Schmidt Six

Blogging

2012-01-18T06:27:00.001-08:00

I'm not even sure that blogging is very popular anymore, with Facebook, Twitter, texting, etc. But, I realized it had been over a year since I posted anything so I thought I would post a bit about the last few months.

The kids are very busy...Clara is still doing cheer and is busy with school. CJ has moved from soccer to lacrosse and still fiddles with his computer and xbox. He also plays bass clarinet for his middle school band. Amelia is also doing cheer now and plays piano and french horn. Charlie is in kindergarten and is enrolled in two Chinese classes and will start playing soccer in the spring.

Even with the horrible snow conditions this winter, we were able to get two ski trips in so far. I must say that Charlie is quite the little skier. He seems to be a natural athlete and can pick up on things very easily.

Here is a picture from Christmas. I will be sure to post more later

Much Overdo Post!

2010-09-28T11:52:00.000-07:00

I know it's been 5 months since I posted! That's what 4 kids do to your life! No time. I'll just post about September...it's been very eventful. Clara...started HIGH SCHOOL! She's on the freshmen cheer team and loves it. She also just went to her first homecoming dance...growing up so fast. CJ started 6th grade and still is playing travel soccer. Amelia started 4th grade, loves school (and life) and is also doing cheerleading (for the local youth sports association). Charlie started preschool (he goes 5 mornings a week) and celebrated his 2-year adoption day anniversary with our family! Here are some pictures...

Amelia cheering

Charlie's Adoption Day Celebration (chinese food, of course)

Amelia and CJ's First Day of School

Charlie's First Day of Preschool

Clara and Friends Before Homecoming Dance

Beautiful Girl!!

Clara Cheering

Clara and Friends

More CO Pictures! Beautiful!

2010-04-04T15:26:00.001-07:00

CJ Video Skiing Black Diamond in Breckenridge

2010-04-04T15:22:00.000-07:00

CJ, Clara, Amelia Skiing

2010-04-03T18:25:00.000-07:00

This is a little clip of CJ, Clara and Amelia skiing at Keystone. It was our first day out, first slopes! They were a little timid at first, but by the 4th day they were zooming down the slopes. It is so fun to be able to ski with all of them. It's definitely our family sport!!

Charlie Video Skiing!

2010-04-03T18:17:00.000-07:00

Skiing in Colorado!

2010-04-03T17:27:00.000-07:00

We just got back from 5 days in CO skiing! It was perfect spring skiing. We stayed with our friends that used to live in our neighborhood. The kids had a blast hanging out together and skiing together. And, Charlie spent 3 days in ski school and actually learned to snow plow down the beginner slope! Way to go Charlie!

Charlie Turned 4!!

2010-04-03T17:20:00.000-07:00

Charlie celebrated his 4th birthday on March 17! He was so excited to have his birthday and he really "got" it this year. We had a nice family party for him and had some playgroup friends over to celebrate as well. He is really into Cars (the movie) and loves Lightning McQueen so he got lots of Cars stuff!

Cast On, Cast Off

2010-04-03T17:04:00.000-07:00

Charlie broke his left middle finger in Feb (it just bent back when playing with CJ). The doctor put him in a big hand cast because he said Charlie would be able to riggle out of anything else too easily. Charlie was very good when getting examined, xrayed and having the cast put on. Except, when it was time to leave he cried "OK, you can take it off now!" Try to explain 3 weeks to a 3 (almost 4) year old! Well, 3 weeks later and it came off! Amelia got to come with since she was home sick from school.

Sledding!

2010-03-03T10:14:00.000-08:00

Sorry, you have to hear my silly laugh as they crash!

SNOW!

2009-12-24T05:59:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures of the snow in our neighborhood. The kids have had so much fun playing in it...building forts, tunnels and sledding. I think it we got 18-20 inches!

Halloween Has Come and Gone

2009-11-11T13:04:00.000-08:00

I never posted pictures of the kids in their Halloween costumes. They were very cute...all of them. CJ was a civil war soldier, Amelia was Cleopatra, Clara was a gypsie, and Charlie was Thomas the Train. Amelia looked incredible as she was able to get her face painted at the neighborhood halloween party...they even painted a really cool green snake on her arm.

Happy Adoption Day Charlie!

2009-09-20T17:44:00.000-07:00

It is so incredibly hard to believe that we met Charlie one-year ago tomorrow (Sept 21). If the rest of my life goes as quickly as the last year, I am going to be hitting 80 in no time. I admit the year wasn't quite as I had anticipated with my mom's illness and death. And, I think I wasn't all here for Charlie (or the rest of my family) for a while afterward. But, I feel the fog lifting and I feel more in control of my emotions. Oh, our lives are very chaotic and hectic, but our lives are very full and fulfilling.

We celebrated Charlie's adoption this weekend since Pete had to leave for a trip today. Here are a few thoughts about Charlie then and now.

Last year he called me "ayi" (auntie)...this year I am "mommy" (or more appropriately...mmmooommmyyyyy...hear the whine??)

Last year he didn't really know how to kiss or hug...this year he loves to do both.

Last year he didn't know how to go up and down stairs....this year he flies up and down them.

Last year he cried at the sight of our dog...this year he pets her, helps to feed her and even commands her to sit.

Last year he threw about 5 (maybe more) gigantic temper tantrums daily....this year we get a good one only every couple days (that's progress in my book).

Last year he had to line everything up in a row or he'd get freaked out....this year he throws his shoes in a big pile with the rest.

Last year he would hardly let anyone touch any of "his" things...this year he almost always shares (with some prompting).

Last year he knew only China....this year he has been to Virginia, Maryland, Washington, DC, Delaware, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Colorado, Minnesota, California, and Nevada.

Last year he seemed pretty clumsy...this year he can run, jump, ride a scooter, ride a bike with training wheels, kick a soccer ball, swing and lots more!

Last year he didn't speak a word of English....this year he never stops talking English.

Last year he didn't know God...this year he goes to church every week, says prayers before meals, and even went to Vacation Bible School last month.

Last year he didn't know a family's love...this year he likes to whisper in our ears "I love you."

Last year he didn't know what it was like to have a family...this year he has a mommy, daddy, brother, and two sisters that will be his FOREVER!

We love you Charlie and can't imagine our life without you!!

Charlie on his new bike

Celebrating Charlie's Adoption Day with Friends (and Chinese Food, of course)

Charlie's Cake (it says Happy in Chinese Characters...at least we think it does)

First Day of School

2009-09-19T04:53:00.000-07:00

The kids are all back to school now. I have an 8th-grader, 5th-grader, 3rd-grader and a preschooler! Wow! This was the first year I really wasn't ready for them to go back. I really enjoyed our care-free, no schedule summer. We weren't home alot over summer as we spent about 5 weeks at the beach and took a 2-week vacation. In between there was Vacation Bible School and Lacrosse Camp (for CJ). So, I was enjoying being home and hanging out at our neighborhood pool.

But, the kids were actually excited to go back. Clara was super happy because she is in several classes with her two best friends. CJ just loves school in general so he was happy. Amelia loves to be with her friends at school. And, Charlie just joined in on the excitement and was ready for his 3 afternoons a week of preschool (de-boo-yo as he calls it).

Seagulls

2009-09-19T04:36:00.000-07:00

The whole reason for the trip to CA was for our family to meet up at my brother's house and spread my mom's ashes in the ocean. That was what she always wanted. So, among all the fun we were having, we still had to face our last good-bye to mom. But, after going back and forth about where and how to do it, we decided to go to the local beach near my brother's house.

My mom always told my dad that after she died, she would come back as a seagull and watch over him (and poop on his head if he looked at another woman). Well, the evening we gathered to spread her ashes was quite memorable. We got into a circle and were holding hands. Dad read something he wrote and David walked out into the water to spread the ashes. Lots of tears were shed. As he was doing this a bird flew by and one of the kids said, "Oh look, there is Grandma." But, we said no that it was just a pelican. And then, Jackie looked back at the box up on the beach where mom's ashes were and there was a seagull pecking at it. We all screamed and ran up to it...turns out, the seagull opened the box and took out the little silver hanging pendant with mom's name on it. It flew into the air, circled around us with the pendant in its mouth, and flew off! NO KIDDING! It was the only seagull around, there was no food nearby, and it circled us! After all the tears we shed while we were gathered in our circle, there was almost a sigh of relief...and laughter! The kids all started running around saying "that was Grandma!" It was just a perfect ending (or beginning) for mom.

4 1/2 months since last post!!

2009-09-18T10:54:00.000-07:00

When I started this blog, I thought it would be the perfect way to stay in touch with family and friends that we don't see very often. Well, the only way it will work is if I actually USE IT!! It's been since June 1st since I posted. Wow...the whole summer flew by and I didn't post anything. I won't go back and try to recreate all the things we did in the summer, except for one significant one.

In August, we took a two week trip to visit Pete's family in MN. We spent 6 days at the cabin in northern MN and had a blast! The kids absolutely love to hang out at the cabin, to fish, to waterski, jet ski, ride the motor scooters, and just to love the beautiful place that the cabin is. CJ got up on waterskis for the first time ever!! It took a little coaxing (ok, a lot...the promise of an X-Box 360 for his birthday), but once he got up, he loved it. Of course, with his little 68 pound body, he popped right up. Clara was very confident waterskiing this year and actually didn't even to be bribed to ski...she loved it. Amelia made our vacation very typical. She came down with a horrible case of swimmers ear and had to go to the ER because she woke up screaming in the middle of the night and her ear had nearly swollen shut! So, no underwater swimming for her. Charlie really seemed to like it. He liked taking boat and jet ski rides and exploring around the cabin. Of course, we all loved hanging out with Pete's family. Here are a few pictures of that leg of the trip.

The second part of the trip was to California. We spent 4 days in San Diego where I got to reunite with college friends. A big surprise was my very dear friend that lived overseas moved back to the U.S. and was visiting her mom in San Diego. So, we all got together and did lots of catching up! It was an awesome visit! We did Sea World, the San Diego Zoo, visited my Alama Mater (UCSD), and snorkled in La Jolla cove. What a blast! On the way to San Diego, we stopped by my old high school, the houses I lived in, the church where Pete and I got married and more! Here are some pics of that part of the trip.

The last part was the most memorable and was the whole reason for the trip. I will post that in a separate post as it deserves special attention!

Some Pictures

2009-06-01T18:33:00.000-07:00

Time flies...here are some pictures from May...

My gorgeous Amelia on her First Communion Day!

Our family on Amelia's First Communion Day

The absolute best Mother's Day gift I could have received!

Charlie loves to make this silly face!

Charlie playing in a fountain

Amelia's bday party friends

Clara, Amelia and Vanessa with Dora (Charlie loves Dora so they HAD to take this picture)

See the long blonde and brown hair hanging down? That's Vanessa and Clara!

What Can I Say? It's Mother's Day

2009-05-10T18:45:00.000-07:00

OK, it's now been a month since I posted! I kept telling myself that after this weekend, my life would settle down. And, it should. Not pictures for this post, just a quick update and more details later. We had several significant events over the last weeks. First, Amelia turned 8! My first post on the blog was when she turned 7 and now a whole year has gone by...(if I knew then what my next year would be like, I think I would have crawled under a rock.) But, day by day, we are getting through it.

Amelia had a great birthday...she is still incredibly committed to endangered animals. So, for her bday party, we took a group of friends to see the Disney movie Earth. It is the same footage from the Discovery Channel series Planet Earth (of which we watched every episode twice). But, it was a perfect way to spend her birthday. Then, just yesterday, she received her First Communion. A beautiful mass and an incredibly beautiful girl all dressed in white...of course, I jump ahead 20 years or more to when she gets married and the tears flowed!

Today is Mother's Day...I have never been that into Mother's Day...a definite Hallmark holiday. But, the fact that it's at every store, on the TV, on the radio, etc, it's hard not to think about. So, today marked my first one without my mom here. And, it happens to fall on the 10th of the month (she died on Jan 10th so I've come to dislike the 10ths of every month since it marks an anniversary of sorts). To top it off, my husband left for a business trip in the morning. So, I decided to just get out of here for the day. I took the kids to mass at 9 a.m. and then headed to to King's Dominion afterward...how can I think about anything when I'm riding really scary rollercoasters all day! I'm really glad we went...I nearly had a breakdown at mass this morning. The first communicants participated in the May Crowning ceremony today and we sang lovely songs about Mary. I had to leave at one point to collect myself. I am trying so hard to focus on MY being a mother and not so much on my no longer having a mother (on this earth, that is). So, after church, we drove to the park and had a wonderful day...beautiful weather, no lines.
I am so blessed to have my 4 amazing kids. Because of them, our lives are busy, chaotic, and loud, but I wouldn't have it any other way...

