken care of in Wyoming! We appreciate them so much for taking the girls for us, we didn't have to worry and the girls enjoyed there time.
Adayla now knows where Grandpa and Jeremy work....at Williams Productions, he's a Coal Bed Methane Engineer and at the local mines, he's a mechanic. It is as clear as day. Adayla did tell me the other day as we drove past some soccer fields, "Is that where Josie plays soccer, I want to go hang out at her soccer game!"
The girls are so funny together, sometimes I think they are like two little boys they way the wrestle around. At first, I thought Adayla was hurting Tally, until I realized Tally was just laughing and laughing. Tally essentially dives into Adayla, Adayla rolls her over and pretty much sits on her. They just giggle and giggle.
Tally doesn't just let Adayla take away her toys or whatever has, as Adayla tugs at it, Tally gets a death grip and then screams at the top of her lungs. The other day, Adayla actually drug Tally around the room, as Tally would not let go. I keep telling Adayla, you better be nice, one of these days Tally is just going to whomp you!
Tally is into holding things up to her ear and "talking". She loves real phones and loves talking to people. She will usually babble at them. I think back to Adayla and she did that same thing at this age, except for a couple of weeks she would say a clear "Hello". Tally is pulling her self up quite quickly and comfortably, but no interest in walking. She figures she gets around just fine crawling. Tim was chasing Adayla around the "track" in our house and told Tally, "Come on!" She started crawling as fast as she could after them! She is very sweet and if you ask her for a big hug, she snuggles on you for a minute.
We did take Tally to the physical therapist on Monday to have her look at her neck, which started sitting straight as of the Friday before. Her head was crooked for about 6 weeks and then one day, she is back to normal. The PT said it was definitely not torticollis, but suggested we get her eyes examined. We plan on getting this done before we leave.
A couple of funnies for the week:
It looked like Adayla had a bit of a black eye (it wasn't) and as I tried to get a closer look, I asked her do you have a black eye? She quickly responded, "No mom, my eyes are brown!"
In our prayers with Adayla the other evening after a long day of Adayla harassing Tally, Adayla was saying it by herself and started to repeat somethings, so I jumped into to help her and asked that Adayla may always be kind and loving towards Tally. Adayla followed that with, so that Mommy won't have to flick my hands!
We have gotten rid of some of Adayla's toys we aren't taking to China with us, promising her that when we get to China she can have some new toys. One of them happened to be her little tricyle. So she now says, mom when I get to China, I am going to get a new bike, PEDAL, PEDAL, PEDAL!
Right now Adayla is very concerned about when everybody's birthdays are and so we talk about whose is when. After asking about Tally, Daddy, and Mommy, she asked when is Binx's birthday followed by when is Maddux's birthday? She keeps us busy, but by this summer she will have her entire family's birthdays down.
Saturday, April 14, 2007
Shanghai
Here we are in Shanghai (not really by the time you read this, but that is where I am writing this). All we can say is AMAZING!! Let me back up….
I flew with the girls to Wyoming. We flew direct out of Baltimore to Denver….only about a 4 hour flight. As we drove thru DC to get to the airport, Adayla was wide awake and said, “Hey look, the Capitol!” We are in awe at how she is so aware of her surroundings, you could barely see it and it was very early in the morning. We had to get up at 4:45 to get there and so it was Tally’s nap time as we were about to take off. Finally after 45 minutes of crying, she fell asleep for about an hour. The rest of the flight was just fine. As we were waiting for Little Grandma, Grandpa, Josie, and Jewels to pick us up at the baggage claim, I pointed to Adayla the direction they were. She took off running and fell flat on her face! She hopped up and ran to meet them, she giggled and snorted for about 5 minutes.
I spent a few days in Wyoming and then flew back to Denver…..I know why I had never before taken a plane from there. The wind was blowing 40 mph and it felt as if we were going to blown off the runway in this 30 passenger jet. But I made it and spent a night all by myself. It was weird, but thankfully Air Force basketball was on and I watched them for a few hours. Unfortunately they lost : ( I woke up early the next morning for my flight to Detroit, where I met up with Tim and together we left for China.
We have been staying with a fellow Olmsted Scholar which has been wonderful. They have showed us around, given us lots of tips, and not to forget a cozy place to stay! We actually adjusted to the time difference rather quickly (thanks to the help of a few sleeping pills!) Our toughest decision for this trip was deciding where to live. Our three options along with some weighing factors were:
Downtown Pudong – Walking distance from most everything and great views, some locals, but a smaller place to live. We had to decide how much fun it would really be to be dragging a couple kids up and down the elevator.
Villa Community about a 15 minute taxi ride from downtown – Great neighborhood townhouse community, still some locals, a little more space and a bit of a backyard, more kid friendly, and closer to people that we would be going to church with. But really not much to walk to and therefore would definitely have to get a driver.
Suburb Villa Community – Huge, Gorgeous house in quiet neighborhood with fewer locals, take a taxi or have a driver to get anywhere. Lots of room in the house with beautiful backyard.
We decided to look and all 3 and see how we felt. After much thought and prayer, we decided that we would try an apartment for the first year, but having the option to move the second year. We found a 4 bedroom plus an office with outstanding views and very centrally located. Many Chinese with a child live there and so Adayla and Tally can hopefully make some friends. There is a kindergarten/preschool on the compound that is all in Chinese, except for a few English classes. It will become our home and it will be comforting as we leave the States we have a place we really like to go!
Shopping is at a whole new level in Shanghai! It has anywhere from local street markets to big, fancy, expensive shopping malls. We have taken a liking to the bigger markets. They sell about anything and it is so fun to bargain. We spent a few days doing this, especially so we could practice our Chinese. I think we will do just fine! Everyone will just have to come visit so they can experience this for themselves!
The LDS Church has a very small presence here in Shanghai. There are two branches with about a 125 people in them. You must be a visa holder to attend these. There is also a smaller group of Chinese that meet, but they can only meet amongst themselves. As for the branch we will be attending, it was about half adults and half kids! We will fit in just fine.
There are many little quirks that we will have to get used to, but for now have gotten a good laugh from it. There are nearly 22 million people around us and yes traffic is heavy, but it still flows. We just close our eyes while riding in a taxi. We must be very careful on the streets and sidewalks or you could easily be run over by a car, bike, or moped.
A few jaunts and then I will be done
Yes, there is a WALMART in Shanghai….definitely Walmart, but geared to the Chinese (so it sells pig feet, chicken feet, and live eel!)
We can buy nearly everything (other than deodorant) here, some it will cost you a bit, but it is available!
Be careful where you step it water on the sidewalk, more than likely it is peepee
The city is beautiful!
We could never make it to all the shopping areas around here
Food is plentiful….anywhere from mere pennies on up, just depending on what you will eat!
Shanghai is the place where our family needs to be at this time in our lives, we know this because we can feel it! We are looking forward to the adventures!
Tim and I will soon head back to the states for just a few months and then we shall return. Morgan can’t wait to hug her girls! She is missing them tons!!!! We are grateful that they could stay with Lil Grandma and Grandpa, Josie, Corde, Julionna, Jeremy, Odessa, and baby Bridger. I know they loved it and will look at me when we are home and ask where all their friends went. I know Adayla was able to stomp on the snow with some snow boots. (The day after we left, they had the biggest blizzard they had seen since moving there!) We have enjoyed our 5 year honeymoon, but I will be so excited to hear their sweet giggles and even a few grumps!
