OK, Don't Fall Over

Yes, it really is a new post. :)

(Edited to say...it's been on the blog for over a week but apparently I'm so rusty I managed to get the date wrong so it's been buried quite a few pages back.)

Life is...well, busy doesn't really begin to cover it. My brain is usually too tired to put any thoughts together when I do get free time, but one of my goals for next year is to get back to putting out regular updates. WeiJ changes so fast that I really don't want to lose track of anything. I put together this year's calendar and just couldn't believe how drastic the differences are! It seems my baby grew into a little boy some time over the summer - and a handsome one, at that. :) He agrees with me on that too - or else I've said it so much that he accepts that as truth. A couple of months ago after I got him dressed one day he asked me if "(WeiJ) is so so handsome?"


Everything about him has grown in leaps and bounds this year. In size, for sure - he's already growing out of his 3Ts and has been sleeping in 4T pj's for a couple of months. And for those keeping track, he won't turn 3 until MAY! His vocabulary, sense of humor, tender heart and quick grasp of any and everything continue to floor me. Since he started "school" in September, his play has changed significantly too. The level of imaginary play seems advanced, but of course I'm not the most objective observer. ;) But really, how many 2 year olds will come up with a random piece of paper and ask you to come follow the treasure map? I think his favorite imaginary play involves cooking though - I've eaten a kabillion "cookies" and "soup" concoctions in the last few months. Overall what's most impressive to me is his singular focus once he sets his attention on something. I bought a puzzle last fall that has about 20 or 30 different shapes; using different combinations of them, he fills in 4 blank pictures. He loved it from the first time he played with it and would sit there for 20-30 minutes in total silence determined to solve it. Lately it's gotten so easy for him that when he does his "shapes puzzle" it's like he's just doing it to try to break his own speed record. Not that I would recognize that behavior AT ALL (ha!) ... but surely I can't have influenced that so soon!

We have been building up to potty training for the past month or so by reading a couple of books and he'd shown interest in sitting on top of the lid to his new "big boy potty." I was offering if he wanted to use it but didn't push because he was giving me adamant no's when I asked. For some reason on Friday evening he suddenly said yes he did want to use it, and voila there he went! His New Year's resolution maybe? ;) Saturday we managed two more successful attempts, and today - wow, today so far he's earned SIX happy face stickers! Just like with everything else with him along the way, he's just so unbelievably easy.

So that's the quickish update for now. I'll get to photos after little man heads to bed - or at least I'll TRY to. And then I might even get around to catching up with bloggy friends. *gasp* I'm so far behind!!

Life's Pretty Good

A lake, a bubble machine and a life jacket -- what more does a boy need?

OK, the doting audience and good food were icing on the very fun cake.

Some Kid

Watching the daily changes in this child is really something else. Sometimes all I can do is shake my head, and sometimes all I can do is try not to fall over laughing.

At our visit to the doctor's office a couple of weeks ago, she asked if WeiJ was dressing or undressing himself yet. At that point other than pulling socks and shoes off, the answer was pretty much no across the board. Well that was sooo last month. It's June now so of course he's almost ready to cross another developmental milestone off his list. WeiJ's been practicing taking his own clothes off, sheer delight on his face when he finishes each new accomplishment. The shorts are easy of course, but oh so much effort goes into getting those shirts off! And every night now he's doing most of the work putting his pj's on - I just start the shirt coming down in the right direction and get the shorts pointed the right way, and he yanks everything into place. He just works so intently at it! I was right though - as soon as he figured out how to get clothes off, the diaper wouldn't be far behind. It's definitely one way to make me jump up wide awake when he comes in my room bare-bottomed...wide awake and hoping, hoping, hoping he hasn't been that way for too long!

His vocabulary seems to have vaulted to the next level all of a sudden. He's been picking up new words right and left, so many that I can't keep up with a count anymore. He's stringing words together in 3 word sentences, and his pronunciation is getting better and better. It's a little bittersweet to hear his pronunciation become more like ShuShu and less like FooFoo or Foof or WooShu...but it just goes hand in hand with the rest of the progress. The other day I couldn't believe my ears when he said a perfect sheep - with a hard p at the end and everything. I think my squealing fuss over that has convinced him to try for that reaction now with every word that ends in p -- now he's throwing extra emphasis into other words like cup or chip. He's such a sponge lately for new words and pronunciation that I keep finding myself doing doubletakes, wondering if he really just said what I think he said. Just imagine if he hadn't had a 15 month delay on learning English!

