Florida!

We had an amazing vacation in Florida. The weather was fantastic and the kids enjoyed the pool and the ocean.

Tests are Negative

The tests are all negative. There is nothing that they can find wrong with Andrew. Now, we are trying to "fatten him up!". I have to add butter and cream to all of his food. Lets hope this works!

Never a dull moment

Why? Why can't I have a dull moment? I am so hoping for a day with no drama. After bringing Andrew home, I was truly hoping for at least a few weeks without the drama.

Andrew is not gaining any weight. He is 18.5 lbs at 22 months...same as he was at 17 months when we brought him home. The doctor is very concerned. He is testing him for Celiac Disease and Cystic Fibrosis. He is so active it is hard to imagine that he is a sick child, but the doctor was clear that there are only a few things that cause failure to thrive....and since he eats all day long, he is worried that it is due to a serious disorder. I asked if it was possible it was a parasite- and he said no. I said "Is it something more serious?". He said "yes". So, now we wait for the test results.

No, never a dull moment.

This has nothing to do with my adoption!

OMG....How cute is Rob Lowe? Yes, I adore him. He is so great on Brothers and Sisters, I wanted to jump into that closet with him. I have loved him since I was a kid, and I think he is even better looking now. I would have given anything to get into that closet with him. Lucky Calista Flockhart.

Just had to get that off my chest.

(I think Marty was a little miffed by my complete and utter love for Rob Lowe last night. I just could not stop talking about how cute he is! Sorry, Marty!)

Why do I stay up late?

I am not sure! We had our friends over for dinner last night with their kids. They stayed until about 11, and Adam stayed up that late. All is great....until we have to get up the next morning. Why doesn't someone remind me (as I am opening the new bottle of wine) that I will not feel like waking up at 7 am with the kids tomorrow! Not to mention the fact that since both boys went to bed late last night, they were both miserable all day. (Andrew has been miserable all week, too!).

It sure was nice to hang out with adults all night, and have the kids occupied by each other.

Why do I stay up late?

I wrote this in September- it is called the Story of Andrew Part 2

Why Only Part 2? Well, there is a part one about our first trip, but it is on my old hard drive- which crashed over the summer.

Here is the story......
The Story of Andrew- Part 2! (written September 28, 2006)

As I type this, my sweet (and very precocious) little boy is sleeping in his room. Today I took him to his first class, which I have been waiting years to do. I have dreamt of being the mom taking my little boy to the mom and baby programs, again, and my dream has finally come true. Here is how the rest of the dream was fulfilled:

We flew back to Russia on August 25th, 2006. We had a great flight on business class! We were met in Moscow by Sergey (whom we do NOT like) and were driven across Moscow to Domodedovo, the other airport. We had to wait for 6 hours in the airport. We ate pizza and walked around, but we managed on our own to get our tickets and seats without our interpreter, Sergey who had to go out that evening. The Kras Air flight was horrible. The person sitting behind Daddy was drunk and kept shaking our seats. He caused trouble the whole flight, and we could not wait to get off the plane, which was about 50 years old!

We were met in Krasnoyarsk by Alexi, our interpreter. We were pretty happy to see him. We went to the Kras hotel, checked in, and slept for a few hours. Then, Alexi picked us up and took us to the Dam. It was a nice drive through the mountains, and it was a beautiful view. On the lookout over the river, there are ribbons and locks all over. It is a tradition in Siberia for men to put a ribbon on a tree as far as he can from the lookout to prove his love to his wife on his wedding day.

We got to go and visit you the next day, which was Monday. You cried for a minute when the care-giver left, but then you let us play with you. You could now walk (started at 15 months), had tons of teeth, and would say “Arf Arf” whenever you saw a dog! You still loved music and dancing and your favourite toy there was an Elmo piano (which I bought for you on e-bay when we were in Moscow).

The next day was the Tuesday, and we went to court. We were very lucky. Our court went very smoothly. Daddy was asked most of the questions, and I was only asked a few, but the judge was confused as to why I had anti-bodies for Hep A. She was very mean, but in the end, she gave us a positive result, and we were then your parents. That was August 29, 2006. We were really tired after the court, and went to the hotel and crashed!

We spent the rest of the time in Kras visiting you every day, and then visiting the “sites” of Kras. We met some great people- Bill and Mariela, who were adopting a little boy named Nathan. We went bowling, we went walking, and we went to the Kras museum. We were there for 2 and a half weeks. We watched lots of dvds!

We got to pick you up on Saturday, the 9th of September. We took you out for a walk and visited the amusement park. You sat so nicely in your stroller and you were just fascinated. We had a hard time getting you down for your nap, and we ended up skipping it. You thought it was a huge fun game! We gave you a bath, and you loved it. You splashed and played and cried when we took you out. To get you to sleep, we had to leave the room! Otherwise, you would just keep jumping up and laughing and playing in your crib.