More later...

Happy Easter!

2009-04-14T19:09:00.000-07:00

What happens when your 7-year old catches you stuffing eggs and Easter baskets at 10 pm the night before Easter? You discuss how the important part of Easter is not about candy and baskets, but about how Jesus died on the cross for us and rose again! And, you make up a really good story...we recycle the eggs for the Easter bunny so we don't add to the plastic in the landfills, you "prepare" the baskets so they are easier for him to stuff, etc Not very good stories, and really not even believeable, but hey, we couldn't think of what to say when caught in the act! This 7 year old also "noticed" that the things she saw the night before weren't in the baskets in the morning (we told her she must have been half-asleep and just imagined those things). We didn't use them to throw her off track (I think it worked).

We had a really lovely Easter weekend. We went to Good Friday mass, decorated eggs on Saturday, had our egg hunt Sunday morning, went to Easter mass on Sunday noon, and had a yummy Easter dinner with our family. I am really proud of my kids...they each gave up something important to them for lent and really, really sacrificed it the whole Lenten period (well almost). There were many moments that they wanted to give in, but we talked about what sacrifices Jesus made for us and how if it were easy, it wouldn't be a sacrifice at all. I will say, CJ is the one who "changed his mind" half way through. I couldn't force him to stay on course, but I think he learned his lesson because we praised the girls so much for really sticking to their sacrifices. So, Sunday was filled with lots of ice cream, candy, soda and gum (those were the things they gave up).

Of course, what did I think of most of the time...my lovely mom. Yet another "first" that I had to go through without her. She loved decorating eggs with the kids, watching them hunt for their eggs, and always gave them a special little something for the day. I remember her smile while she watched them color eggs and get color all over everything. And, her laughter when they dropped one and it cracked.

I also passed another "10th". I really dislike the 10th of every month...Mom died on the 10th and every time a 10th of the month passes I think how I'm further away from having seen her. Sounds strange, I know...I was told that grief goes in waves...low lows and then you feel better and then the lows don't get so low the next time around...many of my days are better, but when they are bad, they still are really bad. And, I know why it takes a year to really start feeling better...because you have to go through everything for the first time without the person you love...I wish I could just speed through the next 9 months so that I will be through all my firsts without her....then maybe I won't dislike the 10th of the month anymore. Actually, I wish I could just rewind time 6 months and none of this would have ever happened.

So, although I know the Easter season is a time for renewal and new life, something was missing. Yes, we had a nice day, but my mom wasn't there...

Spring Break!

2009-04-14T18:58:00.001-07:00

The kids had off last week for their spring break. We were very fortunate to have Grandpa Walt come to visit us while the kids were out of school. The kids loved having him around and I did, too (I always have a list of fix-it items for him to work on when he comes)! It was a busy week...we spent a few days at home, then 6 days at the beach, and then back home for Easter. We had a really fun time at the beach. Our friends joined us for a couple days which made the trip even better...the weather was cool, but we were able to do lots of kayaking in the canal, play in the sand at the beach (waaayyyy too cold to even put your feet in the water), go on our favorite nature walk to the bay, do lots of outlet shopping, tour a historic town nearby that we'd always wanted to go to, and, of course, EAT CRABS!

Charlie is 3!

2009-03-27T14:57:00.000-07:00

Wow, it seems like yesterday that Clara, Amelia, CJ and I made a cake to celebrate Charlie's 2nd birthday (he was still in China, but we celebrated here for him). And, now he is here and had his first American birthday! He didn't get what a birthday was at first, but after all the whoopla from us, he caught on. Now when you ask him how old he is he proudly says "Three" and tries to hold up 3 fingers. We had a Thomas the Train cake (he LOVES Thomas) and presents for him...just our family. When he gets overwhelmed, he sort of clams up (won't talk) so we thought just something with us would be better than a party this year. He got lots of fun gifts, includng a new train for his GeoTrax set, a Thomas the train book, puzzles, clothes and more. Everytime he opened a gift, he said "more!" (He catches on quick)...anyway, this is a little late, but HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHARLIE! Here are a few pics from the special day

Sledding!

2009-03-03T11:40:00.000-08:00

We Have Snow!!

2009-03-03T11:31:00.000-08:00

Yeah!! We were so excited to finally get some real snow here! The last couple years have only brought dustings and lots of sleet/ice. School was cancelled on Monday so we got to have lots of fun playing in it. They love to play on the playset when it is covered in snow and, of course, their favorite thing is to go sledding. I think we got about 8 inches, but sadly, it is supposed to warm up this week so it will be turning to slush pretty soon. Charlie thinks it is so fun...I have to drag him inside or else he'd freeze! Doodle loves running around in it and trying to eat it...don't ya love Doodle's frozen beard?!

Pajama Day at School

2009-02-20T12:54:00.001-08:00

How cool to be able to wake up and go to school in your pj's! That's what CJ and Amelia did the other day. I snapped a few pictures for fun since I was at school that day.

Pinewood Derby

2009-02-20T12:46:00.000-08:00

This was CJ's 5th year in the Pinewood Derby. It's always a fun day. This year, CJ's car (Viper) tied for first place with his good friend's car! Can you believe they tied, down to the thousandth of a second, over the course of 6 races? Wow! What are the odds of that? Anyway, it was a fun day and even Charlie got into racing the cars! While Amelia actually made a car, she was unable to attend due to a conflicting event. So, Charlie was more than happy to race "Bling," Amelia's purple, sequined, sparkly car. Her car actually came in third in the sibling race. One more year of Pinewood after this (and then a couple years respite before Charlie is in boy scouts)!

Valentine's Cookies

2009-02-20T12:37:00.001-08:00

We made some fun cookies this year for Valentine's Day! Lips! The kids had fun decorating them (and eating them).

One month ago

2009-02-11T09:08:00.000-08:00

It was one month ago yesterday that my mom passed away. One month ago that I sat at her side and whispered to her to let go and leave our world to go on to the next...that I was ok and dad was ok and to watch out for us from the best seat in the house! Each and every day I play over and over my last few weeks with her and especially the last few days. While I wouldn't trade those days for anything, I do think about how really difficult it was to watch her deteriorate and pass away. I think about all the things I should have talked to her about if I'd known that she would go downhill so quickly and that I wouldn't be able to talk to her again. I'd want to tell her what an amazing mom she was and how much she sacrificed for all of us. I know this is all a part of the grieving process and that slowly these intense feelings will fade and I'll be able to focus more on the good times and not the last days and the "I wish I would haves," but for now that is what I am doing. In many ways I don't want time to go on because my memory of her is still so clear and I don't want to lose it. A church friend asked me how I was doing, and as I do with everyone that asks, I say I'm doing "ok." I am just "ok"...some days (hours) are great and some are filled with unexplained tears. Then he said...what I really want to know is, is this week better than last? And, yes, looking at it that way, I have to say it is. Marginally better, but better nonetheless. I am busy with kids, school, home, etc, but my thoughts are always with me...I think that forever they will be. I know God had a reason for taking her on January 10th, I don't know why because I'd rather her be here with me to watch her grandkids grow up, but I know He had a reason.

Random Pics Since I Haven't Posted for a While

2009-02-03T14:38:00.000-08:00

Since we have been dealing with the loss of my mother, I have not posted pictures in a long time. So I picked some events that happened over the last few months to show you....a visit with a family who adopted a girl from Charlie's orphanage a few months before us, Charlie's baptism, Christmas, and a ski trip to Colorado. Enjoy!

This picture is self-explanatory...guess which players the kids sought out?

The Vikings, of course!

Together again...Charlie and his friend from the orphanage!

The smile says it all...shear delight!!

Swimming!!

The following are pics from Charlie's baptism.

See...he can still use chopsticks!!

These are pictures from Christmas. We were so happy to have Pete's family visit from MN. Charlie got to meet his cousins, including Taya who was adopted from China 3 years ago!

Who is this bearded man?

The kids in Christmas PJs.

Our first Christmas family photo with Charlie!

G and G Schmidt and their 7 (!) grandkids!

Charlie and Taya!

These are from our ski trip to CO with our good friends the Zilkenats. They used to live here in our neighborhood, but moved last year. We are so happy to stay in close touch with them!

Our little ski bums!

When I say he can throw a good tantrum, I mean it!! See the tonsils?!

A Tribute to My Mom

2009-02-01T10:47:00.000-08:00

As many of you know, my mom passed away on January 10th. It has affected me more deeply and profoundly than I could ever have imagined. I think of her every day, all day, and how I long to just talk to her or touch her one more time. However, I am blessed to have been able to spend the last 3 weeks of her life with her. She became ill in November and after several weeks of treating her for back pain (due to a fall she had here at our house), the doctors discovered it was something more serious. We got the final diagnosis of pancreatic cancer on December 24th and I flew out to be with my parents on Christmas Day. While there were many ups and downs while I was there, we did have many good moments together...some laughs, some tears. I will treasure my time with her forever. And, I am so thankful that she was able to spend 2 weeks here at the end of October...it was before her illness set in and she spent many fun days with her 4 grandkids! She was able to meet Charlie for the first time and absolutely loved him (how couldn't you...he's such a sweetie).

Actually, I am so thankful that she was such a big part of our lives...always! Even though we lived an airplane ride apart, she always made the effort to be here for the kids special events (bdays, halloween, etc). My parents usually came to visit us every 3 months for 2 weeks each time. And, we visited them about once a year. So, while we didn't see each other every day, they made sure they were a part of our lives. I am forever thankful for all the wonderful memories that we made.

Here is a poem I read at her Memorial Service on January 17th and a picture of her, my dad, and Charlie. I love you mom and miss you mom...more than you could ever know.

A Mother's Love...by Helen Steiner Rice

A Mother's love is something

that no one can explain.

It is made of deep devotion

and of sacrifice and pain.

It is endless and unselfish

and enduring come what may

For nothing can destroy it

or take that love away...

It is patient and forgiving

when all others are forsaking,

And it never fails or falters

even though the heart is breaking...

It believes beyond believing

when the world around condemns,

And it glows with all the beautiy

of the rarest, brightest gems...

It is far beyond defining,

it defies all explanation,

And it still remains a secret

like the mysteries of creation...

A many splendoured miracle

man cannot understand

And another wonderous evidence

of God's tender guiding hand.

Charlie's New Friend!

2008-11-26T13:37:00.001-08:00

Just take a look at these two pictures. One is from 2 months ago halfway across the world in Quanzhou City, Fujian Province, China. The other is from today 9 miles from our house! This is Charlie and his new friend. We were so lucky to be able to meet Nathan in China. Charlie and Nathan are not from the same orphanage, but from the same city. When we visited Charlie's orphanage, the director of Nathan's orphanage was kind enough to bring him to Charlie's orphanage for a visit so we could meet him. Nathan's mom and I have become friends and found out we live 9 miles from each other. Nathan's mom is a wonderful woman and Nathan is her 6th adopted child. I am blessed to have met her, her family, and Nathan. What a small, small world!

Amelia in a Play!

2008-11-26T13:13:00.001-08:00

We thought Amelia would be perfect for acting classes. Well, turns out she is quite shy in front of other people (she is a total drama queen at home)! Here is a link to a little play she was in for a little acting class. The play is "Ferdinand the Bull" and she plays one of the bulls! Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jaM3_2uYT8E

Glorious Fall!

2008-11-14T18:28:00.001-08:00

Wow, last weekend was incredibly beautiful here...around 70 degrees and dry! The fall colors were just amazing...reds, yellows, oranges and browns. Beautiful! We spent the afternoon raking leaves in our yard. Now, I know many people find this an ugly job...but, I always like it! I love working in the yard and especially when it is so beautiful outside. To me it's exercise and generally I just think alot when I'm working in the yard. Today was especially nice since the kids were out playing in the yard, too! We raked up a big pile of leaves and let the kids play! I don't think Charlie had seen too many piles of leaves in his lifetime and he joined right in on the fun! At first he didn't like the leaves in his hair, but he got used to it after a while. Here is a little video of fun in the leaves!