I flew with the girls to Wyoming. We flew direct out of Baltimore to Denver….only about a 4 hour flight. As we drove thru DC to get to the airport, Adayla was wide awake and said, “Hey look, the Capitol!” We are in awe at how she is so aware of her surroundings, you could barely see it and it was very early in the morning. We had to get up at 4:45 to get there and so it was Tally’s nap time as we were about to take off. Finally after 45 minutes of crying, she fell asleep for about an hour. The rest of the flight was just fine. As we were waiting for Little Grandma, Grandpa, Josie, and Jewels to pick us up at the baggage claim, I pointed to Adayla the direction they were. She took off running and fell flat on her face! She hopped up and ran to meet them, she giggled and snorted for about 5 minutes.
I spent a few days in Wyoming and then flew back to Denver…..I know why I had never before taken a plane from there. The wind was blowing 40 mph and it felt as if we were going to blown off the runway in this 30 passenger jet. But I made it and spent a night all by myself. It was weird, but thankfully Air Force basketball was on and I watched them for a few hours. Unfortunately they lost : ( I woke up early the next morning for my flight to Detroit, where I met up with Tim and together we left for China.
We have been staying with a fellow Olmsted Scholar which has been wonderful. They have showed us around, given us lots of tips, and not to forget a cozy place to stay! We actually adjusted to the time difference rather quickly (thanks to the help of a few sleeping pills!) Our toughest decision for this trip was deciding where to live. Our three options along with some weighing factors were:
Downtown Pudong – Walking distance from most everything and great views, some locals, but a smaller place to live. We had to decide how much fun it would really be to be dragging a couple kids up and down the elevator.
Villa Community about a 15 minute taxi ride from downtown – Great neighborhood townhouse community, still some locals, a little more space and a bit of a backyard, more kid friendly, and closer to people that we would be going to church with. But really not much to walk to and therefore would definitely have to get a driver.
Suburb Villa Community – Huge, Gorgeous house in quiet neighborhood with fewer locals, take a taxi or have a driver to get anywhere. Lots of room in the house with beautiful backyard.
We decided to look and all 3 and see how we felt. After much thought and prayer, we decided that we would try an apartment for the first year, but having the option to move the second year. We found a 4 bedroom plus an office with outstanding views and very centrally located. Many Chinese with a child live there and so Adayla and Tally can hopefully make some friends. There is a kindergarten/preschool on the compound that is all in Chinese, except for a few English classes. It will become our home and it will be comforting as we leave the States we have a place we really like to go!
Shopping is at a whole new level in Shanghai! It has anywhere from local street markets to big, fancy, expensive shopping malls. We have taken a liking to the bigger markets. They sell about anything and it is so fun to bargain. We spent a few days doing this, especially so we could practice our Chinese. I think we will do just fine! Everyone will just have to come visit so they can experience this for themselves!
The LDS Church has a very small presence here in Shanghai. There are two branches with about a 125 people in them. You must be a visa holder to attend these. There is also a smaller group of Chinese that meet, but they can only meet amongst themselves. As for the branch we will be attending, it was about half adults and half kids! We will fit in just fine.
There are many little quirks that we will have to get used to, but for now have gotten a good laugh from it. There are nearly 22 million people around us and yes traffic is heavy, but it still flows. We just close our eyes while riding in a taxi. We must be very careful on the streets and sidewalks or you could easily be run over by a car, bike, or moped.
A few jaunts and then I will be done
Yes, there is a WALMART in Shanghai….definitely Walmart, but geared to the Chinese (so it sells pig feet, chicken feet, and live eel!)
We can buy nearly everything (other than deodorant) here, some it will cost you a bit, but it is available!
Be careful where you step it water on the sidewalk, more than likely it is peepee
The city is beautiful!
We could never make it to all the shopping areas around here
Food is plentiful….anywhere from mere pennies on up, just depending on what you will eat!
Shanghai is the place where our family needs to be at this time in our lives, we know this because we can feel it! We are looking forward to the adventures!
Tim and I will soon head back to the states for just a few months and then we shall return. Morgan can’t wait to hug her girls! She is missing them tons!!!! We are grateful that they could stay with Lil Grandma and Grandpa, Josie, Corde, Julionna, Jeremy, Odessa, and baby Bridger. I know they loved it and will look at me when we are home and ask where all their friends went. I know Adayla was able to stomp on the snow with some snow boots. (The day after we left, they had the biggest blizzard they had seen since moving there!) We have enjoyed our 5 year honeymoon, but I will be so excited to hear their sweet giggles and even a few grumps!
Friday, March 23, 2007
Missing Binx.....
Well we said our sad goodbyes to Binx. It has been much more of adjustment for Morgan than she would like to admit. Tim's goodbye was rushed as he had lots to do as we left him last Thursday morning. But we had the weekend with him and thought for a moment we would have to bring him back with us! Binx is now adjusting, at least we hope he is, to his new home with his cousin Maddox (sp?). Binx growled, barked, and snapped at him if he was with in 15 feet of him. By the time we left on Monday, he would at least tolerate him as long as he didn't jump on his back. But that was only after 5 minutes of barking when Maddox was let out of his kennel. We know Binx is in the best of company and we can't thank them enough for giving him a good home while we are gone. I cried when I had to kiss him bye, which caused Chelsie to start crying, which caused Adayla to tell Chelsie, "Don't cry Chelsie!" Adayla was very sweet about giving him a kiss. She stills remembers Binx in her prayers and when you ask her who she loves, he is near the top of her list. Little Tally is going to miss him too. She loved Maddox quite a bit, as he is closer to her size! Now everytime we see a dog, her little legs get a going! We will see Binx one more time as we drive to Utah, maybe we will just take him with us!
Now on to the rest of the family. Tally's front middle teeth are quickly coming in. It is funny how teeth just take away from being a tiny baby and on to the start of a toddler! She smiles a ton and people are always saying, what a happy baby she is! She loves new things and gets bored easily, so she is always looking for something new to play with. Many times that something new to play with is in one of Adayla's purses....and Adayla isn't so into sharing that part of her stuff. She occasionally spits out food or just won't eat somethings, but overall she puts it away! On the way to Chelsie and Bryan's, I would hand her back some food and then she would start to fuss when it was gone. I would ask her Tally what do you want and she would get her hands saying more please, more please. She understands so much more than we'll ever know. Yesterday she also went over to the bottom of the stairs and just started climbing up them like it was no big deal. It was cute and she was excited about learning something new.
Miss Adayla is more Miss Adayla than ever, she LOVES her purses! Grammy gave her one and we bought one at the store. She has one, if not both, at all times! It makes her mom a bit crazy, but it is cute to see her do everything like a little woman! Tonight Adayla asked Tim when he came home this evening, "how was work?" It is amazing to how much she really listens to. The other day when Morgan went to get a shot, as soon as we got to the place, she starts saying over and over, "I don't want a da zhen!" Once she finally realized Morgan was the only person getting them, she proceeded to tell her Dad about last time she got a da zhen. It hurt and then I burped (barfed) and then I got some new clothes! She also loves to dance with her Daddy. She comes in our room, turns on the music, and says, "Daddy come dance with me!" They hold hands and dance. Mommy tried to dance with her and it wasn't the same.....she let my hands go and insisted Daddy dance with her.
My little blurps on the happenings....
Tim's Falcons didn't make it to the big dance, but were a #1 seed in the NIT. After a few close games, they are going to the final four of the NIT in New York next week. Which would be perfect for Tim, except we have too much going on and Tim sadly won't be able to make it.
Morgan is done nursing and doesn't believe that Tally is nearly 1. (This quitting nursing thing isn't that much fun, especially when you get 4 shots on the same day!) Tally is adjusting well and is drinking from her sippy cup just fine.
Tim just passed his 5 Air Force test!! So only 1 left to go!
