Lifes Red Threads

Help Bring another Child HOME!

2010-06-23T10:07:00.000-07:00

Home is such a precious place! Some children never get to experience the love of a family, here is a family that is stepping out in faith to adopt an older child from China but they need our help! It truly takes a community to raise a child, some of that community needs to give the financial help that they are capable to give and that means you and me!

Please help support this family in their endeavor to give another child a home that is wanting one so much!

http://becauseweareled.blogspot.com/

Things Kids Say

2009-05-02T21:01:00.000-07:00

While we were riding in the car today,
Kaitlyn sneezed twice very quietly and I asked if she was OK?
Her response was

"Yes Mommy, it was just a small Bless You, Bless You."

Lunar New Year 2009!

2009-02-01T14:50:00.000-08:00

Seattle International District

Westminster Chapel Lunar New Year Celebration!

2009-01-25T00:14:00.000-08:00

Lunar New Year Celebration - The Year of the OX!

This is the Chinese year of the Ox. We took the little kids along with Charlotte our exchange student and her friend Maggie to the celebration that Westminster Church put on for the community. We had a lot of fun, the food was great along with a lot of activities for the little kids and then some great performances in the auditorium.

Lexi and Kaitlyn enjoying some of the food.
They gave you take out cartons at the door when you came in with a pair of chopsticks.
The kids did quite well with it.

Here Charlotte is writing her Chinese name in character form.

Kaitlyn was our little cat with the face painting.

Max and Kaitlyn, Marcus and Lexi trying their hand at chopsticks! Max was quite good at this, he was able to almost fill his cup up in 30 seconds, Kaitlyn was next and had hers half full.

Lexi fishing!

Lexi was happy to just have a heart on her face.
Marcus, Max and Kaitlyn.

新年快乐!

Max's Second Day of School

2008-09-05T12:20:00.000-07:00

2nd Day was MUCH MUCH BETTER!!!
I walked Max to his classroom and he put his backpack away
and papers away then told me goodbye!
Then walked right over and sat down in the circle and was ready to participate.

The teacher said he had a great day!

Max's First Day of School!

2008-09-04T22:53:00.000-07:00

Max was very excited to go to school today! All until we arrived there! I have never seen a child in such anguish!!! It was all I could do not to cry and just turn around and go home. We went to the nurses office for 15 min and I held him and rocked him and kept telling him Mama was staying with him and would not leave him. That I was going to stay with him all day. After about 15 min I asked if he wanted to talk to Baba? He shook his head yes so we called Baba and Dave reassured him he would see him and Mama after school! That seemed to reassure him some and it took about 5 more minutes to gain his composure.

We proceeded to his classroom and on the way he started crying again! Of course by this time we are late and the kids are all sitting in a circle with the teacher and we crying wailing! I sat down and he climbed on my lap and hung on. I kept talking to him quietly while the teacher explained to the children Max was a new student and he was just scared so he was crying but that he would be OK.

It took another 2-3 minutes until he stopped crying and then a couple more minutes before he turned around on my lap to see what the teacher was doing. She was explaining how the children are to behave in assembly and then we went to assembly, Max did everything right and actually participated in assembly. By the end he was sitting 2 feet away from Mom and not right against me.

From there we went back to the class room and they had free play time. Max watched for about 5 min and then decided he wanted to play also. He checked out the match box cars and then played in the kitchen for a while and was actually smiling. After that he checked out the art supplies and found paper and wrote out his name! All the while I sat in a chair by the door. After that they had recess outside. They lined up which stressed him out a little because I had him get in line with the other children. Then when they went out and I stayed in the room and told him I would be there when he got back. The teacher said he cried all the way to the play ground but as soon as they got there he went and played with the other kids and was happy.

When he came back to the room from recess he seemed very relieved to see that I was still there. He started to climb into my lap and I had him sit on the carpet with the other children. He kept an eye out to make sure he knew where I was. After school I had him walk out the way he normally would and I walked at the end of the line and he was in the lead. He did not let his guard down until we told the teacher goodbye.

When we got home he had to show his art work off and told Marc all about school and Kaitlyn and Baba although he was telling them in Mandarin and only Marc knew what he was saying.

Pray for a better day tomorrow!

Max is 6! Happy Birthday!

2008-09-02T22:57:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Max!!!
Max is 6 years old today!
It is the first time he has been able to have a birthday with his Forever Family!!!
We are so excited to be able to celebrate this special day. His file had a letter from his birth parents stating that today is the day he was born 6 year ago! Max is a very kind and gentle child. He is so full of love and fear at the same time. Wanting to be loved and afraid it will be taken away!

Max was so excited about his presents and that everything was for him!

Hot wheels cars are wonderful!

Putting Legos together with big brother Kurtis!

Happy Birthday Lexi!

2008-08-23T22:38:00.000-07:00

HAPPY 3RD BIRTHDAY LEXI!!!

Lexi turned 3 today!!! We had family over, she had a lot of fun and so did the other kids.

She was much more interested in her presents this year and really knew what to do with them. Marc and Max seemed to take quite an interest in what was going on. Before everyone got there we fed the kids a lite lunch and then had Charlotte, our exchange student, explain to the boys that we would be eating again pretty soon for Lexi's Birthday Party! Max got very upset and told Charlotte he did not want a party because after the party we would send him away! My heart just aches for Max when I see how afraid he still is that we will send him away. We reasurred him that we love him and we are his Mama and Baba forever!

