A Visit to See Dr. Amy

Grace had a well baby check-up yesterday. She is a very, very healthy girl. At 10 months old she weighs almost 21 pounds and is 29 1/2 inches long. Do you think I have a Yao on my hands? She just keeps getting taller. She still wears 6-12 months clothes (as long as they aren't pants)and they are big in the waist. All her growth has been in her height.

The highlight of her visit to see Dr. Amy was sitting on the exam table. She was a maniac for the paper on the table. At home she is always diving for a newspaper, then getting it taken away. She'll grab tissue paper and then I will take that away before she eats it. The exam table paper was fun and I didn't take it away from her. She was twisting all around on the table. I had to hold onto her so she didn't fly off the table.

Afterwards we went to Sam's to stock up on diapers and other supplies. She looked like such a big girl sitting in the cart I had to snap her picture.

Unbeknown to me, while I was at Dr. Amy's with Grace my best friend Karen was having a baby down the street at the hospital. I didn't find out until I got home last night. We spent the entire day just shopping and stuff. I wish I had of known and could have been with her. Reilly was born one month early. She is in NICU and working had to get stronger. Keep Karen and Reilly in your prayers. They want to be home together.

Personality Plus

Grace's personality is certainly evolving. I will probably regret this later...but I love that she is stubborn and inquisitive. She really studies people and things. Here are some more photos. A couple are from her photo session. The last is Grace being Grace.

My Favorite Face

As you are reading this I hope that you will take a moment right now and say a prayer for a very dear friend of mine. She is facing some possible health concerns. She is a great wife, mom and friend. She was one of the first people I told about my decision to adopt and she has always been so supportive. I love her very much.

This is my favorite face. This is also my favorite expression on that face. Some in my family call it the "Elvis Face" while others call it "The Bad One Eye." Whatever they call it, I call it beautiful. This is Grace's signature look. I will ask her a question or say something to her and she gives me the look. I crack up every time.

My friend Amee took some photos of Grace about six weeks ago. She is an extraordinary photographer who always manages to capture a child's personality. We got some of the usual photos. But what I treasure are the ones that capture Grace's personality. Below are two more of my favorites. The first one...she was still getting used to her two bottom teeth and she was constantly running her toungue over them. I got the sweet pink dress in Vietnam. The second depicts the true love she has for her feet.

I am so thankful that Amee captured this face and these expressions so I can always remember. My baby is growing up. Grace is ten months old today!!

My First Mother's Day

I got the greatest Mother's Day gift - Gracie finalllllly said Mama on
Saturday! Grace looking in my eyes and saying Mama, that is the best. My mom also got me some lovely spring flowers for my front porch. The card was signed by Grace, Mother helped Grace sign the card with her handprint and footprint! What a treasure.

I must mention a couple of great gifts that two of my friends received. Susan is home from Vietnam with Lily Ana! And Jo finally got to see the beautiful face of Miss Cami Anh and she is precious! I'll be praying for quick travel approval so they can be together soon.

Mother's Day has always been a big deal in my family. We always went to my grandmother's outside of Memphis, that is where my mother grew up. Everyone was at Memaw's for Mother's Day. It was the one time that you saw all the cousins, aunts and uncles, family friends, etc. When my Memaw passed away the tradition continued at my Aunt Florence's house. She is my mother's only sister and they are extremely close, they were born only 10 1/2 months apart!

Last Mother's Day I remember being at Aunt Florence's and praying that I would have my daughter with me on Mother's Day 2007. Well this year Grace was the belle of the ball!

Her is Grace with her Aunt Florence. Grace really checked her out. I think it is because she and my mother look so much alike.


This is Grace getting some loving from Aunt Dee.

I am not making this up.

This morning Grace was playing in her room while I was getting ready for work in bathroom that is between our bedrooms. I walked into her room to check on her and deja vu - she was underneath the chest of drawers.

This is a recurring thing for her. She got stuck underneath a chair a few weeks ago, she has been backing up under the sofa and now under the chest of drawers. I am trying to stay on my toes so she doesn't pull something over on top of her head.

Last night Grace started something new...instead of pulling up into the walking position, she tries to stand right up. She will be on her hands and knees then she will put her left foot on the floor and she just can't understand why she can't just stand up. The lazy days are over, it is a job keeping up with Grace!