He Just Belongs Here

2008-11-05T13:57:00.001-08:00

Way back when we had Clara, and she was born with a cleft lip and palate, Pete's grandpa wrote us a letter and said that God only gives you what you can handle...I have always thought of that in difficult times. Not that we are having a really difficult time, but we are all still adjusting to having a 4th child in the house. Most of the time Charlie is sweet, funny, loving, silly, etc...but, he certainly is challenging at times. He can have terribly loud, kicking, screaming temper tantrums over seemingly minor things (like telling him to stop picking his nose) and they can last 30 minutes! It's difficult, but I keep telling myself there is probably more to it than whatever set him off (like some memory of his orphanage, ayi's etc). He now calls me "mama" about 95% of the time (instead of ayi)...the other 5% of the time is "ayi-mama". I think that's definite progress. Here is a picture of CJ and Charlie being silly and one of sweet Amelia! Charlie definitely fits in here and belongs with us...God knew the perfect child for our family.

Halloween Fun!

2008-11-02T10:03:00.000-08:00

Who is that??

Oh, it's Charlie!!
And, Amelia!!

Charlie as Yoda!!

Our Family on Halloween!

Ewww...gross pumpkin guts!

Wow, our house was bustling with activity Thursday and Friday! Thursday we painted and carved pumpkins. At first Charlie was not at all liking touching the inside of a pumpkin...you know how neat he is! He'd reach in and say "EWWWWW" and "UKKKKKY!" After a while, I think he thought it felt kind of fun! Pete carved the coolest pumpkin...it said "The Schmidt 6" and CJ made a barfing pumpkin, Clara painted a cute dracula pumpkin and Amelia made one with a silly smile. It was fun.

On Halloween, our family went in all different directions. Clara went with her friends and a couple dads...she was dressed in her PJ's. CJ went with his friends and Pete. He was Angus Young (from ACDC). Amelia was a cowgirl riding a horse and Charlie was Yoda! I took Charlie and Amelia and went around with some friends. Charlie got a kick out of holding out a bucket and getting something in it every time! He pushed his way to the front of our group and said "twick tweet" and "tank ew" every time. It was precious! Then he totally konked out! He was exhausted. Grandma and Grandpa were still here and they really enjoyed seeing how excited the kids were these last couple days!

Videos of Charlie...bath time and drawing

2008-10-27T04:11:00.000-07:00

Amelia and Charlie giggled so hard in the bath tub!

Charlie writing...

Charlie talking (sort of!)

CJ's Birthday Party

2008-10-26T18:25:00.000-07:00

We had CJ's birthday party at our local gym. The kids got to climb the rock wall, play games on the moon bounce, and play gym games...for 3 hours! They had a blast. They were hot, sweaty, and tired when they left! All the kids were great on the rock wall. I'm not sure I could have made it to the top! Amelia really wanted to climb and loved going up a little way and then bouncing down to the ground. I just can't believe CJ is 10...that amazes me. He's turned into quite a great guy. Today at our church family group, his teacher asked his class why they obey their parents (they were discussing the commandments)...she came up to me and said that the other kids said things related to getting punished by their parents if they didn't listen, consequences, etc. She told me CJ said "because I love my parents." That deserves a great big "awwwwwww!!!" (We'll have to remind him that next time he tells us "we're the meanest parents ever!")

Fun With Family!

2008-10-26T15:17:00.000-07:00

Grandma and Grandpa Matras

Grandma and Grandpa Matras came to visit. Charlie has really taken to them (and vice versa)! Charlie is such a crack-up and is always making us laugh. He's really adjusting well to our crazy life here. He wants to be in on all the action. Here's a few more pictures of him and the kids and Grandma and Grandpa.

3 Weeks Ago Today...

2008-10-13T17:27:00.001-07:00

I can't believe that our little Charlie came into our lives 3 weeks ago today! What a difference in his personality then and now. Then, it took everything to get him to smile...today, he laughs at everything! Then, he took my hand with reluctance...today, he gives me hugs and kisses! Then, he knew nothing more than a small orphanage...today, he experiences new sensations daily! He is such a blessing to our family. He has brought so much laughter and joy to all of us. This isn't to say it has all been easy. We still struggle with temper tantrums for no apparent reason. He often cries himself to sleep and wakes moaning and tossing and turning. We wish we knew why, but we can only help him through it. He has taught us all patience and sensitivity. He taught us that things don't have to be exactly how we expect them and we don't need to control everything...here's a look at what Charlie has experienced over the last 10 days he's been home!

Isn't he too cute!! (The hat is actually from the Fujian Province Adoption Director)

A family day at the local corn maze/pumpkin patch

These squash aren't that comfortable to sit on!

American Gothic...aka Charlie and Clara!

Bumpy slide!

Meeting a new cousin (ok, a second cousin of Pete's)

Charlie, Macey and Alicia

Amelia and Charlie have a sleep-over!

He's not crying because we put him on the bike, he's crying because he didn't want to stop being pushed around!

He's starting to like our local tot lot!

He even likes Doodle now! (Although his favorite sentence is "no no no Doodle!")

Video of Charlie's First Evening Home

2008-10-07T10:48:00.001-07:00

This was at about 9 pm on October 1st. Just look at the excitement in this boy...we'd been home about 20 minutes! He went crazy...ok, he was cooped up on a plane for 13 hours prior to this, but he sure didn't act like he didn't know our home! I just wanted to share because it was such a precious homecoming!

CJ Turns 10 (and Charlie's First Dairy Queen)!

2008-10-07T08:38:00.000-07:00

Wow, after a whirlwind trip to China we come home to CJ's birthday! Even though we are exhausted, we wanted it to be special for him. We are postponing his party for a few weeks, but we did celebrate at home. First, with Grandma and Grandpa Schmidt before they left and then with our family last night. We took him to Dairy Queen and let him pick whatever he wanted...he picked the huge Earthquake Sundae! Charlie got to experience his first Dairy Queen and, while he liked his vanilla ice cream, he liked Clara's Chocolate Covered Cherry Blizzard better! We then came home and opened family presents. It was a fun night for all!

Home Sweet Home!

2008-10-04T09:01:00.000-07:00

It is Saturday at noon. Charlie is down for a nap, Amelia is at a playdate, Clara is at soccer and CJ is at a boy scout event. Grandma and Grandpa left today (we'll miss them). We can't thank them enough for watching the kids while we were gone. We are so blessed to have such supportive family (both sides) and so happy they played a role in bringing Charlie home. Life is getting back to normal! Except for the fact that Lisa wakes up at 2 am every night and can not get back to sleep...Pete and Charlie are slowly making the adjustment...what's up with me??

Charlie's reaction to home was more than we hoped for! He walked in on Wed night, laughing, giggling, and very playful (I guess he would be after a 13 hour flight...ugh!). He even sat down and took off his shoes (which he would never do for the 10 days we had him in China! What a joy to see him interacting with his siblings! Clara (our oldest) has really taken on the motherly role, CJ loves teaching him about trains and football, and Amelia likes him, but sort of wishes things were how they used to be...it's hard to give up the baby position of the family. Charlie seems to really take to Clara and feel more threatened by Amelia. I think that's probably how it was in the orphanage. The older kids helped take care of him and the younger ones took his toys away! We are slowly teaching him how life is in the Schmidt house.

And, did I say he was 2? And, what comes best with 2-year olds, but 2-year old tantrums??? Boy, can he throw a fit when he doesn't get his way. I'm not sure he ever got told "no" at the orphanage...he will slowly learn here though. What doesn't he like? Our very large, but very lovable dog, Doodle. He is very scared of her and whimpers and whines when she is in the house. All I know is he better get used to her. She's big, but she's sweet!

Finally, he is learning how to kiss...he doesn't seem to have the hug and kiss skills down. Grandma Judy practiced with him and guess what? He gave Amelia kisses this morning! How sweet!

We were greeted by all our wonderful friends and their kids when we got home. It was so sweet to see how much the neighborhood kids wanted to meet him. Charlie seems to enjoy the attention and even learned how to throw a football with a couple of CJ's friends!

It's sooooo good to be home!

PS...to all my blogger junkies...sorry to make you go cold turkey the last few days! Needless to say, we've been a bit busy!

Our Last Post from China

2008-09-30T07:16:00.000-07:00

This is what is so cool about China...in the middle of a city of 9 million people...look at this beautiful park!

A beautiful stroll through the park!

From Pete: Well, we are in the final stage here…we are packing for home. Do we want to pack the half bag of gold fish crackers or the half bag of cheerios…hmmm…which weighs more, take which ever is lighter. We bought a ten dollar suit case on the street today just to cart home all the stuff that we “acquired” as we rolled across China…from souvenirs, to a package of jeans to deliver to a Chinese student in Canada, to a box of “dirt and sand” from Quanzhou…sheeesh…

Our final full day in Guangzhou was fun…we spent the morning shopping. It’s a week long holiday here so the “pearl market” (think lots and lots of little jewelry shops) and the “market street” (think outdoor shopping mall) were packed with wall to wall shoppers…it was fun, but very crowded. Some of the day-to-day goods the Chinese buy are pretty darn affordable…like $5 jeans and $7 men’s dress shoes. But, the best part is the people watching! You gotta’ feel a bit sorry for Charlie, being carted along on shopping junket after shopping junket…but he still seems to get a kick out of seeing all the people, experiencing escalator rides, and hopping in and out of the “tour van.”

Shopping on 9th Street...talk about crazy!

Oh, and meet "chicken man"...not sure what he's doing!

After shopping we went to a really nice restaurant our tour guide Connie recommended…it was traditional Cantonese cuisine…we were fortunate to share the lunch with Joe, Jody, Chloe and Caleigh (thanks guys). After lunch Lisa, Charlie and I decided to check out the neighborhood around the restaurant before heading home…we were glad we did, about a block away we entered what we thought was a small park, but it turned out to be a very large park with a beautiful lake in the center…we were the only westerners there and the park was bustling with folks (again, since it was a holiday). The park had beautiful gardens and all the typical dancers, card players, and singers…well not necessarily the typical singers…as we walked through the park we heard this odd singing…kind of a combination of Milton Berle and Ethel Merman…only from an Octagenarian Chineses couple…Karyoke style…really odd. After the park we hopped a cab back for a leisurely afternoon of napping, shopping and an attempt at swimming in the pool…but Charlie will have none of the pool…so we’re not sure if he’ll follow in his older brother and sister’s footsteps as members of the Chase Club Shark’s Swim Team.

Pete and Joe braved eating "fried pidgeon"

But, the best event of the day has been Charlie's bedtime…yes, bedtime…that moment of dread this past week when the tantrum and tears would start at the slightest hint of heading to the crib…well tonight after we did some packing…Charlie walked over to Lisa and basically “asked” to be put to bed…AMAZING…and what a relief…not even a tear…wow…its time to head home.

Some final pictures from China...Don't ya just love it!!

Some Quick Advice on Traveling to China (for Adoptive Parents)...from Pete

2008-09-30T07:15:00.001-07:00

Observations and reflections on the TRIP for the families that follow us (take ‘em or leave ‘em):

Do bring a computer w/ you and DO USE SKYPE if you really want to keep in touch with any family left behind in the states…Charlie has talked to AND seen his brothers and sisters multiple times over the past week…and is even pointing at them as they talk “real time” over the video-conference! We did the Skype set up as a last, if we have time thing…and we sure are glad we made the time to do it…actually its been crucial to helping us keep our home sickness at bay.

Pack about 1/3 less clothes than you think you’ll need, and take advantage of the laundry services at your hotel in the province and at the stores in Guangzhou…this will help keep your baggage weight down (which you have to cart all over heck and back) and it will leave more room for that expensive Ming Vase for grandma (this was rhetorical grandma, you’re not getting a Ming Vase…sorry).

HBO in your hotels shows the same three movies over and over…either bring some DVDs or a couple of books…unless you really want to memorize every line from Police Academy 3…which is about as big a blockbuster as China’s HBO seems to air…

Do stay at the White Swan, it’s a nice hotel and its just full of other families to share the fellowship of this adoption journey…BUT be warned…save your money…don’t buy anything there…the place is too expensive for our tastes as far as food and gifts go…take twenty steps out the door and the prices fall dramatically (by half)…and then by half again if you…

…realize that you can get most of the stuff in the gift shops for between 40 and 50 percent less than the initial price they quote you…just be firm and don’t budge off your price and they’ll come around…although it does get a little ridiculous when you realize you spent the last 20 minutes of the negotiation haggling over $1.

