A Little Homage to Chinese New Year

I made a couple things (the dragon and the lanterns) off of the Nick Jr./Ni Hao Kai Lan website.

Then I scrounged for anything 'red' that we had lying around the house.

Next year I need to seriously prepare a little bit better.

Although, Lili acts like she has no idea what Chinese New Year is. We found a New Year song and played it for her and she just looked at us like 'whaat?'. So, we're not under a lot of pressure to do anything major for her.

She'd just as soon dress up as Snow White and sing 'Happy Birthday To You'!

Waiting Outside the Guangzhou Train Station

They've been having some terribly awful weather all across China for the past several days. In the north and farther south than is normal, it's snowed more than it has in the past 50 years.
In the south, it's rain and flooding and way below average temperatures.
The normal temp for Guangzhou right now is around 70-75. For the next 10 days it's supposed to be in the 40s.
And it couldn't happen at a worse time of year. People are trying to get home for the Spring Festival (New Year) and the weather is making it impossible to travel.
I have also heard of adoptive families over there right now unable to get to their children because of cancelled flights and closed roads. My heart goes out to all those people affected.

"January 30, 2008 6:31
Waiting For a Train
Posted by Austin Ramzy |
On Monday the number of people stuck in the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou trying to catch a train was roughly equivalent to the population of Cleveland. By the time I got there yesterday the numbers were down from 500,000 to 150,000, closer to Chattanooga. I spent a few hours talking with people about what it's like waiting in the rain and possibly not making it home for the Spring Festival holiday because of the terrible storms. While Guangzhou wasn't snowy or icy it was unpleasant. Temperatures were in the mid-40s F and a steady rain fell. And still people came, trying to get home.

This morning I met a reporter from the Yangcheng Evening News, a well-known Guangzhou paper. She had spotted me talking with two guys who were were sitting on a patch of ground eating boiled eggs and sipping baijiu. The reporter asked me what I thought of the scene outside the station, and after hours of asking other people the same question I wasn't quite sure how to answer. My overriding impression was that I was impressed. I was impressed by what people were willing to put up with just for the possibility of getting a seat or even a spot on the floor of a train for a 20+ hour trip home. It was a grand display of enduring hardship, or what in Chinese is vividly known as "eating bitterness" (吃苦).

Of course, that is what many of these people's lives are about, a willingness to endure hardship to get ahead. The thousands waiting outside the Guangzhou station were largely migrant workers, people who traveled to Guangdong province from China's interior seeking a better life for themselves and their families. So when I spoke with the Chinese reporter, my final thought was that I couldn't imagine many Americans going through this. I left feeling a little guilty for complaining about transpacific flights in economy class.

I've posted a short clip from the station gate on Wednesday afternoon. I'm no videographer so the quality is poor but it at least gives you a feel for the crowds."

My Lili-Bug Blog is

2 years ago, on 1/29/06, I started Lili-bug.

Wow. Time flies.

2 years ago today, I finished my autobiography for our agency's formal application. Sigh. I remember thinking with such excitement that we were on our way!! Oh how naive.

If we were still waiting for our infant referral, it looks like my blog would be 5, maybe 6 years old before we even finished our adoption. Just insane.

But! Lili's home and all is well. 2 years after all the stress, the paperwork, the bills, the waiting, the worrying, it's all over.

whew

(and it's SOOOO much more fun to blog now!!) :)

Oh man, do I fear the future

'Dancing Queen'

Lili started dance class today.

It's once a week for 1/2 hour at our library.

Well, that's how long it's supposed to last, BUT! Lili danced herself into a frenzy for an hour and 15 minutes.

The thing was, I wasn't sure which class to enroll her in. It goes by age: 3&4 year olds in the first class and 4&5 year olds in the second class. Since Lili's almost 5 I thought she should go to the 4&5 class. But, she's in the 3&4 year old preschool class, so all her friends would be in the 3&4 class. And! she hasn't had any dance experience (although if you follow this blog at all you can probably figure that she has had some experience.....and you'll know that she thinks she has!!)

