who needs a crib.........

when you have a daddy to sleep on?

this is still jyla's preferred method of sleeping. 

when we were in China, it is the ONLY way that she would sleep....

thankfully she is getting more comfortable in her crib now.

however, her nights are still very interrupted.

every once in a random while, she will sleep all night.

but normal for her is up 2-4 times.

we still have a mattress on the floor of her room, where i usually end up sleeping because it is easier to comfort her from there than it is to get out of bed every time she wakes up.

we could not help ourselves....

it's february-

& there's still some snowon the ground here-

but we could not stay inside today!!

it was so fabulously warm!

so we headed to the park

& both girls cried when we had to leave.

*Valentines*

We had

SO

much

FUN

celebrating Valentines this year!

roses, cards, making treats, getting treats, special packages in the mail, dinner out with my husband!!!

on valentines morning (without my knowing)

scott had a rose & card & candy at the girls' spot at the table.

they were thrilled (& i was impressed) =)

&

they got some sweet cards in the mail!

they made chocolate covered messes  strawberries for their daddy.

And Addalie LOVED taking Valentines cards/treats to school for all of her friends!

She came home with quite the bag of stuff.

Jyla was amazed!

pErSonAlitY!

There are a few blogs that I read that post "What I Wore Wednesday".  Simply meaning that all week long they take pictures of what they wear each day & then on Wednesdays they post it on their blog. 

Kinda interesting....

Well....this is "What Addalie Wore Sunday". 

She has been getting herself dressed lately & has been so proud of herself.  I often have to "gently" add or delete certain items from her "outfits" but generally I try to let her exercise her independence. 

This morning she was so excited about her Church outfit. 

Typically I try to put the girls in something a little nicer (dresses or skirts) for Sunday morning....

So Addalie's out fit wasn't quite what I had in mind. ;) 

She assured me that she had her "sunday socks" on & so ALL. WAS. WELL!

but???

her shirt was on backwards &

she had capri's on (backwards)

 & for goodness sakes...we are very much in the
MIDDLE

of winter here.

CUTE!

Chinese New Year

Yesterday marked the start of the Chinese New Year Celebration! 

It is a very major holiday in China lasting for 10 days (i think). 

Everyone prepares for it by cleaning their homes from top to bottom. 

They buy new clothes & shoes to wear on New Years Day (preferably in orange or red)

& they gather with family. 

They exchange little red envelopes that have new-straight from the bank, $ inside.

Every year they assign an animal to represent the year.  This is the year of the rabbit. 

(Jyla was born in the year of the rat & Addalie was born in the year of the pig.)
When I was in Hong Kong & China in 1997(YWAM),
I was there over the Chinese New Year & got to see the festivities 1rst hand!
Everything closed down for days & the fireworks over the harbor in Hong Kong
were BY FAR the best I've seen to date!

We look forward to celebrating some of the Chinese cultures with Jyla. 

There is a lot of ancestry worship associated with the holidays in China,

so we want to be somewhat discerning. 

At the same time, we want to learn more about China & it's traditions.

This year we just ordered Chinese food & played Chinese music in the background (thanks to Pandora).  Jyla was excited to have Lo Mein.  Some year it would be fun to go up to NYC for the dragon parades!

 

this is NOT what Addalie had in mind when we told her there would be a cookie for dessert.  She said "where are the chocolate chips mom?"

Tea is served ALL OF THE TIME in China.  

In fact, when we first met Jyla, her foster parents had sent a little box of cold herbal tea (think juice box) 

along with her because it is what she was used to drinking.

Scott & my mom were really starting to enjoy all of the hot tea when we were there

so Scott was excited to get "oolong tea" w/our food.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Crested Butte

My husband is skiing in Colorado this week.  This has been an annual trip with his brothers & the craziest cousin that I have!  They are quite the crew!  Unstoppable & Fearless...taking pride in skiing off of cliffs & skiing off of the groomed trails..ending up lost on the "wrong" side of the mountain at dusk.  Every year we pray & pray for their safety. 
Brad lives in Colorado right now & works at Keystone Ski Resort managing a restuarant.  & while he wasn't able to leave work to join them at Crested Butte, they were able to spend some time together at the beginning of the trip.

Back home, the girls and i are trying to stay occupied with "fun things".  i'm the kind of girl who could pine away here at home for days w/out having to cook etc. since Scotts gone.  & i'd be content to just get some of my projects completed...but Jyla is a bit confused as to where her daddy is & it is making her uneasy & on high alert.  So, we've been getting out alot...mostly to keep Jyla distracted.  She does so much better when we aren't home. 
With market weekends on both sides of this trip & my mom being out of town as well...I am SO UTTERLY thankful for my mother-in-law who is graciously giving me a long break from "single-mother duty" tomorrow.