ELLY'S FAVORITE SNACK RECALLED

We found out this morning that all Vegie Booty products made by Robert's American Gourmet Foods Inc. have been recalled. Evidently, there is concern that this product has been contaminated with salmonella and made several children ill. Elly was introduced to these a few weeks ago and she absolutely loves them, constantly smacks her lips for them. Well, thankfully she's not been sick from them and they have all been thrown out of our home. It seems like we take a risk in anything we feed our children or ourselves. All the more reason to only feed us and our children unprocessed, all natural, organic foods.

TRACY HUDSON ROCKS!!!

Our nephew, Tracy, from the land of OZ came to visit his grandma and us for a couple of weeks. He stayed with us and so he got a lot of time with Elysa, and she really seemed to take to him right from the beginning. He was a big help to us around the house, doing alot of stuff that I haven't got to since returning, and providing a pleasant distraction for Elysa. Here are a few pics of them together...





He even tagged along with us to a "reunion" of the three northwest girls adopted from China at the same time, and helped entertain all of them...



While he was here, he was whining about not being able to lift weights. So to help keep him occupied and keep him in shape for his summer football training when he gets home, I adjusted my mountain bike to fit him. He was being a wise*&# one night and bet that he could out ride me up the short, steep hill near our house. So we rode it together... and he had trouble with it but managed to do it. I told him that if, before he left to go home, he could ride Headquarters Road, without stopping or dabbing a foot, I'd buy him a bike. Well, he rode my bike several hours each day...



He rode 8 miles into town with me one day. He tells me this was the longest he had ever ridden in one stretch and the first time he had ridden on public roads. We rode some more, and one evening he made the attempt. I paced him and here's the stats: 11.2 miles total distance, including a 2.5 mile constant grade climb of 500+ feet. Average overall speed 11.5, for about a solid hour of riding. He sucked down water, he wandered all over the road, he nearly stopped several times, he complained of getting a wedgie from his shorts, but he did, in fact, do it.... DAMN! Now I had to make good on my end of the bargain.

Here is the prize!! (The bike not the dog, although I think Jackson would go home with him in an instant)


Here he is on his new Giant Boulder in school color...


...and here he is, showing off...


Good job Tracy, We want to see some pictures of you doing some sweet trials riding!

MORE THINGS ACCOMPLISHED!!

On the 17th, Elysa began saying what sounds like "HI" while holding toys to her ear. She also waves at anything and anybody, both hello and goodbye, even when she hears it said by a toy or on TV. We've been working on lots of other words with her, both in Mandarin and English, as well as the Baby Signs. She REALLY watches your mouth, and then tries to mimic the syllables. It's fascinating to watch.

On the 21st, Elysa finally REALLY crawled , with some help from her cousin Tracy. She's been wanting and trying to stand up, while holding on to things, constantly since then. She will crawl well, but only when she really wants to get at something...



On the 23rd, she began to hold her own bottle. She's been drinking from a sippy cup for awhile now, so the bottle was the only time she really didn't want to hold or feed self....



On the 24th, we went to walk at the Lake and the swing set was finally open for us to play on...



And this is just the best Father's Day picture...

A MEDICAL NOTE ABOUT ELYSA

We know that there are many people out there who are still waiting to meet their daughters, and are searching the blogs for any information that can help them prepare for when it is their turn. This post is primarily for them.

We have recently been told that Elysa has two blood disorders. At this point, we have a referral to a specialist and the implications of this news is still unknown. It may or may not pose long term issues for her, however, learning and knowing this information is VERY important to us/her because of some common things we need to make sure she avoids. Based on her overall health/condition we are thinking positively and are very hopeful that it will end up being a very minor part of her life. We are not comfortable posting her exact medical information openly, so will suffice to say that it is genetic in nature, and so was not something that was identified pre-adoption. The good news is aside from that, she is very healthy, and she is gaining weight as well as making good developmental progress.

So the point of this post is this.... Our agency and I'm sure others, gave us a laundry list of labs to have done upon returning to the US. We are fortunate in that our doctor did not balk at this list and actually ran even more tests than those that were recommended, (unlike some of the stories we've heard and read about), and this news makes sitting through having a lot of your child's blood drawn worth it (if you've been there, you know what I'm talking about!!). Your child's medical history will most likely be largely unknown to anyone. Getting complete baseline info is critical. Like they say... knowledge is power.

One last thing for anyone out there who is wondering about the "guaranteeing the health of these children" issue, NO... WE WOULDN'T CHANGE ANYTHING! This sort of thing happens everyday to families- biological and adoptive. Elysa is terrific, and this news does not change that. Now that we know this information, we can take steps to protect her and keep her healthy. However, prayers and good wishes are always welcome....

REUNION WITH JIANGXI "SISTERS"

On the 13th, we met with two of the families who shared our adoption and travel experience in China. They both live in the Portland area and so are not very far away. The girls seemed to recognize each other, and had a good time playing for several hours while all us parents shared what was or wasn't working for us, and how our lives are changing. It was a very good visit, and we plan on trying to get together several times a year, as these girls are as close to sisters as each is likely to have. They have each grown so much already...



Later in the week, cousin Aidan came to visit for a night, so Tina and I had three kids with us. Along with Grandma, we all went swimming, another first for Elysa, and she did great. If we get her into the water some more we think she'll take to swimming very easily.



We then all went RV camping for the weekend. We were able to keep Elysa on her sleep routine, and although she woke more frequently each night than she does at home, she did very well overall and had a lot of fun...

GROWING, CHANGING AND LEARNING

I know we've said it before, but it really doesn't seem like we've only had Elysa for just over a month. She is a sponge, and the changes in her are coming so fast it seems like it has to have been much, much longer than that. When we met her, she had plenty of personality, but she was still predominantly on formula, wouldn't move around too much (crawl or climb), and just babbled and pretty much played quietly.

She is now seriously teething (drooling and chewing on stuff constantly). She is eating and generally playing in and with solid foods. She FINALLY started drinking plain water, and is beginning to exhibit her independence when feeding herself finger foods (Veggie-Booty puffs are irresistable to her). She mimics many sounds she has heard from her toys and from people, including a very funny mimic of Cookie Monster saying "Hello There". We think we are hearing some common sounds and words with associations, but I'm pretty sure that is just wishful thinking at this point.

She sings and babbles like crazy to music (Veggie Tales sing along is now the ONLY CD other than lullabys in the car). She is VERY close to crawling (gets up on her knees and will rock back and forth, but still no forward motion) and in the last few days will NOT sit still. She is always trying to get/climb from one person to the next, wanting to be held so she can jump/stand...



...or is rolling around on the floor...



We have been showing her "Baby Signs" which she is beginning to catch on to and use, though not reliably yet. Jackson has been renamed, and is actually responding to, "Woof-Woof". He's figured out that if he hangs out under the high chair, the new pack member occasionally tosses him a goody!

We have a nap and sleep routine in place that seems to be working- for the most part and "should" still function for us when we go back to work next month. However, it is still pretty fragile, probably due to the teething, and some nap times and nights are better than others. She can and occasionally does voice her opinions and displeasures- LOUDLY. She is, by far, more often happy and charming than not.



She loves going to the lake for walks, and being seen. She won't readily go to new people which is very good, but she defintiely likes to interact with and see lots of faces, especially other children and grandma.

We hope to meet with two of the families we traveled with later this week, so it will be interesting to see how the girls will all react to each other.

More later......