Cute Rubes, Today

So this is what my Rubes was up to today.

After lunch, she shared her juice with her baby.

And after dinner, she destroyed a container of wipes, while mom was right next to her. That's what I get for being on the computer and assuming I knew what she was playing with!

Lots of baby wipes!

Action shot!

She's still playing with the wipes, moving them from pile to pile, throwing them around. Right now, she has them on her feet like socks.

I figure they've got to be thrown out anyway, she might as well have fun with them!

Updated to add:  she threw them all away, all on her own!  Such a good girl.

Braden-ism

Braden says, "I'm easy at that," when he means, "That's easy for me."   Not only that, but the opposite of "easy at" is "hard at."

For example, he'll say things like, "I'm easy at Legos, but Ruby's hard at them."


Another odd Braden-ism is he still says "mine" when he means "my."  Like, "This is mine bedroom."  It's something that's so subtle, it's not always noticable - but it does make him sound vaguely German at times.


These crack me up, and I know he'll outgrown it soon enough ... but for now?  Adorable.

Lily's Calendar Fundraiser

I started a fundraiser on Lily's blog today:

For a donation of $20 or more, we will mail you a magnetic 2010 calendar -You can have Lily's lovely face on your fridge or file cabinet to brighten your day throughout the year! 

Find out more on Lily's blog - 2010 Calendar post.

Blog neglect & New Moon

So, apparently now that I have 2 blogs, I will continue to forget about this one. Just for a while.

Hey! Guess what!? Thursday night, my friend Kirstin & I went to the midnight show of New Moon! (Yes, sometimes I am still under the misguided impression that I am still 15 years old. And can handle being up until 3:00am. Which, I can not. I'm still trying to catch up on sleep.)

Last year, she & I went to Twilight & there was a 12:01 show & a 12:02. So, 2 theaters full of fans.

THIS year - the radio station was playing from the movie theater, and the movie was playing at 12:01 - in 10 of the theaters! CRAZY, right? But wait - there's more! When we left the movie, there was a big line of people - waiting to get into the 3:00am shows! There were 2 shows at 3:00am!  I wonder, did the earlier shows just sell out, or some people couldn't fit midnight into their schedule so 3:00am was a better option?

Also, when we left the theater a guy with a TV camera came over & said, "I'm from Channel 5 news, can I ask you about the movie?" We said no, thanks! & ran off - because, you know, we are ADULTS...

Ruby's Eyes Update

I thought Ruby's eyes were crossing a bit, so I moved up her next appointment from January to today. So, Ruby & I spent the day driving down to Madison & back. I have to say - it's so nice being able to play DVDs for her on long drives when it's just the two of us.

AND - I was totally wrong. Her eyes are awesome & just the same as they were after her surgery (in Aug 08)!

We don't have to go back until May. So, that's something ... I wonder if we'll have Lily home by then? Maybe we could bring them BOTH in May!?

Piano 4 Sale?

Anyone have any experience selling a piano? We keep talking about if we should keep it or not - and now I look at it & think, "How much adoption money could we get for it??"

I feel like we should be selling things - if it were rummage sale season, I might be going wild, trying to raise cash! Sooo... if you've ever been to my house & liked something I have - make me an offer. Just kidding! (Well, mostly kidding...)


AND - if you have anything you'd like to donate to our blog auction, let me know! We have some really cool items already, it should be fun!

Think I can auction off my piano? Hmmm... might be hard to ship!

Brades

Poor little guy - Braden has strep. He had strep last year, and the most stressful part was replacing his toothbrushes! He was so sad we had to throw them all out.

He hasn't been feeling well since Friday - he's been super tired, and achy, and had an upset stomach. Saturday, he began running a low-grade fever, and every now & then he'd throw up - just a little.

Today, Brian noticed weird puffy spots on Braden's legs - so off to the pediatrician's they went. It turns out he has an uncommon virus called HSP (Henoch-Schonlein Purpura or Anaphylactoid Purpura) which is an immune-system reaction, frequently following an infection in the throat. It's not contagious, but it's got him run down & uncomfortable.

That really helps explain why he's been so restless at night & in our bed almost every hour. Poor guy is miserable & exhausted!

