December Weather

What a time we’re having – a fun little girl, a great place to live and blessed beyond what we can count. We hope that this season is more to you than getting presents and that you stop and take a look at the blessings that are in your life and in our world, all because of one very special child that was given to the world so long ago.

This weekend was so great. Warm, humid and best yet – no snow! It was 9:30 at night and we had our windows open for the 73 degree air that was gently blowing around outside. Aahhh! Can you feel it? Oh the joy of not having to layer on the down comforter and the heavy pj’s just to keep warm. I must say that there is a down side to the warm weather. We had a visitor Sunday night around 1:30a.m. Our KCWS (kitty cat warning system) is fully functioning and pulling her weight around here. Girlcat (now 14 years old) came to our room and howled a very distinct cry of alarm of "Mama", so up I hopped out of bed and followed her to the kitchen. There, in the glow of the nightlight, I saw him. No, not bug, not an earthworm, but a very small, full-grown, snake. He was less than 12” long and about as fat as a pencil. I personally have no tolerance to critters so luckily for him I went and got Kevin to help me figure out what exactly he was…Kevin saved him to slither another day by checking some pictures on the internet. We figured out that he was a harmless critter called a Texas Brown Snake who likes dark moist areas – much like the new mulch we put down a couple weeks ago.

Other than that, the week has been pretty uneventful. Aanika is growing every day and is just a hoot to be with. The picture is of her and her new “desk” that Momma made for her.

Aanika with Cameron and his Jeep

Happy belated Thanksgiving! We had a nice day at Kevin’s boss’ house which is north of Houston and about a 1.5 hour drive from our house. They were kind enough to invite us but had a crazy turn of events…it was a beautiful sunshiny day and they had no power! They have no idea why but they made the best of it. Luckily, they have a gas stovetop and grill so they could finish cooking everything. The power eventually came on after everything was finally cooked and going on to the table. Isn’t that usually how things go? :) Aanika had a ball with their grandson, Cameron, who is almost 5 years old. They have lots of toys for the grandkids so they had plenty of things to keep them occupied. The best toy is in the picture above. Cameron has a battery-powered Jeep and was more than willing to take Aanika for a ride in it. We got some great video of Aanika riding next to him with her arm around his shoulders! He’s a very polite driver…Aanika had been holding a chalkboard eraser and accidentally dropped it while they were riding. He turned off the jeep, got out and picked it up for her and then hopped back in and put on his seatbelt and off they went again! What a hoot.

Other than Thanksgiving, it’s been pretty quiet around here this week. I’ve done more painting (our bathroom) and have started getting the house ready for Christmas. We’re having a couple of get-togethers here for the holiday season so I’m trying to get everything finished ahead of time. I don’t generally work well under pressure so I try not to procrastinate too much! Kevin’s going to help me hang some lights on the house today because I’m too chicken to climb to the rooftop! I’m also planning on painting Aanika’s bathroom today too as well as getting out for a bike ride. It’s absolutely gorgeous weather today (sunshine and low 70’s) and we’re planning on getting out to enjoy it! The little one’s a bit under the weather today but hopefully the fresh air will do her good.

Gotcha Day - First Anniversary

Homemade ballet shoes

Have I mentioned lately that Aanika is growing like a weed? All of a sudden it’s like she’s turning into a little girl (who loves dance) instead of the sweet little baby we went and picked up almost 1 year ago. Yup, this time last year we were in Beijing, China and getting ever closer to meeting our little sweetie. Gotcha Day is on Tuesday and we’re planning a fun evening out at one of the restaurants here in town.

The week has been kind of crazy around here…I’ve been in a purging mood and have stripped out all of the closets and dresser drawers and starting pitching things. We both had our things to be gotten rid of - for me, things that are much too small (face it, I’ll never be that skinny again!) and for Kevin, he had things in his drawers from as far back as 1988! I swear the man is a packrat. On top of that, Aanika’s room has had a once-over as well. One of her walls has now been painted purple, her closets and drawers stripped AND her toys have finally found some temporary form of organization (let’s see how long it lasts) so that they actually have a place to be put other than on her floor! The only thing left is to go through years of papers and lack of filing in the office. Does everyone put off the worst task for last? : )

Pigtailed Cutie

Another week has come and gone…boy, how the time flies. Not much has happened since our last update. Aanika’s hair is finally getting long enough that we finally have been able to put her hair up in pig tails – totally changes the way her face looks…And how totally cute she is with them!! Halloween was interesting for us this year. We don’t normally celebrate it (that’s a whole other discussion) but Kevin thought that we should pass out treats to the little ones. So, to avoid having people ask us why Aanika wasn’t dressed up, we did her up in one of the outfits we bought for her in China. Boy, did she look cute!