Be adventurous as often as you cans as often as you can…experience China…for example…

It’s worth it to go off the beaten path…and even, maybe…just once in a while…without a guide (gasp)! Yes, you can do it…and as long as you have $2 to spare for a cab ride back to the hotel from wherever you got lost to…you’ll be fine. Lisa and I saw some of the most amazing things and we had the most fun…when we were “off the script” so to speak on our own winging it.

Also try the food…and get as exotic as you can…so this might not be for everyone…but I didn’t have any gastronomical issues from the chicken feet, cow’s stomach, giant clam, or pigeon I had on this trip…hey if its good enough for a couple of billion Chinese…for a couple of thousand year’s…it must have something going for it right…just try a little…you might like it, and you’re liable to make your Chinese hosts very happy.

Faith...and the Red Couch

2008-09-30T00:20:00.000-07:00

In less than 24 hours we leave for home. This journey has been incredible and our trip has been perfect. Our new son is everything we have prayed for! And, pray, I did! I feel like we took a huge leap of faith in our journey to Charlie. In about 10 months, we became a family of 6! While we had definitely contemplated adoption for a long time, last year at this time I could not have imagined where we'd be today. When we started this process with our agency 10 months ago, we had doubts. But, I kept being pulled in this adoption direction. And, finally, we decided to give way to what we thought God had in store for our family. And, how thankful we are that we did! Look at this amazing child! And, he is ours!

And, here are the "red couch" photos that adoptive families take...just a big, uncomfortable red couch at the White Swan (the couch is as hard as the beds are)...here are Chloe and Charlie, Chloe and her new family (minus a brother and sister at home), and our new family (minus 2 sisters and a brother at home)! Think of how many newly created families have sat on this sofa (including my own sister-in-law)...what a blessing!

Tantrum to Happy in 3 minutes flat!

2008-09-28T20:50:00.000-07:00

It's 11 am on Monday. Charlie and I were stuck in the hotel while our guide, Connie, went for our consulate appt. (Pete went to try to find the Toy Market in Guangzhou). It's hard entertaining a 2-year old in a small hotel room. He took a long bath, we played with blocks and he had a snack. Then, he got mad because he wanted to run around with his pants down! I said "no"...I know, mean mommy again. Boy was he mad. I got out the playdough and, boom, new child again! Ahhh...this should be an interesting day!

Cute Animal Videos (Lisa with baby tiger)

2008-09-28T05:30:00.000-07:00

Clara, CJ and Amelia! Look at mommy with the tiger!

Many faces of Charlie (and video of him falling asleep)

2008-09-28T05:12:00.000-07:00

Guangzhou Safari Park

2008-09-28T04:28:00.000-07:00

Charlie on the safari tram

Trying to climb in the monkey exhibit

Just a quick post tonite. It is 7:30 pm on Sunday and Charlie has not napped at all today. We got home from the Safari Park at 2:30 and decided to forgo the nap for an early night sleep. Needless to say, Naughty Charlie is dominant.

Lisa got up and went to the local Chinese Catholic Mass this morning. It was at a small historic church...built in the mid-1850's. There were about 75 Chinese and 2 westerners. I really enjoyed worshipping with the locals. Two differences...no collection of money and no handshake for the sign of peace (just hands together and bow to your neighbors). I was so glad to be in church again and glad to experience it in Chinese!

Then we were off to the Safari park...we took a 30 min tram ride thru a wild animal park (seemed like mostly deer) and then walked for 2 hours thru the zoo with the other CHI family. We enjoyed getting to know them and their girls a little better. The zoo was quite nice (although it was overrun with school children on a field trip). We saw many beautiful animals...white tigers, pandas, elephants, etc. Unlike in the US, you can "feed the animals." You just pay 10-30 yuan (less than 50 cents) for bananas, peanuts, branches. They had many baby animals in incubators and separate areas...adorable tigers, monkeys, etc. AMELIA...you need to see these pictures...your mommy actually got to hold a real, baby white tiger!!

Look Amelia! Mommy holding a baby tiger!

Sweet baby monkey

The children were as interested in us as they were in the animals!

Baby tigers in an incubator

Serious Charlie and his new friend !

We hung out at the hotel and then had dinner at a Cantonese restaurant. The waitresses were all over Charlie. Everywhere we go people point, talk etc at him. I keep saying how we have a really special boy. Pete says they do it to everyone (I'll keep thinking my way). However, how many kids do the waitresses hand feed, wipe their mouths, and give them sips of their drinks? That's what they did tonite.

In for an early, quiet evening. Tomorrow we have to hang out in the room from 10-2 while the guide goes for our consulate appointment. We may have our swearing in ceremony tomorrow since the offices are trying to close early for the National Holiday. Which means we technically could have gone home on Tuesday, but no one knew they'd be doing it this way. That's ok...one more day for shopping!

Video of Charlie's Medical Exam

2008-09-27T00:20:00.000-07:00

Charlie getting his ENT exam...what a patient, sweet boy!

We are in Guangzhou!

2008-09-26T22:26:00.000-07:00

Our last day in the hotel...this is our fabulous guide (and now friend) Katherine. I miss her already!

It is 1:45 pm on Saturday in Guangzhou. Before we left Fuzhou yesterday, our fabulous guide Katherine had a big surprise for me. I had requested that we get to visit the "beach" while in Quanzhou. However, due to uncertain typhoon weather (and an already full day), we were not able to visit. So, after Katherine picked us up from the hotel to go the airport, she said we would be able to go see the beach in Fuzhou! It is right near the airport so we stopped on our way. Growing up in California, I am definitely beach girl. I have now seen the Taiwan Straight and put my feet in the water! It was warm and the sand very soft. What a gift she gave me! Thank you Katherine!

Kathrine and I on the beach (Taiwan Straight)

It was obviously low tide here...there were tons of teeny, tiny little crabs scurrying about the sand.

Well, after a 2 1/2 hour plane delay last night, we arrived in Guangzhou at 10:45 pm. We arrived at the hotel about midnight! Charlie had his first airplane ride and, even with the delays, he did fabulously! He did not want to buckle his belt, but after showing him how mommy and daddy had to buckle (and the bribe of a lollipop), he let us buckle him in. He fell asleep after the lollipop and woke up when we landed (just over an hour). Whew!

We have already had a full morning here. We met the other family from our agency here. They have adopted a beautiful 4-year old girl and have their other adopted daughter with them (she's 3). They also have 2 children at home...they seem like a warm, loving, Christian family. We are blessed to share this part of the trip with them. While we enjoyed being on our own in Fuzhou, we are now surrounded by many, many adoptive families here. It is comforting in a way. We are staying at the White Swan hotel. It is a lovely hotel and we are lucky to be staying in a 2-room suite on the 27th floor. What a view from here! View from our hotel room...see the river on the left? The hotel is on Shaiman Island.

Charlie had his required passport pictures taken this morning and then his medical exam. The doctor was quite intrigued by his special need (removal of a kidney). He read all the reports (very carefully), discussed some things with our guide Connie (who said he may want x-rays done), and did an exam. I told Connie that we didn't want any tests done...turns out, we didn't have to have it done. However, even after the exam, the doctor came out to find us in the waiting room to see if Charlie was on any medications. Connie said it is a very unusual special need and the doctors were curious about it. We were glad to leave there. Afterward, Pete brought Charlie to the room to nap and I spent about an hour completing the paperwork for our consulate appointment (on Monday).

Outside the passport picture taking office

Medical examination office (very busy and crazy)

Exam by the ENT...yes, he has ears and can hear

Exam by the medical doctor

Wedding photographs being taken (there were about 5 brides with pictures being taken)

Children in school on Saturday. They will get a week off for the National Holiday (starting Monday) so they had to go to school today.

Until next post...

Last Day in Fuzhou

2008-09-25T23:05:00.000-07:00

OK…I realize this is a family blog and everything…but I gotta tell you…last night Lisa and I decided to venture back into the alleyways of Fuzhou to find our Lil’Dumpling Restaurant…for a nice dinner…and I gotta tell you Lisa was HOT…I mean she was H – O – T, HOT…and when we got to the restaurant…it was crowded, with little air conditioning and then she was SMOKIN’ HOT…yup…it was like 94 degrees last night and we decided to push a stroller through the streets of Fuzhou to find the little spot we had lunch at (we obviously liked the place). Well we found it all right…but we are not built for this weather…Lisa almost melted on the way there and then we sat down in a restaurant where the food is all steamed…so the heat from the kitchen is pretty strong. But the food was excellent again…we had noodles, soup, dumplings, and a large beer for about $6…I’m cheap so this was the perfect evening…no taxi fares (we walked), cheap food…perfect. Getting home after dark did not go so perfectly however…now I usually have a pretty good sense of direction and retracing our footsteps would have been easy…but we decided to take a quick detour by HagenDaz to get some ice cream…so this may have thrown my gyro-scope, compass, whatever off a tad…after ice cream started back to the hotel…somewhere along the way we missed a turn…you can imagine the old cliché of the husband and wife, lost, needing directions…

Lisa: “Pete, I don’t recognize this area, are you sure we’re going the right way?”
Pete: (testy voice) Yes, I’m sure this is the right direction, I’ve gotten this far haven’t I?”
(A little later)
Lisa: “Pete, really I think we’re lost…”
Pete: “We are not…I remember this area…there were a bunch of Chinese people here…see they’re all still here…”
(A little later)
Lisa: “Ok, this is crazy we’ve been walking too long this direction…”
Pete: “I remember there was a corner up with a sign in Chinese…see there is a Chinese sign…”
Lisa: “All the signs are in Chinese…we’re lost…”
Pete: “OK…were lost…”

Anyway we reversed direction and found the corner we missed and we made it back… It’s the next day now, and we are finally packing to leave for Guangzhou…and the final leg of our Journey. Both Lisa and I ready to go…not that we don’t like China (we do) but we really like the United States and we miss the rest of the family. I’m pretty sure I couldn’t have made it to this point without the Diet Coke…yup, the Diet Coke…its so hot here and the craving for an icy cold diet coke started to build from the day I landed in Fuzhou…well I couldn’t find it in any of the stores or beverage stands in the city (unlike Beijing which even had Coke Zero!)…anyway…I finally discovered a day ago that they do have it here at the hotel…ahhhhhhhh…I’m now on my 5th or 6th DC and all is right in the world…oh yeah, and Charlie is doing even better…He is actually showing much more of his little personality…actually I’ve identified four distinct little personalities. For starters there is the Charlie we first met…lets call him “Robot Charlie”…he is super calm, almost mechanical…he sits still, eyes the world slowly but won’t make eye contact, moves on command but engages little with Lisa or me, his programming seems to be all about order and possession…he has his space, his toys, and they all have to be lined up precisely in the right order on his spot on the couch…then there is “Happy Go Lucky Charlie,” we’re seeing more and more of this guy. As we told you earlier this guy emerged without warning after our trip to the orphanage…this Charlie will run around babbling in Chinese, slap his Dad’s legs playfully, give double thumbs up signs, and will repeat English words he has heard randomly. This guy is a lot of fun…but this personality is not yet dominant…and easily gives way to the third Charlie…that would be “Little Chairman Naughty Charlie”…this Charlie likes it his way or no way and Lisa and I are clearly here to serve his every whim…he yells at us in Chinese, points at things he wants delivered over to his little “throne” on the couch or worse yet yells at his parents/servants when we are out at restaurants or in public generally…this Charlie will refuse to eat or demand more food all within milli-seconds…occasionally he will slip into his final personality “Mean Ultimate Fighting Champ” Charlie…this guy emerges only at nap time and bed time…the lights are turned low, he sees me closing the drapes or moving him toward the crib…then the eyes narrow (I swear they glow a little red back there…) and you can hear the theme from Kung Fu somewhere in the background…first the wailing starts then the crying and then its all kung fu kicks and flaying arms until sleep finally overtakes him…as he fades into sleep, I’m pretty sure that “Happy Go Lucky Charlie” is in there somewhere, because his final word before a long sigh is… “Ma Ma.”

