Is she yours or adopted?

The yellow chair photos





"You look funny mommy!"

It is funny how 8 months seems an eternity and yet somehow like yesterday. I honestly cannot remember a day when Maya wasn't our daughter and I'm a bit sad that time is passing so quickly as she changes on a daily basis. I can remember long before Maya had a face that there was a little glimmer of questioning whether or not I would love Maya with the intensity of a birth child. Would it matter that this child didn't look like us? I knew I would love this child there was no doubt but I thought it would take longer to grow to love her. I just had no idea how much capacity for love I had. I think for both of us it was pretty much love at first sight. Our families have expressed the same sentiments and they couldn't love her any more then they already do.


"What do you have in here Papa?"


"How many zero's are in a million?"


"I'd like to make a wire transfer to China please."


"I'll share my millions with you Nanny!"

It never really dawns on me that she doesn't look like me or that she is adopted. It is only when the outside world mentions it do I have to sit back and take note of how she became a part of our family. I was at the park last week and a woman asked "is she yours or adopted?" The only answer I could say was "both". I found the question a little funny. Of course I know most people are just curious and have no ill intentions when they ask. But it did make me realize that our life will be filled with strange little comments that will undoubtedly be more annoying as Maya grows and becomes aware of what people are asking. Even the other day I was chasing Maya through the butterfly pavillion and this woman looked down and said "oh dear, where is your mommy?" Now being that I was only 6 inches away from her with the frantic look on my face you would have thought it would be obvious who her mommy is! I must admit it did irritiate me slightly but the reality is that my daughter has a Chinese face and I don't. The outside world doesn't see how much alike we are. Like the way Maya licks her fingers before turning the pages of her books, or makes a funny face when she smiles (John swears she got this from me) or that she has some incredibly bad dance moves which she thinks are fabulous (yeah ok she did get that from me). They don't see that her hairline, and ears are exactly like her daddy or that she shares in his incredibly warped sense of humor. By the way, they are eachothers best audience. And she is stubborn to a fault which is something that is part of both John and I. My point is that Maya could not be more ours then had she been cloned from our DNA. YES SHE IS OURS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


"I'm a lover not a fighter."

And nothing makes you more of a parent then when you have a sick child. Maya battled rotovirus a few weeks ago and it was not pretty. For those of you who don't know what rotovirus is if you have a weak stomach you might want to skip this paragraph. Maya started with 5 days of puking along with explosive diarrhea. I'm talking gallons of green liquid. Diaper changes were continual. We would just get one mess cleaned and another explosion. Lets just say the diaper levy was breached almost every time. Here is the conversation as it went at the doctor.

Dr: "Your daughter has rotovirus."
Me: "How do you get it?"
Dr: "It is transmitted oral-fecally." At this point my mind is processing what he is saying.
Me: "Your saying my child eats poo?" I'm thinking back to a few weeks ago when I caught Maya running down the hall with the plunger that I thought was secretly tucked away." Did she perhaps enjoy a plunger lollipop before I found her? Of course I'm crushed and feel like such a failure. We wash after diaper changes etc....how could I allow this to happen?

Sensing my defeat and feeling like I failed Maya the doctor told me that kids her age often explore their bodies and that daycare kids also have a higher incident too. The incubation period is a couple of days which would have made it a daycare day so I just quit beating myself up about it. Anyway rotovirus can last up to 10 days and hers did. Lets just get something straight. No diaper on the market can contain the poop explosion of rotovirus! Trust me we tried them all. What I want to know is how it is possible for a twenty pound toddler who has not eaten in days to completely dowse her self in poo from head to toe? Where is it all coming from? This is one of the mysteries of life. John has become quite the expert in poop detail and has perfected the art of baby clean up. I am proud to say that I have officially learned the art of becoming a vomit shield. You see it is much easier to shower me then to be scrubbing floors and chairs in the middle of the night. Yes this is true love people!


Paging Dr. Maya


"I don't feel like I have a temperature!"


Checking mommy's heart beat



Enjoying the last of winter......we hope!



Maya amazes us on a daily basis. She has become very verbal and has added a lot of new words to her vocabulary (hat, book, bye, no, yeah, whoa, cheese, baby, boom, keys, hot, shoe, sock, stuck, duck, peepee, milk, snack, side which can mean outside or slide). It can be most frustrating when she is asking for something and we aren't quite sure what it is. Luckily she won't hesitate to lead us around and point to what she means. Then the word she is saying becomes so obvious. We are also working on manners. Please is "peez "and thank you is "dee do" Her tone is right on when she says it so it is sweet to hear her say it. By the way when Maya has an explosion she looks at the diaper and says "I'm sick" Unfortunately instead of the (s)she uses a (d). You figure it out. She also shrugs her shoulders when you ask her where something is. Very cute!




"I dunno know!"

Her favorite toys are her leggos, and blocks. So far her record for block stacking is 10. Number 8 while she was gracefully standing on her tip toes and number 9 and 10 required daddy to hold her up. She loves books although she still lacks patience to wait until we are finsished reading before tunring the pages. She loves music and to get her groove on. She has started twirling and asks to put a hat and dress or tutu(compliments of Aunt Linda)on in order to get the full dramatic affect. She has dress up and pretend day at daycare so I think that must be where that has come from. She has a great imagination and can pour an imaginary drink like a pro with the sound effects and everything.


