What a week!

What a crazy, busy week it's been! Not bad, just busy! We're all adjusting well to my return to work. This past week was our first "full" week of me working.

Last weekend, we went to Portland, where Kai was able to spend time with all his grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, and he even met Gr-Grandpa Howie, Gr-Grandma Tee, Gr-Uncle Josh and Gr-Aunt Candy for the first time (well, technically he met Grandma Tee at the airport when he came home, but didn't really get to spend any time with her then). We enjoyed brunch at Grandma and Grandpa M's house, and Kai really enjoyed playing the piano there too. Then we went to Gr. Howie and Tee's house for Easter (and Christmas) festivities with my family. Kai had his first Easter egg hunt, and enjoyed playing with his cousins.

We got home late Sunday, then we headed straight into the work week. Wednesday was spent catching up on laundry that didn't get done over the weekend, housework that didn't get done over the weekend, and a few errands. Not to mention my little boy who was worn out and had a wacky napping schedule. 

Today, finally, it's the weekend again. We can breathe!!

Today was also super fun, Aunt Beth came to spend the day with Kai and I. We had fun playing at home, and even managed to go out to lunch after nap time. After lunch we played outside for a few minutes since it was between snow showers (yes, I said SNOW...nothing stuck...).

Oh, Wednesday was also Kai's 3 month anniversary of being home with us. This amazing little boy is still constantly impressing us. I may be biased, but I think he may just be the smartest baby ever! He is learning so many new things every day, and talking (OK- babbling) more every day. This week we've heard him say "HI" (without us saying it first), "bye", and "na-na" (night-night). About two weeks ago we started a new bedtime routine (which doesn't include a bottle, another amazing feat), and during the routine we constantly talk about how it's time for "night-night". Well, tonight as I was bundling him up after his bath (step one of bedtime routine), he said "na-na", totally on his own. Amazing! He's also definitely entering toddler-hood, and all the glories that come along with it...tantrums when he doesn't get his way, testing our limits, voicing his opinion...oh, it's so wonderful!  Did I mention the climbing? Yes, today we had to have our first "toy time-out". He wouldn't stop standing on his snail rocker, so it had to have a time-out.

Today Aunt Beth taught him how to dance a jig, and it's so stinkin' cute! Joe really had him going with it this evening, and I was laughing so hard my abs hurt! 

Well, if you've made it this far, you deserve pictures!

Playing the piano on Easter

First day home with Daddy while Mommy's at work

More box sitting, this time it's Willie's toy box, notice how he's sitting on his doggie.

Our little comedian

Our little guy thought he was quite the funny man today. First, he has nearly mastered getting onto his riding toys by himself. Now he thinks any toy with wheels, doesn't matter how many, is rideable. Last weekend we watched him try to "ride" his xylophone and his ball popper, which each have two wheels. Well today, he decided to try to ride his VeggieTale school bus. That might sound alright...until you see the size of this thing.

Of course, by the time I got my camera ready to go, the riding session was over, but from this picture you can probably get a good idea of how it looked.

Later, we were playing in the living room, and I watched him accomplish this feat:

He did this totally on his own, the basket was even pushed under the table! I could not get him to turn around to look at the camera, so when I moved to see the front side and asked him to smile, this is what I got:

Is he proud of himself or what?? 

Kai and I also had our first giggle war today. He's been giggling so much lately, it's usually at Daddy doing something silly. This afternoon, he was standing in front of me (I was on the floor with him), and he made a funny face. I started laughing...he started laughing...I laughed harder...he laughed harder...need I go on?? We probably had a good 30-40 seconds of pure laughter before he dropped his toys and hugged me. 

It was a good day. :-)

Hi-ho, hi-ho, it's back to work I go!

