Rookie Mistake

They can eat with a fork with some assistance... and really love doing it.

I was lulled into a false belief - I thought my kids could handle eating grandma's spaghetti with meat sauce without me feeding it to them. I am the first to admit that I made a rookie mistake... As you will see, there were some serious flaws in my judgement... And YES, bath time was immediately after dinner... Live and learn!

Leah proud of her (lack of) accomplishment

the mess

the mess

all clean after 45 minutes of hard labor!

Two months

It has been a bit over two months now since our girls have been home with us and they still amaze us every day. They are like little sponges absorbing everything. And of course, are getting cuter and cuter by the minute.

Leah (L) and Sarah (R)

Sarah letting out a huge laugh!

Leah telling her kitty "meow"

They can now point to most body parts: head, eyes, nose, hair, mouth, legs, feet, toes, and sometimes they'll even get knee.

On most days, they are too smart for their own good: like being able to press the controls on the TV and the DVD player.

Sarah being naughty and pressing the buttons on the TV

They are even getting ready to open the door. I think a few more inches and we're in trouble!

Sarah trying to leave home

They are playing much better together. Don't get me wrong, they still fight over toys, but the frequency is a bit less now.

Leah (L) and Sarah (R)

We are preparing them for their first Hanukkah and they love to watch the dreidel spin.

Leah enjoying the dreidel spin

They are getting better with their cutlery use. Today Sarah even actually forked a noodle! That's my girl! Mommy was so proud! These are my girls after eating their oatmeal. Oh, and I highly recommend these NUK sippy cups! Some of the others I tried leak. These ones the girls have a hard time making them spill out. One victory for mom!

Leah having enjoyed her oatmeal

Sarah having enjoyed her oatmeal

They have been to their first holiday party and were the belles of the ball. We were prepared for a two minute party and ended up staying almost 2 hours the girls had so much fun. They danced and walked all over the dance floor.

Everywhere I go around town, people just come up to us and say how cute they are. I hope it doesn't start going to their heads!

Just a little cuteness

It's so hard to find a few minutes to post as I'm constantly chasing after these two all day long. When we were referred these two, they could barely stand. Now, they run! I've lost over 15 pounds since referral day! Yes, I needed to lose a few of them, but all this chasing is keeping them off!

They are turning into little girlie girls and love to play dress-up and hug their stuffies. It amazes me every day the transformation these two are making. They understand more and more English as well. As far as talking, they say "Da" for Dad and "Mama" for Mommy (me). They know countless other words and will point to the item if you say the word, they just don't speak them yet. They love to point to items and have you say the English word for them. Sometimes, they think the English word is funny and it makes them giggle.

Eating: well, let's just say that they are professionals! We have a doctor appointment on Wednesday, but I think they have gained over 2 pounds since they've been with us, which is HUGE! Their cheeks say it all, I think...

We all had a great Thanksgiving with my family and all the relatives were so excited to meet them. They had a blast with their cousins and fell totally in love with my sister's son, "T". He was truly amazing with them and they adored him which made the trip great.

As Robert was away for a few days this week for work, my mom came in to help me out. All us girls had a great time together. A wonderful bonding experience. We had many outings every day. They love to take their outings out of the house - it doesn't matter where it is. It is sometimes Target, or Costco, or the grocery store. They just get so much out of these outings and exploring this new world they live in. They love to look at the lights and the displays in the stores. They think they're pretty cool. Oh, and at the grocery store, they get to see all this FOOD! I think their eyes pop out of their sockets!

But enough words, I know you all want to see pictures...

Mom with Sarah in her pretty princess dress she wanted to wear

Dancing with Daddy is so much fun. Leah is on Robert's feet with Sarah waiting for her turn.

Leah (L) and Sarah (R) showing Grandma and I how much they love their stuffies

Leah loving her new tutu leggings and getting all giggly

Sarah: "Look Mama, I have the red block and I look quite cute in my new tutu leggings!"

Stairs are always fun, especially with my cool slippers on

Leah modeling her stairs technique

Someday I'll be a great cook and make Grandma's spaghetti and meat sauce

Boxes from Costco are the best!

Leah on the move in her new dress-up outfit

Thanksgiving

This year, Robert and I have so much to be thankful for. We are now a family of 4! Who would have thought... When we started the adoption process, we were only requesting one child and now we have two beautiful little girls who are the center of our universe. Their smiles are enough to make you melt and their giggles are made of pure joy. How can you not love that?! I just have to remind myself of that every once in a while when they decide to be "naughty"!

During Thanksgiving, they had a great time meeting all of my family who were all excited to meet them. We also have my family's Hanukkah Gift exchange for the kids. It was the first time they've ever received a gift. Their cousins helped them open their presents. It was so cute!

