Ty loves to decorate!

Kacie grabbed my Flip Camera and recorded Ty as we were getting Christmas decorations out.

Jump Tyson Jump!

Today Ty finally caught some air under his feet. I bought this little trampoline on Friday, and it's paying off already. Jumping is one of his gross motor goals. He'll get there! For now, it's just so much fun to play with Jie Jie on.

Black Friday shopping with 2 kids and one rude comment

I didn't hit the super early sales because there was really nothing I wanted that bad, and I had Kacie and Ty, as Dan not only had to work at 6 am, he got called at 3:30am to come in for 2 hours OT. I like to shop Black Friday not just for Christmas items, but to actually clothe myself and my family. I like to hit sales, and doesn't everyone? But I live in a small town where the only stores I am remotely interested in are JC Penny, Big 5, and Wal Mart. Not that I like these stores, it's just that those are my options! Normally I would drive the 45 minutes to the next bigger city to have all the choices one would wish for, but since we just drove the 1hr 10 min one way for Thanksgiving yesterday, I didn't want to put them through another car ride.

So at 8:30, off we went to JCP because Kacie needed a winter coat. I bought her a coat at the beginning of the school year, but it's not as warm as she thought it would be. But also, I needed a new coat! I haven't bought a new coat in (drumroll.........) at least 6 years. Yep, it's time. We put Tyson in the stroller (still the one from China which is a total piece of garbage at this point), and off we went. We successfully found what we were looking for, and more. We always get to this time of year and I realize that Kacie doesn't have enough long sleeved shirts. Ty was in teh stroller about an hour. He pulled down one coat rack! So scary.

We got some dirty looks because Ty likes to let out a yell that sounds like a growl. It's something that I am just used to. I know he is just trying to get my attention, and the sounds are totally cleft related. Well, we got some dirty looks at JCP. I just smiled. But one lady had the audacity to scowl and ask, "How old IS he?" as if he was too old to making those sounds. I just smiled and proudly declared, "He's 2yrs 5 months, but he has been in this country for three months and has a wide open cleft palate." She clammed up and was very embarrassed, as she should have been. Another example of how Ty does not look like he has special needs, but it's also an example of how people can be so incredibly rude. I tried to handle it with class, but I don't think I need to tell perfect strangers his life story. I think I summed it up well.

Then we drove over to Big 5 and I thought Ty would do fine without the stroller. Uh...what was I thinking? I bought a 40in jogger trampoline for Ty to bounce on to get his legs moving and jumping. Kacie was trying on shoes, and what was Ty doing? Taking her old shoes and replacing the display shoes with her old ones! When I stopped that, he then put her old shoes in the new shoe box and ran around the shoe department laughing with delight! I couldn't get out of there quick enough.

Finally, off to Wal Mart, where my mom was shopping. Carts are a good thing, and Ty likes to ride in them. We decided to try having my mom take Kacie and Ty around the store so I could buy a few things. IT WORKED! I think it helped that we had Thanksgiving with my mom yesterday. Ty is really loving "Ama" now. That was pretty cool, and I actually accomplished something. Finally, we finished our day with lunch at McDonalds, the only place we don't have to listen to Kacie complain about the food. That girl gets pickier by the day!

Kacie went on home with my mom for the weekend. Ty and I had one last stop to make. Our friend's daughter is home from college. She left for college the day before we got home with Tyson. We had a good visit, but it was way past naptime. Ty finally went down about 1/2 hour ago. Phew!

Now to tackle the mess I call my home...yuck! I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving.

We are thankful today and everyday!

As I was falling asleep, I tried to think of a way to convey what I am thankful for in a not-so-typical way. The best way I can do it is to emulate a great children's book called "Q is for Duck".

P is for wet. Why? Because last night as we were coming in the house, Tyson found a Puddle to stomp in and get all wet. As I stared horrified, Dan said, "There's your boy!"