Yesterday was my first day back to work. Everything seemed to go very well. I wasn't a complete mess, and in fact, most people were pretty surprised at how well I was "handling" it. It felt really strange being there, knowing I would go home to my baby. When I first walked in the building, I felt like I'd entered a foreign country. A foreign country where I lived long ago, but haven't visited or spoken the language for a long time. By the end of the day, the sights, sounds, smells, and lay of the land started coming back to me, and it didn't seem so foreign anymore. I expect it'll take a week or so for me to start feeling "into" it again. I kept pretty quiet about my return yesterday, but next week I'll start being more vocal and letting people know I'm back. 

I know the one thing that made yesterday go so smoothly was knowing Kai was in good hands. He did wonderfully during his first full-day of daycare (he went last week for a couple half days, and did great then, too).  He had fun playing with the other kids, ate well, and even took a 3 hour nap! Melinda was amazed at how well he put himself to sleep for his nap. So far, it hasn't seemed to stir up any feelings of grieving for him. I know that he'll be well cared for at his daycare, but my biggest concern was if our separation would cause any attachment issues. It's probably too early to say, after only one day, but so far he seems to be doing very well with it.

This may sound strange, but we feel that my returning to work has finally made his arrival feel very real. Since he came home, it's felt so surreal. But now, with me back at work, and our lives pretty close to how they were "pre-baby", we're finally convinced that he's really ours... forever! :-)

Cousins are FUN!!

Yesterday Kai and I took a day trip to visit his cousins! They were so excited when we arrived, they came to the front door to wait for us to get out of the car. Then, Kai was greeted with hugs and kisses by all. :-) These kiddos waited with us for so long, they kept asking when our baby was coming home; it's so fun to finally get them all together! This was only the second or third time they've had to really play together, and they all seemed to have a lot of fun! Since the older cousins are...well...older, they've forgotten what it's like to have a toddler around (ie, someone who doesn't look where they're walking and likes to knock things over), but once we convinced them that Kai was not really trying to sabotage their games, they seemed OK with his clumsiness. We also reminded them that their little sister will be doing the same things soon, and in about a year, Kai will probably be getting upset when she knocks his lego towers over!

 :-) 

Kai is so lucky to have such wonderful cousins (and aunt and uncle!), and I think we're all looking forward to watching these guys grow up together!

As you can imagine, it was quite hard to get them all in the same place for a photo op, but the one above is from a while ago when we met for Dan's birthday (I think Hayleigh was busy being snuggled by her mom).

HAPPY ST. PATTY'S DAY!!

Date Night!

Yesterday Grandma & Grandpa C. came to town to babysit so Joe and I could go for a date! We had a great time, and didn't have to worry (too much) about our little guy since we knew he was in great hands! This was our first night (err...afternoon) out since Kai has been home; we went to see "Juno", then out to dinner. As for what happened at our house while we were out...they all seemed to have a great time! In fact, Kai didn't even udder a peep when Joe and I left, but when Grandma & Grandpa left he cried! 

Thanks again, Mom and Dad!!

get out your kleenex

You're going to laugh to tears!! While I was filming this, I was trying REALLY hard not to laugh on camera...didn't work...sounds like I'm crying. Our little Kai is such a music lover and dancer, his moves are getting more extensive everyday! We always loose composure when he starts hitting his belly! Of course, this video is so much cuter just because he doesn't have any clothes on. He is so adorable in only his diapey! (In case you're wondering, no...he wasn't just running around in his diaper. I was getting him dressed, in his room across the hall. He heard the music and ran to the computer...where it was coming from, luckily the camera was right there on the desk!)

On a side note, I am so excited that through the power of the internet, I have been reconnected with one of my best friends from high school! We lost contact almost 10 years ago, and have been searching for each other ever since. To make it even more exciting, she is also newly a mother, her son is now 8 months old! Congrats again, Christy...I'm so glad we found each other!!

Just for fun

Hello, Mr. Frog

Where does this go?

 Imagine his surprise when he turned the corner and found Willie in the dog run!

See the plane?