The weather here is finally changing to feel like autumn. Apparently we had one of the warmest October’s on record. The rest of this week and weekend look like they’re going to be beautiful with temps in the mid 60’s-mid 70’s. The other thing we’re getting accomplished around here is adding some furnishings and changing out some of the curtains that came with the house. We’re just not navy blue kind of people! The house is really feeling homey and cozy now that we’ve added some warm lighting and warm/dark woods into the mix. We just never really had the space for much “stuff” in our other homes before so it’s been nice to be able to finally fill the rooms with more than just couches.

The only other thing that’s going to happen around here this week is to put up Aanika’s new purple curtains in her room. We’re getting ready for the transition to a regular bed and have started purchasing the bedding and décor that will be used. Right now it’s pretty much a blank canvas so it ought to turn out to be quite a cute room when it’s all done.

Teeth dents and the hardwood floor

Those little light marks are from Aanika's front teeth!

Things have been pretty quiet around here this week. The Riverdancing has slowed down a bit (thankfully) but now she’s moved on to ‘Angelina Ballerina’ which is a bit more annoying. It’s a British-done cartoon about a mouse (Angelina) who loves ballet. At the end of the program, they actually teach you ballet moves and positions of the feet etc. Aanika is so cute with it though. When she wants to watch it, she either will hold up the remote for the DVD player or she brings it to you. All this is done while she’s nodding her head ‘yes’ and saying “Leena” along with some other stuff we have yet to figure out. Of course it’s all followed up by a dramatic “Mmpwease” which is ‘please’ to you and me. When she was learning to say please, it started out with her wanting more of something. Thus, we get ‘more, please’ as mmpwease. Really very cute when you see it all together.

Well, we’re moving into a new stage with Aanika lately…toddler mishaps. Usually it’s just a scraped knee, or a pinched finger but we’ve had two owies in two days. The first one was a tumble off of a chair because she’s finally discovered climbing – she ended up with just a little bump on her noggin. The second one was yesterday - see picture above. Look directly in the center and you’ll see two little marks. This is what I saw left behind on the floor as I picked Aanika up off of it! Luckily it wasn’t a full-force fall onto her teeth…she had already fallen and as she was trying to get up, she fell again so it was really only from a few inches off the floor that resulted in this. She was very lucky to say the least.

Grandpa Marx and Aunt Ria visit

Sorry for the delay in updates. We had some special visitors from Michigan last week! Bompa Marx and Aunt Maria came down to celebrate my birfweek* with me. We had a great time while they were here. Kevin took us to San Antonio the first weekend that they arrived (first missed update). The weather was perfect for our adventures. We went to the Alamo (very cool) and also spent our two days exploring the Riverwalk and still didn’t see all of it! It was very lush and green and absolutely beautiful.

The rest of the week we spent closer to home (within 1 hour’s drive). Saturday the 16th was going home day for them and it was also a recovery day for me from all the running around we did all week (second missed update). Aanika had a ball having new playmates for a whole week. The girl is absolutely crazy over her Bompa (see the picture above). After he left, she went into his bedroom a few times looking for him. She thought it was great when we called him and she was able to talk on the phone with him.


Definition of "Birfweek":
Part one: A birfweek is an extension of a birthday-day. It is up to the person celebrating to decide if the days preceeding or following the actual birthday are part of said birfweek. The birthday-day must fall within these dates.
Part two: The person celebrating their birfweek is allowed to purchase at least one birthday item of their choosing (within reason) and not have to explain the purchase.
Part three: Something has to be purchased for or done for/with, in regard to the person celebrating, on each day of the birfweek in recognition of said celebration. This is to be negotiated between the two parties. NOTE: This celebration is only to be practiced between spouses or significant others.