So, we went for both classes and now they're probably going to combine the two anyway. Crisis averted. (but it sure was a whole lot of fun to stress about it.)

Lili looked at me when it was all over and said "Lili tired. No more dance." She then proceeded to take an hour nap when we got home.

Yep, I'm a stage mother.

(and have you noticed that every single video of her is just one big blur?)----I love how she winds down at the end! :)

Favorite Super Bowl Commercial

In honor of the impending Super Bowl (that I am STILL depressed about) I thought I'd share my favorite Super Bowl Commercial.
Maybe you have to have a cat to appreciate it, but it's so funny it makes me cry!
(the guy with the lint roller and the other one sneezing? Seriously funny stuff!)

Travelin' Jones

sigh......

This time of year always gets me thinking of just leaving. Packing it in and GOING. anywhere.

Must be the winter blues.

These pictures are from our 1st train trip to New Orleans in 2005, a month before the hurricane.

Have you ever taken an Amtrak trip? If not, I highly recommend it.

We spent the extra money (I think it was $129 total) for a bedroom and with that upgrade everyone in your party gets all their meals for FREE!

The bedroom was really nice when it was configured as a living room, the beds were not so fantastic. We had a toilet, sink and shower in our compartment which was, umm, interesting. I really don't think I'd be showering on my next trip. OK, maybe if we went on a 3 or 4 day trip.....

The meals were so unbelieveably fantastic. They took our reservations for us. We had linen napkins, white glove service and 3 course meals that were really, truly scrumptious. That was, by far, the best part of the train trip. We packed a bunch of snacks but didn't need them at all. We were full the whole time. And that makes us VERY happy!

We were on the train for 19 hours. We had 2 dinners and a breakfast and a lunch. Well worth the 129 bucks.

I can't say enough about New Orleans. We LOVED, LOVED, LOVED it. From the hotel, to the architecture of the French Quarter, to the plantations, to the swamps and alligators, to the food (and drinks!), to Bourbon Street, and the jazz..........it was just the most amazing city. Brett played with the band at a Fais Do-Do, we held baby alligators, we heard live jazz at Preservation Hall and visited places we'd seen on TV. wow.

Anyway, we really would like to go somewhere this summer.

(don't tell the kids, but we're thinking, HOPING maybe Disney World)

Wherever we go, I'm sure it will be a trip-----and I mean that in every sense of the word!

Yippee!

I am so excited for my buddy Kim and her family.

They FINALLY got their LOA today! I just couldn't be happier for them.

Congratulations Chris, Kim and Emma. AND JOSIE!!

Mini-Me------uhh ohhhh..........

So the one thing that Lili needs to work on in preschool is story time. It seems that she's not sitting still and being quiet like she should. We came home after school today and practiced. She certainly is a drama queen, isn't she? geesh.

Now, I'm assuming that this is what story time sounds like to her and that her inattention is, at least in part, due to the language barrier. Not to make excuses. But if I wasn't filming her, I sure wouldn't be all rapt attention to what sounds like gibberish to me either.....just a theory.

Anyway, all is well with Lili and her 'student'. Baby did end up in the corner, although I thought "Nobody puts baby in the corner".......... :)

"National Sanctity of Human Life Day, 2007

A Proclamation by the President of the United States of America

White House News

America was founded on the principle that we are all endowed by our Creator with the right to life and that every individual has dignity and worth. National Sanctity of Human Life Day helps foster a culture of life and reinforces our commitment to building a compassionate society that respects the value of every human being.

Among the most basic duties of Government is to defend the unalienable right to life, and my Administration is committed to protecting our society's most vulnerable members. We are vigorously promoting parental notification laws, adoption, abstinence education, crisis pregnancy programs, and the vital work of faith-based groups. Through the "Born-Alive Infants Protection Act of 2002," the "Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003," and the "Unborn Victims of Violence Act of 2004," we are helping to make our country a more hopeful place.