You just gotta laugh.

This morining I was running around the house getting ready for work and Grace was playing in the living room floor. As I was in the next room getting dressed, I heard Gracie's cell phone ring. Gracie has the Baby Einstein calling plan. Her cell phone says hello in English and Spanish and makes these other musical sounds when opened or moved. However I knew that the cell phone was not one of the toys I put in the floor for her to play with. I went to investigate.

I find Grace up under the couch with her head peeking out. She just looked up at me with those big eyes. The phone was under the sofa and her foot was causing it to make noise. I just had to look at her and laugh. She was so adorable and innocent looking I picked her up and kissed her over and over.

Bliss

I took a one hour nap today. Pure bliss. I NEVER get to take naps. Whenever Grace is taking hers I always have something that has to been done. Well not today. I napped. Try it whenever possible. I highly recommend Sunday afternoon naps.

We had a great weekend...just by doing nothing. The princess is in bed now. I am on my way to bed as well. However I wanted to share a few photos with you.

Grace is quite sneaky. I love her, but it's true. She is a mess. She was a little bored and looking for trouble this afternoon.

The boredom sets in.










Grace thinks the living room curtains would be fun to pull on. She decides to nonchalently make her way to them.











Grace thinks she is undetected. She gives reaches out to give them a tug.













Then she hears the phrase she has recently learned "no no Grace" and she makes a quick, well relatively quick, getaway.

A Small Gesture Can Bring Much Joy

As I have said before, the nannies at the orphanage loved all the babies tremendously. They were sobbing when saying goodbye to the babies that they had been taking care of for months. You could see the pain on their faces and in their eyes. Below is a photo of Grace at the orphanage. You can see the pain on the nanny's face as she gives her a bottle.
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My dear friend Susan is in Vietnam as I write, she is bringing home her daughter Lily Ana. Lily Ana was only 2 1/2 months old when I went to the orphanage to get Gracie. Susan took a small photo album of pictures of Grace to the orphanage for me. Kelly also sent one of Lucy. I really tried to send photos that showed how much she has grown and how happy she is. I did not add the photos of angry, sad or pouty Grace. I left the pictures of those three personalities here in Tennessee.

Susan emailed me that the nannies loved them! She said they laughed and smiled while looking at the photos of Grace and Lucy. They were especially happy when she told them the albums were for them to keep. I hope that I can continue to send them updates. Susan was also sweet enough to send me pictures of the ladies looking at the photos. One of them is below. Their expressions are so happy.

The Life of a Single Mom

It seems like everyone is posting about child rearing and motherhood in general. I thought I would add my two cents. I am a single mom by choice. I have no husband, never have had one. Still waiting on my prince charming. Mmmmmm, maybe that's my problem...I am waiting on something that doesn't exist. I digress.

I decided to adopt because I wanted a family, a child who I could love and who could love me in return. At least until the teen years. Girls tend to go crazy at age 12, so who knows what will happen then! Again I wander off point.

Becoming Grace's mom is the best think that has every happened to me. However the life of a single mom is guilt ridden. That is one thing I was not prepared for when I was waiting to be united with Grace.

I have to work. Grace likes having formula, diapers, etc. I want to send her to college someday. An income is necessary. But I still cry sometimes when I have to leave for work. What is particularly hard are the days when she reaches for me as I am about to walk out the door. By the way; this was not one of those mornings. Grace has a new toy with a mirror on it. As I said, she is captivated by that beautiful baby and she can't seem to get enough of her. I don't think she even realized I was leaving.

I am very fortunate that my 22 year old niece comes into my home to take care of Grace each day. My daughter is surrounded by family- my sister and parents are always in and out during the day. Even so; the guilt is all around.

I only see her for about 45 minutes in the morning. Then I have to leave and go to work. Roughly 10 hours later I return home. Terrible I know but when you add work, commute time, stopping to pick up diapers or groceries...sadly enough it's true. Then in about 2 hours she is ready for bed.

I feel quilty if I try to keep her up later. She gets cranky and unhappy. I feel guilty when we've had so little time together. I feel like I am letting her down. Sounds depressing I know. But she is the light of my life and my little blessing sent from God. What is great is that we make the most of our time together and make the daily tasks special.

