An Update on Anna Grace

Anna Grace started taking gymnastics class tonight. We originally planned to sign her up for gymnastics so that she and her sitter would have an activity during the day. But, the schedule did not work out, so Anna Grace is taking an evening class on Mondays. We decided that it would be good to help develop her motor skills, and it is a fun activity that she and I can do together. Anna Grace had a lot of fun climbing on the slide and going through the tunnels tonight. She was not really sure about the balance beam and can not do any of the jumping activities. Even though it is really hard for her, she had fun trying and had a big smile on her face through most of the lesson (it's hard to get a good picture when I have to help her do the courses with her).



Last week, Anna Grace went for her third set of shots since we have been home. She had to start all the way over with her immunizations since China does not give them in the same way we do in the U.S. So far, she has had 9 shots in the last 3 months and has run a fever after each set. Thankfully, we only have to go back one more time in six months, and then she will completely caught up. She is getting caught up on her weight. She has gained two pounds as you can tell by her tubby tummy in the picture of her on the balance beam! She goes to physical therapy every month or two in order for her gross motor skills to be monitored, and we have an appointment next week at the eye doctor to rule out any vision problems that might be causing some of her delay.
Anna Grace has been doing great with her babysitter each day and has even been enjoying going to Sunday school at church. When we entered the children's building last Sunday she immediately started saying "Play! Play!" and practically jumped out of my arms when we got to her class. I have been staying with her each time, but she has quickly learned the classroom routines and enjoys all of the new toys. She is quickly learning to love coloring and story time. Her fine motor skills are really good, but she constantly switches her crayon from one hand to the other when she is working. I am wondering if she is going to be ambidextrous since she is equally good with both hands.

Anna Grace is learning English at lightning speed. She is already putting sentences together on her own. She still speaks a lot of baby babble and Chinese though, and she gets mad at me when I do not understand her. We took her to the Chinese restaurant last weekend and the owner talked to her in Chinese. She seemed to remember a lot. It makes me so sad to know that she is going to lose that as time passes. Maybe someday when she is older she will want to take lessons.
I could not have ever dreamed that Anna Grace would do as well as she is doing. Her attachment to us grows more and more each day. She loves to make us laugh with her funny facial expressions and the silly games she plays. She adores her brothers and seeks out each family member each night to give goodnight hugs. She insists on doing her goodnight prayers with each person who tucks her in. Anna Grace is such a blessing to our family.

Back to School and Back to Work

Cole and Alex had their first day back at school today. I think they had a good day, but Cole was already telling me as we were driving to school this morning that he could not wait for summer break! I remember how excited they were when they first went to kindergarten. They are only in second and fourth grades this year, so they have a long way to go!!

Here is a bucket of vegetables from our garden (sorry it's turned sideways)

And here is a bucket of boys!!


Anna Grace joined our neighbor, Bryce, in his backyard the other evening for some water fun. She did not like walking around in the wet grass very much, and she really didn't like the water squirting her. She did love sitting on the inflatable fire truck though. I think this picture is so funny with both of the baby's "Buddha bellies" poking out.


Anna Grace took her first bubble bath tonight. Actually, I tried to give her a bubble bath when she first came home from China, but she did not like it. Tonight I tried again, and she loved it. I think Cole had almost as much fun as Anna Grace piling bubbles on top of her head.


Anna Grace has been enjoying her new babysitter. I think she really likes all of the one-on-one attention. Still, she has been really happy to see me in the afternoons when I get home. We are hoping that she will be able to go with her sitter to take gymnastics classes starting in a few weeks. Her sitter is also planning to take her to story time at the library and to play at the park often. They are spending time each day reading and working puzzles. I feel so blessed to have found such great care for Anna Grace while I am away at work.

One last camping trip before school starts...

We had a great time camping in the mountains with my mom and step-dad over the weekend. We stayed in our camper, and they rented a cabin. I have a lot of great childhood memories staying at this park, so it was a lot of fun sharing some of the same experiences with my own children. We hiked to the top of the mountain on Saturday before it got too hot. We saw an Indian wall and a beautiful view. Then Cole and Alex had fun climbing on the huge rocks. Mike cooked us a big low-country boil for supper. Yummy! Today on the way home we stopped at the lake for a picnic lunch and some swimming.



Now we are home and starting to get ready for the week ahead. This is our last week of summer break, but Anna Grace's sitter will start part-time this week so that she can adjust more easily.


Anna Grace is learning new English words everyday. She understands a lot of what we say. Instead of nodding her head up and down to say yes, she raises her eyebrows up and down. She is so funny! She calls our dog "Harlo" (Harley) and she asks for her "shotion" (lotion) after her bath. She is also starting to put two words together. She says "I eat" when she is hungry, and she said "I poop!!" the other day in the bathtub. Yikes! Actually, her potty training is going really well, and she wears underwear during the day. We will go back to the physical therapist this week to find out how much progress she is making with her motor skills. She is still behind, but she is slowly learning to throw a ball and climb the stairs.

