Just call me grandma

I am packing for China. Not a small task, considering the assortment of items to bring along: clothes for 2 adults and a child that we don't exactly know the size of, formula, diapers, wipes, gifts for the orphanage and foster family, a few toys, a small pharmacy so we are prepared for any type of medical need we might encounter, snacks, bottles, sippy cups, cameras, laptop, a big pile of paperwork, and the list goes on........... And this all has to be accomplished with 1 suitcase weighing 44 pounds and 1 11-pound carry-on per adult to meet the in-China flight restrictions.

To make sure I get every little last thing I can in, I bought a luggage scale. I weighed all our suitcases empty to help determine which to bring along. We had one very large one that weighed over 15 pounds - with nothing in it. The next one down - still quite large - was only 9 pounds empty. I did a test run and filled it with clothes and it came out to 38 pounds full. Perfect. Just the right size to be full, but not overweight.

My next mission was to get another suitcase exactly like it. Thankfully, I had just bought this one about a month ago at Carson Pirie Scott on sale for about $40. So, Saturday morning Sam and I went back to get another one. I even had $15 store credit, a 20% off coupon and there was a "12-hour-sale" happening.

I locate the correct brand, but cannot find one exactly like the other one. There is one that is a slight step up - this one has 4 wheels instead of 2 - and it seems like it is the best one for the money. It says it is 12 pounds when empty. I buy it, but then on my walk out notice that there is indeed one just like I wanted - and 3 pounds lighter than the one I just bought - but it is made out of a lovely tapestry fabric. Now, I don't have anything against tapestry. However, if I see a tapestry suitcase on the baggage claim at an airport, I immediately assume someone over the age of 65 will be retrieving it. And I know my husband's reaction will not be positive. I block those thoughts out of my mind, decide the weight is what really matters at this point, somehow cajole Sam into going back to the check out, and exchange the suitcases. My net out-of-pocket: $15. As I am paying, I make the comment to Sam, "Oh Sam - your dad is going to think this is UGLY."

I underestimated Joe's reaction a bit. I thought he'd look at it, say it was ugly, laugh a little bit, and get over it. Not so much. I don't really exactly remember what he said. Maybe it was That's horrible! or I can't believe you bought that or I am NOT taking that to China or And you wonder why it only cost you $15? I tried to plead my case - I know it's a bit "grandma-ish", but we are concerning about weight here, buddy, and it was the best choice I had in the store and I had a two-year-old with me and was not willing to drive 30 minutes to the next mall down the road to see if they had a black one and anyway, it will be my suitcase, not yours.

He still was quite opposed to it, so I offered that he and Sam could drive to the other mall and exchange it. Go to a mall with a two-year-old while toting a tapestry suitcase?

So - if you happen to be in Beijing next Friday and see a tapestry suitcase on the baggage carousel, keep your eyes open for me - and Joe standing as far away from me as possible.

Here's Sam showing it off - I was hoping he would say it was Daddy's, but he must have been brainwashed.

Feeling sorry for himself

Upon finding Sam seated like this on the kitchen floor, I was a good mother and asked him what was wrong. His only reply - "Nuf-fing." After pressing for more details and getting none, I decided it wasn't that serious and I could take a picture. The scene struck me as quite funny - where did he learn to sit and sulk?


After realizing I was capitalizing on his cute, sulking face, he retreated to this.


Lest you think I am heartless, there really was nothing wrong. He got up and played trucks with me less than 30 seconds later and we had a grand time.

I didn't know if this day would ever come

About a year ago, my days consisted of being one step behind Sam at all times. He literally was moving ALL THE TIME, except when sleeping or strapped into his car seat. I was the crazy mom asking others for advice on how they got their kids to sit and watch a show on TV, because even if the TV was on he was still moving around the room like a tornado. There were days I feared I would never sit for more than 2 minutes ever again.

Today, Sam played with play-doh all by himself for over a half an hour. And he did it all while sitting still in his chair. Wonders never cease.

I certainly did!

The things he picks up from TV.......

Sam and I were playing play-doh. He dropped a Curious George stamp he had been using with the play-doh.

