One last thing!

OK, I just had to post this video cuz I thought Lily's recap of the Dr. swabbing her throat was hilarious! I took this Thursday night at around 11pm. She is such a character, and keeps me laughing most days.

All three of us are definitely on the mend. Jay felt good today, finally, and he even went to work this evening. Lily never really acted like she felt bad, just a little out of sorts at times. But, she is happily building a tower with her blocks while I get our house cleaned, aired out, and all of our bedding laundered. Bye! Bye! Germies!

I promise that this is my last "sick" post. Back to happy, healthy stuff next week.

Good News/Bad News!

Well, the good news is: Lily is a wonderful patient at the Dr's office. When I took her to see her pediatrician today she wasn't scared in the least. She sat still, said "ahhh", and did it all sitting by herself...she didn't even need to hold my hand. The only part she didn't care for was the throat swab -- she gagged, but didn't shed a tear! After the exam was done, she headed happily toward the receptionist repeating one little word ..."sucker". Which, of course, she received. She has come a long way from 10 months ago when she would SCREAM BLOODY MURDER from the time I pulled INTO the parking lot until I pulled OUT of said parking lot. The reason for taking her to the doc's office today: I found out Monday that I had strep throat, and my hubby was at Urgent Care this morning (his throat hurt, go figure)! He discovered there that he has a very serious strand of Strep that often, if not treated quickly, leads to Scarlet Fever or Kidney Failure. (which was especially horrible news for him since he only has one kidney to begin with).

So, I took Lily to get checked out, even though she wasn't showing any signs of being ill. But, poor thing has been hangin' out with a couple of sickies, so I figured better to be safe than sorry.

OK...Now for the bad news: I bet you guessed it! She also has Strep. I never would have known! But, she is just a tough cookie when it comes to that stuff. Always has been. So, off to Meijer I went for more free antibiotics. Which is a blessing, especially after 3 co-pays this week. (ugh)

While I was there I bought some yummy ice-cream treats to try and put a smile on my family member's faces. Now Lily had missed her nap today due to all the craziness, so she had turned into a royal crabby-pants by the time the prescription had been filled. I was too tired to even be embarrassed by the cashier's less than friendly glances at my cranky toddler. Homeward bound we were, for dinner and ice-cream. We made it home, but Lily fell asleep in the car and had a major melt-down when I removed her from her carseat, so after about 30 minutes of water works I decided to pull out the ice-cream and give it to her BEFORE her dinner. It worked, thankfully, and she even ate a good dinner afterward. As I'm typing this I can still hear her chatting away in bed. It's almost midnight and she had an exhausting day, but she just isn't ready to give in to sleep quite yet. Oh my. I am. Good Night.

Lily's first prayer

Lily is becoming more and more verbal every day, and we are enjoying the heck out of it. (well, most of it anyway) I won't discuss her love of the word NO today... I'll save that for another day. For the most part, she is sweet, smart, and funny!
She said her first prayer the other day before lunch and I just had to get it on video. She still gets alittle squirmy and mumbly on tape, but she is saying "Thank you, Jesus, for our food, AMEN!"
She is also wearing her infamous "banana shirt" -- the one I bought with her crowd pleasing "cereal shirt"! Yep, she knows she is the top banana around here!

More good, clean fun!

Well, as I promised: more bubble pics! These were taken on Saturday when it was about 6o or 65 degrees, and we were all so excited to get outside and play. My parents stopped by for awhile to hang out with Lil, which is always fun. My dad's arm is in a sling due to a recent surgery, from which he is recovering remarkably! (Nothin' slows my dad down!) Lily is blessed with incredible grandparents and she LOVES them sooo much!(both sets)...Jay's parents paid us a visit on Sunday and I will be posting some pictures later this week.

I am feeling so revived with the warmer weather finally arriving. I am such a summer girl. I need the sunshine in my life. We are going to have such an awesome spring and summer this year. Lily is at SUCH a fun age, and we have a couple trips coming up... a visit with good friends in Chicago next month, and our PingJiang reunion in July -- woo hoo!

I have lots of cute things to post about our little sweetie, she has been CRACKING us up even more than usual lately, but I will just leave you with this:

Yesterday I was heading for the computer and she yelled out," Momma wait for me --I'm gonna check my emails!" Like mother, like daughter, I suppose.