Anyway today we took a final tour of the park with a combination of “Happy Charlie” and “Chairman Naughty Charlie.” If I have not said this before…its hot here…oh, yeah it’s the underlying theme of all my posts…but anyway we walked around the island parks (in the lake)…it was a lot of fun…and again we were subject to a lot staring…this time a couple of people even braved taking pictures of us…one elderly gentleman pulled us aside and in broken English said: “…he is Chinese…?” We said: “yes”…He said: “And you are…?” We said: “Americans”…He said: “…But he is Chinese???” and then we said: “We are Mama and Baba…” Then he seemed to get it, he smiled, and shook our hands…he walked away… After the park we decided to walk around the neighboring city streets (we had gotten lost in this area the night before, and thought we might fair better in the day light…). About a block in we ran into Katherine (our #1 guide in Fuzhou!!!)…this is kind of funny…to run into your guide on the streets in Fuzhou, I mean really what are the odds…they gotta be pretty astronomical. We chatted a bit then parted ways as we hunted down a little bakery we saw the night before….we found it, ordered some bakery items that looked tasty…they were except for the dried “fish products” in the middle of the rolls…not to our taste, but luckily they were to Charlie’s taste…boy…dinners at the Schmidt house are going to be interesting…some weird kind of fusion of California Organic meets MidWest Meat and Potato meets Chinese.

Well we have to pack for the final run out to the Airport…only an hour left before our ride arrives…we’ll update you all from Guangzhou…see ya.

Drum Mountain and More!

2008-09-25T01:39:00.000-07:00

It is Thursday, September 25, 2008 at 3:30 pm. Charlie (and Pete) are napping. First, I will say I think we now have a different child! Did someone flip a switch last night? He woke up happy and chatting. Everyone told me after a few days they become a new person, but I wouldn’t have believed that 2 days ago. He is funny, animated, silly and giggles a lot!! It melts my heart! OK, he’s still absolutely obsessed with order and neatness, but that has to change, doesn’t it?? He has to wipe his face if he gets a drop on it, pick up each and every grain of rice that falls, line his fork and spoon and bowl up just so, etc, etc. I told Pete at least it entertains us!

Katherine (our #1 guide in Fuzhou) took us to Drum Mountain today. It is about 45 minutes up to the middle of the mountain. Up a twisty, windy, Chinese-driver filled road. Talk about barfy! Thank goodness my upset stomach had settled, otherwise I’d have lost it! The temple is incredibly beautiful! Katherine said it is 1500 years old. There are several buildings filled with gigantic Buddha statues with many people praying and monks walking about. And, the view to Fuzhou from up there is breathtaking!! What a lovely morning!

Then, off to Pete’s favorite thing…SHOPPING! We went to get “chops”. They are carved stone stamps with the kid’s names on them. Shhhh…don’t tell them we got them (it’s a secret). Oh yeah, they read this blog. Oh well. Then to the jade store to do some bargain shopping. As a side note (on Charlie)…he had to go pee pee. I took him to the squatty potties and he freaked out! He doesn’t like dirty bathrooms…he refused to go (I don’t blame him).

Katherine asked us if we wanted KFC, Pizza Hut, etc. for lunch. I think that the guides think we Americans live on that stuff. No, I know she is being considerate to us…she wants us to feel comfortable. But, I’ve made myself a promise not to eat any American fast food while we are here. I think I can do it…only 6 more days! Ah, but if we find a Starbuck’s, I think we’d break down and cry! So, we said “NO! fast food.” She ended up taking us to a tiny, little, local dumpling restaurant. We had loads of food (delicious…are you getting the theme of our trip here…FOOD!) and guess how much it cost? For the 5 of us (us and the driver and Katherine)? Less than 10 dollars!! We are going back for dinner.

That’s it for now…sleeping boys will be up soon. Tomorrow evening we leave for Guangzhou…the last leg of our trip before we go home!!

Videos of Orphanage

2008-09-24T23:58:00.000-07:00

Here is a video of Charlie's finding spot (in the middle of the city) and of little Nathan who will go home to Loudon County, VA.

Charlie's Finding Spot

A Visit to the Orphanage…from Pete

2008-09-24T06:23:00.000-07:00

Pictures of our day...very out of order, but I am way to tired to organize! Charlie and friend at orphanage.
Us at the Twin Towers Buddist Temple
Director, ex asst. director, us, new asst director, ayi at Qing stature...1000 years old!
Close up of us at Qing temple.Charlie's bed!!!! It was empty, so they added the blanket and pillow so we could see how he slept.

Charlie's favorite Ayi (nanny)
Playground at orphanage
View of orphanage building Sad Charlie at Buddist Temple

One of the twin towers at the temple. Ex-asst director, Katherine (guide), us, Director, Ayi

Pete with Charlie's new friend who will go home to Loudon County, VA in 6 weeks.
Charlie and Xie Xuan (Ella) who will go home to Washington State soon!
Lisa with the girls...Xie Xing (has a family but I don't know them), Xie Ju (going to Rhode Island), Xie Xuan (going to WA state)
Director, us, ex-asst director. We bought the orphanage 2 washing machines, diapers and formula as a gift.
Charlie's finding spot (which was on July 26, 2006...he was 4 months old)

More pics...

Well today was truly a once in a lifetime experience…we spent the day in Quanzhou at Charlie’s orphanage. It was fascinating and we’re really lucky to have seen it. We thought it would be a rainy and windy day w/ the Typhoon making landfall today…but the Typhoon went much further south, so we were treated to a clear, sunny…and yes…HOT day on the road. Quanzhou is about a 2 ½ hour drive south of Fuzhou on the coast….we felt lucky to get their safely. With Charlie on our lap, we passed one very, very bad accident involving two trucks. One was piled so high with boxes you would not believe it…another had boxes full of some liquid in bottles. Both trucks contents were spilled all over the highway and one trucks passenger side was missing. Then about 5 minutes later a speeding care drove past. We then passed him 5 minutes later as he was facing the wrong direction on the highway! He had apparently spun out!

We drove directly to the orphanage in the middle of the city. It is actually a pretty spacious orphanage…it includes not just an orphanage, but also a “retirement home” for senior citizens. The staff were, of course, very excited to see Charlie again…they had told us that he was a favorite of the Nanny’s and that he was spoiled there…but you had to see the doting and fawning to believe it!! Most of the younger children were “at home” while the older kids were at school, so we did not get to meet all the kids…but the staff gave us a great tour of the dormitory and we were able to hang out with all the little ones. We gave all the kids “pencils and pads” and “dumdum lollipops”…I think the lollipops were more popular. Katherine, our guide tells us this is one of the best orphanages she works with…the conditions are clean and spacious and the staff are very caring (we’ve included some pictures here). The children seemed happy and Charlie came alive when we went up to the orphanage. He ran to all the children and staff and looked in the rooms. He even comforted one of the children who was crying in a crib. Lisa was particularly struck by a brand new baby girl who was brought to the orphanage the previous night. She had a very severe cleft lip and palate. She was very tiny. She asked the staff if they had the special cleft bottles…yes, yes they said. That didn’t satisfy her. She then asked if they knew how to feed her and that she needed a lot of time to finish her bottle. Yes, they said. Then later at lunch, she brought the baby up again. This time she told Katherine that she was so concerned because she knows the difficulty of taking care of a cleft baby since Clara was born with one. That seemed to make them understand why she was so worried about this little baby girl.

We were also very happy to be able to meet 4 children who are in the process of being adopted. The first is a little girl going home to Washington state. The second a little girl going to Rhode Island. We were so happy to meet a little boy who is going home to Loudon County, VA in about 6 weeks. Lisa has made friends with the mom through all her yahoo and email connections. This little boy does not live at Charlie’s orphanage, but a neighboring one. However, the staff were nice enough to bring him to our orphanage so we could meet him. All the things the staff did for us was above and beyond. Our adoption experience can only be described as extraordinary.

We certainly owe a sincere debt of gratitude to the entire staff of the orphanage, not only did they care for Charlie, but they really pulled out all the stops to provide us access to the orphanage. But the hospitality did not stop with the orphanage tour…the staff (Director, Vice Director, Nanny, and Former-Vice Director) spent the entire day with us touring Quanzhou. The tour started with a quick spot at Charlie’s “finding place”…they took us to a small alley off a major commercial road downtown…although we are hazy on the EXACT location, we were able to get an idea of where he was abandoned. From there we went to an awesome lunch in a local hotel. We were in VIP Room 19 for a private lunch with the group. The lunch was a lot of fun and included some new “delicacies” in my gastronomical tour of china – shaved giant sea clam, and cow’s stomach…they were both very good.

After lunch we all piled back into the vans (2) and headed across town to “Two Towers” Temple (this is not the actual name, I just can’t recall it now). It was a very interesting stop, The temple is very large and flanked by two tall, ancient stone towers…the area is filled with giant (and probably very old) Banyan trees…very neat. From there we drove up into the local hills/mountains to visit another ancient religious site…it is a very large stone statue (over 1000 years old) located in a quaint hillside garden…Charlie was pulled along on this entire tour…multiple stops, 100 degree heat, and eight adults pulling him this way and that…by the end he was clearly on his last bits of energy and slept a good portion of the way back to Fuzhou.

A quick note from Lisa: we got Charlie to laugh! We were very worried about our return to the hotel. Charlie was clearly looking for his ayi when the van stopped. He whimpered and cried. When we got to our room he let loose crying again “Ayi, Ayi!” he screamed. We thought we were in for it for the night. We quickly went to dinner at the hotel and it was if a different boy came out! He was silly, laughing, chatting away (don’t know what he said though!). However, when we got back upstairs, he got into his usual “have to have things my way or no way” routine. He yelled when I said he couldn’t put his open coconut milk on his favorite spot on the couch (I know, bad mommy) and he cried harder when I tried to move him over so I could sit, too. He eventually fell asleep sitting up (for the second night in a row). We decided better to let him fall asleep peacefully than traumatically in bed for now. I think we need to start setting some limits on him though…we tested him and he clearly was crying to get his way. Not big things, but the little things.

It was a great day…educational and perspective changing. We certainly learned that no orphanage in China is alike…we are so fortunate that Charlie was lucky enough to be placed with such a caring and professional group. You can tell by the seriousness of the post that it was a very important day. So much happened…we are still soaking it all in. Thanks to everyone at Li Cheng District Quanzhou City SWI.

Entrance to the orphanage with staff.

A Day in Fuzhou

2008-09-22T23:41:00.000-07:00

It is now 2:15 pm on Tuesday. We just put Charlie down for a nap. This has been the hardest part for him (and us). We cannot figure out what his bed time routine has been. He gets very upset and eventually cries himself to sleep. He fights if we try to rock him so we just sit next to the crib and touch him (if he lets us) and talk to him gently. We are going to ask the nannies tomorrow when we visit the orphanage. He is so amazingly patient and calm and nearly never fusses (if he does, it's a big lower lip and a little whine). He is generally content sitting with us and walking around. He is ever so slowly warming up. It is very difficult to know if he’s happy or bored or just in his own world. He doesn’t smile often yet, but when he does it is so cute. Pete actually found a tickle spot on him. We have to be careful though because Pete was playing with him this morning and tilted him upside down and he started crying! We just have to take things slowly with him. One thing we know is that he likes things neat, tidy and orderly. He puts his things all in a row. And, he doesn't like to walk around without his shoes. Pete became the enemy last night (for about 10 minutes) because he took off Charlies' sandals! He’ll be in for a shock when he gets home to crazy, disorderly Clara, Amelia and CJ!

We had a great day touring. We went to the Panda Research Center here in Fuzhou. There were only 2 Giant Pandas…the rest were in their “summer home.” One of the pandas we saw was rescued from the Panda Preserve in the earthquake area. We were so close up to them and they were eating carrots and bamboo.

We saw a little show with Red Pandas doing tricks. We then went to a silk shop where I treated myself to a beautiful silk dress and blouse…hand made and custom fitted. Next we went to the Hero of Fuzhou’s original house…he helped fight the drug wars going on in the mid-1700’s…mostly opium. We also went through a traditional tea ceremony where we sampled 4 different teas (Oolong, Green, Black and Jasmine). The woman showed us how to make the tea, the ceremony of cleaning the cups, and then how to drink the tea. Each had it’s own special way of slurping and breathing in to get the “true flavors” of the tea. Pete got quite a bit up his nose! It sounded funny, but it really worked. We were a bit buzzed when we left there…not sure if it was the herbs or the caffeine!

