Hot Springs

12.31.2011

We decided to take a little family outing to some Hot springs that we had not been to before. These are about 30 minutes away and we had heard were great for kids and much cleaner than the springs a lot closer to us.

Sophia had off of school for the 2nd and 3rd, which meant that they held class on Saturday, this day. We decided this would be perfect, not crowded!

He looked extra cool so I had to get a pic. Go Pack!



It was cold outside but the water was nice and warm. Sophia could stand in this pool area, which was great. She eventually took off all of her floaties and tried 'swimming' on her own. She is getting much braver. But really we haven't been in the water in ages. She just felt completely comfortable here. Bella liked staying in the inner tube. We were going to get Tobin in, but it would have been quite a hassle and we really did not stay too long anyway. We were just really checking things out, seeing if we would come back.



Tobin remained our blue-eyed content champ!

Bella's potty training

12.26.2011


The cost of doing 'bizness'

Yes, only insanity convinced me to start potty training Bella the day after Christmas! I honestly thought it would be one huge mess, but I went into with that mindset, which helped me relax, I had no idea whether she would really get it at all! She is our wildcard for sure. She has done amazing! We were so surprised. I had been saying for weeks: 'next week you are going to learn to go potty like a big girl....' and those weeks turned into months...So finally we just started. Here is what we did:

1. took a more laid back approach than the 'boot camp' we did with Sophia, which had us trying to 'force' her to go by sitting her on the potty half the day (it wasn't that bad but I remember the first day we learned what NOT to do. Sophia got it pretty quick, and never wore pull ups or anything after stopping the diapers)
2. we knew we would still put pull ups on at nap and night. the goal was to get her used to the feeling of going.
3. we juiced her up. our girls usually get juice (diluted) once a day. I gave her whatever I knew she would drink a lot of all day long for 4 days (tapering off towards the 4th day). She peed SO MUCH and got the 'feeling' very quickly.
4. we gave GOOD prizes. at first it was two M&Ms, then it was 'gummies'. She also got a sticker on her chart.
5. we pulled up the rugs, but it wasn't really necessary.
6. Our world concentrated on this but did not revolve around it, there was no way it could. We asked her a lot if she had to go and did not make her. Once she 'got the hang of it' it was just a matter of making it in time, most of the time she did.
7. Going #2 took more practice, but she now pretty much has the hang of it too. We have been accident free for many days now.
8. She now gets prizes for having a dry pull up at nap or night, which she often does. During our 'mad' week last week I forgot to put pull ups on at nap 2x and she did not have an accident.


Day one was incredible! This was by like noon, yes, her bladder was working real hard!
She only had 1-2 accidents a day (of course some of those were doosies!), and then on day 5 she had zero. She is pretty much potty trained! Whew! Congrats girl, a big milestone in the life of a two year old!

The Dollhouse

12.24-25.2011

When Poppy and CC asked for gift ideas for the girls, we offered some suggestions, and even said we could look on TaoBao for some to save on shipping, etc. A dollhouse has always gotten great 'reviews' in the toy department for long-lasting creative play through the years. We had no idea the variety. I knew we wanted a wooden/durable and not too girly house. The options were amazing and expensive. But this one was simple and not that pricy at all. But so much for 'no big gifts'! we really didn't realize how big this thing was! The girls did not have another thought about gifts after the stockings, so this was a big shocker. And we were glad. Poppy and CC got to watch them receive it via Skype!


the computer with Poppy and CC on it is to the left.


Christmas Eve construction. While David put it together, I got things prepped for Christmas breakfast. Once I started helping him a little I told him I was going to stay up all night and play with it. It is really cool.




We are very thankful for this gift, the girls do love it, I think we will get a lot of use out of it for many, many years!

To look after orphans and widows

We know adoption is an incredible thing, and an incredibly hard thing.

We now know two families very dear to us that are in the process of adopting little girls from China. One of these families just happens to be my sis' family. The Williams are probably the best parents I know. When they told us they were adopting, it was no surprise. The daughter they are waiting for will be so blessed to have them as parents.

When we told Sophia that we would soon have another cousin, this one from China, she was also very excited and said she wanted one too (another sister/brother from China). She would be fine with ten more brothers and sisters…I tell her she can have that many of her own when she grows up.

The organization that Travis and Julie are using to help them raise funds is incredible. It helps both a widow and an orphan. So, whatever money we give helps them bring their girl home AND helps a group of volunteers do a project for or help a widow in some way. Please GO HERE to see the Williams' project page and consider giving to help bring baby Williams home and help a widow at the same time.

"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." James 1:27

Mommyhood link

I liked this article.

On bloggin

I have lots of posts to work on, new years things, old year things, kid things, edible things. But I am not sure when the time will come... I certainly want to document and remember, but the living is so busy these days, fun busy, hard busy, really hard busy...

David leaves on a trip this Weds for ten days, we are preparing for that, and for the JJACK family return right when David comes back. Sophia has one more week of school and then the New Year Spring Holiday begins, and Chinese New Year is upon us. Poppy and CC arrive soon after that!

We will see what/if/when this journal continues. Maybe without skipping a beat, maybe skipping a few hundred.

Full Attention

The past week has been an entire exercise of having to dig deep in faith. I may tell more detailed versions of the story later, though it is really not my story. The short version is this: our friends were involved in a Medical crisis that involved a week in the local hospital (after ambulance transport from their town 2 hours away) and ended (for us) with their medical evacuation by Air Med Lear Jet to Bangkok. As I got in the car to go to the hospital on the last day to take over nursing duties until the evac team arrived, the song Full Attention by Jeremy Riddle blared through the speakers and I tearfully prayed the words:

May Your voice be louder
May Your voice be clearer
Than all the others

May Your face be dearer
May Your words be sweeter
Than all the others in my life

Please keep my eyes fixed on You
Please wound my heart so deep in You
Keep me abiding, keep me abiding
Keep me abiding that I may be a fruit

May Your your presence be truer
May Your presence be nearer
Than all the others

And may Your light shine brighter
And may Your love move deeper
Than all the other my God
Than all the others in my life

Please keep my eyes fixed on You
Please wound my heart so deep in You
Keep me abiding, keep me abiding
Keep me abiding that I may be a fruit

Please keep my eyes fixed on You
Please wound my heart so deep in You
Keep me asking, keep me near
Keep me abding that I may be a fruit
Keep me close to You
Oh, right next to Your heart
Close to You



I know it is an old song, but it ministered to me.

We almost saw two lives lost this week, and our Father decided to sustain them both and we rejoice at his workings of every. little. detail. Pray for R and her newborn baby A, born two months early. Their journey in this 'crisis' continues. But already God's glory has SHINED awesome and bright in this town.