Colby Capers

God's Timing (taken from a good friend's previous post title)

2012-01-24T12:42:00.000-08:00

I have been thinking about this next post for some time now, but I still am not sure where to start. No, there haven't been any big changes to our family. And no, I don't think there will be for awhile..... I guess that's where to start.

Colby has been home almost 3 years. 3 of the most amazing years of my life. I still am often amazed that I have been entrusted with this little guy to be his mom and to guide him through life. It is an awe-inspring thought at times and I often wonder how I will be able to do it. MY biggest thought has always been, Can I be as amazing of a mom to Colby as my mom was to me? And at this moment, I can honestly say that I think I am doing a pretty good job. We have our moments and we certainly aren't perfect but I can see just how much Colby has grown both physically and emotionally and just what a great kid he is. I can already see the makings of a true ladies' man. Watch out world! So for today, I guess I will give myself a pat on the back. I am proud of how far we all, Mike, Colby, and myself have come since that Tuesday, Feb 17, 2009 when we first stepped out of that baby home carrying Colby, forever as a family.

But, now what? I feel the need to give more, do more. I don't know. I know that in my heart I do not want Colby to be an only child. I want him to experience the love and support of a brother, sister, a larger family. I know I want, and have always wanted, a daughter of my own. My mother has always been my best friend and I want to experience that bond with my own daughter. But that's MY plan. And once again we hit many obstacles. Things just shouldn't be this hard. Why are they so hard and seem so far out of reach???

I have been thinking, ok obsessing about this for a few weeks now. And then this Sunday, in church the sermon was titled, Decisive Manuevers. It was about the story of Jonah and the Big Fish and how Jonah was trying to get away from God's plan and make his own. Boy did that hit home. I have tried to hard my whole life to make things fit into "My Plan" and I have often hit many obstacles and even large barriers. I WANT it to be my time, I even think I NEED it to be our time to move into a new house in order to expand our family. But what if it isn't God's time? What if there is a different plan? I don't know if I can sit by and let it be God's plan. I almost feel as if time is running out. God better hurry up and make it OUR time. But as the saying that Reverand Gordon used during his sermon, "If you want to see God laugh, tell him your plans." I don't mind God laughing with me but can he work with me a little too???

Fun With Our NY Friends

2012-01-11T17:54:00.000-08:00

We started the new year off with a fun New Year's Day party with Roman, Max, Christine, and Stephen. We had a great time. It was their first New Year's Day party and a birthday party for Roman all in one. They hope to continue this new tradition every year. And I hope so too. Colby loves his Russian friends Roman and Max. He and Roman are the same age and the boys are from Yekaterinburg region in Russia. It is amazing how we all have come together. So, here are some cute photos from the party. And lucky me! They were taken with my new Canon camera. A gift from Santa to Mike and me.

Christmas in Photos

2012-01-02T18:57:00.000-08:00

Overall, our Christmas was a good one. Colby had a blast visiting with his cousins and opening all his presents. Auntie Trisha and Uncle AJ came in for a visit right before Christmas and both Colby and Lizzie loved playing with them. We did lose some very special people right around Christmas this year, but I will make a different post about that. This post will be mostly photos so that you can experience Christmas through Colby's 4 year old eyes. I think it's the best view ever!

A Few Great Pre-Christmas Photos

2011-12-22T19:56:00.000-08:00

Ok. So it hasn't been the best of holiday seasons around here. Mike's grandmother, Nanna, passed away 2 weeks ago and now my mom's Aunt Arlene has also passed away. 2 funerals within a couple weeks do not make for a great holiday. But, we are doing well. Colby is extremely excited about Christmas, especially the decorating and partying. He has made a gingerbread house at school and today was pajama day to celebrate the holiday watching the Polar Express. The kitchen looks like the sprinkle fairies blew up and there is wrapping paper and bags everywhere. A typical Christmas at this house. I love seeing the holiday through Colby's 4 year old eyes. Each year has been different, and this year has been the most exciting. He is BEYOND excited about the holiday, although it was the first year he didn't tell us exactly what he wanted Santa to bring. So, to offset the not so great previous post here are some great pre-Christmas photos. I have more to post from Colby's first Christmas pageant too, but enjoy.

And what does your holiday look like this year???

A Tough Question

2011-12-14T16:54:00.000-08:00

This has not been a good week at our house. Rather, a very long, hectic, and very unholiday feeling one. On Friday morning we received a call that Mike's grandmother, Nana, passed away. She was 89 and an amazing lady. I only wish that I had had more time to get to know her and have her be a part of my life. The funeral was today and it certainly has been a long day. It hurts to see my husband and his dad upset. I can only hope that they know how much I care for them and that I am here for them always. So many emotions, both happy and sad, all rolled into one. I can't help but think of losing my own grandmother just a few short years ago. Here is the link to the post I wrote about her. Mamie

The tough question was one posed by Colby. Mike relayed a conversation he had with Colby on Friday morning. We had received the call very early and Mike was waiting with Colby for the bus. The bus picks him up at Mike's parents' house which is right down the street from Mike's grandparents' house. I guess the paramedic truck came out of their road and Colby, not even knowing what had happened yet (we told him about Nanna after school), said "Uh oh, someone got hurt at Nanna's." Yes a coincidence. I think he meant to say on Nanna's street but he said at Nanna's. At dinner that night we were talking about Nanna and how she was now in Heaven with my grandparents, Mamie and Poppy, and she was there to see Baby Jesus. Colby's question hit us both like a ton of bricks. He said he was sad and missed Nanna and understood that she was in Heaven. Then he asked, "But how did she get to Heaven? How did the Paramedic help her get there?" We were both ready to cry and left speechless, unsure what to say. I know we will continue to talk to Colby about this for a few days still. He is so smart and seems to understand so much but yet he is so young and I don't think ready to understand yet. At times he still thinks she'll come back but then he'll yell at Mike and me for saying that we are going to Nanna's house. Yelling and saying it's not Nanna's just Poppy's (Mike calls his grandfather Poppy too.) I just don't know what to say. How would you answer this tough question??? I had posed this question on Facebook too and got no response. Help please!

(And I promise a Happy Christmas post next time.)

Holiday Preparations

2011-12-04T12:02:00.001-08:00

Just a few weeks ago, we had no plans on our calendar and now it is full right up to Christmas Day. We have decorated the house. The tree is set up, complete with train and tiny village. And Colby has recieved his video email from Santa. Now we are on to cookie baking, ornament making, and party going. Wow! I'm tired just thinking about it. But for now, enjoy these few photos of our holiday preparations. They include lights, a shephard, and a few other cuties!

Happy Thanksgiving 2011

2011-11-25T13:05:00.001-08:00

We had a great Thanksgiving with our family this year. We had dinner with my my parents, brothers and sisters, and my Aunt Doone's family. The kids all had a great time playing together and the food was delicious. I only wish we could have gotten more leftovers! My sister Kristin wasn't there along with her boyfriend Steve and her son Teddy. They were missed but it was nice to have my sister Karin and my brothers Keith and Chris there along with 3 of my nephews Max, Alex, and Keith. Colby loves playing with his cousins.

After dinner we were able to get to Mike's family's for dessert. Colby loved the apple pie and playing with his cousin Logan. She is Colby's age too so they have become great buddies. It was nice to see everyone there too. Thankfully everyone lives pretty close so not too much traveling but it was a pretty long day.

And today Colby had a play date with his cousin Keith. So no shopping for Mommy but lots of singing, playing, and fun at the park. I am so thankful that my family is all closeby. I love watching Colby play with his cousins and having fun. I can only hope we stay close as the boys grow up.

So, lots to be thankful for this year. I am especially thankful for my family, my wonderful husband Mike, and my big boy Colby. He is growing bigger everyday and surprises me more and more with amazing personality. We are so lucky to have him in our lives.

So, enjoy our Thanksgiving pics. Let us know. What are you all thankful for?

P.S. Here's a link to some pictures of Colby sitting at the same chair 2 Thanksgiving's ago. Wow! Thanksgiving photos 2009 and 2010

Happy Halloween....a Few Days Late!

2011-11-07T19:55:00.000-08:00

Well, if you have been watching the news lately, you might have seen that here in the NorthEast we got hit by a crazy Autumn Nor'Easter on Saturday 10/29. What was supposed to start out as rain and turn to snow later at night started out as big fat fluffy snowflakes around 1:30 in the afternoon. CT woke up to lots of snow, I think about 20 inches where we are, and lots of damage. With all the leaves still on the trees, the heavy snow took many branches down and lots of power lines with it. About 900,000 customers lost power. Now more than a week later, we are still struggling to get power back, although the warm days has almost completely melted the snow. Thankfully, we were lucky and didn't lose power, although most of our family did.

Sunday we ended up hosting both sets of parents for what Colby called our "feast". We ended up cooking the roast and watching the bull riding at our house. It was really nice having everyone together. Colby put on his Halloween costume and had some fun too. However, Halloween was postponed due to the damage and lack of power. And school was out for an unexpected week's vacation. Although I enjoyed the time with Colby, I dread the thought of now going to school until late in June. UGH!

Colby was very good about not going trick-or-treating. Actually it didn't seem to phase him until I put the Halloween decorations away on Tuesday. But we let him wear his costume, we made Halloween sugar cookies, and had a fun week together. Then on Saturday Colby and I were able to go trick-or-treating! We didn't mention it all week but once the first trick-or-treater knocked on our door, Colby's face lit up and he got so excited. Mike stayed home to give out candy and Colby and I walked around the neighborhood. We even walked to Grandma Laurie's house! He received so much candy, even more than last year. So overall, a crazy Halloween trick-or-treat on 11-5! Now on to the holidays!

And yes, it's Pirate Captain Colby! And Mommy is so proud, she made that costume herself!!!

Where Has the Time Gone???

2011-10-26T19:47:00.000-07:00

Ok. So I bet many of you think I have totally disappeared. I will reassure you that I am still here. I do check my fellow bloggers pages faithfully everyday. But, I just haven't found the time to write on mine. I think it's feeling rejected. But I have thoroughly enjoyed spending time with my little boy, yes, and my husband too. My last post was for 9-11 and now here it is the last of October. What have we been up to you ask? Just about everything.

Colby is in PreK at a different school this year. He was a little nervous about it at first but he seems to be liking it. He has had a few red-dot days though. (The city uses a Positive Behavior program which rewards good, or green, behavior, but also uses red for not-so-good behavior. I was shocked at the red dots but then again, he is only 4 and still learning, and boys will be boys. Guess he didn't know picking up sticks at school is a no-no. His teacher says he participates well and even a little too much, getting excited during story time and blurting out answers. Note to self- work on the hand raising routine! Academically he knows most of his upper and lower case letters and most of their sounds too. Ready to read and a little frustrated that he can't. But I am not going to push him.

I'm back to school also. Now at a newly renovated school that was over 100 years old. It looks brand new! Love the new school and the new staff I am working with. I am the reading specialist and this year I am working with grades 2, 3, 4, and 6. Yuck 6th! Things took a little while to settle in but I really enjoy it.

Our weekends have been full of fall fun. We went to two local fairs and apple picking in September. Over Columbus Day weekend we went back to New Hampshire to enjoy the fall colors. And this past weekend Colby and I went with my mom, my Aunt Doone, my nephew Keith, and my cousin's son Jaden to Lyman Orchard to the corn maze. We had a blast, and we didn't lose my aunt's phone this year. Last year she lost it in the corn maze and I had to go back to find it. The boys also loved the ride in the horse drawn wagon. The horses were named Tom & Jerry. The other sets of horses were named Nickel & Dime and Samuel & Adams!

Colby has also been taking swimming lessons. He is doing great. He just finished the last session and was moved up into "big boy" class where they will work on strokes and building stamina. We were so excited when Colby swam all by himself this time!

I have been hard at work on a little boy's costume. Pics to come but here's a guess his favorite cartoon characters are Jake, Cubby, and Izzy! Let's see who can figure it out!!! Tomorrow night we have our Halloween Reading Night at my school and Colby will wear his costume there. He actually thinks my school is Halloween! He loves Halloween more than Christmas I think. Not my favorite but I love watching him and all his enthusiasm.

Oh, and Colby just had a trip to the dentist. Talk about growing up too fast. All of his front teeth are a little "wiggly" and the X-Ray showed that the top teeth have already lost their roots. My little boy will be a toothless wonder within a few months. Way too early for me and he's a little nervous (guess that's our fault for telling him his teeth will fall out if he doesn't brush!). Now what?!?!

Well, I guess that's enough for now. Here's a few pics from our Fall Fun. Promise to post more soon.

Colby's Tribute to 9/11

2011-09-11T14:25:00.000-07:00

Totally cool and I am proud to say that my 4 year old knows this. So happy that our schools are still saying it too.

First Day of School

2011-08-30T15:39:00.000-07:00

Well, by now I was hoping to show you pictures of Colby from his first day of school. But, we are still waiting.

Last week, I had 5 full days of teacher in-service. On Friday I actually had to give part of the training on our Reading curriculum. Everyone was all set for school to strat on Monday when we received an email. Due to the pending storm, what was Hurricane Irene, school was being canceled. And it still is. Just received the call for no school tomorrow as well. Ugh! When will we start.

Colby was a little nervous about going to Pre-K this year. I'm not sure why since he was in school last year. Perhaps because it is a new school. So thankfully his teacher is so nice. She met with us on Thursday last week. He was able to see her and his classroom. He played with some of the toys and read some of the books. He is now so excited to go. I only wish we could.

I am also excited about this year. Last year I didn't get my teaching job until October so it will be nice to start the school year with everyone else. Also, I am in a newly refurbished over 100 year old school. They did a great job redoing the school, adding on to it, and putting in the latest and greatest of everything. I am now a part of a 3 person Reading Department and so excited to start. We still have materials to organize and put away, our computers aren't set up yet, and there are odds and ends to finish but the building is amazing. I'll have to get some pics.

So, no pics yet. Promise soon. This could be a really long school year and it hasn't even snowed yet! YIKES!!

End of Summer Chaos

2011-08-17T16:05:00.000-07:00

Well, summer is almost over. School starts soon. I have to head back this Monday 8/22 for beginning teacher orientation. Although I worked last year, I started in Oct so I missed this and am now required to go. YUCK! 3 days of torture. Thurs and Fri I have teacher professional development and school starts on Mon 8/29. Colby has his pre-school orientation on the first day so I am a little bumbed that i can't go. I have to rely on Mike to go and get all the information. Good thing there's email and I can talk to Colby's teacher that way. Colby starts on the 30th and will be going full-day. The bus will pick him up at Mike's parents' house and then Mike's mom will watch him in the afternoon until I can get home. Thank goodness for grandparents!

Next week is also the tennis tournament in New Haven. I love volunteering there. I usually work nights as an usher and have been volunteering for about 10 years. This year I'll work 4 nights after my PD days at school.

I also am trying to move from my old school to a brand new school. As 1 of 3 in the Reading Dept. we have to organize all the reading materials and set up our office. We've been ready to go for a couple weeks but we are still waiting for our floor to ceiling book shelves to be bolted in the walls. Hopefully soon.

And in the middle of all this, Mike and I are sprucing up the house. I've been trying to organize my teaching materials in the basement and get rid of some extra stuff. Mike painted Colby's bedroom a great shade of blue. We jsut need to put up the photos. And now my kitchen floor is a disaster. New tile to come but until then what a mess!!!

So lots going on. We are living in chaos! But thought you might like some photos of Colby's big boy room and my messy kitchen. Sorry for the messy Colby room. Will post better photos when the walls are decorated. And I promise to post updated photos of the kitchen when we get done.

Children's Place

2011-08-16T11:01:00.000-07:00

We love the CHildren's Place. They are having a contest to find their next model. I entered Colby with this great photo from New Hampshire. Please head over to this website and vote for him. HIs ID number is 126480. Thanks.

http://childrensplace.promo.eprize.com/model

Thanks again.

