Monday our local schools began for the 2009/2010 school year. I had worried that the boys and I would be feeling a little sad and missing our friends - notice I say all of us sad, all of us missing our friends :) I spent a lot of time at the boys school while they were there so naturally I have a lot of connections to the school. Anyway, I knew when C made a phone call to his friend the night before that all would be well. His conversation was something to the effect of "well, you have a good day tomorrow. Too bad you won't be with me....we will be done with our day before you even make it to lunch and then we will be swimming!" Ouch. Then during our school time Monday, C looks at me and says he is so glad I am his teacher. This coming (a) from the child who loved, loved, loved his teacher last year - we both did and (b) from the child who recently told me it is embarrassing to give your mom a hug in front of your friends....ok, he is NINE so he is growing up....it is nice to know that he is happy to have me as his teacher. P has the attitude of just give him what he needs to do, let him do it and he is out of here, venturing on to playing better things in life. He doesn't complain about work but he does want to know up front just how much he is expected to do, how many pages he has to read and can he have a snack when he is all done....those are his concerns. I love that I am able to curl up in a chair with him and listen to him read to me daily, he even likes to include MK on this when she will listen (she always says she will listen but she almost always talks!). And MK, well, she has come so far from this time last year. She welcomes new situations, there are no tears when I leave, she is all smiles when I return, her life in that respect is all roses. I must note that she received some new flip flops yesterday.....she has worn them nonstop, even in bed....and I must note that EVERYTIME she puts them on her feet, you can bet they are on the WRONG feet. I will tell her this, she will laugh and say "oh well, I sorry mommy" and switch them around.

Ahhhh, relax! For those who follow us along, you know by now that relax is just generally not what we do in our family. We tend to stay on the move. This week, however, was different. We stayed put. When not at home, we traveled as far as the neighborhood pool. I even noted to Ryan yesterday that my gas gauge had not moved all week....now that is definitely a first! To say that we enjoyed this week would be an understatement. We loved this week. Though we were at home, we had friends over everyday, we swam a lot, did some schoolwork and just hung out. Good times.

16 Months Later....

16 months ago we landed in Tokyo, Japan, hurried through security (who harassed me about my individually packaged peanut butter of all things!) and boarded our last flight into Beijing, China. It was on that flight that we first met a family that will forever be bonded to ours. Though we had talked several times over the phone and exchanged emails, we had never met in person. We said our hellos and from that point on we were now a group of 7 on a journey to meet our daughters/sisters who awaited us in Chongqing, China. We were, literally, the blind leading the blind. Our Gotcha Day was on March 17, 2008. The 7 of us, Ryan and our boys plus Mr. and Mrs. M and their son, Little M, were the group - two families. It was an intimate little affair, two baby girls being welcomed by their two families at the same time. There wasn't the "name being called out" or the "waiting our turn" - we walked in and there they were, both eating a snack pack of crackers, both bright eyed, both unsure of what was happening and then here we were, two families depending on one another for support. As anxious as we were to get home to the USA, we were sad to say our goodbyes to the M family. Fast forward 16 months....last Monday the M family arrived for a week long reunion at Seabrook. Though they were not so impressed by the southern delicacies of okra and tomatoes, they did take a liking to Moose Tracks ice cream - a must in my life :) We relaxed on the beach, the boys played more Star Wars than I knew could be played, we toured Charleston, tried to go crabbing, taught Little M how to ride a bike.....and the girls, well, the girls were typical 2 year old girls. MK is sassy, or as my friend from Boston would say, she is "fresh", meaning she makes it known what she likes and dislikes - very strong personality. Little Miss M handled MK well and didn't seem so intimidated by her squeals :) A good time was had by all!

Life's A Beach

Town Mouse/Country Mouse

The boys and I read the fable Town Mouse, Country Mouse last week. Yesterday we visited the lake that I grew up on for some fun in the sun. The boys have only been to the lake one other time and have never been tubing or swimming off of a boat in the middle of a lake. We are fortunate that we have some friends who own the cutest lake cottage, a boat and a tube, so we set out for a day with them. My boys first reaction was "well, the lake is dirty, you don't really expect us to jump in, right?" And with those words I decided that my boys needed to add a little country into their lives! Sure I expected them to just jump in. After all, the lake was my pool when I was growing up. I lived in the "country" where there were homes built on acres of land, where we could barely see the house next door through all of the trees. We did not have a pool or a neighborhood pool. We made Slip N Slides out of trash bags (clean ones I might add) or we ran through a sprinkler to cool off. And if we were REAL lucky, we went to the lake for the day. Dirty water?! I was more concerned about the fish swimming around in there! So, after some persuading, the boys took the plunge into the lake water....and one plunge was all it took. They were sold. No, it was not the pool they were used to, the pool where they can see the bottom, the pool without the slimy, scaly little fish swimming around, it was the lake and they had a blast! P wasn't so sure about the whole tubing adventure. C, however, was all about it. Loved it. My sister and I tubed together as well. My stomach muscles are in recovery today due to the laughter that was had on that particular tubing adventure. And where was our sweet MK? Well, our MK spent the day with G-Mom and G-Dad. She did not skip a beat either. She woke up asking for G-Mom's house, got in the car saying "I go G-Mom's" and she spent the day quite contentedly with their undivided attention.
*One note, sadly I forgot to take the camera!

This week we have been busy with friends. Friends coming over, us going over to friends houses and everything in between....lots of friends, great times. Last night the boys invited two of their friends to spend the night. Keeping in mind that MK was taken with both of the boys and would not let them forget that she was around, Ryan and I would like to share the following conversation:

Ryan: "Mason-Kate, did you have fun with the four boys?"

Mason-Kate: "Noooo-ah"

Ryan: "Yes, you did" - MK laughs with a sly grin.

Beth: "MK, do you want a little sister to play with you?"

Mason-Kate: "Nooo-ah"

Beth: "Do you want a little brother to play with you?"

Mason-Kate: "No"

Ryan: "Do you just want to be spoiled rotten?"

Mason-Kate - laughs, smiles that same sly little smile and says, "Yeah!"

Love Without Boundaries Video

Please take a moment out of your day to visit www.myshelbybaby.blogspot.com. On it you will find a 10 minute video advocating for the Waiting Child program in China. No doubt it will touch your heart!