Recently we have been letting Kai watch the Disney movie Finding Nemo. I like this movie, and I don't like this movie. I like that the hero has a limb difference - Nemo's "lucky fin". Sometimes we call Kai's left hand his "lucky fin". I also really like Albert Brooks and Ellen Degeneres. But the movie isn't really structured well for young children, it's way too intense, but this doesn't seem to bother Kai.

He has learned to recognize whales, and loves the scene where Dori speaks in whale. We have been videotaping him more lately and were able to capture this on tape...

We were blessed with the most amazing weather for Earth Day weekend. I decided to help out by volunteering at a proposed EPA Superfund clean up site: our garage.

Our garage isn't actually a garage anymore. It is, in that it still has an overhead door and sits at the end of our driveway, but cars haven't been inside it for years. It was just about five years ago that we had a large storage shed built so we could empty the garage of bikes, lawnmowers, garden tools, camping gear, etc. Then we had insulation and finished drywall installed into the garage. We cleaned and painted the floor and set it up as a teen hangout space.

I make it a point to stay out of there. When two teenage boys occupy a space with their friends for an extended period of time the state of things rapidly degenerate to a point which is aggrevating to view. So I spare myself the aggrevation by not viewing it. Sometimes Tina will come to me in frustration and ask, "Have you looked out there?" And I can happily answer, "No."

Unfortunately we still store some of our stuff out there which requires me to enter it on occasion. The garage is a 20'x20' space, 400 square feet, last week the room had become impassable. Usually when the degree of entropy within the garage impedes upon my consiousness I bark at the boys and make them "clean up". This usuallys result in a superficial pass which removes the largest pieces of garbage and most of the dirty dishes. Things had gotten to a point where this was not going to be enough. I decided that the room was going to be returned to a condition which was safe for humans to occupy. I rolled up my sleeves, rounded up the two biggest boys, and got out my whip.

It only took us about three hours to get things turned around. Here are a couple pictures of "after". The "before" was actually too frightening to document. The drumset is missing, as it is over at a neighbor's house this weekend.




Technical note: these panorama shots are composites of 3 photos each. This is the first time I've tried this with our camera. It has a feature for helping you line up successive shots. Our HP printer came with a simple program for "stitching" the shots together; works pretty neatly!

Oh, and I posted an update on Stinky Mouse too... Enjoy!

Have I said on here that I love the Internet?

Well, I LOVE the Internet! I love being able to find out about things instantly. Google and Wikipedia are tools I can't imagine living without anymore. Not only do I like finding things on the internet, I like being found as well! Keeping this little blog running has connected us with so many people. Here is another amazing example:

Just about a month ago Hui-Hui got an email message from a woman named Tanya who lives just an hour away from us, in the same town as my mother and my sister's family. Tanya told us that she and her husband Chris are in the process of "paper-chasing" to adopt a little boy from the SWI in Baoding! She sent us photos of their son, but asked that I not post them until they had received PA (Prior Approval to adopt from China). Well finally they got their PA! So here are some pictures of Fu Li, soon to be known as Brandon. He's about 2 years younger than Hui-Hui and like Hui-Hui, has a limb difference. For those of you counting, Fu Li is Baoding Boy #5!

Chris and Tanya hope to be DTC by the end of June, so if the process for SN continues like it is right now they should have Brandon home before the end of summer!

Last weekend we introduced Kai to a new friend named Jasper.
While Jasper and Kai are new friends to one another, their fathers are great old friends. In fact, Jasper's dad Pat and I have been friends since we were the same age as Kai and Jasper are now; and like them, we were introduced to one another by our fathers.

We have been wanting to get these two boys together since we got Kai home from China. Unfortunately there is a mountain range in between us. But finally, we had a chance to stop and visit on our way to see Tina's family. It took Jasper a few minutes to get over the invasion of his home by Kai and his entourage, but the two warmed up to one another quickly and had a great time! If you click on the collage above you can watch a slideshow with bigger pictures.

