I won an award tonight! ;)

I took a quick bath w/Munchkin tonight as I had just returned from a 45 min walk and was sweaty and Munchkin needed a bath, too. What the heck! It was fun...we splashed around and poured water on each other and laughed. Then she says, "You're the best slippery Mama I ever had!" Then she rested her head on my tummy and said, "You're the best slippery Mama I ever rested my head on." LOL! What a cutie! I love her so much!

Intermediate Tap...

kicked my butt tonight! It was the first class and there were four continuing students there plus me and three of my friends who are moving on from the beginner class w/me. The teacher is nice and she put us through a slightly harder warm-up than our previous class. We also learned some triplets (open and closed) and a new combo done to the song "East of the Sun, West of the Moon." Very fun, very good workout. It was not as fun in a relaxing way as the previous class was but it is more challenging and that is fun, too.

TGFT! (thank goodness for tap!)

Munchkin is so musically diverse...

She knows the words to all these cool jazz tunes like "Straighten Up and Fly Right" and "Don't You Worry 'Bout a Thing" and and she can hum the tunes of "Paper Moon" and "Flyin' Home"...but then I tell her we're going to the symphony (last weekend's symphony for tots program) and she says, "Symphony of Destruction"? That is, of course, the Megadeth song she also knows how to hum!

Adoption ramblings...

Ah...the frustrations of the non-fertile. As the waiting period for China lengthens and lengthens I am now second-guessing our decision to adopt from there. Is the wait going to be two years? Three? Four or (gasp!) even more? Should we proceed as we are planning or should we jump ship now and switch to another country (which will mean switching placement agencies, too, since our agency only does China adoptions)? Is it ethical to apply to two countries at the same time, knowing that we only want one more child and would pull one application as soon as a referral from the other country came through?

All along we have hoped for two daughters...just because I have never been around baby boys, little boys, boys at all--other than boy friends once I was in high school and college. China would allow us to request a girl. Vietnam has many more boys available for adoption than girls...I know I would love any child who joined our family but when I picture our family complete it has never included a boy--it's odd to even consider it (but also a little fun to consider it, I must admit). Maybe it stems from having been raised by a widowed mom and that I had no brothers (or sisters!). I don't know what it is (and I certainly don't mean to offend anyone with precious boys--I still love 'em!!!) but it makes me sad to think that we couldn't request a girl through most agencies which work with Vietnam. And some agencies aren't even taking new families now because they have such long waitlists.

Then I wonder if a boy and a girl would be as close as two of the same sex could potentially be? Again, not having any siblings I have no idea how I would've felt about a brother or a sister. I never really longed for either. Munchkin knows we are trying to adopt from China and has been excited about a future sister...will she feel the same if sister ends up being brother?!

Crap. What to do, what to do. Meanwhile, the paperchase continues...just not sure who/where we're paperchasing and if it's all for naught in the end...

My friend, Chrisbo

Oh, just thinking about him tonight. This is a very belated post...he died on May 17th. He was a wonderful guy who was only 41 and he leaves behind a fantastic wife and two kids and my heart aches for them.

Chris had an astrocytoma brain tumor, diagnosed in 2003. He seemed to be fighting it so well for the first 2-3 yrs then it started winning. I was hoping he would get a miracle like Lance Armstrong but it was not to be, I guess.

Some words to describe Chris: kind, soft-spoken, smiling eyes, funny, intelligent, handsome, great skiier, great athlete, great friend, better dad/husband/son, excellent Euchre partner!, successful, a fighter (against the tumor). Just an all-around great person and one who will be tremendously missed by all who knew him.

Monday there is a celebration of his life in Michigan...BikeBoy is going but Munchkin and I are not. I wish we could be there but we will be in spirit. Godspeed, Chrisbo...I love you, my friend.

National Tap Dance Day!

I went to Nat'l Tap Dance Day at a studio in "the big city" and it was the coolest thing! I brought Munchkin and we both watched the 90 min show. Mostly young adults (I'm guessing about 20-25 yo but a few older high schoolers and a couple of older-than-me gals about 60ish)...several different styles from the torn jeans-no music-stomp-like stuff to the jazzier-girls-in-black-skirts stuff. Very cool. They had a surprise guest, this guy Mark Mendonca...he will be teaching some masters classes there in July. My teacher was in 4 numbers and she was just a joy to watch---so smooth and with a huge smile on her face like she was just having the time of her life! Watching tap dancers tap or participating in tap itself is just so uplifting--you can't help but smile listening to the rhythms and seeing the blur of those dancing feet!

