The weekend went much smoother & we were all a lot less cranky so that is a good thing.
A & I took the two little ones to the wave pool on Sunday & we all had a blast. The kids would go down the really big slide with us & they liked the waves too. I had not been to that pool in years so that was so much fun. First slide down I had D between my legs & thought I would stay sitting up & go slow so as not to scare him. Where the slide comes back into the building it is super dark with a very steep drop off that I forgot about, which turtled me on my back & with my extra weight we went warp speed. I tried to slow us down but that just wasn't happening. Luckily it does dump you into shallow water but the poor little guy got the full thrill of the ride first time down. It did not scare him either so he is definetely one of my kids. :) We swam for two hours & we had to drag the kids out of there finally as it was way past their nap time. D is a maniac in the water & just throws himself backwards under water, so he keeps us on our toes pulling him out. C really likes the water but is more cautious, she will go right under & blow bubbles & all that stuff but she doesn't just throw herself underwater without making sure we are there to help or catch her. I am so happy they both love the water so much. We are going to be spending lots of time at the pools.
Today was a fun day as the kids & I went & had a play date / lunch at another single mom's house. She adopted her 2nd son from Haiti (same age as D), but not from the same O. We had a lot of fun & I really enjoyed their company. I will post a photo she took of all of us when we arrived home from Haiti, as she met us at the airport too.
The photo is A holding D, R my ex-hubby (big kids Dad), me, C & B - the whole motley crew. :) First photo of all of us together. R brought B to the airport to meet us & drove us all home.
UGGGG blogger isn't letting me upload this photo - 2nd day in a row. Anyone out there know what this error message means?
ICAP Error (icap_error)
An error occurred while performing an ICAP operation: Connection failure: An error occurred while sending data to the ICAP server.
There could be a network problem, the ICAP service may be misconfigured, or the ICAP server may have reported an error.
For assistance, contact your network support team.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Friday, March 28, 2008
Bag Update & Random Babbling
So received the call from Air Canada today that the missing back pack is now back in our city, so I decided to go to the airport & pick it up myself. I was so pleased as it was still heavy so obviously the contents were still inside. :) Once I got it home & took everything out I found the following few items missing.
1. C's back pack & contents we had put together for her for the flight home (who would want a little kids back pack with crayons & coloring book, beanie baby, a couple of books, misc little toys & a bunch of fruit snacks, raisins & other snacky items?) D's was in there so that caused some friction as they fought over the contents & who was going to wear it.
2. Two tubes of tooth paste (they left the other 16 tubes)
3. I had a heaping bag of little kid tooth brushes, my dentist graciously donated & now it isn't quite as full
4. All our food items were gone that we took to eat in Haiti; except for one package of Soup Works which was ripped & spilled in the bag. We didn't have anything exciting either just Soup Works, Side Kicks & Pasta type dishes - they must have been hungry.
5. A package of Pull-ups
I am thrilled to have A's good back pack back & only have a few miscellaneous items go astray. I am happy I can box up the rest of this stuff & send them off to Haiti to where they were meant to be. I always figured that the mail would be less reliable than the airlines but this definetely proves me wrong - I never lost one box I mailed to the kids while they were at the O. Actually I only have to mail the boxes to a Florida address & from there it gets loaded on to a small missionary plane that flies supplies in to Haiti once a week.
I am so happy, all of the items that were of any real value; like the Robeez shoes & nursing scrubs were all still in there. It was a good day.......... :)
Well except for the fact that I decided to make the run to the airport instead of putting the kids down for their nap. I figured they would sleep on the road trip. I was also dropping A off at work on the way home from the airport so I figured it would be an hour to an hour & a half road trip & the kids could sleep while I got a few things done. Well they did go to sleep for a wee bit on the way to the airport, but it fell short of their regular two hour nap by a long shot. Now I know why I have been such a stickler with routine & sticking to a schedule. They were tired & cranky & miserable for the rest of the day. Now I must inject here that I did not have my nap today either, plus the fact that the kids were up at 6:30 am (instead of the 7:30 that is acceptable to me) that put me in a foul mood too. I was low on patience & had two kids whining & pushing my buttons. Finally with supper done; all we had left was bath time & reading & I would be home free. So got right to it & D decided to jump into the tub off the side & whacked his head a good one & was just screaming bloody murder. Scared the crap outta me & I grabbed him up & held him for a bit but he recovered & wanted back in the tub to play. So after another melt down or two I had enough for one day & the kids were sent to bed without reading a book. Cranky kids & cranky mommy is not a good combination. That is what I get for not sticking to a routine.
Yesterday I put the kids down for their nap at 1:00 & they played & fooled around for a whole hour. Finally I said enough you both come to Mommy's bed & we will all sleep together ;) Now usually I do fall asleep for a bit when I lay down with them, but then wake up & go get a start on dinner while they continue to sleep. Well yesterday D & I didn't wake up until 4:45. Holy smokes what a waste of a day. C had woke a bit earlier but had gone down to B's room & hung with him until we woke up.
That is one thing I am really going to miss when I go back to work - I LOVE my after lunch nap time! Lorraine, a lady I work with, came by today with a gift certificate & card from all my co-workers. Thanks so much everyone you are all so sweet, generous & considerate I really do appreciate everything you have done for us! We will certainly put your gift card to good use over the next while.
Tomorrow is a new day & I am hoping we can put today's grumpiness behind us.
Yesterday A & I took the kids to "Let's Play" to burn off a little energy. When my big kids were little they didn't have these kinds of play areas so this was all new to me. There was slides & tunnels & balls rooms & all kinds of fun stuff to explore. I flew down the very first slide like a freaking rocket & it felt like I compressed a couple of vertibrae & twisted an ankle, when I gracefully landed at the bottom. The kids had a blast though, although they were a little intimidated by the swinging tunnels & by the amount of kids there. All the big kids kind of push the little ones to the side so they were a little nervous. I crawled through tunnels & squeezed my fat behind through these rolling things I didn't think I would squeeze through. In fact I got half way through one & started whining I was stuck so C & some other little girl grabbled my arms & yanked me through. I love it when I make an a** out of myself in front of a ton of people. I forgot it was spring break right now so the place was hopping. Next time we go will be on a school day. When C got up this morning she said she wanted to go to "Let's Play" again & whined when I said no - that was just the start of it.
No big plans for the weekend. In fact I didn't even know it was Friday until the contractor said see you on Monday. I can't believe another week has flown by. I will try to get some photos of the kids at home on here tomorrow.
Hugs, Laur
1. C's back pack & contents we had put together for her for the flight home (who would want a little kids back pack with crayons & coloring book, beanie baby, a couple of books, misc little toys & a bunch of fruit snacks, raisins & other snacky items?) D's was in there so that caused some friction as they fought over the contents & who was going to wear it.
2. Two tubes of tooth paste (they left the other 16 tubes)
3. I had a heaping bag of little kid tooth brushes, my dentist graciously donated & now it isn't quite as full
4. All our food items were gone that we took to eat in Haiti; except for one package of Soup Works which was ripped & spilled in the bag. We didn't have anything exciting either just Soup Works, Side Kicks & Pasta type dishes - they must have been hungry.
5. A package of Pull-ups
I am thrilled to have A's good back pack back & only have a few miscellaneous items go astray. I am happy I can box up the rest of this stuff & send them off to Haiti to where they were meant to be. I always figured that the mail would be less reliable than the airlines but this definetely proves me wrong - I never lost one box I mailed to the kids while they were at the O. Actually I only have to mail the boxes to a Florida address & from there it gets loaded on to a small missionary plane that flies supplies in to Haiti once a week.