And the sense of humor on this kid! *Daily* he does something that has us both laughing hard. Whether it's silly faces or wild games of chase or whatever cheeseball antics he's up to for the day, there is no shortage of laughter in this house. In fact I'm pretty sure he feeds on it and amps up the ham factor as soon as he has a willing audience (which is oh, always). One of our newer books - the one we call The Oops Book - has a silly turkey that puts his clothes on wrong, and each time it's his turn the book just says, oops. Last week I was getting WeiJ dressed and he pulled his shorts onto his head and said...yep...oops! He caught me off guard with that one and we both pretty much dissolved into giggles. Silly boy!



Best of all, the tantrums are much better now than we were having last month. It's so good to have my sweet boy back! Monday he was getting ready to go leave with ShuShu and came to give me a squeeze first. That's always good for a smile of course. But this time he kept walking away a bit and then come running right back to give me another one! Those 4 more unsolicited hugs and smooches were priceless. I missed my little snugglebug and am loving having him back!!

Road Trip!

Today was one of those days that made me sit back and say wow, I can't believe we're finally here. And I can't believe it's even better than I pictured it would be.

We had planned a short road trip to get together with another family we met in China, but unfortunately that had to be rescheduled. But since we'd all been looking so forward to it we decided to hit the road anyway. The idea of Korean food and a great park were just too tempting, and the chance for a mini-escape was a much needed bonus. It was also sort of a test run to see how WeiJ would handle being cooped up for a couple hours of travel. I'd say he passed with flying colors! (Apparently the key will be to wear him out during layovers.)

I clearly remember the last few times we ate at that Korean place, I sat there wistfully daydreaming about bringing my child-do-be with us someday and planning outings to the park. Today that day finally arrived! WeiJ sat through the drive pretty well and then through lunch. He even successfully ate a few things with chopsticks - well, chopsticks that I didn't break apart so they were still attached at the top. He was pretty pleased! I think the biggest hit (and I've also mentally filed it away as a ploy to pull from the bag of tricks when I need to distract him in restaurants) was a "lemon pop" - aka a lemon wedge on the chopsticks.

As soon as we got to the park I remembered just how much I liked it and all the reasons I couldn't wait to share it with him. Right now I think the fact that it had water, rocks, and a playground are all he really cares about...but there's so much more for us to explore. I definitely see return trips in our future! We headed for the playground first, and once we dragged his attention away from the little rocks on the ground he was ALL ABOUT the playscape and slides. He's gotten so big and independent that now all I had to do was help him up the first part of the steps and then he was off across bridges to whichever slide destination he wanted. Well, that's all *I* had to do. ShuShu may have been put to work pulling him up a slide or two as well. :)

He had a great time and I was just happy watching him be so happy. It was only interrupted once...right about when I discovered that Mama Bear doesn't ask my permission first, she just acts. I/She *may* have yelled at some kids to stop throwing rocks after WeiJ and I got hit at the bottom of the slide. In hindsight yes they were groundcover pebbles and yes they were more nuisance than real danger...but like I said, Mama Bear didn't ask what I thought before she opened her mouth. She just knew that her cub was in the line of fire and she snapped. Seriously, it was like someone else was speaking. And then inside I groaned, oh no, am I *that* mom on the playground?? Oh well. At least no more big kids were throwing rocks in the little kids' area anymore and we got to play in peace.

Anyway, we walked along the springs for a while and watched kids and dogs and boats and birds before heading back out. We did stop for snow cones that tasted extra wonderful on such a hot day. WeiJ was definitely a fan. He was so wiped out by that point that he actually sat still on my lap while we all ate them. Does it get better than sitting in the shade at the park, eating snow cones?

Miss Us?

Eeks! Two weeks! I didn't realize it had been that long since I wrote an update. It's partly because it's been a stressful month, and partly because I woke up one day to find I'm a mama to a full-fledged 2 year old with attitude who is into everything. His recent growth spurt means he can reach up to grab things on countertops or the top of my dresser. I've been waking up to find my glasses missing, my Kindle being banged repeatedly on the side of the bed, or a snacktrap's worth of Cheerios dumped in my bed...and best of all, I've been locked out of the house while he gleefully mimed my gestures on the other side of the glass door.