Family Foto Fun Challenge

Donna, over at Double Happiness posts a photo challenge every Friday, and

this week's challenge really got me excited.

The theme is "bubbles" and my girl LOVES her some bubbles.

We spent countless hours last summer outside with those soapy, little creations. Lily never seems to tire of blowing them, chasing them, or attacking me with them.

And, wouldn't you know, the weather broke this weekend and we have been OUTSIDE again. Hallelujah!

So, we had to run to the store for some more bubbles (of course).

These pictures are from last year, but I have soooo many more from this past weekend, and there will be a ton to come over the next few months.

Hmmmm...Verna, maybe we should do a bubble theme for my blog????? Just a thought.

Anyway, the weekend went by so quickly with us enjoying ourselves out in the sunny warmth. It was just the boost that Lily and I were lookin' for. She must've said 20 times, "I love summa!" Ahhh yes, I just hope it's here to stay. Today reached 81 degrees!

*Lily is in bed (miracle), and I am on antibiotics for my sore throat and am feeling some relief finally. Life is good.*

Update

Just a quick update:
I haven't been on the computer much all weekend, lotsa reasons. I won't get into any of them right now, but I plan on getting caught up with all my favorite blogs this week. I have also been taking a ton of pictures that I am excited to post. But, for now, I am off to bed. I worked tonight, I am tired, and I have a headache and an incredibly sore throat! Other than that, I am peachy! We actually had a really great weekend.
Hope you are all doing well, and we will catch up this week.

Also, I hope you all enjoy my new COLORFUL blog. Verna (the blog fairy) is a sneaky one! I like it, but I sent her an e-mail letting her know that all of the crayons on the sides make me a bit dizzy.(?) I am more of a conservative gal, even when it comes to my blog, apparently.

I'll end with just one "Lil" tidbit. She is out in the living room watching her "Praise Baby" video and singing along with it (so cute), and she just looked up at me and said "I'm singing worship song." She is such a sweet girl. She also prayed for our lunch the other day...warmed my heart. She gets cuter, smarter, sweeter, funnier, sillier, and more all-around wonderful with each passing day!

Blog Fairy Strikes Again

Tee Hee!!! So, it's slow at work?? What to do?? Well, you mess with blogs, of course. Sorry, Nikki, when I cracked your password, I just couldn't resist. Everyone better be glad I'm not a hacker!! Well, not a bad one anyway!

Favorite Photo Friday

More fun with crayons!

Lily still isn't real big on coloring...every once in awhile she will sit and do it for a few. She still enjoys peeling them every so often, and as you can see, she likes to line 'em up nice and pretty.

Her latest craze is painting. I bought her a bunch of paint with water books and a paintbrush and she just goes to town! She LOVES it, and so do I cuz there is NO mess!

*Regarding my last post: the plan failed miserably and we are still scratching our heads over here trying to figure out how to get her to sleep before midnight. But, as my mom wisely said, "It could be so much worse" and in the big scheme of things I totally agree.*

Loungin' with Lily

Oh yeah, my girl gets nice and comfy in her jammies and cupcake sleeper. She enjoys a little snack, then relaxes on her very own lounge chair and enjoys a good video. You'd think that she would be just about ready to hit the hay; call it a day; catch some zzz's; float off to la-la land, right?
Naw, she's just takin' a break. She'll be all fired up and ready to go momentarily. We can't seem to get her to fall asleep before midnight. Guess I should've named her Cinderella, cuz that is pumpkin time for her! Not a minute sooner.
We originally thought it was just a phase. Now I'm beginning to wonder. This has been a VERY long phase!
I joke about it here, but I am growing weary. Very weary.

We have a NEW plan, to try and get her on an earlier sleep schedule...wish us luck. We have tried nearly EVERYTHING!!!!

Life with Lily Lin is berry good!

Lily has always enjoyed berries. All of the flavors!(blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, and strawberries being her absolute favs). Which is a good thing, since I can't get her to eat that much. At least if she is eating her berries, I feel she is getting some good stuff in her. But, lately I can't keep enough berries in the house! She devours bowl after bowl of them...and then asks for more.
I think it has a lot to do with one of her favorite books, "Jamberry".

Quickberry!

Quackberry!