I am so happy, all of the items that were of any real value; like the Robeez shoes & nursing scrubs were all still in there. It was a good day.......... :)
Well except for the fact that I decided to make the run to the airport instead of putting the kids down for their nap. I figured they would sleep on the road trip. I was also dropping A off at work on the way home from the airport so I figured it would be an hour to an hour & a half road trip & the kids could sleep while I got a few things done. Well they did go to sleep for a wee bit on the way to the airport, but it fell short of their regular two hour nap by a long shot. Now I know why I have been such a stickler with routine & sticking to a schedule. They were tired & cranky & miserable for the rest of the day. Now I must inject here that I did not have my nap today either, plus the fact that the kids were up at 6:30 am (instead of the 7:30 that is acceptable to me) that put me in a foul mood too. I was low on patience & had two kids whining & pushing my buttons. Finally with supper done; all we had left was bath time & reading & I would be home free. So got right to it & D decided to jump into the tub off the side & whacked his head a good one & was just screaming bloody murder. Scared the crap outta me & I grabbed him up & held him for a bit but he recovered & wanted back in the tub to play. So after another melt down or two I had enough for one day & the kids were sent to bed without reading a book. Cranky kids & cranky mommy is not a good combination. That is what I get for not sticking to a routine.
Yesterday I put the kids down for their nap at 1:00 & they played & fooled around for a whole hour. Finally I said enough you both come to Mommy's bed & we will all sleep together ;) Now usually I do fall asleep for a bit when I lay down with them, but then wake up & go get a start on dinner while they continue to sleep. Well yesterday D & I didn't wake up until 4:45. Holy smokes what a waste of a day. C had woke a bit earlier but had gone down to B's room & hung with him until we woke up.
That is one thing I am really going to miss when I go back to work - I LOVE my after lunch nap time! Lorraine, a lady I work with, came by today with a gift certificate & card from all my co-workers. Thanks so much everyone you are all so sweet, generous & considerate I really do appreciate everything you have done for us! We will certainly put your gift card to good use over the next while.
Tomorrow is a new day & I am hoping we can put today's grumpiness behind us.
Yesterday A & I took the kids to "Let's Play" to burn off a little energy. When my big kids were little they didn't have these kinds of play areas so this was all new to me. There was slides & tunnels & balls rooms & all kinds of fun stuff to explore. I flew down the very first slide like a freaking rocket & it felt like I compressed a couple of vertibrae & twisted an ankle, when I gracefully landed at the bottom. The kids had a blast though, although they were a little intimidated by the swinging tunnels & by the amount of kids there. All the big kids kind of push the little ones to the side so they were a little nervous. I crawled through tunnels & squeezed my fat behind through these rolling things I didn't think I would squeeze through. In fact I got half way through one & started whining I was stuck so C & some other little girl grabbled my arms & yanked me through. I love it when I make an a** out of myself in front of a ton of people. I forgot it was spring break right now so the place was hopping. Next time we go will be on a school day. When C got up this morning she said she wanted to go to "Let's Play" again & whined when I said no - that was just the start of it.
No big plans for the weekend. In fact I didn't even know it was Friday until the contractor said see you on Monday. I can't believe another week has flown by. I will try to get some photos of the kids at home on here tomorrow.
Hugs, Laur
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Missing Bag Finally Located??
So I have been contacting Lynx Air almost daily for the last couple of weeks trying to find out where our missing back pack is, as it still has not shown up in Haiti. Finally yesterday Lynx admitted that the bag could not be found & it was company policy to reimburse customers $9.07 per pound to compensate for missing bags. I was p.o'ed to say the least. That would have been only $399.08 as they weighed the bag at 44lbs. I told them that was unacceptable as the back pack itself cost almost that much & I had a whole bag full of donations for an orphanage. So I started listing the items that were in the lost back pack
Back Pack = $300.00
20 pairs of Robeez shoes x $30 per pair (a donation I received) = $600.00
26 Nurses scrub uniform shirts x $18 = $360.00
50 tooth brushes x $2.00 = $100.00
18 tubes of tooth paste x $2.50 = $45.00
2 kids back packs full of stuff x $40.00 = $80.00
Diapers = $25.00
Pull ups = $25.00
Food / Snacks = $25.00
Gift from another Mom for her childs birth mother (value ? $40.00)
TOTAL = $1,800
Once the lady from Lynx heard my list she said just a minute & put me on hold until I went to voice mail (which of course no one has yet returned my phone call since March 25). Grrrrrrr I am not impressed to say the least.
So I got up this morning ready to call Lynx Air again after I fed the kids breakfast. The phone rang while we were eating & it was Air Canada in Montreal & they have our bag! Now how in the world did Air Canada get my bag when we checked it in ourselves at Lynx Air in Miami on February 29? So 3 1/2 weeks after the missing bag was lost it is back in Montreal & will be sent back to us tomorrow. Bummer Nadine & Brett are leaving for Haiti to pick up their son tomorrow so it will be too late to send the stuff with them. Now I will have to pay for shipping to send this stuff to Haiti but I am so happy that these items were not lost or stolen. I guess I should be careful about saying that until it is back in my hot little hands. What a pain in the butt & I found Lynx to be very unresponsive to my concerns & they refused to return my calls. How in the heck do you lose a bag when the plane only holds 16 people & their bags? Plus how did the missing bag end up at another airline? I'll let you know if all the contents are still in the bag when I do get it. Air Canada in Montreal did not say that the back pack was full so I am just hoping all the stuff is still in the back pack & I will be able to send it off to the orphanage & then all will be well.
Nadine have an awesome trip to Haiti & I look forward to hearing you have your son home for good! Safe travels - I hope all your bags make it & hoping you all remain healthy. Give your little guy a hug for me too. Talk to you soon.
Hugs, Laurie
Back Pack = $300.00
20 pairs of Robeez shoes x $30 per pair (a donation I received) = $600.00
26 Nurses scrub uniform shirts x $18 = $360.00
50 tooth brushes x $2.00 = $100.00
18 tubes of tooth paste x $2.50 = $45.00
2 kids back packs full of stuff x $40.00 = $80.00
Diapers = $25.00
Pull ups = $25.00
Food / Snacks = $25.00
Gift from another Mom for her childs birth mother (value ? $40.00)
TOTAL = $1,800
Once the lady from Lynx heard my list she said just a minute & put me on hold until I went to voice mail (which of course no one has yet returned my phone call since March 25). Grrrrrrr I am not impressed to say the least.
So I got up this morning ready to call Lynx Air again after I fed the kids breakfast. The phone rang while we were eating & it was Air Canada in Montreal & they have our bag! Now how in the world did Air Canada get my bag when we checked it in ourselves at Lynx Air in Miami on February 29? So 3 1/2 weeks after the missing bag was lost it is back in Montreal & will be sent back to us tomorrow. Bummer Nadine & Brett are leaving for Haiti to pick up their son tomorrow so it will be too late to send the stuff with them. Now I will have to pay for shipping to send this stuff to Haiti but I am so happy that these items were not lost or stolen. I guess I should be careful about saying that until it is back in my hot little hands. What a pain in the butt & I found Lynx to be very unresponsive to my concerns & they refused to return my calls. How in the heck do you lose a bag when the plane only holds 16 people & their bags? Plus how did the missing bag end up at another airline? I'll let you know if all the contents are still in the bag when I do get it. Air Canada in Montreal did not say that the back pack was full so I am just hoping all the stuff is still in the back pack & I will be able to send it off to the orphanage & then all will be well.
Nadine have an awesome trip to Haiti & I look forward to hearing you have your son home for good! Safe travels - I hope all your bags make it & hoping you all remain healthy. Give your little guy a hug for me too. Talk to you soon.