When we visited Tina's family last weekend we went to the Spokane Carrousel. Since Hui-Hui has become addicted to watching the Disney Mary Poppins movie we thought he would really enjoy this. It was actually a bit overwhelming, but he had Mom and ChouChou Shu so he gave it a Thumb Up!

Cam and Ben both attended the local Waldorf school through grade 8. Now they both attend a public high school. They have a special bond with their fellow alumni of the Waldorf school through which they obtained the following piece of writing

You know you’ve been a child of Waldorf when…

1. You know pencil shavings make everything prettier.
2. You rip your pants and instead of throwing them away, you whip out thread and a needle and fix them.
3. Faeries and gnomes were your childhood friends.
4. There’s no need to research the dating history of your boyfriend/girlfriend, you know everyone they’ve dated.
5. Knitting is not a just a new trend – you’ve done it since first grade.
6. You’ve made socks, hats, potholders, flute cases stuffed animals, and sewn your own clothes.
7. As you kiss your boyfriend/girlfriend, you realize it is like kissing a sibling… you break up.
8. It doesn’t seem weird to have the same teacher for eight years.
9. You can never escape your ex… they’ll probably date your best friend.
10. Tie-dye was part of your dress code as a child.
11. At least one of your woman teachers doesn’t shave.
12. You’ve dyed your hair an unnatural color at least once… or wondered what you would look like with purple hair.
13. You’ve held hands and skipped around a pole, and no one thought it was weird.
14. You’ve lived in a house without a TV at some point.
15. You can spell out words with your arms… no need for the finger.
16. You have eurythmy shoes lying around your house.
17. You’ve worn a eurythmy gown.
18. You know what eurythmy is.
19. You’ve had a crush on all the guys/girls in your class.
20. Everybody in the school knows if you ditch class, or break a rule or hookup with somebody.
21. You know not to breathe near the blue paint.
22. You can play a wooden recorder
23. You can never forget your embarrassing childhood – they chose a picture of you to go on the school brochure.
24. You didn’t have Barbies, or GI Joe; you had silks and wooden trucks.
25. You know all the bible stories even though you’ve never set foot inside a church
26. You wonder if Waldorf has an agreement with Volvo to only drive their cars.
27. Cheerleaders, football players and all things “public school” are not only scorned, but also feared.
28. You’ve been asked, “Isn’t that a cult” when you say you go to Waldorf.
29. The thought of main lesson book nights haunts you years after you graduate.
30. You’ve been in at least one Shakespeare play
31. You’ve used the words “Waldork” and “Waldorfian”.
32. You couldn’t wait to get out of there, but once you did you wanted to be back.
33. You didn’t know the pledge of allegiance, but “I do behold the world” and the Bell Ringing verse are permanently imprinted in your brain
34. You know in your heart that no matter how hard you try to escape, you will always be a child of Waldorf.
35. You know you’re a truehearted Waldorfian when beeswax is a main source of entertainment.
36. You know you’re a Waldorfian when you sound out words using eurythmy.
37. You can sing, dance, twirl a cane, play four instruments, draw, paint, recite poetry, and cite historical quotes from any period, but you nave no clue what a “test” is.
38. When learning those damn 15 minute long poems in main lesson, you realize they never actually leave your brain, no matter how much you try.
39. At least one kid in your class has lived in some other part of the country, has dreads, and plays “D&D” during your “snack time”.
40. You remember in your years from at least 1st through 5th grade having to take “walks” around the “block” no matter what the weather was like… rain, please, snow? Oh well, thunderstorm, okay we will narrow it down to seven blocks!
41. Something like having to finish a main lesson book still makes you cringe!
42. When you were in 9th grade sitting during lunch time thinking about every other school has off campus lunch, and you’re like dammit we are treated like kids… and then you sit and think, wait aren’t we in 9th grade???
43. When you say the word “butt” in handwork (knitting, sewing, etc. class) and get a detention and a parent conference.
44. When saying the morning verse or singing songs is like second nature.
45. When you have artwork for homework.
46. When you’ve done circus, blacksmithing, watercolor painting, and seats and solos. You can also speak both German and Spanish.
47. When “Clean up, clean up, everybody, everywhere! Clean up, clean up, everybody do your share!” Is not just a stupid Barney song for kids, it’s still considered a ritual by students and staff alike.
48. When people ask you about your classes and you tell them you are currently taking fencing, stained glass, and just returned from a 48 your solo and fast and yet this is perfectly normal.
49. When you and your friends get bored waiting at the bus stop you break out into 4-part harmony… in Latin!

