Crazy Days of Disney

Well, considering we're back WEEKS, I'll give the re-cap. It was a great trip: exhausting, touching, crazy fun, crazy frustrating at moments, and we can't wait to go back. As you'll see from the pictures, the kids were awesome on the plane. Just give Evan a headseat and a TV screen and you won't hear a peep out of him. Abby had fun too, but needed to move around a bit - but she was still a piece of cake as usual.

The day had started at 4:30 am, so we hesitant to start going to any parks that first day. We decided to eat at the Rain Forest Cafe and go Downtown Disney to the Lego Store, etc. and get to bed early. The Rain Forest Cafe freaked Abby out - between the gorillas, and thunder she was nervous. She did pretty good, but every time you heard an ape start to go crazy, she grabbed onto Scott's shirt for dear life. After lunch, she spied sequined Disney ears and asked for them. Of course Scott ran right over and bought them. Unfortunately, they didn't stay on very well, but she did wear them (until she got to make her very own princess crown and that was it for the ears). LOL Evan loved the Lego store and we could barely get him out of there. The kids were very freaked out by characters the first day, but eased up considerably by the next morning.

Our first full day started out great with the Chef Mickey Buffet. Scott and I kept smiling at each other like two idiots - it's so much fun to bring your kids to Disney for the first time. Seeing them at the Magic Kingdom was awesome. Abby warmed up to characters very quickly and had no problem hugging them, etc., while Evan kept his distance until the very end of the trip. Hands down, Evan's favorite ride was the Haunted Mansion - Abby wanted nothing to do with it and so Scott and I switched turns. I think we each rode the Haunted Mansion ride 10-15 times! LOL We didn't care though - we love it too! It was hard to get them on alot of the rides surprisingly - Evan gets very overwhelmed quickly - and it was really hot too. The first day we came back and took a nap, but were just too tired to go back to any of the parks, so we just stayed in the pool and turned in early.

The 2nd day was probably one of my favorites. We slept in, grabbed breakfast and got to the Magic Kingdom around 11 am. We were going to have lunch at Cinderella's castle at 1 pm.. Scott and Evan went on some rides, and Abby and I went into some of the shops while we waited for the boys. Abby saw the "glass" Cinderella slippers and a light up magic wand. She just looked up at me and said, "Mommy, could I please have these?" Of course I just whipped out our room card and she became the proud owner of Cinderella shoes. Abby just thought she was the cat's meow at this point - it was hysterical. Lunch at the castle was amazing. She went right to Cinderella and took great pictures (although you can tell she's a little nervous in them). Evan behaved really nicely through lunch and Abby took pictures with every princess. Scott and I sat there so choked up - it sounds silly, but it's soooo cute and you just can't help it. It was awesome too, because we met another couple on line ahead of us that adopted from China, and there was a group of about 4-5 families that had traveled together sitting across from us that were celebrating their adoption day anniversary. It was so cute to see all these Chinese princesses and how happy they all were. The lunch or dinner at the castle is definitely worth it if you are planning a trip to Disney!!!

Evan loved Indiana Jones and the Star Wars show. Even though he's an outgoing kid, he gets very shy when it comes to volunteering to go up on stage, etc. Scott was a trooper in the heat and stood out in the blaring sun with the kids for the Jedi Training Sessions, I think about 4 times! UGH!

Everything really went well - Evan was either very on or very "off" and difficult - and those times get to you, but then he'd snap out of it and it would get better. We definitely pushed them some days harder then we should have and it was sooo hot. I don't think I'd go back in September again - although lines - What lines? That part was wonderful. We liked everywhere we ate with the food plan and were really glad we did that as well. I liked the hotel, too - maybe if we go back I'd change it up a little, but for our first trip, it was perfect for the kids and the money was right.

We had another great photo-op with Abby and Mulan at Epcot. A fellow FCC Mom, Ann, told me to bring Abby's Mulan costume with us - I'm glad she did because I never would have thought of doing that. When we got to "China" Abby was in her costume and Mulan was outside of the "Temple of Heaven" taking pictures. As soon as she finished, she walked right over to Abby and crouched down with her. She took so many beautiful pictures with Abby, and then Mulan strolled with her all through China. Again, sounds hokey, but I was standing there with tears in my eyes. The pictures came out so amazing. I even wrote a letter to Disney about the girl that played Mulan - she was so sweet to Abby and spent so much time with her. Abby was thrilled beyond belief.