They did some blood work & everything else looks good, and this HSP should clear up on its own - in a couple weeks or so. The only thing we can do for the HSP is keep giving him ibuprofen to keep him comfortable. (And an antibiotic for the strep!)

Apparently, unusual viruses & strep are going around - as a secondary to H1N1.  Which he had a couple weeks ago.

The doctor said HSP is uncommon, but they usually see a couple cases of this each year.  Totally not surprising that we'd get something unusual at our house!  (Remember Karly's cancer odds were 1 in 80 million!)

Everything Else

As you can probably imagine, everything else has pretty much been overshadowed by our plans to adopt Lily.

There are just so many new things to worry about - will she stay healthy until we can bring her home? Will the orphanage keep her for us, out of the institution, so we CAN bring her home? Will we pass our home study? How are we going to pay for this!?

Just a few little concerns.

And yet, life goes on here at home...

Braden's been sick all weekend, poor guy. He's just miserable, running a low fever & congested. He hasn't slept well the past few nights, and so therefore, neither Brian & I have slept well either. Last night, even Ruby joined in the party, thinking that 3:30 was time to get up! And eat breakfast!

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Thanks to RK for making it for me!!

New Adventures

Last week, this beautiful little girl started showing up across the Internet, on many DS blogs:

Little Lera was in danger of being institutionalized. Look at that beautiful little face - she deserves a home and a family. It wasn't her choice to be born in a country where she has no value in society.

I just couldn't look away; I worried about her day & night. She had about a week to find a family. I contacted Reece's Rainbow, and told them if they can't find her a family, let me know.

Brian & I had always talked about adopting SOMEDAY - but we had thought we'd adopt a younger girl - SOMEDAY.

A couple days ago, word went around that a family had committed to Lera. I was so relieved - and a little sad that she wouldn't join our family.  Then, I was THRILLED to find out Lera will be going home to my friend Tracy's home!  Lera's journey will be followed on her new adoption blog!


This experience definitely triggered some interesting conversations between Brian & I ...

We have a house set up for a family of 6. We were prepared to have 4 children, and losing Lydia leaves a permanent empty space in our home.

We know we can never replace Lydia. Her loss will always be with us.

And we're very certain we don't want to have another baby; going through a pregnancy would just be too stressful. Too many reminders of what could go wrong.

And yet, we're missing a daughter, and what would be the best way to honor her memory? By keeping an empty chair at the dinner table, or by bringing home a child who doesn't have a family?


After all the discussions we'd had about little Lera, it suddenly became clear to us that were we to adopt, we'd want an older child - someone between Ruby & Braden in age, a little girl who would otherwise be destined to being sent to an institution and left there with no future. This would keep Ruby our baby, and another little sister for Karly & Braden.

We figured we'd start planning & saving up - and adopt when the time was right.

I told Brian to check out the at-risk girls on the Reece's Rainbow website. There were a few that stood out to us, but one who repeatedly drew our attention.

For one thing, she is a twin. She was given up at birth for having Down syndrome, but her twin was taken home. We lost a twin - and this little girl is a twin without a family.  We lost Lydia, and found a little girl named Lilya.

Most children are sent from their orphanages to the institution at the age of 5 - Lilya turned 5 in August. It's amazing that she's still available for adoption.

So, we can't sit aside and wait and plan. We have to just jump in and go for it - and bring this little girl home. To our home, and make it her home.

Yes, it's expensive - but what is a life worth? It won't be easy, but the best things rarely are.

 This is Lilya - soon to be Lily.  Our daughter Lily.

I hope you'll follow along on our journey on our new blog:  A Home for Lily !

Happy Birthday, RLZ!

Last night, I went out to dinner with a group of moms from our local Down Syndrome Family Network. It was the first time we've done this (well, except for Jennie's going away dinner, but that was a little different) and we had 11 of us total! It was so great to get out & visit with the other moms.

Shortly after I got to the restaurant & as we were waiting for people to arrive - Brian's brother & his wife & 2 kids walked in the door! Yesterday was our niece Rachelle's birthday - sweet 16!!

Happy Birthday, Rachelle!

This picture is an old one, but so sweet - tiny baby Ruby, with her cousin Rachelle.