12 months / 4 weeks -- where does the time go?

Wow, what a lot of milestone's we've covered! Last week (April 4th, marked the one year anniversary of Lilah's Gotcha Day). It seems so hard to believe that a year has passed so quickly, until you look at the differences in Lilah and realize that she is a different kid. Gone is the tiny pipsqueak, replaced by a gal who could be a football player. Gone is the kid who couldn't sit up, replaced by a gal who is enrolled in Princess Ballet! Gone is the quiet and complacent child we met in China, replaced by a gal who loves to demonstrate the full magnitude of her voice and has a vocabulary that rivals many. We are so proud to have her in our family, proud to call her our sister/daughter. She is a real blessing. To celebrate, we MADE chinese food and had a Strawberry Boston Cream Gotcha cake (hand chosen by the Gotcha Gal herself -- although Naomi was disappointed that she didn't go for the chocolate cake with sprinkles). Ironic that she chose this cake as Daddy chose a similar cake for his birthday -- and she's definately "daddy's little girl"!

It also seems like just yesterday that I found out I was pregnant, yet tomorrow marks four weeks since Myles' birth! Things are going remarkably well and we are all enjoying the process of getting to know the newest member of our family. Naomi and Lilah are doing great and adore their little brother. When he gets up in the morning, they both squeal with delight and call out his name. Lilah has taken to calling him "My baby Myles" and whenever someone other than Joel or I is holding him she gets stressed out. I am pleasantly suprised by her reaction to him as we anticipated that she would have a tougher time. Perhaps it is in part due to the fact that Naomi is such a good model for her to follow. Naomi loves to cuddle Myles, she often will offer to help out and hold him (till he gets too heavy for her). She even offers him her beloved purple blankie when he's tired or crying (and anyone who is familiar with purple blankie knows that she doesn't share it with anyone else).

So we are all doing well, albeit a bit sleep deprived. Myles is growing right before our eyes. He was weighed today and came in at a whopping 12lbs 11oz -- a mere 5 oz shy of what Lilah weighed when we got her at 9 months old! So we're guessing that I'm producing the high octane bug juice. I find it incredible to see him already outgrowing the outfits he wore in the beginning.

So this past four weeks has also brought about a high learning curve for Joel and I. Thought we'd share with you some of the things we've learned!

1) When changing the diaper of a boy, point "it" DOWN to prevent leakage.

2) When changing the diaper of a boy, there are way more "tools"and crevices to work around (versus a girl).

3) When changing the diaper of a boy, get ready with a cloth to cover "it" and watch out that you don't give him a Urine Mouthwash in the millisecond that it takes to cover his penis.

4) The letters C & D are our new favorites in the alphabet. That's not because of bra size (no I'd dream to be a C or D again!), but those are the sizes of batteries that our swing and bouncy chair use!

5) (Back to diapers) -- Breastfed babies have projectile poop that can be shot from a distance of two feet. By the way, it actually stains the wall that it lands on.

6) I love a man I've never met -- Dr. Jack Newman's got the the best "All Purpose Nipple Ointment" in the world (see http://www.thenewparentsguide.com/breastfeeding-treating-problems2-drnewman.htm for more details). The stuff requires a prescription from your doctor, but is by far the best thing going! If you google his name, he's also got some great articles on breastfeeding and is Canadian to boot!

7) I cannot believe how good it feels to NOT be hugging the toilet anymore! AHHHH!

8) I love being a mom. It's no suprise to anyone that pregnancy was unexpected for us. Nonetheless, I look at my children and feel overwhelmed when I realize the blessings that have been bestowed on me. Often times lately I find myself thinking of the final words to the new "Curious George" song, "This is how it was supposed to be".

9) Those of my friends who are also adoptive parents often ask if they are missing out on anything when they don't get pregnant. As far as I'm concerned, pregnancy isn't all it's cracked up to be and I love all my kids regardless of how much pain they instilled on me during labour and delivery. I might mention that I appreciate the jobs of both Naomi and Lilah's birthmothers a lot more though. I can't imagine making the choices that they had to.

10) We are very blessed with many wonderful friends and family members. So many people have helped out in one way or another and we feel incredibly blessed to have them all in our lives. This road has not been an easy one to travel, but you all sure have made a difference. THANKS!

Well that's my list so far. Below you will find some photos we had done by the fabulous photographer Gerri Weatherbee. Once again she has wowed us with her ability to depict our happiness and our children's expressions in a picture. If you are in the area, we highly recommend her and we've listed her website on this page.

Well that's about all the time I have for now. Cheers everyone!

Karen