On the bright side, it is still mind-boggling how smart he is. As of a few weeks ago he'd been saying his numbers out loud from 1 to 5. I had no idea he knew his numbers past 5 until I bought some fridge number magnets. I also didn't know he knew the word "magnet" until he was jumping up and down shouting "new magnet! new magnet!" when I pulled them out of the bag. Lo and behold, when I put the numbers in line, he listed them off one by one all the way up to 9. He gets a little stuck on 6 and 9 sometimes, but that seems understandable to get those mixed up. I guess since he's all of two and two weeks, I'll cut him a little slack.

WeiJ is also reading more and more. For his birthday, one of the books I got him is now called "the Oops book" and he gets a kick out of reading it himself. I tried to get video Monday but he was too amped up to sit still long enough to finish. Guess I shouldn't have told him about going to Sea World before that. He also likes reading the 2 alphabet books. H and J are still a little tentative but he's so confident now of the rest of the letters that he barely hesitates anymore. For just about every book we read now, he's filling in more and words by himself.

WeiJ's also getting more specific when he asks to eat. It used to be just "eat" - and sometimes still is - but now he will tell me more specifically what he wants. The other morning it was "eat...nee baba" which translates to "eat green apple," and for lunch it was "chss...breh" which is cheese and bread, aka a toasted cheese sandwich.


Little toot is also a funny little guy. Since he got here I've been telling him that the outlet covers on the wall were a no-no to touch, that they'd give him a bad booboo. I figured that would be easy enough for him to understand. Well, he came running up to me one day saying, "ohhhh, booboo" and offering me his finger to kiss better. Then he'd say "ohhhh, booboo" and give me the same finger on the other hand. Then he'd run off giggling, and come back in the room saying "ohhh, booboo" again and repeat the process over and over and over. He thought it was hysterical. So finally I followed him to the other room...and there he was, squatting in front of an unused cable outlet - touching it with each hand to give himself "booboos" to have me kiss better. Just a hunch, but methinks this one will be testing everything for himself instead of taking my word for it. Stinker! ;)

And finally, today was his 2 year old checkup with the doctor. He only had to get one shot (bad enough but better than the multiples we were doing when we started playing catch up last Fall) and the doctor still says she couldn't be happier with his progress. He's just a fraction below the 90% mark for both height and weight! I'm assuming his growth chart will start leveling off at some point but he hasn't been showing any signs of slowing down just yet. 36" and 32 pounds -- a far cry from the little one who I once worried might be tagged with a "failure to thrive" label if he slipped any further down the charts. HA. At least that's one worry I can cross off my list once and for all!

Woohoo, WeiJ's TWO!

HAPPY 2nd BIRTHDAY, WEI J!!

So...I'm not quite sure if I'm going to find all the words I want to find today. I'm a little jumbled and overflowing with so much that I can't really describe it. I'll start with the easy stuff, recapping our weekend and see where it goes from there.

On Saturday, WeiJ and I went to Ayi's graduation - I was hoping I could start planting some of those summa cum laude seeds but he only held out through the Masters' degree announcements before he crashed sound asleep on my lap. But boy, did he cheer those first dozen or so with gusto! He clapped and cheered for each one, silly boy! Even when he was asleep, at one point he managed to jerk upright and clap -- without waking up! He slept right on through to the end of the ceremony and woke in time to wave at Ayi as she filed out. We headed to eat afterwards, and all told he was fairly confined for about 6 hours or so but held up like a trooper. Makes me think we might survive a long flight we're going to take in July...knock wood!

The Brainiac Pose

I didn't plan anything big for his birthday today, just a series of things I knew he'd love. I blew up balloons last night so he could wake up to a bunch of them on the floor in his room. (Lesson learned: leave a path for him in case he wakes up crying in the middle of the night so he doesn't fall with a THUNK when he gets out of bed. Sorry, kiddo!) He did love throwing the balloons around this morning though! I made him a breakfast of mini blueberry muffins and blackberries on the side. It was a pretty plate, that's for sure! I think the swinging legs and mmmmmm meant that he enjoyed them a little bit. :) Then after breakfast I gave him his gifts - the coolest trike I've ever seen, and a set of new books. He's pretty obsessed with both, so I think I chose well. He helped me put sprinkles on the cupcakes, then we went to go read his new books - twice each. I went to get dressed, leaving him on the couch flipping through the books. It was such an eventful morning that he fell asleep sitting right there, at 11:30. Once we were ready to go an hour later, I was afraid I'd wake a cranky boy. But all I had to do was softly say,"Are you ready to go see some ducks?" and he was wide awake and ready to go! We went to lunch first, at WeiJ's favorite bbq place (ok, so I haven't taken him to THAT many, but still) and he was pretty much beside himself with giddy joy. Seven adults, all attention on him - he was in his element and clearly a happy boy!