Wind chime...how fun!

exploring new territory

After weeks of standing at the patio door and looking out longingly, we finally let Kai out to explore the backyard! We had such a beautiful weekend here. Yesterday afternoon our car was registering 70 degrees! And it was so sunny! It's still nice today, but the clouds are moving in and the rain is on the way. Saturday we took Kai for his first trip to a "real" park. (We do have a lovely little park across the street from our house, but the only thing he can do there is the swing, the other play structures are for "big kids".) We were out running errands, and decided to stop at a nice city park that has lots of play area for "little kids". Unfortunately, since it was somewhat spontaneous, we didn't have our camera (what kind of parents are we, anyways?). But, he did have a blast going down the slide (with Daddy holding onto him, of course). As with all new things, at first he wasn't sure, but after a few trips down he would just starting smiling and giggling when Joe set him up at the top of the slide. After the park we took him for his first treat at Cold Stone Creamery. He had a couple tastes from each of our ice cream creations, but then his busy afternoon caught up with him. So, Joe and I took turns holding him and finishing off our treats and we were headed home very quickly. 

I'll have to post the backyard pictures later, blogger won't let me do it right now :-(

Bunny Taken Hostage

Come any closer and the bunny's history...

The bunny's owner attempts retrieval, to no avail.

Negotiations begin...

The bunny's captor loses composure 

as the sun sends him into a drunken stupor...

Happy Ending!

Bunny returned to rightful owner, the house is at peace.

Disclaimer: the only role I played in this was taking the pictures; the baby, dog and bunny were otherwise the only participants.

100!!!

WOW! This is post # 100! I don't really have anything earth-shattering to discuss (do I ever?), but I can't believe I've posted 100 times! Really, it seems like there are better things for me to do with my time...and if you're wondering, no, I didn't go through and count them all, blogspot does that for me :-) So, to make this a little more interesting, I will post a few videos and pics that I've been holding onto, waiting for the perfect time to share them! 

This one I call: "More proof our son's a genius".

This one is just plain cute:

And here's a something only Daddy would think to do 

(and only Mommy would think to grab the camera):

Happy Wednesday, thanks for looking!

squeaky shoes

OK, I must preface this post by warning (or reminding) you how easily entertained we are here at our house!

A few days ago Kai got a pair of squeaky shoes from our friends Holly and Wayne (parents to Sam and Emma). They are so cute and just make us laugh! At first when I put them on Kai, he was scared to move. Then he just started laughing and running all over the house. Oh, it was so funny, we could not stop laughing! I managed to get the camera into video mode and  film a little of the fun. Now we don't have to worry about loosing our little walker! Thanks again H,W,S&E!

AAAHHHH!!! (huge sigh of relief)

Yesterday we turned in a signed childcare contract for Kai's daycare when I return to work in 3(short) weeks. What a huge relief! We started the week with a few childcare leads, and a few interviews set up; we ended the week signing the contract with someone totally different! It's amazing how God uses people who have been in our lives to open doors when we need them opened! This is a great example of how our city really is a "big little town", one of the reasons I love it here! So this is what happened. Monday morning, I was continuing to search for daycare options, even though we had a few interviews set up. Joe calls me and says that a work acquaintance has given him the name of her childcare provider who is awesome, and happens to have a few openings right now. She says we better call FAST, because Melinda's openings fill quickly. So, I wasted no time and called her. We set up an interview with her for the following day. Later on Monday I was talking to my friend Brenda (who happens to be covering my leave at work), and told her we were interviewing a daycare that was right down the street from her house. She asked me what her name was, and I told her "Melinda". Brenda said, "Oh, she goes to my church, and she's awesome. I was going to take my boys there, but she didn't have openings on the right days when I was looking". Since I have gone to many women's gatherings at Brenda's church, I asked if I had met her, and we both decided that I probably had. Tuesday afternoon we go and visit Melinda's house (yes, it is the lady I was thinking of from Brenda's church). Right away, we love it, she's so easy-going yet has total control of the kids. Kai loved it and just wanted to walk around, explore her house, and play with the other kids. I tell her that I've met her at Brenda's church, and she says she thought I looked familiar. So, we're at her house, chatting about her daycare and such, and in walks a work acquaintance of mine, to pick up her daughter!  Wow! Who would have thought? We've heard nothing but great things about her. Oh, and in the course of chatting with her, she tells us that she's also an adoptive mother! I liked how she didn't make a huge point of bringing it up (like she had to prove something to us or like it would be a deal maker), but rather it just came up quite naturally in our conversation (her son was adopted domestically, so it's not as easy to see). So, we love that he will be in a Christian home and getting excellent care by someone who is sensitive to his needs as an adoptee. Yesterday when we stopped to drop off the contract, Kai had a chance to play with the other kids a bit (all boys right now), and he loved it! The only draw back is that her house is about 10 minutes out of our way to work. But we figured, it's only two days a week and for quality care, it's not a big deal! Knowing he will be in a good daycare has really eased my mind about returning to work, although I still can't believe my leave is almost over!

