Spring is here and life is good

Life for all of us is great, a little hectic, and incredibly fulfilling. Every evening after dinner we sit on the floor and play and try to keep Evan out of everything when he cruises - there are toys everywhere and lots of noise - I love it. For me, it offsets the crazy pace at work caused by the endless focus on the housing market and economy. My hope is that the pace will slow down by June ... that is unless the Treasury pushes out more housing programs.

Evan with his Doc Band - he has a moderate diagnosis of plagiocephaly (aka - he has a flat and lopsided head). He'll wear this band for 23 hrs a day for about 4 months. It's really a non-issue for him. He goes about his day and night without noticing that it is on his head. In the photo above, he had been wearing the band about 4 hours. Now, he has had it about a month and I can already see changes in the shape of his head.

The evening I was taking pictures of Evan's Doc Band, Isabel also wanted me to take pictures of her so she struck this pose. What a ham ... and a beauty!!

Evan is learning to self-feed, which is a messy endeavor, but he is trilled by it. He is eating more and more table food and I'm trying to teach him how to drink from a sippy cup and a regular cup. His favorite foods are sweet potatoes, carrots, rice, mashed potatoes, yogurt, any type of fruit, chicken, and pasta. Oh, and I cannot forget Cheerios, which for him is it's own food group on the food pyramid.

Isabel is an up and coming artist. She creates more art than anyone I know and she is very creative. Even though I am a proud mom, I must admit she amazes me with her ideas - she makes her own puzzles, paints all types of pictures (like the self portrait above), puts together books with her drawing, uses her imaginary friends in her stories, writes 'letters' to her friends & family, creates large murals (one was the Great Wall in China with stick figures walking on it) - and uses all types of materials. Her staples are colored paper, masking tape, markers, paint, stickers, and colors. Her typical themes are family, friends, princesses, flowers, and herself.

With spring starting to show it beauty around us, we'll start going outside more and more. There are flowers to plant, bubbles to chase, and playgrounds to explore.

Princesses, new school, sitting and coffee

It is March 1 ... how did that happen? Time just has a way of pulling us along in life. Well, I have to say that February was definitely a much better month than January. Evan and Isabel have both been healthy and full of life. That's why I haven't posted anything for a month. So, I'm making up for no posts in Feb by having lots of pictures in this post.


Evan is developing so fast. He is now crawling everywhere, sitting, has 10 teeth (#9 & #10 are just coming in) and has started to pull himself up to a standing position. All of this in a 2 month period. WOW - that's alot for a little guy. He is such a sweet boy, too. He loves to snuggle and I can tell he is going to have a good sense of humor. He is much more interested in the cats that Isabel was and chases after them with the fastest crawl that he can.

This photo was taken at the Asian New Year celebration that is held by the Adoption Center of Washington. Every year they gather all the adopted children and take a picture ... it's a crazy scene. In this photo, we are surrounded by children adopted from China and Vietnam. Most of the infants are from the same orphanage as Evan.

Well, it was a touch decision, but I decided to move Isabel and Evan to a home daycare. Here's a picture of their new caretaker ... teacher as Isabel calls her. They have been there for 3 weeks and all is going well. Evan hasn't gotten sick - yeah - and Isabel is already attached to the children and caretakers. Everyday she had new lesson papers and crafts.

Isabel is such a fun girl. She is becoming more and more independent and full of stories and opinions. Yesterday, she decided that she was going to wear a purple princess gown and tiara to the grocery store, and then to grandma & grandpa's. She wore the outfit all day long.

March came in like a lion. We woke up to snow and a cold blustery day. Here's my little guy and mommy - just out of bed this morning - do I really look that that in the mornings ???!!!??? The picture was taken before I had my coffee - that must be why I look so rough. These days, coffee has become a definite staple for me.

March looks to be a good month, too. Isabel will start back with her Chinese classes on Saturdays. I should be able to get my taxed done this week .... need that refund. We may tag along on a short trip to FL with grandma & grandpa. I think Evan will be cruising and maybe taking steps by the end of the month. And, my hope is that the warm, spring weather will be with us, too. I just love spring!