Then...as if all that wasn't enough...at the end of the show we pushed all the chairs out of the way and the whole audience joined the performers for the Shim Sham (which I just learned for my own "recital")!!! I had to do it holding Munchkin since the music was loud and she was a bit overwhelmed by the sheer number of people dancing but it was fantastic! I can't wait until my next class!!

Official Tap Recital!

It was such fun! Our families came for the last 15 min of classtime. When they arrived we were doing some improv stuff then we did our official routine...the shim sham (to "Flyin' Home" by Lionel Hampton) and we each had a 6 second solo. We had to make last minute changes to the routine because one gal couldn't make it (her husband had a shareholders' meeting to attend...bet you don't get that excuse when it's a little kids' tap dance recital!). It went well...I messed up one small part but BikeBoy wasn't looking at me at the time (phew!). Three of the husbands were there and there were 6 kids. The husbands were all videotaping! What a riot! I made BikeBoy take a picture of the 4 of us after it was over! And I found out there's a tap festival in Vancouver, BC in late August/early September. I would love to drive up and take a master class. AND, National Tap Dance Day is this Friday (to honor the birthday of Mr. Bojangles) so a local tap company in the city is having an informal show to celebrate that this Sunday (my teacher is in 4 numbers).

And, one more funny thing...my mom had been in town visiting the week before but wouldn't be here on recital night so she went to my tap class to watch us practice. At the end of the class my teacher went out to sit with Mom while we went through our routine one last time. After class, Mom and I are riding home and she says, "Your teacher told me that you are the most advanced student in the class!" LOL! This cracks me up because my 19 yo teacher, told my 81 yo mom that her 45 yo daughter is the best in the class! Bet mom wasn't expecting to hear that since I danced as a kid. And, truth-be-told, my feet are probably the best at doing the steps but I am not nearly the nicest one to watch--my upper body just isn't as graceful as the others in class but--hey, I'll take any compliment I can get! :)

Got puppets???

I'm on my next-to-the-last phone call this a.m. with a parent coach I've been working with (she's the friend of a friend, getting the last hours of coaching in for her certification--so I'm getting free coaching!!)...we're talking about ways to avoid conflict but still get our little ones to do the things we need them to do. She mentioned that there have been research studies done which show that children listen to/pay attention to puppets 10x more than to a parent. (she's going to send me the research links eventually) 10 times! She suggested using puppets as transitional aids like keeping one in the bathroom to get her to brush her teeth longer, etc.

So today, after I mentioned it to BikeBoy, two different times he used his plain old hand as a puppet (a la Oobi) and Munchkin immediately did what the "puppet" told her to do! It was almost freakish!So...bring on the puppets!!! I'm gonna keep 'em all over the house and I'm definitely gonna put one in my coat pocket for our next trip to the "market-store."

Methinks thou dost protest...

I calmly sent Munchkin to her room yesterday for being repetitively disrespectful. After a few minutes I heard her singing over and over, "We sha-do-ver-caaaah-ah-um, we sha-do-ver-caaah-ah-um." (translation: we shall overcome) Hmmm...should I be worried? :D

Happy Family Day, Munchkin!

Hard to believe but it was 4 yrs ago this very day that our sweet Munchkin arrived from S. Korea and was placed into my arms.

It was a beautiful sunny day but cold and windy. Her plane was a few minutes late. When "P," her escort, approached me I could see Munchkin was sleeping and looked pale so I couldn't cry (which I was expecting to do!) since I was worried she was sick. He assured me that she had been awake and cooing all the way from LA and had just a short time ago fallen asleep. She stayed asleep as I held her for the first time then passed her to BikeBoy. I still remember how good she smelled and how soft her skin was when I kissed her precious cheek. How wonderful it felt to hold this tiny person whom I had only seen in two pictures for the past 9 weeks and dreamed about for years prior to that.

She slept until all the paperwork was done and BikeBoy and I carried her back to the car...the wind woke her up. She proceeded to hold my hand and chew my finger all the way home.This weekend we celebrated (hence the trip to see "Goodnight, Moon") and yesterday I took her to the Build-a-Bear store to make a stuffed animal to go with a Korean hanbok I found on their website. She made a cat (a Hello Kitty one...she is a huge cat lover and usually has tiny "Smelly Cat" with her at all times)! Today is mostly a regular day but grandma wants me to pick up 4 big carnations to give her after school and we may try to go out to supper, too.

I always write her a long letter on this special day, too, that tells all her big achievements during the past year, her likes/dislikes/friends, etc. I also list my hopes for her for the future. I'm going to try my hardest to write letters to her foster mom and her birthmom (birthmom's letter will only go into Munchkin's file in Korea...in case she ever goes back to the orphanage looking for info)...will include a picture or two, too.