My favorite time of the day is bath time. Grace loves her baths. She can splash the water and the floor will get wet four feet from the tub! As I have said many times she adores her reflection. She has recently seen the baby in the little chrome thing that closes the drain. She has fallen over in the tub looking at her. Bathtime is the greatest.

A close second is bedtime. Grace lets me rock her to sleep at night. Most nights I keep rocking long after she is asleep. She is growing up so quickly. We spend all weekend together. That is so fun. Especially when we do nothing all weekend but hang around the house and go to church. We make the most of our time together. Do I wish I could stay home with her? Of course I do!

Sometimes I wonder if I am cheating her somehow. But I can't imagine that a father or a stay at home mom could provide Grace with more love than she already receives. My entire family simply adores her and spoils her shamelessly. Everyone in our little town knows who she is, even people I don't know. She is a celebrity.

She is definitely a celebrity to me. I loved her in pictures before I ever met her face to face.

Waiting for News

Susan posted. We learned a bit about Lily Ana. But sadly there were no pics. Susan is having trouble uploading. I remember that. HCMC will be better for communication, it was for us. I keep checking for pictures. I want to see Lily Ana!

To pass the time until I check Susan's blog again, I thought I would share some more pictures. I know...I haven't posted this much since I was waiting to travel.

Grace's cousin Kayla did her toes. They are quite lovely and she admires them so.






I know it looks like Grace is always in her Jumperoo. You have to witness her jumping firsthand to understand. She is constantly on the move. Honestly she won't sit still. Her are some snaps of her in her favorite. The Jumperoo.

I am going nuts!!!

I understand how everyone felt when I was in Vietnam. The internet connection was terrible. I couldn't get online until we moved on to Ho Chi Mihn City. People were dying to hear what was going on in Vietnam. Well now I am dying to hear from Susan. She's killing me! I got a very short email saying she was having computer trouble and will email me later.

On the bright side-I have a couple of pictures. Grace adores animals. That is great since we have the coolest dog in the world. She will watch Ellie as she moves around the house. Sometimes just watching and sometimes she will just laugh. Ellie may just be sitting on the couch, but Grace will giggle. My sister's dogs and cats are always around too. When we are outside and the dogs and cats are around she will just sit there and giggle. It is the most adorable thing you have ever seen. The first picture is of her sitting outside with my mother watching the animals and laughing.

As a single mother it is often very difficult to get photos-the second picture proves that. I did my best to get a picture of Grace and Ellie. But you try coordinating a baby, a dog and a camera. This is the best I can do. Ellie really needs a haircut.

Playtime With My Girl

I can't think of anything other than Susan and Sarah. They are in Vietnam and I am dying to hear from them! They will be going to Grace's orphanage to get their daughters and I can't wait to see pictures and hear the stories of their visit. I am so happy for them. I got to see both beautiful girls when we were there in December. I can't wait to see how they have grown and changed. I am going to go nuts if I don't hear from them soon.

Grace is working hard on a fourth tooth. Sadly she is not feeling her best. She doesn't really want any food, just bottles. She also grits her three teeth alot. I wish I could take away her pain.

Even though she has not felt great, we have had fun together this weekend. Grace and I have had alot of time to play together. Great times like this really make up for having to go out to work each morning. Today we pulled out a ton of toys and played in the floor. Here are some photos of our playtime.

Fun in the Sun

It is a gorgeous day today! I thought it was a perfect day to have a little time playing outside. We took the Jumperoo outdoors. At first Grace wouldn't put her feet down and jump in the grass, she just held them up. It was hilarious.

We had a great time playing on an old blanket. Grace is quite enamored with her reflection right now. Check out the picture of my mother holding the little mirror. She just gets closer and closer until she is resting her head on it!! She must be trying to figure out who that truly gorgeous baby is.

After playing outdoors we went inside for some water and Grace's favorite new treat. Graham crackers. She loves them and gets furious if she can't manipulate the cracker quickly enough. She needs the next bite!!! Here are some photos of our morning.

We can't wait until Susan and Lily Ana come to visit and play in the grass with us! We are praying for their safe and speedy travel home from Vietnam.