"If only I were taller!"

"Thanks daddy!"

Maya is into everything!!!!! If it can be climbed, she is scaling it. If her body will fit in it, she crawls in. We have nicknamed her hurricane Maya because she can destroy a room in a matter of minutes. Luckily she has gotten pretty good at picking up too. She loves being outside so we are savoring the nicer weather and the lack of mess in the house. The snow has finally all melted and we have had serveral great park outings and walks. Exhausting as much energy as possible is an important part of the day.


Sitting in the kitchen drawer


Say Cheeeeeeez......literally!


"This could be fun!"

"YES, it is fun!"


Hiding under the bathroom sink


Helping mommy.....sort of.

Everything has taken on a whole new dimension now that Maya is mobile. For instance grocery shopping which used to be pretty uneventful is now a major pain with a toddler. I feel like I'm trapped in some bad grocery game show of the 70's as I'm frantically trying to get my items into my cart and avoid Maya destroying it before we reach the check out stand. The straps on the cart are too big and Maya can climb out of them so I decided on one trip to try the obnoxious kid cart. At this particular store I was steering about 8 feet of car and cart. I could barely maneuver the isles it was soooooooo long. I can remember laughing at moms who would put their kids in such things and here I was barely taking out the end cap displays with the thing. It worked great except the design of this particular car did not allow me to see that Maya could still reach all the items in the basket. When I got to the check out stand she had opened and unloaded 3 boxes of Kleenex. I just smiled at the clerk at had him bag up my confetti of tissue. The next store visit after that I went to put Maya in a normal cart and she looked at me with the big brown eyes and pointed to the fun cart. It was a different store and the cart was a lot smaller so I gave it a try. The car part of it sits close to the ground away from the basket so it was a much better experience. Maya had a blast and had everyone laughing because she was steering and yelling "whoa!!!! whoa!!!!! the whole way. Apparently she thinks mom is a crazy driver.


Driving 101


"YEEHAW!"


Checking out the pinecones she collected


Getting reacquainted with chopsticks

She is also absolutely obsessed with her potty chair. I've had it stored in her closet and decided that I should move it to the bathroom since she was constantly sitting on it beneath her hanging clothes. She hasn't quite grasped the concept of it all but now tells us when she has peed and leads us by the finger to sit on her potty. Of course the pee is already in her diaper but we go through the motions anyway. She pretends to wipe and then says goodbye as we close the lid. It has been nice knowing when her diaper needs to be changed. Unfortunately she doesn't understand that the pee bowl is not a hat as we often catch her wearing it on her head. Hopefully she will curb this habit once she actually starts peeing in the bowl. She also thinks the bowl is great to put her feet into to get onto her potty. We still have many things to obviously work on before we are in full potty training mode but we are happy that she is showing interest on her own. The following pictures are a bit blurry but totally unscripted and without coaxing by us. Taking clear pictures is a bit of a challenge these days with and active girl.





"Who needs a potty when I can read right here!"

We enjoyed Easter with our China travel group. These families have literally become our extended families. I believe we had eleven of the 15 families there. It was great fun to see all the babies happy and full of life. Much different then the timid, shy and sad girls we saw in China. Tillie and her family came all the way from California which was a great treat for Maya. They stayed with us for a couple of days and Maya just loved having another baby here when she woke up in the morning. Maya has become extremely affectionate and loves to hug and kiss so she was smooching Tillie lots. When I picked her up at daycare the other day I was told that she is constantly kissing all the other kids. So I'm sure they all have rotovirus this week too! OOOOPS! We'll just call her the kissing bandit.


Patiently waiting


The kissing bandit strikes again!


Tubby mohawks with Tillie


Easter


Maya and Uncle Morgan


Attempting to take a group photo

Overall Maya is a very happy girl in the day. She still struggles with sleeping and it is hard to know for sure the cause. She has gotten 8 new teeth in the past few weeks and I think she is having some nightmares as well. The funny thing is the lengths a parent will go to in order to get their child some sleep. Driving Maya around for a couple of hours usually does the trick at nap time. Of course I have to avoid the red lights so she doesn't wake so a country drive is usually in order. One night after she had finally fallen asleep I was getting her clothes ready for daycare. She started to stir and I panicked. If she were to see me she would be up for another hour or so. I looked at the door which seemed way too far to chance it so I instinctively dove underneath the crib. Now at 41 I'm just not as agilie or as skinny as I used to be. I forgot that I had some things stored underneath her crib so I could barely get my hips underneath and my legs were sticking out from under the crib. I suddenly had a horrible thought. "What if she stands up and looks over the edge and sees legs sticking out from below?" That would for sure ruin her. So I did my best pretzel bend and remained there for over 30 minutes while she babbled and rolled around in bed. I think next time I'll chance it and go for the door.


Twirling


"Here I am!"