Basking in Happiness

We made it to the park and he finally got to see that "duck wawa" that he's been asking for every single time we get in the car. We fed the ducks a couple loaves of bread, and he managed to not fall in the wawa. Oh, and yes he actually gave ALL the bread to the ducks this time instead of hording it for himself. After we finished the bread, it was time to open presents. Such thoughtful gifts & he loved them all!

Big boy with his first backpack!

And no doubt about it, I can't imagine anything better than seeing this face for Mother's Day:

Tickle Attack!

WeiJ loves to watch this one over and over -- and will even start to pretend-tickle himself at the same time. :) This is pretty much what it sounds like in the evening around here...he'll either invite this game or a game of "RAAAAH!" which is basically chasing each other around the house and then jumping out and surprising him around a corner. He must love the adrenaline rush because he asks for the game by either running up to me and growling "RAAAH!" or asking for "more RAAAH?" Silly boy. He's so much fun!

Things are bananas at work but hopefully soon I'll have a chance to play catch-up here. But this weekend I should definitely at least have some pictures - someone's got a big birthday coming up this weekend.....

Uh oh, Mama has a new toy!

I've been looking at these Flip video things forever but could never quite pull the trigger. Thanks to a very very nice sale price, I finally broke down and bought one. My excuse was I needed to capture all of the cuteness going on before he outgrows things and moves on to whatever next cute thing he'll do.

From my test runs today, I got a couple things I'd hoped for. Here's not only his affection for M&Ms (or MnMnMnMs), but also his sweet manners and how hard he's working to put multiple words together.

I also got his Cookie Monster imitation. Fortunately I caught this when I did - already he's gone from sounding way too cute to ... well, sounding a little demonic, actually.

Random Updates on Boy Genius

These past couple of weeks, WeiJ has been pretty consistently trying to use 2-word combinations. Everything has been "more milk," "dog nightnight," "kick ball," "gray shorts." His first 3-word combo came a couple of weeks ago: "more chocolate milk." That was the only 3 word string I've noticed until today - he shut the door and matter-of-factly told me "door no dog." He closed the door because he didn't want the dog following him in the room!

He's also gotten his colors down pretty solidly. Blue, red, green, yellow, brown, purple, gray, white, orange, pink...there may be more but those are the ones that come to mind. He loves to point them out and announce them, too. I got a Peter Rabbit coloring book for him and he loves carrying that thing around to "read" the story almost as much as he loves coloring.

The latest thing he's started to take an interest in is numbers. His favorite must be 2...he loves to use it. At first he pronounced it like he was French, but deux has become more like dew. This morning instead of asking for "more eggs" he picked up his plate after the first one was gone and said, "dew egg." Then after he said "booboo" and I kissed his finger, of course immediately he grinned and said..."dew booboo" and offered me his other hand.

He's doing GREAT with the transition to his own bed. He hasn't been waking up as often in the middle of the night, and when he does he still goes back to sleep in his bed. In fact it's been a few nights now that he has woken up and cried for less than a minute before going back to sleep on his own without me even going in there. Such a big independent boy!

He did it!

Guess who slept in his very own room in his very own new big boy bed? Yaaaay, WeiJ!

I converted his crib to a toddler bed this morning, and he was very interested in that whole process. Once we got all the stuffed animals out and brought in his pillow, he was very excited to find out that he could climb in and out of it by himself. In fact, he shakes his head pretty adamantly when I ask if he wants help getting down. He sat in there for about 15 minutes just playing with the stuffed animals while I finished rearranging. I had planned to move the bed into my room so he could transition to a separate bed but still have the security of being in the same room. It would have been cozy but I figured it would be less traumatic. Before I got his bed moved though, he said he was hungry so we stopped for lunch. When it looked like he was about ready for a nap, I asked if he was ready to go to sleep and he nodded yes. I asked if he wanted to sleep in his new big boy bed and he RAN to his room and climbed in. :) I tucked him in like always, kissed his forehead and said goodnight....then held my breath when I walked out. I think I was more worried about him getting up to play with his toys instead of napping than of him being anxious. He only fussed once and got quiet when I said nighnight from the living room. He slept his whole two hours just like it was nothing. Yaaaay, WeiJ!