Pick me a blackberry!

Trainberry

Trackberry

Clickety-clackberry

This cute little book has been in her top 10 line up for a couple of months now, and it has definitely contributed to her desire for all things berry-licious! "MMMMMM...Deewishus!"

We made it!

Yep, Lily's first sleepover went off without a hitch! She made it through the night without her momma, and surprisingly enough, her momma survived without her little girl!!!

Jay and I went to see the movie "300" at the IMAX theatre, which I highly recommend for that particular movie. I liked it. Jay loved it. I mean, I thought it was entertaining enough to sit through the whole thing without a (much needed) bathroom break...so that must say something. Then, we went out to dinner to one of our favorite restaurants "Texas Roadhouse" and it was delicious! Then, we were still feeling somewhat adventurous (but also a little sleepy), so we rented a movie -- "The Illusionist". I thought it was fabulous. Jay fell asleep after 5 minutes! Oh well.

When I went to pick Lily up Saturday morning she didn't want to come home with me. She decided it was more fun to stay with her cousins. I had to bribe her to get her out the door!!!

But, she is home again and I'm a happy camper. It is good to get a (short) break, but it is great to be together again.

I posted this picture keeping with the "sleep" theme. This was taken when she was sick and she fell asleep on the couch while watching a video at 8:00 pm! That NEVER happens. She doesn't normally turn into a pumpkin until midnight.

Anyway, thank you for all of your encouragement and support. You all knew we would be fine...and we were!

Favorite Photo Friday

There is something so beautiful about a sleeping child. So sweet, peaceful, and innocent. I have spent a lot of time watching Lily sleep. I love the smell of her; the sound of her breathing; her little hands holding sweetly to her dog or blankie. Every now and then she will whisper a word or a phrase, or just smile. I take this time to say a prayer for her. I pray that she sleeps well and has happy dreams. My sweet girl.

Oh boy. My sweet baby will be sleeping at my sister's house tonight. Her first "sleep over". The first time the two of us will NOT be sleeping under the same roof. I am freaking out just a bit. I will drop her off this morning on my way to work and (if all goes well), I will pick her up TOMORROW morning. Jay and I are going on a much needed date. We haven't been out -- just the two of us -- in months. So, this is a good thing. I am just having a hard time breathing right now. Deep breath. This is a GOOD thing. ( I am such an emotional momma.)

Well, that's it for now. Hopefully I'll have good things to report tomorrow!

*this pic was taken on our last trip to the west side of the state. Lily sleeps soooo well in her carseat. Unfortunately, that is the ONLY place that she sleeps really well.*

Talk! Talk! Talk!

Lily was not an early talker. A month before her 2 year appointment I was worried about what the pediatrician might say about her lack of verbal communication. However, shortly thereafter, the words began to spill out! Now, she is rambling in fragmented sentences CONSTANTLY! I still play the role of translator because she definitely has her own way of pronouncing words. There are still several letters in the alphabet that she hasn't yet mastered...but that is part of the fun. I am loving this talkative child of mine. The things that come out of her mouth tend to BLOW ME AWAY! Examples, you say? You would like some examples of her funny verbage? OK. Here are some snippits of Lily's chatter.

Right now she is sitting next to me telling me she needs her "yebbow shubbel" (yellow shovel)...she is now wandering around the kitchen looking for it saying "Where's my shubbel mommy. Help me find it. Need to find dog bones. bweet for dogs. Owange bweet (treat); bweet for dogs. Yeeyee(Lily) need it shubbel. Tell daddy." Now she is asking daddy to help her find her shovel so she can dig for dog bones. Uh oh, daddy can't help. Now, she's on to another thing. She is looking up Jay's nose and saying, "spidas in daddy's nose, mommy. Yeeyee yuvs spidas mommy."

Yesterday morning she opened the shower curtain when I was in there and said "Mommy, I'm gonna touch your boobies! I'm gonna reach 'em" and she started to lunge at me. (She has a slight obsession with my boobies right now. I hear this is normal, so I'm not concerned.)

Speaking of obsessions, she LOVES LOVES LOVES berries right now. Is eating bowl after bowl of them. So, the other day after she inhaled a huge bowl of blueberries I said, "Wow, Lily, you are my blueberry girl!" To which she sadly replied, "Don't say dat momma! Don't say it bwooberry girl. Dat's your wittle baby!" My sweetie wants to stay a baby a little while longer.

