Just Dance 2

A very rare moment occurred in our home last night.....we had free time, all of us, no obligations, no unfinished work to be done, nada. So, we pulled out Just Dance 2 for the Wii. My remark on this would be that there are two in our family who are dance inclined and there are two that are not so much....

and then there is one, one determined soul who has a step of her own!

OhThe Food We Eat

Happy official Chinese New Year! This evening our family celebrated the holiday with a salad, egg roll and fortune cookie dinner. Yum. Keeping in mind that our two boys would die if they knew what was actually in the egg roll, they ate every bite - no questions asked! Now, our MK, keeping in mind that she is the Chinese born child in our family, she conveniently removed all of the egg roll contents and ate the fried outside part dipped in KETCHUP no doubt.

"Healthy" Snack

If you know me, you know my sweet tooth. Per my conversation with Pryce today, I learned that the apple really does not fall far from the tree. We were out and about. Pryce and MK had been with a friend who had given them all sorts of treats to eat. When I picked Pryce and MK up, Pryce asked if he could have a snack. I responded no due to the fact that I knew he had eaten sweets less than an hour before. He said, "But mom, we had a healthy snack. We had Peanut M&Ms, they had nuts in them and nuts are healthy." Sad but true, he was serious.

Chinese New Year Celebration

As I was putting MK to bed Saturday evening, I told her how glad I was that she was my daughter and of course she asked me to tell her why. We went through the list....her laugh, her smile, her hugs, her sweet little voice - when it is sweet -, etc., etc., and the very last thing I told her was that because of her, we had met so many amazing families and formed friendships that most likely would have never occurred without having adoption in our lives. Saturday was our local China gathering. We had 10 families for dinner and we celebrated the upcoming Chinese New Year, American style. Our family looks forward to these evenings in our home and, when they end, we are, all of us, already thinking ahead to when we will gather together again.

An aerial view of our den.

We read a story about the Chinese New Year and the traditions.

Our own traditional "red couch" photo. 12 kiddos, and our group will soon grow with the addition of Maddox and our friend's waiting daughter, Pearl.

And we played a little game....pass the red plate. I am sure they play this at every Chinese New Year celebration. :) Our children enjoyed the fun and loved the red envelope surprises they were given at the end!

This week MK made a big statement. She announced that she, sadly enough, will NOT be joining us on our trip to China. Why? She states that the trip will take too, too long and she won't have enough room to do her twirls and her ballet in the hotel! I have told her and told her how she will miss us and how we will miss her. She is relentless. Last night she put her little hand on my face, caressed my cheek and said, "I know Mommy, I will send my purple phone with you to China. You can call me everyday and you won't get sad." Silly, silly girl, she IS going to China, ballet twirling, purple telephone and all!

Last week began with Ryan and I sharing our 13th anniversary together. With travel ahead, we chose to stay in for the evening and create our own celebration at home. We fed the children early and asked the boys to babysit MK upstairs so we could enjoy a quiet meal together. We weren't quite sure how this would work out, 20 minutes, 40 minutes, who knew? Much to our surprise, almost 2 hours later, after a nice quiet dinner and an intense game of Scrabble, we thanked the children for allowing us this time together. They were SO good. We honestly did not even hear a peep from them and they enjoyed their time together.

Tuesday was our first "real" day back to the grime. We had speech, co-op, ballet and two basketball games. BUSY. Fun. Pryce scored his first three point shot of the season so we were all extremely proud.

Wednesday brought on huge crocodile tears from MK as she had to endure 5 shots AND the flu mist. On this day I realized, again, just how far she has come. I remember a day, not too long after we had arrived home from China, that I took her in for a dr. visit. Just being in the office made her scream. LOUD. I called Ryan on this day and basically cried myself as I held this very sad/mad child. He asked, "How many shots did they give her?" I said, "None, she is just crying because she is here!" She was so unsure of everything at that point. Now, almost 3 years later, she is a confident, loving little girl who smiles and talks to the doctor and the nurses. That is, until they come baring 5 needles in their hands! There were tears and hours of not being able to walk but she handled it all well.

Friday we celebrated Ryan's birthday a day early due to our weekend plans. The children loved decorating his cookie cake Clemson style and watching him open the gifts they had all come up with.

And then came Saturday. Saturday we gathered together at my parents home for my father's birthday celebration. My sister, her family, my brother and his family were all present.

MK Turns Four - Take 2

Turning four agreed with MK. We began her special day 24 hours early with a lunch date. Her date request was precious Colby, one of her adoption buddies. He is the only boy, other than her own boys, that she wanted to invite to her party. Sadly, I did not get any pictures, I left my camera, by mistake, at home. I can tell you that they were oh so cute and that little Colby was the perfect gentleman, even requesting that we hold hands in the parking lot for safety and he prayed before eating.

Birthday morning came and Mason-Kate was off to breakfast with daddy. Special time, just the two of them together, her all dressed up in her tutu and heals, of course. I am told the staff bowed down to her upon her entrance.

Before we knew it, our house was filled with laughter among MK and her four sweet friends that joined us to celebrate her birthday, princess style.

Daddy headed up a game of Pin the Tiara on the Princess. MK was the first to try and then no one was eager to press forward for their turn, so the boys got in on the fun which brought about even more giggles from the girls. Silly boys.

There was a story, a very cute one titled Tea For Ruby.

And then it was time for tea and goodies served by the boys.

Princess wands were made.....

and gifts were opened.....

The party was deemed a success and, soon, little ones left and one little birthday princess went down for a rest.

A few hours later, round two occurred. Grandparents arrived, cousins were welcomed and the festivities continued.

MK was given a new kitchen set for her birthday during this time and she was totally taken with it. I will note here though that she does not have a knack for organization like her mother. She promptly took every piece of her pretend food, every single little dish, spoon, cup and every single little pot, and threw it all in the fridge or oven space provided. All the while, I sat staring helplessly thinking, "Uh, I was thinking we could put the spoons in this container or the pots on this shelf...." I am thinking we will work on this skill. Soon.

A great time was had by all! Turning four was just what everyone had envisioned and more. MK is growing up. Proof is everywhere. This was her third birthday at home but the first one that has gone without tears being shed. She took it all in. Loved the attention. Loved telling everyone, "It is my birthday today. I am four." She loved, for one day, that everything was all about her. Sadly, this morning, she awoke asking, "So, when do I turn five?"