Walk On with Ya Bad Self!

Dear Hazel Pants (Henry's latest name for you), 
This past week was a big one, we've worked a LONG time for it in therapy.  You are cruising minimally, yet you decided to take three steps on our own. Yep!  So proud of you!  Henry was sitting next to me on the couch and you were standing, holding on next to the foot stool.  You stepped out with one hand and demanded our attention.  When you had it, you took three steps and applauded for yourself.  Way to go small fry!  a couple of weeks later and you're still at 5-6 steps, but you're workin! You're improving!  We are so proud of you.  
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Love, Mama

IAC Picnic 2010 Indianapolis, Indiana

Dear Henry,

We attended the Independent Adoption Center's annual picnic again this year.  It was fun meeting new couples at the start of their process like Shane & James.  They enjoyed playing with you and talking science fiction with Doug and Daddy.  I think your cuteness put a kick in their butt to complete their paperwork as soon as possible.  Our friends Andrew, you two share the same birthday a year apart,  and Julie were there with Andrew's grandma, birth grandma, birth mom E and a couple of his birth siblings.  Then we saw Emily, Kirk and Nicholas and met his birth mom too.  Nicholas was brand new!  They are a family that sat with us at our weekend intensive at the agency.   There was food, face painting, a playground, and balls to play with.  Julie was sneakin' you fruit snacks and we allowed you to drink juice so you were really happy despite the heat.

Many people ask why we choose an open adoption with continued communication.  If they could attend the picnic they would understand.  While waiting to get your arm painted a girl was saying see ya later to her birth father and birth grandma.  He said, "Bye honey, we'll see you next year, we love you! Have a great time on your trip."  The older woman said, "We'll miss you.  Have a great time!"  The little girl responded with, "I love you too, I'll miss you too. Bye, Thanks for coming!"  I said to her, "Wow! You sure have a lot of people who love you!"  She smiled at me really big and said, "I know!"  and she ran to play.  For her the concept of her birth family isn't threatening, scary, unknown or a fantasy of grandeur or of horror; it is natural!  

This is why we choose to have an open adoption.  Why shouldn't we all get along and be in each others' lives.  I have no doubt that I am your mama and I don't think you are confused.  There isn't a threat from knowing J.  You are legally our child so we are always going to be your parents.  Yes, I know there can be many reasons why contact could be determined to be destructive rather than nurturing...but when it isn't destructive?  Raising a child isn't about ego, it isn't about me, it is what is best for you Peep.  We want you to have a strong sense of all the facets of yourself.  We love J because she made us parents, she made our dream come true, she is a strong woman that taught me to do what is hard if it is best for you, and she has such compassion for us.  J loves us because we love you so much, she is confident that you are safe and happy, and because we have such compassion for her.  We hope that we continue to have a positive relationship, it could ebb and flow as the years pass, as naturally happens in relationships but our sense of family will not.  We invited J to the picnic but it just wasn't going to work out for them this year.  There is always next year!  We hope that she will be there with us next year, but if she isn't able to... we understand.    

BTW: You did get painted...A spider on your hand.  Doug and Peter were there with us and couldn't stop laughing because you smeared the spider across your face reminiscent of the icing from your birthday cake.  You had black teeth and lips for the rest of the day.  It didn't hurt your looks though, you were still cute!

We love you,

Love your mama 

What Goes Down Must Come Up!

Dearest Mighty Peep, 
The latest on your muscle strength...a couple weeks ago you climbed all the way up a slide ..all...on...your...own! (Yes I know! developments this huge should be shared instantaneously!) We were playing at the park with Peter and a little girl they were fostering for a couple of weeks.  She is the cutest!  The two of you got along swimmingly and she kept talking about "the boy" when you were 
gone.  As you ran around the playground you decided to go down the slide by yourself.  I sat at the top hoping ya didn't bonk your face at the bottom, and you didn't.  You landed firmly on your feet only to turn around and start climbing up the slide.  
This was not your first attempt but your determination was a 10+ to make it back up to the top, where I was waiting.  You snorted, grunted and huffed smacking your hands one over the other to sssssqqreeeaak back a few inches after a mighty gain.  You learn as you go so you realized the slide's seams are easy hand and foot holds and began using them to your advantage.  You strained and scrunched your face but steadily pulled and pushed to make it to the top.  I reached out to you for the last lurch and there you were!  

