Sunday, November 22, 2015

Tru is 10 !

 























Happy Birthday Tru-Tru!!  10 years old already.  We love you so much!!

Monday, August 24, 2015

First Day of School - TLC

First Day of School Photo.

Met, by the subjects, with much dismay.

**Disclaimer - All children choice their own wardrobe....

**Side Note - not sure why the boys are standing at attention.
Top Dog at middle school, Lin-Ley began 8th grade. The request for these photos was met with a middle school "really, Mom!"
Tru was off to 4th grade. He was nervous, excited.
Crosse, wearing his new hearing aides, was ready for 7th grade. Immediately after school, he traveled to another campus to practice with the football team. He is on the team! 

Thursday, August 20, 2015

Tru's New Leg (#9) !

New Leg Day!
After only 7 months, Tru had grown so much taller that it was time for a new leg. As tradition requires (around here), it was time to line up the legs from Baby Red Leg to New Leg and all in between.
A knee adjustment here,
A height adjustment there.
Yes, Tru's got this! Watch out Color Vibe 5K - Tru is on his way!

Wednesday, July 29, 2015

8 Years Of Tru Love

It was 8 years ago today that we held this little guy for the first time. Little guy, large noggin, sad face.
It took two days to see a genuine smile from Tru. It was well worth the wait.
8 Years Later.... Tru has been obsessed with airports, airplanes and airlines for close to two years. He has his own personal copy of a book discussing all aspects of commercial airlines. Today, as a surprise, we took Tru to the airport to explore at his heart's content. He loved it! At the observation deck he watched and narrated. "OK, they are loading the food service there. Over there you can see they are unloading the luggage. Oh, wait, that plane just landed. American Eagle? Huh, I've never seen one of those planes before...."
"Oh, I found Qantas. Alaskan Airlines is not very popular here. Remember that time you got Dad a ticket on Southwest for $75?"
Tru wanted to see how many international airlines he recognized. "Yep, there's British Airways. Huh, I don't know about that one. Oh, Cancun. I'm sure it is nice there."
Lin-Ley went along for the adventure.
We even rode the bus. Tru told the driver we needed to go to the Delta counter.
This sums up the day. Tru is happy! Happy Gotcha Day to our Tru-Tru!! XOXO

Tuesday, June 30, 2015

Lin-Ley is 13!

Our Spicy Girl has become a Spicy Teen! Happy Birthday Lin-Ley!! For her birthday, she made the tough decision to get her ears pierced. After almost backing out at the last minute - she got her "diamonds".
Afterward, the anxiety remained...
The next day.
And since we were in Louisiana, she decided to wrestle a gator. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TOOTS!

Saturday, May 23, 2015

Dear Library,

Dear Library,
Thank you for making one of my wishes come true.  Let it be know, at this moment in time, all three of our kids are in their rooms quietly reading.  (Apparently Tru is also taking notes.)

Ahhhh.......




Yours Sincerely, Mom

Sunday, May 17, 2015

With A Grateful Heart

Since returning from China, with Crosse, our family has been so blessed! 

To back-track, throughout the entire adoption process our friends and family were incredibly supportive.  There were countless prayers and words of kindness and encouragement offered almost daily.

Once Tru was home with us, and his emergent medical needs were met, we knew our family was complete.  Family of four. 
That all changed in January of last year.  Many have inquired as to why, or how, we came to chose this road - to adopt a teenage boy.  That is easy to answer. 
On that cold, January, Friday night, we happened upon a website which explained the "aging out" process.  We learned that in Chinese orphanages, if the children reach the age of 14, they would no longer be eligible for adoption.  They would not have a forever family.  At 14 their future became a potential unknown.  14!

That weighed on us heavily.  We talked about it.  Prayed about it.  Talked to the kids about it.  As a family, we decided that we wanted to adopt one of the oldest children.  Along came Crosse's photo and a video of him signing.  We had another discussion and knew that we could learn ASL (American Sign Language).  A week later - our application was approved and the paperwork (goose chase!) began.

We have had many ask how we met or came to know Crosse.  Again, that is a simple answer.  We met him the day of his adoption. Only about 45 days ago!  Therefore, we can all understand his apprehension when he met his "new family" and was expected to leave with them/us.