She continues to grow and her legs have finally gained an inch with her over all height gain of about 4 inches since we have been home. She is wearing 9-12 month clothes with 9 month clothes fitting perfect and 12 month clothes still a bit on the big side. She is 19lbs 5 oz per her doctor visit this last week. I think she lost a few pounds from being sick. She is still short for 18 months but overall has lots of baby pudge so she now looks nice and healthy. This is such a fun age and we look forward to more and more adventures in the months to come.


Sharing her favorite sitting spot with daddy


The Haugs

Happy New Year

Our sweet maya

Happy 2007. Maya just turned 15 months and has been with us now for 5 months. As of today she is now 18lbs and 10oz and she is wearing 6-9 month clothes size. Wow how fast time has gone. In many ways it seems like Maya has been with us since her birth, and of course we can't really remember life before Maya. It seems like we have always been her parents. Funny how that happens. Our conversations now revolve around the consistency of Maya's bowel movements, what she ate, what made her giggle etc... "Ah who says the romance is gone when you have kids?" Actually, we wouldn't change anything. She has brought a whole new dimension to our lives which is so exciting and fun......oh yeah exhausting too!

Maya is walking really well. We often get stared at when we are out and about and often stopped by people asking how old she is because it does look a little strange seeing someone her size cruising along. To me she looks so big now but then I see her around other kids her age and realize she is still tiny. Tiny in size but BIG in personality. She is very quick when she wants something. Her favorite thing lately is to be in the refrigerator. If she even sees us open it she pushes her way in and sits on the bottom edge of the fridge. She has even tried to scale some of the shelves. It is a constant battle of who can be faster. I have to know exactly what I'm going in for otherwise if I linger then I'm wrestling her out of it.


"This looks like a good place to sit!"




"If only I could get to the top shelf"

She loves to help out mommy like unloading the dishwasher.....when I'm loading it. She also enjoys helping put clothes from the washer into the dryer. I praise her for helping because I know some day she'll not want to be so helpful. However, sometimes I find interesting objects in the dryer such as dog bones or toys that have slipped passed the mommy inspection. Another favorite pastime is putting all of her blocks or little plastic balls down our shirts or even in her pajamas. I came home from work one night and she looked like she had popeye muscle legs from all the things she had hidden in her clothes. She was walking around like nothing ususual.It didn't look particularly comfortable. Maybe she was just trying to get us to take her clothes off. The girl loves to be naked! The minute we even remove a shoe she starts getting crazy wild with laughter and jumping up and down. Once she is naked it is a mad dash to try and get clothes on her again.



Ignoring that sticker on the container which showed a baby with a slash through it.

She has also started saying a lot of new words. So far her vocabulary includes "dog, meow, (she says that whenever our cat walks by), uh oh, mom, dada, apple, ice, up, and out (she sounds a bit Canadian when she says that one). And oh yes she also says "TAHDAH!" when she does somersaults courtesy of Aunt Linda. Her little voice sounds so sweet. It has been amazing to watch her blossom over the past 5 months. We had many rough days and nights in the beginning and it is so great to see her getting more and more comfortable in her surroundings. She still has the occassional night terror but they are less frequent now.



Hanging out

As many of you know we have been bombarded with snow since before Christmas. One blizzard right before the holiday and another a week later followed by smaller storms continually throughout the new year. We have all gone a little stir crazy not being able to go outside much. Maya seems a bit fascinated by the snow and like everything she is very observant and just takes things in stride.


First blizzard 12/06



New friends: Sadie Maya and Maelyn

Our first Christmas with Maya was incredible for us. We feel so lucky to have her here with us and she is the best gift we could ever have. Maya seemed pretty overwhelmed by the holiday and seemed to find solace in the paper and the boxes more than anything else. She would carefullly tear small bits of paper off each package and hand it to us. A long process of unwrapping but as with everything in parenting patience is the key.



Dressed up for Christmas


Who needs presents when you have a box!


I have all the necessities....ready to move in!


Trying out her new backpack from auntie Kristi and uncle Brad

We took our first plane ride since our trip home from China and ventured to Seattle to see John's mom, sister and niece. Now that Maya is walking she was not to keen on sitting still on the plane ride. Funny how a 2.5 hour flight seemed way longer than the long flight from China. Maya also got to experience her first ferry ride over to Vashon island where John's mom lives. She seemed to enjoy the boat ride and was very curious about her new surroundings. Maya loved meeting her Nana Marilyn, Auntie Lynn, and cousin Claire. She immediately took to Claire and followed her everywhere. Claire was great with her and kept her well entertained during our visit. After a few hours she warmed up to nana M. and aunt Lynn too. We also got to visit with John's Uncle Jack, Aunt Norma, and his cousins and their kids. Every one on our trip was so generous and Maya got some wonderful new toys, books and clothes. We are so glad that she finally got to meet all of them.


Waiting for the ferry to arrive


First ferry ride


Making friends with cousin Claire


"Nana Marilyn makes me giggle."


Snuggling with aunt Lynn


Taking a walk on the beach


Cousin Claire, daddy, Maya, aunt Lynn, and nana Marilyn



Thanks uncle Jack. 3-2-1 BLAST OFF!