Smurfs

2011-08-05T09:16:00.000-07:00

I can't believe all the old shows that are coming back. One of my favorites as a kid was the Smurfs. I had a bunch of the little Smurfs and even a mushroom house. I so wish I knew where they all went, but although many other of my toys were saved those are MIA. Oh well. So now a new movie is out but I don't think I will be bringing Colby to it. It seems a little too grown up for it. However, we do have one DVD of the old cartoons which we have watched a couple times. Anyway, McD's hasSmurfs in their Happy Meals. We don't normally go there with Colby but I do stop in for a quick drink, especially the Fruit Smoothies now. So, Colby now has 4 of them and he and Mike were having a blast playing with them last night. Thought you might like to see both of my boys in action. I just had to capture this laugh on video. Enjoy!

Guess It Can Wait

2011-07-27T11:55:00.000-07:00

Ok. I give in. I agree with all the comments I recieved and I appreciate them more than you'll ever know. Everyone had the same line of thought. Let the Lord decide. So I will, or at least I will try.

I am not sure why I am drawn to this particular little girl. What drew me in, I'll probably never know. I will keep track of her and hope and pray that she finds a forever family. I guess that is all I can do. No, I am not giving up on adopting more. Believe me, we will. But with a small house, wanting a girl and definitely more than one more child, and having not enough bedrooms, I guess I will have to wait. Our house is small, it is not the house we want forever. Mike wants a house with more land and room for a workshop for his business. I want at least 3 bedrooms and a spare room for crafting, office, etc. I also want out of the city we live in. It is great for now with city preschool and the PAL program that offers great sport activities for Colby. But in the long run, I would like a better neighborhood. However, with this markey, there is no way we can sell our house and hope to get a mortgage on something new. So, we wait. We wait, and we wait.

It seems that I have always pushed my will on my life, trying to force things to happen. I didn't get my first teaching job right away and then only a part-time job. I didn't find my sweetheart right away, we married when I was 30 (ok, 31 the next month). I didn't have children when everyone else did, then I had to travel around the world to winter in Siberia. Nothing has come easy, although it hasn't been tragic or awful either, just..... hard. Now, I feel like I am pushing again. I don't want to push. I want it to be right for me, and for Mike, and especially for Colby. Now may be the right time for me, but I'm not sure it's right for all of us. So, I will stop and wait. I will leave it to God as so many wonderful people have mentioned and see what happens. Maybe I'll wait just a little while, or maybe another year or so. I just hope it won't be too long. But I give in. I hand over control (something I hate to do) to God, life in general, whoever it may be. We'll see what happens.

Help Please....Any Ideas

2011-07-25T12:37:00.000-07:00

Ok. I know I have been gone awhile. We just returned from vacation in New Hampshire on Lake Winnepasaukee. I LOVE it there! We had a great time but it is nice to be hme and sleep in my own bed. And I promise to upload some great pics soon.

I'm not sure who really reads my blog anymore, other than a few devoted friends and family but I do need some help, please!! Our adoption agency has a list of "Horizon Kids" as they call them. Often older children or kids with some medical issues who are waiting for their forever families. I am constantly looking at the kids. Some have been on there since we began our adoption of Colby in late 2008. They break my heart. A few weeks ago, the agency posted a new child, a little girl aged 2 1/2. At the time there was no picture of her, just some information. I am not sure why but this posting struck my heart, even without the photo. I called the agency and they did send me her information and a few photos. She is ADORABLE! And she looks so much like Colby did at that age, it is scary. I just can't get her off of my mind. No, we have not started a new home study but Mike and I certainly ahve discussed it the whole vacation. There was a question of whether we could adopt a little girl because we only have the 2 bedroom so she would have to share a bedroom with Colby. But the agency and the regional representative where the girl is said it shouldn't be a problem. Wow! One hurdle gone. However, the HUGE hurdle still lurks. MONEY! I do know that the agency has a few subsidies for their Horizon Kids but they are not guaranteed.

OK guys. What do I do? Has anyone else taken subsidies, know of places that help finance adoptions, anything? If we begin our home study we aren't guaranteed to get this little girl, another family who is farther along than us can take her first. But, I'd love to try. I'm from a big family and so is Mike. I can't see having an only child. Colby really needs a sibling or two or three. It just feels like now is the time. He's been home almost 2 1/2 years and the ages would work great, just under 2 years apart. HELP!!! The heart says yes but the finances say yikes! Not sure we can finance this one alone.

Colby's First Music Videos

2011-07-09T09:09:00.000-07:00

Now that I have a really cool phone, internet ready, I can upload some cute videos. So, here are a few of my little singer. Perhaps another Billy Joel?? What do you think?

Some Summer Fun in Pics and Videos

2011-07-02T07:36:00.000-07:00

Just a Cute Story

2011-06-25T11:36:00.000-07:00

We were on our way to the store last night when this conversation insued. I pretty much listened as Colby and Mike had this very cute and insightful conversation.

C- Why did we go this way? Home is that way Daddy. (pointing towards the way home.)
D- We're going to the store.
C- What store?
D- KMart to look for chairs for outside.
C- Oh. I don't want to go there. Let's go to another store.
D- How about the Moon Store?
C- The Moon Store? That's just silly. I'm pretty sure this neighborhood (yes, I was shocked to hear that word.) doesn't have a Moon Store.
D- Oh. But I want to go to the Moon Store. What should we do.
C- Well, let's call the moon people and tell them to make a moon store here. OK, Daddy?
Both Daddy and I looked at each other pretty surprised by that logical thinking.
D- Oh. Good idea. What should they sell at the Moon Store?
C- Oh moon stuff. Moons and stars and guys dressed to go to the moon. And rocket ships.
M- Colby you are one smart little boy. That's a great idea.
C- I know.

Ok. Some words aren't exact but talk about an interesting conversation. We were both amazed. Where do they learn this stuff???

What conversations do you have with your little ones?

Last Day Preschool 2010-2011

2011-06-16T19:08:00.000-07:00

I can't believe it but today was Colby's last day of 3 year old preschool. Where did the year go? His class had a little ice cream celebration today and invited the parents. So what else could I do? I took the day off from work! I loved getting the chance to put Colby on the bus, as I did this past fall. And both Mike and I enjoyed spending the time with him in his class. He has learned to much this year and grown even more. I can't thank his teachers enough. And yes, Igot a pic waiting for the bus so here's a cute before and after for you. The first day of preschool Aug 2010 and the last day June 16, 2011. Wow!

Weekend Fun

2011-06-11T13:36:00.000-07:00

Ok. I've been MIA. I admit, there has been a lot of things going on. School is winding down. Colby will finish his first year of pre-school in just 4 days. I am done next Monday. I've been caught up in end of the year assessments and trying to get started on packing up. The school I am at is closing and most of us are going to the new school that they just finished renovating. It is over 100 years old but looks brand new. But packing up a whole school is going to be quite a challenge. Other than that, we have been enjoying T-ball practices and games. Colby is now registered for swim lessons through the PAL league this summer. And we hope to enjoy a week away in New Hampshire. We'll see if that works. But for now, a few great photos from the past two weekends. We enjoyed the Woodbury Memorial Parade this year. The big Naugatuck parade was almost rained out but we didn't bring the horses anyway. Colby loved driving Willy Wild all by himself. He looked so grown up! Then last weekend we went to Harkness Park for our annual Kite-Flying picnic with our adoption agency. There weren't as many people there this year though. Colby missed playing with Nicholas and Sean but he had a great time with Connor! Those two are like two peas in a pod. Watching them together you can't help but laugh. Hopefully we can get together with him and his mommy and daddy for many play dates. So, enjoy these great photos!

Our New Saturday Routine

2011-05-21T12:09:00.000-07:00

Thought you might like a few cute photos of our new Saturday routine. Colby had his first T-ball game today and he did pretty good. Hit twice and ran the bases. He even stopped the ball while playing short-stop and threw it to second. I think he might just get the hang of it yet. The teams have kids ages 4-6 or 7 I think. Colby looks so little out there but he has a few really young kids on the team. Overall they did a great job today. What do you think? The next Mike Piazza or David Wright? Maybe a Timmy Tuffel???

Just Some Random Pics

2011-05-14T15:41:00.000-07:00

Keeping busy here. We are now in the last stretch of school with about a month left. My official last day is 6/20, a Monday. YUCK! I think Colby is done a couple days earlier. No real news here, just enjoying some better weather, although it is still very cool for this time of year. I'm waiting for those beautiful 80 degree sunshine filled days.

Colby just had his 4 year old checkup and everything went great! He is getting so big. I can't believe it. In just a couple years he has become such a big boy. He now weighs in at 38 pounds and is just under 42 inches tall. 3 and a half-feet tall. That means he has gained about 15 pounds and grown 10 inches in just over 2 years. Yikes! We definitely need to stop feeding this kid. I can only imagine our food bill when he's a teenager.

But, thought you might like some random pics. These are from around Easter. Colby had lots of fun with Auntie Trish during her visit.

Growing Up

2011-05-04T19:44:00.000-07:00

Yikes! My baby is now 4. I can't believe it. I'm not sure where the time has gone.

Ok. I did mention news, but sorry nothing truly amazing. Colby has begun T-ball. We have a great Police Athletic League (PAL) program here. Colby took free swim lessons with them last summer and is now in the T-ball league. He had been going to swim lessons on Saturday mornings at the YMCA but we are taking a break to try T-ball. I am really hoping that it might help improve his coordination and have him learn some patience. He is one of the youngest on his team. The kids are ages 4-6 I believe. It really is adorable watching them run and try to hit and throw a ball. We have had 2 practices and I think games start in a couple weeks. It does make for a long Tuesday and a VERY tired and cranky little man but I think/hope he will have fun and make some new friends. Only trouble I have with it, the coach does smoke and he does so in front of the kids. UGH! So, here's a few pics of my future Mike Piazza???

Happy Birthday Colby!

2011-04-28T19:41:00.000-07:00

Happy 4th Birthday Colby! I love you all the way to the "back moon!"

Love, Mommy

Happy Easter...and Some News

2011-04-26T18:11:00.000-07:00

Ok. A little late but we want to wish everyone a very Happy Easter. We hope you all had a good one. Ours was busy with lots of family and fun. We celebrated with Mike's family on Saturday and mine on Sunday. We also celebrated Colby's birthday with both families. We had a nice ice cream cake with Mike's family and Colby wanted a fire truck cake with my family. So in the midst of making pizza gain, coloring Easter eggs and visiting the Easter Bunny with Auntie Trisha, Mommy made the fire truck cake. My first venture in decorating cake. It came out ok if you ask me, but if you ask Colby it was "Cooly Mommy, look at the ladder. But where's the fire hydrant and the fire man?" Ugh! But I'm glad he liked it. Auntie Trisha was in from Ohio so along with spoiling Colby for his birthday, we took him to his first movie at the theater. We saw Rio and it was great. So, busy here....and yes I have some news but that can wait. For now...enjoy a few Easter/birthday pics.

Colbyisms.....

2011-04-05T13:42:00.000-07:00

Ok. No pics. Right nowI am at work/school waiting for Open House/Conference night. Not sure what I will be doing as the Reading Support teacher, I wasn't hired until after the first one at the beginning of the year. But, we will find out. I did get to Colby's school for his conference and was very happy. He's doing great in all areas. Only slight trouble, recognizing his shapes. But I think that is more confusion because they just introduced a new one. Otherwise, ready for Kindergarten....oh yeah, PreK first. So, no pics but I thought you might like to hear some of Colby's newest sayings: 1) "No, Mommy. It's not the right one." (On hearing 2 lines of the song from CARS but not sung by Rascal Flatts, sung by someone else. 2) "You read the book to me Mommy." "No Colby, you read it to me." "No Mommy. You can. I don't know the words." -He has noticed there are words in books and seems to be getting frustrated that he can't read them, only Mommy and Daddy can. 3) "But Mommy, I was just having a conversation with my father." -On being asked why he talked throughout church service. 4) "Daddy, that's not nice. You stop teasing me right now." 5) "But I'm starving!" -His reason behind why he NEEDS to have pudding, even though he didn't finish his dinner. 6) "Mommy....I like you." -On tucking him into bed. That's after our kisses and our usual. "I love you Colby. I love you to...." "The back moon Mommy." My Mom always tucked me into bed and we would say I love you to the moon and back. Right away I read the book Guess How Much I Love You to Colby and it says the same thing but Colby turned it around to him saying "The back moon." And many more. Well, almost time for parents. Ugh! I hate conference night.

So Long March...Where is Spring?

2011-03-31T18:30:00.000-07:00

Ok. Sorry I haven't updated much lately. It has been a busy March. I can't say it's been a fun busy, just busy. March seems like such a long month. I never thought it would end.

I have been hard at work getting my 3-5th graders through the state mastery tests. These are HUGE! I wish so much emphasis wouldn't be placed on these standardized tests but there is. Schools here are actually put on lists for not making the benchmarks or not making enough progress every year. Unfortunately, the city schools never do that great. But we survived.

Colby has been hard at work at preschool and daycare. He is loving school and learning so much. We often have conversations about who's name starts with what letter. One day he chimed in with, "I don't like C in my name Mommy. I want the other letter that sounds the same. Just like Keith." Too smart for me. He knows all but a few letters. His teacher taught all the kids the letter that starts their name and Colby seems to have learned them all. Too bad he doesn't have friends that start with F, H, N, Q, U, or V. He does know Y because it is in his name. He is also starting to write his name and I can tell what it is although the C is a little upside-down and his "b" looks more like a tire-swing. But I am impressed. He also loves to read. He is enjoying his TAG reader and is constantly reading books. Today he picked up the student copy of the social studies book I had in the car and was "reading" it on the way home. However, he has told me he likes for Mommy or Daddy to read to him because he can't "say" the words like we can. He already knows there are words on the page and he wants to read them. He gets a little frustrated at times because he can't. But we do have him spell words a lot.

Colby is also still loving music. He loves to sing as we drive home from school. I have been serenaded by anything from Itsy Bitsy Spider to Stuck Like Glue by Sugarland and even the Jeopardy theme sing. Yes, that's true! The other day we were listening to the radio when one of his favorite songs came on, "All Night Long". He knows it as sung by Rascall Flatts on the Cars soundtrack. Well that day before we heard two lines of it Colby chimed in with, "But that's not right. It's not the same." Huh? I had to listen more closely. Oh, someone else was singing it. But boy did it sound very similar. And today....Today I was serenaded all night with "Baby, baby, baby. Oh!" Yikes! Where did he hear that? I NEVER would listen to that silly boy Justin Beiber. Thanks a bunch Miss Jenn!

Well, I'm sure you'd like a few photos. So here's a couple. I don't ahve many from Feb and March. We didn't really get anywhere and my camera battery died and the new one just came in. But enojy these few. The last one...a rare moment. Colby has been exhausted lately. That afternoon he jsut crawled on the sofa while I was working on the computer, tucked himself in, and fell asleep. Not sure when the last nap was before that. He hasn't really napped since he turned 2.

Now so long March. Here comes....more Snow? What? Is this an April Fool's joke. We are under a winter storm watch for tomorrow. Ridiculous. I want warm weather.

A Bit of a Bump

2011-03-06T18:36:00.000-08:00

I'm not sure where to start today. I feel like I have hit a bump, or perhaps a wall. Work is going ok, although tomorrow we start the CT Mastery tests (grade 3 and up) and that is a huge deal. Lots of stress to "pass" as a school. Last year, the school's scores were very poor and I am feeling the burden to boost them up. We've just finished about 3 weeks of test prep. The kids did well but I can only hope we haven't burned them out. We'll see when we get the results around June or so.

On the home front, we are definitely feeling the results of a long, cold, snowy winter. Spring can't come any sooner. Colby's school schedule was so messed up with snow days of and late starts which result in no preschool but going to daycare all day. It has not been good. We've been back on track about 2 weeks or so and he is exhausted. I think he is also fighting a cold/cough. Not sure what. I battled with a high fever and stomach bug myself for a couple days. We NEED to get outside and run and have fun. Bring on the sunshine! Too bad it rained all day today.

Colby has also entered into what I can only hope is another phase. Please let it be a short one. He has become a little controlling and demanding. His good manners have all but disappeared. Eating has become a chore. Going to a store is worse. And he has gained a little smart mouth. He has even begun to ignore me when I ask him a question. I usually pick him up after school and on the ride home we would chat about his day. Not anymore! He actually said the other day, "I'm not talking to you. Turn up the music." I was crushed. He won't cuddle with me as much and he is just overall a bear. He told Mike today during his bath, "Go away. You two aren't listening to me."