R is for Ma Ma. Why? Because Ty's new thing to say to me is "Ma Ma! RAININ'!" (It rains over 100 inches a year where we live).

M is for toys. Why? Because there is a constant Mess of toys in my house!

T is for AFV. Why? Because we have found a Television show the whole family can enjoy, even Tyson: America's Funniest Home Videos! He oooooh's and aaaaah's at people. I guess stupidity is a universal language.

R is for bedtime. Why? Because in the last few times, Ty lets me Rock him before bed.

All of these things and more bring tears to my eyes and joy in my heart. I am truly thankful that God is good to me and my family. I am thankful to China for allowing us to adopt Tyson. I am thankful to the US that he is a citizen. I am so thankful that he is in good health and is a bright little boy with a smile that lights up a room. I am thankful that he is with us to get the medical attention he needs (surgery in 12 days!). I am thankful for the hugs and kisses he gives, the little games he plays, and the energy he brings to our home.

But of course, I can't forget Kacie, who started her life on tubes and a breathing machine. A 6lbs 9oz 35 week preemie who was so sick with respiratory distress she couldn't maintain her own body temperature and eat/suck/swallow on her own. (Her lungs were not developed when my water spontaneously broke) My little baby who received monthly shots to keep her healthy, who endured pnemonia at age 3. He lungs had about all they could handle. AND NOW? She is FULL OF LIFE every moment of the day. She hops around the house, so excited for the holidays. She loves Jesus and is a great big sister. She has a ton of friends and a caring and nurturing heart.

So with that everyone, HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Back to work!

On Monday, I went back to work. Considering that Dan was off hunting, I'd say the work part of it went rather smoothly. But in Dan's 9 days gone, we lost power, had 2 storms, I locked myself out of the house, and so many other typical issues that go along with murphy's law. But the work week was good. I have a nice class, and I just love seeing my colleagues again. However, the nights with my kids go way too fast. I hate that. I feel like I pick up the kids from daycare, make dinner, clean up, and soon it's bedtime. That I don't like at all.

If you haven't heard the new song "Heaven is the Face" by Steven Curtis Chapman, I highly suggest you try to hear it. He and his wife have adopted 3 little girls, and one went to heaven in a tragic accident in May of 08. It is a beautiful song.

So here are my kiddos relaxing on the couch this week. I'm just amazed at how God chose these two to be brother and sister.

Tyson before lip repair

I figured out how to get this into a jpeg and thought some people might like to see it. China did an amazing job on Tyson's lip repair. This picture was taken 4-10-08, and his surgery was 4-21-08. This was a picture I received in my recent HTS report.

The paperwork stated that Tyson has a left unilateral complete cleft lip and palate. However, there is a red mark on the right that is another microform cleft that we didn't know about until we got him home. But if you are waiting for a child with a complete unilateral cleft lip and palate, here's what it may have looked like before repair. Our doctor here is very happy with the repair that Ty had in China.

HTS Reports! And brag on Kacie

Today I had reports from Half the Sky in my email in box! They are PDF files, and they said they have more that are not digital and that they will mail them to me! I am so excited. I have 3 new pictures of Tyson that I didn't have before, and I have quarterly translated reports from Fall 07 to Spring 09. Amazing! THANK YOU HTS!!!

If you are considering adoption and your child is being supported by HTS, I cannot tell you what an amazing organization this is. If I can figure out how to turn pdf files to jpg, I will post a picture of Ty before his lip repair. It's truly incredible what a great job they did on his surgery when you see how wide his cleft lip was.

I also had a conference with Ty's teacher. It was nice to sit and chat. Most of the things on the checklist I already knew he could/couldn't do, but he's making good progress. So many things he cannot do due to his cleft (blow bubbles, drink from a straw, etc...) I guess yesterday he was misbehaving a lot, but part of that is just seeing what he can get away with. Over all, I'm very proud of his progress in his 2.5 months home with us! I think people forget it's been that short amount of time!

Now I have to brag on my daughter...

