visitors

Jonathan's mom (aka Susan) (aka Grammy) was here for two weeks.


We had a lovely visit with her. She got to volunteer at Lion's preschool several times. She went to Blue's Valentine's Day party and had lunch with her at school one day.


She was here for my birthday and Lion's birthday and even got to be here when one of Blue's teeth fell out! It is very hard being so far away from our family. I have lots of guilt over our decision to move here and take the children so far away from everyone. Visits like that help.

My mom comes out next. She'll be here next weekend. I can't wait to see her!

babies

I have been busy this weekend. Painting and cleaning and organizing. Maybe it is Spring cleaning. Maybe I am nesting. Little dude should be coming home in a few months now. We are getting his room ready and the rest of the house as well.

I went shopping while Susan was here and put together a little package to go over for his birthday. In exactly one month he will be one year old. It kills me that we won't be with him, giving him a taste of birthday cake, singing "Happy Birthday" and taking tons of pictures. I know he is being very well cared for by his foster mother, but it is still hard to wait. We sent him a birthday card, a little toy giraffe and a shirt that says "Little Brother" on it.

We still haven't chosen a name yet. There is one we both like and we are testing it out, saying it out loud, trying to decide if it is the one. We study his picture and try to see if the name suits him.

He is such a serious little guy. But we were watching old videos recently, and Blue was a very serious baby, too. I had forgotten that. She rarely smiled and only Jonathan could make her laugh out loud. She didn't want to be held much. She would squirm and try to get out of your arms. And she hated having her hands held! I do remember that! Little old ladies would try to touch her little hands and she would pull them away. She has always been so independent! I wonder what his personality will be like...

A friend of ours had her baby this week. A little baby boy named Davis. Davis has a congenital heart defect. He is doing really well, but it is still such a scary situation. I told Lion the baby was born and he said, "Well, I guess we can stop praying now!" like he was sick and tired of praying or something! But I told him the baby still needs lots of prayers. If you are reading this, could you spare a few prayers for Davis and his parents? They started a blog. Here's the link: Davis' Journey.

Grammies!

I just turned on the Grammys and 2 seconds later, the Avett brothers began performing! Yum.

I decided to watch the Grammys this year. I don't usually care about them at all, being more of an Academy Awards girl really, but I heard on the radio that Michael Buble is up for a Grammy for "Haven't Met You Yet." And that song makes me cry every single time I hear it. Makes me think of our little dude over in Korea. So I am watching on the off chance he performs the song and I can have a good cry.

I picture little dude when he is a teenager rolling his eyes in disgust because Michael Buble is so lame. And I will further embarrass him by telling him I loved him before I even met him...

Valentine's Day Cookies

I should be cleaning the house. Jonathan's mom is coming to visit for two weeks and she is flying in tonight. So I should be cleaning the house, right?

Instead I have been decorating cookies. I made 24 sugar cookie hearts for Lion's (first!) class Valentine's party tomorrow. His class is going to decorate them during the party. Then I made 24 more sugar cookie hearts for Blue's class Valentine's party tomorrow. Aren't they cute?


But now the kitchen is a mess.

sopapilla cheesecake

One of Jonathan's coworkers makes this all the time and it is just so damn delicious. I am going to bring it to the Superbowl party this weekend, because I have been craving some in a big way and that way I get to eat a little bit of it and share the rest and not eat the entire flippin' thing all by myself. Smart, no?

Anyway, go buy some crescent rolls and some cream cheese and whip up a batch for yourself.

You can thank me later.

2 (8 ounce) packages refrigerated crescent dinner rolls
2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup margarine or butter, melted
1/2 cup cinnamon sugar


Unroll one package of crescent rolls and flatten to cover the bottom of a 9 x 13 inch pan.
Mix together the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla and spread over the crescent rolls.
Unroll the other can of crescent rolls and spread over the cream cheese mixture.
Pour melted butter over the top and sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar.
Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

no, not quite...

I was getting my hair cut at Floyd's recently and I told the chick cutting my hair about the adoption. "We are adopting a baby boy from South Korea," I told her.

"Ohmygod!" she cried. "How cute! You're going to have a little Chinese baby!"

I just grinned at her and didn't say anything. Hilarious. I mean, what could I say?!

But it makes me wonder if Little Dude will go through life with people assuming he is Chinese. I asked a girl in my Psych class about it this week. She is from Laos and the professor asked her, "Are you Chinese? Korean? Well, do you celebrate Chinese New Year?"

I asked her about that a little later and she said, "Oh, yeah. Your son will definitely get that a lot. People always assume I am Chinese."

Something to think about. I have never had people assume I am anything. Except maybe Canadian. But that is because I talk a little funny, I think...

Settling in

I know we have lived in Colorado for over two years now, but right now, at this moment in time, I am really feeling settled here. This weekend I am going to a baby shower and then Sunday Jonathan and I got invited to a Super Bowl party! :) So I feel like we are really starting to make friends.

The Spring semester started last week. I am taking two classes again, but one of them is only one credit, and they are both meet only once a week, so I suddenly feel like I have so much time on my hands. Although it is a little difficult to stay focused when so much time goes by between classes... Maybe I will find time to blog again, though.

I am hearing a lot of banging and cackling upstairs so even though it is way past bedtime, I just don't have the heart to put an end to all of the fun!

Lion seems to be settling in, too. He is doing much better at preschool. It really surprised Jonathan and I how shy and reserved Lion is at school. He is such a goofball around us. But he is getting used to the routine more and more, and there is one teacher in particular, Miss Brooke, who he just loves. It is getting easier and easier to drop him off at preschool because I know he is actually enjoying himself.

Blue told me the other night she has a boyfriend. His name is Carter and they love each other. And then Carter told the whole class, even though Blue told him not to tell anybody. Then, last night when I was tucking her into bed, she told me that she cannot be Carter's girlfriend anymore.

"Why not?" I asked her, thinking That was fast! "Does he not love you anymore?"

"He still loves me and I still love him, but Shelby loved him first, and if she knew about us she would be mad, so that's why I cannot be Carter's girlfriend anymore."

I have no idea what I said because I was trying so hard not to burst out laughing. Who knew first grade was so much like an episode of Jersey Shore?