Treehouse breakfast

Boy, another week has come and gone – time flies when you’re having fun! Aanika and I finally found a new family doctor and were able to go and get her next round of vaccinations taken care of. It went pretty well – to get the tears stopped, we called Daddy on the cell phone and let her chat with him while I paid our bill. It’s so cute because she talks up a storm but we really have no idea what she’s saying. There’s usually a lot of hand motions and pointing, giggles and you can always pick up the “goodbye” and ”see ya later” when she’s finished. She’s currently 33½ inches tall and weighs 26 pounds, has at least 16 teeth and is in very good health.

This evening we’re heading back to the county fair for duck racing (that oughta be interesting) and a professional Rodeo! I’ve never been to one and am really quite excited about it. Kevin says that if I like watching it on TV (which I do), then I’m really going to like it in person. That’s pretty much going to be the fun of the day except that I’m making one of my “experimentation meals” that I’m famous for. Hey, don’t snicker and feel sorry for Kevin…more often than not they turn out great.

The picture today is Aanika and Daddy doing one of their new favorite things – hanging out on Saturday morning and snacking on breakfast cereal in the tree house. The Riverdance obsession continues. It’s the first thing she asks for in the morning! She grabs her apple juice, giggles a bit and waits for it to start. I’ve finally convinced her that she can actually sit and watch it because normally she’ll stand in front of it through the entire program…it’s 1½ hours long!

Remembering my Mom

Wow, it’s hard to believe that it’s been a year since my Mom passed away. There were days when it felt like the year would never pass and yet it seems like only yesterday. On the anniversary day (Thursday) I thought to myself that I should do something that my Mom would have loved to do. Well, I don’t like chocolate malts so the next best thing was to ride on the Tilt-A-Whirl at the county fair! My mom absolutely loved this ride – the only one she would ever ride on and she would squeal with laughter. We went last night on opening day to take Aanika to ride some of the kiddie rides and to see the animals. As most of you know, I’m a ride freak – the faster, the better and if you don’t know what the Tilt-W-Whirl is, it’s one of the oldies-but-goodies of fairs. Most anyone can ride it…yup, you guessed it, I took Aanika on it with me! I can just hear you now “She did what?!” ~ but she loved it! She started clapping her hands afterwards and when we asked her if she had fun, she looked at the operator and thanked him…she’s a true child of my own!

Other than the fun of the fair, it was a pretty quiet week. The weather is great and is cooling off to the 80’s and will probably stay that way for the remainder of autumn. Aanika and I rode our bike down to the lake yesterday to feed the ducks, turtles and even some carp. She loves the animals but she keeps pretty close to me when she knows that they’re too close. At the petting zoo last night, she was having a ball. It was called the “Unique Petting Zoo” and had a lot of animals that were her size. There were fawns, baby llamas, pigmy goats and a fuzzy cow calf…very fun. She and Daddy were even brave enough to feed some of them! I was busy defending myself and the stroller from the deer…they liked the straps of the stroller and I even got my backside nibbled on a bit! Yikes.

The picture this week is of Aanika lounging in one of her favorite chairs that our friends, the Vaughan’s, gave to us before we brought her home. The funny thing about it is that she wasn’t posing for the pictures…she just likes to sit that way…she’s sure is a funny little girl.

Riverdance obsession

Watching Riverdance.....again.

Another quiet week (we’re still Riverdancing), we’ve had beautiful weather and another encounter with Mr. Opossum. Those little critters are tough! Kevin was actually thwacking him on the head and feet with a broom and he’d look at Kevin like he was crazy ~ it was quite hysterical to say the least :) He never did get him off the fence…

Aanika is still growing like a weed. She was looking pretty sassy yesterday in her neon green sandals Aunt Chrissy bought her. They’re still a little bit big for her (size 5) but she loves ‘em and will wear them any chance she gets. I think she likes them because they make a good sound on the floor when she walks. We also discovered that Aanika is double-jointed in her thumbs….I swear this child is genetically ours – Kevin’s thumbs are the same way!

