 |
| Jaxon (NingNing) - 8th grade |
 |
| Jazmin - 4th grade |
 |
| Jessica-senior |
 |
| Judi - 2nd grade |
 |
| James - sophormore |
 |
| Seth and Jaxon taken about a month ago.....ornery, but happy, boys! |
Consider stepping "outside the box" and adopt a child...it will not only change that child's life, but yours as well.
Friday, October 19, 2012
School pics!
It's been a bit since I posted, but life has continued as usual. NingNing is continuing to do well both at home and at school. He is already so different from when in China. Whereas in China, he didn't seem to be able to perceive situations where help was needed, now he willingly jumps in. He keeps himself organized and has a good standard of personal care. I just spoke with his math teacher yesterday and she said he is doing well in class and participates willingly...it's apparent he really enjoys math and though he said he wasn't good at it, neither I nor the teacher have seen evidence of it. The only thing he's struggled with so far is integers, positive and negative numbers. He's a voracious reader and we've managed to find several books in Mandarin for him for Reading class at school; he's even started on the Bible a little thanks to an app I found for my Xoom that shows the verses in Chinese and English at the same time.
He still prefers computer time over outside time, but we're working on that. We visited his friend SongSong last weekend and our families had a great time. We stayed outside all afternoon, playing washers and watching the "older" fellas take on James, Jaxon (NingNing), and Zane (SongSong). Tomorrow, all 3 families are getting together at the park to play and cook out....here's hoping for beautiful weather.
Monday, October 8, 2012
Two months ago.....
I met my new son for the first time. I remember being so nervous walking up the stairs to the office at the orphanage. My thoughts centered around "what if he doesn't like us?" "What if he changes his mind about being adopted?"
As we walked in, we saw a lady first and then from behind her stepped NingNing. My first two thoughts?......how handsome he was in person and how tall!
James and I smiled at him and said hello, but our guide rushed us into the paperwork, so there was no time for anything other than awkward smiles and trying not to stare at each other in fascination. NingNing was so nervous; my heart just went out to him; what an overwhelming position for a teenager to be in and to make such a life-changing choice! He knew he might never see China again and that life with us was a complete unknown, but he still bravely walked out the door with us.
I remember sitting crammed shoulder to shoulder in the back of the taxi on the way back to the hotel; me reveling in the nearness of him and he, I'm sure, wondering what lay before him. What was he thinking as we drove away from all that was familiar and safe? Was he thinking ahead to what his life would be like here or was he just taking each moment as it came? Someday I hope to ask him these questions.......
In just two short months (has it really only been 60 days??), he has left his homecountry, traveled to places he'd never been in China, climbed the Great Wall, flown on 7 airplanes, flown across the ocean, seen a beach in HongKong, became a United States citizen, gained a family complete with one brother, 3 sisters, grandparents, cousins, and a multitude of animals; started school (4 days after arriving home); discovered he likes ice cream, chocolate cake, spaghetti, and much more; began making friends at school; wore "official" pajama pants to bed; signed up for a soccer team, learned what an "alarm clock" is, and much, much more....
Could you have made such a momentous life-altering decision at that tender age? I'm not sure I could have...
As we walked in, we saw a lady first and then from behind her stepped NingNing. My first two thoughts?......how handsome he was in person and how tall!
James and I smiled at him and said hello, but our guide rushed us into the paperwork, so there was no time for anything other than awkward smiles and trying not to stare at each other in fascination. NingNing was so nervous; my heart just went out to him; what an overwhelming position for a teenager to be in and to make such a life-changing choice! He knew he might never see China again and that life with us was a complete unknown, but he still bravely walked out the door with us.
I remember sitting crammed shoulder to shoulder in the back of the taxi on the way back to the hotel; me reveling in the nearness of him and he, I'm sure, wondering what lay before him. What was he thinking as we drove away from all that was familiar and safe? Was he thinking ahead to what his life would be like here or was he just taking each moment as it came? Someday I hope to ask him these questions.......
In just two short months (has it really only been 60 days??), he has left his homecountry, traveled to places he'd never been in China, climbed the Great Wall, flown on 7 airplanes, flown across the ocean, seen a beach in HongKong, became a United States citizen, gained a family complete with one brother, 3 sisters, grandparents, cousins, and a multitude of animals; started school (4 days after arriving home); discovered he likes ice cream, chocolate cake, spaghetti, and much more; began making friends at school; wore "official" pajama pants to bed; signed up for a soccer team, learned what an "alarm clock" is, and much, much more....