Katherine, our guide, asked us where to go for lunch. I think, like we were to Angela in Beijing, we are not her typical adoptive families…we love going where the locals do. So she took us to this amazing Cantonese restaurant. (We took the driver with us, too, and she said he was very honored to be invited! I just can’t imagine not having him join us. He is a wonderful man and even helped entertain Charlie during the tea ceremony.) Katherine was a bit surprised and delighted by what we ordered…Pete actually had the BBQ chicken feet! I just couldn’t bring myself to that, but I did eat everything else. She said this restaurant is known for their chicken legs and dumplings…the dumplings were just amazing. One side of the restaurant is filled (completely filled) with tanks of sea life...crabs, eels, turtles, shrimp, stuff we didn't recognize. I'm not sure how much of that we ate today for lunch, but if I don't know what it is, I'm ok with that.

On a side note: I have been a bit nausous the last 3 days, as well as dizzy. I think I figured it out though…I think I may be anemic…I had no trouble climbing the steep stairs at the Great Wall, but I got completely winded walking up the stairs at the Panda Zoo today. I am going to take Charlie’s iron-fortified baby vitamins (I forgot mine). I did better eating today though…the problem is that I love the food here. Angela in Beijing and Katherine here keep asking if we want McDonald’s or KFC or Pizza Hut…we DON”T! We want to experience the local food and we love it!

I know many adoptive families get the “look” from locals…that glance from Chinese baby to western mommy and daddy and back to Chinese baby. We went to a park (not near our hotel) and man did we get the stares. Again, this wasn’t a touristy area, so we were quite the sight to see. Katherine says people keep asking her about us…why we were so lucky to have this beautiful, healthy-looking boy. She said people are more intrigued with us because he doesn't have an obvious physical problem. She said the people wonder why his family gave him up. They do not know his history…he was ill as a baby and had a kidney removed…so they just think we are so very lucky. And, can I tell you??? WE ARE! We found out yesterday at the Adoption Office that we were the 64th adoption in Fuzhou this year. Not very many!

OK, on to take a little rest while Charlie is napping. We are going to treat him to ice cream tonite…it’s a bit of a walk through the streets of Fuzhou.

We are half-way through our trip. I cannot wait to get home! I miss my family so much it hurts!

Video Clip of Charlie!

2008-09-22T17:56:00.000-07:00

Just a little clip of him playing with daddy! We'll post more later.

Provincial Paperwork!!!

2008-09-22T00:21:00.000-07:00

The Provincial Paperwork!!

Today is not only our first full day together…but as of about 11:00 AM FHHT (Fuzhou Hot and Humid Time) Charlie officially became a little Schmidt…yes, that is “LITTLE SCHMIDT”…don’t read so fast next time. Oh, by the way, this is Pete (the Dad) finally blogging…I’ve stopped napping (and according to accusations in this same blog, snoring), fully recovered from jet lag…and I’ve wrested the keyboard away from Lisa…yes, its about time…Adoption Dads of the World UNITE! OK, on to the important stuff…

Charlie had a very calm evening…he slept pretty much the full night through…we got up this AM and headed down to breakfast. We were a little concerned about the eating…he didn’t seem willing to feed himself and was eating as light as a bird last night. Lisa and I had visions of us cutting up his ham sandwiches at his high school graduation and hand feeding him… “here comes a choo choo…open up…yummmmie…” Seriously…a little distraction on his part is probably understandable given the world turning day he had just had. But we sat him in a high chair and forced ourselves not to force feed him…and it worked in no time he was actually using a fork and a spoon to feed himself…hmmm, guess we’ll have to find something else to fret about…

After breakfast we were off to the Provincial Offices to get the paperwork done…we learned you can make it across Fuzhou pretty fast in a Van…just watch out for the scooters. The provincial paper work process went surprisingly smoothly (see the photos)…wow…what a snap…no really, everyone was so eager to help and get things done…we met the two provincial officials (very professional and friendly) and the orphanage team was there as well. It only took about 20 minutes to get the paperwork done and filed…and another 20 minutes of Lisa and I listening to animated conversations in Chinese…smiling when we thought it appropriate and agreeing with anything that sounded like a question…I may have joined the communist party at some point…I’m really not sure…

After we got the forms filed we hopped in our trusty van for another dash to the Notary’s office…this was also surprisingly easy…a couple of questions, some quick signatures…hand over a gift…snap a few photos and Charlie was a Schmidt…yup…I guess as far as China is concerned once the process was notarized we completed our metamorphosis from “bewildered toursists”…to “guardians”…to “parents”…we couldn’t be happier…I can only hope the US officials we are going to meet in Guangzhou next week are as professional, friendly, and quick as the Officials of Fujian Province!!!

After the Notary we were off to Wal*Mart…we needed to get some clothes for Charlie (a lot of what we brought was too small)…we really were not able to judge the best size from the photos we received…based on his age (almost 3) and the pictures, we guessed about a 2T…but our in person measurements here reveal he has a 2T waist, and 3T chest and a 5T head (which is cool, all the Schmidt’s have big noggins). Anyway, Wal*Mart was a hoot…we ended up cleaning the place out of almost all their mini-notepads and pencils (for our gifts for the kids at the orphanage on Wednesday)…I was also able to get a special little gift for my buddy Chris in Fairfax…he should enjoy this unique, dry packaged meat product upon my return.

OK…you’ve had enough from me…Charlie is napping, Lisa is organizing something…and this post is too long…most of the regular readers quit about 300 words ago…but just a few final observations on Fuzhou…

First to all of you who are wondering…there is in fact a city of over 5 million people that DOES NOT have Starbucks…I know! Its unbelievable isn’t it…

Whacky Chinese Hotel Story Number One…this actually just happened…I’m typing on the computer…the phone rings in our room, Lisa jumps on it to answer it quickly (since Charlie is sleeping)…she says: “Hello”…a voice on the other end says: “My calling you, now…” Lisa responds: “yes…OK…???”…then “click” the voice on the other end hangs up…hmmm…just gotta roll with it.

There is a bridge around the beautiful lake here…at one end the bridge crosses into open water and zig zags back and forth before making landfall on the other shore…why?…Simple…evil spirits can only travel in a straight line…the zig zag prevents them from crossing the lake…I like that…
Good Bye for now…my blogging privileges are likely to be revoked…

Introducing...Charles (Charlie) Frank Xiefeng Schmidt

2008-09-21T02:30:00.000-07:00

Can't post too much right now other than to say he's amazing! I am humbled by the orphanage staff...they brought him dressed in new clothes, shoes and a beautiful jade dog pendant (he's year of the dog). They gave us a beautiful porcelain vase-like thing (I don't know what it is, but our guide said it's a sign of good luck. He's precious and serious...but, Pete got him to smile (doing silly goofy Pete faces). And, he has a set of lungs. He was ok being with us until the staff left (there were 3: the director, asst director and ayi (auntie)...he slowly teared up, got a big upper lip, and then let loose with screams. We brought him back to our room and he threw himself at the door and screamed (ayi, ayi). It lasted 1/2 hour and then he just sniffled. Then, he slowly got interested in the toys and snacks and smiled at Pete!! He's a good size and he is heavy! He also goes pee pee on the potty!! Will post more later. We absolutely love him! He's really is a gift from God!

How to Pass These Last Few Hours

2008-09-20T22:38:00.000-07:00

You'd think we had more to do than post on our blog. But, really, these last few hours have dragged by! So, we got up this morning and went on a long walk around the lake. There are several amusement parks (rinky dink little rides, but rides nonetheless) and we saw tons and tons of families with kids. They were as interested in us as we were in them. So many people said hello (in English) and one group of teenagers yelled "Welcome to China!" We just loved it! I love the area this hotel is in...it's full of beautiful old trees, lakes, and interesting people. We then came back to the hotel and went for lunch at a Chinese restaurant down the street. Delicious food...we had some sort of spicy cabbage, among other things. It reminded me of a dish we used to order in a restaurant in Los Angeles (the restaurant is called Ho's in West LA if you are ever there...yummy!) We need to learn to say "water" and "rice" in Chinese though...we couldn't get it across to the waitress! And, boy were we thirsty!

On our walk we came across this old man playing an instrument (I have to find out what it's called)...he had a little box out for money. He was happy to let us take pictures and video and so grateful for the money we gave hime. I've posted a little video of it here.

1 1/2 hours and counting...

9 Hours and Counting!

2008-09-20T15:50:00.000-07:00

It's Sunday morning here (6:30 am)...I've been up since 5! I just can't sleep. I am nervous, excited, feel like laughing and crying at the same time. What a ride this has been and it really won't even start until this afternoon!

We flew in last night. I think we were the only westerners on the full plane here. I kept asking the flight attendants if anyone spoke English. They just smiled. They did repeat all the announcements in English though. I wish it would have been lighter out because from what I could see from the plane, this is a beautiful area! It is very mountainous and full of lakes and rivers.

We checked into our hotel last night and boy were we pleasantly surprised! It's a lovely hotel that sits right on a lake. There is a park around the lake and it was just packed with people. The main street is lined with lit-up Banyan trees and the lake has a musical lit-up fountain in it. It's really nice!

Our guide took us to the local grocery store to stock up on water and snacks. Her name is Katherine and she is so sweet. You can tell she absolutely loves her job...helping adoptive families. Her hometown is the town where our little boy lives so she said she loves helping families adopting from orphanages there (it's about 2 1/2 hours drive south). I even love going to the grocery store...just to see all the people out and about doing what they normally do. It's just so eye-opening. We get so used to our way of life, but there literally is a whole world out here. I am thankful for this experience.

Katherine gave us the schedule for the week. We meet our boy at 3:30 pm today (in 9 hours). That is 3:30 am east coast time (sat night). I am an absolute jumble of emotions. Happy, sad (I really, really miss my kids...even all their bickering), excited, nervous. I've lost 3 pounds since we got to China.

We will try to post pictures of "our little guy" tonite. Here are a few pictures of the hotel and view. You can't really see the mountains in the background because it's foggy. It's very, very humid here!

Last Day in Beijing and Off to Fuzhou

2008-09-19T07:23:00.002-07:00

We are sitting at the airport waiting for our flight to Fuzhou. This is the most important leg of our trip. It’s very overwhelming to think about. I could hardly sleep last night. I am so nervous to meet our little guy. I just hope he accepts us. I have such high hopes that things will go smoothly, but I know there will rough spots along the way. All I know is it is God’s hands. If we trust that we were brought here for a reason, then I know it will be ok.

This morning Angela took us on a rickshaw ride through the old courtyard homes. It was a very touristy thing to do, but a lot of fun, too. We stopped at a family’s home (along with 40 other tourists) and toured their home. A small door off of an alley way opens onto a courtyard. Rooms are arranged in a square around the courtyard. The buildings were built during the Ming dynasty. We sat in a room, had some tea, and heard from the owner of the building about its history. This family was selected as an “Olympic family” and their home was used to show how people lived…he said many newscasters came to visit as well as tourists that stayed in their home during the Olympics. There was a huge Phoenix tree planted there because the grandmother (many years ago) wanted a daughter after having sons. She was blessed with two! And, they had cages of birds and 2 cages with gigantic grasshoppers…one of whom was very

noisy. Here is a video clip of our harrowing ride and near collision with grandma in a wheelchair!

Then we went back to Angela’s, packed and went to the airport. We board in about one-half an hour.

A Very Full Day of Touring

2008-09-19T07:23:00.001-07:00

Friday, 9/19: We just spent 12 hours non-stop touring. We first went to Tiananmen Square. While it's interesting, it is basically just a huge, giant square with not much on it. However, Angela was telling us how Chinese people line up to go in the National Memorial Hall (which is at the square ) and see Mao's body...well, we asked if we could go! She hesitated and said "sure, but you are my first family to want to see Mao's body!" It was really interesting. We were the only westerners in there. Many, many people bought flowers and laid them at a marble statue of Mao. They were bowing and kneeling in front of him. It was so interesting to watch. Then, you walk into the room where his body is...very eery. He looked quite well for having been dead for so many years. This is another first for Angela...first going up the steep way to the top of the Great Wall yesterday and then us viewing Mao's body.

Next, we walked through the Forbidden City. It's quite incredible and HUGE! People just push you around here to see what they want so I've learned to fight back...just elbow them! They don't seem to notice. Otherwise, you'd never be able to see inside the different buildings. One thing I did notice was that these historical artifacts are open to view, it's so dark inside the buildings (you only look from the outside) you can't see them well. And, they are open to the air...600 year old items collecting dust, dirt from the air and exposed to humidity, etc. I didn't quite get that.

Then, we had lunch at an out of the way duck place. Again, so delicious. Angela knows just what to order. We got to see them roasting the ducks in a giant brick oven. I'm glad I saw that "after" I finished lunch.