Baby, it's hot outside!!

As summer is winding down, we have been spending as much time playing as possible. Before long, I will have to go back to work and the boys will start back to school. We have hired a sitter to come to the house to stay with Anna Grace so that she will have fewer transitions. In fact, our sitter is going to start part-time next week so that Anna Grace can get to know her before I have to leave. I am sad that I will not have as much time with her and the boys once school starts, but we are trying to make every minute count. I am planning to take each boy on a special shopping trip to buy school supplies next week. We have also been spending extra time playing card games and going to the park.



We went to the pool this morning, and just as we were about to leave, Anna Grace stepped on a bee. She still had the bee stuck to her foot as we went running for the bee sting kit at the life guard station. I am finding that it is a scary thing to have no knowledge of Anna Grace's family medical history. She is taking a nap right now, but the bottom of her foot is red and has some swelling.

Happy Birthday Cole!!

We celebrated Cole's 9th birthday Friday with a camping party. He decided that this year he wanted to have a few boys over to camp out in the backyard, so we pitched tents and built a camp fire. It was also my nephew's 11th birthday, and he came over to help celebrate. Cole and Kyle had not seen each other in a long time until recently, but they get along really well. The boys had fights with silly string, played flashlight tag, and ate hamburgers, hot dogs, s'mores over the fire, and cake. Mike even put one of our neighbors up to making a bear call and sneaking around the backs of the houses to scare the boys just as it was getting dark! The boys were all running around with flashlights trying to find the bear. This was perfect since there really have been some bear sightings in our area lately.









Everyone was having a great time until it was bedtime and Cole had the glow-in-the-dark chemicals from a glowstick explode all over his face and in his eyes. He was screaming so loud from inside his tent that we thought there was a snake in there and the other boys got so scared that they wanted to go home. The only boys that actually slept outside were the two littlest ones (Alex and Sasha) who slept through the whole thing inside the camper. It was a great party, but we were all very tired Saturday.




Cole decided to use his birthday money to buy a little electric dirtbike. He has been riding it all over the backyard with his friend who also has one. At first I was really worried about getting a dirtbike, but then I saw how small it is, and we decided that he could have it if he did not ride it on the road. My mom says that she is not responsible for any injuries since she is the one that gave him most of the money to buy it!




It is still hard to believe that Cole turned 9. It seems like just yesterday that he was this little 5 pound baby who suprised us all by coming early. Cole will be in 4th grade this year- only 2 more years until he will be at the middle school with me. He has grown into a little man. He is becoming more responsible and mature every day. I told my mom that I wish we could just hit the "pause" button and keep our kids at ages 9, 7, and 2. I do not want them to grow up, but I know that they will. I am trying to remind myself to cherish them every day and remember that spending time with them is much more important than dishes or laundry. I will have to return to work in just a few weeks, and I really worry about how I will find the right amount of time to spend with each child.

A Tibute to Daddy! (go down and mute the music before you hit play)

4th of July

We spent our weekend camping in the mountains for the 4th of July. We had fireworks Saturday and Sunday night, a golf cart parade Sunday after church, and lots of time to spend as a family. Anna Grace did not like the fireworks very much, but she did love riding in the golf cart with the banner that Cole and Alex made that said "Proud to be an American." Harley (our dog) was even dressed in his Uncle Sam hat for the parade! Cole and Alex enjoyed playing in the creek at the camp and making a dam for one of our camping neighbors.

Anna Grace's hair is finally getting long enough that I can pull it back into 2 little pigtails in the back! I have waited for so long to have a little girl's hair to fix. When we received our referral pictures, Anna Grace's head had been shaved and she had no hair. But, her foster mom allowed her hair to grow since then, and I think the good nutrition that Anna Grace has been getting in the last month has been helping her hair grow even faster. I can not wait to finally be able to put her hair up into little braids.

Today we went to a park to swim in a lake with our adoption group. This was the first time that Anna Grace met some of the other Chinese kids in our area. She instantly made friends with one of the older girls. Anna Grace does not let very many people hold her- especially not people that she has just met. However, she instantly allowed Lydia to play with her on the playground and carry her around. I think Anna Grace was happy to see someone who looked like her.

As I am typing this, Anna Grace is "helping" me with the laundry. She has filled my underwear drawer with clean washcloths, pushed a laundry basket around the house filled with folded clean clothes and dropped them off in each room, and scattered wet beach towels throughout the living room! I sure am glad that she is so helpful!