Charlotte was really surprised by all the food. She told us her parents have never bought her presents, that for your birthday they just take her out to dinner and have friends along but no gift exchange.

Charlotte is kinking the hose so that when the kids get close to the water she lets it go and it really sprays them. The little kids just loved it!

After the presents and the food we let the kids run in the sprinkler.
Logan really enjoyed himself but I really needed a video to capture all the squeals of delight!

The four little ones did some swinging after everyone left.
This is their favorite way to swing.
We only have two swings so they share and all of them can swing at once.

One of the gifts Lexi got was play dough with cutters and the works.
The kids had a lot of fun making all kinds of things.

We got this picture of Marc at the end of the day!
I think we wore him out!

Lexi Celebrated at Sabbath School!

2008-08-23T13:39:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Lexi!

Lexi and another little girl at Sabbath School had their third birthday's.
The teacher gave them both gifts and balloons and we brought miniature cupcakes!

They have an artificial cake with candles and you put a penny in for every year!
I think they should change that to one dollar for every year!

The kids enjoying Sabbath School.

Lexi eating her cupcake, she was very intent on it,
unlike the boys who shoved it in their mouth so they could run off and play.

Our Exchange Student Arrived Today.

2008-08-21T14:38:00.000-07:00

Charlotte, our exchange student from Shanghai, China arrived today.
The kids like her, I am sure she will have her fill of them pretty soon.
I made the mistake of painting her room pink and she hates pink so we are going to let her pick out some bedding and repaint to a color she likes.

Lexi's 1 Year Forever Family Day!!!

2008-08-07T22:36:00.001-07:00

One year ago today this amazing little girl was placed in my arms! She was screaming and shaking in terror! The Ayi said she is afraid of strangers! She was not just afraid of strangers but she was afraid of everyone!!! She did not want Daddy or Katy in the room she only wanted Mama and would bury her head and did not want anyone to look at her, she would not make eye contact with anyone.

I was terrified thinking what have I done to my family! We had one beautiful, brilliant, loving amazing daughter from China that fit in our family wonderfully and now I had to ruin it by adding another child that had major issues?

Lexi had very autistic behaviors. She would not make eye contact, did not want any toys or people to play with, would not eat, her activity was what we called "spit art", she would spit on her finger and trace outlines, over and over again! Or she would play with her own fingers right in front of her face! She had boils all around her head and her hair was worn off from rocking her head back and forth. Then to add to that she cried all the time. Developmentally she was about 6-9 months and she was turning 2 in two weeks!

Well we have gone from that to an amazing little girl that will be three in two weeks and she is on target in every area except speech, in which she is making great strides!!! God has blessed us with a loving, affectionate and very smart little girl.
She has really blossomed in 1 year, touching many lives and showing them what love and God can accomplish!

I praise God daily that I had the courage to say "Thank you God for giving me your child to love and nurture" and then trusting Him to know what He is doing! I would have lost out on so many blessings had I given in to my original fears!

Forever Family Day Celebration!

Settling down for nighttime!

Having a tickling party!

This was in the morning after I got home from working all night.
Everyone thought they should go to bed with mom! I was the only one trying to sleep!

2008-08-06T00:21:00.000-07:00

The kids have been getting along quite well! They love playing in the back yard and they are quite inventive.

Katy came and told me "Mommy, I love my Marc and Max!"

This is our grandson swinging!

Our son Jonathan teaching Max how to push the other kids on the swing.

We only have two swings so the kids decided to double up, I thought it was pretty cute!

Eating alomond butter and honey sandwiches and grapes! Yum!

It has been quite warm in Seattle and the kids have enjoyed the back yard and the water! Katy is our little daredevil. She was trying to show the boys how to run and slide on the slip and slide. Marc would never do it but liked to watch but Max was all game to try!

They really enjoy the water!

Kaitlyn's Forever Family Day, 3 Years Ago Today!!!

2008-06-23T23:20:00.000-07:00

It seems like Kaitlyn has always been part of the family and then it seems like she was just placed in our arms. It has been an amazing and awesome three years that we have had the pleasure of calling her our daughter!

We love you Kaitlyn!!!

One of Kaitlyn's favorite pastimes! Swinging!

Being silly with big brother!

She found her horse!

Cousins graduation!

In China 2005

2008-06-23T23:13:00.000-07:00

Kaitlyn's referral photo.

Her other referral photo.

We just got Kaitlyn! She does not know whether to run and cry or what to do!

Kaitlyn's personality is starting to emerge!

Red couch, last day in China 7-1-2005.

Dave's Surgery

2008-06-17T20:46:00.000-07:00

Dave had his surgery and had his gall bladder removed. It took 2 1/2 hours when the surgeon said it should take 45 minutes. The good new though is he was able to do it without cutting Dave clear open and he was able to remove everything that was a problem. The surgeon said he had to chizel it out though and that is why it took so long.

With his post op follow-up with the surgeon he told Dave the pathology came back negative for cancer! We did not even realize it was being sent to be checked and glad we didn't know anything about it at the time. One less thing to worry about for nothing.

Dave is feeling better every day!

Dave's Update

2008-05-20T19:32:00.000-07:00

Dave went to see his surgeon today! The doc was very pleased with Dave's progress. Surgery is scheduled for June 11 which means he should be well enough to travel with me to get our boys from China!!!

