Busy Week in Review...

Yes, folks, this hamster sums up the past week...we just kept running and running and running!!

The week actually started on Saturday, when I had a baby shower for my little sister, Debbie. (OK, so she's an actual grown-up, but she's 10 years younger than me, so she will always be my "little" sister!) Carson attended the shower, even though it was a ladies only event, and was the life of the party! He was all personality and really cracked everybody up. He definitely enjoyed getting Grandma B. all to himself (instead of sharing her with the nine other grandkids!) and was very surprised to see Grandma D. there -- he was quite happy to count one-two Grandmas! (He actually counted my mom's friend, Grace, and said he had "fwee Gwam-maws"!) He also did well helping Aunt Debbie open presents, knowing that they weren't for him, but rather for "Baby Foe-fee" (aka Sophie). Below is a pic of the mommy-to-be with the hostess-of-the-most-est...
Tuesday, Mommy went back to work! (Insert angelic chorus here.) When Carson saw me in scrubs, he got a little panicked. He kept asking me, "No shot?" and I had to reassure him MULTIPLE times he was not going to get a shot from Mommy. Of course, by the time I got my Little Man motivated to get dressed, brush his teeth, put on his coat, get in the car for the drive to preschool, and then walk into his classroom...whew, I felt like I had already lived an ENTIRE day! And I still had to drive to work and put in an 8-hour shift!!

Wednesday morning was rough. On Tuesday, Carson was excited to get to see "Tray-shee." On Wednesday when I told him we couldn't "sa-nuggle" because he had school, his response was, "Tray-shee AGIN??" He had some meltdown moments and I was quite exasperated by the time he got to school. Maybe this going-back-to-work thing is going to be harder than I thought...

Carson has been refusing to nap at school and when I tried to figure out why, he told me "Tray-shee sa-nuggle?" Oh, really?! He wants his teacher to snuggle with him and then he'll nap?! What a ladies man, huh? When I told Tracy Wednesday morning, she was so touched. So, to get him to nap on Wednesday, she patted his back for a few minutes...worked like a charm, he slept for an hour and a half!

Wednesday evening, Carson and I laid in my bed after his bath and watched a little "Fun Bob" (aka Spongebob). I decided to warn him about Thursday morning. No, he wasn't going back to preschool, but he had an appointment with the Rehab Specialist bright and early, so he needed to know our "sa-nuggling" was going to be brief. When I told him we were going to the doctor in the morning, he got so sad. He said, "Mommy, no dock-er" (aka no doctor) and stuck out his lower lip in the most pitiful pout. I reassured him we were just going to visit and play with the doctor's toys. He repeated, "Mommy, PEESE, no dock-er" with another pitiful pouty lip. I'm not exaggerating when I tell you it brings tears to my eyes to think about his sad little face...he broke my heart!

After I put him to bed, I started feeling awful...it seems like all we've done since arriving home from China is torture this poor child with doctor visits, therapy visits, and shots. When I woke up Thursday at 5:30 to snow on the ground and Meggie on a two-hour delay, I called and canceled his appointment. I decided with the busy week we were having, we needed a mental health day! (I did reschedule the appointment for February 12th.)

So, instead of going to the "dock-er," we went to the YMCA so Mommy could "wuk out" and Carson could play in the gym with the other kids in the Child Watch. After my swim, we went to lunch at the Chinese restaurant by the YMCA for some "China food." He LOVES that restaurant...LOVES it!! We shared some sesame chicken, fried rice, and egg rolls and he was in absolute heaven! For the first time, he wasn't afraid of the Chinese people who worked there (he used to shun and avoid them, big time) and actually enjoyed watching them work and talk to each other in Chinese.

Thursday night, he had a rough night and cried in his sleep almost all night. I don't know why...maybe hearing the Chinese language again took him back to painful memories. Who knows? It was so hard to hear him sobbing, knowing there was nothing I could do to help.

Friday, Carson readily got up for school and our morning went very smoothly. All things considered, Mommy's first week back to work went well. I'm a little rusty in my job, of course, but it feels good to be back in the swing of things!

I'm taking a double load at school right now as I finish up my last elective (a Fine Arts class) and this week I needed to go to the Art Museum for an assignment. Yesterday, Aunt Debbie, Carson and I made an afternoon of it and actually had a pretty good time. Here's a pic Aunt Debbie snapped of me and my Little Man at the Museum...
Up next for our already crazy busy family...today I signed Carson up for instructional spring soccer. He's on a waiting list for now, so we won't know for a few weeks if he's actually going to be put on a team. Guess we'll all have to wait and see together...