Hugs, Laurie
Thursday, March 20, 2008
Some photos
A & I in Miami - February 28
Holding C for the first time - February 29, 2008
Holding D for the first time - February 29, 2008
Lagossette, Haiti (outside the orphanage)
Three of my babiesWhere has the time gone......
I can't believe it has been a week & a half since I last posted - the time just seems to be flying by. Things are busy with us & we are having lots of fun.
The kids are sweet, funny, silly, teasers, monsters, sassy, grumpy, loud, affectionate, happy from one moment to the next. I had forgotten how noisy & active a 2 & 4 year olds are. They move from room to room & cause havoc where ever they go. :) I told some of you that I was counting on the kids as my new weight loss program - I am happy to tell you that so far I am down 10 lbs. :) Now only 40 or so to go. I don't think I have been super active to lose that weight but I am certainly eating a lot healthier.
There has been so many changes in the short amount of time they have been home. The kids are no longer afraid of the dogs & actually seem to really like them now. D adjusted to the dogs the quickest & would pet them but now C isn't freaking out anymore either. She still gets a little scared if they jump up on her but she doesn't become hysterical anymore & she likes playing with them. We even surprised the kids tonight while they were in the bath & threw the dogs in the tub with them. They were so surprised but it didn't take D long to start dumping water all over them. Dogs didn't look overly impressed but the kids, A & I found some humor in it.
D still has a runny nose so I don't know if it is lactose intolerance or not, although it isn't as bad as it was before. I haven't tried the rice milk yet as none of the grocery stores around my place seem to carry it. I will have to make a special trip out to try & find some. For those Mom's out there that have taken your kids off of milk products - how long was it before you saw an improvement? No not just an improvement because I have seen that but how long until the nose stops running.
The kids are sleeping until 7 - 8 in the morning now :), nap at 1 wake at 3 & are in bed for the night at 8:30. They go to bed incredibly well, I put them to bed together in a single bed (bottom bunk) & they are asleep in 5 - 10 minutes max. I don't have to sit with them anymore at nap or bedtime - I just tuck them in , hug & kiss them & they are good to go. I usually go sit in my room so if they call me I hear them right away but it is so easy. I wish my big kids went to bed that good when they were little. D has fallen out of bed three times now but I just run in there, pick him up & put him back to bed & he has gone back to sleep immediately each time. Other than that there has been no one waking up in the middle of the night.
I live in a 4 level split so we have lots of stairs which both kids were a little scared of. D even fell down one flight, one evening on his tummy head first but didn't get hurt, just freaked him & I out a bit. Footy pj's on laminate stairs are not a good idea. They both navigate the stairs now no problem & now know why I was telling them to hold on to the railing. D has had two good goose eggs on his forehead so far, once he flipped off the couch & I can't recall how he managed to get the second one. C crashed into a corner today & got her first cut / goosebump on her forehead so they are both normal kids. No major injuries yet so we are doing good.
I haven't taken the kids in for medical check-ups yet but I am sure we all have guardia & need a round of Flagil, otherwise they seem super healthy & full of life. I would just like to blood work done & get them tested for lead & get a good general checked up. D still has the super big buddha belly so I am assuming that is indictive of parasites.
We took the kids swimming on Sunday & they had a blast! C was a little tentative to begin with but D was a maniac & not afraid at all so it wasn't long until C was doing all the stuff he was doing. They had a great time & I think we will have to make it a weekly event.
The kids love car rides. As soon as they are fed & dressed in the morning they are asking to go for a car ride or out for a walk. C can get in her own car seat & buckle herself in too so that is convenient. They travel good & get very excited about seeing big trucks & trains. They just are so busy looking at everything & eventually just fall asleep. We haven't been on any long trips but spent a couple of hours running around this afternoon. We are hoping to go visit my folks soon & they live three hours away so I am sure the kids will love that trip.
The kids are testing us constantly to see if the rules are still the same as they were a minute or hour ago. If I give C heck she has taken to mimicking everything I say along with finger pointing & ugly faces. She is starting to figure out that being sassy is logging her alot of corner time. She always gets two warning & the third time she is sent to the corner. As soon as she sees me getting up she starts saying "Excuse me, Excuse me, Excuse me" (instead of sorry) but by then it is too late. She hates sitting in the corner so maybe that behavior will decline quickly. I think that they never had a ton of consistency as far as discipline goes (at least from the volunteers) so they were able to get away with some of that behavior. I don't like it though, so we are working on that one.
All food issues are resolving themselves quickly. D still goes into panic mode as the meal is being prepared as he wants to eat instantly but it is getting better. The last two days I have told the kids they need to stay out of the kitchen as I cooked as they were always under foot or clinging to my legs & with cooking on the stove or opening the oven it was a hazard. D will stand at the entrance & whine & beg to be put in his booster chair, even though supper is just being prepared. Before D was very protective of his bowl of food & would lose it completely if anyone came near it or if he spilled food. Now he isn't doing that & will even let me feed him some times. They eat everything & probably more than me most meals. They eat all fruit, veggies & meats no problem. So far so good.
I am really looking forward to the weather warming up & spending the summer outside. :) I miss seeing my friends at work & doing lunches, but I can see this time off with the kids will fly by. Thanks for the emails everyone I appreciate you thinking of us & keeping in touch.
Hugs, Laurie
The kids are sweet, funny, silly, teasers, monsters, sassy, grumpy, loud, affectionate, happy from one moment to the next. I had forgotten how noisy & active a 2 & 4 year olds are. They move from room to room & cause havoc where ever they go. :) I told some of you that I was counting on the kids as my new weight loss program - I am happy to tell you that so far I am down 10 lbs. :) Now only 40 or so to go. I don't think I have been super active to lose that weight but I am certainly eating a lot healthier.
There has been so many changes in the short amount of time they have been home. The kids are no longer afraid of the dogs & actually seem to really like them now. D adjusted to the dogs the quickest & would pet them but now C isn't freaking out anymore either. She still gets a little scared if they jump up on her but she doesn't become hysterical anymore & she likes playing with them. We even surprised the kids tonight while they were in the bath & threw the dogs in the tub with them. They were so surprised but it didn't take D long to start dumping water all over them. Dogs didn't look overly impressed but the kids, A & I found some humor in it.
D still has a runny nose so I don't know if it is lactose intolerance or not, although it isn't as bad as it was before. I haven't tried the rice milk yet as none of the grocery stores around my place seem to carry it. I will have to make a special trip out to try & find some. For those Mom's out there that have taken your kids off of milk products - how long was it before you saw an improvement? No not just an improvement because I have seen that but how long until the nose stops running.
The kids are sleeping until 7 - 8 in the morning now :), nap at 1 wake at 3 & are in bed for the night at 8:30. They go to bed incredibly well, I put them to bed together in a single bed (bottom bunk) & they are asleep in 5 - 10 minutes max. I don't have to sit with them anymore at nap or bedtime - I just tuck them in , hug & kiss them & they are good to go. I usually go sit in my room so if they call me I hear them right away but it is so easy. I wish my big kids went to bed that good when they were little. D has fallen out of bed three times now but I just run in there, pick him up & put him back to bed & he has gone back to sleep immediately each time. Other than that there has been no one waking up in the middle of the night.
I live in a 4 level split so we have lots of stairs which both kids were a little scared of. D even fell down one flight, one evening on his tummy head first but didn't get hurt, just freaked him & I out a bit. Footy pj's on laminate stairs are not a good idea. They both navigate the stairs now no problem & now know why I was telling them to hold on to the railing. D has had two good goose eggs on his forehead so far, once he flipped off the couch & I can't recall how he managed to get the second one. C crashed into a corner today & got her first cut / goosebump on her forehead so they are both normal kids. No major injuries yet so we are doing good.