One of our society's challenges today is to harness the power of science to ease human suffering without sanctioning practices that violate the dignity of human life. With the right policies, we can continue to achieve scientific progress while living up to our ethical and moral responsibilities.

National Sanctity of Human Life Day serves as a reminder that we must value human life in all forms, not just those considered healthy, wanted, or convenient. Together, we can work toward a day when the dignity and humanity of every person is respected.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, GEORGE W. BUSH, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim Sunday, January 21, 2007, as National Sanctity of Human Life Day. I call upon all Americans to recognize this day with appropriate ceremonies and to underscore our commitment to respecting and protecting the life and dignity of every human being.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this eighteenth day of January, in the year of our Lord two thousand seven, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-first.

GEORGE W. BUSH"

I'm not trying to make a political statement.
I'm not trying to impose my will on anyone else.

All I want to say is that I thank God that Lili's birthmother chose life for her.
I thank God that Lili's birthmother decided to leave her in a public place, knowing she'd be found and taken somewhere safe.
I thank God that she is ours.

My sincere apology to all the Democrats out there.

hee hee!

Sophia LOVES Lili!

The 'Lilibug' Dress

Lili's Great-Great(!) Aunt Elida got this ladybug dress for Lili for Christmas.

Lili wore it to church on Sunday and was SO EXCITED that it had 'Lilibugs' all over it!

She spent all day couting them. ("1 lilibug, 2 lilibug....") :)

Thanks Aunt Lee!

Genius at Work

Lili shocked the snot out of me this morning by grabbing our paint sample and reading the letters off to me!

Looks like this ABC stuff is sinking in.

I'm so proud of her!

(yet still very depressed and wounded.....but coping......for my children....)

'Ni Hao Kai Lan'

There's a new show coming to Nick Jr.: 'Ni Hao Kai Lan'.

It's supposed to be like 'Dora', but instead of Spanish, it'll focus on Chinese.

I'm SOOO excited!

Lili loves Dora, but doesn't even understand most of the English, let alone the Spanish stuff, so hopefully, this will really hit home with her.

It premiers on Feb. 7th at 11:00am est.

That's Chinese New Year.

Can't wait.

Hopefully they'll bombard us with all things 'Kai Lan' like they have with all things 'Dora'!!

(still sulking, but functioning...............for the sake of my children......) :(

It Was a Dark, Dark Day.......

I looked SOOO forward to yesterday's playoff games. The Colts at 1:00, the Cowboys at 4:00......what a day!! or so I thought.....

Wow. What can I say?

Both the Colts and the 'Boys deserved to lose. They both lost their games.

I really expected the Colts to win.

I didn't have a lot of hope for the Cowboys with the way the Giants have been playing the last few weeks. But I have to say, I had hope. Just one touchdown and they had 2 minutes to do it. They'd done it before.......remember Buffalo? remember Detroit?

Oh man.

Now I guess I just watch the Superbowl hoping that whoever plays New England beats New England. and the Tom Petty halftime show??? puh-leeze.

crap.

The Video Kid

5 Month Liliana-versary!

It's been 5 months since Gotcha Day!

Wow! It's been 5 months already/it's only been 5 months?!

Lili continues to make awesome progress in every way.

Here's what she's up to now:

• "Disgusting": "see-gus-see"
• "Ladybug": "Lili-bug" :)
• "China": "Tyna"
• "Nothing": "No-fang"
• "Really?": "Reelay?"
• "Lili's turn": "Lili tun"
• "Brett": "Bett"
• "Not you/not yours": "Not yooo/not yos"
• "Lili's pretty!": "Lili pity!"
• "Lili doesn't smell!": "Lili no smelwl!"
• "Bubble": "Bah-bo"
• "Go ahead": "Go head"
• "Better": "Betta"
• "Lili's room": "Liliswoomah"
• "Gogo's turn": "Gogo tun"
• "Die!! Yesss!": "Die!! Yesss!" (what can I say? she has a 10 year old brother!)
• She can identify: yellow, blue, green, red
• She can identify: circle, triangle, square
• "Flower": "Fowuh"
• "Get off of me!": "off uh meeee"
• "Pizza": "Peeeeza"
• "Taco": "Tacol"
• "I found you/you found me": "I fine yoo/yoo fine me"
• "Too heavy": "too hey-veee"
• She is beginning to speak in mostly complete sentences
• When she talks on her "phone" she always says this: "Hello? Hiiiiiiiii. OK, OK, Yeah, Buh-Bye!"