Could you have made such a momentous life-altering decision at that tender age? I'm not sure I could have...
Monday, October 1, 2012
A post from NingNing (what I imagine he might be thinking).
So.....I've been here for what seems like a long time, but really it's not even two months! Everything is so different. The food is ok, but kinda boring after the hot stuff I'm used to. The lady my brothers and sisters call "Mom" tries hard to make Chinese food many times and she has a list of foods I don't like. I'll try any food once; we had something called "Taco Bell" yesterday. I ate everything because I was hungry but it's not my favorite. People in America eat a lot of sweet stuff; some of it's ok, and some is just too much. The chicken sandwich at the eating place with the big yellow "M" is good and I really like chocolate-flavored things! "Mom" sticks these things called "chocolate chips" in something called "pancakes" and they are good.
People here change clothes every day! No wonder they are always stuffing clothes in that big white thing that washes them! I like my clothes from China, they make me feel more comfortable. "Mom" and "Dad" don't make too much of a fuss about it except when "Mom" wants me to dress nicer for church or something. A few weeks ago, we had pictures at school; talk about embarrassing!
The father of the family, who they call "Dad", is goofy a lot and so is my brother. Sometimes it can get pretty crazy and loud around here, but my family laughs a lot, so that's good. My little sisters are cute and sweet, but can be kind of annoying too. Oh, did I mention the LOUD thing?? Those two little girls get going and even having earphones in doesn't help!
Don't know what to think about school, still working it all out. I'm trying to learn English as fast as I can, but sometimes it feels as if my head will explode! Everyone seems very nice, and have helped me a lot. Some days though, I just can't wait to get home and talk to my friends on QQ or watch a movie in Chinese to give my head a rest. When my parents told me there was no school today, I was soooooo happy!
On Sundays, we go to a place called "church". It's confusing. They sing a lot and then a guy gets up and talks for awhile about someone named God and Jesus and then we sing again (I don't; NOT a good singer!). I was pretty much lost until "Mom" (still not ready to say that out loud yet) got a function on her little internet tablet that has a Chinese//English bible; it shows both languages at once; she had it up while the guy up front was talking and it was kinda cool. At least it kept me from falling asleep!
My family is busy; we are always driving someone somewhere it seems. That includes me, since I'm playing soccer now. It's ok, but I'm not used to so much running and my legs are so sore after some of the games! Like tonight, we played against this really fast team and we just couldn't score against them. I almost had a goal, but it went just a little wide; I hate it when I do that!
A couple weekends ago, my best friend, ZhangYun, stayed the weekend with us; that was great! My parents asked if I wanted to spend the night at his house in November; of course I said YES! Then this last Saturday, SongSong and his family came to watch my soccer game and then came to our house for dinner. We had a good time watching Chinese movies while SongSong's sisters played with my sisters on their video game system and our parents talked (probably about us!).
I thought SongSong's new family was very nice.
It is so great having my friends close to me. They are the only people in my life who have been there for as long as I can remember. I couldn't believe it when ZhangYun's family came to get him; it kind of scared me. I mean, yeah, we had all 3 said yes to adoption, but I guess we really didn't expect it to happen because we are older kids and people usually pick the little, cute kids. I knew both ZhangYun and Songsong had families, but it wasn't until ZhangYun's family Skyped with him that I found out I had a family too! I still worried that something would happen and when ZhangYun really left, I was afraid I might never see him again. I don't usually cry but I did when he left.
By the time SongSong's family came, we knew my family was coming right after them, so I wasn't as sad knowing I'd see him soon in America, but it still seemed like forever until they came and then, there they were!
Better go, "Mom's" telling us to go to bed because we stayed up too late last night :)!
For more older adoption stories, click on the link below....
http://www.deathbygreatwall.com/
People here change clothes every day! No wonder they are always stuffing clothes in that big white thing that washes them! I like my clothes from China, they make me feel more comfortable. "Mom" and "Dad" don't make too much of a fuss about it except when "Mom" wants me to dress nicer for church or something. A few weeks ago, we had pictures at school; talk about embarrassing!