We leave for China in less than a week! We have our visas and everything is good to go.
Adayla is very excited to go on the fei ji!
The weather has been warm and so we have been able to spend lots of time at the park.
We sold the green car!! We got what we wanted out of it and sold it to the first lady that looked at it! A huge relief! Tim is looking forward to all the other things I plan on getting rid of (not really!)
And as we were driving home from Chelsie and Bryan's, we were in some small town in the middle of nowhere, Adayla's says very excited, "Mom Look!! There's my green car!" And up in a parking lot on a hill was Adayla's green Camry. As we drive in town, as she sees people's cars that she knows....she'll say there's whoever's car....usually the right model in various colors.
Adayla hasn't forgotten about Grandma Skinner's Lion....get your hand out of my cookie jar, she gets the giggles everytime she hears it!
That is it for now, Timmy is tired, so we must go to bed!
Now on to the rest of the family. Tally's front middle teeth are quickly coming in. It is funny how teeth just take away from being a tiny baby and on to the start of a toddler! She smiles a ton and people are always saying, what a happy baby she is! She loves new things and gets bored easily, so she is always looking for something new to play with. Many times that something new to play with is in one of Adayla's purses....and Adayla isn't so into sharing that part of her stuff. She occasionally spits out food or just won't eat somethings, but overall she puts it away! On the way to Chelsie and Bryan's, I would hand her back some food and then she would start to fuss when it was gone. I would ask her Tally what do you want and she would get her hands saying more please, more please. She understands so much more than we'll ever know. Yesterday she also went over to the bottom of the stairs and just started climbing up them like it was no big deal. It was cute and she was excited about learning something new.
Miss Adayla is more Miss Adayla than ever, she LOVES her purses! Grammy gave her one and we bought one at the store. She has one, if not both, at all times! It makes her mom a bit crazy, but it is cute to see her do everything like a little woman! Tonight Adayla asked Tim when he came home this evening, "how was work?" It is amazing to how much she really listens to. The other day when Morgan went to get a shot, as soon as we got to the place, she starts saying over and over, "I don't want a da zhen!" Once she finally realized Morgan was the only person getting them, she proceeded to tell her Dad about last time she got a da zhen. It hurt and then I burped (barfed) and then I got some new clothes! She also loves to dance with her Daddy. She comes in our room, turns on the music, and says, "Daddy come dance with me!" They hold hands and dance. Mommy tried to dance with her and it wasn't the same.....she let my hands go and insisted Daddy dance with her.
My little blurps on the happenings....
Tim's Falcons didn't make it to the big dance, but were a #1 seed in the NIT. After a few close games, they are going to the final four of the NIT in New York next week. Which would be perfect for Tim, except we have too much going on and Tim sadly won't be able to make it.
Morgan is done nursing and doesn't believe that Tally is nearly 1. (This quitting nursing thing isn't that much fun, especially when you get 4 shots on the same day!) Tally is adjusting well and is drinking from her sippy cup just fine.
Tim just passed his 5 Air Force test!! So only 1 left to go!
We leave for China in less than a week! We have our visas and everything is good to go.
Adayla is very excited to go on the fei ji!
The weather has been warm and so we have been able to spend lots of time at the park.
We sold the green car!! We got what we wanted out of it and sold it to the first lady that looked at it! A huge relief! Tim is looking forward to all the other things I plan on getting rid of (not really!)
And as we were driving home from Chelsie and Bryan's, we were in some small town in the middle of nowhere, Adayla's says very excited, "Mom Look!! There's my green car!" And up in a parking lot on a hill was Adayla's green Camry. As we drive in town, as she sees people's cars that she knows....she'll say there's whoever's car....usually the right model in various colors.
Adayla hasn't forgotten about Grandma Skinner's Lion....get your hand out of my cookie jar, she gets the giggles everytime she hears it!
That is it for now, Timmy is tired, so we must go to bed!
Saturday, March 10, 2007
Lots of Things going on.....
The days are going by faster than we like....but I wanted to take a minute to recount a few events. Tim is the forever student, studying both Chinese and his military Major's school (4 test on Monday....2 to go!) But don't worry his makes time for basketball! Sadly he would have more time, but Air Force can't pull it together and lost to that team Wyoming. Now he didn't have to make time to for a game, but he is keeping track of all the other games to see if somehow Air Force can still make it in to the Big Dance.
I haven't had time to tell a few stories about Grammy and Gramps. First, we will say how much we loved having them here. Tonight as we were reading Adayla's Book of Mormon stories, we were talking about Zormamites and the Rameupmtom....she kept saying the Grammeupmtom. It was cute. We asked Adayla what her favorite part of having G&G here and she said, "Dancing with them in the morning!" She would sneak upstairs and get her toy (the steering wheel with transportation noises that Kevin and Spencer used to play with) then push buttons and they would sing the song and do actions with her. Her favorite song is ....Dinah blow your horn....blow your horn and so every morning they would blow their horns together! Adayla also like to pick who was going to say the prayer....everytime it was Grammy!! (which they said was a good balance because Julie always picks Gramps)
We didn't go too many places because they had lived here for such a long time before, they had seen most of the sites. We had leisurely breakfasts and lunches. We drove to thier old houses and they were surprised to see how much had changed. Their were roads where there used to be houses and/or trees. We went to check out Springfield Mall which was The shopping place back then (not so much anymore...). We went to the old ward they left on their mission to. They (including Tim) were able to see many old faces and do a bit of catching up. They all have many fond memories about Lakeridge. We love Grammy and Gramps and added a few more fond memories of our time with them!
Today was Adayla's last day of dance class....: ( She loved every bit about it. She loved her teaches, her friends, the songs, and the dancing. She followed right along with everything her teacher did, some of the girls would get side tracked easily. Adayla would listen and do what Ms. Rachel said...now if we could just get her to do that at home. Her favorites new things she learned were Step-Kick and flex your toes-point your toes. It was good for her to be part of a group, we'll find something later for her to join!
We were late to dance class because Tally had to go to the doctor this morning. Her crooked head is back. It started about 3 days ago. (We noticed it when she was about 4 1/2 months old and took her to the doctor, we did some exercises and it healed very quickly.) So I was shocked to see it back again. The doctor called it Torticollis, essentially she has a bump on one of her muscles and so then she favors to hold her head to the right. So we will do some physical therapy and hopefully it will heal for good. She definitely does not like anyone messing with head, we are supposed to do it about 1 time every hour.
Tally is no longer complete fang woman, she is starting to get her middle teeth on top!! We are going to miss that smile! She continues to eat and eat. She only weighed just under 18 pounds today and the doctor, so she isn't as big as you'd expect! My friend, Crystal has a daughter a few months younger than Tally and gets the biggest kick out of watching that girl put the food away! She did spit something out this week for the first time, we gave her a bit of Tylenol to break a fever, and she wouldn't swallow it for anything. She only has 2 more weeks of the really good food ie. ME! She does her little milk sign, but when she decides it is time to nurse she comes up and starts beating on my chest. Hopefully Little Grandma and Grandpa enjoy her!
Just a few short blurps:
We went to the post office on Monday to apply for the girl's passports....7 people in front of us...we were only there 3 HOURS! (the girls were troopers!!)
Adayla got 2 more da zhen (shots) on Wednesday....not as fun this time, she barfed all over herself afterwards. We had many more errands to do and we were a ways from the house...so she got a new outfit.
We are getting sad as Binx Kuehne has less than a week before his two year vacation to the Waldmanns starts.
We applied for our Chinese visas on Wednesday, the realization that we are moving very soon is coming!