We were lucky enough to have a friend of nana Marilyn's come take some photographs of Maya. Kathleen Webster is a photographer on Vashon island and she captured some wonderful shots of Maya and Claire. We are so grateful to her for taking them and we will treasure the photos for years to come. These next set of photos are taken by her.


Maya, mommy and daddy



Beautiful face


Maya, cousin Claire, and nana Marilyn


Dimples


So serious


Maya and Claire reading



Maya started getting sick the last day of our stay in Seattle. Our apologies to any family members who may have caught the bug too. The flight seemed like an eternity with Maya unable to sleep and crying continually. Our flight attendants were less then compasionate which made me want to scream at them that we used to be flight attendants and that their lack of empathy was disgusting. Now that passengers can't carry on liquids we were unfortunately at their mercy. They basically refused to get any water for Maya's bottle until they were done with their beverage service. One flight attendant was ok and took the bottle but had to rely on the other to get it. When he tried to hand the bottle to him you would have thought that he was being handed a diaper filled with diarrhea and he refused. I seriously wanted to crawl over the seats and hurt him. There was nothing worse then seeing Maya sick and feeling helpless to do anything or being able to comfort her. By the time we got home to Denver she was doing terrible. She was completely lethargic and could barely even get a cry out. John had to dig our car out of the airport parking while Maya and I waited back at the terminal. About an hour and a half later we finally were on our way home. While waiting for John, Maya finally gave in to her exhaustion and fell asleep. Every once in a while she would open her eyes and just give me a little smile and a deliberate blink. I swear she could sense my worry and was just trying to make me feel better. She had a terrible cough and head cold which turned into a sinus infection. Her whole face was swollen and we could barely see her little eyes. She has gotten better but now seems to be heading into round two with a little bit of chest cold. With everyone trapped inside it seems inevitable that the cycle of colds just continues.



Germ Pit O' Fun!



Not feeling so well

I started back at work in January two days a week. I hated leaving Maya and felt like I was missing so much but my sister Linda was nice enough to watch her which made the transition without mommy a little easier for both of us. My sister adores Maya and the feeling is mutual from Maya and she has learned to turn on the charm for aunt Linda. Maya started daycare this past week which I was dreading. Before officially starting I had been taking Maya for a few hours each day off and she has slowly started to warm up to the other kids and teachers. We made about 9 visits all together and I think this was a good transition for her. I really noticed last week how her comfort level increased and she would finally leave my side and play with the other kids. I think she is finally feeling secure that we won't leave her and that she can venture out without fear. The first day was much harder for me than it was for her. I cried all the way to work and was choking back tears throughout the morning. But Maya got rave reviews on her first week. The teachers said that all the other little kids were following her around handing her toys. The other kids sort of tower over her and think she is their own little baby doll. I was most concerned about nap time since she would have to start sleeping on a floor mat. She still struggles with sleeping at home so I thought that there was no way she would ever just lay down and fall asleep. Once again she proved me wrong and she slept 3 hours both days. I think the peer pressure of seeing the other kids doing it was definitely a motivating factor. They said she only cried once when the kids were getting ready to go outside for play. It was just a little too frantic for her and maybe she thought she was getting left behind. Other then that she seems happy to play with the other kids and is adjusting well. I just feel fortunate that I have a job that doesn't require me to work 5 days a week so that I can spend as much time as possible with her.



Waiting for mommy



First day of school



At school a.k.a daycare with daddy


The Chinese New Year festivities are finally under way. We went to our AAC agency party last week and Maya was enamored with the Chinese dance troupe. Little girls from about 4-10 all beautifully dressed. During practice and the performance Maya and the other kids were up on stage having a blast. Maya loved being in the center of all the commotion and got upset when we tried to pull her off stage. I think I see dancing in her future. Actually she gets a pretty good groove on already and seems partial to reggae. Although Chinese New Year is not until February 18th this year, we have several related functions which has been a fun part of joining our two cultures together. We definitely want Maya to embrace her Chinese heritage as she grows. More than anything we look forward to the many new adventures Maya will have in the year to come.



Maya gets her goove on at the Chinese New Year celebration



Simple pleasures

Life is Good!

Maya continues to grow leaps and bounds. I can't believe Thanksgiving has come and gone and Christmas is just around the corner. We spent Thanksgiving day with my parents, sister and nieces. Just a quiet day which was nice. Maya had the stomach flu the day before but recovered enough to enjoy her mashed potatoes. I must admit she is a carboholic and getting a little belly and pudgy little arms and legs to show for it. It is nice to see her finally looking healthy.
Enjoying ice cream with papa

Cousins Jenn and Paige with Maya

When Maya first came to our family she had the skinniest arms and legs and could not pull herself up on anything without assistance. Along with the general nourishment that she is now getting we have used certain toys to help strengthen her legs. We have a jumping chair which we have hanging in the entry to John's office which Maya loves to jump in. Another advantage to this contraption is that it helps relieve gas too. Hey, we're parents now and these things are important!