I have the ascending pictures but I was so proud of your accomplishment and you were clapping for yourself that I had to put my camera down to celebrate with a big kiss and squeeze.  After that you conquered the tube slide with a smile on your face and no last hand up.  One day you don't, the next day you do.  Amazing!
Love, Mama

Waadoo is My Thing!

Dear Henry,
This summer we have learned you LOVE water.  It must be typed in all caps to emphasize the magnitude of your desires to splash and play.  You don't mind getting it in your face or going under which makes it extra fun.  In fact, you will purposefully make sure it is shooting right into your face.  You like jumping from the side of the pool into my arms and giggle when I pull you along playing motor boat...you help with the sound effects.
Sources of water fun this summer...and if you can throw dirt in on top of the water?! Heaven!
















*Bahboo and Grandma P's pool and hot tub

*The fountain at the farmer's market
*The tub
*The sink when I wash your hands.
*Our backyard sprinkler

*The Bryan Park Public Pool
*The rain
*The nasty gutter when it is pouring down rain

*Any glass of water you are drinking with ICE.  We don't give you juice or sodas (a few times on special occasions) so you think WATER is awesome all day long

*The splash park at Karst Farm Park...built to be inclusive to children of all abilities with an adjoining playground

 *Any water outlet you can find, Grandpa Tim's pump or the water outlet at the park.  You're not picky.

P.S.  I so need to catch up your blog! or at least get into the flow,  And I will.

Love, Mama

Feet Stink Oh! So! GOOD!

Dear Henry, 

Okay, this could be another post that might embarrass you but it covers such a constant in our lives that I cannot fail to mention it.  Since J pushed you into this world we have loved your little feet. The first photos I took of you at home were actually of your wrinkly pink tootsies.  They were all crackin' and dry so I lovingly slathered on baby oil to smooth them out.  About that same time Daadoo and I started kissin' those little piggies and playin' the, "your feet are so stinky game," with you.  We snarl our nose, squint our eyes and declare as we swipe our hand under our noses and up, "EWE! EWE! STINKY!"  

You giggle and smile and snarl your nose back.  Quickly, even before you walked, you would kiss at Mommy's feet, pet them and bite my toes.  You love it so much you started doing this to yourself then offerin' your foot up to our faces to share a whiff.  

As you became more mobile you would smell our feet and say, "stinky!" You do this to other's too.  Heather's pretty red toenails do not escape your pats.  At night we zip your socks off much like Bahboo did for me when I was a young girl (eh, I'll say it! I have no shame!) and also through high school and even when I was home from college sometimes.  We pull on the sock toes and make your legs fly around wildly and make a zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz sound until the sock parts your sweaty foot in a grand gesture.  You can't get enough of this and I do believe if you could you'd put those socks back on for a repeat performance.  It seems as if this playin' around may have created a misunderstanding of how one shows love to another.  

No alarm yet, as it seems you may be starting to turn on this as just today you gave Bahboo and Grandma P a kiss on the cheek repeatedly.  We've had so much fun with this and now you smell your own feet to tell us just how stinky they are.  Sometimes I tell Dadoo that I'm not really lookin' forward to those feet becoming big, hairy, smelly teenager feet, but I'm sure looking forward to you being around.  Just make sure you get some odor eaters though Peep.

Love, Mama  

A Campin' We Will Go! A Campin' We Will Go!