Proud, sleepy Mommy

Our day today started WAY TOO early! Little Kai woke up and started fussing around 3:45 am. We let him be for a few minutes, and it became quite clear that he was quite unhappy. So, I got up, made a bottle (just in case), and went into his room. Upon seeing me, he started giving me the "milk" sign, so I gave him his bottle. After the bottle he settled down, but still didn't want to be put down to go back to sleep...so the walking/carrying began. To make a long story short, we were still walking when Joe got up at 5. When Kai saw Daddy, he thought, "How fun, Daddy's up, now it's time to play". So I let him down and conceded that we were up for the day. After playing for a few minutes, Kai gave me the "eat/hungry" sign. I was very impressed as we've just started using this sign less than 2 weeks ago. So I put him in his chair and he ate some yogurt and toast (wonderful, breakfast at 5:30am...what time does that make lunch?). He really was hungry! He was hungry and he used his sign to tell me! (Can you see me smiling??) Around 7am, he started fussing again, so back in the Ergo he went. After about 10 minutes of unsuccessful cuddling in the carrier, he gave me the milk sign again (I wasn't happy that he wanted milk again so soon, but he was very upset from teething, and I knew he needed more sleep, so I gave in). About 3oz. into his bottle, he was out! Totally asleep...the bottle even fell out of his mouth! So, now I'm way tired, but probably up for the day, and so, so excited that Kai is using his signs meaningfully and appropriately! I am so proud of our boy! I just think it's amazing that through sign language, we can give him words before he's able to speak them! Now, I better go grab a shower while he's still sleeping...who knows what other adventures lie ahead of us today!

Home 2 Months!!

It's sunny...can we go out and play???

WOW!!  Yesterday marked 2 months since Kai came home to us! When we look at our little guy today, we see a much different person than the one we met in San Francisco 2 months ago. Today we have an outgoing, happy (usually), adventurous little boy; far from the scared little baby we first met.  "No fear" would be a great way to describe him. Of course, that's good and bad. The good: he's willing to face any challenge head on (unless it involves a sippy cup). The bad: he has no clue where his boundaries are (as in...the edge of the couch).  When we take him to a new place, he's shy for about 2 seconds before he wants to go off and play!

As the weather has been improving in our neck of the woods, we've been able to go on more walks and even stopped to swing a few times! At first, he was not so sure about it, but now he loves it. He also recently took his first trip to the dog park, and of course he loved it! He got such a kick out of watching the doggies run around and play.

Over the past week or so, he's been running to greet Daddy as he arrives home from work. He seems to know, if Daddy's not home and he hears the garage door open, it's him!  The first time it happened we were across the house, Kai heard the garage door, got a huge smile, and off he went...in search of Daddy! 

We're convinced that his first "real" English word is "yea". Great, slang. If you ask him a question, most times he'll answer with a very distinct "yea".  We weren't sure if we were imagining this, but grandparents have confirmed that they also heard it. As Joe said the other night...no more secrets! 