Today she came home and told me that as recess was ending, she saw what looked like a wet gift card envelope When she picked it up, she realized there was a gift card in it! She immediately turned it into the office. The student it belonged to was older, but she came to Kacie's class and said thank you to Kacie and told her it had $50 on it! Kacie was shocked, and now she understands why we don't take valuables to school. She felt good about doing the right thing, and I am proud of her for it. It's nice when you try to instill values in your kids and you see your work pay off by their personal choices.

Loving my kids today! Well, I love them everyday, but today my heart just swells a little more! Thank you God for my kids.

Pics from 11/12/09

Tyson was enthralled by Kacie's DS (the same DS she left on the plane in China that i pulled off a miracle to get back!). He climbed on top of her to get a good look! For some reason after his nap, he likes to just be in his diaper. So we just go with it!





And then there was dinner. He had way too much fun with teh mashed potatoes. :)

Times are changing

I haven't blogged in a week, which means sadly, we haven't done anything very exciting. But we are about to have some new beginnings. Three months ago today, we were boarding a plane to China as a family of three. Since then, we have brought Tyson into our lives and have gone through all the typical international adoption transitions. We are finally finding our "normal" as a family of four.

I am a planner. As a teacher, I like my lesson plans to be done a week in advance, and I will make changes as needed. As a mom, I like the family calendar all written down a month in advance. But even the best laid plans change.

I had planned to have the morning to clean the house while Ty was at preschool (I am well! Now I have to make up for all the cleaning I missed while sick). Tomorrow he was going to daycare, and I was going to go to school to make lesson plans for next week. But I got a call that I could get Ty the H1N1 vaccine on Friday. Well, time to change plans! So I went to school and got as much done as I could. And when I dropped him off at preschool today, I told the teacher it would be the last time she would see me, so we made meeting time for tomorrow as well to see how Ty is progressing, so more on that tomorrow.

Times are changing, and we are finding our normal life again. No more waiting for letters, no more wondering how Tyson will fit in. No more of being scared of leaving him at daycare or preschool. I have prepared him the best I can, and things are going well. Part of me wishes I could stay home longer, and part of me can't wait to get back to work!

He has special needs?

This is a common question we get. "How did you get a boy from China?" Fair question...very fair question. I can't help but smile because I know where this is going. My answer is usually something like this, "Well, Tyson was adopted through the special needs program." Then there's a pause...then something like this is said: "He has special needs?" And I just smile, and I go on to talk about Tyson's cleft lip and palate.

And sometimes the other person says, "Cleft lip and palate is special need?" And so I explain the physiology of the cleft, the surgeries he will need, and the effect on speech. I also talk about the numerous dr. appts, etc...And then people often say, "But there's nothing else?" "Not that we know of, " I reply. And then they look at Tyson, and just say, "Wow!" and usually they go on to say that they never considered clefting as a special need.

In ways, don't we all have special needs? I think that is one of the biggest things I have learned through this process. I remember way back in my sp. ed course work in college, which I didn't see relevance in back then, learning that any child or person with a special need is a person first! I learned more in that class than all of my others combined. That one lesson is the one that has stuck with me my whole teaching career and how I look at and deal with people. And with Tyson, I see Tyson. I see a beautiful little boy who never stops talking, boundless energy, and into everything. Dan made the comment tonight, "We are so lucky he's not an octopus because I can't imagine how many things he could fit in his hands and arms!"

Here's another one I like, and it's been a lot more lately. Tyson's palate surgery is December 8th. I am going back to work, but only for three weeks, then I'm off for the surgery. So I say, "I'll be back to teaching for three weeks, then I have to be off again for Tyson's surgery." Then the person says, "Surgery? Why does he need surgery?" I reply, "He still has a cleft palate." People don't even realize Tyson has an open palate. Others didn't even know he had this special need! Some people think cleft lip and palate is only a cleft lip because that is what they see.