My Calendar Girl

My mother has everything she could possibly want and if she doesn't she will go out and buy it herself. This makes her a nightmare to buy gifts for, truly awful. This year I decided to do a calendar with Grace as the star. Well I gave her the calendar yesterday. I simply couldn't help myself. She adored it. Here are the photos that have not been posted already.

February




















April




















May





















June





















July

Gracie Girl is Nine Months Old!

It is so hard for me to believe that my baby is only three months away from her first birthday. She is definitely NOT a little baby. She has three teeth. She loves to climb. She thinks her activity table would be much more fun if she were sitting on top. Grace is about 29 inches long. Exact numbers are hard, she isn't very helpful with the measuring process. She still wears 6-12 months clothing, all her growth is in length.

My friend Susan is leaving for Vietnam this week to bring home her daughter Lily Ana. Yeah!!! It has made me reflect on my time in Vietnam. We have only been home since the middle of January, but it seems like Vietnam was ages ago. I held Lily Ana when I visited Grace's orphanage. I can't wait to hold her when she gets home to Tennessee.

Grace's roomie at the orphanage had a big day recently. Lucy was readopted and is officially Lucy Huong Elise. What a great day for her family. After all I went through in adoption, paperwork makes us feel secure. Now Lucy has her Texas birth certificate.

Such exciting stuff. Congratulations to these two great families. Our love and prayers are always with you.

Pseudo Strabismus

As I am sure your have noticed, Grace has an eye that appears to be crossed. When I had a doctor review her referral photos, she said that it was a pseudo strabismus. That means that since the bridge of her nose is very flat and broad it appears as if her eyes are crossed.

Her pediatrician thought that it might be a crossed eye. If that was the case she would require glasses or surgery. She advised me to have it checked out by an opthamologist. We had the appt on Thursday.

She was such a big girl, she didn't even cry when the put in drops to dilate her eyes. The verdict is that her eyes are fine! I thought I was going to start crying right there. After that she got a round of immunizations, we went to lunch and shopped a little. All that and no fussing.

On Friday she was in the greatest mood. Grace is a very social little girl. She is always happier when she had been out and about. The next day she is all smiles. She will also let anyone hold her. However she is very guarded. If it is someone other than family or close friends, she stares them down and will not smile. People say "she is such a serious baby." They have no idea the character I have on my hands. This week I was holding her close to my face and making some funny noise. She would laugh so hard she would spit in my face. But who cares about a little spit, her giggles are priceless.

As you can see in the photo above, Grace is very proud of her two teeth. She is working very hard to get a couple on top. The other photo is her with her (and my) favorite toy. Baby Einstein toys are so smart. I am posting new photos in Flickr. Click on the badge on the right.

No Longer a Baby

I brought home a baby from Vietnam. I now have a little girls who is into everything. The only time I get to cuddle is bedtime. The rest of her day is booked with plans of exploration and mischief. Here are some new pictures. Look how big she is getting!!

All Caught Up

Recently Grace went exploring. Here's what happens to nosy little girls.

I've Been Tagged - Part Two

Continuing on - here's 6-10 on my list of 10 odd things about me (see previous post).

6. Sometimes I sleep with my palm to my forehead - like I am dumbfounded. Strange I know. In Vietnam my sister told me that she thought her husband was the only person in the world who did that. Then Grace did it. It was great. Like mother, like daughter.
7. I drive better backwards than forwards. Enough said.
8. I am 5'2" and I wear a tall swimsuit. As you can imagine, my legs are quite short. Thankfully they get me where I need to go.
9. While we are on the height thing- my sister is 5'10" and five years older than me. However since her name is Terri people always ask if we're twins. Go figure.
10. Even as a child I loved high heels. As soon as I could walk well enough to get into my mother's closet, I was constantly coming out in a pair of her shoes. And I promise this next tidbit is true...I walked around in heels so much that I shortened my achilles and began walking on my tiptoes. My doctor had to give my parents exercises that helped me stretch it out.

Now I must take some time to recover from all these painful truths. More later...

I've Been Tagged

My friend Susan tagged me. She wants me to share 10 odd things about myself. Here are the first five, the next five to follow. I know you’ll be waiting with breath that is bated.