Keep those prayers coming!

Thanks!

Just a little update

2008-05-11T00:04:00.000-07:00

Dave has been sick. On May 1st he did not feel very good. Said it felt like a bad case of the flu, I had to work Thursday night, Friday night and Saturday nights so Dave was home with the girls. He continued to feel bad so I would come home from work and get the girls up, dressed and fed and then wake Dave up about 10:30 so I could sleep for a few hours before going back to work. Then when I got up would have to feed the girls and get them ready for bed before going back to work.

On Monday the 5th of May I called his doctor because he was not any better and Dave looked like death warmed over. Well the doctor did some blood test and sent us home. Wednesday the the 7th the doctor's office called and said the doctor wanted to see Dave again so we went back in. He ran some more blood work and told Dave he wanted a CAT scan of his abdomen then gave us a referral and sent us home. I called and scheduled the CAT scan and the soonest they could get us in was the next afternoon.

Thursday afternoon on the 8th we went in at 2:30 for the CAT scan, the long and the short of the story is Dave did not have the flu but a partially ruptured gall bladder. They sent us straight to the Emergency Room in the Hospital. The surgeon was very surprised. He said he had never seen anyone that had gotten that far as they are usually in so much pain that the come in much sooner. He was admitted to the hospital and started on IV antibiotics. They were unsure how long Dave would have to stay but the surgeon said Dave's belly was so "hot" it was to dangerous to operate on and would do IV antibiotics to attempt to "calm it down" so they can operate and take the gall bladder out under better circumstances.

He ended up staying only 48 hours which the doctor was quite surprised about and then sent him home on oral antibiotics. He goes the 20th for a follow up appointment with the surgeon. He still does not feel very good and had more sick days than he can handle! We are just praying this all gets taken care of and Dave gets well and returns to his normal happy self.

WE MOVED!!!

2008-03-26T13:59:00.001-07:00

Easter weekend we moved to a new to us house that has a fenced back yard with a swing set and slide. The girls love it! I am sure the boys will also! Some friends kept the girls all day Friday while we did the bulk of the moving! That was such a blessing. We finished the cleaning of the apartment last night so now it is just down to organizing our new home!

Happy Birthday Kurtis!

2008-02-26T21:55:00.000-08:00

I can't believe Kurtis is 20!

Look at all that smoke!

Kurtis, Kevin, Kaitlyn and Lexi

Chinese New Years Celebration!

2008-02-10T00:09:00.000-08:00

Lexi's First Haircut

2008-01-31T21:13:00.000-08:00

Lexi is really not to sure about this!

Katy's first haircut sitting in the chair by herself!

She was a great example for her little sister!

First Real Snow Experience!

2008-01-03T21:19:00.000-08:00

Katy is thrilled with the snow, Lexi is not to sure!

The big white spots are the snow falling!

We were up on Snoqualmie Pass.

Christmas at Grandma and Grandpa's House.

2008-01-01T21:11:00.000-08:00

We went to Grandma and Grandpa's House a couple days after Christmas to spend a few days with them. We had a great time and the girls love Grandma and Grandpa but what's not to LOVE!!!!!

Christmas Dinner at Kevin's House

2007-12-25T22:19:00.000-08:00

The Stockings Were Hung by the Chimney!

2007-12-25T11:25:00.000-08:00

Christmas Eve was at our Home!

2007-12-25T01:27:00.000-08:00

We had a lot of fun just playing games, eating and hanging out! It was difficult to get the girls to settle down and just go to sleep I think they thought they might miss out on something!

2007-12-25T01:26:00.000-08:00

Christmas Eve was at our Home!

2007-12-25T00:20:00.000-08:00

Happy 4th Birthday Katy!

2007-11-27T23:56:00.000-08:00

A Thanksgiving Day to remember!

2007-11-23T08:40:00.000-08:00

This is one Thanksgiving we will never forget!

First we we went to cook breakfast the two large burners on the stove quit working! Thanks goodness we are doing most of the cooking at my sons house!

We were running late getting out of the house to go to our sons house for dinner when Dave asks who spilled water in the hall? I said I didn't know anyone had. I went to look to see what he was talking about and the puddle was growing and getting bigger before our eyes! About that time someone was knocking loudly at our front door, it was the neighbor on the bottom floor (we are on the third floor) wanting to know if we have a leak as they have water coming into their apartment through their ceiling and out their fire sprayer nossels! We call maintenance and they call maintenance and we keep finding more water. We are mopping and mopping, and trying to get the yams off the stove before they are mush or burn. Then the neighbors from the second floor come up and ask if we have a leak? Well yes but we do not know what is causing it as we continue to mop and the water just keeps coming, at first I thought it was the washing machine but we did one load without any trouble and the second load was done already. About that time Dave decided he had better get his shower or it might not happen. When he is in the shower I got the bright idea that it might be the hot water heater, I asked him if the pressure or anything was off and he said no, just as he was getting out maintenance showed up and looked around and figured out it was our water heater and turned our water off, the water heater was broken! I cleaned out the closet it was in and we told them to have a great Thanksgiving and we left!!!

This was not the end to our adventure. Dinner ended up being a couple hours late which was no big deal, we always kinda of go with the flow on thanksgiving, but our main dish, a vegetarian casserole was not finished cooking until a couple hours after dinner was done. Oh well you always eat to much for thanksgiving anyway and now we have great left overs!