Here we are, back in America for the past five weeks.  Three of those weeks, Crosse has been in school.  He is attending a school for the deaf and he is already thriving.  Smart boy!  We had no doubt we would catch-on to ASL quickly as he already knew Chinese Sign Language.
Yes - Chinese and American sign language are different!

Crosse (and our entire family) has been shown one kindness after another - cash gifts, gift cards, clothing, hand made cards, a huge birthday cake, a bilingual Bible, toys, balloons, fruit, chestnuts (which he loved - the rest of us... not so much :).  And the food!  It just keeps coming.  Home made Chinese treats - noodles, dumplings, and a variety of other foods including a special soup purchased from a restaurant with a chef from Crosse's home province in China.

Above all, we continue to receive daily prayers by so many.  So many people care about Crosse and his well being.  It is truly touching.  There simply are not words enough to express our gratitude.  The generosity and kindness to our family during this time of transition has left us awed and inspired.  Thank you!  Thank you all so much!

We are truly....

Wednesday, April 29, 2015

Crosse is 14 (Already)!

Who has been waiting to see a genuine smile from our guy? Well, here you go!
Today, exactly one month since his Gotcha Day, is Crosse's 14th birthday.

For dinner - dumplings. Chinese dumplings (just in case you were wondering). (Thank you Mrs. Jin and Charissa!!) Birthday cake - chocolate. Gift - remote control helicopter. And the helicopter prompted the first, unprompted, "thank you" from Crosse. Proud parent moment.

The helicopter spooked Crosse and it soon hit the floor. It may not be working properly at the moment.... Dad is going to try to exchange it tomorrow. School is still going well. Crosse is taking great pride is learning new words quickly. He has been practicing writing them and fingerspelling them. He is a quick study as we predicted/knew.

Here are the smiles:
Happy Birthday Crosse!

Monday, April 27, 2015

Finally, Crosse Goes To School

Today was Crosse's first day of school.  Finally!  He has had no routine for the past two weeks.  Now, he will have a routine.  A purpose for waking each morning.  (Well, let's not get carried away...)

This morning he understood where we were going but he was clearly nervous.  That is perfectly understandable!  I assured him many times that I would be back at 3:00 to pick him up and bring him home. 

For the past week we have tried to leave no questions unanswered - even if he did not ask the questions.  We went over the school cafeteria menu (in great detail), agreed he would bring a supplementary snack of his choosing, picked out his clothes for his first day (mom clearly still does not understand his style preferences) and discussed tomorrow's events again and again.  And again.

When I did return to get him, his teacher wanted to know if he enjoyed school.  I asked him and he said "no".  Once we were home, I ask what he did at school.  His answer, "nothing".  Typical answers for any kid.

Later he told us school was "good".  He has not said he did not want to go back, so we will take that as a positive! 

Today was my first day home alone.  Alone.  I may have done nothing (quite a bit) today.  Shhhh!
(I could get used to this Family Leave.)

I could not get a photo of Crosse on his first day of school.  Asking him to stand in front of his new school, in a new country with his new red backpack would have been asking a little too much of our Crosse.  Instead, a photo opportunity was delivered to our home today.  We received a beautiful Edible Arrangements.  The card states, "Congratulations on the new addition to your family."  The sender is currently a mystery.  So, whoever was kind enough to send this gift to our family, we Thank You!

Behold - Crosse's "First Day of School" photo:

Monday, April 20, 2015

One Week Home

We have been home for one week. It. Has. Been. A. Long. Week. We arrived home in the wee hours of last Sunday morning. Somehow, at 2:00AM, I was convinced to make everyone philly chicken sandwiches. We were all in the bed by 3AM. Lin-Ley had us up at 5:30AM. !!! We were up for the day – no naps – because Lin-Ley and Tru had school the next day.
First order of business, Crosse had his first driving lesson.






















Slowly, I am pulling Crosse out of his Kindle Coma. The time difference between the U.S. and China has been a challenge for him to understand. However, he still manages to connect with his friends. Somehow, it seems that the children in his orphanage have an infinite amount of time and opportunity to use electronics. Unfortunately for Crosse, now he has a Mommy that limits his time. Even more unfortunately, his Mommy requires him to follow the rules about time limits on the Kindle which has resulted is his losing the Kindle on multiple occasions. Already.

