Merry Christmas

Dear Family and friends~

I hope all of you will have a very merry Christmas and that Santa will be good to you. I will be back in a few days to tell you about my Christmas and to catch you up on some things I did before Christmas.

Thanks for reading my blog!

Love~
Lindy Li-Xiao

Dear Santa all I want for Christmas is...

Lindy really wants nothing to do with the big guy with the beard and red suit. She says, "Sometimes I'm a little shy." If you've met Lindy, you know that's typically not the case but I'm okay if she's shy about Santa and am not going to force Santa Claus on her if she's not ready. We had been asking her what she would like for Santa to bring her and she hadn't really expressed a desire in anything. This is the kid who picks up acorns, leaves, and styrofoam peanuts and calls them her special treasures.

Then last week while I was making dinner she told me she was ready to write Santa a letter and asked if I could help her. I couldn't help her at the time but did inquire as to what she was requesting.

Her reply? "Diamonds. I want diamonds."
Lindy, you make your mommy proud!

November wrap-up

This post is completely out of order. I got so busy that I didn't post a lot of stuff from November and now I'm playing catch up a month later...

The week before Thanksgiving, Lindy helped celebrate two special birthdays. One was for her friend, Beck, who turned four.


The next day, we celebrated Daddy's birthday. We went to Outback and then later that evening had Mississippi Mud cake. YUM! It is Daddy's favorite and Lindy thought it was pretty special, too. I'm also a big fan and Don's cake always signifies the packing on of the holiday pounds--much to my dismay. :-(

To help celebrate Thanksgiving we went with our special friend, Denisa, to go see the Littlest Pilgrim at a local theatre. It was lots of fun and it was a great reminder about the importance of being thankful.



On November 21st we went to the Orphan's Ticket Home gala. Lindy's sweet face was featured on several of the centerpieces on the tables that evening. Sure, I see her face all day long but when I saw her pictures on the tables with other children who've been adopted, I got a bit verklempt...(Only people who watched old Saturday Night Live will get that word!) It was a great night and over $26,000 was raised to help children come home to their forever families.


I did manage to post about Lindy's Thanksgiving feast at school but we celebrated a lovely Thanksgiving with dear friends. Here are some pictures of the day which was fun and FILLING!!! We are thankful for friends who treat us like family.







I truly wish there was an extra month between November and December. I hate rushing Thanksgiving and obsessing about Christmas. I'd love to enjoy all of the holidays for their meaning and the special aspects of the season.

That about covers the remaining highlights of November. Now, I'm thinking about what I might post for December so far, since it is half over. Someone stop the madness!!!

Thanksgiving Feast

Last Thursday, Lindy's preschool had their Thanksgiving Feast. The 2s were the Turkeys, the 3s were the Indians, and the 4s were the Pilgrims. Lindy was given the name, "Fluttering Butterfly" and she decorated her vest with pink butterflies. That's a pretty appropriate name for her because that girl does know how to flit and flutter.


The children dined on turkey, grapes, apples, corn muffins with butter and honey, tater tots, cheese, and juice boxes--just like the early settlers. A very clever mom chose easy, healthy, relatively mess-free finger foods. Good thinkin'! After their feast they had fun playing games, like Stuff the Turkey.

I had fun being able to join Lindy and her schoolmates for the festivities and even got to help out some which was nice.
Lindy, aka "Fluttering Butterfly" would like to wish all her family and friends a very happy Thanksgiving!

Big day for the big girl

Today was a big day for our big girl. Lindy started preschool this morning. "What?" you ask. "Who starts their kid in preschool on a Thursday in the middle of November?" We did... On Tuesday night I got a call from my friend letting me know an opening had come up in the three year old class where she teaches and that she could begin on Thursday if we wanted.

To be honest, I've felt very behind the curve ball on the subject of preschool. I was under the notion that preschool was pretty much the same as day care and Mother's Day Out with a bit more structure, so I was very surprised when I learned so many of my SAHM friends sent their kids to school. I think Don just assumed she'd be home with me until Kindergarten and that we'd save the money and I'd continue to "homeschool" her to help prepare her academically. Lindy is a very social child and also gets a lot of socialization through bible classes, MOPS, and other interactions. I've seen her make great improvement in the area of getting along with other kids which really encourages and pleases me. I also work with her academically and I continue to see her develop and learn. However, there are some things that are just harder to model and teach when you have an only child who is very independent and pretty strong-willed. For the most part I think Don and I knew we'd send her when she was four to help get her ready for a full day at school and being in a classroom with a teacher and other children.

When the opportunity came up suddenly, I really think it nudged us both off the fence. Lindy has been BEGGING to go to school for at least a year now and I knew she'd be thrilled. When I thought about sending her at four, this is the school I wanted her to attend. It is a very small program at a local church and we know several of the kids and one of the teachers. It is also very close to our house and extremely inexpensive. I just never thought we'd get to send her there because it is pretty difficult to get into because of its size.

There are days that I thought the day she went off to school couldn't come fast enough. I know that sounds awful. It's true, though. Lindy is a wonderful child and my true delight but she's also very high energy and non-stop. She doesn't play with toys much but instead wants me to take part of her very large make believe world. The battery pack on her rarely gives out and it can be exhausting trying to keep up with her and listen to her talk ALL DAY LONG (a blessing, I know). So, given all that, you'd think I would've been shouting out for joy at the prospect of two days with time for myself. I did not. I did quite the opposite. I cried and have been crying on and off for two days. Start humming "Sunrise, Sunset" from Fiddler on the Roof in your head and that's how I've been feeling...