Another phrase you will hear in our house at least 5 times a day: "So many poo poo nuggets!" ( One time, long ago, I was changing her diaper after she had gone number 2. And she said "it's a big one" and I said, "no, it's just a nugget")

Well, now it is all about the poo poo nuggets. She can talk this little subject to death. Loves to talk about the time "silly daddy dwopped the poo poo nugget on da fwoor!"

I could go on and on...she sure does. But, I'll save some more fun for another day.

Lily's new shirt

Somebody got a new shirt and now it's difficult to get her in anything else!

Lily is lovin' her "cereal shirt". I think it's mainly due to the fact that daddy LOVES cereal. It is certainly not just a breakfast food for that guy. Eats it as a snack, and enjoys it for dinner about three times a week.

Makes life real easy on me. I don't have to cook very often, which is a good thing for everyone involved. As much as I would love to succeed in this area, I don't. I am NOT a good cook. I have a few things that taste alright, but everything else usually ends up in the trash. So, God gave me a husband with a love of cereal and a daughter who eats next to nothing. It works. For now, anyway. (A typical dinner for my child is a bowl of berries and some oatmeal. And, I have TRIED to get her to eat lots and lots of stuff, people!)

Anyhoo, back to the shirt. I bought it for her last week because it was bright and spring-like and everyone knows by now how ready I am for warm weather! So now the first words out of her mouth in the morning are "put clothes on. bween shirt. bween cereal shirt. daddy yuvs cereal, momma!" So, if you see lots of pics and videos of her with the same shirt please know that she DOES own other things, but chooses to wear this.

She did wear her new banana shirt today when I broke the news to her that her cereal shirt was being laundered. She was OK with the switch, cuz her banana t-shirt is pretty stinkin' cool too.

And, you know how much MONKEYS love bananas!

My house is alive...

With the sound of music! And, I am lovin' it. I borrowed "The Sound of Music" from my sister a couple weeks ago, because I wanted to introduce Lily to one of my all time favorites. I was REALLY hoping she would love it, so I would put it on in her playroom as background noise. At first, she showed very little interest, until...she saw the puppet show. Oh my gosh, she fell instantly in love with the puppets, and has learned how to rewind to just the right spot to watch the thing over and over and over and over and...Ok. You get the drift. So, this brought me great joy and I have spent much time watching her dance with the puppets and do her very best imitation of their "yodeling". But, she has now realized that there is more than just one part in this movie that she loves. She will now watch a lot of the scenes and is beginning to SING along with them. Now, this makes my heart overflow with joy and thanksgiving! As many of you know, singing is my truest passion. Now, Lily has shown no desire to sing. Nor has she shown any interest in listening to her momma sing. She actually used to get UPSET when I would sing to her, which caused me a lot of heartache and pain. (Not to mention, a bruised ego). I was like, hey kid! Some people really like the way I sing. I have been asked to sing in some weddings. I was on the vocal worship team at church. Don't ya wanna hear just a few tunes from your mom? To which she would quickly reply "No sing!"
Alrighty then! But, those days are gone. My daughter has discovered that singing is GOOD. She is finding her own little voice, and isn't cringing at the sound of mine!
Oh, happy days! Thank you Julie Andrews and "The Sound of Music". Thank you!
(I am assuming that you all have seen "The Sound of Music" and if you have NOT -- shame on you! Go out and rent it immediately!)

Favorite Photo Friday

As I have stated before: ANY photo of Lily is bound to be a favorite of mine. I took this one about 2 weeks ago of Lily in her brand new (clearance rack) cupcake sleeper. Her old sleeper had a hole in the foot, and when I saw this one I thought, what the heck? It'll get her through the rest of the cold nights. I had to really talk it up, though. Cuz, she can be less than thrilled to cover up her fabulous princess or puppy dog jammies. I went on and on about how BEAUTIFUL and WARM and FUZZY this sleeper is and how I just want to SQUEEZE her when she is wearing it. Well, it worked like a charm and she grins from ear to ear every time I put it on her. And, as soon as it is fully zipped she will say, "Momma, big squeeze!"( To which I happily oblige.)
Can't you tell by the picture how cute she feels in her fuzzy little sleeper!?
Don't ya just wanna give her a BIG SQUEEZE!!???

