Ty's Barnyard Bash

Ty celebrated his 3rd birthday on Saturday with a Barnyard Bash with all his family and friends. Since the photos uploaded backwards, we will replay the day a little backwards.

The day ended with a trip to our local Mexican joint where they know us by name. We gave Ty a choice of places to eat and Mexican it was. They sang "Happy Birthday" and we all shared the fried ice cream. It is sooo delicious! Love the cinnamon and crunch!

Each child got to pick a hat of their favorite farm animal as they arrived. They stayed on for the first half of the party but were later discarded. The boys had to find the farm animals in the hay, kind of like finding a needle in a haystack. Needless to say, they enjoyed dumping the recycled paper hay on the floor and playing with it more then hunting for animals. They we all went outside where they had to find all the rubber ducky farm animals that escaped the barn. It was an Easter egg type hunt which brought a lot of curiosity.

Ty was super excited for this birthday party. We had been talking about it for days and he totally understood the concept. Of course he wanted to open the presents first thing and guarded them from his friends if they got close. He even sat patiently while we sang "Happy Birthday". It was such a sweet celebration!


Mrs. Laura brought Ty a wagon which was a major hit to start the party! We have taken MANY wagon rides around the neighborhood! Thank you Laura! What a perfect gift!

Making the cake was a family affair. Ty helped mix the cake and Mommy and Daddy took turns icing and decorating. Oh, the things we do for our children. We figured out we are not bakers, but still refuse to buy a store bought cake. We will see how many years that lasts. The memories make it all worthwhile.

Singing and Playing with Jim Gill

We use Jim Gill's music at work and he is an amazing performer for children and families. His concerts are truly a family affair. Parents are not allowed to sit and admire their little ones, but be a part of the magical fun. We couldn't pass up the opportunity to attend one of his concerts while he was in town for a fundraiser for an agency who serve children and their families.

Posing on the couch looking really cute!

Ty got his face painted for the first time and wanted a spider from the Zoo Lady. He did really good for her and then began to sing, "The Itsy Bittsy Spider" upon completion.

Give my son a stage and you have a performer. I never know what he is saying or the moves he makes, just call it "interpretive dance".

Easter 2010

What a fun day we had. The day started with breakfast with the family, church (Ty did amazingly well in the beginning...), lunch with the neighbors at our house, nap and the big hunt after we all had some zzzzz's.
It is amazing what a difference a year makes. Last year Ty didn't understand the concept of Easter and hunting for eggs. We couldn't have enough egg hunts to participate in this year!

Traditional family photos.

Adoption #2 Update...Listen Up Homies

Many have asked where we are in the process for bringing home #2. At this time, our dossier is almost done. Things in IL take a lot longer ( intense background checks from every place you have lived since 18) then most states which is why we started this journey early. Our home study is being approved by DCFS and then it goes to immigration. After we get our HS back and I-800a (permission to adopt a child from a foreign country) or I-800 (I forget which one comes first at this time) from USCIS, they go on their journey of getting authenticated by the Chinese Consulate in Chicago. Please pray for our documents that are at the Chinese Consulate in Chicago at this time. I did a major boo boo on Monday. Being so excited about the near completion of our dossier, I sent 9 documents to Chicago to be authenticated in the same manor as I would send them to the Secretary of State to get certified. I sent the documents with a cover letter, payment and return envelope. I omitted copies of the papers, copy of my passport and the G-1, the form to get the documents authenticated. OUCH! After realizing this moment while making banana bread with Ty, we got together the remainder of the documents, minus the copies and made an express trip to the post office to overnight these documents. Hopefully the Chinese Consulate will either send back my original documents or go ahead and authenticate the papers despite the copies. I tracked the envelopes and they arrived within minutes of each other so it is my prayer they will put 2 and 2 together. Once our dossier is completed, it will go to China. At this time, it looks like it may be another year before we receive a referral for a girl between 0-2 years with correctable special needs. Then again, it could be any time. It has been our desire Ty would be between 3-5 when we receive our referral for our daughter. We want to be able to take Ty with us back to China to experience his homeland the process of adding his sister to our family.