The father of the family, who they call "Dad", is goofy a lot and so is my brother. Sometimes it can get pretty crazy and loud around here, but my family laughs a lot, so that's good. My little sisters are cute and sweet, but can be kind of annoying too. Oh, did I mention the LOUD thing?? Those two little girls get going and even having earphones in doesn't help!
Don't know what to think about school, still working it all out. I'm trying to learn English as fast as I can, but sometimes it feels as if my head will explode! Everyone seems very nice, and have helped me a lot. Some days though, I just can't wait to get home and talk to my friends on QQ or watch a movie in Chinese to give my head a rest. When my parents told me there was no school today, I was soooooo happy!
On Sundays, we go to a place called "church". It's confusing. They sing a lot and then a guy gets up and talks for awhile about someone named God and Jesus and then we sing again (I don't; NOT a good singer!). I was pretty much lost until "Mom" (still not ready to say that out loud yet) got a function on her little internet tablet that has a Chinese//English bible; it shows both languages at once; she had it up while the guy up front was talking and it was kinda cool. At least it kept me from falling asleep!
My family is busy; we are always driving someone somewhere it seems. That includes me, since I'm playing soccer now. It's ok, but I'm not used to so much running and my legs are so sore after some of the games! Like tonight, we played against this really fast team and we just couldn't score against them. I almost had a goal, but it went just a little wide; I hate it when I do that!
A couple weekends ago, my best friend, ZhangYun, stayed the weekend with us; that was great! My parents asked if I wanted to spend the night at his house in November; of course I said YES! Then this last Saturday, SongSong and his family came to watch my soccer game and then came to our house for dinner. We had a good time watching Chinese movies while SongSong's sisters played with my sisters on their video game system and our parents talked (probably about us!).
I thought SongSong's new family was very nice.
It is so great having my friends close to me. They are the only people in my life who have been there for as long as I can remember. I couldn't believe it when ZhangYun's family came to get him; it kind of scared me. I mean, yeah, we had all 3 said yes to adoption, but I guess we really didn't expect it to happen because we are older kids and people usually pick the little, cute kids. I knew both ZhangYun and Songsong had families, but it wasn't until ZhangYun's family Skyped with him that I found out I had a family too! I still worried that something would happen and when ZhangYun really left, I was afraid I might never see him again. I don't usually cry but I did when he left.
By the time SongSong's family came, we knew my family was coming right after them, so I wasn't as sad knowing I'd see him soon in America, but it still seemed like forever until they came and then, there they were!
Better go, "Mom's" telling us to go to bed because we stayed up too late last night :)!
For more older adoption stories, click on the link below....
http://www.deathbygreatwall.com/
Monday, September 24, 2012
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
One month....almost
Wednesday marks our first month home with NingNing. Such a short time in the "big picture", but it already feels like China was so long ago. Except for the language barrier, it feels as if NingNing's always been here. He has filled his "space" in our family nicely.
Bonding.....the member of our family he is most bonded to and shows the most affection to is our youngest, Judi, 7 years old. She has the demeanor of an older kid, but is small enough to trigger protectiveness. While teasing each other as brother and sister will do, NingNing has appointed himself her protector. If she gets hurt, he's right there and she wants him. I thought I had been replaced, but she still wants her mama, she just wants NingNing to bring her to me! He and Jazmin are warming up to each other, and of course James and he have their own "brother" stuff going on. Physically, the only thing we kind of still dance around is hugs and kisses which is understandable. He accepts affectionate gestures just fine and will sit or stand shoulder to shoulder with no qualms.
English.......is coming along. Today was actually the first day ever when he responded almost entirely in English! Just small words, but progress is progress. Judi asked him something, and he said "no". Then James bought him a Sprite during Jessica's softball game. When NingNing went to take it, James asked "what do you say", and N immediately responded "Thank you!". Later, we ran by Grandma and Grandpa's house, and he said "Hi!" first thing. He copies Judi quite frequently and since she talks like a mini-adult, it works out well!
