SWF Video

I love the Sturge-Weber Foundation. They are a very helpful and supportive organization. They have made a great video that is featured on their homepage. Erin Joy's picture is on the video. Watch carefully and you will see it.




I am trying to lose weight for the SWF. I am hoping people will pledge $1.00 or $.50 a pound and I am hoping to lose 50 pounds by next May. May is the foundation's "Month of Awareness." If you would like to sponsor me, please leave a comment on my new blog. I will collect next May through a "FirstGiving Account" that has already been set up. I am hoping this will finally be the motivation I need to do something about my weight problem. Thanks!

Happy Forever Family Day Erin Joy!

Today is Erin Joy's Forever Family Day! (I can't decide what to call it. Please vote for your favorite name in the poll.) I really don't like the term "gotcha." It sounds like somebody swatting a mosquito. It really isn't her official adoption day. That happened the next day on May 30th, but it was just a bunch of boring paperwork. Nothing like the moment I saw her for the first time. I think I can't decide what to call it because words don't begin to describe the emotions I felt that day and the emotions that Erin Joy felt.

Today Erin Joy placed a third ornament on her "Forever Tree." I gave her a panda this year in honor of the pandas who were also victims in the Sichuan earthquake. Notice the shirt she is wearing: "I was worth the wait." Yep. That's true. She was definitely worth the wait. Here is a very short (40 second) video with pictures of our special day set to the chorus of the song we listen to every year on this day.





Three years ago, I held Erin Joy for the first time. May 29, 2005 is a day I will never forget. I had waited so long. I had been looking at her picture for almost a year and anticipating the day I could finally hold her in my arms. She wasn't as excited to see me. When I look at old video and pictures, I see a very confused and scared toddler. She wanted nothing to do with me. I was just another transition. Just another person. She had lived in at least four other places before being adopted. She didn't know I was her mother. She didn't know I loved her and would never leave her. She didn't know that no matter how much she screamed, cried, bit me, kicked me, scratched me, and pushed me away I was there to stay.

Her behavior the first few weeks is so different from the sweet, kind, pleasant child I know today. As she placed an ornament on her "forever family tree," I was overcome with the feeling of love I have for her. She is my daughter. I love her more than words can express.

I made a little movie with pictures of our first day together, a few pictures from the past few years, and current pictures. I love you sweet Erin Joy!!

Fun With a Friend

I love the day after a laser treatment. I have to take a day off and stay home to watch Erin Joy for signs of infection, discomfort, blisters, swelling, and so forth. Erin Joy has always been fine and today was no exception. The day after surgery means a bonus day off for us.

Rachel invited a friend to come over after kindergarten and the girls had a blast playing together. Their favorite thing was collecting snails in a bucket. They must have had at least 20 snails. They fed them popcorn (I'm sure the snails loved the salt), gave them water (drown them), and built them houses out of sand at the river. I'm not sure how many lived which was fine with me. I don't want snails eating my flowers.

I put a few of the pictures from today in a slideshow. It makes me anxious for summer. I'm still watching that countdown closely!

Laser Number Ten

Erin Joy was all smiles as she climbed into the car this morning. We didn't have to leave at 4:30 like the last laser. We even got to sleep in 30 minutes later than usual. Nice!

Traffic was good and we arrived at Children's Hospital in Seattle 10 minutes early. That hardly ever happens. Unfortunately, her doctor was behind schedule and we had to wait three hours from the time we checked in to the time she was taken back for surgery. They gave her "giggle juice" too early. She was terrible. She kept trying to get off my lap. I wasn't supposed to let her off my lap because the medicine makes her loopy and dizzy. I physically couldn't restrain her any longer and she forced her way off my lap. Sure enough....she fell about three or four times. She just giggled. She really acted drunk. By the time they took her back to surgery, the stuff had worn off and they wanted to give her more. No way! I had had enough of my daughter acting loopy. She was still smiles when they took her away.