I'm at a loss. He says nothing is bothering him. He says he's happy. But I'm not. Mike's not. Time outs don't work. Nothing seems to matter. Any thoughts? I can only hope that those "terrible twos" that didn't show up until he was 3 will be gone next month when he turns 4.

Two Years Home

2011-02-21T18:19:00.000-08:00

Today we celebrated our second Family Day. It was two years ago today that Mike and I brought Colby home and we began our life as a family. Many families celebrate Gotcha Day, the day that they picked up their child from the baby home or orphanage. Some celebrate the court date. We have decided to celebrate our Family Day as the day we were home and the adoption journey was truly over. We reached JFK Airport late at night and were greated by both Mike's and my parents. They were a sight for sore eyes. It had been a long trip home and almost a really long wait in the Immigration office. The office was really busy and there were stacks of papers waiting. Thankfully someone new came on and happened to pick up Colby's file and we didn't have to wait too long. I guess ours was pretty straight forward to get through. Then we walked through the doors and I almost collapsed into my mom's arms and started crying. I could finally let the emotions go. Colby did great going in the car seat for the first time and fell asleep for part of the ride home.But his eyes were wide open when we walked in the house and let him explore the house and his room. We were soon all fast asleep though.

Last year we had Colby's Baptism on this day. The timing worked out, although it was a coincidence. But today was rather laid back. Colby and I were home, since it was Presidents' Day. We went and had lunch with my mom at her work and then went shopping. We had a nice laid back day. Then I cooked chicken parm and spaghetti and we enjoyed a special treat- red velvet whoopie pies! Now I find myself looking forward to our next Family Day. What changes will we have by then???

June 2008 Feb 2009 Feb 2010 Feb 2011

Craziness

2011-02-02T10:10:00.000-08:00

Craziness. That is what we have been up to lately.

It has been a while since I have had the chance to write on here. Our schedule has truly gone up in smoke. And with a 3 year old who loves schedules, it hasn't been much fun. Today we are home snug and warm while outside it is a big icy mess. We are now on Snow Day #9. (I think. I have lost track.) But here's an update.

1) Colby continues to enjoy school, when he gets to go. He was starting to get used to the schedule of Pre-school in the morning and then daycare in the afternoon but that has only happened maybe 2 times in the past 3 weeks. He loves Mrs. DeCarlo and Miss Stacy at Pre-school and I am very proud of what he is learning. He surprised everyone by naming most of the letters in the alphabet. The school teaches them the letter that starts their name but Colby has learned all the letters for his friends too, including Z for Zachary! He now knows his colors and shapes and he can count to 20, and 10 in Spanish too. Hopefully the snow/ice will stop, spring will come, and we can get back to school.

2) As for school. I am trying to get marking period and mid-year reading assessments done for grade 2 complete but these snow days are killing us. The kids are all out of sorts and when we are in we end up with a late start or early dismissal. But I think I have them set and report cards are done. The grade 2 teacher is out on maternity leave so I have been overseeing much of the assessments and grades in there. Ugh!

3) We have s much snow we don't know where to put it all. Thankfully Colby has not been lost in it yet! He has enjoyed sledding in the back yard, down the small slope and over the short stone wall area. And he loves climbing on the big piles in the front yard, thank you city plow driver. Don't worry we stand right there while he slides down them near the street.

4) We recently had a pretty big Russia boys get together. There are about 7 families in the area from our adoption agency that have boys from Russia. The oldest is now 7 and home for a few years. The youngest is only 20 months and home only since last Nov, about 3 months. The rest are 3 or 4 years old. We went to a huge indoor play area/arcade. There wasn't much for the little guys to do but they did have a climbing area and jump area. The boys got some much needed exercise and run around time and the adults had time to chat. We definitely need to do that more often, preferably somewhere less crowded and noisy. I would love to get our group even bigger and have meetings more often.

Snow day!

2011-01-13T12:38:00.000-08:00

It finally looks like days of old around here! We were just hit with 2 feet plus this past snow storm. So, what better to do on a snow day or two?

Play outside! Thankfully no one got lost in the snow.

And bake! I'm not so sure Daddy enjoyed our new song, "We're making.....brownies!"

Two Years

2011-01-07T05:25:00.000-08:00

This week we have been very busy. Colby had to visit the doctor for a flu shot and we had a visit to the eye doctor. Both went well. We also had to go to Hartford to the adoption agency. We filled out paperwork for our 2 year post-placement report. The reports used to be just a quick phone chat and we would send the required ten photos but new requirements mandate the adoption agencies must see us. So on Wednesday night we went to chat with the social worker and we had the opportunity to share our story with couples at an initial informational meeting. We did this early in 2010 as well. It is a little strange standing there talking to them and remembering how we felt when we went to that initial meeting in September 2007. Boy how that day changed our lives. The couples looked so unsure but they had lots of questions and seemed to like the photos we shared. I left my information for them and I really hope that they call or email. I received some amazing help while we went through our adoption and I love helping others too.

So, almost 2 years ago we brought this little baby home. Now he is such a little man. How did he grow so fast? Although I love eery minute of it, I wish I could keep him little forever (well, maybe without the temper tantrums!). Colby has now been home a little longer than the time he spent in the baby home. I think that is a huge milestone. He's almost 4, loving preschool, learning more and more everyday, and becoming such a loving, caring little man. I guess I can step back a little and be proud. Wouldn't you?

June 2008 February 2009

December 2009 December 2010

Christmas 2010 Recap and a Big Wow (edited for the Big Wow)

2010-12-29T12:13:00.000-08:00

Better late than never, right? We all here would like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. We hope the new year brings everyone much happiness and love.

Our Christmas was hectic but fun. We enjoyed spending time with both families. Thankfully everyone is nearby so our travel isn't very far. We spend Christmas Eve with Mike's family and Christmas Day with mine.

Christmas Eve we went to Mike's parents and then his grandparents'. Colby loved playing with Lizzy and her toys. And Lizzy loved Colby's toys too! He received an amazing hand-made book from Grandma Laurie. It is all about animals with a fact for each jungle animal and a cute saying about Colby and his family. It is something we will definitely treasure forever. He also received an Alphie, a cute learning robot that some might remember from our childhood. I know I had one but they certainly have updated them. At Nana and Poppy's he received a couple things but his favorite is his Hess Truck and Jet. Of course the jet is motion sensored so it goes off constantly!

Christmas we had fun opening our presents at home. Santa and the reindeer ate the cookies and apple (sorry, the carrots were bad), and the milk and water. Colby actually woke up late. He has been exhausted. He woke up and wanted to crawl in bed with us. I'm not sure he really thought it was Christmas. But after seeing the presents he was ready to go. Santa left him some dinosaurs, a LeapFrog Tag reader with books and a U.S. map (ok, yes, I am showing my teacher side), and a digital camera. He also left a remote control F-150 for Mike and Colby to share. Mike also got parts for his HO Model Train set and I got a new lens for my Canon digital camera. Colby made me a cute red apron and chef hat. We went to my mom's house for a late brunch with my brothers and sisters. Grandma Donna couldn't wait to give Colby his Cars Guitar. Yes, a guitar!!! Grandma's was followed by a trip to my Uncle Lou's to have dinner with my mom's family and of course more presents.

I'm not sure Colby knows what to play with. He is so excited about everything. He seems to really enjoy Alphie, the Tag reader, his GeoTracks, and of course the Hess truck. Thankfully the holidays were lots of fun and Colby loved playing with all his cousins. However, this post is late because I proceeded to spend Sun and Mon on the couch with a wicked migraine headache. Thankfully that has finally gone away and I can now spend my vacation cleaning, running errands, and trying to catch up with school work. We have lots of reading testing coming up and of course CMT's (CT Mastery Tests) to get ready for. Ugh!

But for now, here is the little man enjoying his Christmas and the blizzard we had the next 2 days after Christmas.

Ok. I posted this a couple hours ago and just came back to check on things. I noticed my timeline at the top of the blog. It has been just over 22 months since we brought Colby home. He has now been here for as long as he was in the baby home in Russia! Simply Amazing!

Christmas Fun 2010 in Photos

2010-12-12T18:16:00.000-08:00

I really could write a lot. We have been very busy enjoying this holiday season. With shopping, decorating, visiting with Santa, and just having fun together. But, for now, I'll just leave you with some great photos. Enjoy!

Our Christmas Tree

Making some star ornaments

Yum! A very pretty gingerbread house.

Check out this entry I found on Shutterfly Holiday Photo Contest.

2010-12-08T17:16:00.000-08:00

Check out this entry I found on Shutterfly Holiday Photo Contest.

Big Boy Bed

2010-12-01T19:25:00.000-08:00

Well, here's the change I elluded to before. On Friday we spent the day as a family rearranging Colby's room, oh and finishing off the new windows in our family room. Colby has grown so much lately. He was out of his crib pretty early and now he has become too big for his toddler bed. Mike and I had planned ahead and the crib we bought actually converts from the crib to a toddler day bed to a full size bed. However, we didn't buy the rail conversion for the full size bed. Ugh! So not so easy. Mike had a metal frame for a full size bed so we are using that and he is going to make brackets to put the headboard and footboard on it. But we found a nice bed set with a sports theme, although now the main color is blue. It did come with matching valances but not full curtains so I need to work on that. So, it isn't complete but it looks pretty good. What do you think?...... My thought.....he is growing up way too fast!

The second photo is Colby with his cousin Keith. Keith came over for a playdate and Colby showed him his big boy bed and where he will sleep when he stays over. Too cute!

Thanksgiving Take Two

2010-11-26T19:36:00.001-08:00

We had a really nice Thanksgiving this year. Colby loved spending time with his cousins, although he did miss his cousin Keith. We had dinner at my parents' house and then dropped in at Mike's Aunt Karen's to see his family. Thankfully everyone lives close by. But, here are a few photos. When I took Colby's photo in the morning I later realized I still have a couple on the camera from last year's Thanksgiving. So, thought you might like to see the comparison as much as I did. A bit of a shock for me. He is definitely growing up way too fast.

Oh and just a teaser..... losts of changes for the big boy. Photos to come when everything gets organized again.

Work, School, and a Little Bit of Fun

2010-11-24T17:40:00.000-08:00

I guess I haven't been able to write lately. I have been very busy at work. I really am enjoying being back at work, especially in my new role. No longer the classroom teacher, I am able to actually work with more students and even help out my fellow teachers. Being the Reading teacher is something new, and being the Reading teacher within the reading framework where I work has been very interesting and definitely challenging. Everyday brings new challenges but also new hugs and laughs. The kids really are great, despite their little too-mature attitudes. And they crave attention.

We have hit a bump in the road though, Colby does not enjoy his daycare, and often tells me so. He seems to like the kids and his teacher, and I like where he is. However, I think he is having a hard time adjusting to being away for a full day. He attends a preschool program in the AM through the city's school. Mike is able to put Colby on the bus in the morning to preschool and they love that time together. Then after school he takes the bus again to his daycare. He loves the bus but it is a 45 minute ride. He's only at the daycare for about 3 hours but it does make for a long day. He says he can't sleep at daycare so he is certainly cranky afterward. And Colby tells me he cries a little at daycare because he misses us. Top that off with a child who fights tooth and nail not to wear his eye patch. Ugh! Thankfully that is only for about an hour. We have now decided to let him choose. Put it on in the morning before school and watch "Dino Dan" in the afternoon without it or wear it after school during "Dino Dan". The past two days he wore it in the morning. It worked out great! We'll see how things continue. I just hope we are doing the right thing. Me working is a definite plus but I miss being with Colby and I can see the change in him.

Ok. All I was going to write about was last weekend's fun. My Aunt Doone is a leader at her church. They held their annual church holiday fair. She had called and asked if I could help her out. She brings one of her miniature horses to the fair for buggy rides. While she was overseeing the fair, Colby and I did the rides. My cousin Chelsie and her boyfriend Mike also helped and took over for a while. While they were with the horse I went inside to serve popcorn but Colby wanted to still drive so he stayed with them. Later I went outside to ask Colby if he wanted lunch and found the buggy a little banged up and the horse tied up. Chelsie didn't look too happy. Sunny got away from her and took off down the hill toward Main Street. The smarty she is, she grabbed Colby out of the cart as it tipped over and they were both ok. Buggy and Sunny, a little banged up but all things important were ok. But overall, Colby was great all day and he had a blast with "his girl" Chelsie and his buddy Jaden.

Well, I promise some holiday photos soon, but here are a couple from the fair. Colby the buggy driver!

Fall Fun and the Hole in the Wall

2010-11-08T14:09:00.000-08:00

We have been very busy lately. Thankfully we had a chance to rake the leaves in the yard before today's freaky early morning snow and sleet. (Unfortunately, not enough for a school delay.) Here are just a few really cute fall photos.

On Saturday my morning entertainment was Colby and Mike tearing a hole in my house to replace one of the windows. The other large one was supposed to be changed today but the weather changed those plans. Colby looked very cute with his own tool belt stocked with tools, a beeper, and a cell phone. He didn't do too much work though. He must be practicing to be the engineer or the designer. Here he is trying to use his power screwdriver and measuring the boards for the window.

Halloween

2010-11-01T19:26:00.001-07:00

Ok. It's been awhile since i've had the chance to sit and write on here. I've been back to work for 3 weeks and can only now start to breathe. Things are going well, although the kids are quite noisy, but we have fallen into a routine. Colby began going to day care after morning preschool this past week. It makes for a full week for him and he is VERY tired by Friday. But he seems to enjoy it. And thankfully I can't seem to keep a book out of his hands, although he loves his Leapster that his cousins Max and Alex handed down to him.

So, we are over the Halloween chaos. Colby loved it this year. I'm not so sure he quite understood it last year, but this year he started in July with trick-or-treating and what he wanted to be. Last year I got to choose, a monkey it was. This year, his choice, but I was able to make the costume and I think that was the best part. I found the pattern, cut it, and sewed it. Mike's mom helped with sewing the fringe on. Then Mike, Colby and I put on the studs. What do you think?

First, we visited with Mike's parents, and his brother's family. Little Lizzie was an adorable little gnome. Then my brother brought Keith over for some trick-or-treating before we headed to our parents' house. We tried to make it an early night but we were home after bedtime, which resulted in a not quite so happy Colby this morning. Boy was he tired! But we all had a great time and perhaps, just perhaps, this Halloween thing isn't so bad after all.

A Little of Everything

2010-10-23T09:54:00.000-07:00

Fall has arrived and so has lots of change. Overall, when I can sit back and look at everything as a whole, I am pleased with the change. However, when I start to think and nitpick at everything, I am not so happy. I guess that is how change just is.

I had become accustomed to being home and enjoying lots of time with Colby. I can see how our time together has been so important. In Colby's development in all areas. In our bonding as a family. And in my growing into the new role of Mommy. I couldn't have asked for anything more. The road to my being home was not planned, nor was it all that wanted at first. But it has become the best part of my life. But now, that will all change.

I received a full-time teaching job again. I am now the reading teacher at a small school right where we live. It is a new teaching role for me, previously only being the classroom teacher, so now I have a new role to learn. I have been working now for two weeks and can only now sit back and relax a little. I think I have fallen back into the teaching role very easily, sort of like riding a bike again after a long time. But this role also has me working with other teachers and supporting them. That is a new role I am not as comfortable with yet. However, it is going very well I think, except for an exception or two. We are all learning a new reading program together and it will take some time to implement well. But I am thrilled with my new job and all that it holds.

On the home front, Colby is in pre-school in the mornings, riding the bus, and loving it. Mike has been able to put him on the bus in the mornings. He has also been able to watch him most afternoons or his mom did. Thus changing our roles. I really miss my time with Colby waiting for the bus and eating lunch together. Running errands and just relaxing together. I also REALLY miss nap time! I feel like I am missing a lot of his day. Although happy at work, I find myself wondering what he is doing and how his day is going. This week Colby will start going to a day care after school in the afternoons. Another big change. I hope it goes well. We shall see. Thus far we are doing well, although Colby has been more whiney and a lot more tired lately. Is it growing pains or all the change? I'm not sure but it is definitely something I need to keep an eye on. I have already asked both school and day care to watch for me.