Oh, and for the record, I will be getting back to my Friday Flashback Photos soon. I just haven't had the time to scan old pictures lately, with little one being under the weather. But, she is doing soooo much better. Almost back to 100%, Thank God. I missed her.

Just finish the sentence, sir

I found this on my friend Amy's blog and thought it was quite interesting.
If you want to play along, let me know and I will check out your answers.

1.When I was five... I remember being very, very happy. I was in kindergarden and I loved my teacher, Mrs. Mann. My best friend's name was Jenny Garlitz (I think).
2. March sure is... a disappointment most years. You would think it would be warmer and spring-like, but it is usually just another winter month. Yuck.
3. When I think of pepperoni... I think of my daughter. Lily LOVES pepperoni. I will probably have to do a post about it one of these days, it is quite funny. As far as pizza goes: she will pass on the crust, sauce, and cheese, but pass the pepperoni please!
4. I don't think I will... ever actually make a CD. But, I don't think I will ever stop dreaming about doing it someday either.
5. Yesterday I heard... My friend's voice. But, better than that, I saw her face again for the first time in about 7 months. She moved away, but has come home again. Yay!
6. Cowboy boots... look really cool on some people. Not on me.
7. If I were a tree... I would want to be a pretty, flowering tree. Looks are important to me. Just kidding. Actually, I would want to be an awesome tree for climbing. All the kids would spend hours climbing in my branches. (I remember loving to climb this one big tree by our house when I was young.)
8. Computers will never... allow me to lose touch with a friend. I love my computer for that reason, and many others.
9. The problem with toast is... hmmmm. sometimes I burn it and then it just doesn't taste good. Other than that, I have no beef with toast.
10. If I could, I would definitely... adopt again. and again.

Ready for Summer!

I meant to share this video LAST WEEK, but was having some computer trouble. So, better late than never. Lily has been talking about summer NON-STOP for the last couple weeks...hmmmm...wonder where she got that?
Yeah, so for days, she would walk around in her blue "summer shoes" and repeat over and over, "I'm ready for summer!" She kept talking about looking for sunflowers and swinging and all the fun things you get to do in summer. But, she now knows that "winter goes first." Although, the other day she went to the front door and said "B'mon momma, wet's go find summa. get my teys." Oh, I wish it were that easy!
And, for the last portion of the video Lily is naming off which animal year our family members were born. (she learned that from her Chinese New Year book "Dragon Dance."
We ARE ready for summer over here.
Another update on Lily: I took her in to see the doctor today and she is fine. Just a nasty cold. She has a lot more energy today, which is surprising since we had another rough night with her coughing. But, things are looking up. Thank you for all of your kind words and prayers -- we sure do appreciate it.

Update on the pumpkin

Well, the weekend was "poopy" as I mentioned yesterday, and so far the week seems to be heading in that same direction. Lily is still feeling like doo. Her nose is partly stuffed/ partly runny, so it is a nasty, crusty, gurgling mess. She CANNOT stand to have me near her with the tissues (even if they are Puffs Plus with lotion)...she behaves as if they are sandpaper with prickers. She runs screaming in the opposite direction after each sneeze, cuz she knows what I am going to attempt to do. Ugh. Luckily for her, I am officially OUT of tissue. Double Ugh.

She is now snoring away -- I am hoping for a good nap. Although last night she was up several times due to rib busting coughing fits. My poor girl. I cannot stand to see her like this. She has been (thankfully) very healthy this winter. Others around her have fallen victim to all sorts of ailments and she has remained in perfect health...until now, of course. Oh well, spring must be around one of these corners. Then things will start to look up.

Can you tell I am feeling sorry for myself today? Yep, I sure am. I also have a runny nose, and a sinus headache, and I am not liking being me today.

So, in order to keep things in perspective, I will post a picture of Lily from LAST WEEK -- a happier time in our lives and I will think on that. This is her enjoying one of her new favorite treats. We were at the grocery store last week and there was a man in there with his son, and he had just purchased a box of these yummy popsicles. Lily and I strolled by said man and his son, and Lily's eyeballs popped out of her head at the sight, so the man GAVE Lily one of the popsicles...sooooo nice. Her whole face lit up as she said "Tay too" to the man. I then headed to the freezer section to purchase a box of these frozen goodies for my girl. Now, everytime I give her one (which is at least once daily), she will say "nice man give this to Yee Yee). See, just telling that story is making me feel better. I am even smiling now.