Next, we did a little shopping. We had Angela take us to this neat shard shop where they make boxes and jewelry out of broken porcelain (Pete has shopped there before). Then, off to the Temple of Heaven. It's an amazing sight as well. The emperors worshipped there...beautiful buildings and parkland. All about 600 years old.

Next, more shopping, this time at the pearl market. All I heard was "hey lady, wanna buy?" about a thousand times. Then we drove to see the Bird's Nest. The pictures on TV don't do it justice. It is a massive building. Then finally, dinner at a place on a little lake. More yummy food.

I always heard the bathrooms weren't nice in China, but tonight was the worst. I went to a public toilet armed with my wipes, toilet paper, sanitizer, etc. (You know they are squatty potties)...so right after I get and get in the squatty position in I hear this large woosh sound. Water starts pouring in under the stall at my feet (I have sandals on)...I run out because some plumbing broke. Yucky water on my feet. So, I decided to try the handicap stall outside the ladies room (which has a toilet). Well, after setting up my toilet seat (aka, sanitizing, carefully placing paper down, etc), and, um, getting ready to go, I hear a man outside yelling and pulling on the door. What do ya know? It pops open! I scream "NO" (too late, I was exposed). I think he was trying to get me out because they were closing the toilets because of the plumbing problem. Well, I quickly got dressed and ran out. No fun, no fun! Luckily Angela has a very nice modern toilet!

I know you didn't need to know those details, but toilets are quite an issue here so I wanted to share. Pete was supposed to write this post, but again, he is snoring soundly next to me while I am wide awake (when will my body realize it's night time??) After he reads this, he'll regret he didn't stay awake to write it! I'm just giving him a hard time...he just seems to be able to sleep anywhere, anytime. No wonder he never has jet lag when he travels.

CLARA: look Chinese Subway! We had to take this picture just for you! Sorry, we didn't eat there.

OK, it's 11:30 pm and I need to go to sleep!Tomorrow we leave for Fuzhou...the capital of the province of Fujian...we'll have an evening there to get ready to meet our boy!!

A Night Out in Beijing.

2008-09-19T07:23:00.000-07:00

Thursday Night, 9/18: Instead of resting like Angela suggested, we were ready to go out! So, we went to town to experience "snack street." First, we stopped and looked around the Olympics store...gotta love those mascots. Then we walked around the hustle and bustle of Beijing. There is a very fun street where no cars are allowed. Lots of shopping and people watching. Then, we were a little hungry so we had these for dinner (see below)...ya gotta try what the locals eat, right? Scorpions, sea horses, worms and roaches?? They were a little chewy....

Just kidding...we went to a little dumpling place and had yummy dumplings...I think mine had grass in it. They said it was local mountain vegetable. It looked like grass to me! That's what is great about our guide. She takes us to the non-touristy places. We get lots of strange looks, especially because we eat what they eat and do pretty well with our chopsticks if I do say so myself! What fun!

The Great Wall!

2008-09-18T01:51:00.001-07:00

It is Thursday at about 5 pm here. We made it to the top! Our guide, Angela, took us to a different part of the Great Wall than most tourists go to. It was a 2 hour ride, but it was soooo worth it. First, we got to drive all the way through Beijing. It really is so fun to people watch and see people going about their day. Angela told us this part of the Great Wall was built on the mountain peaks so it is more beautiful...I haven't seen any other part, but I must say this was an incredible sight! Beijing is so flat and then all of a sudden the mountains are in front of you. The best part of this part of the Great Wall is that you take a ski lift up to the wall...how safe is a Chinese ski lift? Well, I don't know, but I was happy when we got off. The next best part was choosing which way to walk...Angela said there was a flatter, easier way off to the left and a harder, very steep walk to the right. Well, once she told us she'd never been all the way to the top going the steep way, we told her today she would! It was an incredibly beautiful walk and we just stopped along the way to catch our breath. We even ran into a couple people from Chicago! There was a Chinese woman selling drinks on the way up who was very proud to have an Obama 2008 pin...too funny! The third best part of this part of the Great Wall was the toboggan ride down (like an alpine slide)...what a blast! Here's some pictures of our trip today and a picture in front of the restaurant we ate at for lunch.

Lunch was delicious, except I'm not liking eating the pork (it's really just pork fat) and the chicken with bones....little bones you have to pick out. I don't know what part of the chicken I'm eating so I don't like that. But, the flavors are wonderful!

Angela said that usually on this night people come home and rest. Well, guess what? We aren't up for resting. In fact, I think if we did, I'd fall asleep by 8 pm again and then wake up at 2 like I did last night. I think if I stay awake longer, I'll sleep later...Pete doesn't seem to have that problem. He's snoring away right next to me now and he could sleep all night! So, tonite we are going to Snack Street (or something like that) where we get to see all those gross things people buy off the street to eat. I dared Pete to eat a scorpion. This morning Angela served us little tiny spicy fish...I didn't know what they were until I saw their eyes. Yuck, luckily I didn't try them (Pete ate them though...he's much more daring).

This whole trip seems very surreal to me. I know I'm really here, but can't believe it. And, I just keep thinking ahead to Sunday when we meet our little guy! I know that won't seem like it's really happening either. I am just so excited!

We made it to Beijing!

2008-09-17T04:17:00.000-07:00

OK, after we landed Pete said, "that wasn't that bad, was it?" Well, considering he slept for a good 4-5 hours while I was wide awake, it probably wasn't bad for him! All I know is 13 hours in a plane is just too long! I tried not to look at my watch, but after watching Pete sleep for several hours I couldn't help myself. We'd only been flying for 4 hours...I had 9 more to go! Then, 8 more, then 7 more, then 6...finally, I forced myself to lay down with Pete's noise reducing headphones and the eye thing on...I had little bits of sleep for about 4 hours. But, I will say that business class is the way to go. It was comfy, roomy, good food, and you could almost lie down flat. All of Pete's trips to China have paid off...I knew we'd eventually use those miles.

We are now at the apartment of our guide Angela. She lives in a nice little apartment outside of the city center. She's a wonderful hostess. We had Chinese takeout for dinner. It was so delicious! We had Kung Pao chicken (the best I've ever had), spicy green beans, garlic sprouts, mushrooms, etc. Really, really delicious! And, the funnest part about her place?? She has the cutest little dog.

We're off to the Great Wall tomorrow...

We're Off!

2008-09-15T20:33:00.000-07:00

Our bags our packed and we are ready! I'm so ready to go and so not ready to go. I think leaving the kids is going to be the hardest part. They are in the excellent hands of grandma and grandpa Schmidt...we are so grateful that they came to watch the kids. The next post should be from Beijing!

Quick update: we are at the airport and will be boarding soon. The kids did great this morning (I didn't though). Here's a picture of a poster that Pete and the kids put together...it is a huge map of China with each of the major things we are going to do. Clara had already left for school so she wasn't in the picture, but she did help alot with it!

Soccer!

2008-09-07T17:49:00.000-07:00

CJ played his first soccer game today (besides the tournament last week). It is his first year on a travel team so competition and competitors are quite fierce! Their team is the VIPERS! They lost 6-2 to a really good team. Here's a little video of CJ (he's #30)...we always think he looks like he runs on his tip toes!

"His" Room is Done!

2008-09-06T14:32:00.000-07:00

Our sweet little boy now has a room of his very own...thanks to our amazing contractor friend. He knew our deadline and he met it! Thank you Joe!

I decided to do a train theme. CJ has always loved trains and said from the very beginning he couldn't wait to teach his new brother how to build tracks with our Thomas the Train set. So, I thought it would be appropriate.

This room is actually CJ's old room, minus 3 1/2 feet that became a hallway into CJ's new room. I didn't attach pics of CJ's new room because he still has no furniture. Just a mattress and stuff all over the floor. But, I did include a picture of the new Jack-and-Jack bathroom we added. It turned out just beautifully! I just can't wait to see our new son in it!!

My Fortune

2008-09-05T18:49:00.000-07:00

The kids wanted Chinese for dinner...the kids had 4 friends over so I thought that would be an easy dinner for all. After dinner there was one fortune cookie left over so I opened it and guess what it said?? "Culture and customs of China attract you." Isn't that cool?

First Day of School!

2008-09-04T07:49:00.001-07:00

On Tuesday the kids went back to school. It was relatively uneventful, except for the fact that Clara started Middle School!! She was really nervous the night before, but then hopped out of bed, got ready, and headed off for the bus! The whole bus thing is new for us. We've always been "walkers" to elementary school since we live within a mile of the school. We are lucky because the bus stop is only 2 houses down from our house so she can practically sit on the porch and wait for it to drive up (but she didn't). She wanted me to walk her down to the stop so I did...but then quickly left because no other parents were there. I did manage to snap a picture of her getting on the bus (without her knowing...we know how EMBARRASSING that would have been). Clara bus picks her up at the same time the other kids need to get up...so, the morning is quite a bit quieter with only two to get ready after she leaves. (I guess that will change in a few weeks with the addition of our new little guy).

Amelia and CJ were up and ready in a flash. Both were so happy to go back to school. Amelia has been counting the days! We just love our elementary school and it was so nice to walk them to the lobby, take a few pictures, and say good-bye. Let's hope for a great year!

100 Good Wishes and Many Good Friends!

2008-09-03T12:27:00.000-07:00

My neighborhood friends had a "shower" for me to welcome our new little China boy. It was a wonderful evening among friends. Instead of gifts, I asked for donations to my favorite China charity Love Without Boundaries. Of course, in addition to many generous donations to LWB, we received some wonderful gifts.

We have a neighborhood friend who is known for making beautiful quilts for new babies born in our neighborhood group. Well, unbeknownst to me, this friend (and many others) made me a quilt. I must say that I was totally taken by surprise. One, because I know how incredibly busy she is and two, because I just really, really didn't expect it!

Well, not only did she make a quilt, but she made a 100 Good Wishes Quilt. Many people contributed a piece of fabric, and wrote a "wish" for our new son, and the whole group of them spent hours putting this quilt and the wishes book together. When I opened it I was just speechless! The care that each person put into the quilt in choosing their fabric and writing their wish was amazing. I could not even read the Wishes while at the shower without sobbing. So, after I got home I read each page and sobbed by myself at the kitchen table (Pete was already asleep). It was so incredibly meaningful and touching. This boy is not only getting a new family, but an entire community of people that can't wait to meet him. Thank you all!!

We Have An Itinerary for China!!

2008-08-16T17:41:00.000-07:00

Phew! It's finally done...except for a few details during the trip, here is our plan!

9/16: Leave for Beijing
9/17: Arrive in Beijing at 1:30 pm...we are staying in an apartment of a Chinese woman who helps adoptive families. She will take us to the tourist sites, shopping, and to yummy places to eat! This will be a really fun and different experience (rather than staying in a hotel).
9/20: Leave for Fuzhou, Fujian Province (capital city of the province where our son is)
9/21: Meet Xie Feng for the first time!!
9/22: Getting to know you day
9/23: Site-seeing
9/24: Take 2 1/2 hour drive south to Quanzhou to visit Xie Feng's orphanage
9/25: Site seeing or hanging out
9/26: Leave for Guangzhou (where U.S. Consulate is)
9/27 - 9/30: Medical exam, paperwork, site seeing
10/1: Leave for home
10/1: Arrive home after 16 hours of flying (2 legs of trip), not including transfers, airport time, etc. (ugh)!

More Adoption News...

2008-08-11T19:30:00.000-07:00

In case you are curious, we are in the planning stages of our trip to China. We have received travel approval and are awaiting our consulate appointment. Once we receive that we can plan our trip. However, we did get word that because of the Moon Festival Holidays (9/15 and 9/16) we will not be able to leave like we originally planned (which was leaving here 9/9, meeting our son on 9/14, going to the consulate on 9/22, and coming home on 9/24). It looks like we'll have to wait one more week so everything will be shifted back by 7 days. While I am disappointed, one silver lining is that another family from our agency will be traveling at the same time (they had to adjust their trip a bit, too, due to the Moon Festival) so we will meet up with them in Guangzhou when we go to the U.S. Consulate. I'll post our itinerary as soon as we have it set in stone!

They Can Water Ski!!

