Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Snow Day

While having a "sick day" we also had a "snow day".  Harper was nearly 24 hrs fever free by this time.  We had 8 inches of snow & the driveway desperately needed my attention.

It took about 15 minutes to transform her into a marshmallow.


Snow!!!

After a few minutes, she was cold...

Despite the chilliness, she had a blast.


Harper had the fever for 5 days & we resumed our routine on Friday.
Saturday morning she woke up shrieking at 6am.....ear infection!
First one since we've had her.
Her left ear tube is blocked (we already knew about this) & now she has the ear infection in the right ear.
Great...we go back to ENT next week for a follow up visit.
Say a prayer for us, we're hoping the ear drops will help.



Can't resist a sleeping baby...

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Sick Day

Since Saturday night, Harper's been running a low grade fever, runny nose &  cough.  I took her to the doctor on Tuesday (Mon was a holiday)& she has RSV, a virus quite common in kids.
The fever could last up to 7 days...we're on day 5 & think she's back to normal.
The last few days have been rough.  Today she seems to be more of herself.  Since we've been cooped up in the house, I decided to let her do some arts & crafts.



Aunt Susan sent Harper a package, a box full of Chinese snacks.
She LOVES her treats!




The shrimp crackers, which smell horrondous, happen to be her favorite.

Thanks Aunt Susan....

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

One Year Ago

One year ago we got a phone call that would change our lives....
Our agency coordinator offered us a file of a 15 month old girl with a cleft lip & palate.
Were we interested in being her parents?

When we look back, it is truly hard to believe the call was even real.  Dang Yan Yang (Harper) had know idea the course her life would take after this call.  We all have been through so much since that call and Harper is "Real".   Her life, & ours has changed profoundly since we committed to that phone call.   





Harper's referral photo (about 9 months old)

 
This photo was taken in China, notice how thin she was...a mere 21 lbs!
She's beefed up, weighing a hefty 25 lbs!



We are honored to be Harper's parents, how lucky we are!

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Tin Man

We allowed Harper to get into an old make-up bag.  She quickly discovered cream eyeshadow in a bottle.
Hmm....

 This is soooo fun!

This is what mama does with lotion.




Notice her nose & lip. She fell down face first on the concrete at home. 




Tuesday, January 11, 2011


Sharing a few photos Neil took from our deck at dawn.

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Happy New Year!

This New Year's Eve was very low key.  My sister, Paula, & her kids came to our house to ring in the new year.
For some reason, Harper put on Ava & Cael's winter gear.

 And decided to go for a ride with Ava on the back!


The kids read books

Harper only made it to 10:45pm, poor little thing couldn't keep up with the big kids.

Paula, Cael & Ava


Happy New Year!


Ava loves Uncle Neil


Aaawww.......

Who needs toys?  Got stairs?

Too bad Cael wound't put a headband on.


Who knows what 2011 will be like.  This past year was the best & worst year I've had.
I'm hoping for a healthy, calm 2011 full of love & laughter!
Blessings to all!


Monday, January 3, 2011

Christmas Photos

Sorry it's been so long.  With the huge mess in our house from traveling over the holidays, I misplaced my camera & cables. 
We enjoyed spending Christmas with both sides of our families.

Our first Christmas Family Photo


My dear friend Courtney, passed down this adorable wool coat, hat & gloves!
She wore it to church on Christmas Eve.  We took her to her first Catholic mass.  Overall, she got a B+, maybe an A-.
She did pretty good, now we need to be brave & take her to our church at home & gear her up for baptism.

After church, we went to Neil's granny's house.
The kids ran & ran & ran around the house.

Bria, Manda & Me


Santa brought Harper a Little Tike car....she LOVED it!


She put her purse on her shoulder, put one hand on the wheel, hung the hand out the window & waved Bye Bye!


Bria & her North Face


Later on in the afternoon, we went to my brother's house.
Harper wore a hand-me-down dress that my sister Susan bought for Ava 4 yrs ago.
It was size 12 month, but still fit her.
I love that we have 3 little girls in our family (age 5, 3 & 2) .....we get a ton of hand-me-downs!


Harper & Santa


Later on that afternoon, we went to my brother's house for dinner.
Here are my girls, Ava, Julian, Tori & Harper playing nice.


Merry Christmas!