NOW I Know Why God Makes Teenagers So Sullen...

...it is to pay their parents back for the RELENTLESS talking they did when they were preschoolers!!

Let me preface this post with the fact that I ADORE Carson...totally and absolutely ADORE him! I ADORED him long before I met him...fell in love with his sad, chubby little face in all the pictures we received before we traveled to China. I read books on China adoption, on toddler adoption, on attachment disorders in institutionalized kids...felt I had really done my homework. There was one thing, though, for which I had forgotten to prepare myself...

...the RELENTLESS talking!! (Were you not paying attention at the beginning of this post?!)

Carson was a talkative little dude when we met him...more of a yeller, actually, but very, very talkative. Of course, when he was yelling at us in Chinese, we thought it was cute...funny and very cute! After all, we could laugh and smile and basically ignore him -- no one expected us to understand Chinese!

Now, though, he knows English. He speaks English as much as he yelled Chinese. And he REALLY likes Mommy to be part of his conversations...A-L-L D-A-Y L-O-N-G!!! I get an endless stream of, "Mommy, watch!" and "Mommy, wuzzat?" (aka what's that) and my favorite, "Mommy, wucha doin'?" (aka what are you doing?). Of course, I'm thrilled that he has picked up English so well and is so inquisitive and smart...really, I am. However, Mommy needs a break!!

The other preschooler habit I had forgotten about is the need to do the same things over and over...and over...and over...and OVER! When Carson is allowed to select a movie, he ALWAYS picks the same one...see if you can guess...
(I just realized he was wearing a "Cars" t-shirt in this shot...ignore that!) This picture was taken as we were headed out to pick up Meggie from a sleepover. Much like Andy in his now favorite movie, "Toy Story," he had to run and get Buzz and Woody to take on the car ride. (Many thanks to Kim B. for the Buzz and Woody characters!) He is completely enamored of that movie and will watch it every day if he's allowed to. Ugggghhh! We own nearly 100 Disney movies on VHS or DVD and he will ALWAYS pick "Toy Story"...ALWAYS! Why do preschoolers DO that??

So, anyway, folks, the time has come...tomorrow is officially the last day of my maternity leave! Last night, we had a quarterly staff meeting (from which I was excused and for which I did not get paid) that I attended just to get my brain refocused on my job...I feel so rusty!! (Yes, my coworkers thought I was odd for being there.)

Monday is a holiday and my department is closed, so I actually don't start work until Tuesday. It should be interesting to see Carson's reaction...he gets so clammed up and freaked out by medical personnel, hope he doesn't freak when he sees me in scrubs for the first time! (I'll have to keep reminding him, "No shot!")

I just want to give a big shout out to all the stay-at-home moms out there in the world. I admire your ability to make yourself a prisoner in your home for the sake of your kids. I admire the endless patience and boundless energy you necessarily have within you. But, sadly, the stay-at-home mom role is not one I can play any longer...it's back to the big, mean work world for me.

Interestingly, as I was leaving last night for the staff meeting, Carson (who always has to establish where everyone is..."Daddy at wuk, Meggie at sa-cool, Mommy at home, Carson at home") was so confused when I told him I had to go to work. "Mommy WUK??" he yelled, like it was such an odd concept. Yes, Little Man, Mommy has been "wukking" since you met her...but now she's going to get paid for it!!

He's Officially Official Now!

I spent a L-O-N-G hour in the Social Security Office on January 4th waiting my turn to apply for Carson's Social Security card. It was a simple procedure to apply and, surprisingly, the card arrived in the mail yesterday!! The government actually spelled his name right (even the Chinese part!) and it only took 10 days to get here...including counting the weekends! Impressive.

There is nothing that makes you feel more officially American than being assigned that very important nine digit number. You have arrived, my Little Man...you're officially official now!

That Boy is Smart AND Talented!

The more English that Carson learns, the more he truly amazes us with his observations and ideas! A few of his latest and greatest:

There are many times he refuses to play with his toys, preferring to just walk around the house. When I suggest playing with toys or blocks, he says, "No bwocks, no peen-up!" He would rather walk around bored than clean up after himself!