Next thing we find Katy with a jar of vasoline covering the fish tank in it, I mean covering with a nice thick layer of greasy vasoline! This is a small five gallon plastic tank but she is just fascinated with it.

After everything was cleaned up, including the fish tank, we decided to watch a movie with our sons. We got the girls in their pj''s and settled in to watch. About 20 minutes into the movie Katy managed pull the fish tank off the counter down onto a table! She had blood running down her arm and dripping off, she was fine until she saw the blood and then started screaming! I took her in the bathroom and cleaned her up trying to find where it was coming from, she had cut her pinky finger right in the crease, it did not look to bad so we decided to hold pressure on it and finish the movie. Well... an hour and a half later as soon as you let go it still kept bleeding! We decided to pack everything up and head home, the hospital is about two minutes from our house. I had to hold her in order to hold pressure on her finger, their was no way put her in her car seat and me be close enough to keep pressure on it. Katy's finger continued to bleed when you let go of it so we went to the Emergency room instead of home. She ended up with 2 stitches in her pinky, she had cut into the little artery in the finger so the doc said it would not quit bleeding without the sutures!

We finally ended up back at home at 2am to find a industrial blower in our hall trying to dry the carpet, a cold house and all the windows wet from all the moisture. On this Thanksgiving I AM THANKFUL THAT WE HAVE A HOME AND A WONDERFUL FAMILY TO SPEND TIME WITH even though you have these little mishaps in life!!!!

Thanksgiving Day!

2007-11-23T07:02:00.000-08:00

Logan, Lexi, & Kaitlyn

2007-11-21T01:47:00.001-08:00

Happy Birthday Mommy!

2007-11-10T23:17:00.000-08:00

I was blessed to have most of my children together for my birthday!

Starbucks!

2007-11-06T22:42:00.001-08:00

Dave and I were talking in the car about Starbucks and Katy pipes up "I like juice!" I think maybe she has been to Starbucks to many times!

The No-No's Don't slow Lexi down!

2007-11-05T22:47:00.000-08:00

We took the girls to the local mall to get a little exercise. Lexi was more adventuresome than she had ever been. The No-No's on arms did not slow her down at all! They both had a blast on this slide and kept going over and over!

Things Kids Say!

2007-11-03T23:38:00.000-07:00

Katy found an older picture of her brother's that are 23 and 19 now. She studies the picture for a few minutes and then asks "Is this My Kurtis and My Kevin?" I replied that it is a picture of them when they were younger. She pauses for a second and says "Did we get them a long time ago?"

Playing with Dad

2007-11-03T23:27:00.001-07:00

Katy is very imaginative.

She is wearing her bag for her Halloween candy
as a hat riding her horsey!

Learning to do things with NO-NO's on!

2007-10-31T23:04:00.001-07:00

Lexi picking up Katy's matching cards.

Snuggling with Daddy!

2007-10-31T23:04:00.000-07:00

Lexi snuggling up watching a kids program on

the TV after the Halloween Party.

Halloween Party at Children's Hospital

2007-10-31T22:03:00.000-07:00

Thye had a great party for the kids and their siblings.

Thank goodness no candy but both girls got a large stuffed animal.

They had all kind of games and all the kids had fun.

Lexi just back from surgery.

2007-10-30T20:00:00.000-07:00

They actually let me carry her back to her room!

She is a little out of it in this picture.

Lexi in Recovery

2007-10-30T19:57:00.000-07:00

At Children's they do not usually allow parents in the recovery room. I asked everyone possible to let me go to Lexi as soon as she started to wake up since she has severe stranger anxiety and I did not want her to wake up and think we had abandoned her. The best answer I could get is we will take it into consideration. About 30 minutes after she went to recovery they paged me and asked me to come back as they could not calm her. They would not let me pick her up for 15 minutes she calmed down some with me just talking to her but her heart was in the 170's to 180's and her respiratory rate in the 40's.

As soon as they let me pick her up and hold her, her heart rate dropped to the 130's and her resp rate to the low 20's. The recovery room nurse made the comment that she was muuuuch calmer with her mommy there! Dugh, what did they expect?!

Katy waiting for Lexi to get out of surgery.

2007-10-30T19:56:00.000-07:00

Katy helping Dad take everything to Lexi's room.

Katy's favorite play place.

Lexi's Room.

Lexi's Pre-Op Appointment

2007-10-29T19:46:00.000-07:00

Of course now is when Lexi is deciding she really wants to eat everything we do! The last picture she is saying all done.

Little Ladybugs Playgroup Fall Party

2007-10-28T22:36:00.000-07:00

Katy and Lexi had a lot of fun at the Little Ladybugs Fall Party! There were some awesome snacks and they got to play in a pool filled with rice followed by pumpkin decorating with foam cut outs. We could not drag Katy and Lexi away from the rice pool to decorate their pumpkin though. The ones deocrated by the other girls were very cute. The Katy and Lexi really like the wagon hay rides they did not want to get out.

Katy and Lexi

2007-10-26T22:00:00.000-07:00

We were out running errands and apparently wore Katy out as she and her ponies are taking a nap! Lexi on the other hand is full of mischief and quite delighted with herself that she was able to get her shoes and socks off!!

Katy Styling Hair!

2007-09-15T23:32:00.000-07:00

My Little Angels!?!

2007-09-12T23:30:00.000-07:00

Katy, Lexi and Logan (our grandson)!

