Ji Ji is also playing ball and she has really loved it. Again she likes running the bases and chasing balls. Here she is (1) batting and (2) practing her fielding.
Sunday, June 24, 2007
Baseball Practice
Jiang Lei likes baseball practive because he plays with other kids and he gets a treat at the end. He isn't really interested in actually playing the game. (1) Here he is playing his fielder position (he is usually laying down on the grass). (2) He is getting instructions in batting - very patient coach. (3) Here he is on 2nd base (sitting down).
Ji Ji is also playing ball and she has really loved it. Again she likes running the bases and chasing balls. Here she is (1) batting and (2) practing her fielding.
Ji Ji is also playing ball and she has really loved it. Again she likes running the bases and chasing balls. Here she is (1) batting and (2) practing her fielding.
Summer
Its summer vacation and the kids are having fun! Every night there is some different configuration of sleeping in one or the other's room. They don't always get to sleep early but they are definately enjoying it.
It must be summer because Daddy is golfing at a beautiful spot along the lake.
Friends are over to visit and go to the amusement park together. They put on a dress up show for the parents.
Here is Ji Ji inline skating on the sidewalk in front of our house. And some of the neighborhood kids on the playset in our backyard. Today we set up the inflatable pool in the yard and so the kids will play there all summer. Our back yard is a kid magnet.
It must be summer because Daddy is golfing at a beautiful spot along the lake.
Friends are over to visit and go to the amusement park together. They put on a dress up show for the parents.
Here is Ji Ji inline skating on the sidewalk in front of our house. And some of the neighborhood kids on the playset in our backyard. Today we set up the inflatable pool in the yard and so the kids will play there all summer. Our back yard is a kid magnet.
Sunday, June 10, 2007
Cute kid stories
I guess we are always telling Jiang Lei that he pours too much juice or he puts too much salt on his food. Yesterday when I asked him how much rice he wanted he said "Mommy, I want too much."
Nora and Ji Ji have been bugging us to take them to a restaurant called "Dog and Suds". Last night in the car, Ji Ji asked if we could go to "Dog and Stein's" and then Nora corrected her as she said the restaurant was called "Dog and Studs".
The girls kept asking why Mom and Dad were laughing .....
Nora and Ji Ji have been bugging us to take them to a restaurant called "Dog and Suds". Last night in the car, Ji Ji asked if we could go to "Dog and Stein's" and then Nora corrected her as she said the restaurant was called "Dog and Studs".
The girls kept asking why Mom and Dad were laughing .....
Monday, June 04, 2007
Party House and The Wiggles
We are the party house! Every weekend we have been having people over to see the house, many to repay them for their generousity when we have come to town over the last 9 years. It has been a lot of fun and and an excellent excuse for not getting too much done! We had the Grandparents over last weekend and here they are with the kids.
The Wiggles were at our local amusement park and though I was hesitant to face the crowds, we went to see them. It wasn't bad at all. We didn't wait in any lines and we were very close. First they drove through the park in their car and then they put on a show.
The show was great. They were really hamming it up and you could tell they were having fun with it. Here is Jeff sleeping. Jiang Lei doesn't know the Wiggles but he knows to yell "Wake Up Jeff" and he was able to do it with the crowd often through the show and he loved it! I'm not too sure about that new Wiggle, Jeff had gray hair and Murray looked old (we remember them best 6 years ago), but it was still fun for us and for the kids.
Ji Ji and Jiang Lei went down to the front with all of the kids to get a closer look. You can see them on the right of the camera. Ji Ji is watching the show and Jiang Lei is in the red shirt.
JL update
This weekend, Jiang Lei replied "o my gosh" to something I said and I just froze. I was surprised he was using that expression and using it correctly. Now that he got a reaction out of me he is using it all of the time. The next day he told me something was "upside down" and I said where did you learn that word? He has been doing Kumon reading with Mark (looking at pictures and repeating the words) and that was one of his words last week. His english is progressing fast, need to work on his pronounciation. He has been with us 4 months.
The Wiggles were at our local amusement park and though I was hesitant to face the crowds, we went to see them. It wasn't bad at all. We didn't wait in any lines and we were very close. First they drove through the park in their car and then they put on a show.
The show was great. They were really hamming it up and you could tell they were having fun with it. Here is Jeff sleeping. Jiang Lei doesn't know the Wiggles but he knows to yell "Wake Up Jeff" and he was able to do it with the crowd often through the show and he loved it! I'm not too sure about that new Wiggle, Jeff had gray hair and Murray looked old (we remember them best 6 years ago), but it was still fun for us and for the kids.
Ji Ji and Jiang Lei went down to the front with all of the kids to get a closer look. You can see them on the right of the camera. Ji Ji is watching the show and Jiang Lei is in the red shirt.
JL update
This weekend, Jiang Lei replied "o my gosh" to something I said and I just froze. I was surprised he was using that expression and using it correctly. Now that he got a reaction out of me he is using it all of the time. The next day he told me something was "upside down" and I said where did you learn that word? He has been doing Kumon reading with Mark (looking at pictures and repeating the words) and that was one of his words last week. His english is progressing fast, need to work on his pronounciation. He has been with us 4 months.