Crosse has had many firsts since he has been with us:
Using a toilet
Taking a shower
Using a shower curtain (We were not precise enough with those instructions!)
Using a fork and spoon
Using a hand towel after washing his hands (rather than flinging the water on the floor)

Today’s discovery – As I was collecting the trash around the house, I discovered at least half a roll of toilet paper in the boys’ trashcan.  I went to Crosse and asked him about it.  At first he acted as if he knew nothing about it.  Then he told me he used it one night to dry off after his shower.
Again, clearly, we are not being precise enough about the shower procedures. 

The problem at this point is that Crosse is bored.  He has not started school yet. 

Last week, must to his chagrin, Crosse was seen at his new school for audiology testing as well as to begin the official application process.  It was found that he does have some hearing in both ears.  However, the hearing loss is considered severe to profound.  We will follow up that testing with his primary care physician and (many) specialists in the near future.  Friday, Crosse was officially accepted to his new school.  Now, we continue to wait until they set-up the intake meeting. 

There is one thing that Crosse does not like – perhaps above all other things he does not like – waiting!!
I am with him on this one.  He needs to be in school.  Now.

Unfortunately, Dallas had to leave several days ago to be with his mother who suddenly became very ill.  We love you MaMa Linda!

So, Fun Daddy left Crosse with Serious Mommy.  Crosse has asked daily when dad would return. 

During dad’s absence, Crosse has been stuck with mom all day, every day.  We have made some progress with American Sign Language and he is catching on very quickly as I was sure he would.  He is taking pride in showing me what he remembers and he is writing his American name very well. 
 
The kids are spending a good deal of time together and still trying to find common interests. Lin-Ley and Crosse both love to run. Tru and Crosse both enjoy playing with Legos. One minute they get along great – the next….
Our TLC.

One week down. A lifetime to go.

Friday, April 10, 2015

Packed And (SOOOOOOO) Ready To Go Home

We have Crosse's U.S. visa. 
Hallelujah!  Hallelujah!!  Hallelujah!!! 

Our bags are packed.
Clothes are ready for the AM.

To say we are ready would be an understatement.

We just had our last meal in China.  I am ready for a big bowl of cereal with ice cold milk.  My next meal will be a peanut butter and jelly sandwich with a glass of ice cold milk.  Ice water - yes, ice water.  Anything with ice. 


Side Note:

To my Chinese friends - If anyone knows how to make this bread and can give me the recipe - you will be my hero. It is one of my most favorite things I have eaten here.











Things we are thankful for:
A loving God who has seen us through our journey to Crosse.
Finally having Crosse with us.
Many, many friends and family who have prayed for our journey.
Other than the need to use Tru's asthma medicine in Xi'an, we have all been well throughout the trip.
Dr. Jin and her medical expertise including a express shipment of more asthma medication.
Papa Bill for taking care of our home and Five-O (our dog) while we were away.
The ability to stay in contact during this journey thanks to technology (and wifi when we could get it).
The many FaceBook posts, texts and emails offering words of encouragement.
The people of China including our competent guides and drivers. 

We check out of our hotel at 7:30 AM tomorrow morning.  In only 27 short hours, we will land in Washington, D.C.  Then an hour drive home.  Then we crash.

Please pray for the final leg of our journey and Crosse's continued understanding and acceptance of his new family and home.

Thursday, April 9, 2015

Consulate Interview - Just Breathe

Finally, we had our U.S.  Consulate appointment today.  We, along with many other adoptive families, were interviewed so that our new family members might obtain their U.S. visa.  A must before we can leave China.

This morning, Crosse was too lazy to get up and get dressed for breakfast.  So, he and I stayed in the room.  It was a nice opportunity to try to communicate with him one-on-one to make sure he understood where we were going and why.  I also wanted to reiterate that we would be going to America in two days.  I showed him more photos of our home in Maryland because he has been referring to the hotel as our home.  Just wanted to make sure.
I told him we were going to a U.S. government building today to apply for his U.S. visa.  He told me "no".  I explained that we were going to fly to America in two days and, again, he told me "no". 

He says "no" A LOT!  He never wants to do anything or go anywhere if it involves him not sitting and playing on his Kindle. 
(We are going to have an electronics intervention once we get home.) 
(It's not going to be pretty.) 
(We really haven't had any choice but to let the kids spend too much time on their electronics here.)  (It's super boring sitting in a hotel room when it rains all day.) 
(Which it has done quite a bit!)