Sam: I lost a George.
Me: You lost a George?
Sam: I so-tan-ly did.
Me: What?
Sam: I so-tan-ly did.
Me: You certainly did? (Where in the world did he learn to say that!?)
Sam: (Anticipating my next sentence) Who taught me to say that?
Me: Yes - who did teach you to say that?
Sam: Tyrone. (from the Nick show Backyardigans) Tasha asked him if he heard a noise and he said "I certainly did."

Sam + broken baked goods = BAD NEWS

Sam slept until 8:30 this morning (Yea!) when I had to wake him up because we needed to leave for Bible study at church. He was not happy to be awakened. I told him we had to go right away, and he wanted something to eat.

J: We can eat in the van. You can pick a snack to eat on the way.
S: I want to eat at home.
J: We can't. We can drive through McDonalds and get an apple pie if you want to.
S: But I don't want it to break. (Sam has this thing with his baked goods having to be completely intact to be eaten. If part of a muffin or cookie breaks off, it is a tragedy. And then last time he tried to eat an apple pie in the van we had MAJOR issues. I always try to convince him they taste the same broken as they do whole, but he is not convinced.)
J: Then pick a snack you can eat on the way. We are leaving.
S: I know! I need a plate. Then it will be perfect.
J: Fine, we can take a plate and you can put your apple pie on it and it won't break. Get your crocs on.

Now, I have no idea why I thought this plan would actually work. I guess I was just happy to get him to agree to get moving.

So - we get the apple pie, put it on the plate, and I think all is well. I was wrong.

S: IT'S HOT! IT'S HOT!
J: Then wait for it to cool off.
S: I WANT TO EAT IT!
J: Do you want me to break it in 2 pieces so it can cool faster?
S: NO!
J: Then you will just have to wait.
S: O-kay.......break it to cool off.

I am quite impressed with the kid. This is MAJOR progress since he just agreed to have his apple pie broken on purpose. I figure we really are good to go now, since he seems to have overcome his aversion to broken baked goods. A few minutes go by, and then I hear a scream.

J: What's wrong?
S: IT'S BROKEN! IT'S BROKEN!
J: I know. Remember I broke it to cool it off.
S: NO - IT BROKE IN MORE PIECES! (He attempts to fuse two small pieces together and is actually semi-successful. He moves it back towards his mouth when it breaks apart again and more crying ensues. Loud crying - like he just got a limb or two ripped off. This child is being completely ridiculous.)
J: (Said at a lull in the ruckus) Either eat it or give it to me and stop crying.

We go back and forth a few times with him crying and me telling him to eat it or hand it over, and he finally drops the pieces into my outstretched palm, though he is still hysterical. I offer a couple times to give him the pieces one at a time so then he won't have to think about the fact that it is broken, and all I get is a dirty look and him turning to stare out the window and pretend not to hear me. Like any logical person, I decide that it should not go to waste, pop the rest of it in my mouth, and turn up the radio really loud to attempt to drown him out. He is so amazed at the volume from the front of the van that he actually stops crying....until I look back at him and he cranks it up again.

We get to church. Tears are streaming down his face and there is a lot of drama as I drop him off at the nursery. He figures out once I am gone there is no use in crying, and has a marvelous time for the next hour and a half. And then we get back in the van to go home and starts crying again.

About this time I am on the phone with my dad and tell him the whole story. His response: Are you going to get him another apple pie? I tell him there is no way I am getting Sam another apple pie, which Sam overhears and then starts crying for another one. We get past that, and a few minutes later he pipes up again.

S: I want my pieces.
J: What?
S: I want my apple pie pieces.
J: (Laughing out loud) Dude - your pieces are gone. I ate them. They are in my tummy.
S: I want them out.
J: You can't. They are in my tummy.
S: I get them out. They are stuck in your bellybutton.
J: Really? How are you going to get them out?
S: (Very matter of fact) With a fishing pole.
J: Won't that hurt me?
S: Nope. (He casts his imaginary fishing pole, reels it in, and pretends to munch on his apple pie pieces.) Yummy.

I can not believe he solved this whole thing 2 hours later by pretending to retrieve the PIECES from my bellybutton, and is now completely happy eating a broken apple pie that does not exist.

A few conversations

As we have been preparing for Sadie's arrival, Sam often makes comments about her coming. We we also use him to tell others about her - it's much cuter hearing him say "I have a sister - IN CHINA!" than me telling someone we are adopting. In the past few months there have been a few conversations I have meant to blog about, but haven't managed to get typed in.