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Making Progress in Every Way
We are doing good and trying to get our lives/home/priorities in order. It has been busy but I think we are making some progress!
Jiang Lei is starting to talk in some sentences (Mommy, I want that one!). He went to the local school for several different evaluations and at first there were some issues because they didn't have anyone there who spoke Mandarin. Finally the conclusion was what we wanted, he will get 2 weeks of Speech Therapy during the summer and then in the fall he will have 1/2 day Speech Therapy and 1/2 day Kindergarten with 30 minutes of ESL instruction during his Kindergarten class each day. This was a great result for us because at first they were talking about the Special Ed track.
The kids still fight and Jiang Lei will still push or kick, though not very hard, just enough to make his point. The 3 kids will often pair up into 2 v 1 which is difficult for the one on the outside.
Again, here are photos from several weeks as I haven't gotten back in the groove of regular posting (too much to do here on Sundays).
Here are some photos from the kids at gymnastics class. They are all very excited to go to class and all are making progress. Jiang Lei is developing his gross motor skills and coordination which he really needs. Ji Ji is able to do some tumbling like her sister and Nora keeps getting better at her coordination and upper body strength.
Ji Ji had her birthday and she got her Game Boy which she has been talking about for almost one year.
Mother's Day is always fun. Nora and Ji Ji made some presents at school and Jiang Lei gave me some pearl jewelry (someone put a bug in Daddy's ear that he could take care of all future birthdays and Mother's Days while in Shanghai for not too much money).
The girls used to watch Dancing on Ice on TV (UK reality show with stars in an ice skating competition) and here they are being judges. Mark and I had to dance with Jiang Lei and they judged us (we both won).
Nora had her school performance and unfortunately we were very far away. She sang while a few others acted on stage. Again the group is very large compared to her school in Germany. She is in the front row with the pink shirt on.
We met some friends at the local amusement park and the kids loved the rides, especially the kids roller coaster. In the roller coaster photo, you can see Mark's blue shirt and raised arm. He is sitting with Jiang Lei and the girls are sitting behind him.
Sue tagged me but I am not very good at telling personal things about myself so I will need to think about this one for a while before responding.
Jiang Lei is starting to talk in some sentences (Mommy, I want that one!). He went to the local school for several different evaluations and at first there were some issues because they didn't have anyone there who spoke Mandarin. Finally the conclusion was what we wanted, he will get 2 weeks of Speech Therapy during the summer and then in the fall he will have 1/2 day Speech Therapy and 1/2 day Kindergarten with 30 minutes of ESL instruction during his Kindergarten class each day. This was a great result for us because at first they were talking about the Special Ed track.
The kids still fight and Jiang Lei will still push or kick, though not very hard, just enough to make his point. The 3 kids will often pair up into 2 v 1 which is difficult for the one on the outside.
Again, here are photos from several weeks as I haven't gotten back in the groove of regular posting (too much to do here on Sundays).
Here are some photos from the kids at gymnastics class. They are all very excited to go to class and all are making progress. Jiang Lei is developing his gross motor skills and coordination which he really needs. Ji Ji is able to do some tumbling like her sister and Nora keeps getting better at her coordination and upper body strength.
Ji Ji had her birthday and she got her Game Boy which she has been talking about for almost one year.
Mother's Day is always fun. Nora and Ji Ji made some presents at school and Jiang Lei gave me some pearl jewelry (someone put a bug in Daddy's ear that he could take care of all future birthdays and Mother's Days while in Shanghai for not too much money).
The girls used to watch Dancing on Ice on TV (UK reality show with stars in an ice skating competition) and here they are being judges. Mark and I had to dance with Jiang Lei and they judged us (we both won).
Nora had her school performance and unfortunately we were very far away. She sang while a few others acted on stage. Again the group is very large compared to her school in Germany. She is in the front row with the pink shirt on.
We met some friends at the local amusement park and the kids loved the rides, especially the kids roller coaster. In the roller coaster photo, you can see Mark's blue shirt and raised arm. He is sitting with Jiang Lei and the girls are sitting behind him.
Sue tagged me but I am not very good at telling personal things about myself so I will need to think about this one for a while before responding.
Wednesday, May 16, 2007
Ji Ji's 6th Birthday
Ji Ji had her 6th Birthday party at Chuckie Cheese. The kids get tokens to play games and they win tickets which they can trade for a prize at the end. They all had a great time. Ji Ji really misses her school friends from Germany but she is adjusting.
Our shipment has arrived and we are still digging out from under all of the stuff. There are 1,ooos of projects that I want to do around the house and never enough hours in the day so my blogging has fallen behind. I will try to do better in the future though that is a very common pattern for the frequency of posts to decrease after the adoption.