We are prepping for the move, getting rif of this and that, the big project for the week was getting the green car listed. Hopefully we sell it before we go to China in a few weeks.
The girls continue to delight and entertain us!!
I haven't had time to tell a few stories about Grammy and Gramps. First, we will say how much we loved having them here. Tonight as we were reading Adayla's Book of Mormon stories, we were talking about Zormamites and the Rameupmtom....she kept saying the Grammeupmtom. It was cute. We asked Adayla what her favorite part of having G&G here and she said, "Dancing with them in the morning!" She would sneak upstairs and get her toy (the steering wheel with transportation noises that Kevin and Spencer used to play with) then push buttons and they would sing the song and do actions with her. Her favorite song is ....Dinah blow your horn....blow your horn and so every morning they would blow their horns together! Adayla also like to pick who was going to say the prayer....everytime it was Grammy!! (which they said was a good balance because Julie always picks Gramps)
We didn't go too many places because they had lived here for such a long time before, they had seen most of the sites. We had leisurely breakfasts and lunches. We drove to thier old houses and they were surprised to see how much had changed. Their were roads where there used to be houses and/or trees. We went to check out Springfield Mall which was The shopping place back then (not so much anymore...). We went to the old ward they left on their mission to. They (including Tim) were able to see many old faces and do a bit of catching up. They all have many fond memories about Lakeridge. We love Grammy and Gramps and added a few more fond memories of our time with them!
Today was Adayla's last day of dance class....: ( She loved every bit about it. She loved her teaches, her friends, the songs, and the dancing. She followed right along with everything her teacher did, some of the girls would get side tracked easily. Adayla would listen and do what Ms. Rachel said...now if we could just get her to do that at home. Her favorites new things she learned were Step-Kick and flex your toes-point your toes. It was good for her to be part of a group, we'll find something later for her to join!
We were late to dance class because Tally had to go to the doctor this morning. Her crooked head is back. It started about 3 days ago. (We noticed it when she was about 4 1/2 months old and took her to the doctor, we did some exercises and it healed very quickly.) So I was shocked to see it back again. The doctor called it Torticollis, essentially she has a bump on one of her muscles and so then she favors to hold her head to the right. So we will do some physical therapy and hopefully it will heal for good. She definitely does not like anyone messing with head, we are supposed to do it about 1 time every hour.
Tally is no longer complete fang woman, she is starting to get her middle teeth on top!! We are going to miss that smile! She continues to eat and eat. She only weighed just under 18 pounds today and the doctor, so she isn't as big as you'd expect! My friend, Crystal has a daughter a few months younger than Tally and gets the biggest kick out of watching that girl put the food away! She did spit something out this week for the first time, we gave her a bit of Tylenol to break a fever, and she wouldn't swallow it for anything. She only has 2 more weeks of the really good food ie. ME! She does her little milk sign, but when she decides it is time to nurse she comes up and starts beating on my chest. Hopefully Little Grandma and Grandpa enjoy her!
Just a few short blurps:
We went to the post office on Monday to apply for the girl's passports....7 people in front of us...we were only there 3 HOURS! (the girls were troopers!!)
Adayla got 2 more da zhen (shots) on Wednesday....not as fun this time, she barfed all over herself afterwards. We had many more errands to do and we were a ways from the house...so she got a new outfit.
We are getting sad as Binx Kuehne has less than a week before his two year vacation to the Waldmanns starts.
We applied for our Chinese visas on Wednesday, the realization that we are moving very soon is coming!
We are prepping for the move, getting rif of this and that, the big project for the week was getting the green car listed. Hopefully we sell it before we go to China in a few weeks.
The girls continue to delight and entertain us!!
Thursday, March 1, 2007
Snapshots
Gramps, Grammy, and the girls at George Washington's home (Mt Vernon). We picked a beautiful day to go! 
Celebrating Grammy's Birthday, she looks great! We went to Medieval Times to watch the jousting and games along with dinner. We ate with our hands, no spoons or forks involved. 
Tally wearing a crown too!
Adayla's first snowman!
Daddy and Adayla with her snowman!
Gramps was lucky enough to read many many books to Adayla. She loved sitting on his chair and snuggling with him.
These are her glasses. You may recognize them from Mr. Potato Head. She wears them frequently.
Grammy and Tally, she was an excellent ham for them!
A busy moment in the life of Adayla, gathering her "Stuff". Her cart is full!
Bathtime buddies!
Tally loves to eat!! More please, more please. When ever we eat, she must eat too! (Even though she may have had a complete meal only moments before.
Bedtime.....
Adayla's first snowstorm, it was very very cold!
Adayla loves to feed Binx, this is a usual outfit for her....snow hat and her cowboy boots!I will update some more of the weeks events later, but had a moment to add a few shots! Enjoy!
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Grammy and Gramps....
The days are going by as quickly as ever, especially with our lovely visitors! Grammy and Gramps arrived last Thursday and we have enjoyed every minute! Last week was very cold with lots of ice and snow, luckily it has finally started to warm up and melt a bit. Adayla and Tally have been very entertaining.
Adayla has been reading her books, showing them her stuff in her bags, and been a bit bossy telling them how things go at her house. (It is because they actually listen to her.) Tally has been crawling fast and getting into everything. She really wants to get the fireplace rocks and gets there very quickly. Maybe we just need to let her get them....Adayla never got into the mud again (my houseplant)! Speaking of things Tally put in her mouth, on Saturday we went to the PX (on Ft Belvoir) to show Grammy and Gramps how things have changed, and as I change her diaper I saw a bubble in it. I looked again and it was a round decorative translucent rock about the size of 3 nickels put together. We are going to have to be even more careful about what is on the floor!
Saturday Tim and I went to our first Chinese New Year party. We made Jiaozi (a Chinese dumpling) a noodle stuffed with onions, garlic, and a little meat. Then you either fry or boil them. They were very tasty, much better than in the restuarants. We will have to try making them one of these days! We had a bit of American food mixed with Chinese food. It was all tasty. Then they sang some fun songs and a few Chinese traditions. Then they busted out the Karaoke, how the Chinese love to karaoke! This is the year of the pig, which is a lucky year! We enjoyed ourselves and I will try to post of few of the pics. The girls stayed home with Grammy and Gramps and had an enjoyable night themselves.
Sunday we went down to church where the Kuehnes went all the years they were in Lakerigdge. Most people were new faces, but they were able to visit with some of the oldies. They were happy to catch up with President and Sister Kuehne. It was cute to see some people come up and give Tim a hug. They hadn't seen him since he was just a young guy! It is always good to see people that have touched our lives in someway or another.
Our days have been nice and relaxing. We have just loved hanging out with Grammy and Gramps. Adayla goes to bed saying when I wake up I play with Grammy and Gramps. Every morning she goes and gives them a big hug when she see them. It is amazing how though we see our family seldomly, how she remembers them and loves them.
Tim and I are watching the last of the AF/UNLV game. Air Force is #15 in the country right now, so we have been able to watch them a few times on TV. This is after an evening with Todd Epoch, Tim's friend from the academy, as he was in town for business. We have seen so many people in DC, an added bonus for living in the area.
I will add some pictures here before long, the girls are growing!
Adayla has been reading her books, showing them her stuff in her bags, and been a bit bossy telling them how things go at her house. (It is because they actually listen to her.) Tally has been crawling fast and getting into everything. She really wants to get the fireplace rocks and gets there very quickly. Maybe we just need to let her get them....Adayla never got into the mud again (my houseplant)! Speaking of things Tally put in her mouth, on Saturday we went to the PX (on Ft Belvoir) to show Grammy and Gramps how things have changed, and as I change her diaper I saw a bubble in it. I looked again and it was a round decorative translucent rock about the size of 3 nickels put together. We are going to have to be even more careful about what is on the floor!