My sister's name is...........
Earlier this summer while on our various vacations, I would use Sam to announce our adoption news to new people he met:

Me: Sam, do you have a sister?
Sam: Yes.
Me: Where is she?
Sam: In China.
Me: And what's her name?
Sam: Sadie.
(Followed by "Awwwwwww...that's so cute" from whoever he happened to be telling.)

After going through that drill a few too many times, he decided to have a little fun with it. When I would ask the final question, instead of saying her name, his reply was "Dusty." And the next time "Turner." And then "Stretch." And finally he told someone "Hammer." His sister had turned into the cast of characters from his then favorite show, Handy Manny. Thankfully now we have made it full circle around to Sadie again.

All by myself
One day Sam and I were in the van discussing Joe and I going to China to get Sadie. We had told him earlier that week that when we went to China he would be staying with Grandma and Papa.

Sam: When you go to China, I go to Grandma and Papa's.
Me: That's right. Grandma and Papa will take care of you while we are gone.
Sam: How I get there?
Me: I will take you there before we leave.
Sam: No. I go all by myself.
Me: Really?
Sam: Yes. I drive van to Grandma and Papa's all by myself.
Me: You are too little to drive the van.
Sam: When I get bigger, I can drive?
Me: Sure, when you get bigger.

Then a few weeks later we had a similar conversation and this time I asked him if he knew the way to their house. He said he did. Apparently all you have to do is "go on highway, stop at stop signs, and turn left at Plainfield."

Can I come?
So - as you just read, I had the fact that Sam was not going along to China pretty well established. Then a good friend of mine bought him an Arthur DVD where the character Binky gets a little sister from China. It has been great to help prepare him, other than the fact that Binky gets to go along to China, and that detail did not escape Sam. One day I was telling someone about us going to China, and all of a sudden Sam blurts out very excitedly, "Can I come?"
Me: No, remember just Mommy and Daddy are going to China. Where do you get to go?
Sam: Grandma and Papa's.
Me: Yes, you get to stay with them.
Sam: Yeah - 'cause they need help with their toys. They have too many to do all by themself.

I make her feel better
In the above mentioned Arthur episode, Binky's little sister is a bit fussy and Binky has "the touch" to cheer her up. Sam noticed this and told me, "When Sadie comes home from China, she might cry. But I make her feel better. I'm a big brother, just like Binky."

Papa's out!

Just an update - my dad is FINALLY out of the hospital. They kept him a while longer than they thought because he would randomly have a fever. His is on his way home as I type, resting up for the arrival of Sam in 2 weeks.

New taste sensation

Sam got a little creative with his spaghetti today.......

Sunny September

Sam and I are enjoying the 80-degree weather we are having. After I hosed him off from his haircut yesterday, he decided to take a dip in his water table. Yes, most kids stand beside it and play in the water. Sam treats it as his own personal pool.

Ahoy!

We had a great pirate-themed playgroup yesterday. Here's Sam with some of his pirate gear. Sorry the one video is sideways.....I have to figure out how to fix that (or just remember not to hold the camera vertically when I make a movie!)

Paperwork

The boys are at the zoo today while I try to get all the paperwork we need to take to China organized. The number of reams of paper that has gone into this adoption is impressive! I thought there was a lot when we adopted Sam domestically - that was NOTHING compared to this!

One bright spot amidst all the paper is that you get some cool documents from China. Here is a picture of our travel approval, for you curious people out there. I did cover up the MG number in the upper right corner, just in case that is something I should not be revealing to the world.

Papa update

For those of you hoping to see an update on how my dad is doing, here's what my mom wrote earlier today:

Hi everyone,

Thanks again for your prayers. Don't stop...Bob is still in the hospital not because of his heart but the fact he has a fever which doesn't want to go away. Last night it was almost 102 so he was out of the "low-grade" category into something more exciting. So far the cultures (urine and blood) have been negative but they've kept him on the antibiotic they started when they thought it might be a urinary tract infection. His chest xray was fine and everyone says his lungs sound fine when they listen so that's good.

The other good news is that he is "tubeless" and that makes getting around much easier! So praise the Lord for that. We're waiting now for the Infectious Disease folks to come by and try to figure out the mystery.

I'll keep you posted. Looks like we'll be here at least one more day - they don't want to send him home until he's been without a fever for 24 hours.