Progress!

2007-09-07T18:28:00.000-07:00

Lexi is voluntarily chewing on a piece of bread!
This is definitely progress.

Katy and Lexi in the shopping cart at the grocery store.

Lexi's First Baloon

2007-08-28T18:21:00.000-07:00

We went to the mall and Lexi got her first baloon from one of the shops having a sale. Lexi really got excited about her baloon!

We took her to the play area but just watched her sister. She was not interested in playing.

Happy Birthday Lexi!

2007-08-23T23:30:00.000-07:00

Happy 2nd Birthday Lexi!!!

This is Katy, Lexi , Debby, Logan, and Dave

This is the first time Lexi has let anything cross her lips other than her bottle! She was actually picking up little crumbs of cake and putting them in her mouth!

Home at last!

2007-08-19T20:42:00.000-07:00

Our kids met us at the airport and took us out to breakfast.

We had been up over 24 hours.

This is our adorable grandson, Logan!

US Citizen!

2007-08-19T19:44:00.000-07:00

We just landed in the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport after 24 hours up.

Lexi is officially a US Citizen!!!!

Lexi's first ride in a car seat! It actually went quite well.

Friday, August 17 Consalate Appointment

2007-08-17T17:29:00.000-07:00

This afternoon we had our Consulate Appointment! This is the last thing required before we can leave for home. While there we recieved Lexi's passport and a brown envelope with strict instructions not to open the envelope but to give it to US customs at the border! We could not take any pictures at the appointment so we just before and after photos.

These photos are Katy on the way to the consulate, she was quite pleased with herself because she got to sit alone. The other is at the White Swan as soon as we were back from our appointment and the last one was our first attempt to feed Lexi ice cream, she would have nothing to do with it.

Friday, August 17 Busy day!

2007-08-17T17:16:00.001-07:00

This Chinese girl gave Katy a sucker and Lexi tried to grab it from her, this is a first so the girl brought one over to Lexi also. We actually got both the girls down for a nap together, this was another first in that Lexi would only nap in my arms and if I layed her down she would wake right up and cry that I had laid her down.

Friday, August 17 Red Couch Pictures.

2007-08-17T06:53:00.001-07:00

We took the girls over and did Red Couch pictures today. For those of you who do not know it is kind of a tradition at the White Swan to get the adoption group together and take a picture of all the children on the red couches, there are several in there lobby. We took some of just the girls and then some of the girls and their mothers and then girls and there fathers. In the pictures all the girls are happy with the mothers and screaming their heads off with their fathers, it was actually quite comical.

Thursday, August 16

2007-08-17T06:26:00.000-07:00

It was very strange today! We were very laid back in the morning as we had an open schedule all day. In the afternoon we decided to go for a walk but about the time we decided to go both girls fell asleep, so when we finally made it out the door around 3:30 and went for our walk there were NO adoptive families out! It was all Chinese families, we felt like maybe we had missed something. We did finally run into one other couple but that was it. It was kind of strange but very interesting, we are in China after all.

Wednesday, August 15 Sister!

2007-08-15T20:18:00.001-07:00

Katy was so excited that Lexi opened up, was very animated and wanting to play with her sister. Another couple with their new little boy came to our room to visit and after they left Lexi got up and walked all over the room and interacted with Katy, it was amazing to watch!

Wednesday, August 15

2007-08-15T20:04:00.001-07:00

This was our first smiles while Daddy is holding! I was trying to get the paperwork filled out for the US Consulate appointment. That gets turned in on Thursday the 16th by our guide and then we have the swearing in appointment on Friday afternoon! That will be our final appointment here in China.

Today was also a first for Lexi to ride in a stroller for a walk around the island. She got quite comfortable and seemed to enjoy it a lot by the end with her little feet up on the bar lounging back.

Tuesday, August 14

2007-08-14T17:09:00.001-07:00

Lexi and I are both feeling better. We went out for a walk today, it is extremely humid after a heavy rainfall. When we came back to the room Dave and Katy took a nap and Lexi and I were sitting on the sofa, she decided to get really playful! Lexi was actually standing on the sofa and walking back and forth, patting the wall and playing with my toes. In one of the pictures I told her to give Mommy kisses and she puckered up and gave me several kisses! It was very precious, and I was surprised she understood what I said. I could not believe how animated she became when it was just the two of us.

For dinner we just went to the restaurant in the Hotel as it was pouring outside and she sat in a high chair for the first time. (Under duress but she sat there and did not cry to much, I only left her in it long enough for me to eat my dinner) She is getting very curious about food but will not let it cross her lips, just wants to play with it, at least that is a healthy progression.

Monday, August 13

2007-08-13T06:05:00.000-07:00

Well today was a very quiet day. Lexi and stayed in the room all day, both of us under the weather. I finally think I am improving. Lexi let Dave hold her when I went to the bathroom without crying for the first time! She also grabbed a hold of my finger when she was laying in my lap and hung on. We are definitely making progress!

Sunday, August 12 It's a GOOD Day!!!

2007-08-12T06:12:00.001-07:00

Today showed a big change in Lexi! We started to see her playful side. For the first time she did not cry on the elevator! Another 1st she played with Katy today, actually interacting and playful. We are starting to see a twinkle in her eyes. Lexi played with Daddy voluntarily. We found a safe zone today. Our bed! I was sick running a temp and coughing up my lungs (well it felt like I was) chills and all but Lexi still has to be where I am, but on the bed she actually became very playful, instead of clinging to me all the time, stood up and walked around, played peek-a-boo with Katy and tickled and giggled. It was truly AMAZING!!!

