Day at the local park

We just had the best night of sleep ever - or since we've been a family of three. Timothy slept until 7:45 AM this morning. We were happy yesterday when he slept until 6:05, later than that seemed like a distant dream. It's only been one morning so we'll have to see how it goes, but he also only stirred a couple of times throughout the night.

These photos are from two days ago when the weather was warm enough to go to our local park. It's taken a few tries for him to adjust to the swings. He does best when seeing other children do the same thing, then he knows it's okay to do, not just what his crazy parents want him to do.

We are settling into our daily routine, which the pediatrician says is necessary for his sense of security. He's very active and loves to play but also to cuddle with mom and dad.

Merry Christmas!

note to self: assemble the night before

dad is this my toy or yours? it's more interesting if it's yours

traffic congestion ahead

ah, the open road and a fresh spoon to chew on

oh the little people of Stonehenge

no time for hugs. got work to do.

Ridin' the Reindeer

New Stuff

We've been trying to go slow go with giving Timmy new toys so we don't overwhelm him with too much stuff. But after playing with him for a few days - mommy needed to give him something else, if for no other reason but to save the rest of my coasters. We bought him two mega block trucks before we left for China because we couldn't decide between the two and presented one of them to him this morning. You would not believe the sweetest heart-melting smile we received in return. He's been walking with it around the house, often laughing because he's so happy. He's also been standing more by himself, a bit shaky but he can do it.

The time change campaign continues. We managed to keep Timmy up all day yesterday but without really trying. We saw the sun briefly yesterday and braved the outside to get him some vitamin D and to try and reset his clock a little bit.

He was awake from 4:30 AM until 3 PM (he would NOT take a nap any earlier). We woke him at 5 PM and he was NOT happy because he was so tired, poor guy. Went to bed again at 7:30 PM and awoke wide-eyed at 12 midnight. He actually awoke at 11 PM but managed to get him to a fitful sleep again. Went to bed again at 2 am. He rose for the day this morning at 5:30 AM.

My bright idea at Midnight was to keep him in his room, all dark but with just the night light. I laid down on the floor with blanket and pillows to provide a hint, to absolutely no avail. I gave him a bottle without leaving the room too as I had it prepared with thermos in the room and he drank and seemed tired enough to go to sleep but would not go down. Instead he stood in his crib, very pleasantly I might add and yelled things to me in his sweet voice and tried to dismantle his bedding.

Greg is now (1:30 PM) trying to get him to take a nap but he is supernaturally resisting. Poor guy we've torn his life apart, wreaked havoc on his schedule, changed his diet but he's still going with it for now and doing pretty well considering all we've asked him to do. He still rears his back occasionally and gets frustrated with us but mostly he just wants us to make him laugh. Daddy is able to do this for him better than anyone. Daddy is also an excellent walking partner and Timmy will often grab Greg's hand to let him know it's time for some exercise. It's pretty darn cute.

Half the Sky

On Gotcha Day, we received a little book of information about Timothy, along with a CD of pictures of his life in the orphanage and a necklace for all of the adoptive mothers. These pictures are so precious to me because it shows me some of his early development and life for him in the orphanage(it's in Chinese so I need to get it translated). It seems that his life was organized, happy and well-nurtured.

I credit a lot of this to the organization that works with his orphanage, a group called Half the Sky. They are the reason I have the pictures and life book. This organization is dedicated to helping China's orphans.

The pictures above are some of the ones we received in the picture CD. We know Timothy had a much better life and received more care and attention because of this group. For some information about his orphanage check out this link: http://www.halfthesky.org/work/sites/lianyungang.php

Consider making a donation. They are a great great organization!

Time change blues

We are trying to get Timothy adjusted to the time difference and he wants nothing to do with it! Also we are feeding Timothy regularly but still found the coaster to have a satisfying crunch in the mouth - blame Daddy for that one. We took Timothy out in the cold for a stroller ride to give him some fresh air and promptly put him to sleep despite the frigid weather. Isn't his hat the cutest? He loves to walk with assistance, mainly from Daddy.

The doctor gave us a clean bill of health - turns out his cough is just a cold and his lungs are supposedly clear. Also doesn't think there will be any long-term problem with his no-drinking-with-us-in-China stance.

We were trying to combat the time difference in Timothy's schedule with a divide and conquer approach. I was the night shift from midnight to 6:30 AM and Daddy was the day shift but no one was getting any good sleep. So this morning at 5:00 AM Greg got up with me when I could not get him down to sleep and we took Timothy to our favorite diner for breakfast. He liked the pancakes and eggs alright but loved the grits - as this is closest to what he's used to eating. We were worried he may melt down because he's so tired but he was great, especially after two cups of coffee. Just kiddin'. The parents drank the coffee.

It's good to be home again

Greg was the one taking all of the photos so sorry there aren't more of Greg! Here are some random shots of our time in China. The first photo is when Timothy was still drinking and we had made it through the second night. Greg holding Timothy at Gotcha day. Greg worked hard to feed Timothy - and without his palate a lot of food goes through the nose.

We are so happy to be home. Timothy is glad as well as he thinks that the stackable cups make a rather remarkable and satisfying sound when struck on the wooden floor.

He is doing great! Finally, finally he started drinking like gangbusters on the plane and hasn't stopped since, a big relief. We are taking him to the pediatrician tomorrow morning first thing to see about his terrible cough and to check his lab values. He's eating as well, and although he is eating them, squash is not his first choice in vegetable. He's quite funny as he does a little dance after he's been eating awhile. He's not so much for the car seat, as he never used one the entire time in China, and does not understand all the fuss, or that it puts him immediately to sleep.

Our time in China was stressful, as we are new parents with a little man that wasn't drinking so much and we were very very worried and not sure how to proceed - hospital or not. But we did enjoy our time there. Timothy and I first bonded on daily walks through the streets of Nanjing and he grew to love love love the bugaboo. In fact, he insisted on being in it or being held by mom at all times. We loved our family walks in the public parks of Guangzhou to watch the senior citizens dancing or playing cards or to watch couples taking glamorous wedding photos.

But it's nice to have more than one room to work with and a washing machine and dishwasher. Also Timothy has more room to play - rather than just the top of the bed. Timothy loves to have his dad take his hands for walks around the house. He will get his shoes so daddy understands that's what he wants to do. With mom his preference is still that she hold him but will occasionally allow me to just sit close and help him play. He likes to laugh and has the sweetest little voice that coos when he's happy. He's hilarious. We feel very lucky!