Leah in her Thanksgiving outfit

Sarah in her Thanksgiving outfit

Our cousins "T" and "B" make us laugh! We love them so much!

My cousin "O" has a cool puppy, but I think I may like this Hanukkah gelt!

One Month

It's hard to believe that we've had our girls for over a month now and the changes in them is unbelievable. We are truly blessed to have them in our lives. They LOVE going to the park by our house and going on the swings - they get so excited when I put the stroller outside because they know it means a great visit to the park is in the works. I think the smiles in these 2 photos of them says it all!

Sarah enjoying her swing!

Leah enjoying her swing!

They are also just happier girls and are constantly on the move (hence the slightly blurry photo), but it still captures their essence. They are toddling away now and will be in full walking mode I expect in the next week to days from now - heaven help me! I can barely keep up with them now...

Sarah on the move!

Leah on the move with lovie in tow...

I'm still working on a working nap schedule and am trying out a new one today. Wish me luck! So far so good!

Bad Mommy!

While in China, I had a horrible time using my iPad. I had lots and lots of wifi issues and VPN issues so nothing ever got posted on this blog. Sorry to all my family and friends who kept checking back and was disappointed.

To make up for it, I am posting some current photos of the twin tigresses (Born in Year of the Tiger). they have certainly blossomed in the past (almost) month since we were handed them in China. They are beautiful, smart and most importantly love their mommy and daddy. They have their moments, but don't we all. I just love to see them slurp noodles (these girls are professionals!) and devour everything they see (food, sights, sounds, music...). We've been trying to do lots of new things and have them exploring their new world. They are loving it!

Without further ado... Our new family of 4.

Robert and I sitting in the White Swan Hotel with our beautiful daughters!

Sarah showing off her toddling/walking skills

Sarah loves her mommy's shoes!

Leah modeling her new hair bow

Leah LOVES Grandma's spaghetti and meat sauce!

Hi again!

We are now waiting to board our flight from Beijing to Hong Kong to meet our adoption group. Guess boarding is now and this post will have to wait...

Hello from Beijing!

Well, we made it to Beijing! We had a bit of a delay at O'Hare airport and so we didn't get here in Beijing until around 1:30 am on Oct. 4/5. We woke up early yesterday and our guide took us to see the Great Wall and one of the hutongs (very old section of Beijing) here. The Great Wall is just so much more incredible as you are standing on it than you can possibly imagine. We were just awe stricken. We spent a few hours walking the wall. We also were taken to a place where they make cloisinne. Really amazing how they do it! Today, we saw Tianemen Square, the Forbidden City, the Temple of Heaven, the Summer Palace, and a drive by the birds nest olympic stadium. We've come to realize that these easy days of touring and travelling are about to end... And quickly! It's amazing being here and immersing ourselves in our daughter's country. While we were out today, I was stopped by a Chinese tourist who wanted her picture taken with me - I guess they don't see too many wild and crazy curly-haired Caucasian women where they were from. When you are out and about, you are definitely stared at as we are most certainly minorities here! Tomorrow, we meet up with our adoption group in Hong Kong. We should arrive around dinner time. I am so excited to finally see them all! It's hard to believe we're only days away from seeing our beautiful daughters for the first time. Sorry, but no pix at this time... My iPad isn't allowing the upload from it. Will try again in Hong Kong when one of our friends has a laptop we can potentially use. ... And to our families - we are sending you lots of love!

Busy times

I have not been a very good blogger lately, but at least I have a good reason for it - two good reasons in fact!

The carpets got cleaned this morning, so after dinner, I'm hoping the carpets will be dry enough for me to start putting things away. We've got most of the baby gates up, only one more to go. Yeah! Our double stroller came in the mail yesterday so that needs to get put together as well. We have a full supply of diapers and wipes so we should be set there, too! Slowly but surely, things are falling into place.

Their closet is filled with clothes beginning with 6/9 month on up to 18 month size. So hopefully, we're set with a good majority of the clothing. We'll have to wait on their winter coats until they are home with us so we know their size. They're going to get a shock when it comes to a good Wisconsin winter. Being from a southern province, they've probably never encountered snow before. I'm sure it will be a shock to their little systems, but they're young and hopefully adaptable. At least they'll have each other to complain to!

I've got my packing list all done and now it's time to put it to some good use! Wish us luck!

And also as exciting, my 7/22 Log-In Date friends are receiving their calls tomorrow and get to see their beautiful daughters faces for the first time. I get to re-live the excitement through their eyes. Yeah!

What an amazing start to the New Year!

Updated photos of the girls

Well, our little girls have certainly grown in the 10 months between our referral photos and our updated photos. These photos were taken on September 2nd, so they are pretty recent. They are about 17 months old here and I think as cute as a button! I can't believe we are only weeks away from holding them in our arms.

Miss "A"

Miss "B"