2nd Birthday - Epic fail

OK, it wasn't exactly horrible, but it didn't go anywhere near as planned.  The good thing is, I doubt Natalie knew the difference.  She seemed to enjoy it very much.  Thanks to all our family members that came and celebrated with Natalie.  We are blessed to have a great daughter and she is blessed to have a family that loves her so much.

But yeah, seriously, the party did not go well for the parents at least.  We spent hours upon hours on Friday and Saturday morning getting things looking nice and pretty outside.  The weather was fabulous that morning.  Everyone arrived and it still looked great.  Then the storm came.  We kind of knew some rain was in the forecast, but did it have to be a full on storm and could it not have waited for a few more hours?  So, all that hard work outside for nothing.  The decorations were mostly shredded by the winds and rain.  We had to rush and get all the food, presents, and people inside.  

Our house IS NOT built to accommodate 26 people including 5 kids.  It instantly got very hot and very loud in there.  

Like I  said though, Natalie didn't seem to mind it at all.  She enjoyed opening her presents with all those people there watching.  She didn't quite understand why her cake was on fire and why this was OK.  She also didn't know why people were singing to her before she got to eat the cake.  If everything tied to this event wasn't such a "disaster," then you would be able to see a video of these events.  It chooses not to upload for some reason.  

Amy and I were so busy running around trying to keep things in order and moving things inside from the rain that we weren't able to get hardly any pictures.  Of the birthday pictures attached, two were taken by our friend Tim.  In an effort to not disappoint her fans by only posting one or two photos, I included some from Memorial Day as well.  Enjoy.

Thank for the photo, Tim.

Her first splashes in the pool for the summer.  By the end of it, her shirt and pants were both soaked.

She has some amusing looks.

This child loves her "melwon."  Notice all the juice collecting in the bib pocket.

Beach

We had a great trip to Florida.  Natalie did just fine on the plane even though we had to wake her up at 4 am to drive to the airport.  We thought she would sleep on the drive and on the plane.  How do you think that went?

She was excited to get to the beach and was never scared of just being in the sand even with all the people around.  Once she went to the water, she was OK as long as the waves never got above knee level.  She would let us carry her out deeper as long as we held her above the water for the most part. 

It really was a good time.  Amy and I loved the time we got to spend with her and with each other.  Not having to pick up after her, cook dinner, pick up after her, try to keep her busy and out of stuff, and pick up after her was vacation enough.

Enjoy the pics and video.  Sorry the audio isn't great on the video, but I didn't know how the mic would react to the wind.  

We will get some birthday stuff up after her party with family on Saturday.

Coolin' off

She thought this Sand Dollar was a "chip."

Chillin'

Oh, That Day ~ Amy

Happy Mother’s Day to every woman who has touched the life of a child! Whether you’re a mother through adoption, foster care, or birth, or whether you’re a special aunt or a good friend to a child, this is your day! And for those who are still waiting for a child, we all stand behind you. I know this day can be difficult to get through.

For years I wondered when it would be my turn to celebrate Mother’s Day—for me—not because I’m selfish and want the attention and praise (those who know me well know that this is clearly not the case). I only wanted it so badly because it would mean that Stephen and I had our longed-for child. And now we do. And what a difference that has made. While I certainly celebrated the women in my life each year on this day, the day was overshadowed by the little girl who was missing from our lives. This time last year, we had no clue that in a couple of weeks we would receive the only news we had been waiting for.

I would be remiss if I didn’t pay tribute to the women in Natalie’s life before she came to be in our family. There are times when I look down on Natalie’s face and almost feel as though I am looking into her birthmother’s eyes. Our little girl will look at us sometimes as if she seems to know more than she can express. It’s my hope that her birthmother’s heart is at peace and somehow knows that Natalie is safe and loved and will be given every opportunity. Natalie wouldn’t be here with us without her, and I will always remember her sacrifice.

It’s become clear to us that Natalie flourished under the loving care of her foster mother, Julia (and her husband, Marvin). Comforted (relieved?) cannot begin to describe how we felt when we learned that Natalie had been nurtured and loved by this couple. We’re so grateful for all that they gave, on so many levels, to her.

So here we are on the day that celebrates motherhood. I’m glad to be a part of it, and I’m even happier that I get to spend all my days with, as Natalie would say, my “awesome” daughter. I was awoken one morning recently by being tickled, accompanied by “Tickle, tickle. Wake up, Mama.” I turned to see her grinning face and thought that it doesn’t get much sweeter than that.

Lots going on

Lots of stuff happening for Natalie.  Of course, there was Easter and her first Easter egg hunt.  She picked it up quickly.  However, once she figured out there was stuff in the eggs, she was much more concerned about getting them all open.  There are pictures below.

Coming up, we have Mother's Day.  Amy promises to make a blog post, I am sure everyone is looking forward to that.  

We are heading to the beach next week.  Down to Florida for 4 days.  Can't wait to see how Natalie takes to  a real beach.  Hopefully, it won't be "too wet."  