Love, Barb

Upstairs Downstairs

Sam stood at the top of the stairs this morning for quite a bit before coming down for breakfast. I went over to see what the hold up was, and he was just standing there pondering the stairs. This is what he told me.

S: Carl and Lissa have stairs at their house too.
J: Yes they do.
S: They have LOT of stuff downstairs.
J: Yes they do.
S: Grandma and Papa have upstairs and downstairs at their house.
J: Yes they do.
S: But it's not messy. But Carl and Lissa's is.

So beware - Sam is now the messy police. I am in BIG trouble!
(Disclaimer: I don't know that Carl and Alissa's basement really is that messy - it's just unfinished with piles of stuff down there, whereas my parents have a finished basement.)

3 weeks from today....

we will be in an airplane on our way to China! We will be in Beijing a couple days to sightsee, and then have our orientation with our agency on the 13th of October. On the 14th, we fly to Guangzhou and get Sadie! We will be there for the next 10 days, going to various appointments and getting paperwork processed, and fly home on the 24th.

It's all getting a bit more real............

Our little turtle

Sam picked out his Halloween costume yesterday. He thinks he should wear it all the time. So, here's a preview of October 31 at our house.

All I had to do was tuck him in tight!

Some of you are aware of Sam's sleeping issues that started about the time Joe started his job in Illinois and Sam and I were still at home in Muscatine. He had been sleeping pretty well through the night, but then started waking up each night at least once. I did my own psychoanalysis of my son and decided he was having attachment issues. I figured he must be reacting to Joe being gone by wanting to make sure that I hadn't left him, even if that meant waking in the middle of the night to see if I was still there. So, I went in his room any time he cried for me. I thought it would be over once we were all in the same place again.

However, after we moved Sam and I continued our 2am soirees. Most of the time it just involved a brief back and forth of "Mommy?" "Yes." "Mommy?" "You are fine. Go back to sleep." "OK." Not really too involved, so I kept it up. Plus, I didn't really feel like making him cry it out.....because this kid can take "crying it out" to the extreme. The night I cut off his midnight cup of juice (something I really should never have allowed in the first place, but it got us through the transition from crib to big bed that came WAY too early) he screamed bloody murder for an hour and a half, barely taking time for a breath. To me, going in for a 2am 5 minute chat got me back to sleep much faster than trying to break him of his current habit. Juice would rot his teeth, but making sure his mom was in the house wasn't going to cause any long term damage. Plus, I felt slightly guilty that it was our moving that made him do it in the first place.

Fast forward to last week when he stayed at Joe's parents' for a few nights. The little bugger slept all night long without a peep. I was happy for Cindi and Dave that they didn't end up with a child screaming for his mommy like I had predicted, but a little torked that my darling son could somehow keep it all together for them and not for me. Then it hit me - at their house he was zipped into a sleeping bag, which kept him from his usual egg-beater style of sleeping. At home he can often be found sideways or upside down in his bed, and I have even found him under his bed asleep. Maybe he just wakes himself up as he moves all over, and then decides that since he is awake he might as well drag me into his room to say hi.

So, the past 2 nights at home I have tucked him in TIGHT to try to recreate his sleeping bag environment. And it has worked, so far. I wake up at 2am and hear nothing. My mom's theory with sleep issues is that it only takes 3 nights to break a habit, so we are hoping to make it through tonight.

To think, all I had to do was tuck him in.

I want my bed back!

Sam spent 4 nights at Joe's parents while I went to MN to be with my family when my dad had surgery. I was very, very worried about how the nights would go. He is quite the Momma's boy if he wakes up in the middle of the night (which happens WAY more often than it should for a 2 1/2 year old), and I was afraid Dave and Cindi were in for hours of screaming. However, my brilliant mother-in-law (I never should have doubted her......) got Sam a new Cars air mattress/bed to use at their house. He slept like a champ, and this morning, upon waking at home promptly told me, "I miss Grandmommy. I miss Granddaddy. I want my bed back."

Papa's all fixed!

My dad is out of surgery - he had a new valve put in and two bypasses. Everything went fine and he is now in ICU in the process of waking up.

Sam is doing great in Cedar Falls with Joe's parents - sleeping better for them than he does for me at home! It makes me not so nervous about leaving him when we go to China.