Here she is all smiles on the way back to anesthesia. She took her special doll and towel with her. Notice the red spot. She gets eczema on her face. She kept scratching and it became infected. The doctor didn't laser around her eye this time and gave us two different ointments to help the eczema and control the infection. I hope it works.

She woke up fairly happy. She ate six Popsicles and drank a cup of apple juice. After being released, we went to the hospital cafeteria and she chose a huge cookie as her special treat. She licked all the frosting off and almost ate the whole cookie.

Usually, she sleeps all the way home. Not today. She jabbered and sang happily all the way home today. When we got home, she saw her face in the mirror and said, "I all black." I don't think she has ever noticed before. I told her that is what happens after laser and it will get lighter and help her birthmark be healthier. She said, "Oh, thank-you Mommy. You my genius." (This is her new word. She has no idea what it means.)

Now we are both off to bed....

Memorial Day Hike

We had a great time today. We went on a little hike along the old railroad tracks near the Stillaguamish River with several friends. The old tunnel was especially fun. Unfortunately, I dropped my camera on some rocks while we were crossing a scary landslide. The top is dented and very scratched, but it still works. I love my little Canon!

Rachel says her favorite part of the hike was eating lunch.

Erin Joy says her favorite part of the hike was playing with Tuki-Luki (her doll that rode in a backpack).

My favorite part was talking to friends and taking pictures.

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Chuck E Cheese

The girls had a great time at a friend's birthday party at Chuck E Cheese today. They have never been to Chuck E Cheese before. Rachel is now planning to have her birthday party there. She will probably change her mind 50 more times before her birthday in December. It's a good thing she has been planning her birthday party since January.

Rachel's Kindergarten Program

Rachel did a fabulous job singing and dancing last night at her kindergarten program. I did a fabulous job of not crying. I'll save that for kindergarten graduation on June 9th.

Here is a little bit of her program (I used a little bit of each song and dance to make it shorter). Notice Erin Joy dancing on my friend's lap during the "Chicken Dance."

Great job, Rachel!

Story by Rachel

Rachel has learned so much this year in kindergarten. Check out her great story posted above. She forgot a few words. I'll add what she meant to say in brackets and help her with her spelling a little.

Translation:

"I love my cat. My cat caught a bird. I [went] to the park with my sister [and played] on the swings. I like to play. I love to sleep. I never wake up."

I laughed very hard when I read the sleeping part. This story is definitely non-fiction. She loves to sleep and I have a terrible time waking her up in the morning. Erin Joy gets up early every day regardless if it a school day or a vacation day. I have to drag Rachel out of bed every day...even Saturdays. We have dance class at 10:30 in Seattle which is about an hour drive from our house. Last Saturday, she was still sleeping soundly at 9:30.

She got mad when I woke her up. "You told me I could sleep in today," she complained.

"You did sleep in. You slept in until 9:30."

"Well, I'm not done sleeping yet."

Sheesh...she is going to be really hard to wake up when she is a teenager. That's coming faster than I would like...

Fancy Nancy

Rachel and Erin Joy both LOVE the book Fancy Nancy . The book reminds me of Rachel. Like Rachel, Nancy tries to help her family be more fancy. I knew Rachel would love the book and she does.

I was very surprised Erin Joy liked the book. She has never cared about being fancy. Recently, something has changed. I'm not sure if it is the book, her older sister rubbing off on her, or her new "special headband" that she earned by getting 10 good-day tickets at preschool. She wears her special headband EVERY day. She now wants to get dressed by herself. In the past, she has never wanted to dress herself and whined and complained when I made her dress herself.

I have a lot of pictures of Rachel being fancy, but not too many of Erin Joy. I think that it changing....

Here is the way Erin Joy went to school one day last week (check out the socks with the fancy shoes)

She now needs a lot of fancy things in her hair:

She has definitely learned primping in the mirror from Rachel:

No outfit would be complete without a purse:

Adventures With Flat Scott

Flat Scott is visiting us from Idaho. We took him to the same places we took Flat Kaci and Flat Chen-Le. Saturdays are Chinese Dance/Language Class so we have to do something close to class. While Rachel was at class, Erin Joy and I took him to Carkeek Park by Puget Sound (Inlet of the Pacific Ocean.) Erin Joy was too scared to take him down the Salmon slide so poor Flat Scott just had to look at it. She wouldn't play on any of the playground equipment. She was acting very shy. Eventually, we just went on a little nature walk through the park.