All's Quiet But For the Snoring

What does a morning at the park with Auntie L do to WeiJ?



He fell sound asleep in his high chair -- mid-chew, his hand still gripping his cup maybe 10 minutes after I sat him down to eat. I hadn't even finished making my lunch when I realized how quiet he was. I reclined the back of his chair to let him sleep and within minutes he was snoring - and not softly, either.

Then when he woke up - three and a half hours later - he had a surprise from LaoLao waiting for him.

Yep, it was a pretty good Friday in WeiJ's world.

But why do they have to grow?

WeiJ must have passed some imaginary threshold this week and suddenly become a big boy.

He had his second haircut yesterday. I asked the woman if she wanted me to sit with him on my lap and she almost snorted like that was crazy. She pulled out a foam booster and he sat there covered in a cartoon drape looking a little bit terrified and untrusting of her - neither WeiJ or I got that lulled-to-sleep calming effect that the last guy had. But she was quick and it's definitely a straighter cut than last time. And when he was finished, she asked if she could give him a lollipop. Boy, do I wish I'd had a camera to catch THAT ear-to-ear grin when he tasted it! No, it was more than ear-to-ear. His entire face lit up in pure delight!

When I went to change WeiJ after his nap yesterday, I could swear I was looking at a different, bigger kid - as if during that nap he suddenly became a little more boy and a little less toddler. Definitely not many traces of baby left to be seen. I wondered if it was just his new haircut, but no it wasn't just his face. It was his whole body! How is that possible? No wonder his snaps are all popping loose underneath!

At dinner, I remembered that he had barely been able to squeeze into the high chair the last time we were there. So my little big boy got to eat in a booster - and he sure seemed to notice that difference and think he was big stuff. Perfect manners, yet again - I think I leave restaurants every time a little boggled that he's this easy.

And as if I needed any further confirmation of his growth, I found a couple of really cute pj sets for him. When I held up the 2T, it was clear that he'd be able to wear them for oh, maybe a week if I was lucky. *sigh* And of course there was only 1 set in the 3T but I secretly hoped when we got home I'd find it to be too big and be able to go back for the 2Ts. Ummmm, nope. Last night I put my 22 month old to bed in 3T pj's. *sigh again* I could handle him wearing 18 month sizes when he should have fit 12s, and I could handle him wearing 24 month or 2T when he should have fit 18s. But 3T?? That seems so big. Mama isn't ready for him to be that grown up yet!!

The Week in WeiJ's World

It was another one of those weeks that was just too insanely busy. Fortunately it was Spring Break around here, so WeiJ got to spend a couple of days having fun with his admirers. On Tuesday he got to spend most of the day with Lelo and -- ok, we really need an official name for her but we'll call her Auntie L for now. I could tell WeiJ had a blast with them. He got to go to the park and for a walk in the neighborhood -- those are always sure winners. Even as busy as I was, I couldn't help but to stop and smile at all the chatter and singing I was overhearing from the living room. He fought valiantly to stay awake as long as he could and not miss a minute of the fun, and then when they left he slept soundly for more than 2 hours. And if that day plus our usual Wednesday night fun wasn't enough, he had another special day on Friday with ZaZa.

I'm not sure if it was the guilt or the exhaustion, but this weekend I decided to put off work until Monday (even though I'm still swamped and way behind) and just spend the time hanging out with WeiJ. I'm not even sure I could begin to describe how peaceful it was to be sitting on the couch last night after dinner, reading a book with WeiJ in his pj's lying with his head on my lap. He was perfectly happy to do nothing but fiddle with his little fire truck and let me stroke his hair. He's generally such a little perpetual motion machine that it was that much more touching that we could just sit there together and "be."

Sometimes after particularly chaotic/sensory overload days, even late at night when it's completely silent in the house I will hear echoes of the day when I close my eyes. In Vegas, it was slot machine clinks. In China, it was the traffic sounds. There have been a handful of difficult days when I've heard his cries. But last night when I closed my eyes, it was his squeals of laughter ringing in my ears. How could I ask for a better way to end a week than that?