Hope everyone is having a happy Monday.

Oh, and if you are in the neighborhood, would you mind swinging by with a box of Puffs Plus!?!

Poopy Weekend

Well, our weekend started off "poopy" and continued to go downhill from there!

Lily kicked off our Saturday morning by going poo-poo on the big girl potty! Woo Hoo! First time ever! It was a BIG DEAL over here! Sorry for posting such a gross picture, but this is a very monumental poop. We were very excited and beaming with pride over this pile of doo yesterday. Phone calls were made. Congratulatory hugs and kisses were handed out. Lily kept hugging me saying "I'm so proud a you!" Truly great times!

Unfortunately, the rest of our weekend has been less wonderful.

Lily is not feeling well AT ALL. Actually, our Saturday didn't start with the morning poop. It started at about 4 am, with Lily crying, coughing, and trying to catch a breath. It was so sad. She was obviously so miserable, but her chest was so conjested she couldn't get a good breath, and therefore could hardly speak. At one point, she pointed at her mouth, looked up at me with the sweetest, saddest eyes, and whispered "momma help me"... it broke my heart!

She refused to take any medicine at that point, but managed to cough a few times and found a little relief. We watched one of her "Praise Baby" videos for awhile and she finally fell back asleep.

She is still feeling pretty crappy. If she isn't better tomorrow, I am taking her to see our doctor.

Until then, we will be doing more of the same: watching "The Sound of Music", snuggling, sleeping, nose wiping, and taking our meds every 4 to 6 hours.

Hope you all are having less poopy weekends! If you have a moment, say a little prayer for my pumpkin!

Favorite Photo Friday -- Lily's "foundling" story

My friend (and travel-mate) Donna e-mailed earlier this week asking everyone to share their daughter's "foundling" story. So, I took a walk down memory lane. It had been about two years since I had read that information given to us upon Lily's referral. And, I was surprised at how emotional I got once again.
The report read:
Jiang Hao, female, on June 24, 2004 was picked up at the gate of The Civil Affair Bureau of Pingjiang County. Because they did not find her parents, the Tianyue Police Station confirmed her as a foundling. She was then sent to our institution by workers of The Civil Affair Bureau of Pingjiang County. On admission, she, with thin hair, wore baby clothes with flowers on white back. She did not carry anything. The child's physical examination showed weight 3.5 Kg; height 47 cm; head circumference 31 cm and chest circumference 33 cm. It was found that there was an angioma of 2 mm in size on the right side of her face. The doctor advised she would receive a surgery to remove it when she was older. Except this, she was fine. The doctor of our institution estimated her birth date as June 12, 2004 based on her development and we gave her name Jiang Hao. Jiang expresses Piangjiang County and is the common surname of all of the children in our institution; Hao is our best wishes for her, hoping her happy and healthy.

It went on to describe her daily routine and some of her personality traits. My favorite was "She is a beautiful, clever and active child with being strong." I think they might have been trying to express her strong-will way back then. It is still a very accurate description of Lily. She started off strong...she had to be. God knows what He is doing when He makes us. He knew the path that Lily would be taking and He equipped her for the journey.
Psalm 139:13
For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful.
I know that full well.

While waiting to meet my daughter, I remember finding comfort in the fact that God made Lily. He knew her and loved her long before I ever did. And, I trusted that while I was not there with her -- He was. His hand was on her, and it still is!

*Just a note regarding Lily's "angioma" or hemangioma/strawberry on the side of her face: our doctor here told us no surgery would be needed and that it would most likely go away on its own by age 5 or so. If you will notice in her recent pictures -- it is already gone. It started fading and decreasing in size almost immmediately, and then it was gone completely. It was never a big concern of ours. We thought she was perfect with or without it.*
*the picture was taken on "Gotcha Day" when we got back to our hotel and she had finally cried herself to sleep. She is wearing the pajamas she was given to us in.

What a precious gift she is. To our family, our friends, and everyone who is blessed enough to know her.