On our last day full day, I was able to very easily convince Abby to do the Bibbity Boppity Salon. This is something relatively new to Disney. The girls can go in and get the hair, nails and makeup done. We bought the "cheapie" package because Abby already had her costume. the other packages are very expensive, and the girls can pick out costumes - and they are the most beautiful dress-up clothes you've ever seen. Just gorgeous. Anyway, Abby picked out hair extensions and was all pampered. When she got out of that chair, I swear, she turned 21. She just thought who she was and it was soo funny. After we got back to the hotel, she stood in front of the mirror, puckering her lips and brushing her hair back. I think we've created a little-diva monster. ;)

The other awesome thing we did was to buy tickets for the "Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party" - I think the tickets were about $40 pp, but worth every penny. You're able to stay at the Magic Kingdom and it's only open for the party. All the characters are dressed up for Halloween - the Haunted House has extra things going on (and you KNOW we rode that! LOL) The kids can trick-or-treat at different stops and they load them up with candy. They have "villian" shows and the parades and fireworks are not to be believed - absolutely awesome. The parade is so good that we watched it a second time. That was our last night there, which was great because we really left on a high note. The kids wore their costumes and we had such a great time.

And so, back to reality...I'm so glad we took the trip - I'm hoping we can get back there in another year or so, but maybe early to mid November - I think it will be just a bit cooler. Other than that, we can't wait to go back! :)
















e="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 374px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdSstIA-Tk37bSF6UmPHoXPi6YRyrQug6KDGf5zva9AtaEfJdknEh62WTF1bAnHqdhIb-u3i2t4pxL6Los-PuLRCHS0maAubRBDsLN6jWjpw04OxQv6HBbommmsIakeuv-BQT32F5SJ20/s400/148.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5268321001496230338" />

Sooo behind!

I know, I know - we got back from Orlando WEEKS ago and I still haven't posted. I'm so behind, but I promise, faithful readers (is there anybody left at this point!?) that I will get my act together shortly. Really, I will.

Hugs,

We're off to see the Mouse!

Well, we're just about ready here. A few more things to do and then we can relax and go to bed early. The kids are starting to flip out with excitement! We're really looking forward to this - it's our first real family vacation! We'll take lots of pictures and I'll update here when we get back. Scott and I cannot wait to see the kids experiece Disney for the first time!

Hugs to you all.

I have a niece!

I just spoke with my sister, and she received Katie at around 4 pm. I thought she was going to already have had her for hours by now. I finally got through to them around 6, and they were doing well, and had only gotten back to the hotel a few minutes earlier. My sister is having a little trouble feeding her, but luckily my dear friend Vicki is close by and can try to help Jen out. Katie may be stressed, and sometimes the babies won't eat right away. I'm hoping Vicki will get over there sometime later tonight or tomorrow - if I can get pictures today, I'll post them. We're leaving for Disney tomorrow am, and I won't have access to a computer.

My mom said Katie is very, very tiny - 6-9 month clothes, which I thought would be the case. Abby was in the same size as well, although I know Katie is older than her. Katie was smiling when they brought her in the room :)

Congratulations Jen and Rupert, and big brothers Alexander and John-Ryan! We are so happy for you and for Katie too! Welcome to the family Katherine LiLing - we love you!

Well, off to get Evan to school! :)

Hugs,

Katherine Li Ling

Well, it's 8:34 am in China right now, and my sister is just hours from getting Katie. The flight to your child's province feels so much longer than the actual flight to China does. Here's a great link to my sister's blog and to a cute little video that they made of the updated pictures they had received of her.

http://www.katieliling.com/web/do/site/link?ID=406335
(Click on "view website")


Wait until you see her hair - it's so adorable!

I can still see every moment of the day I got Abby in my mind, just as I can the day Evan was born. No matter how your children come to you, it's a miracle.

Can't wait to see you with your little miracle, Jen!

