One Year Anniversary of the Luckiest Family

It was one year ago today that I posted "We are the Luckiest Family" . This morning as we were heading out the door for school, I had to fight back tears thinking about how grateful I am to have Jack in our lives. Lucky seems like such a trivial word in comparison to the unbelievable joy and goodness that he has given us. I wanted to think of a way to celebrate, but I wasn't sure what would help him know it was a special day. Last night I did make some cupcakes for Jack and his buddies at school to enjoy. For a three-year-old cupcakes mean celebration. When we walked into the classroom he excitedly pointed to the cupcakes and signed his name over and over, as if to tell his friends, "Jack brought cupcakes!"




Driving to work I thought about how much he has learned and experienced in the last year. He's gone from the little boy I saw in the window of the Civil Affairs office in Nanning to the smiling face that wakes me up every morning. I can remember thinking that he was a happy boy when we were in China, but knowing him better now I can see that he was holding back, hesitating and checking things out. I see the cautious face very rarely with him. He's a daredevil for sure, but at the same time a survivor.

He's gained 6 lbs. and 2 inches since China.
He understands English very well.
He clearly says, "Momma" and "No".
He knows more than 40 words in sign language.
He's potty trained (woohoo).
He sleeps through the night (most nights).
He completed two surgeries to build a cleft palate.

He hums the theme from Star Wars when we drive in the car.
He makes a pretend burp sound to make his brother laugh.
He raises his eyebrows up and down to make his mommy laugh.
He sommersaults and bounces with his Nana every Friday in gymnastics.
He helps his daddy feed the puppy every morning.
He loves birdwatching, bike riding, swimming, running and eating cookies.

He lives every day with an unmatched joy!

What did you say??

This is Jack's newest face. I think it's perfect to accompany this post. We've been working with our local county school board to get Jack evaluated for speech therapy services. During his first evaluation, his ears failed the tympanometry test. (Tympanometry is one aspect of immittance testing, can assist in the detection of fluid in the middle ear, perforation of the eardrum, or wax blocking the ear canal.) Jack was referred to an audiologist for a more detailed examination.

First the audiologist looked inside Jack's ears with an otoscope, an instrument that contains a light and a magnifying lens, to examine the ear canal and eardrum. She said his ear drums looked dull. Normally, they would be shiny and pink. She administered a second tympanometry test. In this test a graph is generated which should look like a bell curve. Jack's right ear made what amounted to a flat line. His left ear had a slight curve, but not significant.

The GOOD NEWS was that when Jack was put into a sound-proof booth he heard almost every tone in the test. Jack sat on my lap and faced forward. Then speakers to his right and left produced a variety of tones and low levels. If Jack turned when he heard the sound a little toy would light up. He thought the test was a blast. He heard every sound on his left and only missed one on his right.

Based on this assessment Jack has been cleared to move onto speech therapy. We are really looking forward to getting him on track with his language. He continues to excel with sign language and astounds us with his memory for all the signs.

I feel lucky because one of his few very clear words is Momma. I do know that Craig longs to hear Daddy. It will all come with time and as we approach our one year mark, we are just grateful for everyday we've had with him.

Kung Hei Fat Choi

Kung Hei Fat Choi

It's so hard to believe that nearly a year ago we were in Guangzhou bargaining for these precious outfits. Even then I was thinking ahead to Jack's first Chinese New Year here in the U.S. Living in a smaller community we don't have as many opportunities for Chinese cultural celebrations as other areas, but we found some fun things to do.


Jack calls to Hunter to be in the picture with him. Jack doesn't usually like to pose for pictures, but he does like to do whatever his big brother does.


The "Sweet Boy" pose quickly turns into the "True Boy" pose...

...which goes from a pose to a full stun show.

Our local library had a special display of Chinese martial arts along with a traditional performance of a Chinese Lion dance. The Lion dance is an old tradition dating back to the 3rd century BC from the Han dynasty. The lion expresses joy and happiness at times like the new year. Interestingly, the lion dance we saw is considered a Southern style because the dance is performed to drum beats and focuses more on the movement of the lion's head rather than the feet (as it would be in a Northern style). Also, a Northern lion will traditionally have a detailed mane and legs, while the Southern lion is more of a decorative drape. Having said, all that, since Jack was born in Southern China, it was perfect.


The boys watched intently. Jack stayed very close to Hunter during the Lion Dance, but when the martial arts demonstration took place he stood to applaud for each person. He was so excited.


The finale was a burst of firecrackers and the Lion revealing the banner declaring it the Year of the Rat.

Day at the Park

One year ago we were gearing up for the journey of our lives to the other side of the world to bring home our precious baby Jack. Our year has flown by. It's incredible to see his happy smiling face. This weekend we visited a local park with the boys.




Hunter spent most of the time on this elaborate set of monkey bars. They were like wheels that spun as he swung from one to another.


He was wiped out by the time he had crossed it. (Don't worry...he wasn't hurt.)



Mr. Pensive contemplates the day at the park.

As we were leaving a "monster truck" pulled into the parking lot. Craig snapped some photos of Jack to show that the tires were bigger than he is.