For now, I need to learn to balance Mommy and teacher and not forget about wife and just plain old Melissa. Ugh! How do you all do it?

Long Week

2010-10-16T05:42:00.000-07:00

Sorry I haven't had time to post on here. It has been a very long week. Even if it did start on a Tuesday! I started back to work Tuesday and now the Reading teacher at a small elementary school in town. Thankfully a very short commute and my school day schedule will be the same as Colby's. But boy has it been a tough change.

Colby, Mike, and I are all battling some sort of cold. It seems to hit Mike hardest but I'm tired of the cough and stuffy nose in the morning. Colby seems to be fine during the day but has not been sleeping at night. Both Wed and Thurs nights he woke up. Wed was just about every 2 hours. Doesn't make for a cherry start tot he mornings. Mike has been able to put him on the bus in the mornings and a few afternoons he has been home. Thankfully his parents live really close so they can come get Colby in the afternoons. But we really need to sort out a day care situation. I feel bad asking them to watch him every day. But we are waiting to see how Mike's schedule turns out. The winters are sometimes slow.

Me... I think I have been so overwhelmed with the new job and learning my new role that I haven't had much time to think of other things. I really miss my quiet mornings with Colby snuggled in bed and then putting him on the bus. I miss lunch with him and running our errands in the afternoon. I miss bringing him to see my mom at work and having lunch with her, Uncle Lou and a couple of the guys there.But, we can do that during vacations. Most of all, I miss my little guy. But the kids I see and the schedule I have keep me very busy. The school also starts early so I am done by 2:30 and have been trying to get home around 3 or 3:30 (depending on what planing and prep I have to do at school).

This morning we are headed to CT Loves to Read at the local Target. The CT Reading Council puts this on usually in Feb but they changed it to Oct this year. Mike's mom will be there too. She dresses up as Mother Gooses and reads to the kids. Other town volunteers come too. The kids all get a free book, some goodies, and a T shirt and hopefully we let them see that Reading can be fun. I promise to get some pics and post some soon.

Changes: The Good and the Bad

2010-10-08T11:14:00.000-07:00

Well, I guess I caught a few people's attention. Yes, things are changing. I had an interview on Tuesday and I received the job. I will be teaching again. Again, after 2 years away. This time I will be the reading teacher at a small school in the city we live in. So now the changes and adjustments begin.

I must say that I am excited about this new job. But it seems everyone else seems to be more excited than I am. I am not so sure how I feel about going back to teaching. I left my last job feeling so unsure about myself as a teacher so I'm not sure how being back will feel. I know I will do a great job but I'm not so sure I want to work again. From the first day we brought Colby home in Feb of 2009, I have been home with him. Just Colby and me. That is until this fall when he started preschool in the mornings. Now that we have adjusted and settled into that new routine we need to change again and Mommy will be gone all day. Not sure how Colby will handle that, nor how I will handle being away. I am so thankful that with all the schools in our city I landed in the school Mike's mom just left last year when she retired. So I know what to expect and already have a link to some of the staff. Now the trouble begins: Where does Colby go in the afternoon??? Since he is already in a morning program he can't be enrolled in an afternoon one through the city, but we need bussing so no programs out of the city. So a day care, not seem to have spots available. Ugh!!! I don't want to take him out of his preschool program, he loves it and since it is through the school system it is free. What do we do??? Thankfully for now, Mike's mom can watch him. Ugh! Now I remember why I don't like change.

Change

2010-10-06T08:48:00.000-07:00

Change is brewing. I don't know if I have ever liked change but this is definitely change for the better.

The Big E

2010-09-28T07:34:00.001-07:00

This past weekend we brought Colby to the Big E. It is a huge fall festival in Massachusetts. Around here, it is the unofficial end to summer and runs for about 3 weeks into October. It was Colby's first time there and we all had a blast. We saw the circus, the parade full of tractors, Mardi Gras type floats, and Budweiser Clydesdales, and lots of animals. We watched the draft horse show and we even listened to a music group. Colby loved that and began dancing to the beat. Everyone around him turned to watch him. He was so cute. Colby is still talking about the circus, his very first. I can't wait to bring him to a big circus. So, here are a few cute photos.

Corn Maze and a Happy Birthday

2010-09-22T10:33:00.000-07:00

This past weekend Colby and I went with my mom, Aunt Doone, and Jaden to a corn maze at Lyman Orchards. We had a great time, even though we were lost for quite awhile, along with a bunch of other people. Lyman Orchard does a corn maze every year. Last year it had a presidential feel, this year was a UCONN theme. Specifically, the UCONN Huskies girls' basketball team. It was in the shape of the coach's (Geno Auriemma) head, the husky mascot and a ball. It was tricky to get through the first part. I think Aunt Doone got a little worried but we made it out and the boys had a great time.

Today is my mom's birthday. Although she's on vacation Colby and I were able to call and sing Happy Birthday to her. I hope she has a great day. She definitely deserves the rest and relaxation.

This weekend, no plans set but I do hope to get to the Big E or perhaps apple picking. And of course it is football season so I need to watch the Pats and the Giants.

My Snuggles

2010-09-16T19:39:00.001-07:00

Today was such a great day. I'm not sure why but everything seemed less stressful and more fun. I had an interview in the morning so Mike stayed home to put Colby on the bus. I left after he ate breakfast and I got him dressed. When Colby came home he was in great spirits. He is loving that bus. We had lunch and he went down for a nap. About an hour and a half later he came out to the family room, climbed on my lap, and snuggled in for another half hour of sleep. I so miss those times when he would cuddle with me like that. Granted my arm fell asleep because he has gotten so big, but I loved that quiet time. We went outside and went on the swings and Colby rode his new bike for a little while. Mike's Uncle Steven sent it from Utah. It is a wooden Radio Flyer two wheeler without pedals. You sit on it and push with your feet while trying to learn how to balance. It is the wierdest bike I've ever seen but Colby is really getting the hang of it and can balance pretty good. Now I want to put the training wheels up a little on his big boy bike. Then while dinner was cooking we played an ABC game and just had fun.

As much fun as we had before dinner, boy did Colby find a way to get into trouble after dinner. He snuck candy off the side table after we had all just had some. This is a BIG problem we have found lately. Colby is starting to sneak things, especially food treats and candy. Not sure how to deal with this one. Then while Mike was trying to do some paper work, Colby brought out his crayons and markers and was supposedly sitting on the floor next to him coloring a paper but, nope, he colored the floor, the door to the basement, and part of the desk. Ugh! Thankfully I only have washable markers! I'm not sure how sucha great day went downhill so fast. I do know that the trouble started when the eye patch was put on. It seems Colby looses all control when he wears that. Not sure of the correlation, but it is true. Poor eyesight = poor self-control. Go figure!

Well, we ended the night with baking pretzles (after Colby dumped the yeast all over the counter). Melted butter and cinnamon topping always make things better, right?

Struggles

2010-09-14T14:04:00.000-07:00

Today just hasn't turned out to be a great day. Truthfully it hasn't been a great few days. Colby brought home some sort of cold which had him stuffy for a day or so but Mike got it really bad. Me, it landed as a huge headache for 4 days or so. And I guess I'm just not handling all the change as well as I should.

I thought going to Preschool would be a big deal for Colby. He should care that I am leaving him, right? He shouldn't want to go on a school bus by himself, right? But he does. He is all to eager to go off without me. And that leaves me home with nothing to do. Well, except the laundry, the dishes and whatever. I guess I am just not sure where I fit in now. I was a student, then I became the teacher, now I'm not either. I was me, then a wife, now a mom. But what does that mean.

In this time, I have also had a few more interviews for teaching. Don't know how I feel about that either. At times I am excited about perhaps going back but then I worry about missing things with Colby. What if he gets sick or school is canceled? I feel like staying at home is important but yet at the same time Colby doesn't seem to need me there anymore, not if he's going to be at school. I feel that teaching is important too but I don't know if I am ready to go back to it yet either. I am at a crossroads and can't seem to find the energy to move. I don't know which way to turn so here I sit, stuck.

And I really miss Mamie......
http://adoptingcolby.blogspot.com/2009/09/mamie.html

I guess this says it all. While Colby sits mad at me, I sit, not knowing how to fix it all.

On the Bus

2010-09-08T10:51:00.000-07:00

Well, Colby is now riding on the bus! Yup, my little boy is becoming quite independent. Last week he threw a fit when I picked him up. He saw so many other kids going on the bus and he wanted to as well. So I decided to wait out the week and start the bus this week. I was worried he wouldn't like going by himself but he was so excited. Yesterday he hopped on the bus and barely looked back. I was able to snap just a couple photos and then he was off to school. No hug or kiss. I'm so happy that he loves the bus and being so grown up but I miss my goodbye hugs and kisses. I'll have to snatch them before the bus comes. But here's the big boy!

No Tears....Just a Big Boy

2010-08-31T12:14:00.001-07:00

Well, today was the day. My baby boy became a big boy and went to cool (school). I can't believe it. He started the 3 year old preschool with our city today and will go every morning from 9-11:30. Yesterday we had a quick orientation day for about an hour so the kids could meet, see their classroom and teachers, and just play. The moms and dads filled out a couple papers and chatted with the teachers. But today was the big day.

I drove Colby to school after taking the mandatory few photos. We walked in and he said hi to everyone in the small building. We hung up his backpach and he was off. I had to ask him for my hug and kiss! He asked where I was going and looked a little sad but I just told him I was going home to do some cleaning and would be back soon. I got a "See ya Mom" a hug and kiss and that was it. "Bye Mom!". Boy was he ready for this. Me.....I brought books back to the library, went for my allergy shots, and finished laundry. The time went quick and then I was off to pick him up and we went to see Grandma Donna and Uncle Louie for our Tuesday lunch date.

I am thrilled Colby was so happy to be going to school, and I wouldn't want him to cry and cause a scene. But did he even miss me? When I picked him up the class was on the playground and I got, "Oh, you're here Mom?". No big hug and kiss. No missed you Mom. Nothing. Just "Let's go, see Grandma". Talk about a bummer. But, I guess I have a well adjusted little guy who loves being with people. He did well with school and his first sleepover at Grandma's last Friday. My baby is definitely growing up. Our next discussion: "I want the school bus Mom, not you." Yikes! Maybe next week........

Preschool

2010-08-24T13:05:00.000-07:00

Any suggestions for something to do to keep this Mommy's time occupied while her little man leaves her to go to school?

Yup, that's right! Colby is headed off to preschool in just a week. He'll be gone every morning from 9-11:30. Not much time but enough for me to already be missing him. It will be the first time he's away from me during the day since we came home in Feb 2009. That is, except for the occasional Grandmas and Grandpas days out or when I'd have an interview and Grandma watched him. Now I am sending him off to school! YIKES! Already? He can't be old enough yet!!! But alas, he is, and he is MORE than ready. It is all I have heard about for about 2 months. He is definitely becoming a big boy. But yet, I miss my little baby.

Beardsley Zoo

2010-08-21T12:55:00.000-07:00

Colby and I went to the Beardsley Zoo on Thursday. It was Colby's first visit to a zoo. The zoo had a couple kids programs that day. One which showed different wild animals: lizard, owl, falcon, and a snake (YUCK!) and the other program was geared toward really little kids. The college aged kid read a zoo story about bats going to the beach at night, showed the kids a hedgehog, and then they colored a bat paperbag puppet (It was nocturnal animals day).The zoo is nearby but small so it made for a nice day trip. I wasn't sure how Colby might react to big zoo animals. Beardsley Zoo is quite small with only a few really big animals. It has a nice barn area so we saw pigs, sheep, cows, and pond animals. There was even a black swan. Peacocks and peahens roam free throughout the zoo. There is a rainforest area with a few little monkeys and colorful birds. Colby's favorite was the wolves. There was a red wolf and a typical grey wolf (like a Husky). The zoo does have a bear, a lynx (who was hiding inside), a tiger, and a couple bison. The kids also like the prairie dogs where you can go under the tunnel and pop up right next to them. We had a great day so I can't wait to bring Colby to a big zoo to see even more animals. He was dissapointed there weren't any elephants. Anyone have a great zoo to visit? I was thinking the Bronx Zoo but any other suggestions? Here's some of our fun.

Just a Cutie

2010-08-13T14:36:00.001-07:00

Walking today at Scoville Pond, an unusually cooperative Colby let Aunt Jo and I take a few pics. Here are my favorites that I took. Not bad I think.

Party Animal

2010-08-11T11:25:00.000-07:00

This weekend we had 2 parties to go to. First we went to my cousin Cassie's graduation. She graduated with her Master's degree and passed her CPA exam. Wow! And I remember babysitting for her and other embarassing things! Then we had a first birthday party for our niece Lizzy. Both were on Saturday so by Sunday we had a very tired and crabby little boy. But we definitely had fun.

Cassie's party was really fun. We didn't get to stay long but Colby and I did get to swim. It was interesting sitting at the party because we celebrated Cassie's mom's birthday this time last year at the same home. It was at that party that Colby saw a swimming pool for the first time. It was there that Colby scared me by jumping right in the water. Amazing to think back to that party and watch Colby as he swims "all by mineself". After just a few lessons he thinks he can swim by hinself, and he can with a noodle under his arms. Otherwise Mommy helps. This year, Colby even went down the slide. Wow! Maybe next year we can try the diving board. See the link for that post below. http://adoptingcolby.blogspot.com/2009/07/new-faces-and-new-things-to-try-part-ii.html

We also had fun at Lizzy's first birthday party. There were a lot of little kids there for Colby to play with. And now Lizzy is big enough that she and Colby were playing together. They had fun playing in her big playhouse. And Colby enjoyed rolling down the hill with another friend, Jair and his sister Brin.

On Tuesday we went with Colby's cousins Eva and Jack to Mt. Tom for a quick swim. The kids loved playing by the rocks, although Colby and Jack both fell off the rocks and Colby scratched his little nose. They found some old fishing line and tied it to a stick and took turns "fishing" and of course they threw rocks.

So another busy weekend. Except for a meeting for me ( I volunteer at the Pilot Pen Tennis Tournament in New Haven. It starts on the 20th. Lots of great tennis.) on Saturday, no plans this weekend. Eva and Jack are back in Utah. But I think Daddy and Colby might just go fishing.

First Amusement Park Adventure

2010-08-06T10:39:00.000-07:00

Last weekend was very busy. My sister Karin and her boys were up from New York and Mike's cousins Jack and Eva were in from Utah. We had a picnic with Mike's family on Saturday as well as a play to go to Saturday night. My nephew Teddy was in a children's production of Guys and Dolls Jr. On Sunday we went with my sisters to Quassy Amusement Park to enjoy a few rides. Teddy and my sister Kristin were also there for a Drum Chorps competition. What a busy but fun time we had.

Colby loved seeing Jack and Eva again. They spent a lot of time with eachother last summer so it was nice to see them again. And his other cousins Julia, Jake, and Logan were at the picnic too. Logan is the same age as Colby and they get along really well. They enjoyed jumping in the little pool.

Teddy's play was amazing. He played the part of Nicely-nicely Johnson and sang the song "Sit Down You're Rocking the Boat". I was a little worried about Colby sitting through the play especially after the picnic all day and the play not starting until 7:30 but he did great. He was mesmerized by watching Teddy dance and sing on stage. He yelled out to Teddy a couple times and even asked "Why those kids hiding back there?". The kids were off stage in the wings waiting to come on. It was really fun.

Quassy with Karin and her boys Max and Alex was fun too. Colby had not been to an amusement park before so we weren't sure how he would do. He always wants to try everything he sees though. He loved a few of the little kid rides and then the boys went on the Pirate ship that swings back adn forth. Mike went with them. Colby was a little shocked and didn't like it much. Nor did he like the little kid rollercoaster. It bounces a lot though and I think he hit his lip at one point so he was crying. The guy running the ride stopped it after one time around and took him off. He was supposed to go around twice. So although my little man loves seeing everything and says he wants to try everything, we were reminded that he still really is a little one and not quite ready for all those big boy rides. Perhaps next year! Although rollercoasters will be Mommy's thing, not Daddy's!

