No Cavities

Haircuts

Back to school haircuts happened yesterday. Here are the "before" pictures:
Getting a shampoo....
Sitting so still for haircuts...

I think she is absolutely adorable in her new haircut.

Well...her hair isn't much shorter, but the ends have been trimmed.

Chinese Dance Camp

The girls have enjoyed a week at Chinese Dance Camp.  They had a blast learning dances.


Rachel is so excited to be the head of the lion.


Erin Joy's handkerchief flew away...



Not only have they been learning dances, they have been learning to cook Chinese food.  Every day they have made something Chinese for lunch.  They are learning to make spring rolls in the following pictures.

The also have been learning calligraphy.  Rachel can write numbers through 10, her name, and her birthdate.  Erin Joy can write several numbers. 

Take Me Out to the Ballgame

I honestly don't watch baseball.  Before I had children, I loved watching and listening to Mariner's games.  I really loved the team during the Lou Piniella years especially the 1997 division championship year.  Dan Wilson, Edgar Martinez, Jamie Moyer, and of course...Ken Griffey, Jr. were some of my favorite players.  I was so excited when I heard Ken Griffey, Jr. was coming to Seattle to play before retiring.  I just had to go to a game before the season was over.

We only live about an hour from the stadium, but I don't like catching buses or finding a place to park and I really don't like fighting traffic after a game.  I decided to make a mini-vacation out of it and get a hotel room.  The only hotel near the stadium is very expensive.  I debated and debated and finally decided to do it.  I'm very glad I did.  The girls had a blast swimming in the pool on the roof.  They swam for 2 1/2 hours before the game.  The game went extra innings so it was nice to walk across the street and fall into bed after 14 innings.

I was very disappointed when I learned that Griffey wasn't in the lineup.  I love watching Ichiro and he made some amazing plays and got a couple of hits.  I was excited to watch Hernadez pitch.  It turned out to be a pitcher's duel and the score was still 0-0 into the 14th.  I was so excited when they put Griffey in to pinch hit!!  He came through with a fabulous hit to win the game.  My girls slept through his great hit.  They even slept through me screaming.  Silly girls:)

Here are pictures and a report from my girls:

Wedding Fun

Pretending to be a bride...Beautiful place for a wedding...

Erin Joy didn't listen to the ceremony very well.  She was easily distracted and kept jumping out of her seat.  In this picture, she was being entertained by a piece of tape she found on the chair.

Hugs from the beautiful bride....

Erin Joy wanted a piece of cake all night long.  When they FINALLY cut the cake, she excitedly watched.  I gave up trying to keep her away so I just took her picture.  I hope she doesn't show up hovering and drooling over the cake in the professional pictures.

Erin Joy had a great time dancing...

My sweet girl...
Playing in the gazebo....

Please Help

Please help the Scruggs family and families in the future who will be affected by the new CDC regulations. There are links in this article for you to sign a petition, support the FACE Act and contact government officials. I just contacted by senators, representative, and even President Obama. If they are contacted by several of us, maybe something will happen. I sure hope so. I can't imagine being forced to leave my children behind because of a crazy regulation that is senseless. Children with TB aren't contagious. A child who has been on medication for almost 2 months is even less contagious. This is crazy. PLEASE HELP THEM!!! Click here for an article with links on ways to help. Be sure to check this blog for information.

A Fun Visitor

My friend ended up in the emergency room and had to have surgery.  She called just before her surgery and asked us to take care of her dog.  My girls were thrilled.  Tommy was quickly loved and played with.  He was lovingly placed in the doll bed and given a stuffed animal.  He didn't seem to mind being carried around and played with yesterday. He slept with the girls last night.  He likes to burrow under blankets.

They didn't leave Bella out of any of the fun.  Here she is getting a check up from two professional doctors.  Erin Joy determined that she has allergies.  What is Bella allergic to?  According to Erin Joy, Bella is allergic to cats.  Silly girl:)

The dog is scared of the cat, by the way.  It is pretty funny.  One good hiss from Bella and Tommy runs.

A hug from Rachel reassures Bella that Tommy has not taken her place in our family's heart.  Tommy has taken her place in the bed, however.  Usually Bella sleeps at the foot of the bed.  Last night, she slept on the couch while Tommy took over her spot in the bed.  

