Thanksgiving 2006

Our first Thanksgiving on American soil in three years! Our first Thanksgiving with family in three years! Our first big meal in our new kitchen! It was a good Thanksgiving with lots to be thankful for and lots of happy memories of past Thanksgivings... Turkey Day in Amagi Japan (1995) with Amy,Turkey Day while pregnant and on bedrest (2002), Turkey Day in Guam (2003) with the Alsinas, Turkey Day in Thailand (2004)with the Solleys, Turkey Day in Okinawa (2005) with the Farrows, Harpes, and Solleys. We had a great time with my parents and my sister including a trip to Disney World and Sea World. Here are a few photos. Hope you all had a nice Thanksgiving surrounded by loved ones, good food, and appreciation for all the joys in your life.

Our Kitchen

Before

After

Caught with Fruity Booty

I found Camille this morning hiding under a table eating her new favorite snack, Fruity Booty (that is really the name and there's also Veggie Booty, Pirate Booty...all very tasty from the health food store). And here are couple of shots showing how close Camille is to walking. I have a hunch the first time she walks it will be for food...she loves to eat!

Our kitchen is almost done (I will post final photos soon) and just in time because tomorrow we have our post-placement visit for our adoption. Today and tomorrow we'll be busy trying to finish unpacking the kitchen and getting ready for the visit. And my sister and parents will be here next week for Thanksiving...hooray!

Lunch with Ann

Yesterday Camille and I had lunch with a special soon-to-be mom, Ann. Ann is in the process of adopting from Taiwan. We have been in communication by e-mail, adoption message boards, and our blogs. It was great to finally meet up after sharing so much on-line. I have to admit I was a little nervous to see how it would go and it turned out to be a lot of fun. She is just as lively, sweet, funny in person as she is on-line and she will be a wonderful mother. The internet is an amazing thing. Meeting Ann yesterday reminded me of our second trip to Taiwan when we met and stayed with another wonderful adoptive family, Rhonda and Steve (natives of New Zealand now living in Taiwan). Our adoption and these amazing, international friendships would not have been possible without the internet. I can't wait to spend more time with Ann and her husband as they get closer to getting their referral for their child in Taiwan. Ann will always have a special place in Camille's heart because she gave Camille her first taste of chocolate (wish I had had my camera!).

Birthday Celebration

Happy First Birthday, Camille!

Birthday Thoughts

Today Camille turns 1!!!! It is hard for us to believe that she is already one year old. It feels like time flies by even faster with your second child. A lot has happened to our sweet Mei Mei in just her first year of life. She has lived in three countries...Taiwan, Japan, and the United States. She survived a brown recluse spider bite. She has officially become a monkey girl after being initiated by her older monkey boy brother. She has caught up quickly on all of her developmental milestones. She has melted the hearts of many with her bright smile....actually an award wining smile. See this month's Adoptive Families Magazine where her photo is one of the winners of their national photo contest or peek at their website.

One thing that I didn't expect was to feel such a mix of intense emotions on her birthday. On Noah's birthdays I always think back to his arrival and the flood of emotions I felt when I first heard his cry, when I held him for the first time, and when I watched Adam sing to him in the delivery room. But on Camille's birthday I don't have those memories. In fact, I don't even know what I was doing on November 7th, 2005. I have looked back at last year's calendar but there's nothing to note. According to her adoption paperwork she was born by c-section in a hospital in Taipei, Taiwan and she was named Tzu-Hsan. Having spent time with Camille's family on both of our trips to Taiwan, I am sure her birthday was a very bittersweet day for them. Her family is an amazing, loving, close knit family and they wanted to do the best they could for her, but I know the adoption was not an easy decision for them. When we met them for the first time Camille was three months old and they proudly presented a book to us which contained her umbilical cord and her first tiny footprints. It still makes me cry to look at these precious ties to her birth family and to her original birthday. I know her family is thinking of her today half way around the world in Taiwan and that makes me smile and feel sad at the same time. Soon we will be sending her family a package with photos of Camille but I want to do more for them. On her birthday, they gave us one of the most precious miraculous gifts we have ever received and we will forever be grateful and connected to them. How do we ever really thank them for that gift? The gift of life. The gift of a beautiful daughter.

Boys

Click on this entertaining tribute to boys and their parents.
http://ebcrennie.googlepages.com/boys
It made me laugh and pray that my monkey boy won't try some of those tricks. I have to admit that I was a little nervous when I found out we were expecting a boy. I felt very comfortable with girls having grown up surrounded by sisters and lots of girl cousins, but wasn't quite sure of what having a son would be like.
I feel so lucky to have a sweet and energetic son. Everyday is an adventure. He keeps me on my toes with his monkey boy antics, he shows me the world through his curious eyes, and his body slamming hugs tell me he loves me with all of his might....what could be better?

Leslie Saves The Day!

We were very lucky to have a special visit last week from one of the best organizers on the planet and one of my closest friends, Leslie. She called and said she was going to be in town for business. I was ofcourse thrilled to hear from her but warned her about our current state of chaos and illness (nasty stomach bug that won't disappear!). This didn't faze her and being an energetic wonder woman she swooped in and in just a few hours had our garage organized and ready for a garage sale AND she started to organize our kitchen cupboards. Thanks to Leslie we got rid of a lot more stuff than we had originally thought to part with and we ended up making $600 from our little garage sale!!!! The best part of the visit was just hanging out and getting to see Leslie with the kids. I think Noah has a crush on her....saying "I love you, Leslie", showing off for her all day, and not wanting her to leave. She and Noah share the same birthday so perhaps that is part of their special connection. Leslie, Thank you for helping us clear out space in the garage, giving me hope that this state of chaos is starting to come to an end, and for being such good friend for all of these years. We love you and hope we see you again soon!

Jacksonville AirShow

Here are a few shots from the airshow. The Blue Angels were amazing. Thank you, Drew for the VIP tickets!

Halloween 2006