Dan and I both agree: it might say on paper that Tyson has special needs, but special needs does not define our son. We both see Tyson for the person he is, who just happens to have a cleft lip/palate. For people who know he has the cleft palate, it is something they may or may not think about. But once you meet Tyson, you forget all about it.

However, I think it is an important need to educate people about cleft lip and palate. It is a facial deformity, and in our superficial society, people tend to look at people with an unrepaired cleft lip as ugly, scary, etc... This was true the first time Kacie saw a picture of a child with unrepaired cleft lip. Kacie said, "Oh, what is wrong with him?" I educated her, and I said, "Look at his eyes, aren't they beautiful?" And the more she looked at pictures, the more she wanted to see more pictures because that was her way of identifying with her new brother, even though Ty's lip was repaired. She has learned that God creates us all differently, and we need to celebrate and appreciate those differences.

With that said, clefting is a need that needs to be repaired, not only for the self-esteem of appearance, but the formation of speech and eating issues. No, it's not so much fun when Ty loses a noodle out of his nose, but it is what is. We clean it and move on. That's it. But I cannot imagine that happening as a school aged child, teen, or adult. Yet all over the world, people deal with this because there is no way to afford the surgeries that are needed.

We are also asked why we chose cleft lip/palate as a special need for us. I'm not going to say it was an easy decision. One day, I'd say yes, the next day I'd say no way. But after turning down a referral, I knew clearly this was a correctable need that I could help a child overcome. As a teacher, I can help with the speech side of things and I understand the early intervention process. Cleft lip/palate is not, I repeat, NOT a minor need. Ty will need surgeries for a lot of things: palate repair and tubes in his ears, gumline repair, nose and lip reconstruction, jaw reconstruction, etc...and that's if all goes well. But it is a correctable need.

But here's what it comes down to. Tyson's birth parents, for whatever reason, had to make the heart-breaking decision to allow someone else to parent him. God chose us to be Tyson's parents. And so we are...and oh yeah, he's going to need some surgeries,... OK, we can do that. But when he's not having surgery, he's bugging his big sister while she talks on the phone, and he wrestles with his daddy, and he loves on his mommy, and he eats like horse, and he plays like a child should play. I was talking with my friend the other day about Ty and his personality, and I couldn't come up with the words. Finally she said it best..."He's Ty Ty."

Yes he is, he's Ty Ty. Our Ty Ty, that God blessed us with the privilege of raising as our son. So how did we get a boy from China? We opened our hearts and minds to the possibility of adopting a boy with special needs, something many people are not open to. And when we opened our hearts, God filled our home with more laughter and excitement than we could have ever dreamed. I know not every adoption works out this way, and we have a long ways to go; but for now, I cannot imagine my life without Tyson in it. He has special needs, sure, and we'll deal with them when we need to. In the meantime, he's just Ty Ty, a little boy who came half way around the world to live with a family who will love him through all life's twists and turns.

Halloween

When he first tried on the costume, he hated it! But then he decided...it's not that bad.




When the big night came, he was ready to trick or treat! Kacie was a cat (who had to wear orange and black striped tights because "plain black is so boring!" I love her!) and Ty was a lion, and I'm guessing the head part was itchy or hot because he kept it off. Nevertheless, he was so adorable. He couldn't say trick or treat, but he had the right intonation so it came out, "uh oh eh!" Everyone loved it! And then of course his thank you is, "Ah oooo!"

First Day of Daycare and the Bus Ride

I made the daycare calendar last week, with today being Ty's first official day at daycare. It was more like 3.5 hours, as I figured we should transition slowly. It was also a trial run of getting two kids ready for school on my own rather than one. I return to work in two weeks. As I left, he ran after me, but K grabbed him and turned him around and I heard no crying, so I'm thinking the plan to have him at daycare with K is a good thing! So that part was a success, and off I went to run errands. My first stop was my school, as I am helping my sub with report cards and conferences, which are next week. I also enjoy saying hi to my kids, and they seem to like seeing me...for now.