Jiang Lei is doing very well. He is speaking in some full english sentences, though we don't always understand what words he is trying to say. His vocabulary is increasing and he wants to be helpful but doesn't always understand how to do that. He is fascinated by watching people using tools and he wants to play with them so bad.
Our shipment has arrived and we are still digging out from under all of the stuff. There are 1,ooos of projects that I want to do around the house and never enough hours in the day so my blogging has fallen behind. I will try to do better in the future though that is a very common pattern for the frequency of posts to decrease after the adoption.
Jiang Lei is doing very well. He is speaking in some full english sentences, though we don't always understand what words he is trying to say. His vocabulary is increasing and he wants to be helpful but doesn't always understand how to do that. He is fascinated by watching people using tools and he wants to play with them so bad.
Tuesday, May 01, 2007
Another few weeks
Cuture shock item of the week - Mint chocolate poptarts are considered a breakfast food?
The kids are riding bikes on the sidewalk almost everyday of the week. Nora took about a week and a half to learn to ride without her training wheels. She got a new, bigger bike at Target which she is riding like a pro.
Ji Ji has been riding her scooter and she goes pretty fast. She got her tire fixed on her bike and within 2 days she is already riding without her training wheels.
Jiang Lei got a new 'Go Diego Go' bike which doesn't tip over so much and he is riding that like a terror - doesn't stop for anyone (on the sidewalks).
The kids all have gymnastics and ice skating classes. Nora will also start ballet in the summer. Jiang Lei will have soccer one day per week in the afternoon but the first week got rained out.
Most of the initial boxes are gone from the main areas. The ocean shipment will arrive tomorrow.
Ji Ji had her school performance and there were 80 kids on stage - quite a change from Germany when there were 12 kids on stage. And there were 200+ people in the audience! Then we have a photo of Ji Ji at her desk at school during the Open House.
We went to our friends house and met their son Robert whom they brought home from Russia in December.
Nora had her open house and here she is in her classroom standing next to her desk.
The kids are riding bikes on the sidewalk almost everyday of the week. Nora took about a week and a half to learn to ride without her training wheels. She got a new, bigger bike at Target which she is riding like a pro.
Ji Ji has been riding her scooter and she goes pretty fast. She got her tire fixed on her bike and within 2 days she is already riding without her training wheels.
Jiang Lei got a new 'Go Diego Go' bike which doesn't tip over so much and he is riding that like a terror - doesn't stop for anyone (on the sidewalks).
The kids all have gymnastics and ice skating classes. Nora will also start ballet in the summer. Jiang Lei will have soccer one day per week in the afternoon but the first week got rained out.
Most of the initial boxes are gone from the main areas. The ocean shipment will arrive tomorrow.
Ji Ji had her school performance and there were 80 kids on stage - quite a change from Germany when there were 12 kids on stage. And there were 200+ people in the audience! Then we have a photo of Ji Ji at her desk at school during the Open House.
We went to our friends house and met their son Robert whom they brought home from Russia in December.
Nora had her open house and here she is in her classroom standing next to her desk.
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Photos - catching up
I am catching up on photos now that we are operational again. Here are some pics from the flight back to the US including : hanging out in the lounge, enjoying business class and a view of all our luggage and my brother who came to help us out when we arrived at the airport - thanks Russ.
One of the best things about being home is that they really know how to treat kids in restaurants. The kids love it (and so do we)!
Here are the kids coloring Easter eggs and playing on the sidewalk in our neighborhood. Ji Ji and Jiang Lei both got scooters with their Easter baskets and Nora got an iPod player. Next are photos from the Easter egg hunt in the back yard. They are using their buckets that they got from Aunt Janet and they decorated.
And then the snow came! We were not prepared, didn't have any shovels and we had to scramble to find all of the winter clothing which we had put down in the basement.
We joined our friend Sue and her daughters Josie and Brynn for some play time at one of the Children's Museums. These were friends that we had met in Europe and it is a great coincidence that we live so close to each other now that we are back.
And Jiang Lei got his first hair cut in a salon. Of course Dad took him to the sports themed place to get it done. He is very proud but now he has learned to say "don't touch" when all of us girls want to feel his head.
One of the best things about being home is that they really know how to treat kids in restaurants. The kids love it (and so do we)!
Here are the kids coloring Easter eggs and playing on the sidewalk in our neighborhood. Ji Ji and Jiang Lei both got scooters with their Easter baskets and Nora got an iPod player. Next are photos from the Easter egg hunt in the back yard. They are using their buckets that they got from Aunt Janet and they decorated.
And then the snow came! We were not prepared, didn't have any shovels and we had to scramble to find all of the winter clothing which we had put down in the basement.
We joined our friend Sue and her daughters Josie and Brynn for some play time at one of the Children's Museums. These were friends that we had met in Europe and it is a great coincidence that we live so close to each other now that we are back.
And Jiang Lei got his first hair cut in a salon. Of course Dad took him to the sports themed place to get it done. He is very proud but now he has learned to say "don't touch" when all of us girls want to feel his head.
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