This weekend, we have a graduation party for my cousin Cassie who just graduated with her Master's and passed her CPA exam. We also have a party for our niece Lizzy who turns 1. Another busy summer weekend. Thankfully the weather should be less humid and beautiful.

KidCity Children's Museum

2010-07-30T10:06:00.000-07:00

This week I brought Colby to KidCity Children's Museum in Middletown, CT. We have driven by the museum many times and had heard great things about it so with no more swim lessons, we had the day free. The museum is geared toward really small kids, ages 1-5 or so. There were bigger kids there later in the afternoon but they were just running around and being really loud. The museum has rooms with different themes: the ocean, the farm, space, Main Street USA, etc. There are toys in each area so the kids can just use their imaginations to play and explore. One room was set up as a theater complete with costumes, puppets, puppet stage, and cameras with the computers showing everything so someone can direct things. Another room had a huge pirate ship with rubber fish to sort by color or place on converyor belts and pulleys. A really neat way to learn cause and effect. As you can see Colby had a blast. What a fun place to go to. I hope to get him to the other children's museums around the state.

And here are a couple photos of Colby the Artist. We bought him some paint and brushes and he just loves it. This is an outside activity!

Sunflower Farm

2010-07-26T10:18:00.000-07:00

This past week Colby and I went with Mike's Aunt Jo to Buttonwood Farm. They are well known for their sunflowers and ice cream. The give hay rides and you can buy bundles of sunflowers. All proceeds go to the Make A Wish foundation. We went last year when Colby's cousins Jake and Eva were here from Utah in August to see the sunflowers but in August they don't have the hay ride. This year Aunt Jo wanted to make sure Colby go his hay ride. And he loved it. Here are a few pics from our day.

Since we had brought Colby to the farm last year, I thought it might be neat to get a photo of him sitting on the fence just like last year. What a difference a year makes! He has definitely grown up just a little.

Fun For All Week....edit for cute moment

2010-07-19T18:25:00.000-07:00

This past week was very busy. We had two great playdates with some of our Russian friends. Sharon and Sean met us on Monday for a pool date.

On Thursday Christine and her boys Roman and Max came from New York for a playdate. It was a pretty hot day but the boys had fun playing inside while Christine and I got caught up on our happenings. Then we all went outside so the boys could play on the swingset and in the sandbox. Unfortunately, Colby wasn't feeling quite well. He had a slight fever Wednesday night and it continued most of Thursday. But he had fun with the boys. We went to lunch and then to the local playground. All too soon it was time for them to head home.

Friday Colby and I did some school shopping. We also watched "The Backyardigans Polka Palace" which Colby loved. He loves music and that reminded Mike about my clarinet and saxophone upstairs. So we brought them out and Colby loved trying to play them. He seems to be a natural!

Then Saturday we enjoyed Lake Warmaug with Mike's parents. Lots of swimming on a hot humid day.

The weekend finished with a trip to the Butterfly place in Massachussetts with my mom. Colby seemed to enjoy it but he did shy away from them when they flew toward him. They also had some exotic frogs, lizards, and chameleons there as well as some very cute button quails. One cute note: Colby is very observant and is always listening, even when you think he isn't. He is starting to realize that people have more than one name (Mommy is also Melissa, Daddy is Michael, etc). When we were out with my mom he wanted her to see something and he called to her, quite loudly, "Grandma Donna!". Very cute.

After so much fun, Mommy and Colby enjoyed the day home today doing some chores and listening to the rain and thunder. We had some but not much. The storms missed us again. But the little bit of rain cooled us down a little. But here's some great photos from our week of fun.

At the Pool Club

2010-07-13T12:23:00.001-07:00

Yesterday Colby and I had a great playdate with Sean and Sharon. We went with them to the pool club. The water was great and the boys had a great time playing together. Colby the shark loved running into the pool and going under water. After just a few swim lessons he thinks he's Michael Phelps or something, ready for the Olympic team. He really is getting the hang of it though and can almost keep himself afloat. He's also just now trying to float on his back. Before he hatied being on his back. Now he tries to do the backstroke. I think he drank a gallon or more of pool water. Here's some great photos.

Lake Winnepasaukee, New Hampshire

2010-07-07T13:39:00.000-07:00

This holiday weekend we went to my parents' house on Lake Winnepasaukee. We had brought Colby there last year, also for the 4th. That time my Kristin, Steve, and Teddy, and Keith and Little Keith came too. This year it was just us with my parents. We had a lot of fun and many things were checked off of the "To Do With Colby the First Time" list. Here are just a few:

1) Walk along the ocean. We took a different route to N.H. stopping in Kittery and York Maine. Although Colby and Mommy have gone to the beach in Rhode Island, Daddy hadn't come and that wwas Long Island Sound. The beach in Maine was very rocky but we had a nice walk. It was cool on Thursday so no swimming. But Colby liked looking for the smooth broken pieces of sea shells.

2) Go swimming at the lake. Last year it was cold and rainy most of the holiday. This weekend started out cool and then came the heat wave!

3) See fireworks. Last year Colby was asleep when they started but this year we took him to Alton Bay. We listened to a band at the pavilion, danced a little, ate tons of ice cream, and enjoyed the fireworks. They set them off from a barge in the bay and they look amazing over the water.

4) Go on a boat ride. Grandpa got his boat in the water and we went for two rides. Colby loved it!

5) Go on a train ride. There is a scenic train that runs along the water from Meridith to Laconia. Colby loved watching the water and listening to the train's whistle. He did great for the two hour ride.

So it was definitely a great weekend. We also learned that Colby can't stay put even in a twin bed. He fell off of the air matress every night. One morning Mike found him under the mattress! Yikes! I guess we will stick with the toddler bed and rail and hold off on converting it to the full size bed for now. But here's just a few fun photos!

Photo courtesy of Colby. He LOVES to take the camer and take pictures. Not too bad huh?

In a Whirlwind

2010-06-30T12:15:00.000-07:00

Ok. Need some happy thoughts sent my way. As some of you know, I was a teacher for many years before we adopted Colby and I stayed home with him. There are many reasons that brought me home and had me leave my job. Not all were my choice but in the end it turned out great. I am thrilled with knowing that I have had over a year with my son, at home. The growth he has made would not have been possible if I was teaching full time and he was in day care. I thank God that I had this chance and that financially we have been ok. However, things would be easier if I did have a job again. And with Colby going to morning preschool in the fall, Mommy now has some free time. So, here I am putting in resumes and hoping something comes up. This trully isn't a great time to be looking for a teaching job. So many layoffs and schools closing. Thankfully I have a reading certificate so I can be a reading support teacher, not just an elementary classroom teacher. I have already had 2 different interviews this spring. I recently had an interview for a part-time reading position at an elementary school. The school is great and it would fit nicely, although it is a long commute. The principal interviewed 9 people and 4 of us went for a second interview. That was yesterday. Now they are checking references and will send 2 names to the superintendent to choose from. Ugh! How much more complicated can the process be??? So I should here something soon. Keep your fingers crossed. I also have an interview scheduled for tomorrow (I just got a call for it this morning!). This would be a full-time position teaching reading/language arts in a middle school. Not really where my experience is but 6th grade can't be that bad, can it?? I have a ton of other resumes sent out for posted positions and am just waiting. Ugh! I am so tired of getting my hopes up, becoming a nervous wreck for each interview, and hearing "No thanks. We found someone else.". When will good news come my way.

So, I am just asking for you to send us good thoughts and keep your fingers crossed that some good news comes my way.

Big Boy, a Bike, and a New Look

2010-06-28T05:37:00.001-07:00

Well, I had a few spare moments on Saturday morning while Mike and Colby were mowing the lawn. I felt the need for a change so now my blog has a new look. What do you think?

Also, my little boy is becoming more of a big boy everyday. I am excited, yet a little saddened, by the latest news. My big boy received his information for preschool. He will be entering the 3 year old preschool through our city in the fall. Yikes! I think this will be a great thing for him. He loves to learn new things and the structure of a classroom might settle him a little. But good luck to his teacher! We'll see how Mommy feels in the fall.

And a few great photos. My big boy is learning how to ride a very big boy bike. Thanks to my wonderful sister, Karin, we have a big boy bike for Colby. It was my nephews', Max and Alex, bike. It is a little big but Colby loves it. Mike brought it out on Saturday morning thinking we would just push Colby around on it and maybe he'd peddle it a little. Well, he got the hang of it and we had to go out that night and get him a helmet. He can peddle all the way down our street but hills are still a little tough. So we'll stick to straight aways. You might notice in the photos, but Colby loves to look down at the tires and the peddles turning, not straight ahead. We'll have to work on that I guess. What a big boy!

First Camping Trip....We Survived!

2010-06-21T19:11:00.000-07:00

This weekend we went to Lake Warmaug. We have been there before for an afternoon to picnic and bring the kayaks out but this weekend we camped. Yes, I spent the weekend in a tent! We went with Mike's parents. I was a little worried about how Colby would do sleeping somewhere strange, and not in a bed, but he did great! He LOVED it!

We went up early Friday and spent the weekend swimming, walking, kayaking, fishing, and just having lots of fun. I did leave for a few hours to help my mom at my grandparents' house. We are still trying to sell some things and Sat we had another tag sale. Friday friends of Mike's parents came up with their grandkids, Jair and Brin. They had a great time playing with Colby. It was fun to watch them swim, play in the sand, and blowing bubbles. Late Saturday, when I returned, David, Jocelyn, and Lizzie came up for dinner. Lizzie is getting so big. She and Colby played great together. By Sunday we were all tired and ready to go home. Even Colby was ready to get back and sleep in his bead. We left early Sunday and just spent the day doing some chores and catching up on sleep. Overall the weekend was great. Camping was fun, but I do know what Mike will get for his birthday: an airmatress. Ugh! The ground was so hard and bumpy. Not much sleep.

A Few Cute Pics

2010-06-18T06:12:00.000-07:00

Well, we are off on an adventure today. We are going camping! It will be Colby's and Mommy's first camping trip, sleeping in a tent. Mike grew up camping with is family and boyscouts but not me. We did take many family trips, but in our small camper. No tents! We'll see how it goes. Thankfully we aren't going far, just to Lake Warmaug where we have visited for the day often. So it will be familiar to Colby. Mike's parents are going too. Friends are coming for the day today and then David, Jocelyn, and Lizzie will be up for late afternoon on Saturday. I will be going to help my mom at my grandparents' house for a little while on Saturday. I'm so thankful that I can help her but still spend the time with my family too.

Anyway, here are a few pics I promised. My mom took them when she and my dad took Colby to the air show while Mike and Iwent to a family wedding. Doesn't he look like such a big boy??

A Little Bit of Everything

2010-06-11T19:02:00.000-07:00

It certainly has been an eventful week. I went and signed Colby up for swimming lessons through the town PAL (Police Athletic League) program. He'll start June 22 and go Tues and Wed afternoons for half an hour each day. I think they will help to lessen Mommy's anxiety around water anyway. Colby is almost fearless with water. He has always loved his bath and the first time he saw a pool he jumped right in. The same with the ocean, he walked right in up to his neck. At least he'll take a few lessons and hopefully learn how to keep himself afloat and swim.

This week we also gave up our dog Misha. She is a 90 pound black lab. Sweet as can be but full of energy. She loves people, especially kids and that became the problem. She would jump up on them. The neighbors kids were scared of her and Mike was worried something might happen. It isn't fair to keep her cooped up inside when they come over. Also, we hope to get away camping this summer and go to my parents' house in New Hampshire and we can't bring her. She really needs to be on a farm where she can herd animals, not kids. She was starting to nip our heels to "herd" us. So, Mike called the SPCA where we had gotten her and they have found her a new home. Hopefully it was the right thing to do. I don't know. I didn't want to do it. I really miss her. But I guess it is for the best.

This weekend we have a birthday party for my nephew Keith. He is just 2 months younger than Colby. The boys love playing together and there will be lots of other kids there. It should be really fun.

And on the potty front: Colby has been in undies for months now, with no issues! What a big boy. He loves his Mater and Race Car undies. The only time he wears Pull Ups is at night, for bed. I really wasn't sure how to handle night time. Colby is a real sound sleeper. He has slept through the past couple bad thunderstorms. But every night this week, he has woken up at night, asking to go potty or for us to fix his blankey. Thankfully, the door is on Mike's side of the bed! So we are getting woken up but Colby is staying dry all night! WOW! Now, when will he learn to go potty on his own and not wake up Mommy and Daddy?? I really am proud of our big boy!

Finally, it has been just over a month with Colby wearing his glasses. Thankfully he is very good about them, wearing them all the time. He sometimes forgets after nap but then he'll remember. Our last eye doctor visit the doctor asked us to patch his good eye to help the left eye get stronger. That has been a struggle and Colby really can't see well when we do it, but he is keeping the patch on for about 20-30 minutes a day. We head back to the eye doctor mid-July. We'll see if it has helped. I really hope so. However today, Colby and I were running a couple errands, post office and to Staples, and when we got home: NO LENS! He popped a lens out of his glasses already! And I have no idea where it is. Thankfully the glasses are getting fixed but no glasses for a few days. UGH!

I promise photos next time. My mom sent a few cute ones of Colby and Grandpa at the air show from a couple weekends ago. And I'm sure we'll have some from the party tomorrow!

Memorial Day Weekend

2010-06-02T10:29:00.001-07:00

Boy was this a busy weekend. I'm not sure we have recuperated from it yet. Friday we went with Mike's parents to Lake Waramaug. Aunt Trisha was home for the weekend and she came too. We had a nice picnic and enjoy some wonderful sunshine. Aunt Trisha brought Colby for a ride in the kayak. Mike caught a small fish and it scared Colby when it jumped out of Grandpa's hands toward him. Colby enjoyed "casting" his fishing pole with a bobber on it. He actually did very well.

Saturday Mike and I had a family wedding to go to so Colby spent the day with my parents. They brought him to an airshow where he was able to sit in different planes and see them fly. He had a blast! They also went to my Aunt Doone's to get the miniature horses ready for the parades on Sunday and Monday.

Sunday we had the Woodbury parade. It is a small parade but Colby enjoyed it. Once again he sat with cousin Corbin in the surrey. I drove Willy in the small driving cart. Part way through the parade, Colby sat with me and wanted to drive too. We both held the reigns for a little while but soon I heard, "No Mommy! I do it mineself!" Thankfully Aunt Doone was leading Willy so Colby was able to drive! He was so proud of himself.

Monday was the early day. We had the Naugatuck parade. Corbin and Colby were in the surrey again. The Naugatuck parade is very long so Mommy and Daddy got lots of exercise. After a little nap at home, we went to my Uncle Lou's for a picnic. Colby enjoyed playing with the other kids. It was a fun, but tiring weekend!

Unfortunately, the only day Mommy remembered the camera was on Sunday. My parents did take photos at the air show, which I hope to get soon. But for now, here's a few from Woodbury.

Argh!

2010-05-28T05:47:00.000-07:00

Well, it is official. We have a "Pirip" aka a pirate in our house. Colby went for his follow up visit to the eye doctor on Wednesday. As we thought, his eye sight in his left eye is not great, almost nothing. So, we are patching his good eye to hopefully strengthen the left eye and get the brain to start recognizing it and using it. But we only are patching it for about 15-20 minutes in the morning and then again right before dinner. Hopefully this works!

This weekend we will be VERY busy. We are heading to Lake Warmaug later today for a little sun, boating, fishing, and maybe even swimming. Tomorrow Mike and I have a wedding to go to so Colby will spend the day with Grandma and Grandpa C. Sunday and Monday we have parades and Monday we also have a picnic. Hopefully we make it this year. Last year Colby was so tired we didn't go to the picnic. So, I will post pics of our weekend soon. Hope everyone has a nice Memorial Day. And don't forget to thank your soldiers, young and old.

Let's Go Fly A Kite

2010-05-25T15:52:00.000-07:00

This Saturday we went to Harkness Park, down on the ocean. Our adoption agency holds different events during the year and this was the one in CT. We met many new friends and had a great time. It turned out to be nice weather, warm but not too hot and windy. Perfect to fly a kite! I hope that next month we can get to the event in Rhode Island too!

Here are a few photos. Colby took many of them. He loves the camera. He took a lot of our new friends Karin and Cynthia. They and their husbands are "waiting" families. Their initial paperwork is complete and they are waiting for a referal. Cynthia for a referal to Russia and Karin for a domestic adoption referal. Hope they hear the good news soon!