An Overdue Update

Well I wish I could say that the absence of blogging has to do with me being lost in some more escapist reading. But no, it's because I'm getting slammed from every which direction at work and seem to be flailing just to tread water. I know it will get better eventually, but I'm fried. By the time I sign off at the end of the night, I just don't have it in me to sit at another keyboard or think coherent thoughts. This week was so busy that I didn't even have time to jot down bullets, but I've got a few things in the back of my mind that I can share.

Unfortunately I have had to resort to a tv babysitter more than I would have liked lately to get us through the gap between the end of his nap and the time that used to be the end of my day (but is now more or less a long dinner break till his bedtime). To ease my conscience, I ordered the Noggin channel -- billed as "preschool on tv." Yeah I know, I'm exactly the kind of sucker they're marketing to. I do feel a little better that he's not watching mindless cartoons - these really do have some value and luckily he seems interested in a few of them, especially the ones that involve some sort of problem solving. Dora, Diego, Ni Hao Kai Lan and Blues Clues, in particular. I guess at least he might come away from this with multilingual skills at any rate! He plays with his blocks and Aquadoodle and whichever toys interest him for the day, and will go watch a few minutes at a time if something grabs his attention. From time to time I'll hear him answering questions and calling out letters he sees. In between shows, they do little puzzles like memory games or "find which one is different." He hears that background music and RUNS to the tv to study the pictures. I can't help but get a kick out of that because I've always gravitated to those kind of games too. Uh oh. :)

This weekend he's been in a limit-testing mood. Exasperatingly so. And about everything. For some reason, this weekend he decided he'd start putting things in his mouth that he's not supposed to -- behavior that he really hadn't displayed at all for the last 6 months. And he's not satisfied unless I know he's done it. He'll come up with a smug little look, grunt and point to his open mouth. An example from yesterday: he was standing in front of me, grunting and pointing to his open mouth. I asked him what he had, and he pulls out a wad of tissue paper. I tell him, "no WeiJ, we don't put paper in our mouths. Paper is not for eating." What does he do? He brings me his dirty sock and puts it in his mouth and looks me directly in the eye with the tauntingest little expression. I was almost successful at not laughing at that, but it was just too ridiculous to see him standing there with that so there look and a dirty sock hanging out of his mouth. Yeah, WeiJ, you really showed me.

And then - and this one made me groan with dread - I put him to bed for his nap today. Not even a minute later, I hear the heavy rapid-fire thuds of his running footsteps coming into the living room. Noooooo! I turned to see his triumphant little face grinning from ear to ear at his accomplishment - he dared to get up off the bed on his own. For 6 months he's been too wary of falling, and I knew I had it easy that I could just put him down for a nap and trust that he wouldn't get up until I came to get him after his nap. But methinks those days are over....

And the last thing I can think of for now is I measured him on Friday. I've been marking his height at the beginning (roughly) of each month since December since the inconsistency at the doctor's office was driving me bananas. So like always, I stood WeiJ up against the inside of the computer armoire door and made a mark. We went to get the measuring tape to see the total and the difference, and he studied everything I did. Ten minutes later, I looked up from doing dishes and saw him standing against a different wall, looking straight ahead and placing a flat block against the top of his head the same way I'd done with the pen. First thought: awww, so cute and so smart! Second thought: hide all the pens!!! Anyway, he has changed so much that I was sure there would be massive differences from month to month...but it's "only" a half inch per month since January. He's now 34 1/4", which still keeps him hovering around that 70th percentile. I should get a scale to track his weight too, but I'm almost afraid to know. This kid is built solid, no doubt.

Monkey walk, frog hops and Edward

It's my fault. I should have known better. But I ordered the Kindle anyway.

That would have been bad enough....but then I started reading Twilight. I couldn't resist the curiosity to find out what the big deal was, what all the fuss was about. I lost an entire weekend to vampires and wolves -- and it was wonderful! I had a ton of work I needed to accomplish over the weekend but I felt that anxiety and stress fall away the further I escaped into the story. Besides being the first thing I've taken the time to read since WeiJ came home, I think these are the first books I've read since late 2006 that didn't have something to do with either adoption, toddler parenting or China. During the wait I threw myself at those books partly as preparation, partly as a way to stay connected to the hopeful dream. It felt like such a luxury to read something just for pure fun!