I'll post when I know more :)

First Days of School - Sorry so late posting!

Here's Evan in his spiffy "summer uniform". At least they don't have to wear the tie at the beginning and end of the year now - those poor boys just get off the buses so sweaty and gross. Dorky, yes, but much cooler for them so who cares. ;)

I really wanted to put Abby in a cute dress, but I didn't know if they would go outside to play, so I didn't do it...she looked so cute in her size 18 month denim skort though, didn't she? She's so cute and such a little peanut (who corrects you every single time if you say she's small or tiny or whatever - she's a BIG GIRL)( Excuse Me) It's the Napolean complex.

Well, Evan's 1st day went well and he loved his new teacher, Mrs. Baumstein. He originally wanted Sr. Marge, but I think he's really happy with his teacher now. Both 1st grade teachers in the school are fabulous and you can't go wrong. The bus situation was crazy - there is a new driver and he doesn't know the route at all - so he was an hour late for his 1st day of school and it was only half a day. That had continued the whole next week until parents just started flipping out - the guy had no idea where he was going and Evan was on the bus for an hour one day. Now they have a driver that knows what she's doing and things are back to normal.

Abby started school the following week - she's going to nursery three afternoons a week. She couldn't wait to get ready! I was glad that she was so happy about it. She did great - she was a little nervous walking in, so I walked her into the classroom. She gave me a great big kiss and off she went. It was hectic with all the parents, and I was concerned for a friend of mine whose son was hysterical. It didn't hit me until I dropped her off the other day and she practically leaped up the stairs - that my baby is getting big and I'm not ready to let her go. I'm not ready for her to be my last one. I'm not ready to never drop another one off at nursery school for the first time. Ugh, here come the tears - I've gotta go! LOL

Day Before School Breakfast

Notice the pink key in Abby's pocket. She thinks she's sooo cool. She has to push the button on the keychain because it sounds like an alarm. I have to get a picture of her talking on the pink princess cell phone with the hand on her hip. We're in trouble, I tell you.



This year, we started a new tradition. I am taking the kids to Friendly's for breakfast on the last day of summer vacation. The kids love having breakfast there. Abby got pancakes with colored M & M's and Evan got a HUGE pancake that was made into a face - bacon for "ears", whipped cream hair and M & M's for eyes. We had a great morning together - it was a nice "last" day. We were all set for school (especially ME) LOL

Teaching good things...

At the end of school in June, Evan's teacher was trying to get the kids to do service projects - figuring out something that they could do that would teach the kids compassion and how good it feels to help others. Lots of kids send things home asking the families to donate cans, school supplies, etc. We talked to Evan and decided that he could send home a letter asking for monetary donations for cleft bottles. With Jen going to China to adopt Katie, who is cleft affected, we thought it would be a nice way for him to "honor" his cousin and get cleft bottles to the babies who so desperately need them. We made up a flyer, and Evan brought them to every classroom in his school. His teacher reported that he did a great job and was very polite to the teachers, asking that they please give the flyers out. The school community was awesome - we had one family alone give us a check for $50! Kids sent in envelopes with money from their pggy banks, which was so touching. My dad also brought the flyer into work and he raised quite a bit of money as well. All together, Evan raised about $400 for cleft bottles. We went online and were able to order 216 cleft palate bottles! How great is that!

Our dear friend Vicki just adopted her newest son, Noah. She willingly brought along 10 smaller boxes of bottles to the Sichuan Province, where her son is from. Sichuan is the province where the earthquake hit and it was so amazing knowing that the bottles were going to go someplace where they were really needed. The children from the orphanage in Chengdu City had been up until recently, been living in tents. We knew the bottles would be helpful. Thank you Vicki for bringing them for us. When Vicki sent me the picture of her giving the director of the orphanage of the bottles, he saw himself on the picture on one of the boxes and his eyes got real big. He thought that was really cool, and he could see that the bottles actually got to China. It's bizarre, because just about everything you see is stamped "Made in China" - but cleft palate bottles are not available in China. And virtually every orphanage has cleft lip/palate affected children.


My mom is bringing 10 more small boxes - 60 more bottles, to Guandong Province, and we have other friends with Families with Children from China that will be traveling, and we'll ask them to bring some bottles too.