I haven't taken the kids in for medical check-ups yet but I am sure we all have guardia & need a round of Flagil, otherwise they seem super healthy & full of life. I would just like to blood work done & get them tested for lead & get a good general checked up. D still has the super big buddha belly so I am assuming that is indictive of parasites.
We took the kids swimming on Sunday & they had a blast! C was a little tentative to begin with but D was a maniac & not afraid at all so it wasn't long until C was doing all the stuff he was doing. They had a great time & I think we will have to make it a weekly event.
The kids love car rides. As soon as they are fed & dressed in the morning they are asking to go for a car ride or out for a walk. C can get in her own car seat & buckle herself in too so that is convenient. They travel good & get very excited about seeing big trucks & trains. They just are so busy looking at everything & eventually just fall asleep. We haven't been on any long trips but spent a couple of hours running around this afternoon. We are hoping to go visit my folks soon & they live three hours away so I am sure the kids will love that trip.
The kids are testing us constantly to see if the rules are still the same as they were a minute or hour ago. If I give C heck she has taken to mimicking everything I say along with finger pointing & ugly faces. She is starting to figure out that being sassy is logging her alot of corner time. She always gets two warning & the third time she is sent to the corner. As soon as she sees me getting up she starts saying "Excuse me, Excuse me, Excuse me" (instead of sorry) but by then it is too late. She hates sitting in the corner so maybe that behavior will decline quickly. I think that they never had a ton of consistency as far as discipline goes (at least from the volunteers) so they were able to get away with some of that behavior. I don't like it though, so we are working on that one.
All food issues are resolving themselves quickly. D still goes into panic mode as the meal is being prepared as he wants to eat instantly but it is getting better. The last two days I have told the kids they need to stay out of the kitchen as I cooked as they were always under foot or clinging to my legs & with cooking on the stove or opening the oven it was a hazard. D will stand at the entrance & whine & beg to be put in his booster chair, even though supper is just being prepared. Before D was very protective of his bowl of food & would lose it completely if anyone came near it or if he spilled food. Now he isn't doing that & will even let me feed him some times. They eat everything & probably more than me most meals. They eat all fruit, veggies & meats no problem. So far so good.
I am really looking forward to the weather warming up & spending the summer outside. :) I miss seeing my friends at work & doing lunches, but I can see this time off with the kids will fly by. Thanks for the emails everyone I appreciate you thinking of us & keeping in touch.
Hugs, Laurie
Saturday, March 8, 2008
Under the weather
We are all feeling a little under the weather. D & C both had dry hacking coughs at night time in Haiti & today we could tell D was feeling really rough. He was clingy & whiny most of the day & felt a little warm earlier.
Today I woke with a full scale migraine & even slept through the little kids waking up this morning. I felt tired & am feverish (I assume since I am freezing - but everyone else says they are warm). I slept till 9am, was asleep with the kids by 1, got up for a wee bit & crashed for another two hours & woke to find A had cooked dinner & it was ready & waiting to be eaten.
A develped a weird itchy rash night before last & we thought it might be the start of the chicken pox. But by yesterday it had not progressed. Today it has faded more so that was a bit of a mystery. She had felt tough the night we got home from Haiti & all the next day.
The kids are definetely testing us more to find out where our boundaries are. C is a little more defiant & will continue to do something after we ask her to stop & laugh about it. We give her two warnings & then remove her & then her temper really shines & I have seen the spitting episodes that others have spoken about. She is not a bad kid she is just trying to figure our what our rules are. I don't think she is feeling 100% either & had a couple of fits of frustration when when couldn't put on her shoe or her jacket zipped herself.
They are both very busy kids so they keep us all on our toes. The two big kids have been awesome & have pitched in & helped chase the little monsters. A is amazing with them & took over for me completely today while I slept. Tonight B took the littles to bed while I cleaned up the kitchen & supper mess & they did not even fuss & were asleep in about 10 minutes. We still go & sit on the floor next to their bed & remind them to lie down if they sit up but they are very easy to get to bed - it usually only takes 5 - 20 minutes till they are sleeping soundly. If they do fuss it is just a feeble attempt at a protest & not a full out fight. We have not had any sleep issues at all. The kids go to bed between 8:00 & 8:30 & wake between 6:30 - 7:30. They also lie down for a nap around 1:00 & sleep for about two hours.
Food issues are improving already & the kids are amazing eaters. They will eat just about anything we give to them. I have been making all very healthy meals & snacks through-out the day as I want to give them the best start here as they did not have veggies, meats or fruit before, except for mangos when in season & guava & bananas. Pretty much all their food previously was some kind of corn or oat mush, pasta or rice & beans so they were not really used to have to poke food or to chew anything much, they could always just scoop their food in a spoon. They will eat all vegetables - potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, broccoli, asparagus, red & yellow peppers, mushrooms etc. D isn't too keen on strawberries or celery. We have taken the kids off of milk products as they too had that chronic runny nose. Yesterday was our first day so it has only been two days but there is an improvement already, but still to soon to know. The kids are drinking soy milk right now but we are going to try them on a rice milk too. We are still expermenting on what they will & won't eat but so far they are very easy to please. Since D is also not feeling well we will elimate all the milk products for a week or so & then reintoduce some to see if the runny nose returns just so we are not confusing cold issues with him being lactose intolerant.
Still not feeling well so I am going to sign off. I know I have not posted any of the photos for the adopting parents on the yahoo groups yet, but I just have not up to going through photos yet; but I will do it soon - I promise.
Hugs, Laurie
Today I woke with a full scale migraine & even slept through the little kids waking up this morning. I felt tired & am feverish (I assume since I am freezing - but everyone else says they are warm). I slept till 9am, was asleep with the kids by 1, got up for a wee bit & crashed for another two hours & woke to find A had cooked dinner & it was ready & waiting to be eaten.
A develped a weird itchy rash night before last & we thought it might be the start of the chicken pox. But by yesterday it had not progressed. Today it has faded more so that was a bit of a mystery. She had felt tough the night we got home from Haiti & all the next day.
The kids are definetely testing us more to find out where our boundaries are. C is a little more defiant & will continue to do something after we ask her to stop & laugh about it. We give her two warnings & then remove her & then her temper really shines & I have seen the spitting episodes that others have spoken about. She is not a bad kid she is just trying to figure our what our rules are. I don't think she is feeling 100% either & had a couple of fits of frustration when when couldn't put on her shoe or her jacket zipped herself.
They are both very busy kids so they keep us all on our toes. The two big kids have been awesome & have pitched in & helped chase the little monsters. A is amazing with them & took over for me completely today while I slept. Tonight B took the littles to bed while I cleaned up the kitchen & supper mess & they did not even fuss & were asleep in about 10 minutes. We still go & sit on the floor next to their bed & remind them to lie down if they sit up but they are very easy to get to bed - it usually only takes 5 - 20 minutes till they are sleeping soundly. If they do fuss it is just a feeble attempt at a protest & not a full out fight. We have not had any sleep issues at all. The kids go to bed between 8:00 & 8:30 & wake between 6:30 - 7:30. They also lie down for a nap around 1:00 & sleep for about two hours.
