We've booked a vacation to Disney World in September - we're going to take the kids out of school. It's going to be our first vacation in quite a while, and we're totally psyched! Abby is totally into Disney Princesses - if it's pink and has a picture of a princess on it, she wants it! The kids know who the basics are (Mickey, Minnie, etc.) but we wanted to get them more familiar with the characters. So, we started our infamous "Movie Nights". We pull the couch sideways, make popcorn and snuggle on the couch and watch different Disney movies. The kids love it! (Abby loves it until the popcorn runs out, and then she tends to get a little chatty.) Evan is totally digging the princess movies, but every time he says "I really don't like princesses, you know". Yeah, sure, we know, we know.
Today we went to a birthday party for our friend Michele's daughter, Emily. Emily and her little sister were also adopted from China. It's really great because we have met so many friends through our FCC (Families with Children from China) group. We're a pretty close-knit bunch, and it's so great to be able to get together with other families that look like ours. These kids (and there are quite a few boys now too!) have all been adopted from China and they are all growing up together. I think it's great for the girls to have that bond - that you can say to them, "Your friends, X Y and Z were also adopted from China, just like you."
I was recently able to get some information on Abby's foster mom in China. It's taken quite a long time, but we were able to track her down through an online service called chinababies.com Misty, who runs Chinababies is an adoptive mom too, and she has hired people within China to get information for adoptive families. We were initially told that although they had made phone contact with her, that she had moved and they weren't able to locate her. Finally, though, a few months later, they were able to find her. I actually have pictures of her! Her name is Liu Huizhen and she took care of Abby the first four or five months of her life. She is 62 years old and her husband is 66. We were told that she loves having children in her home, because "they bring life" to a home. When she had to bring Abby back to the orphanage, she said she was so sad. She put a red thread on Abby's wrist for good luck and to "keep the ghosts away". It is my understanding that she wants updates on Abby, which I'm thrilled about. She hopes that Abby will get a very good education because "it is so important". My ultimate hope is to get back to China someday soon so that we could possibly meet her. The orphanage where Abby lived after staying with her foster mom is going to be turned over to the local college, and may not be there after the end of this year. I firmly believe you can't just wait - China is changing too rapidly and you just don't know how many things will change if you wait too long to go back.
Before I forget to post it, Evan lost his first tooth on Friday night. He came running up the stairs, "My tooth fell out, my tooth fell out! AWESOME! " My grandma had bought my sister and I a little "tooth pillow" when we were Evan's age, so it's a little over 30 years old - it's so cute - it's a little patchwork pillow with a big fabric tooth sewn on it - we still have it - and so he put his tooth in there. Another milestone. Sigh.
(I haven't figured out how to put a picture on the top of posts, then add a couple lines of text to explain what the pictures are and then post. Obviously, the first one is of Abby's foster mom, then Abby, squeeky clean and ready for "Dumbo" and Evan and Abby chillin' on the couch for Movie Night. Also, Evan's new grin. And last but not least, what I saw, to my horror, when I opened my washing machine today. It's not what I thought it was - it was a rock. Boy O Boys! LOL
Today we went to a birthday party for our friend Michele's daughter, Emily. Emily and her little sister were also adopted from China. It's really great because we have met so many friends through our FCC (Families with Children from China) group. We're a pretty close-knit bunch, and it's so great to be able to get together with other families that look like ours. These kids (and there are quite a few boys now too!) have all been adopted from China and they are all growing up together. I think it's great for the girls to have that bond - that you can say to them, "Your friends, X Y and Z were also adopted from China, just like you."
I was recently able to get some information on Abby's foster mom in China. It's taken quite a long time, but we were able to track her down through an online service called chinababies.com Misty, who runs Chinababies is an adoptive mom too, and she has hired people within China to get information for adoptive families. We were initially told that although they had made phone contact with her, that she had moved and they weren't able to locate her. Finally, though, a few months later, they were able to find her. I actually have pictures of her! Her name is Liu Huizhen and she took care of Abby the first four or five months of her life. She is 62 years old and her husband is 66. We were told that she loves having children in her home, because "they bring life" to a home. When she had to bring Abby back to the orphanage, she said she was so sad. She put a red thread on Abby's wrist for good luck and to "keep the ghosts away". It is my understanding that she wants updates on Abby, which I'm thrilled about. She hopes that Abby will get a very good education because "it is so important". My ultimate hope is to get back to China someday soon so that we could possibly meet her. The orphanage where Abby lived after staying with her foster mom is going to be turned over to the local college, and may not be there after the end of this year. I firmly believe you can't just wait - China is changing too rapidly and you just don't know how many things will change if you wait too long to go back.
Before I forget to post it, Evan lost his first tooth on Friday night. He came running up the stairs, "My tooth fell out, my tooth fell out! AWESOME! " My grandma had bought my sister and I a little "tooth pillow" when we were Evan's age, so it's a little over 30 years old - it's so cute - it's a little patchwork pillow with a big fabric tooth sewn on it - we still have it - and so he put his tooth in there. Another milestone. Sigh.
(I haven't figured out how to put a picture on the top of posts, then add a couple lines of text to explain what the pictures are and then post. Obviously, the first one is of Abby's foster mom, then Abby, squeeky clean and ready for "Dumbo" and Evan and Abby chillin' on the couch for Movie Night. Also, Evan's new grin. And last but not least, what I saw, to my horror, when I opened my washing machine today. It's not what I thought it was - it was a rock. Boy O Boys! LOL
``
1 comment:
yay! A new post! Sonia is totally into Disney Princesses too but I have no idea where she got that, maybe school. Lucky you to take a vacation there, that'll be great.
What exciting news about your Foster Mom. So I guess you got good results from chinababies, huh?
I'm so glad you started this website, now I can "see" you often. Good job Kristen!
Leigh
Post a Comment