feb ???? 2009

I have no idea what date it is,i know its monday in Feb.
Zakary and i have been struggling with colds since we returned from our trip back east. Trying our best not to share germs and so on.
Zakary asked me "how did i get my cold? where did it come from? where did i get the germs?"i answered that there are germs every where,not one person gave it to him. He said "someone used me as a tissue,and now i have their germs" i guess he has the right idea,hate to think someone thinks he is a kleenex to wipe their noses on though. He is such a clever little guy. We are both feeling better now.

Saturday morning at Team Raymond

So the weekend begins at our house. This is a typical Saturday morning at Team raymond,although this weekend we are all hassling with colds. Poor zak,just has such a hard time with the mucus,just really struggles with it and the sinus stuff although he doesnt seem to have it nearly as bad as some of the kids i hear about who are cleft affected. So anyway....Welcome to Saturday morning at Team Raymond.
We are supposd to be going to check out a martial arts class this am for Zak but not sure we are gonna make it this week.

odds ands feb 2009

Feb 20 2009
Zakary had pulled the curtains up in his bedroom this am and when i saw them, was concerned that he had only pulled one side at a time up to hang and when i checked them out,I asked him what he was doing,he said he wanted a fan for curtains. Perhaps we have an interior decorator in training???
Later that day,Zak and dad were out planting the live christmas tree,yes yes its taken this long to get the damn thing in the ground so while shoveling and planting,he is lookinjg for worms,that now is the favorite pass time. A bucket,shovel,trowel and off to look for worms,the bigger the better. YES!!!! He is a BOY!!!

daytnoa 500 weekend in Delaware/Feb 2009

We survived the trip to and from Delaware. it took us 24 hrs to get there,between delayed and cancelled flights due to weather all over the country we ended up going from SF to newark,to Cleveland to Philly. Yes!!! 24hrs. we coulda gone to China and back. The return trip was not so bad but we did sit on run ways waiting o be cleared for take off and landing in SF due to the misreable weather you all had here while we were gone.
We sepnt the week with Stan's sister and brother in law at their home in Wilmingtoon Delaware,it was beautiful weather but very cold. We hung out and chased the kids as not for them to get into everything that wasnt their's. It was hard work.
Sunday was race day and about 50 people or so were at the house for food drink and daytona 500. It was a fun and busy day,the kids had some other kids to play with that helped a bit. When things got too much,i took them upstairs to play and watch some tv. It was a tireing week but fun as usual.
Monday we went to visit the Sxhulte family as we do each year,they live not too far from Stan's sister and they are the family who we travelled with to get Laurel and they adopted their daughter from the same orphanage,its so fun to see the kids grow up.Their Savannah is sooooooooo quiet and plays so well alone where our laurel is such a live wire. Laurel is just one month older than Savannah. We also were able to see another mom and her daughter from China who actually travelled with some friends of ours almsot 4 yrs ago now as well. Her daughter Sara is the samwe age as Laurel.
Sara lange and her 2 daughters from Russia also were there,Sara is the gal who worked with the diff agencies and helped us get to laurel and then with a diff agency to get to Zakary. She is a wonderful fun gal,her husband very sweet and theuir daughters delightful. They are 10 and 12 if i recall correctly. We played and ordered philly cheese steak sandwhiches for dinner,as we folks from the west coast dont know about them and then played and visited some more till it was time to leave and get home to pack for the trip home.
We head out the next am and made it home late Tuesday night,all of us exhausted and now sick.

Febuary discovery museum

Febuary 8 2009
We celebrated Zakary's 4th birthday one more time,this time the official bday party. Classmates,family and other friends of our family and children. Most also adopted from China. We apent the day at the Discovery museum at Ft. baker,right under the GOlden gate Bridge. It was a great day. Zak was sooooooooooo excited. party,cake,gifts,friends !!! what could be better?? oh ya,the superman pinata.
We partied upstairs inthe party room and then everyone had run of the facility,there was a new music room, very loud and VERY much fun. Painting and art in one building,a tot spot for little guys,do it your self face painting and science experiments,weights and measure,water,gravity and so on. Then a large wonderful outdoor playground to run off oall the energy and sugar. i am glad that its all over now till net year,this bday went on for about a week so Zak was in rare form the entire time. Everyone seemed to have had a great time,i know we did and everyone slept like rocks last night.

worldly possessions/Feb 6 2009

Ok so lets talk worldly possesions.
Little Zak has always had a thing about having "things" and always a lot of "things" he used to carry things around with him at all times,hands full of anything. that has decreased but now he has one of my laundry baskets FULLLLLLL of what he calls his "treasures" and u best not toouch them. i am going to assume that this collecting and hoarding "stuff" is due to not haveing had much of his very own earlier in life but my goodness. he told me i only needed one laundry basket,he needed th other. he fills it with whatever,bags and boxes of stuff,toys,leaves,pine cones,paper,garbage etc etc. And then drags the basket sround the house.
Zak has also always had a fascination with the hand rail that tou see in all bathrooms in stores and restaurnats,airports esp in the handicapped stalls. He has always wanted one of his own,in the bathroom at home so dad got one and installed it. he loves it. Gotta say its nice in the wee hours of the am when i can barely see or know what im doing in the bathroom and dont even have the energy to pull mysef off the toilet.
Zak is turning out to be such a clever little guy,so funny and such a "tease"
Please enjoy the pics. the one of the pile of stuff is of course the "treasures" and he sitting on the toile holding the rail is he saying "i love my handle mom"
Zak had a great couple days celebrating his bday and will has his official bday party this coming Sunday.
Laurel is registered for Kindergarten and is not sure what to think of that,being away at real school all by herself.

Feb 3 2009

Happy 4th birthday little Zakary!!!!!

we all love you to pieces

Feb 2 evening

Feb 2 2009 pm
so here i sit the eve of Zakary's 4th birthday. i wonder what was going on in china 4 years ago this eve at Zak's birth moms home. Was she at home? was she in a hospital? did she know the sex of her baby? the condition of her baby? was she happy to be giving birth? just what is she thinking and feeling this evening before the birth of her son. I dont know,will never know but cant help but wonder. And tomorrow,after his birth,i too,wonder the same things as this eve. What were her dreams for him,her plans and her expectations? All these things go through my head this eve as i get him tucked in to bed here at his home in America.
I will never know for sure but i will wonder forever what it must have been like for his bio mom. All i know is the good things of his birth, the happy things,the amazing things of him. He is an amazing a sensitive little one,but so strong,so genuine and creative. His imagination is wonderful and his zest for life truly grand.
He has come so far since he has been with us,and still so far to go.
I am so greatful for his birth mom,we think of her each year on moms day and his bday and feel so sad that she was not strong enough to parent him and yet so very lucky that she gave us that privlage. We will not let her down and hope that she knows how happy and glad we are to have him a part of our family and that we also do feel a connection to her,how could we not? she is our sons gene's. She gave him what he is. We are just here to continue on to what he becomes.
thank you thank you for allowing us your son.
Zak and laurel are begining to ask and wonder a bit about adoption,what exactly it means. It is interesting to share with them what it is and what it means,who they are and who they came from. They both seem to accept and feel special from what they hear of adoption thus far,we are glad for this.
Good Night and thank you again,dear mother in China.

February 1 2009

February 1 2009 Super Bowl Sunday!!

ok but where the hell did January go??