Jumping is hard work

We have also received gifts from many friends and family of walking type toys which Maya loves to push around the house. Each with their own annoying ( I mean really great music) sound which Maya loves to hear over and over. Actually we really appreciate these gifts that have given Maya so much joy. We find ourselves singing those catchy tunes even when she is not playing with them. She maneuvers these little walking machines around the house but gets very frustrated when she reaches a roadblock. Then she will start banging it into the wall or other offending object until one of us helps her turn it around. Occasionally she will also attempt to use our poor blind, deaf dog Skeeter as a speedbump. We of course are trying to discourage that one! We seem to have so many of these different walking toys that it is starting to look like a geriatric ward for the seven dwarfs around here.....but Maya loves them so much that we just sing along and march with her throughout the house. Now she has started standing alone pushing herself up on her strong legs from a squatting position. She is so proud of herself.
Having some fun

Funny face

Maya also has incredible dexterity. She is already stacking blocks like a pro. She can stack 4 pretty regularly and has occasionally done 5 and 6 as well. She is so funny when gets going because she gets so excited and if they fall over she growls with frustration and starts over again. She is also getting pretty good at putting Leggos together and grunts when she is trying to pry them apart. Her face gets all distorted and she shudders like she is a weight lifting pro going for the world record. It has been fun to hear her being so vocal and expressive with her actions.

Another big milestone is that Maya finally loves her stuffed animals. When we first brought her home she was so freaked out by the fur that if a little bit touched her skin she would just come unglued. Now she has to give all of her stuffed animals kisses goodnight and hugs in the morning. She also finds comfort in them when she sleeps. It is so cute to see her snuggling asleep with her furry friends. I woke up one night and she had her frog attached to her back. Can't quite figure out how it got that way but she didn't seem to mind.

Snuggling

How did he get there?

The weather has been down right frigid the past few weeks. Maya gets bored easily so finding ways to entertain her indoors has been a challenge. A few weeks ago Maya and I were invited to go to Bounce with some other moms. This is one of those places with the giant inflatable jumping playlands and inflatable slides. I wasn't sure how Maya would do but she absolutely loved it. Her favorite was this giant slide that we would go on together. Every time we would get to the bottom she would start crawling to the top again. She is a thrill seeker for sure! Climbing up the inflatable stairs with Maya in tow was really good exercise for me too.

Recently we met up with Brad and Kristi and the twins for some pizza and playtime. The girls were hysterical as usual pushing each other around in a shopping cart and then all trying to fit onto the same toy car. The only solution for that was to put one of the girls in the trunk....sounds like torture but they were all satisfied......just don't tell our social workers! :)

Lola pushes while Maya holds on for dear life!

Stella, Maya and Lola riding shotgun. " Can you say carpool lane?"

The best part of having Maya in our lives is that we get to experience new things through her eyes. Taking her out for moonlight strolls in the snow to look at the Christmas lights and hearing her oooh and aaahh in amazement is worth every sleepless night. Teaching her to make snow angels and seeing her eyes light up when she feels the cold snow on her hands is worth every tired whine. Hearing her laughter when she is tickled or finds something funny is worth every screaming cry. And knowing she finally has arms to hold and comfort her when she cries is so fulfilling to all of us. Honestly, there is no better job then being Maya's mom and dad. Of course when she reaches for us and gives us a big kiss....well it just doesn't get any better!

Watching daddy outside

Chillin

Hide and seek

Dental Tug O War with daddy. Not recommend by this dental hygienist!

"I won!"

Making her first snow angel

"Ta dah!"

"This is the face that gets me almost anything!"

As I had promised we finally have some video of Maya. Just click on the video links to view short little clips. If you have dial up this might take a while to load so be patient..... it is worth it. By the way, some of you may not realize that you can click on the pictures within this blog to enlarge them for better viewing.

Click Here to see Maya and the 'tickle monster'.

Click Here to see Maya standing on her own.

And, may I have a drum roll please.......Click Here to see Maya WALKING!!

Look who's one!

Wow it is hard to believe it has been over a month since our last post. So much for updating the blog weekly! Our little Maya is keeping us soooooooo busy it is amazing how fast time is going. On November 5th we celebrated her first birthday. It is hard to believe we have had her for two and a half months already. It makes me a little sad at how fast she is growing and changing. Now a whopping 15lbs and 11 ounces. The scrawny little girl we met in China is no longer. I wish I could just time capsule her at this age because she is so much fun. She continues to amaze us each day. She is starting to stand up from a squating position and will stand for about 5 seconds before she falls. She'll be walking in no time and then we are going to be really really busy!

"This is so embarassing!"

Cousin Kellyn taking a bite out of Maya's birthday card

Mom and dad with the birthday girl in her new rocker

"mmmmmmmm cake is gooooood!