I had to swing by Ty's preschool on an errand, and I got a chance to talk with the PT/OT teacher. It was great to talk with her and it put my mind at ease for a lot of things. If he keeps doing what he's doing (factoring in surgery of course), he will probably test out of PT/OT in the spring. He just needs to keep building his muscles up, but he seems to be progressing well in a normal manner, just later than most kids his age.

After a few stops at the bank and Wal Mart, I was at the grocery store pulling yogurt off the shelf when my phone rang. It was K's school number, so that can't be good. K woke up with a little cough, so I figured she needed to come home. Instead, the school secretary told me that a truck had cut off our school bus, and the bus had to slam on the brakes, and kids went tumbling! All school nurses reported to her school, as well as the paramedics and checked out every child. K had complained of a sore neck, so they had iced it, and she returned to class, but they thought maybe I should come check her out myself. I hung up, and sort of froze, staring at the yogurt. That's not a call you want to get, even knowing she's fine, it was still pretty surreal. So back to my neighborhood I went to check K out. She is fine, but you never know how she may feel later, so we'll keep an eye on that.

Then it was time to pick up Ty, and he did great at daycare. There were no tears, and best of all, he was happy to see me when I got there. But when we got home, he started the most bizarre behaviors. He dumped his cherrios out and stepped on them in the kitchen. He put water in his mouth, only to spit it all out down the front of his shirt with his tongue. He screamed while I was cutting meat for the stew for dinner because I wouldn't give him more cherrios. He hit me many times.

Yep, we are in transition. I had taken him to daycare before, but I stayed. This time, I left, and he was letting me know that this was new and he didn't know how to deal with his emotions. I was prepared for this, so I'm not in shock, but it still hurts. We went through our normal nap routine, and now he is settled down and sleeping with T-Bone and Winnie the Pooh.

All of this before noon. I wonder what's in store for the rest of the day?

Here are pictures of Kacie and Tyson doing "sommersaults" in the living room. They were having a blast!

Just out for a ride yesterday

He still scoots because he can't reach the pedals, but he loves being outside!

Home two months!

We've been home two months. We've had Ty 2.5 months. Look at the difference:

Then, in China






Now, in the last two weeks




And of course you can scroll back to previous blogs in the last few weeks. Wow, what a difference SEVEN pounds makes. Yes, I said seven. Now I'm getting concerned. He's at about the 50th%ile for weight now, but still only just above the 5th %ile in height. I want to scream, "GROW GROW GROW!" He hasn't grown much at all. His head has grown 1 cm in the last two months as well.

Sleep update: Sleep is going GREAT! It will never be perfect, but I can now leave the room after tucking him in. Sometimes he cries, sometimes he doesn't. If he does cry, it's less than 5 minutes, then he stops. This for both nap and night time. We have a good book routine before both "night nights". Tonight I was reading "Clifford" to him, and in the cartoon there is a character named T-bone. Well I went and got Kacie's old T-Bone stuffed animal, and Ty thought that was the neatest thing ever. He is sleeping with T-Bone right now. And when he wakes up in the mornings, he doesn't cry. He just yells, "Ma MA!" I was telling Dan about that, and as Dan pointed out, that tells us he's not scared anymore! He knows where he is, and he's just ready to get up.

He really enjoys it when we have a stuffed animal of a book character. So far we have Pooh, piglet, pugs, Clifford, T-bone, and then many other animals in general. He also loves plush talking/singing toys. Elmo, a teddy bear named William, and Baby Tad from Leap Frog are some of his favorites. Ty requests for me to sing "Itsy Bitsy Spider" so he can do the moves, or just to watch me. He also like patty cake and "if you're happy and you know it". We are working on Head Shoulders Knees and Toes, but I do all the pointing. There is one show on TV he will watch: The movie "CARS". His bedroom is all Cars, and thank goodness, he loves it! He uses a driving motion and says, "rrooom rrrooom!" for a car noise everytime he sees or hears a car. All day long, his two favorite topics are cars and birds. The other show he gets excited about is Ni Hao Kai Lan, but that lasts for 15 seconds, and then he's no longer interested.