Saturday August 11, 2007 Family

2007-08-11T05:30:00.001-07:00

When Katy woke up she wanted to know where Mom and Lexi were. Dave told her I took Lexi to a doctor appointment, then Katy wanted to know if I was taking Lexi back, but seemed very concerned that I might be, Dave reassured her that we were keeping her forever.

We went to Lucy's for lunch and Lexi actually showed an interest in the food, not to eat it but to touch it, move it around on my plate and then drop it on the floor.

Katy "Do we get to take my china home?" Mom "yes"
Katy "do we get to keep her?" Mom "yes for always"
Katy " good I like my china"

Lexi showed the first interest in a toy. She is holding the dragon fly and looking at it then doing her spit art on it.

Lexi is very interested in everything Dave and Katy do she will watch them and not cry when they look at her.

Saturday August 11, 2007 Medical Exam & Visa Pictures

2007-08-11T05:19:00.001-07:00

I woke up this morning about 5:30 & thought I would get a shower before Lexi woke up so I shower by myself for a change. Well, Lexi woke up just as I was getting off of the bed so I sat there a few minutes to see what she would do, mind you any other time she would look at Dave and start shrieking and trembling all over. This morning she sat up on the bed and just kind of looked at Dave and then me finally crawled over by Dave and laid down, I went and made her a bottle and she laid there while I took a shower and drank her bottle laying next to Dave. She was content to do that until I got out of the shower. A major 1st!!!

We got all ready for breakfast and then gave Rachelle a call, while we were talking to her Katy laid down on the bed and went back to sleep, so Dave & I took turns going to breakfast. Katy slept until about 11 am but seems much better now.

Dave stayed in the room with Katy and I took Lexi to have her visa picture taken. Lexi did not cry at all until I took her out of the sling to set her in the chair for her visa picture. Then she screamed. So the picture has her screaming, they tried for quite awhile but could not get her to even just not scream so we gave up. From there we went for the medical exam, she was quiet until they tried to get her to stand on this scale, it did not happen. I had to stand on it with her and then without her to get her weight. They say she weighs 10.5 kg and is 81 cm tall. It will be interesting to see what they say when we get her home. The other babies were 9 kg and 10.5 and she is way skinnier than either one of them. She did not like the medical exam part or the ear, nose and throat doctor, but she quit crying as soon as they were done which was a marked improvement. The most amusing part was in the middle of the medical exam area was this sign that said quiet, but it was so noisy it was almost comical to see the sign!

Friday August 10, 2007

2007-08-11T05:05:00.001-07:00

Lexi went to breakfast without crying; she actually looked around and watched what was going on. She drank a full bottle at breakfast, which is a first. She has refused to take a bottle when anyone is around.

Katy threw up all over herself & the stroller. We took her back to the room and washed her off and had to shower the stroller. We stayed in the hotel for the rest of the day. Katy threw up again in the evening hopefully that is the end of her bug.

Thursday Evening, August 9 THE MOVE!

2007-08-11T04:53:00.001-07:00

We were on the 7th floor and our bed was as hard as granite; we decided we really needed something softer to sleep on since we are here for another week and a half.

They found us a nice soft bed on the fifth floor which is a no smoking floor, so we went back to our room to pack up. Lexi would not let me put her down so I came up with the brilliant plan to put both Katy and Lexi in the double stroller while we packed and put them in the middle of the room figuring Lexi would be safe that way and hopefully OK since Katy was right there with her.

BIG MISTAKE!!!

Lexi became hysterical, rocking her head back and forth, I figured she could not hurt herself so decided to hurry & finish the job. We threw everything into bags and suitcases and I got Lexi out of the stroller, I couldn't believe it she had welts on both temples from banging it against the stroller, I felt terrible! We put a cold can of soda on it and held her the rest of the night!

Thursday, August 9 Apply for Passport.

2007-08-11T04:21:00.001-07:00

We made great strides at breakfast today! Lexi only cried when someone got in her face or was to direct. We sat kind of in a corner so Lexi could not have a view of to many people at once. We also got our first smile and laugh at breakfast. I had to stay at the table and Dave brought me food, Lexi was OK with this. I was playing with her while we were waiting for food and actually got a smile and laugh out of her!!!

We went to police station to have picture taken for her passport; Lexi really likes the bus ride and actually smiled with no crying! The only time Lexi cried was while they were trying to take pictures for the passport, the rest of the time she just looked around.

Katy was the one doing the crying, she fell asleep on the way to the police station and was a little grumpy when we woke her up.

August 8, 2007 Afternoon.

2007-08-11T03:53:00.001-07:00

In the afternoon Dave and I sat on the sofa with Dave holding Katy and me holding Lexi, we were playing with both of the girls and got our first smiles out of Lexi and laugh, she also reached over and voluntarily touched Daddy for the 1st time.

We decided to go out shopping later in the afternoon and bought a double stroller, than went to another shop & Lexi got hysterical with everyone trying to talk with her and touch her; we had to leave and go back to the hotel; Dave went to Lucy's & brought back grilled cheeses sandwiches

I put Lexi down on the floor and went into the other room to get something and Lexi walked into the room I was in for the 1st time. So She can walk if motivated enough.