Blowing kisses in the wind to all those little babies, and we hope that your bellies feel nice and full soon.

Good job, Evan!

The Last Days of Summer

Here are some pictures from the last few days the kids spent at the beach. This was a weird summer - it was very busy and wasn't as relaxing as it usually is. We usually go out on my parents boat and Scott and I didn't get out on it once. Having the floors done was like loosing the month of August, and my parents have been busy, especially with my mom getting ready to go to China with Jen to get Katie. Next year, I vow that it's not going to be so crazy. We wanted to take Scott's truck on the beach and have dinner since he has the permit to bring the truck on the beach, and we didn't get to do that either! Oh brother!

Our kids love the beach. Evan will dig and dig for hours at a time and so will Abby. On this particular day, the man who runs the swimming program took out the big net for the kids to catch killies and whatever else they could get. Evan loves to go crabbing with Scott, but they didn't go as much as they would have liked. That's why I'm looking forward to our upcoming trip to Disney. I just want to hang out with the kids, and not have the pressures of home, of regular life. Just to not have to cook and clean will be awesome. We're always running and busy, and our kids deserve to have us all to themselves - and you can't not have fun at DisneyWorld!

So, summer 2008, farewell...On to Florida, watching my sister and BIL become parents again, to first grade and to nursery school. I'm sad to see the summer go, but I love the routine of school too. Evan does better when he has a routine and it'll be good for all of us when school starts.

PMS Cake

I found this recipe in a Good Housekeeping magazine a couple years ago, but never made it. We were going to our dear friends Lauren and Larry's house for their daughter Lily's birthday. There was going to be tons of kids, so I decided to give it a shot. It's officially called "Chocolate Crispy Cake" but I like to call it PMS Cake - it's got chocolate, M&M's and peanuts - the perfect combination of sweet and salty. It was crazy easy to make, only took about 10 minutes and it travels beautifully. The grown-ups loved it as much as the kids!

Here's the recipe:

4 oz. semisweet chocolate, broken into pieces
2 TBS of butter or margarine
1 bag (10 1/2 ounces miniature marshmallows
6 cups (6 oz) of rice krispies cereal
1 cup salted dry-roasted peanuts
1 cup M & M's Mini Baking Bits (the store didn't have mini's, so I just used regular)

1) Spray 10-12-cup fluted baking pan (such as a Bundt) with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a large bowl, heat chocolate and butter in the microwave oven on High for one and mixtminute, stirring once during heating. Remove from microwave, stir chocolate mixture until melted and smooth. Add marshmallows to mixture. Heat in microwave on High 1
minute longer; stir until marshmallows are melted and mixture is smooth.
3) Add cereal, peanuts and M&M's to chocolate mixture. Stir until all ingredients are coated and mixture is well combined.
4) Transfer cereal mixture to prepared pan, pressing mixture down with fingertips. Let stand at least 1 hour to set chocolate. (In warm weather, refrigerate to set cake.)
5. To unmold, with knife or metal spatula, loosen cake from side of pan; invert onto serving plate. Cut into slices to serve. Store in covered container at room temperature up to 3 days.

Y U M!

Again, more silence

Apparently, my children have a great love for writing on themselves..

At least this was just sidewalk chalk - no big deal. Definitely beats the time when Evan was about 18 months old and gave himself a Hitler mustache with permanent black marker.

The Green Monster

Of course, it was too quiet and I should have known better.

Why, though, is it always when you are running late and have to be somewhere on time (we were going to a surprise birthday party) and now you have to give them a bath?

Always beware of silence.

Holy Doormat Batman!

Check out the fluke that my brother in law Bill caught! It was 14 lbs! The thing was so ridiculously huge - Scott was just freaking out. We were really happy for Bill - it was almost as big as Evan! LOL

The garden grew great this year - lots of tomatoes. The sunflowers got as huge as dinner plates - I'm so mad at myself for not getting the kids to stand by them one more time. Evan's pumpkin grew the biggest this year, and Abby's plant got two little sweet ones. I love that the kids are so into gardening. They love helping me pick the tomatoes; sunflowers are awesome for them to grow because it seems that they grow a foot in a day! I hope it's something that they'll always want to do with us!

