Mama thought it might be time to try out the big girl bed :) Tonight's the first night and Aubree BiXiu is still awake at 9:40pm (her bedtime is at 8pm). Dadee's upstairs with her right now... hopefully she'll go to sleep soon!
B's big girl bed is Mama's antique iron bed - sturdy and built to last! Dadee cut extra board supports for the bottom and we put it up with just the mattress on it... not so tall that way. She's got new dark blue knit sheets with light colored hearts tie-dyed in, a new patchwork quilt with doodoo ladybugs, butterflies, and flowers, the nice fleece butterfly blanket that her auntie Cherwee made her over the end of the bed and her fleece bug blanket over the headboard. There is an old quilt stuffed between the end of the bed and the mattress so Miss Pip doesnt stick herself again (yes... she was stuck standing up at the foot of the bed... bad mama for not putting something in there earlier!)
Her room looks beautiful! Shae HongQi's room at the moment looks like a disaster area! Got blinds and the curtains back up in S's room, the bed has just a box springs on it, the pictures arent framed for hanging yet, and the baby bed is in a shambles in there. I've ordered her some flowers/butterflies/dragonflies/bees/ladybugs border for her room - way different than B's, denim blue knit sheets, and a really beautiful blue tone patchwork quilt. I polled the Albinism International Yahoo Group and the majority ruled that blue was the most soothing color to those folks with glare problems... so blue walls and bedding it is for now!
On the paperchase front - we've got a big batch of papers to send to the lady thats going to do all of the certification for Shae's dossier. Our Letter of Intent made it to Beijing on May 26, 2005! I've printed out the tracking page for Shae's book :) Hang on baby girl - Mama and Dadee are trying to get to you!
Busy night here at the old homestead! Dadee and Aubree skipped off to the mall while Mama toiled away on Shae's papers. So many papers to fill out for one little girl that needs to be home NOW! CHI's package came yesterday filled to the brim with things that needed filled out - Mama got all of them filled out that she could and sent it all back again.
Once we get our PreApproval back from the CCAA that we can be Shae's parents and Aubree can be her little sister - we will send her photo album to her and a care package for the orphange... I'm thinking shoes or fleece blankets would be good! Shae's picture is up on our walls at home/work... I want her to come home so badly so we can start loving her in earnest! Its not going to be an easy road... but nothing in life thats easy is worth having! :)
Hooray!! Aubree BiXiu's final post-placement visit is tomorrow! Hip! Hip! Hooray!! We're going to have to do something to celebrate - maybe ice cream out would do the trick!
We have some other good news to share.... BiXiu is getting a SISTER! Thats right, Peanut Cleveland #2 has been identified and she's a BIG sister! Shae HongQi is on Children's House International's List #11 as Amanda - she is currently six years old and is in NingXia province - Shae has the super power of Albinism like Cousin BaiYu. Mama and Dadee pray that we will be able to bring Shae home soon, but realistically it will probably be December or January before everything is all done and we get Travel Approval. Mama and Dadee feel very blessed to have found BiXiu's sister... and I'll bet money that B is happy that she'll STILL be the baby :)
Pray with us that Shae comes home as fast as she can and that someone loves her until we can come get her!
..the Weasel thought it was all in fun.... Uggghhrrmmm *pphhhhrrt!* the weasel.
Aubree has made another stride. Today she went poopee in the potty! Yah !!!
If anyone of you listen to XM Kids on XM radio you would have heard that song. Its about a Monkey trying to teach a weasel to go poop on the potty and not in his diaper. La and I just rotfl everytime we hear it.
So the last couple of weeks we, and Aubree have decided that since she is no longer afraid to sit on the potty, that she might be ready to start being trained. She is off to a good start almost everytime she put her on she goes, and lately she has even exclaimed it once or twice to us, and we have managed to get her on her little throne to hear her go tinkle tinkle.
So day, it had been a few days since she had dropped a load so to speak, and dadee was just finishing up supper with her. She talked to yell "poot, daddee poot". So daddee gentley ripped her from her high chair and hotfooted it into the bathroom almost like she was a football and I was trying to make a goal. We dropped her pants and plopped her on the potty. It wasnt 30-seconds to a minute and a bit of encouragement and I began to see the tall-tell sgns of her grunting and pushing face :).. Daddee just scream, "Daddee is so proud of you Aubree BiXiu, your going poop in the potty". She repeated it, and grunttled some more, smiling in between pushes. More toots, and poots, and lots of praise and she was done, wiped, hugged, kissed, re-panted, and whisked out the front door so that Mommie, and Grandma, and the rest of the block could hear how our daughter had learned, and did her first time going poop in the potty.
I have told you before that you are like dadee and likes pickles. Well now that you have reached 2 yr old. You voice your want for the delectable delight, with a resounding 'PeeeeKulll', 'Daddeeee PeeeeeKuulll?'.
For those of you counting out there, that is not to be confused with 'PuuzzzzzZUL'. Aubree you some times get the two words confused, but you quickly remember which one is which. As well as you know where they are and point animately towards them.
You have graduated to being able to be giving your own pickle from the mini-pickle jar, while dadee enjoys one more his size.
We just started working on learning how to do wooden puzzles - Aubree BiXiu LOVES them! It takes her a little bit to figure them out, but once she does - look out! We're doing the puzzles right now that have the same picture on the board under the piece as the piece is.
B will crawl up in her chair at the table, strap herself in and then start chanting Puzzle! Puzzle! Puzzle! until one of us brings them over :) I think the one with the ladybug on it is her favorite, but mama's is the one with the ballerina from different countries on it!