I've heard that from the moment you say hello to a baby, you're beginning to say goodbye. That was really how I felt today. As I brought Lindy into school, she was pretty much pushing through the crowd to get to her destination. She was so excited. I was so excited for her but as I walked out of her classroom and stood in the hallway to watch her and talk to another mother, Lindy caught me looking in on her and said, "Mom can you go away?" It sounds rude but I know that was my little girl's way of telling me she was fine...

Lindy had a great time. After I picked her up, we ran a quick errand and she kept telling me she needed to sit down for a rest. When we got home, she immediately took off her shoes and plopped on the couch and said, "Phew...that was a really good day." I wasn't even in the room so she wasn't addressing me. It was just her unwinding...

And me? Oh, I'll be fine...I'm thrilled about this opportunity that God sent us and I know it'll be great. I just feel kind of like the words of this song by Zach Gill:

Watch Them Grow

She’s close to God, I’m sure of that
She sits him down and they have a chat
She asks for sunshine and he agrees
You see for her, he’d do anything

You watch them grow then you let 'em go

She is a monkey and I’m her tree
Now she’s climbing all over me
Swinging on my vines dancing on my limbs
Her monkey sounds sound like angels hymns

You watch them grow then you let 'em go

She is an angel, she is an imp
She’s got a big toe and her mother’s lips
She gives fishy kisses and great big bear hugs
42 pounds of pure love
Then one day she’ll be 17, feeling too big for her home
Seems she was just only 3, oh how our children they grow

You watch them grow then you let 'em go

Then one day she’ll be 33, maybe with a child of her own
Seems she was just 17, oh how our children they grow

He’ll ask for sunshine and she’ll agree
You see for him she’d do anything
He is her child, the center of her world
She is his mother, my little girl

You watch them grow then you let 'em go

Can't go to school without eating a good breakfast...

I was able to get a couple shots of her before we left home but the lighting was awful.

As soon as she got there, she began playing.

She's in a class with all girls, including her friend, Mia.

I snapped this one from the pick up line. She's learning to use the rings and that you don't always get to be first or get the color handle you want.

A shot with her teacher, Miss Theresa.

Triple the fun

This past Sunday, Lindy attended a triple birthday party for her friends Maliah, Ava Claire, and Olivia who all just turned three. I'm not sure what was going on in China during February 2005 (maybe Chinese New Year) but almost all of Lindy's local friends were born nine months later (including Karleigh Mei who'll be coming home VERY soon). We've met all these girls this year and that has been a special thing for Lindy to have some friends who look like her. Lindy had a great time being with her buddies and eating pizza and cake.

The afternoon wouldn't have been complete without a group shot of all the girls. No sweat, right? These girls are used to having the Mammarazzi following them everywhere and constantly being photographed, so it would just be old hat. Nope. Try again. This feat actually was tougher than the mandatory Red Couch shots at the White Swan in Guangzhou. Here are the hilarious shots I caught...

That's sweet Lily, the youngest member at almost two, trying to make a get away.

Better luck next year...

Happy Birthday, girls! Thanks for including us in your special day.

Halloween Report

Lindy had a fun Halloween. Instead of trick-or-treating in the neighborhood, we went to Trunk-o-Treats in the church parking lot. It was a beautiful evening and she had lots of fun visiting people she knew and seeing how cleverly people had decorated their car trunks. She refused to stop playing the cake walk until she won a cake. My thighs thank you for the chocolate cake you chose, my dear...


I was in charge of picture taking but Don and Lindy ditched me from the get go, so we didn't get many pictures. Apparently, Don doesn't share my fondness for taking pictures as I didn't get any of him as Indiana Jones with his little fairy.






After Lindy gathered her weight in candy, we went to a party where we ran into this couple. Mom and Dad, I'm sorry. I really do try to keep better company.


Hope everyone had a fun and safe Halloween. Let the sugar rush continue!

Picnics, Pajamas, & Pumpkins

~~~Happy Fall~~~

This is a potpourri post of some stuff we've been up to the last few days...

On Saturday, we went to Don's company picnic. Actually, it was only a portion of his company but it was a big to-do at a fun local ranch. So Texas, I know. There was food galore (mainly BBQ), carnival rides, petting zoos, a rodeo, and arts and crafts. Lindy loved taking a pony ride, going on her first ferris wheel ride, feeding the longhorns, and making, "snores."

On Monday, the gym Lindy attends for gymnastics had a Pajama Progress Party because it was the halfway mark of their 20 week program. The parents got to be on the other side of the class and be with them during the session. Although I charged my battery, for some reason it died so I only got a few shots at the beginning of class and none of her on the gymnastics equipment. She was thrilled because she got to show off her princess pajamas and her daddy surprised her by showing up to watch.

This morning Lindy and I carved pumpkins. Okay, I carved and she played and fed the deer and birds the pumpkin seeds and goop and supervised as I free-handed his face...I truly believe this was the first time I had ever carved a pumpkin. I am a total novice and had no idea what I was doing, so I no doubt made several rookie mistakes like breaking Jack's bottom row of teeth, the stem, and making the lid too small so now it falls in unless I place it on top of him like a hat. Oh well, despite my broken thumbnail, the blisters on my thumbs, the fact that I'll be in traction from lifting this thing, it was good not-so-clean fun. Fortunately, there weren't any knife injuries! It was such a pretty day outside, it felt good to just do this on the back porch and enjoy the slight breeze, the beautiful blue sky, and the cool of the air.




Hope you're having a great week and enjoying the beauty of the season!