So what are the "Morning Verses"?

Lower grades (1 - 3):
The sun, with loving light,
Makes bright for me each day.
The soul, with spirit power,
Gives strength unto my limbs.
In sunlight, shining clear,
I reverence, O God,
The strength of humankind
Which thou so graciously
Has planted in my soul,
That I with all my might
May love to work and learn.
From thee come light and strength,
To thee rise love and thanks.

Upper grades (4 - 8):
I do behold the world,
The sun, the stars, the stone,
The plants that live and grow,
The beasts that feel and live,
And man to spirit gives,
A dwelling in his soul.
I do behold the soul,
That living dwells in me,
God's spirit lives and moves,
In light of sun and soul,
In heights of world without,
In depths of soul within.
Spirit of God, to thee,
I seeking, turn myself,
That strength and grace and skill,
For learning and for work,
In me may live and grow.

Kai and I have been skipping out of preschool. We're preschool dropouts!
Not really, we still go, but only for the first hour of free choice activity at the beginning. We weren't behaving very well for circle, so now we're ducking out early. I feel strongly about not rushing Kai into things. He has a lot of catching up to do, but I want to let him do it at his own pace. Besides, he's not really old enough chronologically (let alone developmentally) for this group.
So, what do we do when we skip out? We go play! Just down the hill from the preschool is Boulevard Park, which is right on Bellingham Bay. I love the bay, it's very sheltered and on calm days it's just like a big lake. But it's salt water and has tides. If you were to sail out of it into Puget Sound, you could keep on going right out through the Strait of Juan De Fuca to the Pacific Ocean. Heck, you could probably sail right on to China if you knew what you were doing! I have no idea what I'm doing and don't even have a rowboat, so we kick around the shoreline and throw rocks in the water. Here's a couple more wonky photos I grabbed with the cell phone...

A popular thread on blogs is a list of questions about you.
it might be something like"Favorite 5", where you list your 5 favorite, books, movies, places...
As this is a blog that's mostly about adoption I thought it would be good to use a different sort of list. What follows is the "autobiography" questionnaire the Social Worker for our adoption agency had us complete as part of our home study. The original format included space for the answers which pushed the length out to about 18 printed pages.

Take your time, and email me your answers!