Finally, Natalie's birthday is coming up.  She turns 2 on May 16th.  Believe me, we are very aware of her being 2.  Those wonderful behaviors are all around.  She is really growing into her personality though.  Such a cute and amazing girl.  

Quick story.  This morning, when Amy got out of bed to go get Natalie some milk, Natalie (as she usually does when Amy leaves the room) started asking for Mama to come back and  "hold you."  I said "Natalie, Mama will be right back.  Hold Baba."

"No," was her quick reply.

"Please?"

She then turns to me and says "OK. I try."  Not many things will make me laugh at 5 am, but this one got me. 

This girl loves shoes. 

Family

This past week we took a trip to south Georgia.  We went with my parents, oldest brother, and his two kids. While I can't say it was an exciting trip, I can say I had a relaxing time and that ain't bad.  I think it was great for Natalie though.  First, she got to see me more (no leaving for work).  How could that not be good for her?  Second, she got to spend lots of time with some of her forever family.  The time with my parents and her cousins was really good for her bonding.  I think her Uncle David just plain scares her, but that makes sense.  Bonding is a two way street though and I am glad those that went got to spend so much time with her.  If that last sentence makes Uncle Jason and Aunts Leslie and Karen feel a little guilty for not coming, so be it.  ;)

I can really see a change in Natalie when it comes to bonding.  She is playing the "scared" card a lot with any loud noises.  We are trying to figure out if she is really scared or not, but regardless, she turns to one of us to hold her.  She will often say "safe" once she is in our arms.  How great is that?  She has also very recently started to tell one of us "miss you" when we show up after being gone for a bit.  That melts a heart for sure.

So, here are a bunch of pictures from the trip.  More than I usually post, but they were too cute to cut out.

Natalie with her Papa

Natalie with her cousin Tyler (look at their hands)

With her cousin Raegan. 

Natalie made her first trip to a "beach."  This is a small swimming area at the lake.  It was a good test though for how she will handle a real beach (trip to FLA next month!)

Natalie and Mama having a good time.

Does this look like a girl that is happy to be in the car on her way back to KY?

Apple Sauce

Not a whole lot to say, but wanted to get some stuff up.

I am amazed by how quickly this kid is growing up.  Does having a child actually speed up time?  Seven months ago we brought home this cute little girl who couldn't walk and knew a couple of words of English (a few Chinese as well).  Now we have a running terror, but still VERY cute, who repeats everything we say.  I couldn't even begin to count her vocabulary these days.  Every day it seems there is something new that makes me wonder "where did she get that from?"

Of course, it isn't always perfect.  Her mouth is, according to her, her "mouse."  A lot of things end in Y.  When she walks backwards she is "backy."  She also knows that when I get up in the morning I "takey shower."

Anyway, there is your update for now.  Enjoy the stuff below and witness the reason for the title of this post.

Oh yeah, I think I attended my first tea party today.  Natalie likes lots of sugar in her imaginary tea.  I think that coupled with her love for grits and watermelon means she was destined to be a southern girl.

She found Ma Ma's lip gloss

Once a month?

Is that really the best I can do? It can't say there is nothing going on since Natalie keeps us very entertained and is really starting to show a lot of personality.  We have to just laugh whenever we think about her referral information that said she was quiet.  

Anyway, I have got some pictures below to talk about.  The first is from our Chinese New Year celebration at Green Bamboo.  The International Families group reserved the back room.  Good thing as we needed every bit of it.  I think everyone had a good time.  All the girls really seemed to enjoy themselves.  Below is a picture of Natalie with friends Lilly and Eli playing Ring Around the Rosie with Gina (Lilly's mom).  I did have noodles, so I am planning on getting rich in the year of the rabbit.

 This is Natalie in her CNY vest sent to us by Marvin and Julia.  This is a traditional clothing item for kids during CNY celebrations.  Thanks again to Natalie's Shanghai family for all they sent to us to help her celebrate.  It means a lot to us that they care and want to stay involved and that they help us keep Natalie aware of her Chinese heritage. You can tell Natalie loves it too.

Just Natalie being cute.  :)

I love this one.  Natalie just recently discovered her shadow.  She had a good time playing with it.  Now, in the morning when we know the sun is shining in just right, we know how to get her to come running: "Natalie, do you know where your shadow is?"

Finally, Natalie decided to do her own hair.  Nice huh?  She tried to put the headband on like her Mama does.  It didn't work quite as well.  She was eating chocolate too.  That is courtesy of her Gu nai nai (Great Aunt) Jannie.  The chocolate bar was intended for me, but Natalie wasn't having that as she brought it to me and was pretty insistent on getting some of it.  

Let me also say that I am so surprised at the number of people who still comment or tell me they read this blog.  I started it because I thought there might be a few people interested in following our trip to China to get our angel.  I had no idea that so many would be interested then and I never imagined anyone would still care.  Now, I don't kid myself into thinking people come here thanks to my charm and wit.  I know it is all about Natalie.  I appreciate it though and I will make an effort to keep it going.  Zai jian!