While Erin Joy was at dance class, Rachel and I took him to our favorite restaurant for hot and sour soup. We love the waiter. He teases Rachel and she enjoys every minute of it. He is always amazed that Rachel loves spicy food. Rachel really loves hot and sour soup and she loves ma-po tofu which is also very spicy. Flat Scott loved the food too. He also enjoyed learning that he was born in the year of the snake. He likes snakes. Rachel was also born in the year of the snake, but she doesn't like snakes and would love to be another sign on the Chinese Zodiac. Flat Scott got a great fortune. Something about traveling with friends...I can't remember it exactly, but I did take a picture of Flat Scott holding it so watch for it in the slide show.

After coming home, we took Flat Scott to play at the Stillaguamish River across the street from our house. The river is a little high so there wasn't very much sand to play in, but he still had fun building castles, shopping malls, swimming pools, and hotels. He enjoyed catching a frog and being buried to his head in the sand.

Flat Scott is going to stay with us for awhile because he loves baseball. He just can't visit our house without going to a Mariner's game. We will take him to a game in June. Stay tuned for more adventures with Flat Scott in a few weeks.

Death of a Bird

Our cat, Bella, is quite the hunter. She traumatized all of us, especially Erin Joy, when she caught a bird a few days ago. Poor Erin Joy carried it into the house and asked me to help the "little birdy." I screamed, grabbed her, and threw the bird outside where Bella continued to play with it. I then thoroughly washed Erin Joy's hands.

Erin Joy sobbed heart wrenching sobs. I held her, hugged her, but I couldn't get her to calm down for a long time. When she finally settled down enough to talk, she kept asking about the bird. I really wished I wouldn't have reacted the way that I did when she brought the bird into the house. If I would have been thinking properly, I would have calmly buried the bird and had a little service rather than unmercifully throwing it back outside where Bella was patiently waiting to continue the massacre. Anyway, I told Erin Joy that the bird was with Aunt June in heaven and was very happy now.

"Will Aunt June take care of the bird?"

"Yes, Aunt June loves birds. She used to feed them. Remember throwing peanuts to the Stellar Jays at her house?"

"Does Jesus love birds?"

"Yes. He once said, 'Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten before God? But even the very hairs of you head are all numbered. Fear not therefore: ye are of more value than many sparrows.' That means He really loves birds and He really loves you, Erin Joy." (I didn't quote it exactly at that moment....I looked it up later...Luke 12:6-7 and something similar in Matthew 10:29-31)

"Jesus loves birds?" she asked once again.

"Yes."

Then Rachel joins in, "Are there cats in heaven?"

"Yes."

"Do the cats in heaven eat the birds in heaven?"

" Thanks, Rachel. You're really not helping your sister calm down. Would you please leave? No, the cats don't eat the birds in heaven."

"What do they eat?" Rachel asked.

"What do you think they eat?" I love turning questions back to her because her responses are usually funny.

"I think they eat cat food. They probably have stores in heaven and the angels buy cat food."

By the time the conversation of cats and birds in heaven was over, Erin Joy had calmed down. When she said her prayers that evening, she asked God to let Aunt June take care of the bird Bella killed. She has continued to pray for the bird. She is so sweet and compassionate. Rachel, on the other hand, has forgotten all about the bird and is on to other things.

I appreciate all the mice and moles Bella has killed, but I am done feeding the birds. It seems cruel to put bird seed out to lure them to their death.

Sunshine On My Shoulders

It has been so long since the sun shone, I hardly knew what it was when it made an appearance today. We were so excited that we had ice cream cones and got out the swimming pool. Tomorrow is supposed to be even warmer. Can it be??? I'm watching the countdown to summer very closely!