We have struggled with some clinginess as she attaches more to us which seems pretty normal especially considering her age and all she has been through. Thank goodness she is small enough to still fit in the front baby carrier so that I can still be somewhat productive. We have also dealt with some sleep issues, mainly night terrors which for a two week period were really bad. Sometimes 4 to 5 times a night she would wake up screaming and her whole body would stiffen up and there was nothing we could do to comfort her. It was obvious she was still asleep and sometimes it would take 30 to 40 minutes to get her awake and calmed down enough to go back to sleep. It is heart breaking as a parent to see your child go through this. Luckily those have diminished lately and now we are just dealing with teething. She is starting to get her 7th and 8th teeth. She is definitely way ahead in the tooth department! But she LOVES eating so those teeth come in handy. We swear she was Italian in another life as pasta is her absolute favorite! She also really loved birthday cake. At first she wasn't so sure but once she decided it was good she was licking it off her toes! Actually she slept really good that night. Who knew that stuffing her full of cake was the key to a good nights sleep! :)

With sauce

Or without

Some of her favorite things to do are to throw her Leggos through the baby gate and listen to them bounce one by one down each wood step then proudly proclaims UH OH! She also enjoys unraveling the toilet paper roll at every opportunity she gets and I've had to chase her down the hall trying to reclaim it. Boy can she crawl quickly! She really loves bath time and whenever we are in the bathroom she will pull herself up along the tub and yell to get in. Since she likes water so much I decided to take her to the pool this past week. We have gone twice and she really enjoys it. At first she was a bit perplexed like strangers were actually in her tub. But eventually she really enjoyed it and we got to see some of her Hunan sisters. She has also enjoyed a few hikes with daddy since we have had some really nice weather lately and we can tell she enjoys the outdoors as much as we do. John has learned that timing is everything though and that hiking after naptime is much better then before naptime.


The toilet paper caper


















Getaway gone bad


















Timing is everything!


























Trying out the slide














Emergency bath

Also this past week we finalized her adoption here in the States. Actually just a formality since China adoptions are final once we get to the USA. But this will enable us to get a birth certificate that is in English and her social security card. Judge Gilmore who officiated was great with all the babies. He let Maya and the other babies hold the gavel and gave them newly minted Colorado quarters as a gift. He said this was the fun part of his job. Lets hope Maya doesn't have to see judge Gilmore again under different circumstances! She definitely has a defiant stubborn streak. Hopefully by the time she is 16 that will have lessened.

Judge Maya presiding











Making friends with the judge...smart!


Of course we have so much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. Maya's birth parents continue to be in our thoughts. We know that November 6th, 2005 had to be an extremely difficult day for them as they left her on the steps of the Dao County Civil Affairs building. I can't imagine the pain of looking into those sweet eyes and walking away knowing they would never see her again. We are so thankful that they chose to give her life and placed her somewhere that they knew she would be found. We honored her birth parents on November 6th of this year by allowing Maya to release her birthday balloons into the sky. We think that we will make this a yearly tradition as we don't want to forget the people who gave Maya life.


Well I won't make any promises as to when the next blog update will be, but I will try my best. One of these days I'll get John to put a link up to view some videos. Then you can see for yourself just how wonderful she is. Honestly the best thing we ever did! We are so lucky!!!!!!!!

New adventures for everyone

" I love Fall!"



This past week has been filled with lots of fun new adventures for Maya and for John and I too. That is the one great thing about being a parent. Suddenly our life is filled with new activities and new adventures that we get to experience through Maya's eyes. There is something so special about discovering the world along side her.

Two weekends ago Maya and I met some friends at the pumpkin patch. We waited patiently on the horse drawn wagon for others to fill it up before we be could be pulled the 100 yards or so to the drop off point. Normally I wouldn't wait 20 minutes to be taken somewhere that could easily be walked in 2 minutes but hey it was part of the experience. Maya liked the horses and seemed curious about the movement of the wagon. Once there we watched the other kids ride the ponies and the other little activities that they had. Watching other kids seems to be Maya's favorite past time. She got to play in the giant sand pile and eat her first marshmellow roasted over an open fire. She loved the taste and the sticky texture was loads of fun. She also was fascinated with the little goats that she got to pet. I forgot to take a picture of her in front of a pumpkin....go figure but with Halloween just around the corner I'm sure we'll have plenty of opportunities for that later.



First wagon ride













Not so sure about marshmellows at first







Fascinated with petting the goats


We also met some of the other families in our group for a spontaneous pizza party. It was so great to see how the girls have blossomed now that we have been home for a month. They were interacting with eachother, laughing and playing with toys. It also seems that being around other babies is very motivating in learning new things. Little baby Emma started crawling for the first time right there in Pizza Hut. Maya was so hyped up when she got home that she decided to climb the stairs for the first time. I thought she was playing quietly with her toys around the corner from me and low and behold within 3 seconds from the last time I looked at her she had made her way up 5 stairs. Her little legs barely get up each step and she appears a bit unstable. Since we have wood stairs and she still wants to go down head first most of the time we aren't encouraging her to climb them too much. She did practice at nana and papa's on their carpeted stairs and did great though. She is pulling herself up on things a lot more and I think walking is probably just around the corner.



Spicy girls reunion











"Seeing our reflection is fun!"