:) Jane

Super Sam!

This is a video I took last week. I probably shouldn't be encouraging this behavior, but it made me laugh so hard when I found Sam doing it..........hard to tell a kid to stop doing something while you are laughing hysterically.

Is Papa broken?

As I mentioned earlier, my dad is having heart surgery this week. We have been praying for Papa in our prayers each night, and talking about how Mommy is going to go to the doctor with Papa and Grandma and Sam gets to stay at Grandmommy's house all by himself when we are gone.

Last night we stayed at my parents', and my mom and dad and I all tucked Sam in and said prayers with him. We got to the part about my dad, and Sam looked up (slightly confused because Papa is standing right there and was looking just fine) and asked if Papa was a little bit sick. I told him that yes, Papa is a little bit sick, but the doctors are going to "fix him up." Sam looked even more confused and then asked, "Is Papa broken?"

The sign says.....

A few weeks ago when Sam and I were at the zoo we went into the "Feathers and Scales" house. Inside you can find all kinds of birds, reptiles, and amphibians. The main attraction for Sam was the 4 foot tall statue-thingee of a frog. He immediately tried to ride it, until I intervened, pointing out the sign that said "No climbing on the frog."

Since then, his latest trick when he either wants to do something or doesn't want to do something is to point to an imaginary sign somewhere in the room and say, "See that sign? It says (fill in the blank). He's used it for "more ice cream," "no potty," and "play 5 more minutes."

The best one though was yesterday morning. He and I were leaving to go to my parents so I could go with to Minneapolis when my dad has heart surgery. I had told him the night before that when we got up in the morning it would be time to go to Grandma and Papa's. So, of course, the moment he woke up he looked at me and said "Let's go to Grandma and Papa's!" I informed him we would be leaving soon, but that I needed to get ready first. He wanted to go "RIGHT NOW!" I told him that I needed to take a shower. He looked straight at me, pointed off to the left, and said, "See that sign? It says 'No shower, no bath. It's time to go right now!'"

First day of Sunday School

The church we are going to has Sunday School for 2-year-olds, so I signed Sam up. I thought it was a crazy idea to attempt to contain these toddlers for anything other than just playtime, but it seems it was accomplished!

We told Sam last night that instead of the nursery, he got to go to Sunday School. Since it has only been about a month since he has started going to the nursery without throwing a complete fit at being left by us, I figured I had better prepare him. I shouldn't have worried. His immediate response to me, "Oh good. I better bring my backpack."

He went this morning like he was an old pro. When we dropped him off, he waved and said "Bye bye. I am at Sunday School. See ya later!" Quite the difference from the screaming child that we had left in the nursery this summer.

Here's Sam showing off his rainbow. Look at the paper strips all lined up - we'll have to give Grandma credit for teaching him how to do that.

Apple picking

We went to an apple orchard yesterday with our friends from playgroup. Here are some pictures.

Sam and Dad ready to go.


Waiting not-so-patiently with our friends. Sam had already managed to break a fence rail on the other side........so he was slightly more hesitant to climb.



Our self-portrait while on the hay ride up to the apple trees.



Sam and Ella going in.......plus I thought Miss Kerry would appreciate a photo of herself chomping down on an apple.



Slightly dazed toddler.......



It's a good one!

I not want to be big boy

So - some of you may remember from earlier in the summer that I tried to potty train Sam - for about a day. He was WAY too excited about going IN his underwear so that he could pick out a new pair, and I gave up after about a day and a half.

Well, lately he has actually started being conscious of when he is going in his pull-up, so I figured if I had any hope of accomplishing this before Sadie gets here, I better get to it. So yesterday was again underwear day. He did really, really well until about 3 o'clock. After being dry that whole time, he managed to wet his pants 4 times in 2 hours. I kept trying to stress that big boys wear underwear AND keep it dry. After the 4th change of clothes, we had this conversion.

S: Mom, I no want underwear. I just want pull-up.
J: (By this time tired of cleaning up puddles.) Ok. You can just have a pull-up right now.
S: Mom, what I be?
J: What?
S: What I be with just pull-up?
J: (Realizing he has figured out that without underwear he can not be classified as a little boy.)
You can be a little boy. Babies wear diapers, and big boys wear underwear, and little boys wear pull-ups.
S: OK. I not want to be big boy. I just be a little boy.