Look at this small bookworm that made its way into our house this Halloween! (In case anyone is wondering, the book is But Not the Hippopotamus by Sandra Boynton. A truly riveting tale with drama, suspense, and an ending ripe for a sequel. Check it out!)
So I'm always a bit hesitant to brag about my kid, humility being a Biblical virtue and all. But then again, this is my blog and you're checking it voluntarily :) Madelyn achieved a MAJOR developmental milestone last night, and Kurt and I couldn't be more proud. While we were all sitting around the dinner table last night, she figured out how to...drum roll...make fart sounds with her yogurt-covered hands. I know! First smile, first laugh, first steps, feeding herself, "dada," "mama"...forget it. Those pale in comparison. The best part about the whole event was that, without Kurt or me even responding, she knew it was hilarious! Further proof that some things are just intrinsically, universally funny. There's probably some little 13-month-old Kenyan baby half-way around the world giggling at exactly this moment at the toot sounds he's learned to make with his stew-covered hands :)
Well, we just got back late Monday night from visiting our friends, Nick and Beth Dekker, in Columbus, Ohio to meet their new son, Will. Nick and Beth are our long-time friends with whom we vacation regularly, and it was an absolute thrill to meet Will and welcome him to our long-distance family. He is just darling...smiley and chatty and curious with the softest little peach-fuzzy head :) Nick and Beth look amazing, even after only 3 1/2 months, and they are wonderful parents. It was quite a sight for the four of us to sit in their living room and watch our children interacting with each other!
Ohio was in all of its autumnal glory the whole time we were there...65 degrees, sunny, and leafy...and we took full advantage. We went to the Circleville Pumpkin Festival, went apple picking, and took a walk through a near-by ravine (check out the "Breakfast with Nick" link to the right for great details and photos of the pumpkin show!). Autumn is also a fabulous season for delicious food--and Nick and Beth have a gift for appreciating a savory meal!--so we ate some seriously yummy meals while we were there. All in all, a fabulous trip...worth the 10 hours of air time with a SERIOUSLY active 13-month-old. Let's just say we're relieved that it's the Dekker's turn to come see us :)
We just got back from visiting our great friends, the Dekkers, in Ohio and meeting their new little guy, Will. We had a blast, and I can't wait to tell you about it, but I don't have time until tomorrow night or the next morning. So I'll leave you with a little teaser photo until then. Check back soon!
I realize that the last two posts have not only not been about Madelyn, but neither of them featured any photos of said Bugtuss. Hopefully this post will more than make up for that, lest I lose my faithful readers :)
We welcomed autumn with a trip to the pumpkin patch with our friends the Smoot's. After a rather traumatic visit to Sauvie Island last year (involving at least 90% of Portland's population, one road on and off the island, and a 4-week-old screaming baby in her carseat...), we opted for tiny Lee Farms in Tualatin, OR. So much better. We saw animals; we romped amongst pumpkins; we bought apple butter and fudge. And we shared the experience with great friends.
This birthday crown was given to us by our CA friends, the Coulters. Of course, she refused to keep it on for longer than 3 seconds when it was her actual birthday. But now that she's had time to reconsider, she's grown quite fond of it. What's great, though, is that as soon as someone puts it on her head, she walks over to her pink chair and climbs up in it and just sits like a princess on her throne. Every time! So funny...
We do bath time immediately following dinner. Perhaps you can deduce why.
Madelyn loves to play, and she learns new ways to have fun with her toys every week. She has figured out how to climb aboard her giraffe and go for a ride, and she usually claps for herself or waves bye-bye to Mommy each time she does it.
And who is this big girl?!! Maddie loved the "Heisinger Hold" when she was tiny, and evidently, it still brings her comfort :)
My friend, Took, just blog-tagged me. No phone call, no email...just a little "tag, you're it Kim" at the bottom of her last post. She knows I stalk her blog at least three times a day :)
The rules as I understand them are as follows: I have to write 7 little known facts about myself and then tag 7 other people at the end of this blog. So. Here we go...
1. My sister and I used to play make-believe kidnapping with our American Girls dolls, Kirsten and Molly. We weren't the kidnappers, thank God, but we would always enact this same scenario in which someone kidnapped our babies and we would become distraught and frantic and have to go find them. Honestly...our mom probably should've had us in therapy.
2. This might not be too "little known," but I've never been drunk. Not even close; not even once. Why would I voluntarily do something that is guaranteed to make me puke?
3. One month after Kurt and I started dating, I almost broke up with him. It had nothing to do with him; I just got a little freaked out. But he picked me up from the airport after I had been gone for three or four days and he had this sweet little bouquet of daisies with one red rose bud in the middle and his smiling blue eyes and I just couldn't do it. One of the best decisions I've ever made :)
4. There is a very large part of me that feels like I might have been born on the wrong continent. I had dreamed of going to Africa since I was a little girl, and when I finally got there, the food tasted weird and the transportation was frustrating and I desperately missed my family and friends, but my soul felt at home in a way that I am inadequate to describe. I've dreamt of returning every day since.