He recognizes a lot of the songs on the radio station Meggie listens to. There are even a few he knows the words to...he'll keep saying, "Wait...wait..." until the song gets to the point where he can sing along. He also LOVES the soundtrack to "Hairspray" and can sing along with almost every song!

When we're in the minivan, every time I stop at a light or stop sign, Carson tells me, "Momma, this-a way" telling me which way to turn. (Sounds cute, doesn't it? Try a 20 or 30 minute drive with this every couple of minutes...it gets a bit annoying, especially when I get yelled at if I don't go the way he wants me to go!)

When I get within a block or two of Carson's preschool, he starts recognizing the area and starts yelling "Tray-shee!" (aka Tracy, his teacher) until we pull in the parking lot. Once I park the minivan, he starts saying, "Bye-Bye, Momma!" to be sure I know he wants me to drop him off and leave.

The more comfortable he gets with Miss Mary, his occupational therapist, the more he terrorizes her at his visits! When she's trying to get him to cooperate with some skill, he'll yell at her, "No mo today!" with an angry look on his face! Poor Miss Mary...she wants to be stern and force him to behave, but she has to turn her head and hide the fact that she's hysterically laughing at him!

When Daddy gets frustrated with Carson, Daddy's favorite saying is "You're killing me!" Last night, I was trying to get Carson to put on his PJs and he wasn't being very cooperative. After much nagging, he finally sat down on the floor, shook his head, and said (under his breath and to himself), "You kimmim me, Momma." When I get frustrated with Carson, I typically will say, "Boy, please!" Instead of copying me, he turns it around and says, "Gill, peese!" (aka girl, please) right back to me! However, when I call him a silly boy, he always says, "Momma a siwwy boy."

When Carson feeds himself finger foods, he usually leans his arm against the table to bend his elbow. The other night at dinner, he did this instead......supporting one arm with the other! Don't know where he learned this, but it works a lot better than leaning against the table!

And now for the "talent" portion of this post...

Meggie dances around our house constantly and loves to practice her dance spins in the kitchen. Carson has been watching her and has his own version of spins...

OK, so Meggie's spins are a bit prettier than that, but that's fairly impressive, Little Man!

Stay tuned, folks...with a kid this smart and observant, I'm pretty sure there's more to come!!

The Children's Museum, a Haircut, and Home OT!

For Christmas, Grandma and Grandpa B. gave us a family pass to our local Museum Center. This Museum Center has an awesome Children's Museum! Wednesday, Carson and I went to the Children's Museum with Max and his mom, Chelsie...the boys had a BLAST!

The Children's Museum has a bunch of pretend play areas. The boys first headed to the garage mechanic area, and Carson went straight to the tool bench.
Chelsie and I REALLY wanted to get a pic of the boys together...they weren't so cooperative. This is the best we could get...
...'cause the boys were so fixated on the fact that the steering wheel didn't actually turn on the car. Carson was disgusted and kept telling me, "Doe wuk!" (aka don't work). That kid cracks me up! We tried for another pic, but Carson decided he was outta there!
Next we headed to the play restaurant. There was a little girl "grilling" all the pretend food, so Carson and Max headed to the cash register. After pushing all the buttons and getting no results, Carson again announced, "Doe wuk!" He was getting less and less impressed with this place!
The boys DID enjoy pouring Chelsie and I pretend drinks from the pitchers, though!
After the play restaurant, the boys headed into the play house area, complete with chores to do and babies to care for. Carson enjoyed doing the "lon-dwee" (aka laundry), but both boys got irritated when the play vacuum sweeper didn't have batteries and, thus, made no noise. They marched out of that area before I could even get a good picture!

Next was the construction area, complete with a life-size crane that actually worked! First the boys put on their orange vests and shoveled the rocks...
...but Carson REALLY wanted to run the controls on the crane! He waited patiently in the cab of the crane while this other little boy monopolized the controls for a while.
When Carson finally got his turn, he was quite disgusted to find out this also "Doe wuk!"...until I explained to him that he had to turn the wheel and pull the rope more than one time to get results...
...then he quite enjoyed moving the arm of the crane and dumping the bucket of rocks onto the ground!Carson left the construction area when he realized they had a HUGE Lego area! He loves Legos but won't play with them much at home because he doesn't want to clean up. ("No bwocks, no peen-up!" is what he tells me when I suggest playing with Legos.) At the museum, however, he didn't have to clean up, so he had fun!
The tools area had a large pegboard wall...the goal was to hammer the plastic nails into the holes. Neither boy liked this area very much...guess it was too much "wuk"!Their favorite area, hands down, was the water room. There was a huge pool of water, complete with water toys and various fountains, and it was set up high enough that the little ones could stand next to the pool and play in the water. I think they would have stayed in this area the rest of the day if we let 'em.
Max is a lot more laid back in personality than Carson is. If kids splashed Carson, he would either move or splash 'em back...Max just stood there and took it. Even with the water apron on, Max got soaked...his hair was even wet! Before we could leave the water area, we had to head over to the dryers. Carson's hair was dry, but he kept sticking his head under the dryer to show Max what HE needed to do to dry off!
When Chelsie and I suggested it was time to go to the dryers so we could move on to another area, Max had a mini meltdown. Carson looked at him, rolled his eyes, and told us, "Him cwy-baby." Chelsie and I cracked up! Out of the mouths of babes, huh?!