A. CHILDHOOD
1. Date and place of birth:
2. Father’s name Residence:
Date of birth: Death:
3. Mother’s name Residence:
Date of birth: Death:
4. Parent’s date of marriage: . 4a. Divorce:
Remarriage: Father. Mother
5. Siblings (including step-siblings) their birth date, married/single, where they live
6. Describe your father’s role in your family, including employment.
7. Describe your mother’s role in your family, including employment.
8. Describe your parent’s personalities.
9. Describe your parent’s marriage.
10. If your parent’s were divorced, discuss why they divorced.
11. Discuss your parent’s prior or subsequent marriage.
12. Describe how your parents showed affection to each other.
13. Describe how your parents showed affection to you.
14. How did you parents comfort you?
15. How did your parents discipline you?
16. How did they criticize you?
17. How did they praise you?
18. How did they encourage you?
19. How did your parents solve problems?
20. What did your family do for fun?
21. What difficulties did you encounter as a child?
22. Describe your life growing up.
23. Name you siblings and describe your childhood relationship to them.
24. Were there other significant people in your life as a child? (Grandparent, aunt, cousin, etc?)
25. Describe your current relationship with each family member. How often do you see them?
B. EDUCATION
1. Name of high school:
Graduated? Year? If NO, why not?
Name of college:
Graduated? Year? Degree
2. What did you like about school?
3. What didn’t you like about school?
4. Do you have plans to further your education?
C. FRIENDSHIPS
1. Describe your past and current circle of friends.
2. Did your parents agree with your choice of friends?
3. At what age did you begin to date? Describe your early dating experiences.
D. ADULT LIFE EXPERIENCES
1. At what age did you consider yourself an adult?
2. Did your parents agree?
3. How old were you when you left home?
4. Did your parents approve?
5. How old were you when you started your first job?
6. Describe your employment history.
7. What do you see as your strengths?
8. What are your weaknesses?
9. Are there areas you would like to improve in?
10. How do you think others would describe your personality?
11. What kinds of activities do you like to do?
12. Who is your employer and what kind of work do you do?
13. How long have you worked at this job?
14. How do you handle job-related stress?
15. How does your job affect your home life?
16. Have you ever been arrested and/or convicted of a crime as an adult or juvenile? If so, please explain.
17. How frequently do you drink alcoholic beverages?
18. Do you use illegal drugs?
19. Please list all past and present medical problems.
20. Are you infertile? If yes, please describe attempts to solve fertility issues.
21. How have you dealt with infertility?
22. What is the biggest problem you have faced as an adult? Explain.
23. How patient are you? Please give examples of what makes you lose your temper.
E. CURRENT MARRIAGE
E1. When and where were you married?
1. Describe how, when, and where you met.
2. What attracted you to your spouse?
3. How long did you date?
4. Did your parents approve?
5. Describe your early adjustment problems.
6. What do you do together?
7. How do you handle disagreements?
8. Describe your last major disagreement and how it was resolved.
9. Describe your role in your family.
10. Describe your spouse’s role in your family.
11. How are your family finances handled? Who pays the bills, etc?
12. How do you feel about your spouse’s family?
13. Please describe your marriage in terms of emotional satisfaction.
14. Who did you learn about sex and sexual development from?
15. Do you plan to educate your children differently than you were educated?
16. Please describe any problems or differences of opinion you experience in your marriage.
17. How have you tried to solve these problems?
18. Describe what you like about your spouse.
19. What would you change about your spouse?
20. How do you and your spouse express affection toward each other?
21. Is this satisfactory to both?
22. How do you handle jealousy?
23. What religion are you? Are you active in this faith? How often do you go to church?
24. How important is religion in your life?
25. Describe your pets.
26. What are your future goals?
F. PREVIOUS MARRIAGE
1. Dates of marriage and divorce:
2. How many children from this marriage?
3. Who has custody?
4. Frequency of contact with children?
5. Describe the problems that led to the divorce in the above marriage(s).
6. What did you learn from that experience?
G. FAMILY
CHILDREN-- Please answer as many questions as possible, even if you have no children.
1. List names, ages, whether in or out of home, and any unusual problems or illnesses.
2. Describe each child’s personality.
3. What are your hopes for your children?
4. What are your fears for your children?
5. Describe the father’s family role.
6. Describe the mother’s family role.
7. Who will handle discipline and how?
8. Describe your child’s school experience.
9. How would you manage as a single parent?
10. Which is the most challenging stage of child development? Why?
11. How do you show your children that you love them?
12. How do your children know you approve of their behavior?
13. How do you criticize your children?
14. What is your personal philosophy on raising children?
15. What do you and your spouse agree about raising children?
16. What do you disagree on?
17. Are you now or will you in the future raise your children the same way you were raised?
18. What would you like to improve on as a parent?
19. How will adoption affect your biological children?
20. How will you help your biological children adjust to adoption?
21. What so you like to do with your children?
22. What responsibilities do you give your children?
H. OTHERS IN THE HOME
1. Name, age, and relationship:
2. What is this person's role in the family?
3. How will this person be affected by adoption?
4. How will you help this person adjust to the adoption?
I. HOME AND COMMUNITY
1. Describe your home.
2. What do you like best about your community?
3. What do you dislike about your home or community?
4. How do you divide household tasks?
5. What happens when family members “mess up” the house?
6. How long do you expect to live in your home and community?
7. What are the public schools in your area? (elem, mid, and high school)
8. Do you have special education facilities in your community?
9. Do you have mental health professionals in your community?
10. Do you have medical facilities in your community?
J. ADOPTION READINESS
1. Who first brought up the subject of adoption?
When and why?
2. What made you decide to pursue adoption?
3. What do your friends and family think about you pursuing adoption?
4. Why do you want to become adoptive parents?
K. ADOPTIVE CHILD’S BACKGROUND
1. How do you plan to explain adoption to your child and at what age will you begin?
2. If you are considering adopting a child of a different ethnicity than yours, please discuss your feelings about preserving and/or acknowledging the racial differences in the family.
3. How will you feel about your child’s inevitable questions about his/her birthparents?
4. How do you feel about your child eventually searching for his/her birthparents?
5. What would you do if your spouse decided to drop out of the adoption process?
6. Do you know other families who have adopted children? What has their experience been?