I'm Not Tired!

2010-05-21T15:49:00.001-07:00

This is what happens when we go to the park and don't take a nap when we get home!

Fun Happenings

2010-05-20T10:19:00.000-07:00

We have been quite busy lately so it was nice to have last weekend home with no plans. Unfortunately, the weather wasn't great Saturday, very windy. Thankfully Sunday was beautiful. Colby had fun playing outside with the neighbors, Vanessa (Nessa) and Christopher. Nessa is 8 and Christopher is 4. Nessa had two friends with her that live on our street as well. Brooke is 7 I think and Senta is 9. All five kids were playing in our yard on the swing set. Mike adn I were doing yardwork. I am trying to get my garden ready to plant. Some perennials and annuals but we also plant a few vegetable. Any suggestions? It was a nice afternoon watching the kids, even having to step in to patch a few quarrels. It seems the girls don't always share. At one point I just stepped back and watched and the thought came to me that, yes, I am the mom. I know odd thought since Colby's been home over a year. But this was the first time we had neighbor kids over. It just felt nice.

We are also now done with birthday, celebration season, for now. We celebrated Colby's birthday, then it was Mother's Day, and then my birthday. We are definitely caked, goodied out. My sister Kristin had bought Colby baloons for his birthday when we celebrated it on May 1st. Most of the balloons deflated by the next day. This one balloon kept going and going. It stayed up forever. Just the other night Mike, Colby, and I were playing with it. Colby was trying to pop it and just couldn't. It was one tough balloon. I had him jump up and down on it, stand on it, sit on it, but nope. We played with it for almost an hour hitting it back and forth. At one point Colby held it to his stomach and ran towards me like a charging bull. Still didn't pop! Eventually, it was time for bed and Colby asked Daddy to pop it. It took Mike with his work boots on to jump with both feet onto it to finally pop it. But boy was it fun! Even Misha got in on the fun!

This weekend we are heading to Harkness Park on the beach to a Wide Horizons event. Our adoption agency has different cultural or adoption group events. The CT one is this weekend. It is a kite flying and picnic event. I can't wait. I know of one other family that we know and a couple we know who are waiting for their referal that are going. It should be a lot of fun. And I hope to get lots of pics and meet lots of new friends.

A Few Good Pics and a Birthday Too

2010-05-13T17:22:00.000-07:00

Ok. So today is my birthday. I can't believe another one has come. Ugh! But, it certainly was a good one. A hand drawn card from my little man. A nice day at the park with lunch at Wendy's. And a nice homecooked meal, off the grill, from my hubby. Topped off with cannolis for dessert! YUM! My favorite.

So, enjoy a few cute pics. Some from today's dinner. The others are from this past Saturday. We went to Mike's cousin's house for her daughter Julia's first communion. Jake, Julia, and Logan are best buddies with Colby. He loves visiting with them. Although the day wasn't great, it did warm up enough, and stop raining long enough, to get the water shooters out that Aunt Nan brought. They had fun shooting eachother and Uncle Mark, the instigator! Yes, we started with our clothes on and ended up in undies!

Happy Mother's Day and Old Friends

2010-05-09T14:41:00.000-07:00

We wish everyone a wonderful Happy Mother's Day. I am so blessed to have a wonderful son to celebrate this day with. It has not been the easiest of roads to becoming a mother, but I wouldn't trade our experience for anything else. We certainly have come a long way and today was our second Mother's Day together.

We went for a nice breakfast and then to my friend Kathleen's for her son Andrew's Baptism. It was nice to see some of my high school friends again, along with their families. Amazingly, most of us have children, and they are all boys! I hope that we will get together again soon. I see Kathleen more often than the rest. Hopefully that will change. I'd love for the boys to get to know eachother.

Hopefully everyone else had a wonderful Mother's Day too. And to those mothers in waiting, I wish you a short wait and I hope you are with your children soon.

Birthday Pics

2010-05-05T10:23:00.000-07:00

I can't believe my little man is 3! Wow! And he definitely knows it. He'll tell you he's 3 and a big boy now. We had a small family dinner and ice cream cake on his birthday and then a party on Saturday with my family. We celebrated the family birthdays in April and May, which icluded both my brothers' Keith and Chris, mine, and Colby's. It was really fun. Then on Sunday we went to Mike's parents' for pizza and more rpesents with his family.

Here are a few picks of Saturday's party and a few of Colby fishing with Daddy and Grandpa. We bought him the fishing pole and tackle box he has been asking for for over a month now and he couldn't wait to try it out.

And They're In.....Glasses or No Glasses (edited new photos)

2010-04-29T19:27:00.000-07:00

Ok. So what do you all think of my big boy now? We just picked them up today before dinner. So far, so good. He seems to like having them on. I did order a strap for them as they seem a little big and they keep falling down his nose. But I think my baby boy is all gone and my big boy is here. The "before" photos are from Colby's birthday. We had a nice family dinner and gave him a few presents. A Mater and a Lightning McQueen, "Cars" pjs, and a soccer ball. Saturday is the big family party with my family and Sunday pizza at Mike's grandparents'. Another busy weekend.

But tell me what you think! Is he handsome or what?

April 28. 2010 Happy 3rd Birthday Little Man!

April 29, 2010 First pair of glasses.

(Colby tried to block this photo but I love how it came out.)

After his new big boy haircut! Wow!

Mystic Aquarium

2010-04-29T10:26:00.000-07:00

As promised, pics from the aquarium this past Saturday. Colby really enjoyed it, although at first he was very overwhelmed. I think he was amazed that the animals in his books had come alive and were right in front of him. He didn't want to touch anything, and that is HUGE! But we walked around and then saw the sea lion show. Then we walked outside adn saw the penguins and returned inside. Then Colby walked around like he knew the place and wanted to touch everything. So, the second time was the charm. He is still talking about the whales. I think they were his favorite.

Happy 3rd Birthday!

2010-04-28T06:37:00.000-07:00

Happy birthday to my favorite little man. You are now 3! What a difference you have made in our lives. We are truly blessed to have you as our son.

(And yes, photos will be posted later but now it's time to get dressed and visit Grandma and "Igoo" Uncle Lou at work for lunch.)

Busy Few Weeks...and the Eye Doctor

2010-04-26T11:09:00.000-07:00

Ok. We have been quite busy. Our little man is soon to turn 3, on Wed the 28th. I can't believe it. We have a small celebration tomorrow at the library where Colby and I go every Tuesday for story time. So cookies, a craft, and books for his friends tomorrow. Wed we will have his favorite dinner and a little cake just the three of us. On Saturday my family will be coming over to celebrate all the April and May birthdays. Colby, my brothers Chris and Keith, my brother-in-law Jeff, and mine. Last Saturday we brought Colby to Mystic Aquarium for part of his birthday present. We went there and then walked in downtown Mystic to see the boats on the river. He loved that! And yes, promise a post on that with photos!

Today however, Colby and I spent the morning at the eye doctor. When we adopted Colby we were told they thought he was nearsighted. Ok, we promised to check it out. I had noticed, and a few family memeber also noticed, that his left eye seemed slightly "lazy". When he looks at you sideways, it seemed to almost disappear. I wanted to wait a little while to check it out, at least get him a little older and a little more cooperative. So we went today. So...how did it go?

Mommy was a little nervous to go. I knew there was a slight problem but I didn't know what we could do to fix or help it. After 2 hours at the doctor....yes, there is a lazy eye.... his eye muscles didn't develop, part of being a preemie. He will need a patch to help strengthen his left eye. That won't be for a month though. First, eye glasses. Yup. His eyesight is really not good in his left eye so we need eye glasses to help correct that. However, the weak muscles and poor eye sight are most likely due to the scarring on his optic nerve. Not sure what that means but I think it is from being a preemie also. As a preemie, the eyes aren't fully developed and there may be a problem with the eyes. His scarring can't be fixed but hopefully with the eye glasses, a patch, and yes...surgery was mentioned somewhere down the road, my little man will be ok.

It is truly amazing though how he has adapted already though. He points out things far away in the car. He has used that right eye amazingly well. Now I just hope we can get that left one working well. So, nervous mommy is now a little sad mommy but hopeful that the doctor can help us. They were great with Colby and he was a real trooper. He sat so well for all the exams. My big boy! But he will definitely look like his Daddy now. I'll post some before and after and let you judge for yourself when we get the glasses. But does anyone have any suggestions on how to keep them on his face? He likes his sunglasses and playing with mine or Mike's but only wears them for a second or two. Ugh! Here come the battles. How do glasses stay on 3 year olds?????

Our Story....An Adoption Story With a Happy Ending

2010-04-15T05:58:00.000-07:00

I always knew I wanted children. I can remember telling my mom when I was little that I wanted to be a mommy just like her. When I was a teeneager, that dream almost ground to a hault. I was told I couldn't have children. Perhaps, one day, with medical help, but unlikely. When I met Michael, I knew we would have a happy life together and we wanted to share that life with children. He was the first to bring up adoption. We knew it wouldn't be an easy journey but on Sept 22, 2007 we began that journey together with our first informational meeting with Wide Horizons For Children. What a rollercoaster ride we were in for!

We were assigned a social worker, whom we now consider a friend. Together we all worked through the countless papers and meetings. In January of 2008 our "dossier" was completed. A few more papers later, and I had completed the first round of paperwork. I was thrilled to send the 5 pound package of paperwork to our adoption agency in March. A few months later we received our referral and in June of 2008, we were on our way to be introduced to a child. A child unknown to us at the time, but a child who has forever changed our lives.

We were headed to Yekaterinburg, Russia. Yeka what? Where was that? Oh, Siberia! Well, at least it was June. All we knew of Siberia at the time was that it is cold, desolate, and very remote. Boy were we in surprise. After 33 hours of travel we landed at the airport and were met by our Russian coordinator. We were brought to a nice hotel and everyone there was nice. The city of Yekaterinburg is absolutely beautiful. Clean, nice parks and walkways by the river. Nothing at all like we were expecting. Yes, we had language issues but everyone was so nice and we managed to go shopping, buy souveniers and even diapers, and have some nice dinners. That week we spent in Russia in June was full of emotion as we travelled the 2 hours south to another city, Kamensk-Uralsky to the baby home. We were met there by welcoming caretakers and a director who was happy to see our son get matched for adoption. No one there spoke English but it was obvious that they loved the children in their care. They told us about our son's background and let us play together. Those two visits were all too short and soon we headed home.

For the next 7 months we updated paperwork as requested by the judge, we met with 8 different doctors, including a psychiatrist and psychologist, and we waited. Family and friends questioned when we might return to get our son. We questioned it as well but all we could do was wait and continue to update more and more paperwork. I can never describe the emotions we had during those 7 months, not knowing how he was doing. We knew he was loved and cared for but he wasn't with us. We had met him at age 14 months and didn't see him again until age 22 months. Thanksgiving, Christmas, and a new year came until we finally had word. We received a couple updated photos and thankfully we could see he was happy. His baby face was already changing and he had more of a toddler look now but he looked healthy and happy. Then the good news came just after the new year. Our court date! We were headed back.

On January 28th, 2009 we left for Russia once again, this time knowing we would return with our son. This time we stayed in Kamensk for the first few days, in a small log cabin house which our son now refers to as the "gingerbread house". Then we spent the last few weeks in Ekat. And yes, Siberian winter is really cold! We spent much of February in Russia. We had court of Feb 4th, 2009 and waited out the 10 day court stay. We spent Valentine's Day with a nice dinner at a Scottish Pub overlooking the river. We even took long walks on the frozen lake and around the city. I may not have enjoyed the cold but the opportunity to experience my son's culture is one I am very thankful that I had. We now have memories, and many photos, that we can and do share with our son. We left Russia after a short stay in Moscow and were home on Feb 21, 2009. That is the day that Michael and I knew we became a family! Today a family of 3!

We have now been home a year. Yes, we have had our troubles but our adoption agency, family, and friends have always been there for us. We have met many other adoption families and will remain in contact with them. We enjoy playdates with 3 other WHFC families that have also brought children home from Russia. Our son has grown 5 inches and gained 8 pounds since coming home. He is happy, healthy, and the joy of our lives. Together we have experienced many firsts as a family and hope to enjoy many more. He has rode in a horse drawn carriage, gone swimming in a lake and in the ocean, experienced many family holidays, gone to an ice hockey game and we are now planning a trip to the aquarium, just to name a few of our adventures.

We now have our son, Colby, and a ton of memories to hold onto and share with him. We not only learned about a new culture but we gained friends whom we would never have met. The women who took care of our son will forever remain in our hearts. Tatiana and her staff helped mold our son into the person he is today and for that we will always be grateful. Our lives are forever changed for the better and they will always be a part of our adoption story.

I can't imagine our lives without Colby. We were meant to be a family and an international adoption with Russia helped fullfill that dream. I wanted to share our adoption story so that you can see the positive side of adoption. We are horrified by the actions of the woman in Tennessee. I can't imagine how she can go through the adoption journey only to return the young boy. Please do not allow the actions of her and the few others overshadow the amazing families that have been created through adoption. Do not let them affect so many other couples longing for a child to love and to affect the children waiting for their forever families and a place to belong. Please look to the positive side of adoption, not the negative. We need the media to see the joy and love that adoptive families ahve and to show the amazing, loving adoptive stories, not only the horrific. We have already discussed another adoption to bring home one or two siblings for him. I would love to have my children share a common cultural background and I would love the opportunity to return to Russia again to make that dream come true as well. Please don't end international adoption between the US and Russia.

Shocking News

2010-04-13T05:49:00.000-07:00

I am so disheartened by this weekend's news. I am sure many of you have heard the story of Artyem and how his adoptive mother returned him to Russia via airplane with a note attached. I was shocked. Going through the adoption process is not for the faint of heart. Mike and I went through such scrutiny by many doctors, including a psychiatrist, psychologist, and a social worker. The wait alone could have ended the process for many. We fought bouts of doubt, fear, anxiety, and even depression while waiting the 7 long months between trips to bring Colby home. I do not know this woman's adoption story but all are quite similar while dealing with Russia. I can't fathom how she could go through all of that and then just send him home. The news shows a scared child who now has such an unknown future. What will happen to him? Where will he live? I can only hope that he finds a loving home and a forever family.

On the down side, the actions of this one crazy woman are now affecting so many more lives. Children are waiting in orphanages and baby homes in Russia and throughout the world and now sit by while men in power try to sort this out. These men have no ties to the children or the parents waiting for children. Parents waiting for court will now wait even longer. Couples waiting for a referral may now not receive one. The whole process has ground to a halt and may become closed. I can only pray that it will not. That would be a shame. The actions of one should not affect so many. That woman shouold be ashamed.

The media needs to tell more of the positive stories. Show the amazing families that have been created through adoption. Without adoption, I would not be the mom I was meant to be. The following link is a website that tells a few ways that we can help adoption with Russia remain open. Please check it out and at the very least, sign the petition. Let Russia know that we are good people and we ahve created great families for the Russian children we have adopted. I would love to return to Russia again to adopt a sibling, or two, for Colby and if this woman's actions make that impossible it will be the biggest shame imaginable.

Please visit this site(http://betheanswerforchildren.wordpress.com/2010/04/12/we-are-the-truth-a-call-to-action/), and forward to your friends interested in the futures ofthousands of waiting orphans in Russia.

Artyem's story...Just shocking http://rt.com/Top_News/2010-04-08/adopted-russian-child-returns.html

What a Long Weekend

2010-04-12T06:21:00.000-07:00

Well, thankfully this weekend is over. Perhaps we will get back to our routine now. I was not looking forward to this weekend much at all. I spent all Fri, Sat, and Sun at my grandparents' house at the estate sale. We lost my grandfather, Poppy, 4 years ago and just last Sept we lost my grandmother, Mamie. My mom has been busy, with the help of my Aunt Doone, to organize their house and horse farm for the estate sale since early Oct. I have helped when I could but it was a huge undertaking. The sale was Sat and Sun. We did ok but there is so much more stuff. I am not sure what will happen now. I think my mom and her brother and sisters are going to hold another sale in May. Not sure. Whenever it is though, I will be there to help. That is what my grandparents always taught me, to help family and friends whenever possible.