Dear Henry, 
One of our favorite activities is camping.  Since you, a year and some change ago, we haven't been camping.  Grandpa Tim has been working on an apartmentesque room in the barn with a full bathroom and kitchen area so technically it isn't totally roughing it but it is in the woods.  The land sits a top a beautiful hill that over looks some huge cornfields and is surrounded by large old trees.  We arrived and made a fire so we could burn cook some hot dogs.  You love hot dogs!  We sat by the fire a bit only to notice some raccoon tryin' to open the door to the barn.  Ole Raccoonie was reachin' up and grabbin' at the handle and when that didn't work it started traipsing toward us by the fire.  Based on our furry friend and your twisting and lurching for the fire we quickly decided it was time to go in.  You enjoyed running around the barn-do-minium and fussed a little when laying you in your pack in play.  

The excitement of being away from home made it difficult for you to sleep.  I'd wake up to you talking and I'd see you standing up staring at us.  I'd pick you up to snuggle with us but it was more like snugglin' with a porcupine, elbows flying and legs kickin' you went straight back to the pack and play.  Finally! in the wee hours we all got some sleep to awake the early to pick up and get breakfast ready.  

We cooked bacon and eggs in a pan over the fire.  It was AWESOME!  Then we ruined our tummies on the s'mores we didn't eat the night before.  You were not so sure about toasted marshmallows.  You smacked it immediately into your hair, on your clothes and rubbed it between your hands wailing as if we were spiders trying to trap you in a web.  

That's what it looked like anyway.  Marshmallow was stretched out from you hair to hands.  

I had to grab my camera, but I was trying to help you at the same time so they aren't that great.  We put out what was left of our fire and loaded the van.  We visited Grandma LaJean for a bit then made our sleepy way home.  We napped the rest of the day as if we had been on a month long mountain hiking adventure.  What can I say, it is time we tuffin' up again.  We plan on camping again really soon.  
Love, Mama

Fun at Farmer's Market

Dear Henry,
Deck building on and off for two weeks has gotten me WAY behind on my letters to you.  Just in case you were worried you are still alive and okay during the month of June.  While Mommy was super motivated during deck building I pooped out the last two days I haven't had something consistent to do... so...the next few posts will be pre-haircut while I catch up.  It is kind of painful, even though I know you're much more comfortable sans long curls in the heat, 97 today, I look at your "old" photos and twinge a little.
So let's start with our summer farmer's market Saturday's... 

We've been making it out to the market just about every Saturday this year.  We don't buy anything really other than a tamale and strawberries every week.  Daddy holds you a lot as we get our look-sees in, occasionally stopping and letting you down to dance and listen to music.  One week the popular kids musicians had a big bird with them.  You were getting dangerously close to her tail.  We weren't fearful of the bird or the bird you but rather the massive amount of poo the bird was consistently dropping.  Needless to say we made you take some steps back.  

We often see many people we know including David and Kate, Auntie Carrie.  

Usually just as we make it out of the tamale line our friends who live parallel lives, Mike, Megan and Devo get in line for their tamale.  It is a nice time, sitting and eating.  We chit chat for a while and you two boys stare at each other.  




We part ways and if the fountain is running we let you go and play in it a while.  

You Climb

Dear Henry, 
My apologies.  Our internet has been down and I am behind in your life's story.
I will work on catching up.  Not sure when...we are building a new deck this week.  Yeah!
I know you will love the tools and watching us work.
For now, here is a photo to tide you over.
Thanks to your buddy Devo, who came to watch the LOST series ending, you have a new trick.  I've kept you from climbing on things by simply not showing you how.  By golly Devo fixed that right up.  You aren't to his scaling abilities just yet but you're working on it.  You now climb up on this chair countless times everyday, after just one live demonstration from Devlyn.  Your trick is way better than the LOST ending for sure.  Perhaps I shouldn't make the comparison as it kind of doesn't raise the bar high for you. 
Pretty cool!  Just don't jump.  You hurt my heart when you make efforts to hurl yourself over the back.  I love the little happy dance you do when you make it to a standing position, like watching football in the 80's.
Love, Mama