Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Vox Essential Sing for Cai and Tri
Just a quck post. Virginia is in a singing group that meets after school. Today, rather than meet at school, they met at our house to practice some Christmas carols for an upcoming Christmas gig. So Cai and Tri got a private performance. Here they are singing a verse of Deck the Halls. I'll add a few other video snapshots of the evening later.
Friday, November 21, 2008
Happy Birthday, Grandma Holmes
Well, Grandma has headed to the United States to partake in her second Thanksgiving of the year. We tried to call but I think we were too late. So Cai and Tri thought they'd send their wishes in the form of a video and song.
Here it is Grandma. We wish we could be there to help you celebrate and we can't wait to see you in December.
Here it is Grandma. We wish we could be there to help you celebrate and we can't wait to see you in December.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Cai's Little Piggies
Well Cai continues to be disinterested in her night time bottle. Tonight I was milking the bottle, as she just doesn't suck. I got her to take 90 ml and then decided to just let her sleep. We think that we may not even bother doing that in the future. If she doesn't want it, maybe she doesn't need it.
Today I took a couple of short clips of Cai and Tri playing. The first shows how adept Cai is getting at sitting on her own. She now rarely falls backwards (though we still keep pillows behind her).
The second video shows us that Tri is understanding words. We will clap your hand if you ask him to. If you ask him to touch his head, or "where is Tri's head", he will frequently put his hand on his head. I think it's pretty amazing that he now understands these things.
I'm on night time duty and it's now past 11pm so I gotta get some sleep.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Happy Birthday, Cai
Happy Birthday, Cai
Cai turned 8 months today, and she celebrated by not imbibing at all. We’re having great difficulty getting her take her evening (just before bedtime) bottle. Tonight Virginia is very stressed as a result (possibly related to the fact that she is the one on call tonight ~ funny how I seem not to be bothered by it…tonight at least).
Here is a video of Cai and Tri as they watch “The Big Blue House”. Every evening the kids get from 10 – 30 min of a video. And while the kids may not yet understand the meaning of “no” they do seem to know that when the television comes on, they should stop whatever it is they are doing. In the video Tri has a warm hand for his 8 month old sister. It’s really not that exciting, but gives you a glimpse at what they look like today.
In the second video, we catch a glimpse of Tri in the bathtub. Over the last week he has started pulling himself up to a standing position providing he has something of low height to prop himself up with (a pillow, my leg while sitting, etc). Well today this happened for the first time in the bathtub. Bath time suddenly became a little more challenging. I couldn’t quite get him to replicate the initial act (I tried, but you might hear a few thoughts from Virginia on my attempts to capture the footage versus sitting ready to catch him if/when he falls). But I think this short series of clips will give you a bit of an idea. Pay careful attention to the last few frames of the video! OUCH!
Cai turned 8 months today, and she celebrated by not imbibing at all. We’re having great difficulty getting her take her evening (just before bedtime) bottle. Tonight Virginia is very stressed as a result (possibly related to the fact that she is the one on call tonight ~ funny how I seem not to be bothered by it…tonight at least).
Here is a video of Cai and Tri as they watch “The Big Blue House”. Every evening the kids get from 10 – 30 min of a video. And while the kids may not yet understand the meaning of “no” they do seem to know that when the television comes on, they should stop whatever it is they are doing. In the video Tri has a warm hand for his 8 month old sister. It’s really not that exciting, but gives you a glimpse at what they look like today.
In the second video, we catch a glimpse of Tri in the bathtub. Over the last week he has started pulling himself up to a standing position providing he has something of low height to prop himself up with (a pillow, my leg while sitting, etc). Well today this happened for the first time in the bathtub. Bath time suddenly became a little more challenging. I couldn’t quite get him to replicate the initial act (I tried, but you might hear a few thoughts from Virginia on my attempts to capture the footage versus sitting ready to catch him if/when he falls). But I think this short series of clips will give you a bit of an idea. Pay careful attention to the last few frames of the video! OUCH!
Monday, November 17, 2008
Is it Too Early for Christmas?
