A couple of new pictures

OK, Mary Beth, this is for you. I just downloaded 105 pictures, here are the only two that made the cut. I will try to get some better pictures of the kids, the ones I have here must have been taken BY the kids- lots of our dog and Bob with large goggles on.

Recently, we brought the kids ice skating. I ended up as the parent on the ice, since as we were getting ready, Bob informed me that he couldn't skate:) I still think that it would have been very likely that even after years and years of skating at Rosedale Park, he is probably a better skater than me. Both kids caught on pretty quickly and I was soon able to let go of Garrett.



This winter has been very snowy. Here is one of them playing in the snow.

Hello to any of my Dillingham Students!!

Bob and I met as first year teachers in Michigan. We both were having rough school years and started talking about how great it would be to move to Alaska. For both of us, it was a place we wanted to see and knew that a two week trip wouldn't be enough for either of us. Less than a year after we met, as adventurous early 20-somethings, we took teaching jobs at the middle school in Dillingham, Alaska.

I mostly taught 8th grade, but also taught high school math and high school alternative education at times. For two years, I helped coach the middle school girl's volleyball team. It was such a small, tight knit community, and I really got to know many of my students. We stayed in Dillingham for four years (fall 1998-spring 2002), until Caelan was 6 months old. I had to drag Bob out, he would have retired there. I felt that it would be good for the kids to know their grandparents and cousins and Alaska was too far.

I have kept in touch with one student over the years, Iris, and love to hear what everybody is doing. It is so funny, because right now they are around the age that I was as their teacher. Some of them are graduating from college and having babies! Due to the recent "Love without Boundaries Facebook Challenge" I signed up for a facebook account. Iris became my "friend" and I have also connected with other students. I can't wait to catch up with many of them. So if any of you DHS students are reading this, I can't wait to hear what you are up to!!!!!

New Picture

We have a new picture of Lia, taken when she was 2-3 months old. I think I should invest in some hairbands, what do you think?

Caelan and the Pool

If you knew me as a child, than you know Caelan. We are so similar in many ways. As a little girl, I had some fear of water. I liked to swim, but hated to be splashed, cold, dunked, go under... Caelan has been a bit like me, but she spends more time at the water because of our little cottage. A month or so ago, I enrolled both of the kids in swimming lessons. It was Caelan I was most worried about. Garrett has no fear and loves swimming.

Well, we get to the pool, the two of them with towels in hand, me with my running shoes, ready for my 30 minutes of exercise. Garrett had a meltdown. He is "scared" to go in the water without me. Caelan hops right in. Insanity kicks in and I decide that despite the fact it is winter in Michigan, maybe a little "mom and me swimming" wont kill me, so we enroll Garrett in the "Waterbabies" class. Yuck. While, I am excited to do this type of thing with Lia, Garrett is a little old for "the wheels on the bus." And I am a little cold.

Back to Caelan. Yesterday was her 4th or 5th lesson, and now she is going under, jumping in the deep water, swimming the width of the pool in the deep water. The list goes on and on. She is doing so well. I am almost shocked. This past weekend she went to a birthday party. A little peer pressure never killed anybody, right? There is a very tall water slide, which many of her friends were not even tall enough to go down. But Caelan must have been convinced to try it by her friends. I watched as she stood at the top. One friend after the other came down nice and slowly, plopping into the deep end. Caelan was peering over the edge, peeking into the slide, but finally- laying on her back with her legs and arms pulled in, Caelan came shooting out of the slide like a cannon. I couldn't believe it.

Pre- Approval!

We just received word that our agency has our pre- approval. Basically this is the Chinese Center of Adoption Affairs acknowledgement that they received our Letter of Intent and agree to shift our paperwork to the waiting child program process. This isn't an indication of how fast things will move alone, but brings us one step closer to our sweet girl!

Home study visit complete

Well, we have finished our home visit. Our SW came over yesterday. All of the other paperwork is complete. We are all still healthy and our references still think that we will be good parents for Lia. Now we have to wait until our FBI and Michigan criminal checks clear and our agency will write the addendum. I just can't wait to be done with everything on our end.