The Opposum Fight

It’s been a pretty uneventful week here unless you count my 2 a.m. fight with beady-eyed Mr. Opossum in the backyard on Thursday. The neighbor dog wouldn’t stop barking and we couldn’t sleep, the more I couldn’t sleep the angrier I got! Well, I was bound and determined to find out what had this dog so fired up so I threw on my robe and went out ready for battle. Well, I only managed to pelt him with some wood chips and he scampered down the fence figuring that I’d leave him alone…. I guess he wasn’t counting on the fact that I don’t care for rodent-type critters and I came back with a broom, swung it hard like a baseball bat, and smacked him clean off the fence! Things quieted down quite a bit after that.

Aanika does have a new obsession that we’ve been dealing with…actually it was my fault that it got started. Many of you probably know that I absolutely love Riverdance (the Irish Dance production) and I have it on videotape. Needless to say, Aanika got hooked and tries to dance with it – even to the point that she moves her head like they do in the opening dance! It’s now to the point that as soon as their feet stop moving, she’s running for the remote to fast forward to the next dance…it’s cute and funny but this goes on all day long! I swear I can hear that tape in my sleep… I’ve created a monster. The picture this week is of the little one all dolled up in her new ‘pretties’ that Crazy Aunt Chris sent to her. The bracelets/ankle bracelets are a huge hit!

Oma and Opa visit

Oma and Opa Sprecher were here last weekend so I didn’t get an update out. We had a great visit with them and had some really nice weather and temperatures while they were here. Saturday we were at Kemah on the boardwalk and got rained on a bit but we had a nice lunch at Joes’ Crab Shack. We sat out on the deck over the water and were able to watch the boats come in and out of the channel while we ate. Opa was amazed at how much food one little girl could consume!

This week started with them driving home on Monday morning and they arrived safe and sound later that evening. The rest of the week had the three of us fighting the mullygrubs and feeling like we were all sick with various levels of a cold [bleah!]. Today was adventure day again so we took a drive west of Houston to a little town called Bellville. They had an open market with crafts and such (didn’t find what we were looking for) and some nice little shops and restaurants. Aanika didn’t last long after lunch so we headed home before the rains came and I had a chance to get in a nice little nap when we got home!

Potty training and boo boos

Well, it’s been a pretty quiet week here. The temps went back up and it got nice and steamy and so it made the weekend kind of rainy and gray. We made the best of it though and got some things done in the yard and around the house. The Olympics have been on here at our house every day since they started and they seem to be pretty entertaining for her… gymnastics and the diving seem to excite her. She starts jumping around, waving her arms and running in place like she’s trying to do what they are! Very funny to say the least.

This week she also figured out how to swing like a big girl – leg pumping action and everything! The other fun thing that has been going on, for a while now, is potty training. We started her early (16 months) to see if she’d take to it….if she keeps on like she is, she just might be in big girl pants by the time she’s 2.

On another note, we discovered yesterday that she has a phobia of band-aids! Months ago at her last vaccination appointment she had a pretty traumatic experience. One of the shots was very painful (the nurse had warned me it would be) and she didn’t handle it well. That night at bath time she saw the band-aids and absolutely freaked out…screaming bloody murder – the works. So, to make a long story short, for the next 3 days whenever she’d see something on her body that was round-shaped like the band-aids (her belly button), she would go nuts. Needless to say, Saturday’s booboo didn’t stay covered with the band-aid I so lovingly applied.

Galveston

It’s been a beauty of a week here, weather wise….only in the mid 80’s. Today was no exception so we went off on another excursion to the Gulf coast town/island of Quintana whose history dates back to 1528. There isn’t much left to see of its history because of hurricanes and yellow fever wiping everyone and everything out, but it was fun nonetheless. We took our bikes with us and were able to ride on the beach, had some lunch and even chased down an ice cream man for some frozen goodies.

The photo of Kevin and Aanika was taken on our beach trip today….we thought it was funny because it mentioned Kalamazoo. After our ride, we parked our bikes and played in the waves – the water was 84 degrees! It’s amazing what’s within an hour’s drive of here!

Earlier in the week, Kevin was trying to show Aanika how to do a headstand but inadvertently taught her how to do a forward roll. Now she does it every chance she can! Of course she’s still obsessed with the car and I’ve managed to rig up a way to take her ‘driving’ through the neighborhood….she took her buddy Pandy with us the other day. Her other love in the household is Girlcat. Mind you, she’s 14 years old and had the run of the house her entire life and now there’s this little creature that is intent on giving her hugs!