Not according to Virginia! We leave to come back to Canada on December 20, we will be in Bali one weekend with our niece Crystal (and possibly niece Kim) one weekend, and one weekend we'll at our beach house, so that will only leave two weekends left at our house in Jakarta. So Virginia decided it was time to get the Christmas tree out. I think the fact that last week's Canadian Tire flyers had Christmas things for sale also helped.
So we've got a few videos to show. The first is just of Cai and Tri as they play. They are becomming better and better at playing on their own and with each (I guess this is no surprise as they are getting older, but as a first time around parent, it's still pretty cool to watch these changes).
The second is a shot of the kids and the tree.
This last one stars Charlie and Ella. Their mother is gone to Africa for one week to interview for a head of school position, so she may enjoy catching a glimpse of what they've been up to in her abscence.
Friday, November 14, 2008
Cai Gets Her First Tooth
We'll it's about time. I've been saying for three months that Cai is teething. Today she finally proved me right!
She has had a tooth appear on her bottom front. She is taking the pain far better than Tri did when he was teething.
Here are two more videos.
The first is just of Tri laughing
The 2nd is one of Tri as he grasps for the camera. Both kids seem very aware of when the camera comes out. Cai unfortunately tends to be become more serious and thus it is generally more difficult to get photos of her smiling or video of her laughing.
She has had a tooth appear on her bottom front. She is taking the pain far better than Tri did when he was teething.
Here are two more videos.
The first is just of Tri laughing
The 2nd is one of Tri as he grasps for the camera. Both kids seem very aware of when the camera comes out. Cai unfortunately tends to be become more serious and thus it is generally more difficult to get photos of her smiling or video of her laughing.
UN Day at School
We'll it's my favourite day of the school year....UN Day!
The first is of Tri and Cai as they practice standing. This video is from about a week ago, and already Tri can now almost pull himself up to a standing postion on his....wow these kids are growing up fast.
Our school has over 60 nationalities represented (although only about 45 in the high school), and today we celebrate this fact.
There are no classes today, but instead a special schedule involving Global Issues. Lunch is catered by all the parents with food from around the world (a little like Folklore in Kingston, or Caravan in Toronto)
Students and teachers will get dressed up, there will be a performance in the afternoon. We've got our Vietnamese outfits, and the plan is to have the kids come to school and meet us at lunch.
It should make for some nice pictures.
Until then, here are two more videos:
and here is one showing Cai in several different laughing scenes
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Adoption Day...so long ago!
As I mentioned I've been slowly uploading videos to Youtube, and images to Picasa. After reading comments from those still in the process of adopting (some parents have seen their kids in the photos that we took at the orphanage), it got us remembering our big day.
The two videos below are from that day.
The morning of the Giving and Receiving Ceremony we had to wake up early. This is a video as we woke up Cai and Tri for their big day!
The 2nd one you may have already seen, but after my niece and nephew spotted a "thumbs up" in the video, I did a quick edit to slow that part down, so that the "thumbs up" is readily seen.
Moments after officially becoming our children, I ask Cai and Tri how they feel about their new parents. This is what they said.
The third video is a shot of "Tigger Tri"
Tri loves to jump up and down. It started back in Vietnam when he would bounce to "5 Little Monkeys". Since then he'll bop to anything, but really loves his song "Tigger"
The two videos below are from that day.
The morning of the Giving and Receiving Ceremony we had to wake up early. This is a video as we woke up Cai and Tri for their big day!
The 2nd one you may have already seen, but after my niece and nephew spotted a "thumbs up" in the video, I did a quick edit to slow that part down, so that the "thumbs up" is readily seen.
Moments after officially becoming our children, I ask Cai and Tri how they feel about their new parents. This is what they said.
The third video is a shot of "Tigger Tri"
Tri loves to jump up and down. It started back in Vietnam when he would bounce to "5 Little Monkeys". Since then he'll bop to anything, but really loves his song "Tigger"
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Visit to our Orphanage
Well months ago, we said we'd post some photos of the kids at the orphanage in Vung Tau. Then a woman who is currently in the process of adopting a child from Vung Tau asked if we had any photos. Hopefully we'll have some shots of her child.
