Christmas Morning....

Christmas morning was so nice....all of the kids were excited & got into the unwrapping adventure! The boys helped Caleigh & showed her how to play with all of her new things. They were very excited that Santa brought their pump up scooters & the Wii! I hope you all had a Merry Christmas.

I spent the afternoon in the ER with a Brown Recluse Spider Bite on my thumb. I had never been in the ER in my 38 years of life! It was bad...too much pain to wait until Friday, but they 'fixed' it there; I'll spare you the details & I'm on some good drugs & feeling better today.

Above are my favorite pictures from Christmas morning at home. We are heading to my parents home today.

Enjoy Your Christmas Eve!

I hope you all have a wonderful Christmas Eve & Christmas Morning! We're getting busy making Christmas Cookies today & I hope they look as good as these!

One Less 4 teeth & one with Strep...

Blake had 4 teeth pulled yesterday. His daddy went with him & he did great. So, that's a total of 8 out & he gets his braces on mid January. He & Bryce were taking pictures of each other with my camera last night....he was feeling ok I think!

I took Bryce to the doctor yesterday after an all over body rash break-out & extreme itching. He has Strep A & is on antibiotics. He was already feeling a bit better after his first dose of antibiotics yesterday....he felt well enough to participate in the camera fun!He also pulled a tooth out yesterday, so the tooth fairy got to see both boys last night..that was a first & they were excited!

It's Official...We have a toddler...well, kind of....

She always wants in the pantry so she can give the dogs treats....

She has discovered to joy of unrolling the toilet paper!

She's not walking yet, but her behavior is beginning to resemble a toddler! We had her pictures made last week in her Vietnamese Dress that I bought her in HCMC with her VN Hat. They are darling...I will try to post my favorite this weekend. Blake & Bryce are excited today was the last day of school before Christmas Break!

I Count My Lucky Stars....

Every day I count my lucky stars & am so thankful for the family we have. Please pray for my friends who are still waiting to travel for their daughters in Vietnam. I wish for them a true Christmas Miracle. One has already happened for my dear friend J; thus I know anything is possible!

Baby You Can Drive My Car.....

Trying To Figure Out how to get on by herself....

She is so proud of herself...she can 'drive' all by herself! She is all over the place...she is just now tall enough & the little shoes give her some traction. I may need to move the ornaments on the tree up another foot....she has figured out that she can reach them while sitting on her car!

C & I went out shopping for a little while this morning....only 33 degrees out, but we bundled up & had fun. It finally feels like Christmas~time. I'm just about done shopping...just filling in with some little things & stocking stuffers. I hope you are all having fun getting ready for Santa! Blake & Bryce are very ready!!! I don't know how the teachers are going to make it through this week with all of the excited children!

Our Baby Girl is 14 Months Old Today.....

In & Out of Bella's Crate (Yes, I put a clean blanket in for C!)

What I get to do when my brothers are at school! I love their Transformers!

Playing in the Laundry spot!

Opening & Closing the door to the crate...she loves this part!

In & Out from under the tables....

It is hard to believe that Caleigh is 14 months old! It seems like yesterday I got the picture of a tiny 3 month old in CanTho, Vietnam, when in fact...it has been almost a year come January! This week is officially know in our home as the "Open & Close/In & Out" week. She is opening & closing everything & crawling in and out of every spot possible. Now that her braces are off, she is beginning to really explore. It is so fun to watch how proud she is of herself! I have learned this week that Shout Stain Remover is made for babies' pants knees after crawling around tile & hardwood all day! I now know that I do not keep as clean of a house as I thought!!!

Christmas Card Poses.....

After Our Card Photo Session....

The Best of All 3 Together

Caleigh's Card Picture

Bryce's Card Picture

Blake's Card Picture

I finally got it together & took pictures at home yesterday for our Christmas Cards....here are the best shots of all 3 kiddos & I made my card on SnapFish last night....I am happy with it this year....some years are better than others! Last year I did black & white..a family shot & one of the boys; it was a little grainy & I probably won't do black & white again; it just didn't look too festive. Hope you are all having fun getting ready for Christmas. The boys wish school was out already!

A Day At the Zoo

We had a fun day at the zoo on Saturday....noted; my child is the only one in a winter hat when it was almost 60 degrees...but she has had 2 ear infections in the past month & I am taking no chances!!! It was windy after~all :) All of my kids' favorite part was the bird sanctuary....here are a few of my favorite pictures....we had attended a birthday party & they took us on the tour; it was fun!

Home 5 Months Today!

....and she's happy to be here! Here is her 'belly' laugh....she also had the hiccups!:

Happy to be...Braces Free!

Her new crinkled up face in her new rock star shoes!