We sure are blessed!

I have some video from today too, but Blogger isn't cooperating, so that will have to wait.

And we thought PINK EYE was bad!

hee hee.

I'm With the Band!!

I am obsessed.

I am a Guitar Hero (wannabe).

Santa got Brett Guitar Hero I, II and III and I can't put it down!
Every time the kid leaves his room for 5 minutes, I'm in there jamming down. He's like "Mom, come ON, it's my game, let me play!" whatever, go take out the garbage or something, mommy needs to rock!

The saddest part is, I really feel like I'm a rock goddess.

My fingers are cramped, my wrists are sore and my eyes are bugging out but I need more!!

If they could shoot this stuff directly into my veins, I'd be the biggest junkie.

Hey, maybe then I really would be a rock goddess!

What am I doing wasting my time on this?

Gotta go..............................

"Who lives in a pineapple under the sea......"

"Spongebob Squarepants!"

Spongebob

Patrick

Mr. Krabs

Plankton

Brett bought Lili some fun foam for Christmas and we all had fun playing with it.

There's only 5 colors, so we had to be creative!!

104.7---nope, that's not my favorite radio station

That was Lili's temperature yesterday when she got up from her nap. yikes!
I dosed her up and laid her on the couch with a cold compress on her head. Her temp gradually went down throughout the night.
When I checked on her at 2:30 this morning it was 100. When she got up at 8:30 it was 98.8. Hallelujah! I've never been so relieved. And she wasn't even 'really' sick, no vomiting, no bowel issues, just a fever and (from what I could gather from her) a headache. But still, fevers are scary. Don't like dealing with them at all.
It's just so unnerving to see her laying there doing nothing. So unlike her.
But, today is a new day. She and Brett are playing "Yalphie and Mama" where Brett is Ralphie the dog and Lili follows him around pushing her stroller. (sounds like LOADS of fun, huh?)
Just overheard:
"Yalphie, wha do do?"
"Yalphie, potty!"
"Baaaaaaad boy!"

hee hee.
when does school start again???? :)

Ding Wang!

I have a confession to make. We have coined a phrase in our house: Ding Wang.

Ding Wang, as we use it, stands for what 99% of the world would refer to as a cowlick.

Now our daughter runs around yelling "Ding Wang, Ding Wang" when her hair sticks up. She also points out if Brett has any (which I can't tell you how much he appreciates).

We were hopeful that at least one of our daughter's Chinese names would be either "Ding" or "Wang". No such luck. sigh

But at least we have the next generation to carry it on.

Happy New Year!

Avalanche!

Swingin' in the snow

"Is there anyone out there?"

guess not.

'Jeffy the Great' ensuring that our satellite continues to work

Snow Angel

There are so many things to look forward to in 2008 and so many things to be grateful for in 2007.

Lili is home.

We are DONE with the adoption stress, wait, red tape, worry, everything!

Last year at this time I prayed that 2007 would be 'the year of Lili'. I knew it was an "impossibility", but I kept the faith.

It's been almost 10 months since we've known who Lili is and almost 5 months since we finally got to meet her.

Wow, the Lord sure didn't make me wait too long into 2007, did He?

I still pray that China adoptions turns things around. If we were still in it, waiting for our "regular" infant referral, we wouldn't be getting our baby until probably late 2009.

Yep, LATE 2009

My heart breaks for all the people waiting and especially all those children waiting, never knowing why things happen the way they do, just waiting for something.....

Hopefully this New Year finds you well.

God Bless.

You Know It's Cold When.....

.....this is where you find your cat.