It would have been nice to have had shots of Tri and Cai from before we knew them, but we've been out of luck.
So below is a slide show of the photos from the orphanage. By clicking on the slideshow, I think it will take you to the Picasa Photo album. From there you can get high resolution images which should be adequate for printing out.
I'm now in the process of uploading a bunch of short clips of the kids to YouTube and images to Picasa. Then anyone (which probably just means Bonnie and Bruce) can take a look at all of the photos and videos that we have of the kids.
A picture might be worth a thousand words, but a video tells much more.
So here is a short clip of Tri as he's learning to crawl.
It would have been nice to have had shots of Tri and Cai from before we knew them, but we've been out of luck.
So below is a slide show of the photos from the orphanage. By clicking on the slideshow, I think it will take you to the Picasa Photo album. From there you can get high resolution images which should be adequate for printing out.
A picture might be worth a thousand words, but a video tells much more.
So here is a short clip of Tri as he's learning to crawl.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Kids in their walkers
We got back from a week at the West Coast and spent the weekend at home. We decided to leave both walkers up at the beach, and so went out on Saturday to buy two more for Jakarta. Here are the kids in their new strollers.
Sunday, November 2, 2008
MOMENTS
OK,
Virginia wrote the following some time ago. We put it in draft till I could add some photos. This still hasn't been done, so I'm just posting this.
I'll add a video or two of the kids in their new walkers. Gives them a little too much freedom in my mind!
Tri is now crawling, and he gets better at it and faster each day.
As I sit down (finally) to write another blog, I realize how much I have to write about. Yes, it has been a long while since I wrote; it is amazing to me how quickly the days can fly by when you have two little ones and I am often so tired at the end of the day that the mere thought of tippy-tapping away at the computer can bring me to tears.
But now, at 6 a.m. when the apartment is quiet and John has (thank God) joined us again in Vietnam, I will enjoy a cup of tea and begin to write down some of what I have neglected to report. I can only think of one title for this blog: Moments. Because that is what we have - moments - small bits of time that weave together to create this wonderful life of ours. Some of the moments have been wonderful, others frustrating, some filled with tears, but many filled with giggling babies.
As we near the end of our time here in Vietnam, I am am compelled to look back at it and wonder: how on earth did we ever do it? I have been here for almost three months and when I think about all of the changes that have taken place in my life in that time, I am astounded. I have gone from being a teacher, a wife, a sister, a daughter, to being a MOM.
Bar none, the biggest change of my life. It has changed the very core of who I am; I can no longer define myself any other way - mom comes first.
And it has made me realize how much MY mom had to go through with me: you are amazing mom!!
Okay, on to the moments.
I apologize if this is a long blog, but hey, I have a lot to catch up on. I include moments in no particular order. Some of them happened a while ago, others more recently. I include them in the order in which I think about them. And let's face it, my brain is sleep deprived and a little scrambled these days!
MOMENT #1: My 40th Birthday!
Everyone who knows me knows this: I am BIG on birthdays. I have been known to sport a tiara for a week, while I order those about me to pay tribute to the birthday girl. Not always to great effect. Now, my 40th birthday was going to be SOMETHING. I rememeber talking with our friends Luke and Sophie; we discussed a "Fourty is Fabulous Cruise" where we'd all dress in plaid, knee-high socks and grannie dresses and stalk the decks of some unsuspecting cruise ship en masse, in celebration of the year we all turn 40. Didn't happen. Then, I thought: a PARTY. A big one. A surprise, of course, that I would plan and then pretend not to know about. Didn't happen. And then, out of the blue, MOTHERHOOD. Boy, did that change things. I must admit, I was a little sad that I would be spending my birthday in a strange country, without friends. Of course, I had John and the kids, but where was my big ta-do?? I woke up that day feeling older, a lot older.
Then John stepped in.