Summer Re-cap -

Well, the painting is done and the floors are all finished and came out beautiful. It was alot of work with the kids and I'm beyond relieved it's over. Everything came out beautiful and we're back to normal. Now I can catch up on posting!

When we were still at my mom's, we went to an Olympic's party hosted by our friends Missy and Greg. The kids had a ball. To our surprise, our friends Sharon and Eric, who we traveled to China with, came with their daughter Katie. Abby and Katie were in the same orphanage together. In just about all the pictures we have of Abby there, Katie is right next to her. When you see them together, there is just something about them together- they L O V E each other. They hug each other so hard that most of the times they fall on the ground. It's like the have a bond with each other, it's the only way I know how to describe it. Katie and Abby actually sat and watched the Opening Ceremonies and were cheering. It was adorable. I love what Katie does for Abby - just brings her out of her shell. Sharon and Eric have become such great friends of ours - we just love 'em and feel so blessed to have them as part of our family.

We thought the Opening Ceremonies were spectacular! We knew the Chinese would not disappoint - it just meant too much to them.

Thanks for not giving up on this blog!!!

Hugs,

My poor blog, I'm not ignoring you

I have so much to catch up, and I want to get everything updated before Disney, so I can post pictures when we get back...I'll update tonight and over the weekend. Thanks for your patience! I hope we still have somebody out there reading! LOL

A true classic

Ahhh, yes - it's almost that time.




But who's counting ;)
It's been crazy around here - I'll post soon!

Hugs,

Beijing 2008

Like the Five Olympic Rings from which they draw their color and inspiration, Fuwa will serve as the Official Mascots of Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, carrying a message of friendship and peace -- and good wishes from China -- to children all over the world.
Designed to express the playful qualities of five little children who form an intimate circle of friends, Fuwa also embody the natural characteristics of four of China's most popular animals -- the Fish, the Panda, the Tibetan Antelope, the Swallow -- and the Olympic Flame.
Each of Fuwa has a rhyming two-syllable name -- a traditional way of expressing affection for children in China. Beibei is the Fish, Jingjing is the Panda, Huanhuan is the Olympic Flame, Yingying is the Tibetan Antelope and Nini is the Swallow.
When you put their names together -- Bei Jing Huan Ying Ni -- they say "Welcome to Beijing," offering a warm invitation that reflects the mission of Fuwa as young ambassadors for the Olympic Games.
Fuwa also embody both the landscape and the dreams and aspirations of people from every part of the vast country of China. In their origins and their headpieces, you can see the five elements of nature -- the sea, forest, fire, earth and sky -- all stylistically rendered in ways that represent the deep traditional influences of Chinese folk art and ornamentation.

Ni Hao!

I remember the day that the Olympic Committee announced the mascots for the Beijing Olympics - I was on a flight from Beijing on our way to Jiangxi Province to adopt Abby! They had English copies of a Chinese newspaper and it was totally cool to read about the mascots - I still have the newspaper. We had seen the big countdown sign outside of Tienenmen Square when we were in Beijing - I didn't take a picture of it because we were walking so quickly that day to get to the Forbidden Palace; I wish we could have just slowed down a bit for that one!

So, tomorrow is the big day and we're really looking forward to the Olympics this year because they are in China. Of course I understand the problems surrounding the Olympics with human rights abuses and China's control of Tibet - we obviously do not support China on this. However, I am very excited that the world can get to know China on a more personal level - and that they will see what an amazing culture and land that China is. I have no doubt that the opening ceremony will be awesome. My wonderful friend Missy had a great idea to throw an Olympics party. We are going to spend the evening with other families that have adopted from China watching the opening ceremonies together. It's kind of a big deal for us and a way to celebrate our children's heritage with them. We are very proud of where our kids are from and are excited that the rest of the world can see the wonderful people of China.

Hope you like the pictures of the Olympic Garden in Beijing.

OMG, I forgot to mention that my sister got Travel Approval! She should be able to leave for Katie at the beginning of September!!! We cannot wait!!!! We love you Katie! You can check out my sister's website at www.katieliling.com

Hugs,