Food issues are improving already & the kids are amazing eaters. They will eat just about anything we give to them. I have been making all very healthy meals & snacks through-out the day as I want to give them the best start here as they did not have veggies, meats or fruit before, except for mangos when in season & guava & bananas. Pretty much all their food previously was some kind of corn or oat mush, pasta or rice & beans so they were not really used to have to poke food or to chew anything much, they could always just scoop their food in a spoon. They will eat all vegetables - potatoes, sweet potatoes, carrots, broccoli, asparagus, red & yellow peppers, mushrooms etc. D isn't too keen on strawberries or celery. We have taken the kids off of milk products as they too had that chronic runny nose. Yesterday was our first day so it has only been two days but there is an improvement already, but still to soon to know. The kids are drinking soy milk right now but we are going to try them on a rice milk too. We are still expermenting on what they will & won't eat but so far they are very easy to please. Since D is also not feeling well we will elimate all the milk products for a week or so & then reintoduce some to see if the runny nose returns just so we are not confusing cold issues with him being lactose intolerant.
Still not feeling well so I am going to sign off. I know I have not posted any of the photos for the adopting parents on the yahoo groups yet, but I just have not up to going through photos yet; but I will do it soon - I promise.
Hugs, Laurie
Thursday, March 6, 2008
We're Home.......
We arrived home last night but we were all so tired from two days of traveling I just didn't have the energy to blog. The trip home was well - quite an experience.
Kids did pretty well on the airplanes except for C freaking out on our first flight to PAP because she didn't want a seat belt on. Neither kid like being strapped in & they have never had to sit for so long. They both cried a couple of times but nothing major.
The really fun part started in Montreal & they were so amazed at everything. There is so much that we take for granted that blew these kids minds. Such as mirrors, elevators, escalators, moving sidewalks, water fountains & cars everywhere.
One really funny story was when we were trying to get through Canadian Immigration, the Cdn Embassy in Haiti did not completely fill out some of the permanent resident forms & they also had D list as a female instead of a male. So needless to say it was taking forever while they tried to figure out how to fix these mistakes. So A decided to go to the washroom & took the kids along with her. I could hear the kids screaming & went & knocked on the bathroom door to find out what was going on & the kids freaked out because the toilet automatically flushed & they ran to escaped that; right under the hand dryer which turned on so they were crying & screaming & then the sink faucet turned on automatically. A was trying to call them to comfort them but they were scared to go to her because of the scarey toilet. :) It was a comedy of errors for sure.
Then we went to catch our shuttle to the hotel & it was storming & cold - the wind was brutal & we had no warm jackets for the kids or us either. The warmest jackets we had were little hoodies. We had the kids wrapped in blankets but they were freezing. We had taken sweat pants for each of the kids for the flights to help keep them warm but C refused & fought us when we tried to put them on her - she wanted to wear her shorts. I even asked a lady to translate that it was very cold in Montreal but she is stubborn. Once we got to the doors though whe changed her mind & let us put them on her. Poor kids it was cold. They had 5' piles of snow all along the roads from the plowing. The next day when we were leaving it had snowed & then was raining too. Brrrr. The kids were excited to see snow so we ran out the hotel doors, stuck our finger in the snow & turned around & went back inside. C wanted to make a snowman :)
The kids were terrified of our two little dogs last night & were hysterical as the dogs were excited to see me & jumping up at me & I was holding C. C was much more afraid than D but he screamed too just because she did I think. Today they were still afraid but getting much better. At the end of the day D was sitting on my knee & Zora came & laid on D's & my knee & he petted her. I saw him a couple of times pet Taya on his own too. Taya barks when she is playing so that really scares the kids. C did finally pet both dogs & she loves throwing the frisbee for Taya but would jump back every time Taya brought her back the frisbee. I am positive they will both be fine in a couple of days as there was such a dramatic improvement in one day. The dogs follow me everywhere & so do the kids so they will have to learn to tolerate each other quickly.
The kids think our talking bird is a blast & laugh & laugh & mimic her. They can understand what she is saying. We had to laugh tonight as we have some newspaper on the floor in front of the cage where the birds frequently poop off the side. D walked over by the paper & C yelled out No D - White Chicken Toilet. hahahahaha. She calls our cockatoo a white chicken all the time, it is so funny.
A & B (big brother) spents most of the day with the kids as I had to run out & get groceries & then had a doctors appointment this afternoon that was booked months ago so couldn't miss. Then I had to run to the store for some diapers, training underwear, pull ups, a potty seat - do you see a theme here. D is using the potty constantly in the daytime excluding nap times & night time but he has not pooped on the potty yet. We don't have to do anything if he has to go he says "me pee pee" or if C has to go he will follow & go too. He pees the minute he sits down so he knows exactly what he needs to do. I am so happy he wants to be trained - diapers are so gross. If you ask the kids what does Mommy says when D has a stinky diaper they say "Yucky - Stinky & then stick their tongues out & make a gacking sound". Hahaha - that is what I say but it looks funny when the kids do it.
The kids are smart & learning news words all the time. It is amazing how quickly they learn. My house is very noisy as I have a crew working in my basement pounding around down there, two little kids that don't seem to have control of their volume buttons yet & a dog that barks because she is so excited to have more people to play frisbee with her.
So far we are having a blast & I will try to get some photos up tomorrow. I haven't had time to go through any of them yet. It is so much fun to experience all the new firsts with them & watch them learn.
That's it for me tonight.
Hugs, Laurie
Kids did pretty well on the airplanes except for C freaking out on our first flight to PAP because she didn't want a seat belt on. Neither kid like being strapped in & they have never had to sit for so long. They both cried a couple of times but nothing major.
The really fun part started in Montreal & they were so amazed at everything. There is so much that we take for granted that blew these kids minds. Such as mirrors, elevators, escalators, moving sidewalks, water fountains & cars everywhere.
One really funny story was when we were trying to get through Canadian Immigration, the Cdn Embassy in Haiti did not completely fill out some of the permanent resident forms & they also had D list as a female instead of a male. So needless to say it was taking forever while they tried to figure out how to fix these mistakes. So A decided to go to the washroom & took the kids along with her. I could hear the kids screaming & went & knocked on the bathroom door to find out what was going on & the kids freaked out because the toilet automatically flushed & they ran to escaped that; right under the hand dryer which turned on so they were crying & screaming & then the sink faucet turned on automatically. A was trying to call them to comfort them but they were scared to go to her because of the scarey toilet. :) It was a comedy of errors for sure.
Then we went to catch our shuttle to the hotel & it was storming & cold - the wind was brutal & we had no warm jackets for the kids or us either. The warmest jackets we had were little hoodies. We had the kids wrapped in blankets but they were freezing. We had taken sweat pants for each of the kids for the flights to help keep them warm but C refused & fought us when we tried to put them on her - she wanted to wear her shorts. I even asked a lady to translate that it was very cold in Montreal but she is stubborn. Once we got to the doors though whe changed her mind & let us put them on her. Poor kids it was cold. They had 5' piles of snow all along the roads from the plowing. The next day when we were leaving it had snowed & then was raining too. Brrrr. The kids were excited to see snow so we ran out the hotel doors, stuck our finger in the snow & turned around & went back inside. C wanted to make a snowman :)
The kids were terrified of our two little dogs last night & were hysterical as the dogs were excited to see me & jumping up at me & I was holding C. C was much more afraid than D but he screamed too just because she did I think. Today they were still afraid but getting much better. At the end of the day D was sitting on my knee & Zora came & laid on D's & my knee & he petted her. I saw him a couple of times pet Taya on his own too. Taya barks when she is playing so that really scares the kids. C did finally pet both dogs & she loves throwing the frisbee for Taya but would jump back every time Taya brought her back the frisbee. I am positive they will both be fine in a couple of days as there was such a dramatic improvement in one day. The dogs follow me everywhere & so do the kids so they will have to learn to tolerate each other quickly.
The kids think our talking bird is a blast & laugh & laugh & mimic her. They can understand what she is saying. We had to laugh tonight as we have some newspaper on the floor in front of the cage where the birds frequently poop off the side. D walked over by the paper & C yelled out No D - White Chicken Toilet. hahahahaha. She calls our cockatoo a white chicken all the time, it is so funny.