The car incident

The brand new car

Pretty quiet week for the little one. We went to a neighborhood "National Night Out" gathering on Tuesday evening to get to know some our neighbors - it's a crime prevention thing. It was pretty uneventful except for the one little incident that seemed to irk the daughter. Remember the new car that I told you about? - yeah, the one she's obsessed with - well, I managed to rig something up so that we could pull her in it like a wagon (it's now decorated with red and silver curly ribbons hanging from it). Well, she just thought she was the bees knees and was tickled to death that she was still able to be in her car and not at home. You know, I had a niggle in the back of my brain that said 'maybe you shouldn't take it' but, I did anyway. Fast forward a bit and imagine a STRANGER getting in her car..... The look on her face was priceless! She was completely frozen in place and you could see the look of disbelief on her face. I was able to distract her during this little bit of stress but it didn't take long for her emotions to take over the second time the little girl tried to get in - Aanika showed herself a bit and she managed to give the little girl a shove! All of us adults were snickering a bit, waiting to see the outcome. It turned out to be a non-event but it was a good chance for her to have a lesson in "sharing" - even when it's your most prized toy.

Today we're loading up the bikes and heading to Houston and will be riding one of the trails that is quite popular. Should be a fun day! We had a cold front come through last night so it should be a nice day for riding....it's only gonna be in the low to mid 90's.

Gators and Swings

Saturday was another expedition into the wilds of Texas. We went biking in the Brazos Bend State Park which is about 15 miles from us. That's an easy thing to say but I gotta tell ya, I was chewing my nails by the time we got there....there's Gators in that there park!! Yup, big teef and beady little eyes were staring at us as we rode by his position which was about 3 feet from me. Yikes! Kev figured he was about 6 feet long. We saw another one floating in the middle of a marshy area as well as a littler one (maybe 3 feet) who was sunning himself on a high piece of ground in the middle of a swamp. I wasn't about to stop and take pictures so there won't be any to show ya of our bike ride.

We'll go a more sedate route today with pictures. The photo today is of Aanika's swing that she has in the backyard (no gators there!). It's getting to be an evening ritual of her and Daddy going out to play.

Texas Heat & our "pool"

What a great day! We drove an hour to Galveston Island on the Gulf of Mexico today for a beach outing and had an absolute blast. Aanika LOVED the waves! The water was a balmy 79 degrees, wavy enough to make it fun and there was a great breeze to keep it refreshing. Unfortunately we didn't get her first salt water experience on film but we figure that it won't be her last time there! We're already looking forward to the next time we get to go and are planning on taking our bikes.

We've made Aanika a temporary pool out of a floatable tanning lounger....the community pools aren't open yet during the week. We had temps up around 92 the other day and we had to come up with something fun to do.

Sugar Land House

Well, it's been quite a year so far and I haven't done much updating to the page like I intended!

As many of you know, we've gotten moved in to our new home in Sugar Land, Texas and are absolutely thrilled. We couldn't have been more fortunate with how everything worked out for us. We listed our home and it was sold within the first week, travelled here to find a home and had our offer accepted before we had to travel back home and even had one of my sister's come home from Oregon for a visit before we left. My sister, Maria, drove down with us (what a blessing she was) to help with Aanika and to be my relief driver. Poor Kevin, he and the cat had quite a ride in that truck! It was 3 very long days of fighting the wind, not moving very fast and being just plain cramped, between Aanika and the cat I think that neither of them is looking forward to any kind of trip in the near future! Maria really kept things moving once we got here - you'd think that we've lived here for years! It's really quite amazing....the house looks like it was built for us and for our furnishings. The curtains that were left behind match our couches perfectly, the main paint color is EXACTLY the same as in our condo with a lighter shade in the other areas and it's scale is wonderful for our oversized furniture. We're really looking forward to living here ~ who knows what might be in store for us!

On the move South

Wow! We've sold our house already ~ it was only on the market for 1 week! We had a wonderful realtor named Jason who came in with a great attitude and got it done. We are so relieved to know that we can go into our house-hunting venture knowing that things on this end are set and ready to go. Well, we're taking Aanika on some more airplanes and she isn't the quiet "sit still" kind of girl anymore...it oughta be a very interesting trip considering that our seats aren't together - hopefully the airline will be able to fix our seating!