We stumbled onto a smaller play area (for 4 years and younger) and the boys immediately saw the sandbox. Yes, the wet boys wanted to play in dirt...let's make some mud!
I was surprised Carson enjoyed the sandbox because he typically doesn't like it when his hands are dirty! Carson thought it was fun to throw sand at Max, until Max returned the favor and it got in Carson's eyes...then Carson learned a valuable lesson about throwing sand. (That's what you get, ya big bully!)

The boys had fun and we decided to leave after this area and go to lunch at Big Boy. At the Children's Museum, the boys didn't really play together...they were side-by-side but basically played independent of the other one. At lunch, though, they started interacting...rolling crayons back and forth across the table and blowing their straw papers at each other. So cute!

After lunch, we tried to get a picture of our Little Men with Big Boy...this is the best picture I could get... ...then they held hands as we crossed the parking lot, which gave me my favorite picture of the whole day...
...isn't that just too stinkin' cute?! Many thanks to Grandma and Grandpa B. for the family museum pass -- we will definitely use that thing a ton -- and to Chelsie and Max for a great playdate!!

Carson's hair grows so quickly and he always looks so shaggy to me. My friend Sarah recommended I get clippers and just buzz his hair at home. Last night, Daddy and I decided to give Carson his first at-home haircut...meaning I did all the work and Daddy took the pictures for me.

First, Carson and I had to read the directions to figure out how the clippers worked...
...and once I got brave enough to actually start cutting, we all laughed hysterically! Carson is super ticklish pretty much everywhere and he was so wiggly and giggly, it was cracking us up! Daddy made a video (so hysterical), but I'm having trouble uploading it for some reason. If I can figure it out, I'll post it later.
Carson was surprisingly cooperative and actually liked getting a "cut-cut" (aka haircut) in the kitchen! He did get a little restless near the end, so I can't say the front of his hair is perfectly even. I'm sure I'll improve with practice.

Thursday at OT, Miss Mary had a box filled with plastic pellets that also had spoons, cups, and various other objects in it. The goal of this box is to work on fine motor skills. Carson LOVED that box, so I decided to create one for home.

I couldn't find the plastic pellets, so I used white rice instead. I then added measuring spoons, a funnel, a couple of small trucks, some sparkly pom-poms (which Daddy is making us call "bombs" so they don't sound so girlie!), and a tall bottle.
This box was the best invention...he played with it uninterrupted for TWO SOLID HOURS! I got so much homework done, and he was sitting two feet away from me! All morning, he has been begging me to open the "blosh" (aka box). I'm calling it his "special box," but he can't quite say that yet. I'm gonna hold him off until after his nap, when he's typically crankier and harder to keep content...we usually let him sit in front of a movie, but the "blosh" is a much better alternative!

When I was shopping for the contents of the "blosh," I saw slippers on sale and just had to get them for Carson. He has "Fun Bob" (aka Spongebob) slippers I got as a shower gift, but he has already outgrown them! He liked his new slippers...
...because they have footballs, basketballs, AND baseball bats on them! (Can you tell Daddy is brainwashing him with sports?!) Sorry, Fun Bob, you've been replaced!

When it was time to go to bed (after the two hours of play with the "blosh"), this is the reaction I got...
...what a crackup! That's all for now!

A Visit to the Neurologist...and a Song!

Carson initially had an appointment with the pediatric neurologist scheduled for mid April. The reason for this appointment is to evaluate his arms and, hopefully, figure out why he is unable to bend them at the elbows.