Saturday Tim and I went to our first Chinese New Year party. We made Jiaozi (a Chinese dumpling) a noodle stuffed with onions, garlic, and a little meat. Then you either fry or boil them. They were very tasty, much better than in the restuarants. We will have to try making them one of these days! We had a bit of American food mixed with Chinese food. It was all tasty. Then they sang some fun songs and a few Chinese traditions. Then they busted out the Karaoke, how the Chinese love to karaoke! This is the year of the pig, which is a lucky year! We enjoyed ourselves and I will try to post of few of the pics. The girls stayed home with Grammy and Gramps and had an enjoyable night themselves.
Sunday we went down to church where the Kuehnes went all the years they were in Lakerigdge. Most people were new faces, but they were able to visit with some of the oldies. They were happy to catch up with President and Sister Kuehne. It was cute to see some people come up and give Tim a hug. They hadn't seen him since he was just a young guy! It is always good to see people that have touched our lives in someway or another.
Our days have been nice and relaxing. We have just loved hanging out with Grammy and Gramps. Adayla goes to bed saying when I wake up I play with Grammy and Gramps. Every morning she goes and gives them a big hug when she see them. It is amazing how though we see our family seldomly, how she remembers them and loves them.
Tim and I are watching the last of the AF/UNLV game. Air Force is #15 in the country right now, so we have been able to watch them a few times on TV. This is after an evening with Todd Epoch, Tim's friend from the academy, as he was in town for business. We have seen so many people in DC, an added bonus for living in the area.
I will add some pictures here before long, the girls are growing!
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Chinese Church
Adayla with her stuff, getting ready for church. Do you like the hat?? She has been wearing it for a few days! It is actually Tally's.
We thought we had a little longer before this would happen, but she is a smart and fast girl. 
Two little buddies! Adayla was getting Tally some toys to play with, how sweet! Just a quick note for this evening....we are keeping too busy! Yesterday we drove 45 minutes north to attend a LDS Chinese branch. There were about 50 people there, most of them Chinese. The meeting was a mixture of Chinese and English. They had head sets if you only know one language, but we were adventurous and only listened. Tim picked up quite a bit, me on the other hand could pick out words here and there. Adayla was indifferent, the only thing for us was that with only 50 people, her little voice carried much further when she had to say something. Tally stood out with her eyes, the Chinese will lover her!
Adayla is fighting her naps right now, but she definitely needs them! She took about a 20 minute nap yesterday and bounced in her bed for about 2 hours today. She went to bed at 7:30 this evening and was out. She loves to go to her room for nap time though, she is very good at saying,"I go to my bed, get a milk, a cheesestick, and then I take a nap!" After two hours of listening to her bounce and play we go get her and the first thing she tells you is "I wake Up!"
We know she listens to what her mom and dad say to her, yesterday she told me I have to go pee-pee toilet and then she added, "Don't you DARE wipe me!" She is busy and we can't help but love her.
Tally is our little eater. Tim fed her before dinner and then during our dinner she grunted and grunted for more. We shared with her or else she lets us have it. Each day she is little more self entertained!! Mom can talk to her while getting other things done. She will sit and smile and laugh with you. We love her!
Enjoy the pics!
Sunday, February 11, 2007
Wo Bu Zhe Dao
Well the weeks are going too fast! How is it already Saturday night?! Anyways we had a good busy week. We went to the dentist on Wednesday, pretty uneventful. The doctor only spent about 3 minutes with Adayla and that was plenty! She was okay with him up until he wanted to keep the mirror in her mouth. She got really nervous and he backed off. She did say AHHH for him really well and then we were down and out to the toy box. Which she didn't really want a toy for fear it had a connection to having to do something else! Oh well. The receptionist wanted to take her picture for the no cavity club. She said NO! Then as we were leaving she decided she'd did want her picture taken, so there is a cute little girl on the wall of dentist office in NOVA.
Tally is just a happy little waver! She loves to wave to her daddy when we walk into a room where he is. It is so cute! She is getting much happier as she can get what she wants a bit more. But she still lets you have it if her mom leaves the room. Tonight we did our kid swap and the little girl is about 6 months old. Tally wasn't the least bit bothered if I held the girl, but boy if I left the room. She is also pulling herself up a little more each day. Her hair is growing a little more each day, I think or at least I hope it's really starting to come in! She
Adayla is busy trying to get herself into trouble these days. She has learned that she can move a chair around to get to about whatever she wants. It is driving her mom crazy, not because she is getting into too much stuff, but because I am afraid she is going to fall and conk her head. She likes to turn lights on and off this way. The light heading to the basement is in the hall above the stairs. She scoots her little wooden chair to the very top of the stairs and turns it on or off. Today we had a good talk about this, we'll see if it stuck. She is so independent. This week she has decided she doesn't need our help going to the bathroom, which is quite nice. She told me mom I have to go peepee toilet and I don't need you to wipe me, I do it by myself! She doesn't even need the stool to get on the toilet. She is growing up!
A few more of the Adayla funnies....She is still the crazy bag lady. Here is a brief list of some of the surprises you might find in her bags: Taco Bell taco sauce packet from the fridge, a sock (or 3 or 4), magnet letters, random little toys, outlet plastic inserts, random pics of people she likes, her Washington DC magnet (which she will point and tell you what each pic is, Monument, W's house, Capitol, Lincoln Memorial, and Jefferson Memorial), and some of her play money and I can't forget Chapstick. She calls them her stuff and carries up and down the stairs where ever she goes. I usually don't let them take them into places, but last week when we swapped kids I let her take in one bag. I won't do that again as they so kindly returned some things that were left....2 outlet inserts and an old funny Santa Christmas ornament that we recieved a dozen of this year from our white elephant ornament exchange which she thinks is baby Jesus. (The ornament looks nothing like Santa or Baby Jesus, in fact my friend said I don't know what the last thing is :)
As her friends were leaving tonight from the kid swap, Max was missing one of his gloves. I was looking for it, Tim was looking for it and then asked Adayla, "do you know where Max's glove is?" She told Tim "Wo Bu Zhe Dao!" or I don't know in Chinese. Which tomorrow since church was cancelled due to a building plumbing issue we are going to head up to the Chinese branch about 45 minutes away from here.
Tim took his 2nd ACSC test on Thursday and passed! Only four more to go. It is for his Major's school or PME (proffesional military development. He realized he must dive into it before we go to China because he doesn't know what the access is to a testing center. So he is studying right now for his 3rd test which he hopes to take on Thursday.
Enough for now.....
Tally is just a happy little waver! She loves to wave to her daddy when we walk into a room where he is. It is so cute! She is getting much happier as she can get what she wants a bit more. But she still lets you have it if her mom leaves the room. Tonight we did our kid swap and the little girl is about 6 months old. Tally wasn't the least bit bothered if I held the girl, but boy if I left the room. She is also pulling herself up a little more each day. Her hair is growing a little more each day, I think or at least I hope it's really starting to come in! She
Adayla is busy trying to get herself into trouble these days. She has learned that she can move a chair around to get to about whatever she wants. It is driving her mom crazy, not because she is getting into too much stuff, but because I am afraid she is going to fall and conk her head. She likes to turn lights on and off this way. The light heading to the basement is in the hall above the stairs. She scoots her little wooden chair to the very top of the stairs and turns it on or off. Today we had a good talk about this, we'll see if it stuck. She is so independent. This week she has decided she doesn't need our help going to the bathroom, which is quite nice. She told me mom I have to go peepee toilet and I don't need you to wipe me, I do it by myself! She doesn't even need the stool to get on the toilet. She is growing up!