A & B (big brother) spents most of the day with the kids as I had to run out & get groceries & then had a doctors appointment this afternoon that was booked months ago so couldn't miss. Then I had to run to the store for some diapers, training underwear, pull ups, a potty seat - do you see a theme here. D is using the potty constantly in the daytime excluding nap times & night time but he has not pooped on the potty yet. We don't have to do anything if he has to go he says "me pee pee" or if C has to go he will follow & go too. He pees the minute he sits down so he knows exactly what he needs to do. I am so happy he wants to be trained - diapers are so gross. If you ask the kids what does Mommy says when D has a stinky diaper they say "Yucky - Stinky & then stick their tongues out & make a gacking sound". Hahaha - that is what I say but it looks funny when the kids do it.
The kids are smart & learning news words all the time. It is amazing how quickly they learn. My house is very noisy as I have a crew working in my basement pounding around down there, two little kids that don't seem to have control of their volume buttons yet & a dog that barks because she is so excited to have more people to play frisbee with her.
So far we are having a blast & I will try to get some photos up tomorrow. I haven't had time to go through any of them yet. It is so much fun to experience all the new firsts with them & watch them learn.
That's it for me tonight.
Hugs, Laurie
Monday, March 3, 2008
Last Night in Haiti
So much happens in a day here, but today was the last full day. We catch a flight to PAP tomorrow at noonish so we will start our journey home. We then fly out of PAP at 4 ish & on to Montreal & overnight there.
We had the kids going away party today & each kid had a "happy birthday cake". All the children from each of their rooms got to attend the party & have cake - they were all very excited. The kids all sang the kids a couple of farewell type songs in kreyol & of course happy birthday :) Sammy said a prayer before the kids had cake & it had me crying when it was translated :( Sammy is a great kid & very handsome, C is really going to miss him - they spend a lot of time together now.
C wanted to go to the Lion room tonight to watch a movie & was cuddled up with her favorite nanny when Marie went to get her. She was really sad when she returned to us & cried when I took her in the shower with me. She then fussed when I said it was bedtime but I carried her to bed crying & she was quiet & out within a couple of minutes. That is one good thing the kids fall asleep really fast & they just cuddle up to us & crash right out.
Our bag did not arrive today so we are going home without it. I am hoping when Nadine comes she can bring it home with her or we can have someone mail the back pack from the US when they return home. Pretty much all the contents were donations anyway except for the kids diapers / back packs & some food but that can stay here, so it will be coming home empty. They were told today that it would probably be in tomorrow afternoon but we leave before that. That is a bit of a drag but it could have been much worse if it had been the suitcase with our clothes etc it in.
There are so many of the kids that I have really fallen for here. They are all so sweet & cuddly. I have not spent any time with any of the babies at all except for one little sweetie that is currently living in the volunteer house. Man she is one cute little girl. She has been kinda grumpy the last couple of days because she too has the chicken pox quite bad, but even then she is a sweet baby. Her family can rest assured that that is one spoiled, doted on little girl. I spent a lot of time loving on her.
Nadine I will call you when I get home but your little guy is so sweet & wants to come home so badly. I have not heard any news re: your file while here. He comes up to me all the time & says he wants to look at his Momma Book. He can name everyone in your family & wants to just sit & look at it over & over, he would ask to see it every day. I look forward to having play dates with all of you when he is home. He is a very sweet loving little guy. He is a little afraid of the big dogs here so we spent some time sitting with the dogs & petting them etc.
D has some major food issues. If someone touches his bowl or tries to help or heaven forbid if he drops a little on the floor or table it sends him into a complete melt down. Lunch today he spilled a small amount on the floor & screamed for about 15 minutes. No he didn't just scream he freaked out. He is very protective of his food & is afraid we are going to take it away. When I am eating he doesn't mind sharing my food with me. He is like a little puppy & will go stand beside who ever is eating & gives them those big sad eyes hoping they will give him something. He eats really well on his own with a spoon but he just shovels in his food as fast as possible & doesn't want to be interupted. C is fine with us helping out & doesn't freak out like that. Eating on the plane or in restaurants with D may be interesting we will see.......
They really are great kids but this is pretty scarey for them so please keep us in your thoughts or prayers over the next couple of days while we travel home.
Talk to you all when we get home - I don't think I will be able to write tomorrow night.
Hugs, Laurie
We had the kids going away party today & each kid had a "happy birthday cake". All the children from each of their rooms got to attend the party & have cake - they were all very excited. The kids all sang the kids a couple of farewell type songs in kreyol & of course happy birthday :) Sammy said a prayer before the kids had cake & it had me crying when it was translated :( Sammy is a great kid & very handsome, C is really going to miss him - they spend a lot of time together now.
C wanted to go to the Lion room tonight to watch a movie & was cuddled up with her favorite nanny when Marie went to get her. She was really sad when she returned to us & cried when I took her in the shower with me. She then fussed when I said it was bedtime but I carried her to bed crying & she was quiet & out within a couple of minutes. That is one good thing the kids fall asleep really fast & they just cuddle up to us & crash right out.
Our bag did not arrive today so we are going home without it. I am hoping when Nadine comes she can bring it home with her or we can have someone mail the back pack from the US when they return home. Pretty much all the contents were donations anyway except for the kids diapers / back packs & some food but that can stay here, so it will be coming home empty. They were told today that it would probably be in tomorrow afternoon but we leave before that. That is a bit of a drag but it could have been much worse if it had been the suitcase with our clothes etc it in.
There are so many of the kids that I have really fallen for here. They are all so sweet & cuddly. I have not spent any time with any of the babies at all except for one little sweetie that is currently living in the volunteer house. Man she is one cute little girl. She has been kinda grumpy the last couple of days because she too has the chicken pox quite bad, but even then she is a sweet baby. Her family can rest assured that that is one spoiled, doted on little girl. I spent a lot of time loving on her.
Nadine I will call you when I get home but your little guy is so sweet & wants to come home so badly. I have not heard any news re: your file while here. He comes up to me all the time & says he wants to look at his Momma Book. He can name everyone in your family & wants to just sit & look at it over & over, he would ask to see it every day. I look forward to having play dates with all of you when he is home. He is a very sweet loving little guy. He is a little afraid of the big dogs here so we spent some time sitting with the dogs & petting them etc.
D has some major food issues. If someone touches his bowl or tries to help or heaven forbid if he drops a little on the floor or table it sends him into a complete melt down. Lunch today he spilled a small amount on the floor & screamed for about 15 minutes. No he didn't just scream he freaked out. He is very protective of his food & is afraid we are going to take it away. When I am eating he doesn't mind sharing my food with me. He is like a little puppy & will go stand beside who ever is eating & gives them those big sad eyes hoping they will give him something. He eats really well on his own with a spoon but he just shovels in his food as fast as possible & doesn't want to be interupted. C is fine with us helping out & doesn't freak out like that. Eating on the plane or in restaurants with D may be interesting we will see.......
They really are great kids but this is pretty scarey for them so please keep us in your thoughts or prayers over the next couple of days while we travel home.
Talk to you all when we get home - I don't think I will be able to write tomorrow night.
Hugs, Laurie
Sunday, March 2, 2008
Day Three
Wow what a whirl wind of a day - busy, busy, busy.
The kids are a going concern - all of them. We spent a lot of time with a lot of the kids today, I pushed them in swings, took them guava hunting, played ball & captured them in photos & gave out lots of cuddles.
Quite a few of the kids have chicken pox now but most are pretty mild cases. They seem a little grumpy the first day or so & after that it doesn't seem to slow them down any.