Climbing stairs for the first time



Speaking of Nana and Papa Burcaw, we made our first hour trip to Estes Park this past Sunday to see them. Maya did great in the carseat which has been a struggle since we have been home. I've tried to increase her carseat time a little bit each day. I just timed the drive time around her typical nap time and she slept the whole way. Nana and Papa Burcaw have been great with Maya. My mom has been very patient waiting for Maya to be comfortable enough to be held by her. From the beginning she has been fine around Papa and Uncle Bill and most men actually. But she needed a little more time to warm up to Aunt Linda, Aunt Chris, and Nana. This past week she finally seems at ease with all of them and likes to be held by them and played with. My family just can't get enough of Maya which is great. Honestly I've seen them more in the last month then I have in the last year. Having a baby back in my family seems to be therapeutic for all of us. I can't remember the last time I saw my mom crawling around on the floor laughing. Maya had fun playing with different kinds of toys than we had at home. Lots of them saved throughout the years, played with by my nieces and nephews too. There was a new little Chinese dolly with all the accessories which Maya was fascinated by. Right away she picked up the little play bottle and started trying to feed her baby. Ahhhhhhhh!!!!!! Then she tried to drink it herself but became a little frustrated when she realized the milk didn't come out. There was also a little walker/car contraption. Nana was giving driving instructions.....Oh boy are we in trouble!





Checking out the "goods" at nana and papas


We can't wait for John's family to meet Maya too. We regularly show her pictures of John's family so she is familiar with their faces. We only wish that they lived closer too so that they could see all the little Maya milestones that occur each day. We will start getting back on planes at the end of the year so that Maya can meet the rest of her family who loves her so much. Nana Marilyn wrote the sweetest poem for Maya which we cherish and I'm sure she will one day as well. We have appreciated all the love and support we have received from both of our families. And one day Maya will realize how excited the whole family has been awaiting her arrival.

Also this last weekend we went to our agency's annual Halloween party. Maya dressed up in her little tiger costume and looked pretty darn cute. She even let me paint some whiskers on her face. We got to see the great staff at AAC and Uncle Morgan who has been the miracle worker in this whole adoption process. Maya loved petting a little rabbit and lovingly left her drool all him. I petted him really good afterwards to erase the evidence! We also got to see some cute little ladybugs....a.k.a the twins Stella and Lola. Later that night we went to their 1st birthday party which was lots of fun. I can tell Maya likes being around the familiar faces of the twins....and so do we.








"HMMMMMMM I'm not so sure about this!"








" What! I get candy if I wear this?"



















Uncle Morgan the miracle worker

















Celebrating with the twins














"There has to be a present in here for me!"







A few days ago we got our first snow of the season. Maya was fascinated by the cold, wet snowflakes landing on her head and hands. We were only out long enough to take a picture but I forsee her and daddy sledding in the near future.


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"Wow this feels wierd!"












Snowballs are too cold

kissing cousins and other adventures

This past weekend my cousin's wife Jenn and their little baby Kellyn came to visit. Kellyn is 4 months old and approximately the same size as our little peanut. It has been interesting to see Maya become more social with other babies. She watched Kellyn's every move and you could almost hear her wondering aloud, "why can't she crawl or feed herself?" Even though Kellyn couldn't down mashed potatoes or throw her water bottle with complete accuracy, Maya still loved her enough to lean over and give her a big old kiss on the head.


Kissing Cousins


Can you guess who is older?


"If only I could crawl!"

She now puckers her lips and makes the mmmmmmmmmmaaaaaaaaa! sound when she is kissing. The first time this happened it was completely unprovoked which was so sweet. Of course we had to ask her to do it again for the camera. Being on the receiving end of one of these little kisses is very wet but the best experience ever. Maya also likes to kiss all of her stuff animals too. She is still blowing kisses and finds this to be completely handy when she is getting ready to do something naughty. The scenario goes something like this. Maya heads towards the cords of the lamp or computer. One of us says "Maaaayyyyyyaaaaaa" and she stops in her tracks with a very serious look and starts blowing us kisses. Amazing someone this young can try and sweeten us up before committing a spicy act. :)

This past week we also got a visit from Maya's friends Lola and Stella, the twins who were a part of our China group with parents Kirisi and Brad. It was good to see the girls and to see how all three are progressing at home. The girls enjoyed playing together on a blanket out back which was a welcome change to the hotel rooms we were used to having playdates in. Stella arm wrestled a biscuit out of Maya's hand much to Maya's amazment. Maya then proceded to offer her replacement biscuit only to take it back just as Stella was moving in for a mouth full. PSYCH!......two can play at this game! Needless to say it was very entertaing to watch. I'm thinking baby wrestling on the Disney Channel could draw quite the crowd.


Stella and Maya before the wrestiling match


Little Lola


"auntie" Kristi and Maya

We also got a visit from my boss Juan and his family. His son Vincent who is almost 5 has been a huge fan of the Maya blog. Vincent offered some free baby training so of course we couldn't resist. Maya was mesmerized by Vincent. But ever since the baby training Maya has been doing loud ear piercing, window shattering squeals. Hmmmmmm makes me wonder what kind of things Vincent taught her. I better check the baby training manual for the next lesson just to be safe.

Balancing 101 at the Vincent School of Baby Training

The weather is starting to turn cool and we've been enjoying many evening walks in the stroller. Maya seems to enjoy the scenery although she has a hard time staying awake once we get strollin. It seems to be a good pre bedtime routine since she is usually really wired and hyper right before crashing.


"I can't be seen in this!"