First Sleepover........with Seth, one of his friends from Independence; Seth stayed at our house for 2 nights. We went up to watch Seth and Zane's soccer game, then Saturday, Seth was here to watch NingNing's game. When we took Seth home, he showed NingNing their house, piano, and the bedroom where they disappeared to yet again do the "net". It still amazes me how much all these kids rely on the internet to pass their time; they came out of Chengdu with little to no English, but they can manipulate a computer like a pro; go figure. We have NingNing go with us most places and got him in soccer for some exercise and fun; otherwise, he is content to read books, play Farmville, QQ, and watch Chinese movies or cartoons on the net. I don't know if it upsets him to stop what he's doing when we go somewhere, but he never gives us any trouble over it and does what we ask right away. He also likes to be near us (and people) and has his spot on the couch where he'll be doing his thing, but still pretty tuned-in to what's going on around him.
School........first week of full days. He's tired when he gets home, and understandably. He gets 3 hours a day of intense ELL instruction, and then is mainstreamed another 3 hours for PE, Choir, Math, and Social Studies (alternate days). An ELL specialist told us that with that much one-on-one intense learning and the effort of being in an all-English environment all day, he needed to "decompress" when he gets home. In other words, let him do QQ, watch his movies/cartoons, and basically chill out. We also got him on a recreational soccer team to give him an opportunity to have some good ol' fashioned fun; at least it is two days a week I know he's getting some fresh air; he definitely is not used to regular exercise and activity! His first game went well, he's working on figuring out where the coach wants him on the field. He is understanding a good bit, I think now, of spoken English.
Food.......is coming along nicely. The "like" list is surpassing the "don't like" list! Things he likes: chicken nuggets (a fave), potstickers (WalMart-LOVES them), Spicy Honey Kraft BBQ sauce, pigs in blankets, chocolate chip pancakes, corn, McChicken at McDonalds (appears to be a Chengdu kid favorite),Sunny D, the chocolate drink YooHoo (found a way to get vitamins and calcium into him), Little Debbie Nutty Bars, brownies, chocolate chip cookies, any rice or noodles of course, pork, chicken, granola bars, fruit snacks, grape/cranberry juice, potatoes, Hawaiian punch. marshmallows, and Flamin' Hot Cheetos.
Dislikes............anything to do with milk which is why I'm glad he will drink YooHoo, regular ice cream (likes Rainbow Sherbert), burnt hot dogs (discovered this weekend), cheese, eggs of any kind (won't eat fried rice with them in it), Cheezits (sacrilege!),and root beer just to name a few.
Will post some pics later in the week.......stay tuned!
Bonding.....the member of our family he is most bonded to and shows the most affection to is our youngest, Judi, 7 years old. She has the demeanor of an older kid, but is small enough to trigger protectiveness. While teasing each other as brother and sister will do, NingNing has appointed himself her protector. If she gets hurt, he's right there and she wants him. I thought I had been replaced, but she still wants her mama, she just wants NingNing to bring her to me! He and Jazmin are warming up to each other, and of course James and he have their own "brother" stuff going on. Physically, the only thing we kind of still dance around is hugs and kisses which is understandable. He accepts affectionate gestures just fine and will sit or stand shoulder to shoulder with no qualms.
English.......is coming along. Today was actually the first day ever when he responded almost entirely in English! Just small words, but progress is progress. Judi asked him something, and he said "no". Then James bought him a Sprite during Jessica's softball game. When NingNing went to take it, James asked "what do you say", and N immediately responded "Thank you!". Later, we ran by Grandma and Grandpa's house, and he said "Hi!" first thing. He copies Judi quite frequently and since she talks like a mini-adult, it works out well!
First Sleepover........with Seth, one of his friends from Independence; Seth stayed at our house for 2 nights. We went up to watch Seth and Zane's soccer game, then Saturday, Seth was here to watch NingNing's game. When we took Seth home, he showed NingNing their house, piano, and the bedroom where they disappeared to yet again do the "net". It still amazes me how much all these kids rely on the internet to pass their time; they came out of Chengdu with little to no English, but they can manipulate a computer like a pro; go figure. We have NingNing go with us most places and got him in soccer for some exercise and fun; otherwise, he is content to read books, play Farmville, QQ, and watch Chinese movies or cartoons on the net. I don't know if it upsets him to stop what he's doing when we go somewhere, but he never gives us any trouble over it and does what we ask right away. He also likes to be near us (and people) and has his spot on the couch where he'll be doing his thing, but still pretty tuned-in to what's going on around him.