1. My OCD is pretty much limited to one thing – travel. It doesn’t matter if it is a short weekend getaway or a long trip to Asia. I become obsessed with checking everything – again and again. I don’t want to forget something that I might need! I drove my sister crazy in Vietnam. I was constantly checking our passports, airline tickets, money and things in general. But I was validated when I almost left my money is the safe at our hotel in Hanoi! I was checking out when I remembered it so I was able to rush back up to the room.

2. Much to the chagrin of my entire family I cannot tolerate tomatoes. They grow their own, they love them that much. I won’t touch them and you can forget about if they are mistakenly put on or near my food. The said food has been corrupted by the juice and the seeds. Oddly enough I will eat tomato sauce. Italian food is my favorite. There is one condition-no chunks can be visible. I think it is a texture thing. They remind me of flesh.

3. Like Susan I HATE going to the grocery store. But my problem is unloading the groceries from the car. Please see the next item for further details. (Don't worry-baby food can be carried in one load.)

4. I have never been married. I always wanted to be married and have kids. Now that Grace and I are a family marriage doesn’t seem so important. It would be great for her to have a dad. But as far as I am concerned – it’s just not that important to me anymore. I am almost 39 and have been taking care of myself for a while now. Priorities change as you get older. Some of the benefits of marriage are someone make sure my car is maintained, someone to drop me off at the door when it is raining, someone to UNLOAD THE GROCERIES, etc. My married friends tell me it just doesn’t work that way. Don’t get me wrong-I would be thrilled to meet Mr. Right. If you know where he is please let me know. Its Mr. Right Now I don’t need.

5. I am bad at continuing past work relationships once I have left a job. It’s not that I don’t value them. I will think – I need to call her. But it is either late at night or I get distracted. More about my distractions in the next five odd things.

The Life of a Busy Girl

Grace has been a very busy girl lately. Her sitter got sick last week, so she has been staying with her Nanny and Pappy since last Wednesday. Can you say spoiled? Her Pappy sings her silly songs and she just grins and laughs.

She said her first "word" last week. It was DaDa. As she has no DaDa I am chalking that up to a cool sound that she likes to make. My sister told me that she was requesting a father and I need to get to work finding her one.

On Friday, she rode to Gatlinburg with her grandparents (because of work I couldn't come until later in he evening). Each year my family rents a chalet in Gatlinburg and we all go up for the weekend. There are usually about fifteen or so that go. We don't get alot of sleep but have a great time together.

On Saturday Grace turned 8 months old! She also got her first tooth on Saturday!! Saturday in Gatlinburg is the traditional ladies shopping day. This time everyone bought for Gracie, what a surprise. She has a ton of new things for summer and even a few things for next fall!

We all had a great time and were so tired when we got home. However tiring it is, it is always great to make memories with your family.

Sorry for the Absence

I have become one of those "Mommy bloggers" that used to make me say - update already. What a disappointment huh? I have been chastised by friends Kelly and Susan. I pledge to do a better job in the future. That said, here's what's new.

My angel is all better. After about a week all l traces of the flu were gone. Thank you Lord. I prayed so much over my little girl. I felt so helpless, that's when it's comforting to know that He is in control. I want Grace to know the power of prayer. I know she doesn't understand now, but I have started praying out loud while I she is having her bedtime bottle. This way we won't have to start praying when she is old enough, we'll already be doing it.

Terri, my niece Kayla, Grace and I went to Nashville Saturday. Shortly after getting on I-40 we ran into a horrific traffic jam that was caused by a terrible, fatal accident the night before. They were attempting to move the semi truck that had fallen down a steep hill. It took two hours to travel three miles!

However all was forgotten when we reached our destination. We were going to Nashville to see Lucy! She has changed so much since we left Vietnam. This girl has a ton of hair! I have truly missed seeing her. We also got to see her mom Kelly and my dear friend Susan. Next time I see them Lily Ana will be with us! Susan will be traveling to bring her home any day now! Come on travel approval. Lily Ana is ready to come home! We also got to meet one of Kelly's sisters who was just as sweet as Kelly. And she is obviously crazy about her niece. We missed seeing Justin, but hopefully next time. It was so good to see the girls together. I have pictures. However I have misplaced the cord that downloads them to the computer. Soon - I promise.

Grace just absolutely thrives on action. After visiting Nashville, she has been talking nonstop. She just loves going to crowded places where she can watch people.

This concludes my long winded post. I will do better in the future.