Ty is still very challenging at times. He still hits, and I don't know what to do to get him to stop. I model, I use time out, I talk to him, we say "nice hands, soft hands, etc..." I'm feeling really stupid for not being able to stop this behavior. Of course it's only at home. He does it when things aren't going his way. I'm sure it's his way of controlling a situation that he has no control over...so is that an adoption thing or a two-year old thing?

And I continually realize just how much English he understands. I muttered to myself this morning, "Ty needs to wash his hands." Well, he picked up on it and started rubbing his hands together and walking to the bathroom.

Everywhere we go, I am not kidding, I am told how cute Tyson is. I look around at all the other kids, and they are cute, but what is it about Tyson? I thought about this for a long time today, and here's what I came up with:

1. His eyes. Even men in elevators in China told us how gorgeous his eyes are. In his referral paperwork it said he had "Big sensitive eyes". That was about the most accurate piece of of information in the paperwork.

2. Being a conspicuous family. We are a very fair skinned family with Scandinavian heritage. Then there's Tyson, not of Scandinavian heritage, obviously. Here's what's funny: people who haven't seen me in a long time ask me when I had a baby! Hmmmmm... But my point is, we stand out, and that could be why Ty is noticed.

3. I am happy. I mean REALLY happy. I think I am still in new mommy mode, and I'm so in love with Tyson. In public, I smile at him, love on him, talk with him, laugh at/with him. Maybe our happy vibes just rub off.

But I think this is it: people have the same reaction to Ty that we had when we first saw his referral photos. You can't help but fall in love with him. We are so very blessed God matched us with Tyson. I can look back and see why our wait was so long and why things fell into the places they did. And now, I am so very thankful.

Oh, one more thing! Tyson played Mario Kart on the wii with me tonight! That is a rite of passage in this family!

Inspiration today

What do I love about Tyson this morning?

I love the way he nods his head in quick little movements.

I love how he tries to be like his big sister in so many ways, even emulating how she has milk in her cereal bowl by pouring his drinking milk into a bowl.

How he dances in his high chair.

How Kacie and I were discussing the rain outside, and he yelled and interrupted, "Ma MA" and then gave the sign for raining and said, "Ai-nen" as if he wants to just be part of the conversation.

How he smiled when I went to his room to wake him and gave me a great big bear hug to say good morning.

How he says "I Love You" by saying "Ah La Loo".

When he asks for his daddy using sign language and pointing to his picture.

And I could go on and on...If God's love for us, who are adopted into His family, is even 1/1000th of my love for Tyson, it is a love beyond my own understanding. God has blessed me with two of the most loving children, and I am forever thankful for His goodness and blessings.

Do I have H1N1? and What's different?

I have to wonder. I am on day 8 of feeling like there is a printing press pushing on my head. Friday night I pumped myself up with airborne, green tea, and gatorade; and I woke up feeling pretty good on Saturday. I took Kacie shoe shopping (the one thing we didn't do before/after China. Poor kid was still in Crocs from the summer and one pair of sneakers!). I even showered and blow dried my hair, all within the same hour! So yes, I was feeling great. After Ty's nap, we went outside for some much needed outdoor play. Kacie rode her bike while Ty scooted his big wheel up and down the road. We are so lucky to live on a residential, yet pretty sleepy dead-end road. Add to that Kacie has classmates 5 houses down on the left and the right--both boys, but when you're 8, who cares! So I was with Ty, and Kacie grabbed the boys for an afternoon bike ride. Around 5:30 we called it quits so Kacie could get ready for a Halloween party, and I could take Tyson out to dinner with my old principal and some teacher friends. All was good until I got home, and once again, the Mac truck came and flattened me. I guess feeling like I belonged in the world was very short lived. So here I am, missing church again. I am over the fever/chills/sore throat. That was at the beginning of the week. I just have this nasty cold and cough that won't go away.