I can't remember the last time I read a book all the way through, let alone 3 1/2 of them in a weekend. It would have been a complete 4, but I *did* manage to pull myself away enough to enjoy silly time with WeiJ. We ran laps around the house in games of chase (and tickle), and hopped like frogs. We also walked like monkeys (the Mowgli walk) but I get too much of a kick out of watching him do that to actually do much of it on my own. He's getting so heavy that it's hard to do as much of the swinging games he likes, so we just twirled in circles to get dizzy instead. Lots of tickling, lots of flipping upside down, lots of silly infectious laughter.

And last night, on the day that marked 6 months after we met, he blew kisses at me after I tucked him in. *sigh* He's come so unbelievably far and I'm just too lucky for words.

Blogging in Bullets

Things have gotten so busy around here that it's come to the point where I have to jot down bullet points in a draft just to remember what I wanted to share when the rare free moment comes along and I have a chance to write. I know my writing has been a little on the choppy side - that's because I'm writing blurbs at a time and it just doesn't flow. So for today, I'll leave them for what they are - bullets as paragraph titles.

kick! hop!
WeiJ has been jumping incessantly ever since he saw the kung fu demonstrations at the CNY events. He was obviously paying attention (surprise, surprise) and I think is trying to mimic some of the moves. Last week he was throwing his head back as he jumped - maybe a wishful attempt at backflips? He has also been working on the splits, I think. I've caught him a few times letting his feet slide further and further apart until they won't go any further. No doubt in his mind he's trying to figure out how it works. And then the cutest part is he started to mix in kicks among his series of jumps. Better yet, he's vocal about it too! Not only do I get entertained by the nonstop energizer bunny working himself into a sweat, it's accompanied by shouts of hop! kick! (or technically, it's more like HA! GICK!) Just cute as can be!

bottomless pit
Wow can this boy put away the groceries this week! I'm running out of snack ideas and can't seem to keep the fridge stocked well enough for him. After being sick last week, he has been making up for it with a vengeance. He finally has enough teeth to handle some raw veggies so I'm starting to work those into the mix too. It's a little disconcerting to feed him and then have him keep coming back 15 minutes later motioning for more. I know he's eating good stuff, but still - how can that little body process this much?? Full meals, nonstop snacking...I smell a growth spurt!

14 hours of sleep
And if the ravenous appetite wasn't clue enough, then there's his marathon sleep on Saturday. I put him down for his 2nd nap at 5, thinking he'd sleep till maybe 6:30. I was close - it was 7:00...the next morning!

nose kisses
I don't remember which movie it was, but WeiJ and I were watching a cartoon that showed a girl "eskimo kissing." WeiJ thought that was the funniest thing...and even funnier when I gave him one. Neither one of us has the most prominent nose so it's just silly fun to try.

v-day cookies
My little valentine and I made a batch of oatmeal raisin cookies on Valentine's day. Yummy! Or in WeiJ-ese, more? followed by a sweet grin and an even sweeter Thank You!

6-month post adoption report
I can't believe it's already that time - our first post-adoption visit with my social worker. I wasn't terribly worried about it, mostly because I didn't have time to be. But at the last minute, I had sudden attack of the what-ifs and wished I had spent more time scubbing the house till it sparkled. In the end, she didn't even look around much and just wanted to go through a long series of questions. WeiJ slept over 3 hours and almost didn't wake up in time for the visit...and when he did woke up, he was disappointed that the noise he heard in the kitchen didn't turn out to be ShuShu, Ayi, or "Lelo." His little lip was even quivering at the prospect of a stranger in his kitchen! He snuggled on me for a bit before he warmed up but ended up doing just fine. 6 months. 6 months! Pulling out the original paperwork and seeing his mug shots from Adoption Day were a little shock to the system. He has changed so much - but mostly it's the sadness in his eyes that jolt me. Then I pulled out his recent photos to send in, and the side by side comparison made me smile and made my heart happy. I'm so proud to be able to show China how he's thriving. It's unbelievable how much difference there is in what really is a short amount of time. It has flown by!

Little Green Man

*Oops! I thought I published this on Friday after battling with Blogger but I found it still in Draft.**

Sometimes I forget that WeiJ notices everything. And then he'll do something that reminds me that I'd better watch what I say and do, even when I think he's not paying attention. Ever since we were in China, he has seemed to get a kick out of being asked to throw things away. "Can you put this in the trash for me?" is usually met by a grin and the patter of (not so) little feet running to the nearest trash can. It never occurred to me that he was figuring out the difference between what items go in the trash vs recycle based on what I gave him and which trash can I steered him to. Earlier this week, I went to take the bags out for trash day and sitting right on top of the recycle pile was WeiJ's green sports bottle. Apparently it was completely logical to put it there after he finished his water - since that's where Mama's empty water bottles go! Yes WeiJ - Reduce, Reuse, Recycle.