A few more of the Adayla funnies....She is still the crazy bag lady. Here is a brief list of some of the surprises you might find in her bags: Taco Bell taco sauce packet from the fridge, a sock (or 3 or 4), magnet letters, random little toys, outlet plastic inserts, random pics of people she likes, her Washington DC magnet (which she will point and tell you what each pic is, Monument, W's house, Capitol, Lincoln Memorial, and Jefferson Memorial), and some of her play money and I can't forget Chapstick. She calls them her stuff and carries up and down the stairs where ever she goes. I usually don't let them take them into places, but last week when we swapped kids I let her take in one bag. I won't do that again as they so kindly returned some things that were left....2 outlet inserts and an old funny Santa Christmas ornament that we recieved a dozen of this year from our white elephant ornament exchange which she thinks is baby Jesus. (The ornament looks nothing like Santa or Baby Jesus, in fact my friend said I don't know what the last thing is :)
As her friends were leaving tonight from the kid swap, Max was missing one of his gloves. I was looking for it, Tim was looking for it and then asked Adayla, "do you know where Max's glove is?" She told Tim "Wo Bu Zhe Dao!" or I don't know in Chinese. Which tomorrow since church was cancelled due to a building plumbing issue we are going to head up to the Chinese branch about 45 minutes away from here.
Tim took his 2nd ACSC test on Thursday and passed! Only four more to go. It is for his Major's school or PME (proffesional military development. He realized he must dive into it before we go to China because he doesn't know what the access is to a testing center. So he is studying right now for his 3rd test which he hopes to take on Thursday.
Enough for now.....
Tuesday, February 6, 2007
Assume the position......
It is genetic. Adayla had a position she assumed and Tally does the exact same one, for those who ever saw Adayla go #2, you know what I am talking about. Tally lays on the floor, sticks her legs straight out, and then pushes up with her arms (the push up position). So I know when she needs her diaper changed. I know Little Grandma said none of her kids did that, so it must run on Tim's side of the family. It strenghtens anyone's arms really fast....so fast that after only doing it for a couple of days, Tally pulled herself to a standing position tonight. She was out to far and then had to take a few steps to get standing up straight. She definitely has mastered the crawling, but we are not ready for walking!
Adayla had a late night last night with the Super Bowl (read further), but woke up at her usual time. She was quite cranky no matter what I did this morning. So finally I just told her to go play in her room for a while. (She has no problem doing this as her mind is always going and she easily entertains herself.) She went straight to her room and shut the door. About 10 minutes later I go check on her and she has gotten about 10 articles of clothing out the dresser including the ones she is wearing. She had a "jamee" shirt she slept in, her pink kitty panties, a pair of white bloomers on, and then a pink pair of Tally's 3-6 month long pants which came to her knees. She was quite a site! It was all layered on her, you could see it all. I told her she couldn't wear Tally's pants and so she decided on an Adayla size version of the previous pants. This time when she put them on she had them on backwards, so she had two back pockets on her front and the button on her back! I think this is just a small part of what is to come. She never has really been interested in what she wore until today. After her nap, she then changed into her cute little white skirt and put her white Adayla sized heels on! She was cute, especially since her toes and fingernails today were painted red! I told her that when she goes to Little Grandma and Grandpa's house she can have her nails done everyday by Josie. She was fine with that, but did tell me, "Brodie not paint my toenails!"
Just a bit on our evening last night. We joined some of our neighbors for a Super Bowl party. It was fun and good food! We had a few juniors in high school come hang out at our house and watch 7 little kids. I fixed them dinner and then left. I was surprised at how well Adayla did. She had a bunch of kids of who most she didn't really know and was so excited to play and share her toys. We left with Tally (babies would have been too much for them...) and Adayla was so excited she didn't even mind! We returned 3 hours later and Adayla was just as happy as could be (probably because the girls let her have as much apple juice as she wanted!)
Tomorrow is a big day....we get to go to the dentist! We have to have clearances to move overseas and we are going to get our teeth checked out. All dependents two and older must be seen. I hope she does well, I am not too worried as she has always loved getting her teeth brushed! I'll let you know how she does.......
Adayla had a late night last night with the Super Bowl (read further), but woke up at her usual time. She was quite cranky no matter what I did this morning. So finally I just told her to go play in her room for a while. (She has no problem doing this as her mind is always going and she easily entertains herself.) She went straight to her room and shut the door. About 10 minutes later I go check on her and she has gotten about 10 articles of clothing out the dresser including the ones she is wearing. She had a "jamee" shirt she slept in, her pink kitty panties, a pair of white bloomers on, and then a pink pair of Tally's 3-6 month long pants which came to her knees. She was quite a site! It was all layered on her, you could see it all. I told her she couldn't wear Tally's pants and so she decided on an Adayla size version of the previous pants. This time when she put them on she had them on backwards, so she had two back pockets on her front and the button on her back! I think this is just a small part of what is to come. She never has really been interested in what she wore until today. After her nap, she then changed into her cute little white skirt and put her white Adayla sized heels on! She was cute, especially since her toes and fingernails today were painted red! I told her that when she goes to Little Grandma and Grandpa's house she can have her nails done everyday by Josie. She was fine with that, but did tell me, "Brodie not paint my toenails!"
Just a bit on our evening last night. We joined some of our neighbors for a Super Bowl party. It was fun and good food! We had a few juniors in high school come hang out at our house and watch 7 little kids. I fixed them dinner and then left. I was surprised at how well Adayla did. She had a bunch of kids of who most she didn't really know and was so excited to play and share her toys. We left with Tally (babies would have been too much for them...) and Adayla was so excited she didn't even mind! We returned 3 hours later and Adayla was just as happy as could be (probably because the girls let her have as much apple juice as she wanted!)
Tomorrow is a big day....we get to go to the dentist! We have to have clearances to move overseas and we are going to get our teeth checked out. All dependents two and older must be seen. I hope she does well, I am not too worried as she has always loved getting her teeth brushed! I'll let you know how she does.......
Sunday, February 4, 2007
Most Handsome Boy........
Is our little Tally! Tonight at a baptism in our ward, someone called Tally the most handsome boy they'd ever seen. She is cute is all I said. She wasn't wearing pink and she doesn't have any hair (hardly) and so I can't blame them She was wearing mostly purple "jameez" with a tiny bit of green. Anyways they were giving her a complement and then they added, what pretty big blue eyes she has! (Maybe it was her voice though, she makes these funny grunting noises and her voice is deeper than many boys!)
She is over her fever and back to herself, which we are still trying to figure out who she is. We can't quite figure out what keeps her happy. She definitely likes her mom, I can barely set her down before she lets me have it. She has at least learned to crawl and is getting faster each day. So when I leave the room, her screams get closer. Her big accomplishment of the day was.....I think she is finally getting baby sign. She did our "more please" sign!! It was so cute to see her get her little hands a moving. She loves to eat and will quickly learn this is the best way to get our attention. Adayla is very good at helping her remember the signs. We will just teach her the most basic signs (5 or 6) that will help to cut down the level of frustration. Adayla used them and it was so helpful.
As for the baptism, we all went as Tim had to give a short talk on baptism and we thought it would be good for Adayla to see a baptism for herself. She sat pretty reverently and was very intriqued by the people in the "bath". It happened quickly and as they shut the doors to the font she said "I want to see it again." But she won't forget what it means to be baptized from now on. She loves to learn and experience new things!