"No! Tyson! Stop!" These are the words of the house, and they aren't necessarily my words, they are Kacie's. Tyson has decided it's fun to hit people again. I'm sure this has everything to do with the fact that I left him at preschool this week. Must have been the longest 2 hours of his life for him to lash out like this. He cries a little when I leave, but they can get him involved in something quickly, like bikes or art. He LOVES the art table! When I pick him up from preschool, I stand outside the classroom and listen to him. I hear, "LO LO LO LO GA GA GA GA AGH!" Yes, he is vocal, and he imitates everything. Whatever tone Kacie says something, he says it back, almost mockingly. I can't help but laugh from the other room.

So what else is different? Well I'm glad I didn't paint the kitchen before Tyson. He has drawn on most of the drawers now. The floor is scratched from the high chair, and he has shown interest in eating at the table. So I got out the booster and he can do it, but he uses his feet to push his chair away from the table. That's not going to work...But I have plan B. I'll try putting his chair along the wall so he can't push back! HA HA! He also likes to ride his big wheel in the house, more scratching of floors. He can't reach the pedals, but he scoots along just fine. My back yard is filled with maple leaves. I learned yesterday that the neighbors have been admiring the maple trees were so fortunately (sarcasm) blessed with upon moving in. I'll admit, in the summer the shade is nice.

As you can tell, we are just practical, simple, ordinary people. Someday I'll look at those scratches on the floor and remember just how tiny Tyson was when we brought him home. Or someday when we can afford to remodel the kitchen (hahahaha!) I'll want to save a few of those drawers that I couldn't get permenant ink off of. And when I finally rake the leaves, I'll remember the shade they provided over the summer. So what's changed? A lot, and in the moment I get frustrated, but in reflection, I love every bit of it!

Carving Pumpkins

Of course I forgot to take pictures of the final products, but hey, you aren't missing anything. The point is we had fun! Sorry about the picture of Dan pretending he's throwing up pumpkin, but you have to see the little mimic in the next picture. What a ham! This was a night more about Kacie than Tyson, and from the looks on her face, she was having a great time, even when Daddy was throwing pumpkin all over her at one point. I was helping Ty join the fun, so no pics, but sometimes, you have to make the memories, not just capture them. When Kacie was Ty's age, cleaning the pumpkins scared her, so we weren't sure what to expect with Ty. No fear in this child!

Tyson's new trick!

I was in the kitchen and Kacie and Tyson were playing in the living room. I walked in the living room, and Tyson is comfortably sitting on the couch. Interesting because Tyson can't climb up on the couch yet!

Me: "KC, how did Tyson get on the couch?"
KC: "I don't know."
Ty: He smiles at me and slides off the couch. He proceeds over to the fireplace hearth, climbs on it (1 ft off floor), then stretches to the arm of the chair, demonstrating how he got on the couch!
Me: "KC, did you just see that?"
KC: "Um, yeah. He must have watched me do it when I was designing my obstacle course."

Tyson then demonstrated his new trick several times, once getting "stuck" only to realize he was only 1 inch from the ground. KC was using newspapers, Tyson's already strewn about toys, and furniture to create her own obstacle course. Creative, I thought! But we once again had the talk of how if Tyson sees her do something, he's going to do it too. She gets it now!

Digging into the past

Most on here know that I'm a teacher. I'm going into my 13th year as soon as I return to the classroom. In this time, I have learned that I need to get to know my students in order to love them and teach them in the way that works best for them. Some students I already know from seeing them the year before across the hall, but when mid year rolls around and you get a new student, you never know what you are going to get.