With the weather finally getting nice enough we've been able to get out for some afternoon walks. We bought a Burley (bike/run/walk) stroller this past Christmas so that we can take her with us no matter what we want to do outside. We've got to get her a little helmet so that we can go riding with her but until then she loves going out running with Daddy. It's been wonderful for her because she can take a snack/drink, toys or blankets and is totally comfortable. It has shaded screens to keep out the sun and bugs and it even has a windshield you can pull down if the wind is too chilly!

Walking

Aanika's a certified 'walker' now and is making up for lost time! The other day she walked around the dining room table for 2 hours while we talked with a realtor. At the end of the two hours she was literally stumbling and falling down but simply refused to stop. I was getting tired just watching her!

Well there's big news in our family as many of you know. We're on the move again and heading south to the hot and steamy land of Houston, TX. Kevin is taking a new position with Memorial Hermann Healthcare System in Houston so that we can get out of the cold! We're not looking forward to another long, cold winter here in Michigan - we got very spoiled living in North Carolina! We both love the hot and hate the cold so we're pulling up stakes and hitting the road.

We're looking forward to "vacationers" looking for somewhere fun and warm to visit. Apparently the winters there are great so we'll plan on seeing some of you next winter!

Baby Dedication

Well, we have a ham. Aanika was dedicated to the Lord on Sunday, March 7th and brought down the house! She and her "cousin" Hannah (also from China) were up front with Pastor Tim when Aanika decided to be funny and start flirting and making faces at everyone in the audience. Wouldn't you know it, it's a very serious moment and nobody can keep a straight face (laughing out loud), I'm hiding behind Kevin's shoulder because I was laughing so hard and Kev's doing his best not to look at her (he was holding her). Yup, you guessed it - the more we laughed the more she did it! All in all it turned out wonderfully and we have some great video to show her later.

The newest thing is that she's very aware that she's funny. A couple of days ago she was showing off, covered her mouth with her hand and doubled over at the waist with laughter. Let's just say that it's gonna be an interesting ride! She's an absolute riot.

Our other big hurdles are finally coming together. It used to be that we couldn't get her to put things in her mouth to eat and now we can't stop her! Oh the joy of Cheerios and Cheddar Gold Fish from Peppridge Farms. The other thing we had trouble with has now been solved with something as simple as a straw. Aanika simply would not drink from a sippie cup and was a disaster without a lid so out of desperation I tried a straw. I've never seen a one year old able to master a straw but hey, yeah for us!

Cheerios!

All smiles after the Cheerio eating lesson!

Aanika is now a whopping 24 pounds and growing like a weed! She's generally happy and cheerful but, unfortunately, the girls of the household (even the cat) have been battling a cold these last two weeks. I think our bodies are rebelling against us for being cooped up for way too long! I can hardly wait for Spring to get here so we can get out and play.

I think we're going to have a 'talker' in the family. Already she can say Kitty, Daddy, good job and a variation of it's all gone and I'm all done. She's also been learning some sign language so that we can have a two-sided conversation. Her comprehension of what you say to her just amazes us. It's great to see her react in positive ways when you mention something that she enjoys. Seeing that big grin is a great payoff!

We've also (thanks to Holly) finally gotten her to start putting things in her mouth. She's still working on letting GO of the Cheerio, but at least she's understanding that there's a benefit to it. I don't know how she learned NOT to put things in her mouth, but I must say, it's been a challenge assuring her that it can be a good thing when it comes to eating.Sounds like someone's waking from her nap - gotta go.

First Birthday

Today is Aanika's 1st birthday! We had a little celebration - just the 3 of us. She didn't seem to interested in her cupcake but we had fun nonetheless and got some cute video and pictures.



What a sweetheart of a child. We've been so blessed by having this little one in our lives. Our days are spent playing, sleeping and eating but boy, do we have fun in the process! What did we do with our time before? She's growing so fast it's just amazing. Her hair is becoming very thick and dark, her skin is soooo soft, and she's really becoming a beauty.

Christmas was spent in Missouri with Oma and Opa. It was a wonderful trip and we really enjoyed our time with them. They will be making a northward trip in March for Aanika's dedication. We've got the basement finished (finally) and have really made a great space for ourselves and visitors - it's quite cozy.