August 8, 2007 WE ARE A FAMILY!

2007-08-11T03:46:00.001-07:00

Today is our officially adoption day! Lexi is now legally part of our family!!!!!

When we went into the civil affairs office Katy wanted to know if we were taking "my China" back to the people?

LEXI DID NOT CRY MUCH; but wailed when they wanted to take our family photo for the adoption certificate. She still will start crying and trembling if anyone makes eye contact with her but she likes to look around just don't look at her! Katy loved the "play equipment in the family waiting room at the Civil Affairs Office; it was really like miniature exercise equipment.

Day 2, August 8

2007-08-11T02:57:00.001-07:00

I had to leave breakfast this morning because Lexi became hysterical when anyone would look at her or talk to her, I could not get her to calm down so I left and let Dave and Katy finish. Right now it seems like Lexi cries all the time. Anything and everything will set her off. When she gets upset she does not just cry but becomes rigid and shrieks at the top of her lungs, and almost hyperventilates! I can usually calm her by holding her very close and very tight against my chest and talking very quietly to her.

After breakfast we went back to the Civil Affairs Office to complete the adoption.

Lexi taking her first bottle!

2007-08-07T15:59:00.001-07:00

Lexi refused to eat yesterday! She finally just took 4 ounces of formula! She wants me to hold her all the time and protests if Dave comes in the room much less sits by us. He just made her another 4 ounces of formula, she would not take it from him and let out a loud protest, but once I gave her the bottle she is gobbling it down!

Gotcha photos!

2007-08-07T15:46:00.000-07:00

These photos went with the last post but somehow did not show up.

Gotcha Day!!!

2007-08-07T15:35:00.000-07:00

When we got to the building Lexi was already there along with two other babies. They brought the three families in, we had to sign some papers and make sure they had our names and address was correct, all the while you could hear a baby just wailing in the other room. All the families were saying they hoped it was not there baby, Welllll it wasn't there baby it was ours!!! They came out and tole our guide that Lexi is afraid of strangers and will cry or hide when they are around.

Lexi did snuggle up to me but would not go to anyone else and still kept crying and occasionally would stop and look around to see what was going on clinging to me all the time. When the staff from her SWI came in to talk with she would look at them and follow them around but did not offer to go to them or act like she wanted them.

We have our angel!!!!!!

2007-08-07T06:21:00.001-07:00

All she wants to do is cry. She refuses to go to Dave. In fact she cries harder when she can see him! I am so tired now both girls are asleep but I need to send something. Will send more later.

Debby Harmon

lifesredthreads@gmail.com

www.lifesredthreads.blogspot.com

We are in Guangzhou!

2007-08-06T15:40:00.001-07:00

We checked into the Victory Hotel and have settled in. Right now we are trying to get Katy to settle down so we can get some sleep, it is almost 2AM here and she is WIDE AWAKE! We leave the Hotel to get Lexi about 12 hours from now! Katy did real well with the trip over. Will post more later.

Aug 6, 2007 10:56 AM US time

WE ARE HEADED TO THE AIRPORT!!!!

2007-08-05T06:14:00.000-07:00

We finally made it! I finished packing at 3:30am, got a couple hours sleep and we are off to the airport! Will add a little later!

Almost ready to leave!

2007-08-03T20:39:00.000-07:00

We have our travel Itinary, our airline tickets are purchased, our hotel is booked, we have our prescriptions, we have our cash and we just have to pack. We think everything is purchased on our list, now we just have to get it in our suitcases. We are trying to pack it all as carry on!

Next Sunday at 8:55AM we will be off to China!

2007-07-29T08:55:00.000-07:00

I just got home from working all night (13 hours), looked at the calendar and realized Our FLIGHT LEAVES NEXT SUNDAY at 8:55 AM from Seattle for China.!!!!!! I can hardly believe it is so close! Now I am having a hard time going to sleep and I have work again tonight.

Every morning Katy asks if we can leave to go get "My China". We have to keep telling her not today but pretty soon!!!

The Tickets are reserved and confirmed!

2007-07-27T17:32:00.000-07:00

By a large miracle we have plane tickets reserved and will be paying for them on Monday! A family member was able to give us a short term loan and Mandy Hu found us an awesome deal on Northwest Airlines.

We will be leaving on Sunday August 5 from Seattle Washington at 8:55 AM and arriving in Guangzhou, China on Monday August 6 at 10:35 PM!!

Lexi we are almost on our way! We will be there soon sweetie!!!!!

We are getting down to the wire for tickets!

2007-07-27T11:31:00.000-07:00

We know something will work out, we are leaving it in God's hands.

Keep praying!!!

Keep us in your prayers for cheap tickets!

2007-07-24T21:21:00.000-07:00

We are trying to find cheap tickets and the money to pay for them. So far the best price we have is $4500 just for airline tickets. We talked with the Agency and told them we did not want to do the tour again because they go to the same places we went last time. They called back today and said they negotiated a better price for us to just use the guide for transportation to and from the airport and for the adoption related stuff.

The Agency wants us to have our tickets by Friday so here is to a lot of praying that everything works out and we will have our baby in our arms on August 7th!!!!

Lexi's Doctor appointments are set up.

2007-07-18T22:24:00.000-07:00

We set up doctor appointments for Lexi for the 24th of August to see her pediatrician and then on Monday, August 27th, we spend all day at Seattle Children's Hospital with the Cranial-Facial team.