Apologies

Dear Family and Friends,

I have heard you. I have been horrible about not updating our blog as much as you desire. Problem is, I have a new gadget that makes my life so much easier that I rarely need my laptop. The only time I am on my laptop is to download pictures and work on papers for my job and our adoption, so updating the blog has been low on the totem pole. Sorry. I do enjoy sharing all about little Ty. I guess I should say he is not so little anymore. The guy is growing and changing every day! Talk about growing in personality too! Who knows how God has wired him! Very unique is what I say. He is an actor, musician, engineer, athlete, comedian, charmer...all rolled up into one. All I know is that he was meant for us.

A Blast From the Past

This collage is back from October when the YMCA and the Trigators put on the Spooky Du duathlon at Weldon Springs. It was a gorgeous fall afternoon and perfect racing weather. We were out there as cheerleaders and volunteers. The end of the race ended in a weenie roast complete with smores, drinks and award ceremony. It was the perfect day and a perfect event! Ty "competed" on his motorcycle and had to try out the bottle opener on the water bottles. He has a very observant eye and wanted to do as the adults. Scary. The kid continues surprise us!

Shaving Cream...It's an Experience!

I think these photos say it all. After lots of "more shaving cream" so Ty could make himself into a snowman, it was time for a bath...and a round of "Old McDonald".

Daddy Daycare

Lots of fun and potty time guaranteed!

A White Christmas

Christmas day gave us a dusting of snowfall, but during the night, more snow dumped then expected. The forecast was saying 1-3 inches, but we got double that. Ty demanded to make a snowman on Christmas day, but there was not enough snow to even fathom the idea. Give it an evening...and he got what he wanted...but despised his time getting dressed in appropriate gear (prefers the natural state these days). After we struggled to get into somewhat appropriate clothes, we went out for a sled ride. Lo and behold, our neighbor buddy had already built 2 snowmen!

Looking very cute, but was miserable. He demanded he have his sun glasses on just like Mom.

Assisting on putting the finishing touches with JB.


Then we were off to finish our sledding around the neighborhood.

Poor little guy doesn't have a nose to keep the sun glasses up.

Mom giving Dad a break.

I LOVE having four seasons after coming from Central Texas where we said it was either green or brown. Now only if we had some ski slopes nearby, I would be in heaven. Our area of town is equipped with the hills, but those crazy cars get in the way. I did see some locals try cross country skiing the other day while dodging the mailman.

Do You Have This Much Fun With Bills?

On a recent COLD and snowy Saturday afternoon, we decided to start the new year with a little purging. We went through our files and shredded the unnecessary documents that needed to be done away with A LONG TIME AGO. While Mom was downloading music to her new iTouch (LOVE IT!), Daddy and Ty got down to business.

First, get your stool so you can reach. Then stretch with all your might to reach the shredder.

After all the shredding, you get naked (our son likes the natural state lately, especially in negative degree weather... any explanation?),dump the trash can and PLAY!

And don't forget to SMILE!

Then you get buried in all the bills, literally, and...

SURPRISE! Our little man from Henan!

A Year in Review

Merry Christmas and New Year: From our hearts and home to yours, we wish you God’s greatest blessings and peace this Christmas and New Year’s Holiday Season! The following are our brief reflections on the amazing journey God gave us in 2009. Enjoy!

January: Twelve months ago, we started our 2009 journey by traveling north for Ty’s palate surgery at Shriner’s Hospital in Chicago. We love Chicago! After the surgery, we had the longest two weeks of our lives with daily syringe feedings and arm restraints. A huge thank you goes out to Amy’s mom, Audrey, (you rock!) who lovingly flew up from Austin to help get all of us through this challenging time.

February: We rejoiced that Ty’s palate surgery was a huge success with a return trip to Chicago! His mouth had healed beautifully and he celebrated by beginning to consume everything! - especially broccoli, peas, cauliflower, brussell sprouts and asparagus!

March: We had a great time with Amy’s family from Texas during their early Spring visit. We travelled to Arthur, IL to see “everything Amish” in this local community and eat at the famous, local restaurant – Yoder’s Kitchen.

April: We celebrated Easter with Troy’s dad from Iowa, Dan. Dan was a huge help as usual with some new house upgrades during his visit! Thanks Dad! You’re the greatest!

May: We celebrated Ty’s Second Birthday (May 01) with a 2-in-1 Birthday Party on May 10. The first part of the party celebrated his First Birthday that we missed while he was still and orphan in China. The second part celebrated his Second Year of Life that he now enjoys with his forever family. We thank Troy’s mom, Sharen, our family and friends that came to party with us!