A Little Wet

We went to the beach to meet friends from out of town. It was a little chilly so I assumed the children wouldn't get in the water. I figured they would just play in the sand. I was wrong of course. They ended up getting very wet and we didn't bring a change of clothes.  They also broke in our new van by getting water and sand everywhere.

Please Sign

As of July 1st, there is a new requirement by the CDC that is discriminatory to adoptive families.

The Center for Disease Control (CDC) has decided that in order for immigrants from China to get a visa, they must show proof of not having TB (Tuberculosis).  Not a bad idea in theory, but this includes adopted children!  The way that adoption in China works is that the adoptive family has legally adopted the child by the time the child gets the medical evaluation done in Guangzhou at the US consulate.  This evaluation now also includes a TB test for children over the age of 2.  This  adds 1-2 days to adoption trips (which means a higher cost too).  First the child will have the TB skin test.  If that is positive, which most are because most kids in China get the TB vaccine, then they must get a chest x-ray.  So far, those cases have proven to be negative, and then the visa is issued, and the family comes home.

But eventually, a child is going to test positive.  Then there is another test, and the adoptive family must stay even longer.  If in fact the child has TB, the child must remain in country for what could be 9-12 months!  So what is the family of this child supposed to do?  This is a child of US citizens who have legally done all the paperwork so that the child is a US citizen as soon as he/she sets foot on American soil.    TB is not considered contagious for children under the age of 12, even if they have active TB.  Most families cannot afford to stay in China 9-12 months, and treatment would be easy to find in the US.

This skin test is also given at the same as many children are getting as many 6 immunizations at one time!  Families can no longer get a waiver to do immunizations here in the US.  This means kids are getting more shots than necessary as well.   Most Americans would never give their young child so many shots at once and many pediatricians to not recommend it!

So here is how you can help families like us:  Go tohttp://www.gopetition.com/petitions/build-families-not-barriers.html and sign the petition started by the Joint Council for International Children Services to overturn the TB requirement for adopted children.  It’s quick to sign the petition – will probably take you less than 2 minutes.  Thanks for your help!

I cut and pasted this post from another blog.  Since this was written, at least one child has tested positive for TB.  Her family must return to the US without her.  They are devastated.  They are working hard to be able to bring her home.  This makes me so sad.  Click here for a link to their blog.

Please click here to sign the petition.

Denny Creek/Franklin Falls

We had a great time yesterday hiking to Denny Creek Waterslides and Franklin Falls.  There wasn't much water on the waterslides, but it was still a lot of fun.  

Good-Bye Oscar, Hello Lucky

It was time to say good-bye to our car.  Oscar William Greeley Green (named after one of my ancestors...yes, I have to name my cars) was almost 16 years old and had close to 300,000 miles.  My mechanic said it was a miracle we made it to Idaho and back.  The engine is going.  The cost to fix it was more than the value of the car.  It would have been harder to say good-bye to Oscar if Oscar had AC.  It has been VERY hot and we were dying in our car without AC.  Definitely time for a new car with AC.  Good-bye Oscar!
Hello, Lucky!!!!  We just stimulated the economy by purchasing a 2008 Mazda5.  I love it!  It has enough room for all of us, yet is small enough to still get good gas mileage.  We happily traded Oscar for Lucky.

While I was signing papers and filling out paperwork, Lucky was getting washed.  While they were washing the car, the engine light came on. Darn.  Something wrong with the power steering.  We were given a loaner car while a part was being replaced in our new car.   Today our car was ready and we happily picked it up.

I felt very worried that the car we just bought had trouble BEFORE we even drove it off the lot.  Lucky is a good name.  We are going to be lucky and have NO more mechanical problems.  We are very lucky to have AC.  We are very lucky and happy to have a new car:)

Heaven

We had a great day hiking around Mt. Rainier National Park.  The wildflowers were incredibly beautiful as were the mountains, waterfalls, and everything else.  It was a great day.

I often burst into song when hiking in mountains.  The Sound of Music is generally my first choice of songs to sing when I see beautiful mountains and flowers.  My kids aren't embarrassed by me yet...I'm sure that will come soon:) I've never been to the Alps, but I bet the Cascades are just as beautiful.