The high point will be we get to have a birthday party for her on August 23, she will be 2! This will be her first ever birthday party!

Our travel is all set up!

2007-07-17T17:03:00.000-07:00

We have our official travel dates!!!!

We leave Seattle August 5, Gotcha day is August 7 and CA appointment August 16, Visa appointment August17 and return home on August 19.

CA Confirmed!

2007-07-13T23:25:00.001-07:00

Our Consulate appointment is confirmed for Thursday, August 16,2007 and our return date is Saturday, August 18, 2007. We will not know until next week what our actual Gotcha day is; right now our Agency is saying August 6, 7, or 8. the actual date will determine what day we leave for Guangzhou, China.

Our TA is here!!!

2007-07-12T13:48:00.001-07:00

We just got a call from our agency and our travel approval came in today!!!

They are trying to get the 15th for the consulate appointment and we would leave here August 3 or 4, have Lexi in our arms August 5 or 6 and return home the 16th!!

It is finally happening!

We have our Chinese Visa!

2007-07-09T14:26:00.000-07:00

Our passports arrived here today with the visa to enter China, this means we are ready to go! Just waiting for the travel approval.

Matching Mom!

2007-06-29T14:58:00.000-07:00

Everything I go to look at for Lexi, Katy's first comment is matching Mom! Katy thinks her and Lexi should have everything matching. We will see how far this goes, but I figure I might as well get matching as long as she wants to since down the road she probably won't want to match her little sister.

We have an update on Lexi!

2007-06-27T12:58:00.000-07:00

Ann from Red Thread China emailed me today stating.

"the orphange said that they got the package for your daughter.......the nanny said that your daughter is starting to walk, she is a little shy and scared girl....but very lovely, her skin is light to other kids.....also her first operation for her lips was done.....the nanny said hello to you!"

Lexi's Care Package!

2007-06-14T13:00:00.000-07:00

We sent a care package to Lexi today!

Ann of Red Thread China put this package together for us and mailed it along with a letter with some questions about Lexi we wrote out to the Xuwen CWI director. She translated them into mandarin for us and will let us know when Lexi receives the package.

Hopefully the cloths fit. I wish I could deliver it in person!!!

Our LOA is here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2007-06-07T21:58:00.000-07:00

The Agency called today and our LOA is here! We went down and signed it and met another family that received their LOA also. It was great to meet a family we will probably be traveling with.

LOA stands for Letter of Acceptance. It is stating that we acept Lexi as our daughter and will take care of her and we are aware of her medical condition "cleft lip and cleft palate" and that we will haved her treated and take care of her as any child born to us.

We already sent them a letter that states all of that but they want another one. Now we just have to wait for our travel approval (TA).

Our PA is Here!!!*

2007-04-05T20:37:00.000-07:00

China has pre-approved us to adopt Lexi!!! Now we can send a care package and post what pictures we have of her!

The Agency got an update and we have new measurements but not new pictures. The following pictures were taken when Lexi was approximately 8-9 months old.

Our daughter is Xu Jin Ying at Xuwen Comprehensive Welfare Institute, Guangdong Province. She is 19 months right now, birthday August 23, 2005. At the end of March her measurements were : height 78 cm, weight 11 kg, head circumference 46 cm, chest circumference 47 cm, foot length 11 cm. Which is identical to Katy's measurements at the same age. Lexi has a repaired cleft lip (repaired by the Smile Train) and unrepaired cleft palate.

Lexi's name at adoption will be......Alexis Jean JinYing Harmon and we will call her Lexi!

"Somewhere far across the sea
Waits a little heart for me
Amazing though how it may seem
We both are sharing the same dream
I long to tuck you in at night
And hold your tiny hand so tight
To kiss your tears and keep you near
To chase away your every fear
Only God knew what to do
A red thread tied from me to you
And now my love it's almost time
When I'll be yours and you'll be mine
Soon forever-never to part
My child I bore inside my heart"
(unkown)

LID is 3-22-07 and our LOI was sent today!

2007-03-28T13:18:00.000-07:00

Well our agency found out our dossier was logged into China's system on 3-22-07 so today they posted our letter of intent to adopt Lexi! As soon as we get pre-approval (PA) we can post information about her. Hopefully that will be real soon.

One of the pictures we went with the Dossier

2007-03-03T08:33:00.000-08:00

This is one of the pictures we sent with our dossier to china. I am sending this as a test message to see how it works when I email messages.

Our Dossier is on its way to China!

2007-03-02T13:24:00.000-08:00

This has been a whirlwind. When we started they said everything needed to be sent to China no later than April 15, 2007. Well here it is March 2 and our dossier is on its way!! Our Letter of Intent or "LOI" stating we want to adopt Lexi is ready to send but our agency has said they have better luck if they wait until China shows our dossier as logged in so we must wait.

Our agency is on the new web based system for Lexi. The nice thing about that is they can look on the system daily and it will tell them if anything has been updated. Hopefully this will speed things along.

Our Second China Adoption in the works!

2007-01-01T13:25:00.000-08:00

After much discussion and prayer we have decided to pursue another adoption from China. We sent in our application last week and will see if we can get everything done in time to beat the new China rules which go into effect May 1. 2007.

This is definitely a leap of faith! I am not sure how it will all work out but we are leaving it in God's hands! Please keep us in your prayers!