He was doing really well on his solid foods, but a rebound of his cold, and some major teething have set us back a little.  As for sleeping through the night, I'm happy to report good news! Well, I guess "sleeping" is not really the right term, he's still waking up, but probably 6 out of the last 8 nights, we have not had to get up with him or give him a bottle! WOO-HOO!! He's just woken up, maybe fussed a little but mostly babbled (most likely talking to his doggy), then gone back to sleep on his own.

Enjoying a banana.

I thought he didn't like bananas because he wouldn't eat the little bite-size pieces I was giving him, he'd just spit them out. But no, he just wanted a huge hunk to hold onto, and eventually smash into banana mush (and some actually made it in!). I restrained myself from taking a picture of that lovely mess.

So, there you go, a nice update on us. Thanks for checking in!

More new friends!!

Over the past several months we have had the pleasure of getting connected with some other families with children from Korea. We were connected the "R" family through a mutual friend, and they have been absolutely wonderful to us! They have two children, both from Korea, a 9 year old son (Sam) and a 5 year old daughter (Emma). We first started conversing through emails, then one Sunday, Holly (the mom) noticed me at church! Later that day I got an email asking if we went to their church. Over the next few weeks (I'm not kidding) she saw me a few other places around town, until finally we met face-to-face...at Costco!! (Not planned, of course) It's a little scary that we go to the same stores and restaurants, but that day at Costco, we even had the same dog bed in our shopping carts! Yikes! We feel so blessed to have been connected with this wonderful family, and really feel they'll be great mentors to us in the years to come. Last Sunday they invited us to dinner at their house, and another family joined us as well (also with a 5 year old Korean son, Zach). We had such a great time, and Kai had a blast playing with the big kids!  After looking for so long for other adoptive families, we feel so lucky that we're finally getting connected! Here are a few pictures of the kids, taken by Holly. Unfortunately, Sam was off doing his own thing, but here are some good ones of Kai, Emma and Zach!

Growin' like a weed!

We're starting to see just how true this old saying is! This is exactly what our little Kai has been doing. At his 12 month check-up last week, he weighed in at 24lbs 1oz, and measured 31 3/4" tall!! If anyone is keeping track, that means he's gained nearly 2lbs and grown nearly 2" taller in the 8 weeks he's been home!  His doctor said he's right on track for his age, and his height is 90th percentile and weight is about 75th, so no worries. His first "real" well baby check brought with it our first "real" homework as parents. Three major goals for us to work on over the next several weeks: increase solids and decrease formula (thereby transitioning to cow's milk), wean from bottle and encourage sippy cup drinking, and omit night time feeding. It seems to me they all go hand-in-hand, but she encouraged us to take them one at a time. So far, the increasing solids seems to be going well, and he's enjoyed his first few bottles of whole milk. It seems to me that as he starts eating more solid food, he won't need his night-time feeding, and this was proved correct last night. :-) So, we'll keep plugging along at those two...and save the doozy for later. We've tried the sippy cup a few times, and he just looks at it like, "OK, now what??" A few times, he's just started crying at the sight of it. Since we're still in the trust-building phase of our relationship, this is something I'm not willing to push just yet. Bottle feeding is great for bonding (although I also know you can hold a sippy cup like a bottle and feed...still great for bonding), but when he starts screaming at the sight of the cup...no thanks. So, wish us luck as we help our little baby turn into a little boy (already??). Here's a little video clip of Kai's latest moves!

Haircut!!

Last night, to celebrate Kai's first Valentine's Day with us, we took him for his first haircut!  It's not quite as short as we were planning, but we decided to leave it in the hands of the expert. The stylist was worried clippers would freak him out, so he did  some pretty decent chopping with his scissors. He looks very handsome, and still has a "baby style".  Maybe this summer we'll do something crazy!  He did about a good as a 1-year old can! After the first few minutes he decided he did not want to get a haircut and was pretty squirmy until they broke out the balloon! My biggest worry was that it would be too stressful and send him into grieving at bedtime, which it didn't! Here's the pictures of his big day!

