Mom: Hannah, why are you still in your pajamas? Why aren't you dressed yet?
Hannah: Because Abbie told me she wanted me to stay on the bed and snuggle with her!
Mom: But I told you to get dressed! You don't do what Abbie tells you to do - she's not the boss. You know who the boss is!
Abbie (from the next room): Yeah, Jesus!
Alrighty, then!
Thursday, October 26, 2006
Thursday, October 12, 2006
On Blogs and Blogging
It seems I have ventured into a new territory called "blogging". Originally, my only exposure to blogs were the ones that documented families' adoption trips to China, and updates on these beautiful children. I started this blog to keep family and friends updated on what our girls were doing and how our adoption of Sarah was progressing. Somehow, I found a blog that had nothing to do with China adoption, then clicked on links to others' blogs, and on and on it went. I was bookmarking all these great blogs so I could check in on them daily, but the list just got waaaaay too long! I finally narrowed it down to about a half dozen favorites. All are written by women, most are Christians, and most have been blessed by adoption, but not all from China. I am especially fond of http://owlhaven.wordpress.com, http://largerfamilies.blogspot.com, http://always-in-myheart.blogspot.com, and http://militaryfam.blogspot.com.
Which made me think about what I am hoping to accomplish with my blog. Many of the blogs I've been reading are read by hundreds of people daily. Is that what I want? Also, do I really need the pressure of having to post daily (or, at least, way more often than I do)? Who's my audience? And really, is anyone truly interested in what our little family did on summer vacation or on Family Night or the fact that Hannah's teeth are loose or that we have a new kitchen... I think the only ones interested in that stuff are immediate family and a few close friends. And us, of course. But then I look at my favorite blogs, and these are just ordinary people living their lives that are plenty interesting to me when I just hear what Mom made for dinner or what kind of sink cleanser she loves or the funny outfit her child put together. So maybe someone indeed does want to read my musings about potty training and ballet lessons and Sunday School.
I have found, however, that it is way too easy to get drawn into all this "slice of life" stuff, reading blogs for hours, and forgetting to live my own "slice" at that moment. But maybe I can step up my efforts to post more often with some of the everyday stuff that goes on around Casa Cormier. At the very least, maybe the girls will enjoy all this someday...
Which made me think about what I am hoping to accomplish with my blog. Many of the blogs I've been reading are read by hundreds of people daily. Is that what I want? Also, do I really need the pressure of having to post daily (or, at least, way more often than I do)? Who's my audience? And really, is anyone truly interested in what our little family did on summer vacation or on Family Night or the fact that Hannah's teeth are loose or that we have a new kitchen... I think the only ones interested in that stuff are immediate family and a few close friends. And us, of course. But then I look at my favorite blogs, and these are just ordinary people living their lives that are plenty interesting to me when I just hear what Mom made for dinner or what kind of sink cleanser she loves or the funny outfit her child put together. So maybe someone indeed does want to read my musings about potty training and ballet lessons and Sunday School.
I have found, however, that it is way too easy to get drawn into all this "slice of life" stuff, reading blogs for hours, and forgetting to live my own "slice" at that moment. But maybe I can step up my efforts to post more often with some of the everyday stuff that goes on around Casa Cormier. At the very least, maybe the girls will enjoy all this someday...
Saturday, October 07, 2006
This and that...
Well, it's finally happening! Hannah's two front teeth are finally loose! Last night at dinner, she was complaining that her teeth hurt when she bit down on her cracker. At first I thought, oh dear, I hope she's not having more dental problems - when's her next checkup (it's in November). When I asked her which teeth hurt specifically, she pointed to the two front ones and it was then that I knew! We gave them a wiggle, and she was pretty excited, especially since so many of her friends are already sporting a big gap in the front of their smiles. She even had Rachel wiggling them! Unfortunately, I'm pretty squeamish about these things, so when she yanks them out (and judging by her obsession with them, she probably will yank them out), you will find me out cold on the floor!
What's the going rate for front teeth these days?
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Rachel has always loved books. She sits and pores over stacks of them for hours at a time - I'm not kidding! She's going to be one of those kids who will learn to read on her own, just from listening to others read to her. She has an amazing memory, and can recite a new book after hearing it read just one or two times. She's been "reading" like that since she was two.
Hannah is reading well these days. She has worked hard to learn her phonics sounds and her sight words, and I often throw more challenging stuff at her to stretch her - she is always up to the task. Unfortunately, I have to make sure Rachel is otherwise occupied when Hannah is reading aloud from one of our books, because when she gets stuck on a word, Rachel is more than happy to supply the correct word for her from across the room. Hannah gets very frustrated with this. Little sisters can be such a pain! Except in this case, Rachel is only trying to be helpful, and her feelings get hurt when Hannah tells her to go away and leave her alone while she's reading. This requires some careful negotiating on my part...
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Recently, at the book store, we met a family and were talking with them about our adoptions. Abbie piped up, "Mama and Daddy came to China to get me. I was in Guangdong. Mrs. Qiu [the SWI Director] said I was a gentle baby!" And on and on... At two-and-a-half, she's quite the chatterbox! And she's happy to provide any and all information to anyone who will listen (including Al's and my ages). We'd better not discuss our finances in front of her...
What's the going rate for front teeth these days?
______________________________________________________________________
Rachel has always loved books. She sits and pores over stacks of them for hours at a time - I'm not kidding! She's going to be one of those kids who will learn to read on her own, just from listening to others read to her. She has an amazing memory, and can recite a new book after hearing it read just one or two times. She's been "reading" like that since she was two.
Hannah is reading well these days. She has worked hard to learn her phonics sounds and her sight words, and I often throw more challenging stuff at her to stretch her - she is always up to the task. Unfortunately, I have to make sure Rachel is otherwise occupied when Hannah is reading aloud from one of our books, because when she gets stuck on a word, Rachel is more than happy to supply the correct word for her from across the room. Hannah gets very frustrated with this. Little sisters can be such a pain! Except in this case, Rachel is only trying to be helpful, and her feelings get hurt when Hannah tells her to go away and leave her alone while she's reading. This requires some careful negotiating on my part...
_____________________________________________________________________
Recently, at the book store, we met a family and were talking with them about our adoptions. Abbie piped up, "Mama and Daddy came to China to get me. I was in Guangdong. Mrs. Qiu [the SWI Director] said I was a gentle baby!" And on and on... At two-and-a-half, she's quite the chatterbox! And she's happy to provide any and all information to anyone who will listen (including Al's and my ages). We'd better not discuss our finances in front of her...
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