It is 1am & I am up because C peed the bed. UGGG I don't know what I was thinking last night but I forgot to put a pull-up on her. She has been doing great & her diaper is dry every morning but I still wanted to keep one on her. After their shower tonight she chose what she was going to wear & I didn't even think of it until I woke in a puddle. I have towels on the bed but now we have no blanket for the rest of the night as I have no clue as to where to find a new one. Oh well it is a nice night anyway.
D has decided he wants to pee in the potty all the time now. We had to change one poopy diaper today & that is it - all the rest of the time he goes the minute he sits on the potty. He is even dry after nap & night time. I will buy a potty when we get home, he is so ready. We don't even have to remind him but usually when C says she has to go potty he nods he does too & off he goes. :)
We went for a morning & evening walk around the village today. This is a very rural area, farm land everywhere & is extremely beautiful. The poverty in this area doesn't look as bad as the city areas - don't get me wrong they are poor, but it isn't a shatty town. Saw the kids family earlier today again, they just live a little ways from the orphanage & the papa went on our evening walk with us & was telling us the kreyol names for all the animals. It was very nice that he joined us, he really loves those kids.
It is great having all these volunteers here, I think there is seven plus A & I so that helps with all the attention the kids are getting. I am amazed how much the kids understand in english. When I was pushing them on the swings today I would say feet & they would stick their little feet up in the air & I would push them & they giggled & giggled. They are all so sweet & innocent & so ready to go home & be loved. All of them just crave a little one on one time to sit on your knee & cuddle.
We are hoping the missing bag will show up on Monday (today) as we leave on Tuesday. We have little back packs for each of the kids with stuff to keep them amused on the plane & of course lots of snacks. That will be a drag not to have those. Plus that is A's back pack so she of course doesn't want to lose that.
We have a cook that makes us breakfast & lunch in the volunteer house but we are on our own to make supper. Most of our food supplies were in the missing bag except for 4 boxes of kraft dinner so that has been our main staple. Sundays the cook is off so we were on our own all day but this evening one of the volunteers made banana pancakes & we ate it with Nutella - yum yum. The teeny tiny banana's here are so sweet & good. The food here has been excellent though so no complaints except for the kraft dinner which isn't my favorite at the best of times - but hey that is our fault that is what we brought. I would prefer some soup works or some of the other pasta type items we packed but hey we can't be picky at this point.
We had a two hour nap with the kids today so that was the longest since we have been here, so I am not so tired tonight. Plus I was in & asleep by 8pm so I am certainly getting a lot of rest when we do lay down.
The kids really are sweet, both have tempers though & D has the biggest pouty lip you have ever seen. The have killer sweet eyes though. They are starting to remember to call us Mommy or A now instead of Hey but that is a work in process. :)
Dogs in the yard are barking like crazy & the stupid rooster here go off all night. But I better go back to bed.
Hugs, Laur
The kids are a going concern - all of them. We spent a lot of time with a lot of the kids today, I pushed them in swings, took them guava hunting, played ball & captured them in photos & gave out lots of cuddles.
Quite a few of the kids have chicken pox now but most are pretty mild cases. They seem a little grumpy the first day or so & after that it doesn't seem to slow them down any.
It is 1am & I am up because C peed the bed. UGGG I don't know what I was thinking last night but I forgot to put a pull-up on her. She has been doing great & her diaper is dry every morning but I still wanted to keep one on her. After their shower tonight she chose what she was going to wear & I didn't even think of it until I woke in a puddle. I have towels on the bed but now we have no blanket for the rest of the night as I have no clue as to where to find a new one. Oh well it is a nice night anyway.
D has decided he wants to pee in the potty all the time now. We had to change one poopy diaper today & that is it - all the rest of the time he goes the minute he sits on the potty. He is even dry after nap & night time. I will buy a potty when we get home, he is so ready. We don't even have to remind him but usually when C says she has to go potty he nods he does too & off he goes. :)
We went for a morning & evening walk around the village today. This is a very rural area, farm land everywhere & is extremely beautiful. The poverty in this area doesn't look as bad as the city areas - don't get me wrong they are poor, but it isn't a shatty town. Saw the kids family earlier today again, they just live a little ways from the orphanage & the papa went on our evening walk with us & was telling us the kreyol names for all the animals. It was very nice that he joined us, he really loves those kids.
It is great having all these volunteers here, I think there is seven plus A & I so that helps with all the attention the kids are getting. I am amazed how much the kids understand in english. When I was pushing them on the swings today I would say feet & they would stick their little feet up in the air & I would push them & they giggled & giggled. They are all so sweet & innocent & so ready to go home & be loved. All of them just crave a little one on one time to sit on your knee & cuddle.
We are hoping the missing bag will show up on Monday (today) as we leave on Tuesday. We have little back packs for each of the kids with stuff to keep them amused on the plane & of course lots of snacks. That will be a drag not to have those. Plus that is A's back pack so she of course doesn't want to lose that.
We have a cook that makes us breakfast & lunch in the volunteer house but we are on our own to make supper. Most of our food supplies were in the missing bag except for 4 boxes of kraft dinner so that has been our main staple. Sundays the cook is off so we were on our own all day but this evening one of the volunteers made banana pancakes & we ate it with Nutella - yum yum. The teeny tiny banana's here are so sweet & good. The food here has been excellent though so no complaints except for the kraft dinner which isn't my favorite at the best of times - but hey that is our fault that is what we brought. I would prefer some soup works or some of the other pasta type items we packed but hey we can't be picky at this point.
We had a two hour nap with the kids today so that was the longest since we have been here, so I am not so tired tonight. Plus I was in & asleep by 8pm so I am certainly getting a lot of rest when we do lay down.
The kids really are sweet, both have tempers though & D has the biggest pouty lip you have ever seen. The have killer sweet eyes though. They are starting to remember to call us Mommy or A now instead of Hey but that is a work in process. :)
Dogs in the yard are barking like crazy & the stupid rooster here go off all night. But I better go back to bed.
Hugs, Laur
Day two is over...............
It is 2am & I just woke so thought I would do a quick update of the day. It is so busy during daylight hours that there just isn't enough time to fit it in. During nap time - well I nap of course!
They have a wonderful set up here in the volunteer house. A & I & the two kids share a room with our own private bathroom & shower. There is a queen bed in there as well as a play pen & little cot. The little kids have decided they want to sleep with us though so all four of us sleep in the one bed. The kids are so good & go to bed so easily as long as we lay with them. C clings to me & D is a real A suck, he has really attached to A so he cuddles up to her. They are very cute together.
D showed his terrible twos today with not one but two melt downs today. I tried walking away from the 2nd one but he followed me with tears & snot flinging everywhere. Note to self: bubbles cause melt downs. To all the adoptive parents: I did try to eliminate all the snotty noses today for awhile but I am telling you it is a losing battle. So if I took a picture of your kid with a runny nose - it was because I was defeated.
The birth family did show up today & we did take a lot of photos of everyone. Dad, Mom, new baby brother & four older brothers came as well as Dad's two daughters from a previous relationship & one of them had a one month old baby & a uncle (Dad's younger brother) came as well. They were all dressed in their Sunday best. I won't go into details on here of what went on, as it is very private but it was extremely emotional. Both kids melted down when they saw their family & ran away. We did finally calm them & got them all together for photos. This is all so confusing for the kids. The kids will treasure all these photos one day & it was wonderful that such a large group showed up. Daryl sat & translated for us & also took photos - he is really wonderful.