Waiting patiently with Daddy 

(Don't be fooled, the "patient" part only lasted about 30 seconds!)

All ready! This is a good shot of how long and shaggy it looked!

Look at my big boy!

Thank goodness...here's Mr. Balloon!

"OK, I'm ready for my close-up!!"

Happy Birthday, Kai!!

One year ago today, our precious little boy was born in a town just outside Seoul, South Korea. I don't remember exactly what we were doing that day, but I'm pretty sure it didn't even dawn on us that our son could be entering the world. I do remember as we passed through Feb. 2007, I often hoped and prayed that our child had been born, but I had no way of knowing for sure. It amazes me that on that day, our lives changed forever, and we had didn't even know it!

As you can imagine, today is a bittersweet day for us, as I'm sure it will always be. We are overjoyed at this miraculous gift that God has given us, but can't help of thinking all that he left behind in Korea. Today I have been thinking about his three families. First, his birthmother, praying that she would have peace in her heart that the baby she relinquished is now part of a loving, forever family. Also in my thoughts is his foster mother, who cared for him with a mother's love from the time he was 2 weeks old, until he was ready to travel to us when he was 10 months old. I know he was deeply loved by her and her family. And lastly, our family, his forever family. We feel so blessed that our families have been so supportive of our adoption, and have welcomed Kai into our family as one of their own. 

Our family's love for our son was evident this past Sunday, as they joined in a celebration of his birthday. It was such a special day for us, one we will always remember; at church he was dedicated to the Lord, then after church we had his First Birthday and Dol (or Tol) party at our house. (Click here for more info about the Korean Dol) During his toljabee, he selected the jujube (not the candy, it was supposed to be a Korean dried date, but I couldn't find one, so we used a mini-bell pepper, since it was about the same shape and size), and the pencil. The jujube signifies that he will have many descendants, and the pencil means he will be a scholar. As you can see, he is quite handsome in the beautiful hanbok that his foster mother sent with him. And of course, he loved trying his first piece of cake!! 

Please enjoy the slideshow that Joe made for him!

Happy Birthday, Kai-Kai!! Mommy and Daddy love you lots!!

Kai's 1st Year

Is he talking to me??

Over the past few days, I've been starting to sense that when Kai says "Omma" (reminder: that's "Mom" in Korean), he's saying it to me. He's been saying it since he came home, and at first I knew he was calling for his foster Mom when he said it.  He's always said (or screamed) it when he was upset or said it in a non-specific, babbling type fashion.

It all started on Tuesday night, we were having a little snack of some chex mix. I was holding him at the kitchen counter and we were both munching away. I told him "All done" and set him down in front of me. Then, I proceeded to take one last bite. He looked up at me, straight in the eyes, and said (very deliberately) "OM-MA!" As if to say..."Hey, Mom, I want more, too!!" Since then, there have been several times where he has seemed to call me Omma very directly and deliberately.  

It feels great that he is starting to recognize that I am his Mom, but to me, his "Omma" will always be his foster Mom. Joe and I have never referred to ourselves as "Omma" or "Appa" ("Dad" in Korean), we've always been Mommy and Daddy. 

We've identified another Korean word he's been saying. We mentioned in a letter to his foster Mom that he was saying "dada". She wrote back and told us that in Korea, he would say "daetta" which in Korean means "enough, or done"... as in "that's enough of that!" I've been paying close attention to when he says it, and I do think he's saying the Korean word. He always says it when he is going through something he doesn't like: diaper change, getting into the car seat, etc. How lucky are we that we know what his Korean words mean??

This little boy never ceases to amaze me! 

And, since no post would be complete without a picture: here's a nice one of him trying to grab the camera from me!