My grandparents had such nice things. Hummels, Norman Rockwell plates, beautiful rugs and furniture, and of course all the miniature horse harness and tack. Everyone who came through the sale was amazed at all the stuff. I hated to see it go. I hate to see the farm go. I have so many memories of that farm andmy grandparents and things we did together. It is hard to see things change. I wish that Colby could have seen Poppy. I know they would have been great buddies.

These two photos are of Colby with miniature horses at the Memorial Day Parades in Woodbury and Naugatuck last year. Poppy loved his horses. These horses now belong to my Aunt Doone.

Easter 2010

2010-04-06T10:35:00.000-07:00

Well, this was our second Easter with Colby and we had a great time. Our first Easter came pretty wuickly after we came home from Russia. We had not settled into a routine yet and Colby still had many new family and friends to see. He also was young and I don't think he quite understood the whole Easter Bunny thing. But this year, he was waiting for it!

We had brought him to see the Easter Bunny the weekend before and he asked for some jelly beans and carrots. I know, strange request but true! The bunny brought him the jelly beans, some chocolate, a small kite, and some Matchbox cars. We left the carrot out for the bunny and he ate it! All he left were the ends!

Saturday we had Easter with Mike's family. And Easter Sunday was with my family. Thankfully the holidays work out and Mike's family celebrates the day before (except Thanksgiving). We had an Easter egg hunt at both houses and ate way too much. Everyone loved the Pizza Gain Colby and I made. Colby loved playing with all his cousins. On Saturday he rode on his Gator with Jake, Julia, and Logan. They all took turns driving. Colby kept changing the gearshift so they would go forward and reverse over and over. They were very cute together. On Sunday he played with Max, Alex, Teddy, and Keith. Even Mommy and Grandma played soccer! At one point Max and Teddy were playing a version of kickball and they were using sticks as bases. Colby followed them around and pulled out all the sticks. He was marching with them singing "Hi Ho, Hi Ho!" And my parents' dog, Patches, was chasing everyone around. Both days were bright, sunny, and absolutely gorgeous. After all the rain we were having, it was nice to have a beautiful weekend outside. Colby was exhausted after all the running around.

So, Easter was nice here. It was a little sad not having Mamie with us but having Colby really changes how I see the holidays. I love how excited he gets when he sees our families. And finding those eggs and Easter candy was a blast. What did you all do for Easter? We hope it was a good one!

Easter Preperations

2010-04-02T19:15:00.001-07:00

This is now our second Easter with Colby. Last year at this time he was only home about a month and a half. Mike and I were finally over our illnesses and we had settled into a routine. The Easter Bunny came and we had two Easter candy hunts and Colby was overwhelmed. I am sure he had no idea what was going on. He was still meeting new people and everything was so new. This year is quite different. He loves reading Easter books and keeps asking when the Easter Bunny will come and bring him jelly beans. It is so darn cute.

We have been busy with Easter preperations. Yesterday my little helper donned his chefs apron and helped me make Pizza Gain. For those non-Italians, Pizza Gain is a meat, cheese pie. Somewhat similar to a French Quiche and definitely not good for you, but oh so delicious. It has about 3-4 different cheeses, 4-5 different Italian meats, and a whole lot of eggs. While I cut up the meat, Colby put it into the bowl that we had mixed with the eggs and cheeses. He did so well, only a few pieces of meat were eaten! He loved the ham and salami but not so much the capricol or prosciute. (Boy my spelling is bad!) Then last night we dyed Easter Eggs. He really enjoyed seeing the water change colors and then seeing the egg change to blue especially. The kit had stickers too and he loved putting those on. Only 1 egg was dropped!

Today Mike and I brought Colby to the mall to see the Easter Bunny. We did the same thing with Santa at Christmas time. I think Colby liked Santa better, maybe because he talked to him. The bunny doesn't talk. It is a little strange but he was cute. The photo came out cute. This will definitely become a yearly tradition. And now tomorrow we begin our Easter celebrations. First with Mike's family tomorrow and then my family on Easter. I can't wait for the Easter Bunny to come....can you? Colby is ready! Bring on the jelly beans!

Hockey

2010-03-24T09:45:00.001-07:00

This Sunday Mike and I brought Colby to his first hockey game! We went to Hartford, home of the Wolf Pack, to watch an AHL hockey game. They played Providence Bruins. The Wolf Pack is the"farm team" for the NY Rangers and Providence is the farm team for the Boston Bruins. We all had a great time.

Ever since I can remember, I went with my mom and other family members to Hartford to watch hockey games. Back then we had an NHL team, the Hartford Whalers. I grew up with hockey. When the Whalers left, we kept the season tickets for the Wolf Pack. They are a pretty good team with up and comer players. A few years ago we stopped getting season tickets and I have only been to a handful of games since. But, now we brought Colby.

It was amazing to sit there and watch him experience something so new. The sights and sounds. It is very noisy and so much is going on. But, he loved it. We were there early enough to see the teams warmup and watch the zambonies clean the ice. We ate pizza and just enjoyed an afternoon together. And yes, the Wolf Pack won...in overtime!

This is just one of many new experiences I want to enjoy with Colby. They may be things I have done growing up, but with Colby everything is a new experience!

Sleep...

2010-03-19T09:58:00.000-07:00

Well, we are still fighting the sleep demons. Colby just doesn't want to go to bed or most especially nap. I realize that many children age 3, which he will be next month, begin to decrease nap time. However, Colby without a nap is a bear. He doesn't go to sleep any earlier without a nap and from 6-8 at night he is miserable those days. The only difference is that without a nap, he does go to sleep quicker than days he has a nap.

Yes, I admit, I do watch Supernanny and I loved Nanny 911. I like to see how she handles sleep issues. We do have the set routine with bath, book, etc. Usually Colby wants Mike to sit with him. That's fine. However, we can't sit with him forever. He doesn't fall asleep right away and starts to fuss if we get up. The usual routine, Mike reminds Colby he will only sit for a couple songs (Yes, we have the radio on. Colby likes it. I think it gives him the noise he is used to from the baby home). They listen to the songs with Colby in bed and Mike on the floor. After the two songs, Mike goes to leave. Not too long after, we hear the pitter patter of little feet and out pops Colby. He doesn't cry or make any noise. He just stands there. Mike and I then take turns walking him back to bed without talking to him. This can go on and on for at least 30-40 minutes. One night it went almost an hour. I just don't know what else to do. I miss the crib! I'm not sure if he misses our company, is just being a brat or what. The sleep issue started right before the holidays when it started to get dark out sooner. I can only hope it will end now that it is staying lighter out.

And nap is hit or miss. Yesterday he fussed and yelled and refused to stay in bed. Today, he finished lunch, put one of his stuffed animals down for a nap, and put himself to bed. Granted now he is reading a book but I can handle that. As long as he rests. What can we do? Any suggestions? Ugh! I hate nap and bed time!!!!

Ok...so I wrote this a little too quickly. Colby just fell asleep for his nap. Yes, he put himself in bed and I sat with him for 2 songs. Then we started with the getting up routine. He decided to read books and play with his toys instead of rest, even though I left him with a few books. After an hour I put him in a boring corner and told him if he wanted to stay up he could sit there. After a little crying I watched as his head started to droop. Yup, asleep in the corner. I just carried him to bed. Ugh!

My Big Boy

2010-03-10T11:10:00.001-08:00

I am amazed at how big my little man is getting. There are so many things that he can now do that he couldn't do before. Today we went to the park and Colby was off and running. He was jabbering away with two little girls, playing follow the leader, and climbing up the slides. Yes, UP the slides. He was quite proud of that! And to think last year I had to hlep him climb the steps to get to the slide. He is now a little monkey!

Also, a couple months ago we went and registered Colby for the 3 year old preschool program. Wow! To think that in the fall, he will be going off to preschool. He is VERY excited about going to 'chool like Nessa, our neighbor. Anytime we drive by her school he says, "I go there, after later." How will we ever wait until the fall? I'm not so sure that I am looking forward to that day though.

Recently my sister Karin came up from Manhattan and brought us a few things that her boys had. I love getting hand me downs from the boys. The best item, besides the bike which Mike needs to put training wheels on, is a race car back pack. Alex and Max, me nephews, showed Colby how to put his books, pencils, and toys in the backpack and go to school. Now Colby drags it everywhere. He even decided to pack it himself and wear it to Mike's parents' house. With his baseball cap and backpack, he certainly looked like a big boy.... Where did my baby go?

Returning to the Beginning

2010-03-04T07:36:00.001-08:00

Last night my family had a wonderful opportunity. We were asked to speak at an adoption information meeting at our agency, Wide Horizons for Children. It seems like a dim memory that Mike and I went to our initial meeting with Wide Horizons on Sept 22, 2007. We have come such a long way since then. Seeing the faces of the couples sitting in that meeting, I was brought back to how we felt walking in. We were so unsure, even nervous. We had no idea what to expect and how that day would change our lives forever. There were three couples at the meeting last night.

I am not sure how my talk went. I had made notes to follow but typical of me, I was soon off track. I talked about the timeline of our adoption and how it felt going through the process. I made a point of giving my information out to them so they could call or email me. I wanted to make sure they knew that what helped me most was talknig with people who have gone, or are going through, the adoption process. Family and friends mean well and are helpful to an extent but they can't understand how emotional this process is. I talked about meeting Colby that first time, and again 7 months later. I wanted to focus on the positive things but also mention that it can be a difficult process and that it is ok to ask for help. They enjoyed meeting Colby although he seemed more interested in playing with the toys and ran out of the room. One couple seemed interested in the Russia program. I am not sure about the others. But I can only hope that meeting us will help those couples to begin their own adoption journeys. And I hope that they do decide to check out my blog, call, or email me anytime. I would love the opportunity to help others through this process like so many have helped Mike and me. I couldn't have made it through the long wait without the hlep of my fellow blogger adoptive friends. Thank you all!

Favorite Photo, An Update, and A Question to Ponder

2010-02-26T10:24:00.001-08:00

Well, here it is. Colby has now been home just over a year. We had a wonderful celebration on Sunday with his Baptism. I can't believe a year has come and gone. Before he came home, time seemed to be standing still. I can remember willing the days to just finish, going to bed early just to end the wait, and trying to keep busy so I wouldn't think about things. Now I enjoy every moment I can, I try to get to bed eary still but only because a two year old can really wipe me out, and I try to be not busy but there are so many things to do. Things have certainly changed.

Colby has really become such a big boy. He has grown 4 1/2 inches and is now 3 feet and 1/2 inch tall. He has also gained 7 pounds to now weigh 30 pounds. Definitely a workout to carry him! When I look at the early photos, I can see the change in him also. He has lost those little chubby baby boy cheeks and now looks so grown up. His eyes still sparkle and his smile and laugh truly light up a room. He has become very independent, going potty all by himself. He now dresses himself, with just a little help, when he wants to. The trouble: he is very determined and strong willed. He will do things when he wants to and definitely will speak his mind to you. We do have a battle of the Taurus bulls! His language skills completely amaze me. His expressive vocabulary is beyond what I could imagine. He seems to love learning new words and repeats everything he hears. And he loves to build with his blocks and make puzzles. Everything seems to spark his new found imagination. I haven't found much that he doesn't like. Right now he asks often to watch "curlin", hockey, skiin, and "nowboardin". Yes, we have been watching a lot of Olymipcs and Colby sits in amazement as he watches the skiers and snowboarders flip and twist. He tells me "Colby do that after later"! Oh boy!

So, I began this blog when we returned from our first trip to Ekat, Russia. That was back in June of 2008. I am truly in awe of where we have come since then. My life has changed so much and I am so thankful to everyone for all of their help. Through this blog I have "met" such amazing people and have been fortunate to share in their adoption journies as well. I hope that others have been reading this and that it has helped or changed them in some way. That was my intention. Now, as I sit here today, I ask myself the question that my husband has asked me before. "How long will I keep this blog?" The answer, I just don't know. I hope that people enjoy reading it. I enjoy writing it but I often find it difficult to find the time to write. Thankfully the little man decided he wanted his nap today! I have noticed a decrease in numbers and comments. So, I will ask you all:

Should I keep this blog? Will it be read and enjoyed? I will keep it up so others can read about our journey, and it will be my link to my fellow blog friends, I still enjoy reading your updates and seeing new photos. But should I keep updating it? Leave your comments and let me know. Thanks! This blogger community truly helped me through some difficult moments waiting to being Colby home. I only hope I can return the favor in some way too.

Snow, Winter at Lyman Orchard, Colby's Baptism, and A Year

2010-02-22T10:38:00.001-08:00

We have certainly had a busy February. We finally had a pretty big snowstorm. All the snow had been staying south of us (sorry Joy). But this week we finally got enough snow for Colby to really enjoy playing in. And he definitely did. While I was tutoring, Mike and Colby built a little snow fort/igloo, complete with crawl spaces. Colby and Misha loved climbing on it, instead of in it. We also went to Lyman Orchard on Saturday. They have a Winterfest complete with ice carvers, snowboarders, and even a small hill for the kids to go sledding on rubber innertubes. The ice sculptures had a medieval times theme this year. Colby enjoyed watching the man use the power tools to carve the ice. Then we had a nice sled ride, all be it in the mud! The snowstorm we had had earlier in the week gave way to warm temperatures and lots of melting. Yuck! But, the day was warm and it felt almost like Spring is near. I think Colby's favorite part was sledding down the little hill on the innertube. He went sitting down first but then I had him lay across the tube. He loved it. That and watching the snowboarders go down the small hill they had made to do a few tricks. In Colby's words, "I do that!" Yikes! Do we have the next Shaun White?

But the weekend ended with a celebration. We had Colby Baptized. When we were planning his Baptism, I wanted to wait until after the holidays. It was such a hectic time. So I called the church in early Jan to discuss a date. I mentioned Feb and was reminded that the church only does Baptisms on the third Sun of the month and the date happened to be Feb 21. When I was asked if that was ok, I said that it was perfect. What timing! We brought Colby home on Feb 21 of last year. He has been home a year! I know many people like to celebrate Gotcha Day, the day they pick up their child/children from the baby home. However, we picked Colby up on the 17th and then had to still go to Moscow to the Embassy. It didn't truly feel complete until we reached home. The moment I saw my mom. My parents and Mike's parents picked us up from JFK Airport around 9 or 9:30 at night, after we had to wait in immigration. The first person I saw was my mom and a total sense of relief hit me. We did it! Colby was home, we were home, and we were a family. That moment I knew everything turned out ok. What a sense of joy!

So, now this year, we celebrated Colby's welcome to our family last year, and his welcome to God's family. And I couldn't have been prouder. As Rev. Gordon brought Colby on his walk down the isle he mentioned the special meaning of the day. He also mentioned that it was Gotcha Day. Another coincidence, our Rev also adopted his little girl. He certainly knew how special the day was. We had a nice lunch with our families at our house and just enjoyed being together. What a special day and what special memories I will always have for February 21st!

I'm Beautiful!!!

2010-02-18T17:23:00.000-08:00

Wow! Someone thinks I'm beautiful. Today I learned that I

recieved a "Beautiful Blogger award from Jenny at Just Jones http://justjonesfamilyblog.blogspot.com/ What a great surprise.

Per the rules of winning the award, I'd like to pass this award on!

The rules are simple:

1. Thank the person who nominated you for this award and insert a link to their blog.

2. Copy and paste the award into your blog

3. Share 7 things about yourself.

4. Pass on the award to about 10 otherbloggers who you recently discovered andthink are great! (in no particular order)*********************************************

So, here are my 7 things.......

1) I recently quit teaching. The decision wasn't completely up to me, but in the end it worked out great and I have enjoyed being home with my son since.

2) I guess you can say I am somewhat of a loner. I have few very good friends but those that are my friends know they can count on me for anything.

3) I love helping others. I love to teach new things to people or help them get through difficult times. I find my greatest accomplishments have been when I have helped others do something they thought they couldn't.

4) I love the water. I would love to have a house on a lake. I grew up spending summers at Lake Winnepasaukee in NH. Nothing better than the sound of water to calm you.