So much happens here in one day......... so many kids all wanting just a little attention. They cling to your legs & all want to be held. A new group of volunteers showed up today so the kids kind of left us alone a little & were all over them. We brought Jody & Sammy over to the volunteer house to play today & Woosben spent a lot of time with us. He loves the new photo album you sent Nadine. That is his favorite thing by far. He was really into the stickers too & even I ended up with quite a few on my body. We got out the little car set to play again today & somehow the two little cars are missing. We searched for quite awhile but didn't locate them. We will look again tomorrow - sorry. Ben wasn't upset about them being missing though so that was a good thing.
The kids all understand a LOT of english! They don't really speak it but they definately know what you are saying most of the time. C is like a little tape recorder everything you say gets repeated. We are going to have to be more careful about what we do say. She will be speaking english in no time. D doesn't talk so much but he does say Mommy, Ashley, more, please, up - but he just isn't as verbal, but he does understand us & nods or shakes his head appropriately.
Food at home I don't think will be an issue. When food is being served to the kids they all just yell & let everyone know its food time & they all go running for their bowls. My kids go pick up their food & come back to the volunteer house to eat. Then when we eat D sits on my knee & does his baby bird impression & eats as much as I will give him. Neither kid is picky about food & eat everything given to them as quickly as possible.
D even peed in the potty today! We were getting them ready for the shower & I asked him if he wanted to pee on the potty & he nodded yes so he sat down & peed. He was so proud of himself. I think he could be trained pretty easily once we are home. C is completely trained & hasn't had any accidents even at night or nap times. We have put pull ups on her at night & she went out & showed everyone her diaper & told them in Kreyol that she had diapers on so now she was going to go on the airplane to Port au Prince. :) She has noticed everyone puts diapers on their kids for the flights. She said to me today lets go on the airplane to Port au Prince & I stay with Mommy forever. She seems to understand what is going on & wants to leave. The kids had a blast in the shower as we have hot water in the volunteer house. They have cold showers in the baby house so they ran around & danced & really performed. They were just giggling & having so much fun. It was so cute I wish I had that on video tape. I can't wait till we get in Canada & have a bathtub for them to sit & play in. They will have a blast. They do not get to sit here during their shower they run the kids through pretty quickly. They are not afraid of the water at all & didn't mind it on their faces.
Maybe the missing bag will show up today. There wasn't a Lynx flight from Miami today so maybe tomorrow. Julie your package is in that bag but I do have the money envelopes in my purse (I will give those to Daryl tomorrow). Daryl is sure that the bag will show up eventually they just left it out on purpose because of weight restrictions. I have never been on a small plane before when you had to bend over at the waist to get to your seat.
Daryl, Sara, Maria are some of the long term volunteers are my heros. They work from sun up to sun down for these kiddos. Actually they all have the little babies that need nursing / extra care in their rooms at night so it is a 24 hour a day job for them. The girls spend all their time with the sick babies but they all go non stop. They really are the heart & sole of this place.
Well it is almost 3am now so I must get to bed before all the roosters go off.
Having a blast here getting to know my kids & all the rest of the kiddos. Everything is going as expected or better & I am really happy. I can't wait to be home & start our new life - although I prefer the weather here. :)
I will try to blog again tomorrow or I mean today.
Hugs, Laur
They have a wonderful set up here in the volunteer house. A & I & the two kids share a room with our own private bathroom & shower. There is a queen bed in there as well as a play pen & little cot. The little kids have decided they want to sleep with us though so all four of us sleep in the one bed. The kids are so good & go to bed so easily as long as we lay with them. C clings to me & D is a real A suck, he has really attached to A so he cuddles up to her. They are very cute together.
D showed his terrible twos today with not one but two melt downs today. I tried walking away from the 2nd one but he followed me with tears & snot flinging everywhere. Note to self: bubbles cause melt downs. To all the adoptive parents: I did try to eliminate all the snotty noses today for awhile but I am telling you it is a losing battle. So if I took a picture of your kid with a runny nose - it was because I was defeated.
The birth family did show up today & we did take a lot of photos of everyone. Dad, Mom, new baby brother & four older brothers came as well as Dad's two daughters from a previous relationship & one of them had a one month old baby & a uncle (Dad's younger brother) came as well. They were all dressed in their Sunday best. I won't go into details on here of what went on, as it is very private but it was extremely emotional. Both kids melted down when they saw their family & ran away. We did finally calm them & got them all together for photos. This is all so confusing for the kids. The kids will treasure all these photos one day & it was wonderful that such a large group showed up. Daryl sat & translated for us & also took photos - he is really wonderful.
So much happens here in one day......... so many kids all wanting just a little attention. They cling to your legs & all want to be held. A new group of volunteers showed up today so the kids kind of left us alone a little & were all over them. We brought Jody & Sammy over to the volunteer house to play today & Woosben spent a lot of time with us. He loves the new photo album you sent Nadine. That is his favorite thing by far. He was really into the stickers too & even I ended up with quite a few on my body. We got out the little car set to play again today & somehow the two little cars are missing. We searched for quite awhile but didn't locate them. We will look again tomorrow - sorry. Ben wasn't upset about them being missing though so that was a good thing.
The kids all understand a LOT of english! They don't really speak it but they definately know what you are saying most of the time. C is like a little tape recorder everything you say gets repeated. We are going to have to be more careful about what we do say. She will be speaking english in no time. D doesn't talk so much but he does say Mommy, Ashley, more, please, up - but he just isn't as verbal, but he does understand us & nods or shakes his head appropriately.
Food at home I don't think will be an issue. When food is being served to the kids they all just yell & let everyone know its food time & they all go running for their bowls. My kids go pick up their food & come back to the volunteer house to eat. Then when we eat D sits on my knee & does his baby bird impression & eats as much as I will give him. Neither kid is picky about food & eat everything given to them as quickly as possible.
D even peed in the potty today! We were getting them ready for the shower & I asked him if he wanted to pee on the potty & he nodded yes so he sat down & peed. He was so proud of himself. I think he could be trained pretty easily once we are home. C is completely trained & hasn't had any accidents even at night or nap times. We have put pull ups on her at night & she went out & showed everyone her diaper & told them in Kreyol that she had diapers on so now she was going to go on the airplane to Port au Prince. :) She has noticed everyone puts diapers on their kids for the flights. She said to me today lets go on the airplane to Port au Prince & I stay with Mommy forever. She seems to understand what is going on & wants to leave. The kids had a blast in the shower as we have hot water in the volunteer house. They have cold showers in the baby house so they ran around & danced & really performed. They were just giggling & having so much fun. It was so cute I wish I had that on video tape. I can't wait till we get in Canada & have a bathtub for them to sit & play in. They will have a blast. They do not get to sit here during their shower they run the kids through pretty quickly. They are not afraid of the water at all & didn't mind it on their faces.
Maybe the missing bag will show up today. There wasn't a Lynx flight from Miami today so maybe tomorrow. Julie your package is in that bag but I do have the money envelopes in my purse (I will give those to Daryl tomorrow). Daryl is sure that the bag will show up eventually they just left it out on purpose because of weight restrictions. I have never been on a small plane before when you had to bend over at the waist to get to your seat.
Daryl, Sara, Maria are some of the long term volunteers are my heros. They work from sun up to sun down for these kiddos. Actually they all have the little babies that need nursing / extra care in their rooms at night so it is a 24 hour a day job for them. The girls spend all their time with the sick babies but they all go non stop. They really are the heart & sole of this place.
Well it is almost 3am now so I must get to bed before all the roosters go off.
Having a blast here getting to know my kids & all the rest of the kiddos. Everything is going as expected or better & I am really happy. I can't wait to be home & start our new life - although I prefer the weather here. :)
I will try to blog again tomorrow or I mean today.
Hugs, Laur
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