And I profusely thank her birthmother for making such a hard decision but one which gave such hope to her daughter and such joy to my life.

First school concert...

OMGosh. Munchkin had her first concert w/her preschool this week. Unbelievably cute. She wandered out on stage (after about a 30 foot gap between her and the person in front of her!) and sat on the risers with her class. The school sang 2 songs all together...the Hello Song and another (I'll have to look it up in the program later) then her class did two songs by themselves: "I Can Tap My Toes" and "We Shall Overcome." Then all the other classes performed a couple of songs then the whole school ended with: "Puff the Magic Dragon," "Yellow Submarine," and the "Goodbye Song."

Munchkin sang all her songs plus sang along with many of the other classes' songs! She wandered over to another class (on her belly!)...climbed onto another level of the risers...lifted up her dress and played w/her bellybutton...spread out on the floor in an unladylike position and took off a shoe. It was cute, nerve-wracking, and freaking hilarious all at the same time! At the end she did a huge bow! She was very proud of herself and so were BikeBoy and I. Very proud. I cried the minute she started singing...thinking how big a girl she is, how fast it is all going, how very soon she will be walking out the door to college (well, okay, not really THAT soon but...). (insert big sigh)

She's the best. :)

Froggy on the Potty...

Tonight Munchkin needed to do a poop. It's the physical therapist in me that makes her poop on her little potty since she can keep her feet flat on the floor (it's ergonomics, dontcha know...easier to push, etc.). She sits on the potty in her bathroom and I go surf the web 'til she's done. A few minutes go by and I hear, "Mama...I'm done." I enter her bathroom to find her squatting ON her potty (her feet are on the seat of the potty as she squats over the tiny bowl) and she is saying, "I'm a froggy! Ribbit! Ribbit!!"

LOL! WTF makes kids do the things they do???!!! :)

Guitar Heroes...

I got BikeBoy the Guitar Hero PS2 game for Xmas...it has been the most fun game ever! Christmas afternoon, while Munchkin napped in my arms, BikeBoy played it for 2.5 hours then he and I played it another 2 hours after she went to bed that night!

It's basically a game with a guitar as the controller but the guitar has no strings...just 5 buttons for "frets" and a little bar you strum with your right hand. The game has an amazing rock soundtrack and as each song plays the "music" scrolls in front of you with a "band" playing in the background. The music is really notes of different colors to match the colors of the frets and it basically tells you when and how long to play each note. There are about 30 songs and each one has 4 levels, beginner to expert. I have only played mostly the beginner songs and a few of the next level (whatever it's called). It is incredibly fun and I love, love, LOVE it when I get more points than BikeBoy! You get scores for overall %-age of notes you played correctly, most consecutive notes, and the response you get from the crowd (you can get boo-ed off and "fail" the song). So now I have some new songs that I've been exposed to: The Exies "Hey You," Burning Brides "Heart Full of Black," and Sum 41's "Fat Lip." They're all pretty hard rock (one of my preferred genres) but I had heard none of these before we played this game! It just rocks and totally fulfills my fantasy of ever being a rock star (and I didn't have to become a heroin addict to do it!). If you have a PS2 I highly recommend this game! :)

Sleeping companions...

Last night Munchkin said she didn't want to sleep alone. When I refused to sleep with her or let her sleep in our bed (she does sometimes but I didn't want to start another new trend) she said she wanted more of her stuffed animals. So...she slept with 23 of them. Yup. Twenty-freakin'-three! Mostly stuffed kitties but a few puppets and a couple of baby dolls...even her metal cat alarm clock was under the covers! What a hoot! Tonight she wanted the same crew and proceeded to tuck them each in under various layers of her sheet/blankets! What a cutie!

BikeBoy's ball-buster of a commute...

It took him 6 hours! Yes, SIX hours to go about 8 miles last night. It had snowed about 4 inches max but the roads were icy, snowy, gridlocked. When he got to the bottom of our hill (we live on a plateau and the hill is the last mile before our development; it's probably between 10 and 14% grade, I'm guessing) they closed the road. People were ditching cars everywhere along the way home and walking but he only had his dress shoes on so he couldn't ditch and walk! They reopened the road to 4WD vehicles (he has a 4WD Jeep Wrangler) and he was able to make it up.

This morning on his way back to work he passed between 30 and 50 cars abandoned on that same hill...some were intact but just pulled to the side of the road, others were face down in the ditch or crashed into other vehicles. The road was one lane wide in some spots due to all the deserted vehicles. YIKES.