5) I love to read. I have always liked to read before I could go to sleep and I still do. Favorite authors: Dean Koontz, James Paterson, John Grisham, Danielle Steele, and Nora Roberts.

6) My best friend= my mom. She's the only one I have come to truly know I can count on for anything. We have shared some tough times together. I wish that I was as strong of a person as she is.

7) I have been on a search to find me again. Not teaching, becoming a mom, things have really changed. I'm not sure what the future holds but I'd love to become part of the adoption world, helping families through the process. I'd also love to build on the small group of fellow adopting families that have come together in CT. Our adoption journey has certainly changed me and I'd love to help others through their journies to becoming families.

Now my nominees:

http://shellkay13.blogspot.com/

http://carneyadoption.blogspot.com/

http://mattiesbabybrothersisterfromrussia.blogspot.com/

http://ourrussianadoptionadventures.blogspot.com/

http://2009russia.blogspot.com/

http://becomingamommy.blogspot.com/

http://ourrussianangel.blogspot.com/

I have loved reading all these blogs and I hope you will too!

GOTCHA!

2010-02-17T10:22:00.000-08:00

A year ago today Mike and I made one last 2 hour drive to Kamensk to get Colby. Today was Gotcha Day! The wait was finally over. We had gone to court, we had waited out the 10 day stay and now we could go get him. We spent the morning with Svetlana getting the paperwork we needed. We received his new birth certificate and the adoption decree, along with a few other papers. Then we took the drive to the baby home. I remembered to bring some crackers with us because we went around lunch time.

We got the the baby home and took the stairs for the last time. I wasn't sure if we would get to dress Colby or what would happen. When we got in the room, one of the caregivers asked for his new clothes. She dressed him and brought him out. I put on his socks and shoes though. Svetlana had to get some other paperwork we needed in Kamensk so we had a little time to play. We ended up spending about an hour and a half or so. I had brought a little box of candies for Colby to give ot his caregivers so when we said goodbye I gave him the box and walked with him to give it to them. I am so grateful for the care that they gave him while we weren't with Colby. They really took good care of him. There were tears and many "Spaseebahs", thank yous. What can I say to the ladies who watched over my son? Thank you didn't seem quite right but that's all I had. We finished dressing Colby in his snowsuit and then we were ready. We all hugged and said goodbye and then we were off. Colby did great in the car. He slept for part of the way and then was content looking out the window.

We didn't get back to Ekat until around 6. Mike and Svetlana went to get Colby's passport while I stayed with Colby at the apartment. I made spaghetti for dinner and then we had a nice night at home, our first as a family! The next day we would be off to Moscow!

It is amazing how far we have come! This year has been one I will never forget. And to celebrate our year home,w e will have Colby's Baptism this Sunday. It lands on Feb 21, the day we landed back home as a family of three! What new things will this next year bring?

Sharing

2010-02-11T13:21:00.000-08:00

Do two year olds really have to share everything? Ugh! Thank goodness Grandma lives right down the road and had the day off from teaching.

And I Came Home To?.......

2010-02-10T17:10:00.000-08:00

I have started tutoring with a company after school. At first, in mid-December I was working Tues and Thurs. I would leave the house at 2:30 and return around 5. Now I am tutoring Mon-Thurs. It has been a nice change of pace. I enjoy the time away from home and working with kids who are struggling in school. I have kids in grade K and grade 1. I don't think I am quite ready to go back teaching full-time but with tutoring I can still help kids who really need it and give them extra attention. I only work with a small group of 3 or 4 each day. 2 kids can work on the computer portion of the curriculum and then I work with just one or two teaching basic phonics and reading skills.

My leaving in the afternoon has been a big change for Colby and me though. Mike comes home from work to be with him and they get dinner ready. However, Colby has also decided to cause a fuss over nap time. Naptime was from 1-3. I have started to put him down around 12:30 so he would be up when I leave. I think Colby gets scared when Mike or I leave when he is asleep. I really have to explain at naptime that Daddy will be back after "sleep" and then Mommy will go "Teach boys ABCs". This little discussion seems to help but there are some days when COlby just can't seem to settle down. So, this leads into yesterday.

Both Colby and I have been fighting colds. I think Mike was sick first and got us sick. So, Colby was a little whiny in the morning. I thought he would go right down but nope. He went to bed great but then wouldn't stay. Thus began the up and down battle that we fight most nights and many naptimes. Mike came home to this and saw me frustrated. I hate leaving when it is like that. So I let Colby up but told him no playing with trains because he didn't sleep. And off I went to tutot. I had a parent late picking up their child so I was home a little bit later than usual on a Tuesday.

When I got home I heard the crying and just knew things hadn't improved. I opened the door to Mike yelling, "Watch your step!" Watch my step? What was going on? Then I smelled it and saw it. The poor little guy threw up all over the kitchen and was now in the bathroom. Everything was a mess. He needed to be changed and so did Mike! The story was he cried and fuzzed so much that Mike put him back to bed and he slept for about 45 min and then Mike was holding him on the rocking chair when it came. Yuck! I HATE that smell. Our night didn't get much better. I changed Colby, only to have to do it about 4 more times. We tried some water but nope. Nothing stayed. And he hasn't eaten much today either. On the plus side he is very clingy and wants to be held. But that isn't really how I want to get my hugs. He doesn't seem to have a fever, he isn't warm. I can't find a good thermometer but by touch he seems ok. He was very pale yesterday and part of today but his cheeks have some color back now. Hopefully it was a 24 hour thing and we are over it. But boy did I want to walk right back out that door.

Well, I knew we would have days like that. Thankfully we have been home almost a year and this was Colby's first really illness. He seems to have great health. He had a fever shortly after we came home but that I think was due to teething, all four molars popped out. My poor little guy. I hate to see him sick but thankfully he's looking much better now.

Feb 4, 2009

2010-02-04T07:40:00.000-08:00

This date last year a judge in Ekaterinburg, Russia, pronounced us the parents of Colby Michael. Wow! A whole year. Our stay in the gingerbread house in Kamensk was over but now we had to wait out the 10 day stay. We wouldn't pick Colby up for good until Feb 17th. But hearing that decree let me breathe a huge sigh of relief. Our dream had finally come true!

In A Year

2010-02-01T08:10:00.000-08:00

February 2, 2009

February 2, 2010

Reunion and a Gingerbread House

2010-01-30T07:27:00.001-08:00

Last year at this time Mike and I were extremely exhausted as we landed at the airport on our long trip back to Ekaterinburg. We had had no sleep and were hungry. But we still had one last trip to go. It was about 5AM Ekat time on Jan 30th (about 7PM Jan 29th our time here) that made it about 27 hours since our dinner at Olive Garden. And airplane food isn't that great.

We were met by Svetlana at the airport and we made the drive in the dark to Kamensk-Uralsky where we would be staying until court. The judge requested that we visit with Colby each day until court on Feb 4th. I was thrilled with that idea. Since Kamensk is a 2 hour drive from Ekat, we would be staying right near the baby home and would visit almost all day. Great for bonding!

The little log house we stayed in was very cute. I'm sure we would have loved it in the summer. Colby looks at pictures of it and calls it his gingerbread house. It was a little camping type place. However, no phone, no computer access, and very little heat. There were space heaters in the house but they hadn't been turned on. It was FREEZING! It was so cold that the water pipes actually froze later that day.When we arrived we had the chance to clean up and change clothes. Then we would go see Colby.

I was nervous seeing Colby again. I wasn't sure if he would remember us. But, everything went well. We met with the director of the baby home again and she was so happy to see us. She caught us up on how Colby was doing. When they brought him in. Colby did cry and was a little chy but he wanted to be held by both Mike and me. We played with some familiar toys and looked at a few books. We had about 3 hours to play and get reaquainted. We fed him lunch and then left to get our lunch. I'm not sure what we ate but I was thankful to eat. Then we went back to our little house and rested before going to see Colby again from 3-5:30.

I am just so thankful and a little in awe for everything that happened that day. I knew I had the piece of my heart back that I had left in Kamensk for those 7 months. I was again complete. It was not a perfect day. We did have the water pipes freeze so I couldn't eat or shower until very late that night. We were exhausted from our trip. We did freeze in that little house for a couple days until the heaters finally kicked in. But we were all together, finally. We were reunited.

Plane Ride Last Year

2010-01-28T05:40:00.001-08:00

On Jan 28, 2009 Mike and I were frantically making sure our bags were packed and everything we needed was in its place. Our Visas were set, 3 bags had been packed and repacked, new clothes had been washed, the few gifts bought, Misha was all set to stay at Mike's parents, and travel plans were all done. The day was so long. I just wanted to leave. Get the show on the road, or in the air I guess you could say. Mike's parents were driving us to the airport around 3. I was a bundle of nervous energy. I didn't really think this was going to happen. And to top it all off, it was raining, sleeting, snowing, all of the above. It was such a gloomy, yucky day. We did leave early for the airport just in case.

On our way, we stopped for an early dinner at Olive Garden. My absolute favorite restraunt. Mike and I knew it would be the last really good meal for a while. The trip would take awhile. It was the same flights that we had taken in June. Late night flight to Frankfurt, Germany with a 6 hour layover, then the flight into Yekaterinburg. We also knew, from a phone call just two days before that our plans had changed and we would be staying in Kamensk, right near the baby home so we expected the 2 hour drive there right away. Ugh! So I enjoyed my chicken alfredo pizza, salad, and breadsticks, and then we were on our way.

We used Mike's Dad's new GPS to get us to the airport. However, in setting it up, somehow I chose the "No tolls" route and we seemed to skirt around NYC, backtracking a lot. I was getting worried but we made it to the airport with time to spare. We said our goodbyes and then headed for security. No problems and then the wait. Unlike June, with its bright sunny weather, our plane was on time for Frankfurt. Interesting.....terrible weather, plane on time....beautiful weather and the plane was 2 hours late! I guess you just never know!

And so our final journey to Colby began. Amazing how far we have come since then.....

Ugh!

2010-01-25T16:05:00.001-08:00

Ok. I must confess. We are not doing well with sleeping lately. Is it a two year old thing? Is it Colby being a little stinker? Is it an adoptive thing? Not sure but it all started somewhere in the midst of the holiday season. Thinking it was the holidays and COlby was just over excited, I didn't think much of it. Now, I'm going crazy. Most days, he refuses to nap. Yes, he is tired. Yes, he is cranky without it. But no, he won't give in and go to sleep. He is in a toddler bed and for the life of me, I can't figure out how to keep him in it. There is no major tantrum. He comes out to peek at Mike and me to see if we are still there. Just checking I guess. At night this can go one for well over an hour. We have tried it all. Laying with him in our bed, sitting on his floor, leaving him alone. Ugh! Nothing works. He has said he's "Afraid dark". Not sure. So this leads to yesterday....

Mike and I sat with Colby and tucked him in for his nap after lunch. He had been very fidgety at church but he looked tired. We hoped for a good nap. No such luck. Mike sat with him for a little while and then came out to the family room. Colby peeked out a couple times and we sent him back. Colby got up once and went to the potty. Mike went in and praised him for that. Then it was quiet for quite awhile. We thought he had fallen asleep. No such luck. Mike went to check on him and what a mess! Colby had reached up on the dresser and grabbed the tube of Diaper Cream. Yes, I know, I should have put it away. We haven't used it in forever. Colby is now potty trained so why is it out? He squeezed the cream everywhere on the floor, the dresser, his bed, and the area rug. That stuff not only smells but is so sticky. Mike and I had to scrub the rug but it is still there. On the bright side, we wanted to clean it pretty good before we have company this weekend. The dog sleeps on it and it was a mess. But, ugh! Everywhere. Now what do we do? We had just praised him for getting up by himself and going poops on the potty, and now this? Ugh! And then of course, he wouldn't lay down again and threw a fit, crying and screaming, begging for a snack. A SNACK!!! After that mess. No way! So, last night, exhausted he fell asleep with little fuss. And today he did take a nap. We shall see about tonight!

Colby Says.....

2010-01-23T11:11:00.000-08:00

Here are some of our favorite Colbyisms. I can't believe how much Colby has learned this year, and continus to learn. Amazing! His vocabulary and witty comments certainly keep us on our toes.

Nah (Thankfully we got that rid off quickly. For about a week it was Nah...no!)

No Mom. Stop it. (Yes, I am often not Momma or Mommy anymore, just Mom. Yikes! He often tells me to Stop it when I am singing with him in the car. Around Christmas time I was singing with the group "Lonestar" to the song "Little Drummer Boy". Colby proceeded to yell at me, "(No Mommy. No Parum Pum Pum Pums. Stop it.)

Okay. No poblem. (When we ask him to do something, we often get told no but we just as oftem hear Ok or No problem.

Tanktin Mommy/Daddy. (This is Colby's way of saying thank you.)

Love you, back moon. (My mom alsways said this saying to me, "I love you all the way to the moon and back". I guess Colby loves me to the moon way in the back!)

Oh no goodness (I take the blame on this one. I will say Oh my goodness when Colby coughs or yells loudly. Now he says it to us. However, COlby has also said "Oh no God." I guess that one slips now and then too.)

Can't see you/me. Can't hear you/me. (When I ask Colby to do something, I often end with, do you hear me, if he seems to not be listening. THen I get told, "Can't hear you" when he doesn't want to listen. Ugh!)

Hush Misha. No barkin.

Hibary peas. See Miss Marget (Colby and I go to storytime at the Library. He loves going and seeing Miss Margret.)

Colby do...or Colby try... (Yes, my son speaks about himself in the third person. We are working on pronouns! Slowly we are now hearing "I do that.")

What a mess (Yup. Colby knows when he makes a mess. But he also knows how to clean it up. He hates having his hands dirty when he eats.)

Tickle peas (Colby loves to be tickled and actually asks us to do it.)

Bein Ridiculus (I guess Mike and I have told him a little too often that his whining is ridiculous. He says this to the dog but also when he knows he is being silly.)

Baketball (He likes watching UCONN girls play basketball with Mommy.)

That way (He has become quite assertive with what he wants and often points out which way we should walk or drive.)

Button peas (Not what you think really. Colby has now learned how to turn the TV on and off with the button. He asks for the "button" to let us know he wants to watch TV in the morning, Mommy and Colby snuggle in bed in the morning to watch Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Special Agent Oso.)

DVDV (When he wants to watch a movie he'll ask "Movie peas" or he will bring it to us and say DVDV.)

We are still being serenaded with Jingle Bells along with Colby banging on his new drum. Colby has been humming and singing a lot more lately.

He also points out everything along our journeys in the car. Water, McDonald's, firehouses, tractors, even the post office!

In stores Colby will see writing and point to it saying, "ABC's Mommy!" And then proceed to count the letters. He loves to count everything! Wow! I think he's pretty smart.

I know there are more sayings to come. Hope you enjoyed these though.

January 14

2010-01-14T11:00:00.001-08:00

On this date:

Lat year: It was a long day. I was substitute teaching and the kids were being crazy. Mike was working with his dad. We had already updated all our paperwork, which included 2 papers on Christmas Eve. We were hoping to hear something very soon. When would the phone ring? When would we go? Mike came home and was starting dinner. Spaghetti. I decided to pass the time by checking emails and catching up on my fellow bloggers. Fellow blogger Joy had received great news the day before. Maybe we would be next. But it was already after 5 so I didn't expect anything. But there it was.... an email. We received an email stating that our court date was set for February 4th! Oh my gosh. My jaw dropped and I yelled for Mike. He read it and we couldn't believe it. Dinner was all but forgotten. We forced ourselves to eat and then ran down to his parents' house. We called my parents. The whirlwind of preperations began. We hadn't even decorated Colby's room. Thankfully my mom and sister had a baby shower planned for me within the next couple of days. We didn't have much.

Today: I spent the day with my little man. We played with his trucks and tractors. Mike came home and we all went to the bank to work on paperwork for Mike's business. Another change- Mike is taking over his Dad's remodeling business. Amazing! Now I am headed to tutor for a few hours. Then we are going to Mike's grandparents for dinner. Mike's Uncle Steven is coming from Utah for the weekend with his daughter Eva. Colby spent much of August with Eva and her brother Jack. So dinner tonight- probably pizza. Then I will cuddle with my little man and watch as he sleeps, totally in awe of how my life has changed within this past year. Wow!