As for the rest of the week, it went by fairly quickly. We didn't do much, the washer broke and a repairman came on Wednesday. He was an older man (in his 60's for sure) and Adayla kept saying "Grandpa fix Adayla's laundry!" So we called Grandpa Skinner so she knew he was in Wyoming and wasn't the one fixing our laundry.
Friday night Tim and I were able to go on a date!! Like I said last time, we swap kids with our friends occasionally and it has worked out great. It was pretty cold to go ice skating, so instead we enjoyed a dinner at Ruth's Chris Steak House in Arlington overlooking the airport and Washington DC. We sat by the window and were able to see the Capitol and the planes. What a marvelous site! And the food was excellent as well. We love our sweet girls, but is was nice to have a delicious meal by ourselves. The girls did well for our friends. Adayla and her friend Max played. They were surprised by our two little eaters! Adayla had 2 pieces of pizza and Tally devoured two jars of baby food. Tally has never spit anything out, she likes everything (either that or she is just hungry!)
That is pretty much it, I am sure I will remember something later, but I can always add it!
She is over her fever and back to herself, which we are still trying to figure out who she is. We can't quite figure out what keeps her happy. She definitely likes her mom, I can barely set her down before she lets me have it. She has at least learned to crawl and is getting faster each day. So when I leave the room, her screams get closer. Her big accomplishment of the day was.....I think she is finally getting baby sign. She did our "more please" sign!! It was so cute to see her get her little hands a moving. She loves to eat and will quickly learn this is the best way to get our attention. Adayla is very good at helping her remember the signs. We will just teach her the most basic signs (5 or 6) that will help to cut down the level of frustration. Adayla used them and it was so helpful.
As for the baptism, we all went as Tim had to give a short talk on baptism and we thought it would be good for Adayla to see a baptism for herself. She sat pretty reverently and was very intriqued by the people in the "bath". It happened quickly and as they shut the doors to the font she said "I want to see it again." But she won't forget what it means to be baptized from now on. She loves to learn and experience new things!
As for the rest of the week, it went by fairly quickly. We didn't do much, the washer broke and a repairman came on Wednesday. He was an older man (in his 60's for sure) and Adayla kept saying "Grandpa fix Adayla's laundry!" So we called Grandpa Skinner so she knew he was in Wyoming and wasn't the one fixing our laundry.
Friday night Tim and I were able to go on a date!! Like I said last time, we swap kids with our friends occasionally and it has worked out great. It was pretty cold to go ice skating, so instead we enjoyed a dinner at Ruth's Chris Steak House in Arlington overlooking the airport and Washington DC. We sat by the window and were able to see the Capitol and the planes. What a marvelous site! And the food was excellent as well. We love our sweet girls, but is was nice to have a delicious meal by ourselves. The girls did well for our friends. Adayla and her friend Max played. They were surprised by our two little eaters! Adayla had 2 pieces of pizza and Tally devoured two jars of baby food. Tally has never spit anything out, she likes everything (either that or she is just hungry!)
That is pretty much it, I am sure I will remember something later, but I can always add it!
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
The cute Chinese folk......
It's funny that when you spend so much time thinking about China, the people, and the culture you notice things you normally wouldn't have. We have heard stories about the Chinese loving little American kids, but kind of blew it off. A few weeks ago when we were at the Air and Space Museum in DC with Brendan (the girl's cousin), there were quite a few Chinese people there. We were watching/waiting as a two particular Chinese ladies were taking their picture in front of a helicopter. Soon they saw us and were speaking in Chinese at how cute Adayla was. Before I knew it, Adayla was in the ladies arms posing in front of the helicopter. I was so caught up in it, I forgot to take my own picture of Adayla with her first (of many) Chinese ladies. Adayla was really good about it, she told her ni hao, and even looked at the camera!
Anyway that leads me to going to visit Morgan's Chinese teacher today before class to sing Happy Birthday or Zhu ni sheng ri kuai le! Adayla sung it by herself to Zhou Laoshi. It was cute and my teacher couldn't help but give her a little kiss on the cheek. Then she gave Tally one and then gave the girls a piece of Tang Guo (candy) and Adayla was ready to sing again. She will do almost anything for candy!
Little Tally has a bit of Roseola or so we think. As I mentioned her fever a few days ago, she had one again on Sunday. Then this morning I noticed a rash over her belly, back, chest, and neck. My friends happened to be here and said that is what it looked like. Thankfully it is quite common and will clear up on its own after a few days. This explains her extreme discomfort that she has been in and will feel better soon! Then we will get big blue back!
Tally's new thing is waving, she has started to wave at her daddy! She gets so excited when she sees him and he waves to her. Yesterday, she put her arm up just like him and wiggled her hand all funny! It was so cute to see her imitate him. She is getting a little better at crawling, soon we are going to have to put gates up at the stairs of the house to keep her from tumbling. She is getting better at getting what toy she wants. Sometimes Adayla is helpful and will take it away from her (sometimes if she shouldn't have it or if Adayla just wants it). But Adayla is very good at giving her a substitute, so it works for now!
Adayla has a few new things she is doing these days. She has learned that we say people quite often and she has picked it up. I said, "Do you know who is coming over today?" She responds...people. But what are their names....people. So it is people this and people that. This goes along with.....next week. Hey Adayla when are we going to this? Next week. Adayla when are we going to do that? Next week. Adayla when is Daddy coming home? Next week. We continue to be amazed at how quickly she learns and then imitates!
We watched the Shockers this evening, they kept trying to lose....but Adayla yelling DeFense and go Shockers pulled them through! She noticed the "people" on TV cheering and said, "the People say Hooray!"
We love them both and love being parents! But are looking forward to our date this weekend, it will be the 2nd in the past two weeks. We celebrated our 5 year anniversary a last week (actually on the 19th), but didn't go out until last Tuesday. We started swapping kids with some folks in our ward and Tim and I are going to go ice skating this weekend. I'll let you know how it goes!
Anyway that leads me to going to visit Morgan's Chinese teacher today before class to sing Happy Birthday or Zhu ni sheng ri kuai le! Adayla sung it by herself to Zhou Laoshi. It was cute and my teacher couldn't help but give her a little kiss on the cheek. Then she gave Tally one and then gave the girls a piece of Tang Guo (candy) and Adayla was ready to sing again. She will do almost anything for candy!
Little Tally has a bit of Roseola or so we think. As I mentioned her fever a few days ago, she had one again on Sunday. Then this morning I noticed a rash over her belly, back, chest, and neck. My friends happened to be here and said that is what it looked like. Thankfully it is quite common and will clear up on its own after a few days. This explains her extreme discomfort that she has been in and will feel better soon! Then we will get big blue back!
Tally's new thing is waving, she has started to wave at her daddy! She gets so excited when she sees him and he waves to her. Yesterday, she put her arm up just like him and wiggled her hand all funny! It was so cute to see her imitate him. She is getting a little better at crawling, soon we are going to have to put gates up at the stairs of the house to keep her from tumbling. She is getting better at getting what toy she wants. Sometimes Adayla is helpful and will take it away from her (sometimes if she shouldn't have it or if Adayla just wants it). But Adayla is very good at giving her a substitute, so it works for now!
Adayla has a few new things she is doing these days. She has learned that we say people quite often and she has picked it up. I said, "Do you know who is coming over today?" She responds...people. But what are their names....people. So it is people this and people that. This goes along with.....next week. Hey Adayla when are we going to this? Next week. Adayla when are we going to do that? Next week. Adayla when is Daddy coming home? Next week. We continue to be amazed at how quickly she learns and then imitates!
We watched the Shockers this evening, they kept trying to lose....but Adayla yelling DeFense and go Shockers pulled them through! She noticed the "people" on TV cheering and said, "the People say Hooray!"