School was closed today so Munchkin had no pre-school and I had to call in "off" to work myself. We'll go out soon and play in the snow (a rare event here in the PNW). Of course, Munchkin's snow saucer is in the garage loft about 3 feet higher than I can reach when I stand atop our highest stepladder...how in heck did BikeBoy get it there in the first place???? Guess we'll be sliding on our butts or on cardboard today!

The rollercoaster ride begins!!!

We have made the official decision...we are pursuing the adoption of a second daughter!!! :) This time we are headed off to China as we are too old for Korea's program now. I am so excited yet haven't told many people IRL...I don't dare get my hopes up as I know the process will take at least two years and there are so many hurdles. What if something comes up in our physicals which would rule us out? What if China changes its rules again (it just made significant changes in December 2006 which take place in May of this year)? What if, what if, what if? I guess I won't believe it until we get our referral and even then it won't seem real until the three of us are over in China to meet our fourth family member. So begins the long wait and the long paperchase! I'm sooooo happy!!!!! :D

The big wind storm...

Back about 3 weeks ago we had a HUGE windstorm here in the PNW. Hurricane force winds. Pelting rain. Sheets, actually. The power went off on a Thursday night 12.16 and then at 1:15 am Friday, as BikeBoy, Munchkin and I were tucked in our big bed, we heard a "crack" then a "creak" and BikeBoy and I looked out the window in time to see foliage headed our way! I screamed a blood-curdling scream just as the tree hit our house with a "thud" just above our bedroom window then proceeded to continue its fall, landing with a louder "thump" between our house and the neighbors' house. I snatched Munchkin up and the three of us ran downstairs as fast as we could and huddled in the internal hallway with blankets and pillows the rest of the night.

Munchkin didn't wake up until we were settling in then she says, sleepily, "What're we doing down here?" BikeBoy and I didn't get any rest the entire night...just lying there listening to branches and trees near and far falling all over the place.

Our house only suffered external damage (broken gutter, torn off window screen, etc.). The neighbors' house suffered the same plus a broken roof support beam. We were lucky. We dodged a bullet, BikeBoy says! The tree was about 80 feet tall, a type of cedar tree, I think. It must've been old...I haven't counted its rings yet but, at its base it was approx. 10 feet in circumference.

The neighborhood looked like a war zone as did most of our town and surrounding towns. Driving around the first few days we had to be prepared for alternate routes because power lines and trees were down everywhere. Our power remained out for 2.5 days but some people were without power for 9-10 days! We were scrambling to find firewood and fire logs. It was cold, about high 30s during the time this happened. I was sooooo glad when the power came back on!!!

That's just the quick synopsis before I forget some of the details!

Mama's Special Words...

Munchkin has now decided that Mama says certain words that she shouldn't say. Words like "stupid" or "sucks." I never say them directed towards Munchkin or even another being but I do use them directed at situations which are out of my control or something that I'm not happy about.

Today I decided that those are now Mama's Special Words. Much like Mama and Daddy can drink soda and Munchkin cannot until she's a big girl. That some grownups drink alcohol and Munchkin cannot until she is a grownup. There are now words that Mama can say which Munchkin cannot.

I also decided that, when she is a little older, I want her to know my whole list of "Special Words." Just for the occasions when she needs them. She's small, she's Asian in a predominantly White community, she was adopted...there are lots of reasons she may get picked on later (along with all the typical things kids get picked on for!). I want her to be able to use these words judiciously when necessary! What the heck...the f-word, the s-word, the mf-word, the g-d-words, the j-f-c-words, the a-word! Let her have them all at her disposal! Yeah! That's my girl! ;)

Innocent toots...

Munchkin was on my lap tonight, watching Lady and the Tramp...suddenly she lets out the world's longest toot...it was truly never-ending. She then says, "'Cuse me, Mom." Then she sniffs the air and says, "Pretend I'm a skunk."

What a freakin' funny kid I have! :D

My mom will be alone on Thanksgiving.

She has been invited to her step-(notso)DD's house but doesn't want to go. She said she will tell them she is going to her sister's (not true as her sister and her family is all headed north to her own son's camp and they have not invited my mom--I'm sure they would invite her if they knew she'd be alone). So, Mom's dh can go to his dd's house and mom will "go for a nice ride" and fix something good for lunch instead. That bums me out...breaks my heart, really...that my mom will be alone on such a special holiday. I asked her if she could come out here but she says she really can't...would have to arrange assisted living for her dh and there isn't time and it's a lot of $$. We can't go there ($$$ and time issues, too). So, that's the way it's gonna be this year. :(