2008-08-11T19:09:00.001-07:00

We just returned from a vacation with Pete's parents and his sister and her family. We spent 4 days in MN at Pete's parents house and then traveled to CO for a week at a Dude Ranch. The kids really enjoyed spending time in MN at the house where their daddy grew up. For some reason, they loved seeing daddy's bedroom. Of course, Amelia immediately asked why daddy got the small room and her Aunt Amy got the big room. What was daddy's answer? Grandma likes Amy more! OK, you have to know Pete to know he was completely kidding, but Amelia quickly found me and asked me if I knew that Grandma liked Amy more than daddy. I have to remind Pete how literal kids are!

While in MN, we did what lots of Minnesotans do, we spent time on the lake. Pete's parents have a beautiful, big backyard right on the lake in town. We had a great time jet skiing, boating, swimming, and water skiing! It was a big year for the Schmidt kids...all three got up on skis!! Clara has skied a number of times, but CJ and Amelia never have tried. We borrowed a home-made ski board and CJ and Amelia just popped right up! Clara got up on regular skis. Here's a video of each kid!

Clara on Skis

CJ on the Ski Board

Amelia Can Ski, Too!

Other highlights of the MN part of the trip were hanging with cousins and going to the Vikings Training Camp and getting Adrian Peterson's autograph on a football! We left for the ranch after a few days...I'll post more pictures on the ranch later.

Under Construction

2008-08-01T20:20:00.000-07:00

Well, with the impending arrival of "little boy Schmidt" (who still does not have a name from us), we are undergoing a pretty major construction project. We are adding a bedroom and bathroom above one side of our garage. CJ's current room will become "little boy Schmidt's" room and CJ will get the new room. The two boys will share a new bathroom. We were very concerned about how the outside would look...we didn't want it to look like an addition. A friend of ours has a construction business. He has done an amazing job...here is a picture, although it doesn't do it justice...he is much farther along now...most of the siding is done, the windows are in, the brick is completed, and much of the trim. We are really excited. However, the timing couldn't be worse. Imagine a major addition, planning a trip to China to bring home a new family member, and a 10-day vacation in the middle of all that. Yikes!!

Here are two pictures...one with the roof of the garage taken off and one with the new rooms framed in. The project is expected to be completed at the end of August...how's that for cutting it close to our China departure date (which will probably be around 9/9)!

New Pictures of Our Boy!!

2008-07-18T05:20:00.000-07:00

Hi,

We have been so blessed to have our son in an orphanage that is willing to share information about their children. They have been so willing to give us updated medical information and developmental information throughout the year. At one point, they even took him for some blood work when we asked about a specific blood test. And, of course, we have received some amazing pictures so we can kind of watch him grow! I received new information this morning. This is what I have learned:

He is 36 inches tall and weighs 28 pounds (that is about 50th percentile)...so he is growing well and quite big for China standards! He hasn't had any medical issues lately, he sleeps in a crib, takes a nap from 1-3 pm, is potty trained (yeah!), drinks from a straw, likes all toys, can go up and down stairs, and is not a picky eater!

Enjoy the pictures! I can't stop looking at them!

Lisa

Adoption News!!

2008-07-13T19:21:00.001-07:00

We received big news on Friday night! I was sitting down to relax after getting the kids to bed and the phone rang about 10 pm. When I saw who was calling, I almost couldn't answer the phone. It was our adoption agency and I knew what the call was all about! When I answered she said we had our LOA! That is our approval letter from China! It means China has reviewed all of our paperwork, agreed that we can definitely be Xie Feng's parents, and are requesting confirmation that we accept! And, we do!! It typically takes about 90 days to receive your acceptance from China after you've submitted your paperwork. Ours took 80 days. I expected it to take 100 or more with the Olympics coming up. It's funny...guess where Pete was the day the agency called? In China!!

What does this all mean? It means that we will leave in 6-8 weeks to bring our son home! Since the 6-week mark falls right when the kids are going back to school, we will probably leave sometime between Sept 5th and Sept 10th. That's our best guess now, but that can always change. Anyway, what do we do between now and then? TONS! We are doing an addition on the house that hasn't started. We need to pick a name. We need to order furniture. We need clothes and sippy cups, and plastic plates, and little boy toys...things we no longer have! On top of that, we need to plan our trip, get all the paperwork in order, go on a 10 day vacation, and get the kids ready for school. Wow...it's overwhelming to think about, but all I can say is that I know it will all fall into place. I'm eerily calm right now...that will most likely change!!

Amelia Rides a Two-Wheeler!

2008-07-01T18:41:00.000-07:00

This is a big day for Amelia! She has tried and tried to learn to ride her bike, without training wheels. Well, it took several years and a little motivation, but she's finally done it!! What motivated her? Amelia saw her first grade teacher (that she adores) drive by and wave to her while she was riding her bike with training wheels. Amelia turned to me and said "I bet Mrs. P. is wondering why I'm still on training wheels! I want to learn how to ride without them." We went home and she was determined to learn...and she did!! Well, we're still working on getting her to start on her own, but that will come with time. Go Amelia!!

June is Almost Over!

2008-06-27T16:59:00.000-07:00

I feel like I just posted a message last week, but it's been almost 4 weeks! Needless to say, June has been crazy! We have had end of year school parties, a sixth grade graduation, father's day, a dance recital, Clara's birthday, my birthday, and swim team! Luckily Grandma Rose was here to celebrate many of those occasions (Grandpa stayed home this time). We feel so lucky that she comes to visit so often. It's very difficult living so far away, but Grandma and Grandpa Matras always make the effort to come to the important Schmidt events! The kids really love that! And, it means so much to me.

Amelia finished 1st grade this year. She had the BEST teacher ever, who just happens to live in our neighborhood. She makes the kids just LOVE school! Amelia cried all the way home on the last day of school...she wanted to go back on Monday! CJ finished an awesome third grade year! He absolutely loves school. He received the Citizenship Award for his class this year. The kid's pick one boy and one girl they think should receive it and write a paragraph explaining why...CJ's said things like "he is always fair," "he helps people whenever he can," "he is caring and trustworthy." We were so proud of him! And, Clara just "graduated" 6th grade! I can hardly believe she will be going to middle school in the fall. She had a really fun last week of school and a lovely graduation. We are so proud of her and are excited (and petrified) she is moving on to the next phase of school!

We celebrated Clara's 12th birthday with a few friends over for a sleep over. They swam at the pool, had pizza, watched "Camp Rock" and stayed up until 3 a.m.!! I also celebrated my birthday, but we'll just skip over that event!

Finally, our summer swim team is in full-swing! All three kids are participating this year. Amelia swam in her first meet on Wednesday and came in 22nd out of 23 swimmers!! She was happy she got a "participation" ribbon...what a great attitude. Clara and CJ are swimming really well this year! This is Clara's 7th year on the neighborhood swim team!

Memorial Day at the Beach!

2008-05-27T18:52:00.001-07:00

Hi! We spent 3 beautiful days in Bethany Beach with some friends. It's always a whirl-wind tour when we go...usually we hit the bay (to look for horseshoe crabs...only dead ones this year), go eat crabs (a long, messy process), go the beach (play and roll in sand for hours and hours), ride the jet skis (the kids LOVE it), and relax. Our kids had a lot of fun playing with their friends for the weekend and we had fun hanging with our friends. FYI...Denise is scrabble champ...she used all her tiles up on the very first turn of the game! However, Lisa pulled ahead at the end, with a little help from Denise's husband (he actually made the word "sequin"...how hard is that in Scrabble?), but then said if someone had an "E and D" they could make "sequined." I did, and got 54 points to pull ahead of Denise (sorry!).

We also celebrated Pete's birthday there! He did his favorite things...beach and crabs (lots and lots and lots of crabs)! He said it was his most memorable bday in a while!

Amelia was also in heaven because her good friend was also at their beach house for the weekend, so the girls had 2 sleepovers!! Do our kids even have any idea how good they have it?

Until the next post...

China's Earthquake

2008-05-14T10:23:00.000-07:00

Several people have asked me where Xie Feng's orphanage is in relation to the earthquake. It is quite far (about 1000 miles). I have heard there was no damage there. I've posted a map of China, with an arrow near the earthquake and one for the orphanage, just to give perspective. While we are thankful he is safe, lots of prayers are needed for all the victims of the quake.

If you are interested, here is a link to the city (Quanzhou in Fujian Province) where Xie Feng lives http://www.travelchinaguide.com/cityguides/fujian/quanzhou/. I know the city is known for their tea and puppets. It is right on the coast and looks quite beautiful. Typically, families meet their children in the capital of the province, Fuzhou. We are going to request a visit to the orphanage (they aren't always granted), but we would love to see exactly where he is from and where he spent the first 2 years of his life. We know a family who is going in June to bring home a 12 year old girl from the same orphanage. Her daughter and our son know each other (we even have a picture of the two of them together)! We are requesting permission from the orphanage to allow the family to take some pictures of Xie Feng. I would love to see another picture of him!!

Field Trip to Pamplin Civil War Park

2008-05-10T10:42:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday, I accompanied Clara on her last elementary school field trip! Pete usually goes on the "long" field trips, but he was out of town. We left school at 7:15 a.m. and returned at 5:30 p.m.! It was about 2 1/2 hours each way, but at least we got to ride on charter buses. Anyway, Clara really wanted me to go and I figured it would be my last opportunity to attend a field trip with her! Wow, does time fly. I remember her starting kindergarten and now she is off to middle school! Anyway, the park was just beautiful. We went to Pamplin Civil War Park in Petersburg, VA. We saw a plantation house, a log cabin where slaves lived, the battlefields, the "earthworks" (miles of mounds of dirt/grass that the south used for defense), the kids got to practice battle advances, and finally, we toured a very impressive museum. It's amazing to think that all around where we live there were these civil war battles. We sometimes forget that we are completely surrounded by all this history.

$311.00 in Donations!

2008-05-05T08:29:00.000-07:00

Amelia's 7th birthday party was a huge success in two ways. First, I said I would post how much Amelia collected in donations from her birthday party (see our first post) and I am so happy and humbled to say her friend's donated a total of $311.00! I am so thankful to each and every one of our friend's that donated! Can you imagine how much that is worth in China and to the little one's at Xie Feng's orphanage?? THANK YOU!! And, I am SO PROUD of Amelia for giving up presents in order to help others...I can't tell you how much that warms my heart!

Secondly, the kids had a blast! First, we determined what Chinese zodiac sign each girl was, then played "Pass the Panda" to Chinese Folk Song music, then played a "Cottonball Chopstick" race, put together a Chinese charm bracelet, then played Dragon tag and Chinese jumprope outside. It was perfect 75 degree weather and the girl's all seemed to have fun! Here are a few pictures from the party.

Cute goodie bags for the girls. In addition, each of the girls received a small silk purse and key chain that Pete brought back from his last trip to China.

Here are the girls from the party! Aren't they all so cute!

Amelia and her good friend!

My First Post...Amelia's Birthday!

2008-05-03T06:17:00.000-07:00

Ok, it has taken me over a month from setting up this blog to actually posting! Not a good sign for things to come! I thought I'd set this up so that our family and friends could follow some of our daily lives a little easier...however, I realize that I need to post for that to happen! I will try to be better.

Amelia turned 7 on May 1st! We had a little family celebration at home (isn't she so cute!) and will have her birthday party tomorrow. She is quite an amazing and funny little girl. Here are two examples:

The first is her "funny" (aka "quirky") side: we usually let the kids pick their favorite restaurant to go to on their actual birthday. When I asked Amelia where she wanted to go, she hemmed and hawed...and finally decided she wanted to stay home for dinner and have an artichoke!! Yes, Amelia loves (I mean loves) artichokes. Much to Clara's dismay we stayed home and had (at Amelia's request), artichokes, spaghetti, salad and garlic bread...Clara tried her hardest to convince her to go to Clara's favorite restaurants, but Amelia wouldn't budge (go Amelia!) We had a nice dinner and then she opened her family presents. Here she is eating her artichoke (with CJ)...

The second is a story about her "amazing" side: her birthday party is tomorrow (14 little girls are coming). She decided (with no input from me) to have a Chinese themed party, in honor of her brother-to-be! She and Clara thought up a bunch of fun games (like pass the panda, dragon tag, and cotton ball chopsticks). But, the most amazing part is that she decided instead of birthday gifts for herself, she would ask for donations which she wants to send to her new brother's orphanage in China! We are really so proud of her for doing that! Isn't that amazing! I will post a few pictures of her birthday party tomorrow and let you know how much she collected in donations!

Well, that's it for my first post...I feel like I've accomplished something and hope you enjoy checking in every now and then to see what we're up to!