I'm almost embarassed to admit that one of his new words this week is TV. He LOVES watching Planet Earth, especially any segments involving fish. I do let him watch PBS in the mornings while I come to life. That brought his next new word of the week: triangle! He's even been bringing me his wooden blocks to show me the triangle shapes.

He's such a funny little guy. Last night I decided to give tuna a shot to see if he'd eat some. I tried to make it fun for him and made a cute little plate with the tuna on crackers with spinach and cheese....and it looked like I had finally found a food he WOULDN'T eat. Until I wrapped the tuna in spinach, that is. What other kid in the world would THAT work with?

Some Rambling Thoughts on CNY

The two Chinese New Year's celebrations I attended during the adoption wait were very emotional events for me. It was all I could do not to sob out loud at times when I watched the girls dancing - they were flesh and blood in front of me that represented all of the possibilities that lay ahead. They were all of my hopes and dreams that had yet to come true - not just dreams of the the child yet to be, but such strong hope that she might fully embrace her heritage as these girls do. Obviously she became a he, but the hopes remained the same.

This year, it wasn't the cute little girls that tugged so hard at my heart as they had before. It's fun to recognize some of the faces and realize how much they've grown, and they're just as precious as ever. I used to be moved by the awestruck eyes of the little girls watching the older girls dancing and dreaming of oh if only someday I could dance like that too ...but this year it was the mesmerized eyes of my own son studying the 8 year old boy's kung fu performance and wondering if he was imagining oh if only someday I could move like that too. It was the dancing legs, waving arms, clapping hands, and swaying of his constantly growing little body - it was seeing how this music and dance struck a chord inside him. Today I had to blink back tears again during the lion dance as I wondered if that might be him in there someday.

From the beginning I've intended on holding on to as much of his heritage as I can - I feel like I owe that to him. I know he's only a toddler and he may struggle with where he wants to find his identity later on, but for now we both get to watch the dancers and dream of what someday holds.

For WeiJ, it's boundless.

Spinning

So...after several restless days and nights, the dust at work seems to be starting to settle.
The good news is I'm still employed. Yay!
And I get to continue working from home. Yay!
But after 15 years in the same division, I'm off to new waters and feeling a *teensy* bit of stress over it. I know -- I'm lucky to still be swimming at all. At least I had a couple of months back at work before having to test this whole "life/work balance" thing!

WeiJ's been a little silly, a little fussy, a little under the weather this week. In between testing limits and blowing his nose, he is also apparently working on another vocabulary explosion. Just today, he copied me when I said "blackberry" (and yes, it was the fruit and not the gadget!) and - this one was inevitable - Costco!

Tomorrow we're headed to WeiJ's first luncheon with the group of families with kids adopted from China (FCC). One more chance to dress up in his silks while these still fit, and he'll get to see the lion dance again up close. Should be fun!

Halfway to Streaker

So I'm adding the last ingredients to our dinner when I hear an insistent "EH!" behind me. I turn around, and there's WeiJ with his socks in one hand (nothing new) and ... uh oh, his PANTS in the other. Guess who has figured out how to undress himself.... I'm in trouble when he starts undoing that diaper!

He's actually been having a pretty good week, mood-wise. He's still a little clumsy and cries uncontrollably at the drop of a hat but fortunately those clouds pass pretty quickly and he's back to his chatty, silly self. He's passed the 100 mark for words and seems to be gearing up for another vocab explosion soon.

We've gone back for our 2nd attempt at a social security card but unfortunately got a very hesitant person who wasn't sure she wanted to accept our paperwork as sufficient for proving his birthdate. I'm not sure if she expected China to publish a birth certificate that looks identical to the state-issued ones here, or what -- but at any rate his case is "under investigation" until she can resolve whatever hangup she has. Frustrating!!

Oh well, no time to linger on being frustrated. There is much too much fun to be had in the next couple of weeks, PLUS we will be doing our 6-month post-adoption homestudy! I guess time flies when you're chasing a toddler! :)