Caleigh got a good report at the doctor's yesterday & she is now braces free all day! Woo Hoo!!! She has to wear them for 12 hours at night & we go back for a check up on March 13th. The doctors are pleased that she is crawling & developmentally on target. We will now watch her & see if/when she starts to pull up & try to walk. She is missing her ACL in both knees, so it makes her very wobbly right now. They are hoping that once her other leg muscles develop more now that she is out of the braces, she can find a way to compensate for her missing ligaments....we will wait & pray. She has come so far already that we are just amazed! Here she is sporting her first shoes today!

Tomorrow is a big day.....

Oh, you just wait! Once I get these things off my feet, I'll be driving!!!

Tomorrow is a pretty big day....we go to Dallas in the morning for Caleigh's check-up & she will hopefully be going from braces full time to only at night. FINGERS CROSSED!!! She is really wanting to pull up & I think she will be trying to stand soon if we can get the braces off & let her build up her leg muscles some more. And of course, I can buy cute shoes! (I know, I know....but hey, every girl needs cute shoes!) We are also meeting our Social Worker for lunch in Dallas for our 3rd Post-Placement Visit after our appointment.

TAGGED.....

Erin P. tagged me for this game. The instructions are:
1. Grab the nearest book.
2. Open it to page 56.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the text of the sentence along with these instructions.
5. Don’t dig for your favorite book, the cool book, or the intellectual one: pick the CLOSEST.

Well....here it is: Closest book is Crazies to the Left of Me Wimps to the Right How One Side Lost its Mind and the Other Lost Its Nerve by Bernard Goldberg Pg. 56 Complete Sentence #5: But then Alec can explain it to them again-and again and again, if necessary- until they get it.

It's a discussion on celebrities like Alec Baldwin & Rosie O'Donnell who have public views on politics & outspoken about their private lives. The title of the chapter is: Alec Baldwin Is Not Saddam Hussein-at Least I Don't Think So

I know...so exciting...but it was the closest & that's the rules....Now I tag Becca H. & Julie S. You know who you are & Julie, you can post yours on FaceBook on my wall! :) Love Ya!

Let the Fun Begin!

Thanksgiving Day at my Aunt Bonnie's House

My cousin Will taught the boys to ride without a saddle.

I just love the way Caleigh is looking at Daddy in this picture!

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving with friends & family! We went to my Aunt's house & I got to see all of my cousins & their children...whom I haven't seen in about 15 years! It was so much fun and brought back lots of childhood memories as I used to spend a lot of my summer~time at their home in the country.

I did the "After Thanksgiving Madness Sales" for the first time this year. My friend Melissa picked me up at 4:30 & I must admit that it did get me in the holiday mood! I came home around 2:00...exhausted, but with a good jump on my holiday shopping & ready to clean & decorate! I think next year I will go again, but only hit Sam's at Sears...I got the best deals there! Wal-Mart & Target were too crowded & crazy looking for us!!!

Oh, & my daughter is crawling around the kitchen floor with a sock in her mouth while I'm cooking breakfast & typing...what is up with that???!!!

On This Day 5 Months Ago....

Leaving the Orphanage in the VanWaiting to drive to HoChiMinh City Hanging out in the Hotel CanTho

Outside the Orphanage ready to get in the Van.

On the First Floor of the Orphanage Ready to Go.

.....we were leaving the orphanage with our baby girl to attend our G & R where she officially became our daughter in the eyes of the Vietnamese Government. What a wonderful day! So much to be thankful for....My on-line blogger friend, Julie: I wish you the most wonderful G & R Day...a trip of a lifetime & many, many dreams come true. It's a fabulous journey of faith & you are nearing the end of one journey & the beginning of another.....there are no words; you will be amazed! For those of you still waiting...hang in there! The reward is well worth the wait. Happy Thanksgiving everyone a day early; we're off to my Aunt's tomorrow!

It's been a week & dry scalp..help?

Not feeling so great....on the way to the doctor last week....

'When Am I Going to Feel Better Mommy?'

As my mom has said in the past...."It's been a week y'all!" Our little Caleigh bug has had a nasty fever virus on top of the ear infection that was hanging on...she's been pitiful, but finally started to turn the corner yesterday & is feeling better this morning. I think she spoiled me with being so healthy the first few months home! The week has brought out her 'fiesty' side! She's a little toot! She shakes her head "No" now when she doesn't want something (or someone!)

Question: Do any of your kiddos have dry patches on their scalp? She has since we brought her home & nothing I have tried has helped...any ideas? Thanks in advance!

Oh & Nicki....I think she's getting a 'kitchen & play food' for Christmas!! I'm not quite sure yet since she's can't pull up with the braces on....I may wait until after her Dec. 2nd appt. to see if she is moving to the braces only at night.....