I was treated to breakfast in bed, where I played with my beautiful children for about an hour. Man, they are cute - the best presents I ever got. Later, we all went out to lunch as my favourite little spot and after lunch I was scooted off to the spa for a massage, facial and foot treatment. Sufficiently pampered, I then went shopping. Without kids!! Bought myself a few cute little numbers and headed home, excited to see my family. When I got in, I found the table set with homemade birthday fudge (no ingredients for a cake to be found), wine, candles and presents. The children must have known, for they let me smoother them in kisses before they quickly went to sleep, leaving time for a glass of wine on the balcony and a great view of a thunderstorm coming in.
It was the best birthday ever.
But maybe not for John. He was TIRED.
And I love him for it.
And you know, 40 is really the new 40, anyway!
MOMENT #2: Tri stands up for the first time
When you have children, every little coo and caa, every little wave of a hand and spit from a mouth is adorable. You await, with great anticipation, the next "big" event. When will he crawl? When will she turn over? When will they talk? It is such an adventure. John and I have been so lucky to see these changes in our children. Many adoptive parents do not see their children this early and so we have been blessed with many "firsts" that, otherwise, we might have missed. One of my favourite's for Tri is pretty recent: he can now stand up, while holding onto something. Okay, not a huge feat, but when you think about how sick this little boy was, it is amazing. He is a very strong and very physical little boy: our athlete in waiting. Everyone says not to rush this standing, walking thing. "Life will be over as you know it," they all say. I say, bring it on!! And way to go, Tri!
MOMENT #3: Cai finally finds her groove
We call her The Contessa. Our Cai definitely has a mind of her own. I like that in a girl. I like that in anyone, really. But, our Cai has also been pretty fussy. She has had so many moments of not eating, crying, screaming and general unhappiness, that there were times when I thought it must be me: I am just not good enough for this little brave little girl who has been through so much. And, honestly, it was exhausting. Cai would cry all the time. All the time. And she wouldn't eat. I was worried, worried, worried. And I took her to the doctor (he thinks I am a crazy lady). And I tried EVERYTHING. She was my little lab rat, Cai. Nothing seemed to do the trick. Until one night. I was all alone - no nanny, no John, just me and the kids. It was nice, actually. Both babies woke up at the same time, crying to be fed. Hmmmm.....how to do this? I propped Cai up on one pillow and Tri on the other and began to feed. It was about 4 a.m.. I couldn't help but laugh: someone needed to videotape that moment. But a miraculous thing happened: CAI ATE! And ate well. Without complaint. Who knew? All she really wanted was to lay back and enjoy a good bottle - and don't we all? So now, when I feed Cai, she blissfully reclining in her bouncy chair. And we are all much happier.
MOMENT #4: Power Struggle
It is always difficult to explain the concept of nanny to someone who does not live overseas. I do not mean this as a slight, a moment of bragging. Just the opposite. When you live away from family and friends, you are left without a support network - people to tell you what you are doing right/wrong as a mom, people with whom you can share your experiences. And taking care of children without this network is difficult. And so, people get nannies. It is funny, I was totally against the idea when I first moved to Indonesia. "I will raise my own children!" was my motto. But now I understand. A nanny sort of becomes one of the family. And she does not, could not, would not replace mommy and daddy. She is really convienient day-care. Loving, wonderful, personal day-care. When we get home from work, the nanny will step into the background and mommy and daddy will take over. And this is good. During my stay, here in Vietnam, I also needed help. Essentially, we have twins. And they were pretty sick little babies when we took them on. So when John had to go back to Indonesia to work, I was left here very much alone and while I could do this alone, life would be pretty hard. So, I got some help. Tam was referred to us by Loan (our adoption agency representative). Tam is Loan's God daughter and has worked in Cai and Tri's orphanage, so she came with a lot of experience. She is a 21 year old, lovely girl who really loves our kids. And so, she moved in. To our very tiny two bedroom flat. Yikes. As Alpha-Dog (those of you who know me are shocked), I struggled with this. Not so good at sharing my privacy, I tried really hard to open up to this woman. A little challenging, given the fact that she does not speak English. We communicated with hand-signs. I am used to this, as an expat, but it is different when it is 24 hours a day. We also struggled with different ways of life: I love to get out and exercise with the kids: walking and swimming usually take up my day. But Tam HATES to walk, HATES the sunshine and would have a little tantrum when I said, "get ready, we are going!" Oy (as my friend Brandi would say). Then there was the "who is the mother, here" struggle. A truly wonderful thing about the Vietnamese (like the Indonesians) is that they absolutely adore children. Having said that, they like to tell you (again with handsigns) how to raise yours. Oy.