Usually a few days after that new student arrives, his/her file will arrive. I purposely do not look at that file until I have had a chance to get to know that student. Once I feel like I know them or have formed my own opinions, I will then go get the file to see what issues and grades that student had at another school to see if my thoughts are the same. Or sometimes, when a student switches schools, it's a chance for a new start. Maybe that child had a rough time at another school and wants to start fresh. If I read that file, I may have preconceived notions and treat the child as such. Generally, I can tell in the first few days what my new student is bringing to the table.

So why do I even bring this up? Well today I did it: I sent a request to Half the Sky to see if they have any information on Tyson. Up until now, I have based my beliefs on measurements, finding ad, referral information, photos, and updates. I have about 13 pages of Chinese writing about my little man, but I have not been at a place to want to know what's on those pages. Until now...

I am wondering if they will have the same pages that I have, but translated. That would be fantastic! Anything translated would be fantastic. I just feel that now I know Tyson well enough that I'd like to see if my assessments of his past are correct. I also want to know for him, obviously.

So, let's see what digging into the past will have. I will probably keep most of it private for Tyson's sake, but we'll have to see if there's anything in there that could help others as well.

Blah Blah Blah...

...because that's how I feel today. K got sick on Saturday, I got it yesterday. The good news is that I kept Kacie home today, and she seems to be on the mend. I think I am one day behind her because I'm feeling a little better today, so hopefully I'll be good to go tomorrow. The bad news is that Ty has been extra clingy and whiny today...no no no! I'm sure the boys aren't far behind in their illnesses.

I know several people are reading this while waiting for their own kids. The biggest thing I can say is to be prepared for regression in behavior. On Friday morning we noticed that Ty was being a bit agressive again. He has been hitting all weekend. We had this totally stopped, or so I thought. Yesterday I had to get super-strict about it, as I will not tolerate him hitting K. He's certainly testing because now he's using a softer style of hitting, just like he did with pinching. He's testing to see how hard he can hit/pinch and get away with it. Not only is this probably an adoption thing, it's also a toddler thing! But I am just surprised with how my emotions tense up when he regresses back to an old behavior, whether it's food, hitting, or tantrums. The tantrums have almost disappeared. Very rarely does he throw himself on the floor and scream. When he does, I let him do it for a minute, and if he doesn't get up, he goes to his time out spot--the playpen. He can still yell and scream all he wants, he's just not going to do it in the middle of where people need to walk or where I'm cooking dinner.

Sleeping is soooooo much better, although Friday and Saturday nights he fell out of bed. He is in a low toddler bed with a rail for the upper part. He must be wiggling a lot. The other reason he will wake up is that he will kick all the blankets off and then be cold. I am wondering if someone walked around at the orphanage and covered the kids up in the middle of the night. He does not like to go to sleep with blankets on, and forget about covering his feet. So I wait til he's asleep, then I cover him up and tuck in the blankets the best I can. But in both scenarios, when he does wake up, I'm only up for 5-10 minutes, and he falls back asleep. We have been very blessed in this part of our adoption.

Preschool is also going well. I left the room last Thursday, and he did great! I watched through the window during gym time and art time. I am actually going to leave the building tomorrow. I think he's ready for it. He enjoys his teachers and has so much fun. There is so much to do! I actually think that when I'm there, I'm holding him back and hovering too much.

Maybe some of you are thinking, "He's 2...preschool?" Tyson qualifies for the birth to three program, which is under the umbrella of special education. He was evaluated in 5 areas. The cleft palate is his major disability, which will qualify him for speech. However, we won't do that evaluation until after palate surgery. He did qualify under gross motor and adaptive skills, but he's quickly gaining in the adaptive area. Gross motor will take more time I'm sure, but already he's making progress. I think I blogged more about it in September if you want to know more. If you live in WA state, these services are provided by your district, so be sure to look into it!

Here are some random pictures I found that I hadn't posted.



On one of our last nice days, Tyson was out helping daddy mow the lawn.



A picture from the pumpkin patch that was on Kacie's camera. They sure enjoyed the hay maze!



This one is blurred, but it's Kacie and Ty on Ty's first day of preschool.