We love them both and love being parents! But are looking forward to our date this weekend, it will be the 2nd in the past two weeks. We celebrated our 5 year anniversary a last week (actually on the 19th), but didn't go out until last Tuesday. We started swapping kids with some folks in our ward and Tim and I are going to go ice skating this weekend. I'll let you know how it goes!
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Another Saturday
It was a beautiful day today! We spent some time out at the park (how we are going to miss the park across the street when we move). Adayla does everything....the big slide, little slide, and swings. Tally has been able to also swing the last couple of times we have been there. It has been at least a few weeks since we last swung and you could tell with Tally. It took her a minute to get used to it again. I pushed her and she smiled....until she started coming back towards me. Her eyes got big (I mean bigger) and she would hold her breath. Finally she would bust into a big smile. Then repeat until got used to it again!
This morning I was feeding Tally and Adayla likes to feed her baby beside me. A few minutes later, I heard her tell her baby, "You go to timeout!" I asked her why her baby went to timeout and she told me she hit someone. She took her to the timeout chair (a booster seat with a buckle) and put her there for a few seconds. Then before I knew it, her baby was hitting me....Adayla was taking her hand and making her hit my face. I was like Adayla, she told her baby we don't hit people and that she must go to timeout again. (You can tell the timeout thing is really working here!) She was also cute when we called up to Wyoming and I let her hold the phone while it was on speaker phone and ringing. When Josie answered hello, Adayla bursted into the song Once There Was a Snowman with actions and all. And Josie was nice about it. She started to sing with her.
Tonight while listening to the AF/BYU game we were all in the office/Tally's room hanging out going thru paper stacks. Tally was crawling around and then ended up on my lap for most of it. She had a bit of a fever. Hopefully she feels better tomorrow, I am hoping it is just another tooth trying to pop through. Adayla was busy drawing and then using a pen lid, she began giving us all shots. Tally had the 2nd round of her flu shot on Wednesday. When we all had them at the beginning of December, Adayla went around for a week saying, "No more shots, no more shots." So we have spent quite a bit of time talking about them. When we went on Wednesday, she wanted it instead of Tally. Anyways we all received more shots this evening from her.
I must get to cleaning up the house, our landlord called today and wants to do a walk through on Monday afternoon. They are going to put the house up for sale in the Spring and wanted to see what needs to be done to get it ready. It is clean, but I have a few things that need done! Until another night.....
This morning I was feeding Tally and Adayla likes to feed her baby beside me. A few minutes later, I heard her tell her baby, "You go to timeout!" I asked her why her baby went to timeout and she told me she hit someone. She took her to the timeout chair (a booster seat with a buckle) and put her there for a few seconds. Then before I knew it, her baby was hitting me....Adayla was taking her hand and making her hit my face. I was like Adayla, she told her baby we don't hit people and that she must go to timeout again. (You can tell the timeout thing is really working here!) She was also cute when we called up to Wyoming and I let her hold the phone while it was on speaker phone and ringing. When Josie answered hello, Adayla bursted into the song Once There Was a Snowman with actions and all. And Josie was nice about it. She started to sing with her.
Tonight while listening to the AF/BYU game we were all in the office/Tally's room hanging out going thru paper stacks. Tally was crawling around and then ended up on my lap for most of it. She had a bit of a fever. Hopefully she feels better tomorrow, I am hoping it is just another tooth trying to pop through. Adayla was busy drawing and then using a pen lid, she began giving us all shots. Tally had the 2nd round of her flu shot on Wednesday. When we all had them at the beginning of December, Adayla went around for a week saying, "No more shots, no more shots." So we have spent quite a bit of time talking about them. When we went on Wednesday, she wanted it instead of Tally. Anyways we all received more shots this evening from her.
I must get to cleaning up the house, our landlord called today and wants to do a walk through on Monday afternoon. They are going to put the house up for sale in the Spring and wanted to see what needs to be done to get it ready. It is clean, but I have a few things that need done! Until another night.....
Friday, January 26, 2007
We'll see how long this lasts.....
Here it is, the first posting! One of my friends suggested, well I think a few of them, that I start a blog to keep others posted of our travels and adventures. Tim has been bugging me for the past two years to start a journal....I did start one, but it only has one page. So this is my attempt to keep you all posted, while I also have an online family journal. So here I go....
The girls are as funny as ever. Tally just got her third tooth (she has her middle two bottom teeth), but the one on top is not in the middle, it is the tooth just to the left of the middle ones. She spends her day trying to grind it on the bottom teeth. It makes for a very silly face. She has started crawling, but only if she really has to. Today while I was at class, she crawled all the way into the kitchen to find Adayla and Daddy. Tim was very surprised, it won't be long until she is all over the place.
Adayla is just a busy little girl who likes to play. She knows which drawer holds all my plastic bags and is constantly reaching to get one so she can put more stuff into a bag. It may be her toys, many times socks, or whatever food she can then find and carry around. She also still has her "closet" a set of cabinets in the kitchen that contains many of her treausres. We have this very scary garbage disposal, it makes a very loud noise and shakes quite a bit. Today I told Adayla I have to make the Scary noise. She stopped whatever she was doing and went to hide in her closet until I was done. She just crawls in and then shuts the doors. When I was done, she got out and continued what she was doing. She just makes me laugh. She continues to surprise us with her Chinese words that we work with her on. A few days ago she was crying when she woke up from her nap, I went in to get her and she said, "I hurt my ya chi." I had to think about it for a few seconds before I realized she had bonked her teeth on something.
Tim's parents told us they are coming to visit us in February, Yeah!! We are so excited. Adayla loves it when people come to her house. We are looking forward to spending time with them.
Besides Chinese, Tim is also studying for some of his military tests, for career progression. But with all his studies he still finds time to keep up with college basketball. And then send emails out to keep everyone else up on college basketball. He is also playing a bit of ball himself, the good old church ball on Saturday mornings!
Enough for my first time! I don't want to wear myself out so I can add more another time!
The girls are as funny as ever. Tally just got her third tooth (she has her middle two bottom teeth), but the one on top is not in the middle, it is the tooth just to the left of the middle ones. She spends her day trying to grind it on the bottom teeth. It makes for a very silly face. She has started crawling, but only if she really has to. Today while I was at class, she crawled all the way into the kitchen to find Adayla and Daddy. Tim was very surprised, it won't be long until she is all over the place.
Adayla is just a busy little girl who likes to play. She knows which drawer holds all my plastic bags and is constantly reaching to get one so she can put more stuff into a bag. It may be her toys, many times socks, or whatever food she can then find and carry around. She also still has her "closet" a set of cabinets in the kitchen that contains many of her treausres. We have this very scary garbage disposal, it makes a very loud noise and shakes quite a bit. Today I told Adayla I have to make the Scary noise. She stopped whatever she was doing and went to hide in her closet until I was done. She just crawls in and then shuts the doors. When I was done, she got out and continued what she was doing. She just makes me laugh. She continues to surprise us with her Chinese words that we work with her on. A few days ago she was crying when she woke up from her nap, I went in to get her and she said, "I hurt my ya chi." I had to think about it for a few seconds before I realized she had bonked her teeth on something.
Tim's parents told us they are coming to visit us in February, Yeah!! We are so excited. Adayla loves it when people come to her house. We are looking forward to spending time with them.
Besides Chinese, Tim is also studying for some of his military tests, for career progression. But with all his studies he still finds time to keep up with college basketball. And then send emails out to keep everyone else up on college basketball. He is also playing a bit of ball himself, the good old church ball on Saturday mornings!
Enough for my first time! I don't want to wear myself out so I can add more another time!
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