Last week, out of the blue, the hospital called and said the neurologist wanted to see Carson sooner than April. They wanted to know, could I bring him in this week? Yes!! We got an appointment for 1:00 today.

After a thorough examination, the neurologist said it appears Carson's arm issues aren't related to the nerves in his arms, but rather to the muscles. She said the shape of his head (quite flat in the back) and the physical condition of his arms tells her that he was unable to move in utero, which stunted his physical development. (I wonder if he was a twin or triplet?!) According to her preliminary exam, she said he doesn't appear to have a biceps muscle in either upper arm. Not that it is underdeveloped, it is simply not there. From her rather complicated description, it sounds like those muscles develop in utero and infancy during arm movement. Since Carson had no movement in his arms, the muscle never formed. Yikes.

I asked if there was anything we can do for him and she said there is not...you cannot develop or strengthen a muscle that doesn't exist. She said our only alternative is to teach him how to adapt. Well, that ship sailed a while ago 'cause this boy has figured out how to adapt almost every skill!

We will be scheduling an EMG in the near future, just to confirm that there is no nerve damage in his arms. Beyond that...who knows. I'm not really of the opinion that a bunch of painful and invasive tests are worth the trouble and money if there is truly nothing we can do about the condition anyway. Guess we'll handle these decisions one at a time.

On another -- less medical -- note, yesterday Carson and I had lunch with my friend Sarah and her son Selleck. At lunch, Sarah was singing nursery rhymes with Selleck ("Itsy Bitsy Spider," "Twinkle Twinkle," and "It's Raining, It's Pouring") and Carson LOVED them! So, today I figured we could sing those kind of songs while we sa-nuggle in the mornings. Carson tried to sing along -- which was basically him just yelling whatever words he understood -- then ask, "Twinkle one mo time, pweese?!" We did this for a while, then he asked, "Car, Momma, pweese?" I didn't know what he was talking about, so I told him so and had a confused look on my face. He then started singing a completely tuneless and made-up song of his own, with lyrics that sounded like "Betta, betta car. Betta caaaaaaarrrrrr!" I couldn't help it -- I was busting with laughter! (Meggie always tells me we need a new minivan...maybe Carson agrees and wants to get his point across in song...)

And to think the last update we got on Carson from China a few weeks before we traveled said -- and I quote -- "He does not music and singing like very much." Guess that has changed, huh?!

I realized my last few posts don't have as many pictures of Carson or Meggie...guess life is settling down to normal, which means I'm not chasing my poor kids constantly with the camera. I'll make an effort to post pics at least once a week...after all, I know you all don't come here for the amazing writing.

Our First Bedtime Story...FINALLY!

When we went to China, Meggie and I picked a collection of children's books to take with us, with the intent of reading bedtime stories with Carson. That did NOT happen. He is such a talker and got quite impatient as I tried to read the stories...he wanted to talk over me and keep flipping the pages! I figured he just needed to learn more English and we would try again later.

Last night, I decided to give it another shot. After all, he has a decent grasp of English now. He was excited about the "sa-nuggle" (aka snuggle) before bedtime...we usually only sa-nuggle in his bed in the mornings. (And Carson's sa-nuggles require that I get under the blankets with him.) He was also quite jazzed about the opportunity to stall his bedtime just a bit longer. I picked a small Winnie the Pooh book, figuring the familiar characters would hold his interest (he LOVES Tigger). He talked over me the whole time and kept rubbing his hand all over the page, but he didn't turn the page. I tried not to get frustrated...after all, this was progress over our last attempt.

Tonight, he did SO much better! He listened to the story, we named all of the animals on the pages, counted the bunnies...it was AWESOME! (Sorry, I'm a book dork. My mom used to tell me I didn't read books, I inhaled them. That is actually fairly accurate. I absolutely love to read.) Kevin snuck up to Carson's room and took a few pics...
... and I was pleased (and surprised) that Carson didn't notice the camera until the last shot! He was actually engrossed in the book with me! Yeah!

Bedtime stories were some of my favorite memories from Meggie's childhood...she actually still has her favorite childhood book in her room, even though the binding is torn from overuse. (No, we don't still read "In the Toy Box" with her...I mean overuse from the early years!) Also, since we didn't get to bottle feed Carson, the sa-nuggle of sharing a book is a pretty good bonding alternative in my view.

Yes, we missed a lot of Carson's "firsts" during his four years of life in China...first smile, first steps, first tooth...but the "firsts" we are experiencing with him here are pretty special, too!