June: We travelled for vacation to Mo Ranch in the beautiful Texas Hill Country. We enjoyed time with our extended family, the sunshine, pool and Guadalupe River during our visit. Troy conquered his fear of heights by walking over the big catwalk bridge pushing Ty in his stroller and we witnessed the ranch maintenance workers catch a big rattlesnake on the road near our cabin.

July: We celebrated the Fourth of July with Troy’s Dad, Dan on this annual summer visit and golf outing in Central Illinois. Troy completed his third Lakeside Triathlon on the shores of Lake Decatur on July 5th.

August: We travelled on back-to-back weekends to Kentucky (regional thriathlon competition)and Ohio (organic church conference). We shopped at a huge international market called Jungle Jim’s in Cincinnati and Troy swam a mile down the Ohio River completing his first Olympic distance triathlon with his friend, Scott in Maysville, KY - the hometown of Rosemary and George Clooney.

September: We celebrated the 1st Anniversary of our “Gotcha Day” on Sept 16th, the day we received Ty from Chinese orphanage officials at Mama Mia’s Italian Restaurant inside the Crowne Plaza Hotel located in Downtown Zhengzhou, Henan, China. We capped the month by traveling with Amy’s parents to The Great Pumpkin Patch in Arthur, IL so Ty could pick out his annual Halloween pumpkin.

October: We had a great time as a family during “Boo at the Zoo” Night at Scovill Zoo in Decatur. Also, Ty had a fantastic evening with his neighborhood friend, John Brevin, trick-or-treating on Halloween Night. Ty was dressed as a Train Engineer and made us crack up by saying “Choo Choo!” when people answered their doors.

November: We celebrated Thanksgiving by travelling to see both of our families on back to back weekends in Texas and Iowa.

December: Ty now has two new girlfriends – Dora the Explorer and Ni Hao Kai-Lan. He is especially fond of Kai-Lan and the Mandarin Chinese that she is teaching him. We had a great Christmas with Ty. He enjoyed seeing that Santa drank all the milk he poured, eaten the cookies he baked and taken the carrots for his reindeer. We rounded the day off by starting the new tradition of having an Open House from 3-6PM for all our neighbors and friends. It was a great day!

The Reason for the Season: Finally, as the year draws to a close and 2010 is about to begin, we would like to thank our Lord, Savior and King, Jesus Christ for all our blessings these past 52 weeks. We thank Him for being born in manger as a common human being so he could relate to common people like us. We thank Him for growing up to be our Savior, dying on the Cross, taking away the debts we could never pay ourselves and opening the door of the Kingdom of Heaven to us forever. We thank Him for being our King who lives, reigns and gives us victory over any circumstance in life, especially hard economic times. This is the true reason for the season and foundation for celebration! Peace and Love to all of you!

An Evening With Baby Aaron

Go back to the early 1980's when Cabbage Patch Kids were the rage. I highly desired a black, bald boy CPK, but my grandfather refused to buy me one, so hence, Baby Aaron Michael. His name was Skip Barnaby, but by the power of adoption, he was renamed, Aaron Michael. Now fast forward to 2009, Aaron Michael is my son's new friend. Ty is fabulous Daddy full of hugs, kisses and stroller rides. These picture came from the "Calgon...Take Me Away" day. After a day that truly tested my patience, I thought an evening walk to see the neighborhood lights was a great remedy. Obviously....NOT! Who knows what was going on in the little guys mind and body, but we couldn't do anything right. He cried the entire time....from getting our coats on to our evening walk. It was a gorgeous evening and I was sure it was the fix to a crazy day, but....he proved me wrong.

Just playing with my camera settings. It doesn't exactly capture the image I was wanting to get, but I still like the results.

And another image that was striking.

My boy and his baby.

Merry Christmas!

May your day be filled with much joy and peace from Him, Jesus Christ. We are enjoying a light snowfall and getting ready for an afternoon open house with drinks and desserts for anyone who wants to stop by. More pictures to follow of this brilliant day and season!

"Calgon...Take Me Away!"