Christmas is coming!

Christmas is coming....sick kids or not, I must get busy!!! James & I ordered the boys' 'big' gift from Santa last night on-line....I love on-line shopping by the way. No lines, no rude people, no sick kids coughing on me...just me & my computer. So, here it is....they will be so excited! They played at my neighbor's house the other day & I've heard nothing else since...Wii Wii Wii!!! Should be fun! Anyone have any other good ideas for 8 year old boys? My DH really wants to do dirt bikes this year, but I'm struggling with giving in to that! I just see trips to the ER!

In The Eyes of a Texas Court.....

...Our little Anh is now officially Caleigh Lydia~Grace! How exciting...we now await the arrival of her new birth certificates...should be about 4~6 weeks!

Cuteness & Antibiotics vs Ear Infection Round 2!

Caleigh in VN June 2008...what a difference 5 months can make!

This little girl has stolen our hearts! She is also fighting her second ear infection this month...actually, it's still the same ear & it probably didn't completely go away the first time. We've visited the doctor this morning & are on our 2nd round of 10-day antibiotics. Hopefully we can kick it this time. She had not been sleeping well the last few nights & I had my suspicions....

Sleeping Beauty

Sleeping beauty could not wait for her bed! She fell asleep on the floor drinking her milk which somehow ended up under her leg! This was at 7:15 last night; she turned in early! She is so sweet....asleep & awake...

The Un-Blood Draw....

Well, one of my blogger friends had titled a post "The Blood Draw" recently, so I thought I would title mine the "Un-Blood Draw". For those of you that have been following the TB Test Saga, I will update you.....We made an appointment at the hospital to have a NICU nurse come down to the lab & draw some blood for C's TB Gold Test since her TB Skin Test showed a positive reading. This after 4 nurses at UT Health Center tried 2 weeks ago & failed miserably. OK, so we went this week & I had high hopes & NOT! One NICU nurse, one pediatric nurse & one nurse from Children's Hospital in Dallas who just happened to be in the building later, and 4 sticks on my poor little one = NO BLOOD! I give! No-one else is poking a needle in my baby for a while. Plan B: Have a call into the dr. & will see about waiting 6 months or a year until her little body grows a bit & maybe they can find a vein. After researching the drug therapy for the "just in-case it's Latent TB", this mommy says, 'Um, NO!" I'll update you when we know more....until then....more immunizations in 4 weeks and then she is caught up! Hooray!

Just Because

October 2005 Age 5

November 2008 Age 8

Just because it's hard to snap a picture of my boys anymore without them knowing...They were both reading Bryce's school book on the bar. It seems like we live at the bar....most of my pictures are taken there....it divides the family room & the kitchen....the kids are always there. I may have to take that bar with me if we ever move; too many memories! Here's one of my favorites from a few years ago & one from the other day....they grow up too fast.

13 Months Old Today!

Our baby girl is 13 months old today! Wow! What a difference a few months make! She is growing & changing so fast it's hard to keep up! Her newest is that she shakes her head "no", places things in a straight row on the coffee table & on the edge of the bathtub etc. , motions for whatever she wants with her hand outstretched, always feeds herself , no more bottles at all, off of formula, sleeping through the night now, crawls at lightening speed!, starting to pull up, still naps for a couple of hours each day or 2 one hour naps, she has 6 teeth, she's cutting her 7th tooth, she weighs 16 1/2 pounds & is doing great! These pictures were taken at 7:30 this morning, so she still has a little sleepy look :)

Smushy Banana Anyone???

Would anyone like some smushy banana today??? Or another fruit tomorrow? I have to give a 'shout out' for this wonderful little gadget. You pop in anything that you may otherwise deem a choking hazard & close the top...the kiddo chews & gums it to death and small bits of the food make it through the meshy part & into their mouths. Caleigh LOVES it! Maybe because she is teething right now too.... She especially likes bananas in it. My friend got it at Target I think & it came in a package of two. It makes a bit of a mess, but no more that when she eats normally at her high chair! As of today, she has officially been off of formula & the bottle for a week. Only 2% milk (she won't touch the whole milk) and sippy cups for this big girl! She has also slept through the night since giving up the bottle. She started denying her beloved bottle last Sunday when she got sick & ever since....so, I decided it's a good time to make the switch & she has with no problem. She didn't drink milk at all for almost 4 days & I was a little worried, but I think it was because she was so sick with the ear infection....She lived on Pedialyte & juice for a few days....the doctor checked her ear today when we went in for shots & he said it is much better. Yeah! Next: to the hospital for blood draw for the TB Gold Test this week. Wish us luck!