School........first week of full days. He's tired when he gets home, and understandably. He gets 3 hours a day of intense ELL instruction, and then is mainstreamed another 3 hours for PE, Choir, Math, and Social Studies (alternate days). An ELL specialist told us that with that much one-on-one intense learning and the effort of being in an all-English environment all day, he needed to "decompress" when he gets home. In other words, let him do QQ, watch his movies/cartoons, and basically chill out. We also got him on a recreational soccer team to give him an opportunity to have some good ol' fashioned fun; at least it is two days a week I know he's getting some fresh air; he definitely is not used to regular exercise and activity! His first game went well, he's working on figuring out where the coach wants him on the field. He is understanding a good bit, I think now, of spoken English.
Food.......is coming along nicely. The "like" list is surpassing the "don't like" list! Things he likes: chicken nuggets (a fave), potstickers (WalMart-LOVES them), Spicy Honey Kraft BBQ sauce, pigs in blankets, chocolate chip pancakes, corn, McChicken at McDonalds (appears to be a Chengdu kid favorite),Sunny D, the chocolate drink YooHoo (found a way to get vitamins and calcium into him), Little Debbie Nutty Bars, brownies, chocolate chip cookies, any rice or noodles of course, pork, chicken, granola bars, fruit snacks, grape/cranberry juice, potatoes, Hawaiian punch. marshmallows, and Flamin' Hot Cheetos.
Dislikes............anything to do with milk which is why I'm glad he will drink YooHoo, regular ice cream (likes Rainbow Sherbert), burnt hot dogs (discovered this weekend), cheese, eggs of any kind (won't eat fried rice with them in it), Cheezits (sacrilege!),and root beer just to name a few.
Will post some pics later in the week.......stay tuned!
Monday, September 10, 2012
Schooltime!
NingNing begins full school days this week! Last week, on Thursday, our school called; they had a plan for NingNing! Our school has alternate days of classes, 4 "blocks" a day. For the 1st and 4th blocks he is mainstreamed, and receives ELL instruction during 2nd and 3rd blocks, or 3 hours. The school worked hard to get this in place quickly as I have to return to work soon, so that is a huge relief for us.
NingNing continues to make strides. With his program beginning at school, the other kids getting into the "meat" of school, and after-school activities starting, things are revving up. I also go back to work fulltime at the end of September, so JR will be taking over the morning duties. We are having some problems getting the boys up for school, so last week, we moved bedtime for them back to 9pm. Neither boy was very happy about that, but it's a done deal until they begin to get up on time.
NingNing tends to wait until James gets up (and James is NOT a morning person) and I realized today that perhaps he has no sense of WHEN he needs to be up! So tonight I am going to set their alarm clock up and let NingNing know that when it goes off, it's time to be UP! With 5 kids to get ready for school, we can't have two lying in bed until 15" before the bus comes.
As time goes by, it's apparent that NingNing and our youngest, Judi, have bonded amazingly well. While still teasing her like a brother will, he is very concerned when there is something wrong or she is upset. She gets nasal congestion everytime the weather changes and he told us on Google Translate that she was sick, so we had to explain that she has medicine for that and will be ok. Then last night, she was upset about a friend at school and he sat on her bed consoling her. They are usually never far apart.
With the rest of us, the touchy-feely stuff is about where I'd expect it to be. We kiss our kids goodnight, but so far it's a no-go with NingNing. We make it a point for everyone to say goodnight to each other and I'll say "I love my boys!" as we turn off their light. NingNing'll sit next to us on the couch and has no qualms about being squashed together there or in the car or the occasional shoulder hug or casual touch. The rest will come in time and we are thrilled with the progress he's made.
The one area I'd like to improve on is NingNing's desire to do physical things. We know they weren't used to a lot in Chengdu, so we try to get the kids outside when we can. Saturday, I had the girls and NingNing take a walk with me, just to get out of the house for a bit. Then Sunday, after church, Jr, James, and NingNing went out on our deck and he was introduced to target shooting. I think he really enjoyed himself and looked very interesting with goggles and earmuffs on! Then we went off to Grandpa's where we have discovered he can ride a bike! He did that for quite awhile and just hung out with the kids watching "ICarly". He really seemed to open up Sunday and smiled and laughed more than I've ever seen him do up to now.