I hate the mall. It's always bad. But we've been there more than usual this last winter. Partly because we need to buy stuff for Hui-Hui, and partly because the weather has been so lousy it's one of the few places to take him and walk around. It's not like we have been there with any regularity, but a few times now, which is a lot of trips to the mall for me.

Anyway, on one of the last trips out there our oldest son Cam and his girlfriend Brittni came with us too. When we have Hui-Hui with us we indulge him a lot. Want to ride in the ride-on cars? Sure!

Then I'm looking at this ice-cream truck ride, And then I look at Cam. Cam is 6' 2". Now I'm enjoying watching Hui-Hui ride this thing, but I think I would enjoy watching my other son ride it even more. So I suggest he get in. Cam says they have weight limits on the rides and we'll get in trouble. I search the area around the ride-on cars. I can't find any posted rules or regulations anywhere. So I offer him $10 dollars if he'll get into the ice-cream truck. I hate it when I forget to take the digital camera with me, but fortunately my cell phone has a crappy built in cam...

That was worth $10.

Okay, now to redeem a bit of his dignity. Here's a picture we took a week ago at his last violin recital. He is standing with his Teacher Betsy. Cam has taken violin lessons with Betsy since he was 6 years old.

On Point with host Tom Ashbrook on WBUR Boston's NPR News Source had a fascinating program on Adopted Chinese Children.

I found this through Research-China.org website. This is a really good program and I highly recommend listening to it if you are interested in adopting from China. Warning, it is about 50 minutes long, but it is really well done. So many of the pieces on adoption I have come across lately seem to be either short and full of errors, or extremely 2-dimensional in their approach to the subject.
This program includes conversations with the following people:
·Carrie Kitze, author of "I Don't Have Your Eyes" and founder of EMK Press
·Nancy Kim Parson, Adult Korean adoptee, working on a documentary film with Point Made Production in New York City on international adoption
·Dana Johnson, Director of the International Adoption Clinic and Director of the Division of Neonatology at University of Minnesota and the University of Minnesota Children's Hospital
·Kathleen Sander, Mother of three girls adopted from China.

And it starts off with my verbal sparring partner Peter Goodman, Shanghai Bureau Chief for Washington Post! In this conversation with him he discusses his article "Stealing Babies For Adoption". I actually emailed him again saying, that if his article in the Post had been a transcript of what he said on this program I would have been writing to praise his efforts instead of taking him to task for his melodramatic pandering.

Anyway, the program is very, very good and you should listen to it. Click HERE.