"Ok it is kinda cozy."

Her favorite thing is rolling around on the bed climbing Mt. mommy and daddy. She giggles with delight when she makes it over the hump of my hip or daddy's legs and can't wait to do it again. It has been so much fun to see how much she has opened up over the past few weeks. We have started to deal with a few sleep issues.....basically she doesn't want to go to sleep. Maybe we'll take this as a sign that she is enjoying life and doesn't want to miss a thing. A small price to pay for such a wonderful joy in our lives.


Mommy and Maya

A month of milestones

Today marks the one month anniversary of the best day of our lives. It is hard to believe that Maya has been with us for 4 weeks already and we have almost been home for 2. Time seemed to stand still during our 20 month wait and now it is just flying by. It is amazing to see the changes that have occurred over the last month. Each day we have little milestones which might seem insignificant to the average person but are a pretty big deal to us.

When we first got home Maya would barely like to be put down and would be freaked out if we walked more then a couple of steps from her. Now she is exploring each room of the house and not scared to venture into other spaces without us. Today she sat happily playing with her toys in the dining room while I cleaned up from breakfast. This is a huge step which shows she is getting more secure in her surroundings. She also woke up yesterday happily playing in her crib. We have only had this happen one other time when we were in China. This morning she was back to crying herself awake but hopefully we will get more happy awakenings as time goes by.


"Here I am!"

She is also becoming very vocal. She is still quite shy around other people but when it is just the three of us we regularly hear her babble to herself and to us. She is definitely discovering that her voice has volume. She thinks it's fun to yell really loud for no apparent reason other then to hear her own voice. Then she gives a giggle followed by a raspberry sound ppppppppllllllllllllll! Yesterday we went to the park where she sat quietly observing the other children. She sat on the curb with one hand on John's leg which was very sweet. She definitely was taking it all in. She didn't like the feel of the sand on her feet but would curiously touch some in a bucket with one finger. When we left the park she started talking away as if to tell us all her commentary on what she thought of the other people. Today when we returned to the park she would let me bury her toes and then proceded to like the sand enough that she wanted to eat it. The weird thing is she seemed to enjoy the taste even though I kept trying to reinforce that it was yucky to eat.


Maya and her bodyguard


Maya is also starting to meet other children beyond those in our adoption group. Fritzna who is my good friend Dawn's little girl just loves Maya and likes to play mama. Fritzna is only two and I think she looks at Maya as her personal baby doll. Fritzna will sweetly stroke Maya's head or hold her bottle for her. These two will be great friends I predict. She has met several other children and seems to respond really well around them. They have all been so gentle and patient with her. So far she likes to share but we'll see if that lasts long.


Fritzna feeding her baby doll Maya

This week also marked our first visit to her pediatrician. She wasn't too happy about the three shots she got but stopped screaming long enought to blow the doctor a kiss on the way out. That is her newest and greatest thing lately. She loves blowing kisses and will even make the smooching sound when she does it. Unfortunately she did not respond that well to the injections and became really irritable with a fever for the following two days. She just wasn't herself which made me feel really bad for her. But she rebounded and is back to the sweet silly little girl we love. She has gained almost one pound since we have been home and is now 13.7. The doctor said that despite her small size she is in excellent health which was music to my ears.

I'm completely amazed at how one tiny person can completely take over a house. The house gets cleaned up after she goes to bed but then promplty looks like a tornado hit shortly after she wakes. But she is such a good helper. Laundry consists of me folding and Maya unfolding just to make sure I do it right the second time....or even the third for that matter. And she definitely is going to give Emeril a run for his money in the kitchen. She has discovered how many fun things can be found in the lazy susan. I'm just waiting for her to crawl in and take a ride. Luckily for now she likes to pull out all the seasoning packets and spices making suggestions for mealtime.

Riding in Style


"I found the perfect ingredient"



The biggest problem we have is that she loves to play in Skeeter's water dish. Splashing is so much fun and she does it until she is soaked. We've tried distracting her with other things and saying no but she just flashes a grin and giggles. We've decided she likes being caught in a naughty, spicy act so we are trying to ignore it in hopes that she will just lose interest.


"Shhhhhhhh, I hear someone coming!"


"Skeeter made me do it!"

Speaking of Skeeter..........yesterday Skeeter had a tumor removed from his bladder. We are not sure whether it is malignant or not but the vet suspects it is. Poor Skeeter is 12.5 years old, blind and almost deaf. He is still very happy though so we opted to have the tumor removed in hopes that it would buy him another year or so. He had a catheder in last night which was really rough for all of us but mostly our poor boy. He was in a lot of pain and whimpered all night. We had to get up several times and carry him outside with bag attached to collect his urine. Each time we would finally get him back to sleep Maya would then wake up. I felt like we had two kids on opposite schedules. Luckily he seems to be feeling much better today since getting the catheder removed. Maya thinks he looks pretty strange with a lampshade on his head. Skeeter is just plain embarrassed.


Recovering at home




"This is soooooo humiliating!"


We hope to see many of you that we haven't gotten to see yet. Maya is changing both physically and emotionally every day. Before we know it our little girl will be all grown up so don't wait too long!