Tonight we are going to the library to try out the "ESL cafe" they offer for free, to see if it would be a good supplement to school. NingNing also indicated he wants to take piano lessons, so we're working on finding a teacher with an opening.
NingNing continues to make strides. With his program beginning at school, the other kids getting into the "meat" of school, and after-school activities starting, things are revving up. I also go back to work fulltime at the end of September, so JR will be taking over the morning duties. We are having some problems getting the boys up for school, so last week, we moved bedtime for them back to 9pm. Neither boy was very happy about that, but it's a done deal until they begin to get up on time.
NingNing tends to wait until James gets up (and James is NOT a morning person) and I realized today that perhaps he has no sense of WHEN he needs to be up! So tonight I am going to set their alarm clock up and let NingNing know that when it goes off, it's time to be UP! With 5 kids to get ready for school, we can't have two lying in bed until 15" before the bus comes.
As time goes by, it's apparent that NingNing and our youngest, Judi, have bonded amazingly well. While still teasing her like a brother will, he is very concerned when there is something wrong or she is upset. She gets nasal congestion everytime the weather changes and he told us on Google Translate that she was sick, so we had to explain that she has medicine for that and will be ok. Then last night, she was upset about a friend at school and he sat on her bed consoling her. They are usually never far apart.
With the rest of us, the touchy-feely stuff is about where I'd expect it to be. We kiss our kids goodnight, but so far it's a no-go with NingNing. We make it a point for everyone to say goodnight to each other and I'll say "I love my boys!" as we turn off their light. NingNing'll sit next to us on the couch and has no qualms about being squashed together there or in the car or the occasional shoulder hug or casual touch. The rest will come in time and we are thrilled with the progress he's made.
The one area I'd like to improve on is NingNing's desire to do physical things. We know they weren't used to a lot in Chengdu, so we try to get the kids outside when we can. Saturday, I had the girls and NingNing take a walk with me, just to get out of the house for a bit. Then Sunday, after church, Jr, James, and NingNing went out on our deck and he was introduced to target shooting. I think he really enjoyed himself and looked very interesting with goggles and earmuffs on! Then we went off to Grandpa's where we have discovered he can ride a bike! He did that for quite awhile and just hung out with the kids watching "ICarly". He really seemed to open up Sunday and smiled and laughed more than I've ever seen him do up to now.
 |
| Everybody likes their electronics! |
 |
| Brothers |
 |
| NingNing started it and this is how it ended! |
 |
| Setting up the "targets" |
 |
| Dad and NingNing |
 |
| Hangin' out |
Backing up a bit.....
http://sandersadoptionjourneytochina.blogspot.com/2012/09/the-three-amigos-reunion.html
On August 22, we returned home. The blog above belongs to Seth's family, the first of the 3 Amigos and NingNing's best friend. There are pictures of the boys' reunion at the airport and as official Americans.
Both of NingNing's friends were there and their families, as well as our family and my dad and stepmom. It was a wonderful homecoming! Later at dinner, it was fun to watch the boys talk a mile a minute catching up. Two of the pictures show them in China and then here; just look at the difference in the boys' faces!
We set up a surprise visit on Memorial Day with NingNing's friends and plan to get the boys together as often as we can. NingNing even talked on the phone with Seth just yesterday (because we were trying to figure out what "palm the ball" was in reference to a sport!).
Will blog again tomorrow regarding more current happenings!
On August 22, we returned home. The blog above belongs to Seth's family, the first of the 3 Amigos and NingNing's best friend. There are pictures of the boys' reunion at the airport and as official Americans.
Both of NingNing's friends were there and their families, as well as our family and my dad and stepmom. It was a wonderful homecoming! Later at dinner, it was fun to watch the boys talk a mile a minute catching up. Two of the pictures show them in China and then here; just look at the difference in the boys' faces!
We set up a surprise visit on Memorial Day with NingNing's friends and plan to get the boys together as often as we can. NingNing even talked on the phone with Seth just yesterday (because we were trying to figure out what "palm the ball" was in reference to a sport!).
Will blog again tomorrow regarding more current happenings!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)