I LOVE my son, but he truly pushed me to the limit today. My training/education/job is in child development , especially prenatal-3, but theory and practice where put to the test. I know through disorganization comes organization and we are experiencing a major "touchpoint" . Something great is about to happen, but....everything else falls apart. We have regressed in potty training and Ty wants to be a "baby" this week and wear diapers, he is waking up at night and wants to sleep with us, he is whining constantly after being told, "Mommy only likes to drink wine, not hear it!". AAAAGGGHHHHH! At 7:30 this morning, I was saying, "I know it has to be 12:00 somewhere in this world. Give me my pinot grigio!" After putting him back to bed and sleeping another 2 hours, the day didn't get any better. His world was falling apart. Any tips on how to deal with whining? While making dinner, I sent Ty and dad to the basement to paint a picture. I am going to create a "No Whining Zone" sign using his artwork. The little guy is a Picasso these days!

9 Years Ago Today...

You can see what happened here:
http://babyroenfanz.blogspot.com/2006/12/6-years-ago-today.html

Our Rock Star

We knew Ty was musically inclined when we saw him tapping his fingers to the beat on the radio while in his car seat just days after arriving in the USA. We enrolled him in Kindermusik last winter (We are going to do it again in January!) when he was 19 months old and he was in love. He will turn any surface into a piano and pretend to sing and play. Praise God we had a friend who gave us a keyboard and drum pad her child out grew. Luckily I came across a garage sale that had kid musical instruments for sale and was told "all they need is new batteries". Well, only 1 out of the 3 worked with new batteries and thankfully it was the guitar. Ty has seen others play and he took to it like he knew what to do all along. This little guitar plays ~4 songs and has a laser in the opening to strum to continue playing the song. I am REALLY tired on the songs, but it brings him great joy. In fact, he will bring out his guitar to play during house church while we sing. His music doesn't exactly go with ours, but he is bringing his contribution to the group.

Pure joy!

Look at that stance!

Taking a seat on the fireplace for a little finger picking slow song.

I hope you enjoy this little ditty!

Rocking Cousins

We flew down to Texas for a long weekend before Thanksgiving for my parents annual Thanksgiving celebration. It is has been a family tradition bringing my mom and dad's side of the family together, in addition to friends, for approximately 26 years. We were trying to determine the number of years we have been doing this , but determined it was usually so my uncle who is now a retired pilot could join us with his wife and dogs, since he usually had to fly over Thanksgiving.

We have not been down to this celebration in several years and made the point to go this year, especially since we had a few relatives and friends who had not met Ty. In addition, Bryan (my brothers son) and Ty got to spend a little extra time together. It has been fun to watch the two of them develop a relationship and play together beyond parallel play. The rocking chairs were a great hit as they shared snacks and rocked back and forth together in unison.

Bryan is sitting in my chair that I had growing up and Ty is in my grandfathers chair.

Many memories were had in my rocking chair. I remember watching Mr. Rogers at 4:00 each afternoon as I walked in from school on our Curtis Mathis T.V. that you had to manually turn the knob with great strength to change the channel.

I wanted Ty to be able to have my rocking chair here in IL, but the likelihood of anybody driving to/from Texas to bring it was rare. Plus, it is nice for my parents to have extra for the grand kids. Now Ty has his own that can be a new heirloom.

Missing Glasses

Mr. Potato Head seems to have lost his glasses, but they have now have been claimed by silly Ty. Despite being on the small side, Ty pushes through to enjoy all the new sights to be seen.

Thanks to Grandma and Grandpa in Texas, Ty has been enjoying his early Christmas present, an Amish made rocking chair.

Trains...Choo Choo!

The Daddy was gone on a weekend work retreat , so Ty and Mommy explored new territory. Ty has been in love with trains since we live in Corn Syrup Production Country. I must say they are now an exciting encounter instead of the annoying "I am stopped by a train on my way to work" disturbance. So we went to a railway museum and rode the train into town, had lunch at a local joint, toured the glass blowing gallery very carefully (not recommended with a toddler) and a few other stores all before catching the train back to our starting point.

Looking cute in his autumn attire, perfect for the cool and windy day.

Ty was enthralled by the entire experience. Like his mom, he becomes really quiet and soaks in the entire experience.

We were off the train on our way to lunch. All the little guy wanted to do was get back on the train.

Seriously concentrating on the next bend ahead.