My Poor Baby is Sick!

Sydney has a bad case of strep throat and mild pneumonia. We have been battling her fever which has been in the 104 range on and off all day. She is not a complainer or a whiner even though she looks so sick. Her cheeks are so rosy and her eyes are teary. When I ask her what hurts she simply says "my neck" which means her throat. We had to take her to the pediatric emergency care center today but thankfully they have a pediatrician actually on staff there. They did a strep test and did a chest x-ray and she was such a trooper.

Basically, we are now preparing for her to be sick a lot this year since she will be exposed to so many new germs and illnesses. She has had a cough for 6 weeks now which we have been treating without much success. The doctor said that she has not been able to fully recover from one illness before catching another one. Hopefully this is the worst of it.

Please pray that she will feel better soon!

P.S. I totally planned on taking lots of pictures on Thanksgiving. Several of us had our cameras ready for action but forgot to take ONE picture. ahhh! We had a house full of family members this year and Sydney had a wonderful time. She felt pretty good and we thought she was finally getting better...but we didn't know what was about to rear it's head.

More pictures from Santa day

I am too cute!

Santa's Little Helpers

Sweet & Sassy

Finally Meeting Santa

Having fun in the fake snow with my cousin Rylee while we wait to see Santa
I was so excited to meet Santa Claus since I have heard so many things about him. I told him everything I wanted for Christmas and gave him a hug. I even thought of one more thing that I wanted for Christmas as we were leaving, so I had to run back to Santa to tell him.

Sydney was so cute when she was with Santa. She was in awe and could not believe that she actually got to sit in Santa's lap. She is so ready for Christmas and this year should be a lot fun for the whole family.

Sunday Afternoon "photo shoot"

Sydney looked so cute this morning for church that I just had to snap a few photos once we got home. She had a great time posing for the camera and kept saying "I'm cute, mommy!". She makes me smile each and everyday...and yes she makes me frown too at times with her stubbornness. Ha!

I tinted the pictures a little pink to go with the paper, don't worry she is not really that pink in the face!

Sydney Sings and Dances to More Songs

Sydney is learning English quite well but as you can see in this video she sometimes gets words a little confused. Praise ye the Lord... pronounced "crazy the Lord" woops!

Sydney Singing her Favorite Songs

When we were in Ohio visiting Sydney's friend Molly, she enjoyed singing along with a bible CD they had in their car. The day we left they gave us a copy of that CD to take home. Thank you so much!!! I wish I had captured the look on Sydney's face when I played the CD for the first time in OUR CAR. She was so excited and we listen to it every day. I had to make another copy for her to listen to in her room. She is learning the words and I finally captured her singing and dancing along to a few of them!

Thanksgiving Feast at School

Today Sydney had her first Thanksgiving Feast and it was at school. All of the parents pitched in to help prepare a feast for all of the Kindergarten kids. I was in charge of the corn and it was actually quite a task since I had to prepare 20 cans of corn on very little sleep. You can read our family blog to find out why.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Happy 5 Months Home!

(This is the jade necklace from her foster family that I had to cut off but will treasure it forever)

To be honest I did not remember that today was Sydney's 5 month home anniversary. It was actually a little weird.

When Sydney came home from school today she told me that she wanted to take off the jade necklace that her foster family had given her the day we got her. I asked her if she was really sure because I wanted her to keep it on as long as possible. She was adamant that it was time to take it off...so I agreed and cut it off. I was a little sad because it seemed like I was removing a connection to her past. I left her in her bedroom to change out of her school uniform. When she walked out, I got a little teary eyed...she was wearing the USA t-shirt that I bought for her. She has never worn it or even looked twice at it in her drawer. She was so proud and said "mama, it says USA! We live in USA!". Wow, it hit me like a brick to think that maybe she is realizing that this truly IS her forever home and we ARE her forever family.

Then I paused and at THAT point realized the significance of this day...5 Months Home!!!!

Sydney, We LOVE you!

Next time do not leave the evidence lying around...

I know I should have been angry at her for lying, but I could not stop laughing long enough to be that serious. I just kept thinking " how could she think I would not notice?" and then I would start laughing again. I did try my best to explain to her that she should not lie to mommy and should do what mommy says but it was difficult at the time. Kids do the silliest things sometimes and I am thankful for the bright blue coloring of the medicine.

Supergirls Fall Playoffs

The Supergirls completed their season with 13 wins, 1 tie, and 1 loss (which was the Championship game on Friday night). They have an amazing team and played a tough team in the finals.

The game went into 4 overtime periods and with 30 seconds to go...the other team scored! All of the girls (except for Sydney) burst into tears and cried during the whole medal ceremony. Sydney on the other hand was laughing, skipping around, and was completely confused on why everyone was so upset. I guess the phrase "ignorance is bliss" came to mind, but even after I explained to her why all the girls were crying she still did not think it was something worth getting upset about. They had a great season and had a lot of fun in the process. Tonight we had our team party at BJ's restaurant and Sydney received the award for "Most Improved Player" and finally her first ever trophy. She has come along way and looks forward to the spring season.

Trip Down Memory Lane

I am fortunate to have many pictures of Sydney while she lived in China. I have many from when she was younger but they are in a book that is being translated.

Please do not forget to donate to my fundraising project for her orphanage if you plan to. They really want and need a new playground for the children and a medical room. I know things are really tight right now but I am really hoping to at least raise half of the money needed by the end of the year.

Please visit: http://www.helpwuzhou.blogspot.com/ or click on the link on the right of the screen for mor information.

Fall Photos!

I took Sydney to have her first set of pictures taken this weekend. She loved it and I was glad to get a few pictures of the girls together. She is very proud of her pictures and once I find some frames they will be up on the wall. I am looking forward to Christmas pictures this year but the hard part is finding something for us all to wear.

I like to Move it Move it!

Madagascar 2 opened last night and we were there front and center to see it. Madagascar 2 is a movie that Sydney has wanted to see since she first came home. She saw a preview for the movie when I took her to see Kung Fu Panda (her first movie theater experience). She has talked about it for the last 4 months and we were glad to finally take her to see it. She refers to it as the "Move it Move it movie" because of the song. We watched the first Madagascar again last weekend when she had a friend over and they loved dancing to the song at the end of the movie. I think I played it 20 times for them!

SHE LOVED IT and quickly asked when she could see it again.

Next up is the movie Bolt but I personally cannot wait for Twilight!

Sydney's Daisy Troop!

Sydney's Girl Scout Daisy Troop

All the girls in her troop were adopted from China.

She had a great time at her first official meeting.

Sydney received her pinned and now is a Daisy!

The girls made their Daisy bracelets at the first meeting and also toured the place where they will plant their garden.

t the end of each meeting they hold hands in a circle and spin out of it! They did a good job on their first attempt.

David & Sydney

* SCROLL DOWN FOR HALLOWEEN PICS!!*

Fun in the sun after church