Ni Hao Y'all

when east meets south

Half the Sky

Shortly after I began my quest to gain all the available information on Chinese adoption, 2 years ago and many, many computer hours later, I read about an American charity called Half the Sky. It seemed like a great opportunity to help a child in need, all I had to do was agree to let them charge my credit card… Read More

Happy day

Check out what I found at my local Goodwill! A Barbie Jeep complete with ‘tunes’ on the pretend CD player. Zach, Sophie and I went out while Isabelle was napping on Sunday. It was a great opportunity to get some time with Zach, uninterrupted. We hit Wendy’s for some fries and a frosty and the Goodwill for some fun. Zach… Read More

An exchange between sisters

The girls have really begun to become sisters. They play well together, often both running the same direction, both holding half of the same toy, headed back to their room to play. Lately they’ve become buddies in the lounging department also. Both of the girls are active and love to play. But when they’re all played out, or just need… Read More

Sophie and Magnolia

I found this doll, named Magnolia, for sale on the internet. She’s 14 inches of plush, almond eyed cuteness. As soon as I saw it I knew Sophie would love it. She adores dolls and always seems to be pushing one in her shopping cart or feeding one a pretend bottle. As soon as Magnolia arrived I unwrapped it and… Read More

Nothing like old friends

Some of our wonderful friends from our last two assignments (both Illinois and Oklahoma) were able to come by yesterday to visit. They were on their way home from vacation and had the afternoon to come by and visit with us all for a while. The boys loved having Brian here to wrestle with, they’ve missed that rough housing they… Read More

Waiting for the storm

It has been depressingly hot and dry here this summer. Even the beautifully manicured lawns are turning brown from lack of rain. We have had thunder and sprinkles a few times, but a real rain shower hasn’t materialized. Well, a full blown storm was rolling in the other night and Sophie asked me if she could go outside. I knew… Read More

My baby

Sophie is so observant. When Keegan came to visit, her mom changed her on a changing pad on the rug. I was amazed to come into the family room the next day and Sophie had laid out a book, which looked just like a changing pad, and put her baby on top of it. She was trying to put a… Read More

Home two months!

Two months ago today Sophie and I drug ourselves off of our final flight home. We were in pretty sad shape, but oh so happy to be home! Since then my little girl has not stopped amazing me. Looking back I can see that she was pretty stoic in China, not trusting me enough to let me get to see… Read More

Playdate with Keegan

Keegan’s mom, Cynthia, and I became friends on our CCAI DTC group from last year. Although we didn’t travel together, we did meet up at the CCAI reunion last year. Chris and I had already brought Isabelle home, but they hadn’t travelled for Keegan yet. So this was the first time I had seen this little angel in person. And… Read More

Pics from the park

We found a local park to spend the afternoon. The kids had a great time, but, once again, my girls were not thrilled to be the focus of my picture taking. Isabelle is old hat at these types of playgrounds, but Sophie is like a kid in a candy store everytime we get out to play. Yes, I did get… Read More