5. Orange is my favorite color, even though I'm sort of in denial about it. In my head, I'm just not nearly happy and feisty enough for orange, but when I take notice of the colors with which I choose to surround myself, orange is always there. But it's a burnt orange. A spicy orange. Cardamom, if you will, so there's enough angst to balance the happy and feisty :)
6. If I could afford to wear different pairs of cowboy boots everyday, I would. I have a pink and brown pair that I got in Colorado, and they are my favorite pair of shoes.
7. I'm more content now than I've ever been.
I tag Beth, Molly, Nicole, Jen, Anna, Joe (even though he won't like it!), and Kari!!
This morning, I accompanied one of my foster kiddos and his foster dad to his pediatric endocrinology appointment up at OHSU (the clinic was conveniently located right down the hall from my sister's clinic, so I got to have lunch with Dr. Bickley after the appointment! Fun!) This kiddo has been diagnosed with Adrenoleukodystrophy, an extremely tragic, terminal, degenerative brain disorder. He's 13 and will be fortunate to see his 15th birthday. I needed/wanted to be at this appointment because I am this kiddo's legal guardian, and his foster dad needed/wanted to be there because he has all of the information about the kiddo's daily functioning. The appointment was at 10:15 and we met there at about 10, so we had a good 15 minutes to sit in the sizeable, bustling waiting room...with all eyes curiously peeking and all brains furiously analyzing our perplexing trio.
For good reason.
I neglected to mention that "foster parent" is about the last profession you would guess when looking at this man (second only to "Catholic priest" perhaps). I am ashamed to admit that I would probably cross the street and walk on the other side if I saw this guy coming toward me. To start, he is covered with tattoos. Covered, people. And I don't mean Kurt's and my gentle little dove and "trust" and "honor" tattoos. Skulls. Dragons. Busty women in what could only be toddler sized clothing. He has several piercings on both ears with big, chunky, spiky earrings. I've never seen him in anything other than his baggy jeans and his black hoodie with skulls and flames on the back along with, of course, a big silver chain slung from one belt loop down to his knee and into his front pocket. A black backward baseball cap with a silver stud through the bill tops off his ensemble.
Then there's me. Trim brown corduroy pants, trendy white blousy shirt, denim jacket, chunky brown heels, funky beaded necklace, diamond stud earrings (thanks to my darling husband!), and a sleek brown leather tote bag. Poster woman for casual, urban, middle-class American 30-something. True, I do have a tattoo. A) it's not visitble when I'm clothed; B) it's a dove. If you can think of something more demure and non-offensive than a dove to tattoo on your body, I'd like to hear it.
And my foster kiddo? Hispanic.
Let 'em wonder :)
(I should note that, in case you are making assumptions about what kind of foster parent this man is, he's one of the best I've ever worked with. He has five foster children, four of whom are non-verbal and confined to wheelchairs and one of whom loses more and more of his daily functioning every week and will most likely die in his care. He attends school meetings and doctors appointments and is a strong, articulate advocate for his kiddos. He works on hot rods and faithfully takes his kids out cruising, regardless of the hassle of getting them in and out of the car. And he's been doing this as his sole means of earning a living since his mid-twenties. I love it when stereotypes are absolutely obliterated!)
Look at this small bookworm that made its way into our house this Halloween! (In case anyone is wondering, the book is But Not the Hippopotamus by Sandra Boynton. A truly riveting tale with drama, suspense, and an ending ripe for a sequel. Check it out!)
Well, we just got back late Monday night from visiting our friends, Nick and Beth Dekker, in Columbus, Ohio to meet their new son, Will. Nick and Beth are our long-time friends with whom we vacation regularly, and it was an absolute thrill to meet Will and welcome him to our long-distance family. He is just darling...smiley and chatty and curious with the softest little peach-fuzzy head :) Nick and Beth look amazing, even after only 3 1/2 months, and they are wonderful parents. It was quite a sight for the four of us to sit in their living room and watch our children interacting with each other!
We welcomed autumn with a trip to the pumpkin patch with our friends the Smoot's. After a rather traumatic visit to Sauvie Island last year (involving at least 90% of Portland's population, one road on and off the island, and a 4-week-old screaming baby in her carseat...), we opted for tiny Lee Farms in Tualatin, OR. So much better. We saw animals; we romped amongst pumpkins; we bought apple butter and fudge. And we shared the experience with great friends.
This birthday crown was given to us by our CA friends, the Coulters. Of course, she refused to keep it on for longer than 3 seconds when it was her actual birthday. But now that she's had time to reconsider, she's grown quite fond of it. What's great, though, is that as soon as someone puts it on her head, she walks over to her pink chair and climbs up in it and just sits like a princess on her throne. Every time! So funny...
We do bath time immediately following dinner. Perhaps you can deduce why.
Madelyn loves to play, and she learns new ways to have fun with her toys every week. She has figured out how to climb aboard her giraffe and go for a ride, and she usually claps for herself or waves bye-bye to Mommy each time she does it.
And who is this big girl?!! Maddie loved the "Heisinger Hold" when she was tiny, and evidently, it still brings her comfort :)