That being said, even though he said "no", I was unsure if he was just being lazy, and didn't to go anywhere today, or if he literally meant he did not want to go to America.  We are still trying to calculate his level of confusion/clarity.

So, we are at the Consulate and the officer told us that he would have to interview Crosse separately because he was over the age of 10.  Dallas and I just looked at each other wondering how that would work and what Crosse would say.

Due to his hearing loss, it was necessary to have an agent write the questions for Crosse in Chinese.  The questions were passed back and forth.

Question #1.  Do you understand that you are going to America?
Crosse studied the characters.  He picked up the pen and wrote, "I will fly to America in two days."
(Yes!)

Question #2.  Do you understand that these are your parents?
Crosse read and reread the question.  He shook his head.  He looked at Dallas and myself.
(Stomach dropped.)

I asked the officer if she could rephrase the question using the terms mama and baba (mom and dad) rather than the character for parents.
She rewrote the question.
Crosse read it again.  Again, he hesitated.
(Feeling nauseous.)
Finally, he wrote, "They are not my parents."
(Beginning to perspire.) (Cannot make eye contact with the agent.)

The agent quickly said, "I will accept that.  I am sure he is indicating that you are not his birth parents.  It was a very ambiguous question we asked him.  I am sure he understands."
(Sigh!!)

And with that, Crosse's visa application is now being processed.  It should be ready tomorrow afternoon so that we can fly HOME on Saturday morning. 

*Prayers please that it processes without complication or delay.*

So, what to do?  What to do on this overcast, rain threatening day?  The Guangzhou Zoo of course. 
No surprise, Crosse did not want to go.  "No!"  It is always fun to catch him enjoying something he really did not want to do.

So, this was our afternoon:













Add caption


























By far, the highlight, aside for watching the cute pandas, was feeding the giraffes. 
Below is a link to the video of TLC (Tru, Lin-Ley, Crosse) feeding the giraffes.  The lady in charge was very kind and gave them many branches and invited our whole family to participate.



One.  More.  Day.

Wednesday, April 8, 2015

Still Some Confusion

Crosse has had many firsts in the past 11 days. Probably one of his more anxious firsts was his first flight. From what we can tell, he had never seen an airplane in person previous to our flight Saturday afternoon.

He managed to get Wi-Fi in the airport. He connected with a friend at the orphanage and shared his experience by showing his friend the plane too.
He went to the window and signed to his friend while showing him the airplane. Crosse was concerned that the airplane only had one wing. He could not understand that the gate was blocking the view of the second wing. We finally were able to sign and gesture enough to make him understand.
Crosse's first flight.




















Before we left Xi'an, our guide helped us write Crosse a detailed note making sure he understood we were flying to Guangzhou, China. We would be flying to America seven days later. We studied the calendar together and Crosse said he understood. However, once we arrived in Guangzhou, a 2.5 hour flight from Xi'an, Crosse asked if we were in America. Obviously, he is still confused. We continue to discuss how many days we have left in China. 
Yesterday was the dreaded medical appointment. Again, Crosse was very confused. We explained that he would be seeing a doctor. He told us "no". He did not feel the need to go to the doctor because he was not feeling ill. He wanted to make sure that all of us were going - not just him. We assured him we were going too. While we were there we had to explain to him what was happening next including a blood draw and three vaccines. He was not happy....





Afterward, we asked our driver to take us to Shamian Island for some time out of the hotel. The weather was breezy and the courtyards were beautiful. It was time for some light shopping, lunch and photo ops.
My TLC - Tru, Lin-Ley, Crosse


























Later, at dinner, Crosse was trying to communicate something to us. He was very serious but we could not decipher all of his signs. Finally I convinced him to write it down. We took his note to the hotel concierge to ask for help translating it. Basically, from what we can tell, Crosse wanted us to know that in three years, when Dallas and I are "old", he will move back to Baoji, China. What? I think there is some more confusion...

There are many unanswered questions for Crosse. He/We need time to settle and meld together where he will feel totally comfortable and at ease. After receiving this translation, Tru helped clear up one fact for me though. He said, "Well, don't worry Mom. When you get old and die you will be an angel in Heaven. And then you won't have any wrinkles." Oh - thank you Tru!

OK - To bed. Two more days and a wake-up for us. We are sooooooooooooo ready to go home.

P.S. Dear Maytag washer and dryer - oh how I miss you. I cannot wait to spend several hours with you this weekend.