The next day was Sunday, and we were so excited b/c Rita and Marchello were arriving! We waited for them in the lobby of the hotel, and were thrilled that our friends had come.

We left Kras on the Tuesday (the day of Rita and Marchello’s court, which unfortunately was postponed for 2 days) and flew on the Kras air flight to Moscow. The flight was not too bad. You slept for a bit (we bought you your own seat) and then you played with a little girl. You hated sitting still and cried, but we got through it.

We stayed at the Aerotel the first night. We went for dinner and met a man in the elevator. His name was Oleg and he helped us get to the restaurant. He then showed up and gave you an entire box of chocolate. We found that pretty strange!! We ave no idea why he decided to give you a box of chocolates, especially since he had just met us, but it was such a wonderful act of kindness...

We visited Lenin’s tomb and Red Square and a huge toy store in Moscow. We got your visa and left on Friday morning for home. You were terrible on the flight to Frankfurt!! Slept for 5 minutes and then woke up screaming! It was a hard trip, but then we realized the man sitting next to us (Andrea) who was Italian, spoke Russian and he was very helpful. Daddy and I took turns holding you at the back of the plane when the food was out, because you wanted to eat it. But, you kept throwing up on me, so we would not let you!

We had a long delay in Frankfurt, and they lost our stroller. We went to the lounge, and you would not behave! You were so tired, and so were we. The woman who worked in the lounge was a complete bitch and told me to control you, and I gave it to her!!! Well, travelingelling so far, being so tried, being sick and being delayed for hours, she had it coming to her. Lets just say, that when we left the lounge and found out we were delayed for another hour, we had to find a new lounge to wait in, because I could not show my face there again.

The Air Canada flight was great! You slept beside me the whole time, and I slept too. You did not wake up until about 30 minutes before landing. I also slept and missed out on all of my biz class food and fun. They tried to wake me foMacadamiaadamia ice cream and fresh fruit, but I could not wake up. Lucky for me, you slept the whole time in my seat with me.

We were met at the airport by Baba and Yo. They were so excited. We could not wait to get home.

You slept really well, even on the first night. You are very defiant, and are learning now to listen to mommy and daddy! You hate to be told “no” and at first would lie down and smack your head on the floor and kick and scream (which has been pretty freaky!!) You really like dogs, but are very afraid of Bailey! You like to play with the toys, especially ones that play music. You are affectionate and like to be picked up, but not really held. You hate to be restrained and love to run around.

Here is some of the Russian we learned so we could communicate with you:

Idi spud- go to sleep
Idi suda- come here
Niet- no
Spasiba- thank you
Charasho- Good
Ya tibya lublu- I love you
Ya tvaya mama- I am your mom
Ti Choshesh- do you want
Ya cha cho- I want

I even learned to read quite a bit of Russian. I am pretty impressed! Your daddy decided to spend his time learning the bad words, while I learned how to count to eight:

Adeen
Dva
Tree
Chitiri
Pet
Sheish
Sem
Vosem

This came in handy on the plane when I made up a song for you in Russian counting up to 4! It finally calmed you down….

Your big brother Adam adores speaking to you in Russian. He is still adjusting to your arrival, but I know you guys will one day enjoy each other's company (I HOPE!!)

We are so happy to have you home.

Love, Mommy

Can't have a pic of the little one without the big one

Adam just saw me post the picture of Andrew and wanted to know where his picture is. So, here it is, my adorable big boy!! It amazes me that he is already 5 (though he acts like his is 35!). Adam is an amazing reader and writer. He reads at above a grade 2 level. We are not exactly sure how "above" because they felt they did not have to test him further. He is sweet and loving (well, to everyone but his little brother, that is).

Adam will sit and cuddle with me on the couch for hours. As a mom, I have to say that nothing is more wonderful to me than being able to curl up on the couch with a blanket, a movie, and Adam.

It has been a while

Yes, I am not the most responsible blogger in the world! I can't even remember the last time i updated. Before we went to get Andrew.

It has been 4 months since we brought Andrew home. A journey of ups and downs- laughing and lots of tears too.

Andrew has adjusted so well to his new life. He is a happy, fun-loving, crazy little boy. He never sits still. He adores playing with cars and anything Elmo.

I promise to do a better job using this blog and updating the ups and downs of my life in the house of males.

It has been forever since I posted!

Well, it has been a while since I posted in my blog.

We went to Russia! We met our son, Andrew! Born March 31, 2005, we visited during the last week of April, 2006. He is the sweetest little boy. And, I don't mind saying he is adorable.

We have been waiting for 8 weeks now to go back and get him. Our paperwork is with the courts. We should hear something in a week or two. We are hoping to travel the middle of July, so we can have him home in August. I bet we will be in Russia to celebrate our birthdays.

Short update, I know, but I am feeling blue and missing Andrew.