MOMENT #5: John comes to visit for his birthday
MOMENT #6: Our friends from Montreal
MOMENT #7: Waiting, Waiting, Waiting
Virginia wrote the following some time ago. We put it in draft till I could add some photos. This still hasn't been done, so I'm just posting this.
I'll add a video or two of the kids in their new walkers. Gives them a little too much freedom in my mind!
Tri is now crawling, and he gets better at it and faster each day.
As I sit down (finally) to write another blog, I realize how much I have to write about. Yes, it has been a long while since I wrote; it is amazing to me how quickly the days can fly by when you have two little ones and I am often so tired at the end of the day that the mere thought of tippy-tapping away at the computer can bring me to tears.
But now, at 6 a.m. when the apartment is quiet and John has (thank God) joined us again in Vietnam, I will enjoy a cup of tea and begin to write down some of what I have neglected to report. I can only think of one title for this blog: Moments. Because that is what we have - moments - small bits of time that weave together to create this wonderful life of ours. Some of the moments have been wonderful, others frustrating, some filled with tears, but many filled with giggling babies.
As we near the end of our time here in Vietnam, I am am compelled to look back at it and wonder: how on earth did we ever do it? I have been here for almost three months and when I think about all of the changes that have taken place in my life in that time, I am astounded. I have gone from being a teacher, a wife, a sister, a daughter, to being a MOM.
Bar none, the biggest change of my life. It has changed the very core of who I am; I can no longer define myself any other way - mom comes first.
And it has made me realize how much MY mom had to go through with me: you are amazing mom!!
Okay, on to the moments.
I apologize if this is a long blog, but hey, I have a lot to catch up on. I include moments in no particular order. Some of them happened a while ago, others more recently. I include them in the order in which I think about them. And let's face it, my brain is sleep deprived and a little scrambled these days!
MOMENT #1: My 40th Birthday!
Everyone who knows me knows this: I am BIG on birthdays. I have been known to sport a tiara for a week, while I order those about me to pay tribute to the birthday girl. Not always to great effect. Now, my 40th birthday was going to be SOMETHING. I rememeber talking with our friends Luke and Sophie; we discussed a "Fourty is Fabulous Cruise" where we'd all dress in plaid, knee-high socks and grannie dresses and stalk the decks of some unsuspecting cruise ship en masse, in celebration of the year we all turn 40. Didn't happen. Then, I thought: a PARTY. A big one. A surprise, of course, that I would plan and then pretend not to know about. Didn't happen. And then, out of the blue, MOTHERHOOD. Boy, did that change things. I must admit, I was a little sad that I would be spending my birthday in a strange country, without friends. Of course, I had John and the kids, but where was my big ta-do?? I woke up that day feeling older, a lot older.
Then John stepped in.
I was treated to breakfast in bed, where I played with my beautiful children for about an hour. Man, they are cute - the best presents I ever got. Later, we all went out to lunch as my favourite little spot and after lunch I was scooted off to the spa for a massage, facial and foot treatment. Sufficiently pampered, I then went shopping. Without kids!! Bought myself a few cute little numbers and headed home, excited to see my family. When I got in, I found the table set with homemade birthday fudge (no ingredients for a cake to be found), wine, candles and presents. The children must have known, for they let me smoother them in kisses before they quickly went to sleep, leaving time for a glass of wine on the balcony and a great view of a thunderstorm coming in.
It was the best birthday ever.
But maybe not for John. He was TIRED.
And I love him for it.
And you know, 40 is really the new 40, anyway!
