China Trip Link

We received our referral for 11.5 month old Anna on January 31, 2005. We were logged into the CCAA for only 5.5 months exactly and our paperwork took a little over 7 months to complete. We left for China that year on March 31 and returned to the US with Anna on April 14. She is now 2.5 and is a compete bundle of toddler joy!

http://lady-bugs.home.insightbb.com/index.htm

More pics of the kids!

2006 Guiping Girls Reunion

Posted some pictures on the slide show of our China travel group reunion that was held in Belleville this year! We had a wonderful time visiting with all of the families and seeing all of the 10 girls together again.

All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth!

Well, this week Brandon came home from school and had lost his front tooth. It is always a sort of rite of passage when you are 7.5 and still haven't lost that darn tooth! You just twist and loosen it up so that you can finally show off that newest window in your mouth. After Brandon lost that tooth, I told him how cool it would be to lose the other one before the school pictures next week. The tooth was getting looser each day. Well, yesterday, I told him that if he pulled it out before Sunday night, I would give him two dollars. I really didn't think it was loose enough, but sure enough......he has a GIANT window in his mouth after working on it all night. Oh...and of course he has the two dollars, too. The tooth fairy came and gave him 3 quarters and forgot to take that tooth!

Of course, Anna has been upset all week trying to wiggle her teeth out, too!

Pics by the Big BRO!

Logan got a digital camera this summer and has a lot of fun with it. He often gets disappointed that it isn't as nice as my Digital Rebel, but he is only 10, right? He takes some good ones, though, when his brother and sister stop moving long enough.

I'm a big girl now!

Well, I did it! I got out the toddler bed! It was hard on me since Anna is our last "baby"! The boys were both out of the crib between 14-16 months, so I was determined to have Anna in the crib much longer. She has been climbing out for a while now, so it was time. She has been getting rather creative at night and often there are many "extra" things in the crib in the morning that were definately not there when she went to bed. Had to include one of her on the big potty, too! She is all big stuff now!

Photoshow Link, etc

I have been having fun making photoshows lately. They are so easy! Logan made one, too, of the trip with the Grandparents that he and Brandon went on in July.

The kids are all growing up so fast. Logan and Brandon are getting so tall. I see Logan maturing daily before my eyes and I am afraid that he will pass up his 5'6" mother by next year. Brandon is eating like a horse every day and could easily pass up Logan someday.

Anna remains to be a lean and tall 23 pounder! We measured her this week and she is around 36 inches tall. She continues to be so tiny around that the 12 month shorts and pants still can fall off. Too bad she needs a 2T in length. She lives in the Gymboree leggings since they fit so well! She was busy this summer potty training herself. Note that I said "herself". I really had very little to do with it and she has been nearly accident free from the start! Yeah...we got a raise!

Anyway, a link to the new photoshows......http://www.photoshow.net/schmidtfamily5

September Happenings

Well, the school year actually started in August. I subbed in the Special Education room at the school for 13 days. That is quite a change from my 3-4 times a month. It was an adjustment for all and Anna was certainly not used to it. She had a great time during the day either at the Grandparents or the neighbors, but I paid dearly at night. She let me know just how much she missed me!

The boys are now in second and fifth grade and Anna is 2.5. The new year is now seeming more normal now that my subbing is back to MUCH less. I am enjoying catching up on the house stuff and playing all day with Anna.

We had our second annual Guiping Girls Reunion and what a wonderful weekend it was. All ten girls from our China Travel Group were there, as well as my dad who travelled to China and also another Grandpa that went.

We had a great time at the zoo this weekend. It was a gorgeous day. Didn't take too many pictures of the "real" animals, but here are some of the Schmidt kiddos.

Here I go!

Ok, trying out the whole blogging thing! Bear with me as I learn all this stuff!