MOMENT #2: Tri stands up for the first time
When you have children, every little coo and caa, every little wave of a hand and spit from a mouth is adorable. You await, with great anticipation, the next "big" event. When will he crawl? When will she turn over? When will they talk? It is such an adventure. John and I have been so lucky to see these changes in our children. Many adoptive parents do not see their children this early and so we have been blessed with many "firsts" that, otherwise, we might have missed. One of my favourite's for Tri is pretty recent: he can now stand up, while holding onto something. Okay, not a huge feat, but when you think about how sick this little boy was, it is amazing. He is a very strong and very physical little boy: our athlete in waiting. Everyone says not to rush this standing, walking thing. "Life will be over as you know it," they all say. I say, bring it on!! And way to go, Tri!
MOMENT #3: Cai finally finds her groove
We call her The Contessa. Our Cai definitely has a mind of her own. I like that in a girl. I like that in anyone, really. But, our Cai has also been pretty fussy. She has had so many moments of not eating, crying, screaming and general unhappiness, that there were times when I thought it must be me: I am just not good enough for this little brave little girl who has been through so much. And, honestly, it was exhausting. Cai would cry all the time. All the time. And she wouldn't eat. I was worried, worried, worried. And I took her to the doctor (he thinks I am a crazy lady). And I tried EVERYTHING. She was my little lab rat, Cai. Nothing seemed to do the trick. Until one night. I was all alone - no nanny, no John, just me and the kids. It was nice, actually. Both babies woke up at the same time, crying to be fed. Hmmmm.....how to do this? I propped Cai up on one pillow and Tri on the other and began to feed. It was about 4 a.m.. I couldn't help but laugh: someone needed to videotape that moment. But a miraculous thing happened: CAI ATE! And ate well. Without complaint. Who knew? All she really wanted was to lay back and enjoy a good bottle - and don't we all? So now, when I feed Cai, she blissfully reclining in her bouncy chair. And we are all much happier.
MOMENT #4: Power Struggle
It is always difficult to explain the concept of nanny to someone who does not live overseas. I do not mean this as a slight, a moment of bragging. Just the opposite. When you live away from family and friends, you are left without a support network - people to tell you what you are doing right/wrong as a mom, people with whom you can share your experiences. And taking care of children without this network is difficult. And so, people get nannies. It is funny, I was totally against the idea when I first moved to Indonesia. "I will raise my own children!" was my motto. But now I understand. A nanny sort of becomes one of the family. And she does not, could not, would not replace mommy and daddy. She is really convienient day-care. Loving, wonderful, personal day-care. When we get home from work, the nanny will step into the background and mommy and daddy will take over. And this is good. During my stay, here in Vietnam, I also needed help. Essentially, we have twins. And they were pretty sick little babies when we took them on. So when John had to go back to Indonesia to work, I was left here very much alone and while I could do this alone, life would be pretty hard. So, I got some help. Tam was referred to us by Loan (our adoption agency representative). Tam is Loan's God daughter and has worked in Cai and Tri's orphanage, so she came with a lot of experience. She is a 21 year old, lovely girl who really loves our kids. And so, she moved in. To our very tiny two bedroom flat. Yikes. As Alpha-Dog (those of you who know me are shocked), I struggled with this. Not so good at sharing my privacy, I tried really hard to open up to this woman. A little challenging, given the fact that she does not speak English. We communicated with hand-signs. I am used to this, as an expat, but it is different when it is 24 hours a day. We also struggled with different ways of life: I love to get out and exercise with the kids: walking and swimming usually take up my day. But Tam HATES to walk, HATES the sunshine and would have a little tantrum when I said, "get ready, we are going!" Oy (as my friend Brandi would say). Then there was the "who is the mother, here" struggle. A truly wonderful thing about the Vietnamese (like the Indonesians) is that they absolutely adore children. Having said that, they like to tell you (again with handsigns) how to raise yours. Oy.
MOMENT #5: John comes to visit for his birthday
MOMENT #6: Our friends from Montreal
MOMENT #7: Waiting, Waiting, Waiting
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