Favorite Photo Friday

CHEESE!!!!

Joe Needs to Come Home

Joe has been gone since early Tuesday morning and isn't home yet - we miss him for many reasons but I found one BIG reason he needs to come home RIGHT NOW!!! We are having a big thaw here - everything is melting - so I went outside today to get the mail and I look down and see blood - hmmm, I thought that was odd so I looked around some more - yuck - there was squirrel fur - another glance yucky squirrel body parts - looked farther - I KID YOU NOT - LOTS of squirrel body parts - I'm thinking maybe three or four squirrel bodies scattered all over under all of that snow and now laying right in front of my door. Now, I'm the woman who wanted to be a mortician AND I love to dissect things too, but there is something different about mangled animal parts lying all over!! I'm thinking FIRST I will give Joe a hug when he gets home BUT THEN I will hand him a shovel and send him on a burial mission!!! So, I'm sharing this in case you happen to stop over before Joe gets home - don't think I'm a poor housekeeper/yardkeeper - it's just a squirrel war zone over here!

Shrek Addict

I think I posted before that Chloe is a Shrek-lover - well this was our "uplifting" conversation yesterday.

Chloe: "Mommy, I Pwincess (Princess) FEEEEEEONA (Fiona - she stretches it on FOREVER!!!)
Me: "Oh, you are right, you are a princess. So who am I?"

Chloe: a split second later - "Mommy, You Donkey!!!"

Gotta Love that Girl!!!

HILARIOUS!!!!

This is one of the best I've seen - ok, maybe it's the "library thing" and me but I still LOVE IT!!!
(By the way - you may have to go to the sidebar and turn off the music first.)

Video and Code Provided by WhoIsTheMonkey.com

Our Weekend

Well - we are home safe and sound - driving out Friday night was HORRIBLE we stopped counting at over 25 cars in the ditch - we hit a huge ice storm - in fact, we heard the next day that I-29 had been declared shut down - while we were out driving on it - yes, we attest that it was horrible!!!

So, we made it - watched 6+ hockey games - yes, got up for two games at 5:30 AM to be there by 6:30 (see me smiling - NOT!!!) - but we had lots of fun!!! We even got some shopping in - Chloe had a gift certificate from Christmas to use at Build a Bear Worshop - we wondered how she would do - she LOVED it - mind you, this is not something she can become addicted to - we'd be broke!!! Here are some pics from Build A Bear - thought Grandma might like to see these - thank you Grandma - she had so much fun and loves Hopper, the name for her new bunny!!!

Giving Hopper a Bath....

There she is - our fashionable Hopper!!

WE HAVE A LID!!!!

For those of you that have adopted or are waiting to adopt - you know this is a BIG deal - it means China is saying - we have your dossier and it is logged in and now the big wait begins - everything in China is dependent upon the date you were logged in and ours is 1/29!!!! We just found out today - and that was a long wait since it was DTC (Dossier to China) on 12/20. Usually you hear in 3-4 weeks and we've been waiting quite awhile. SO - now we wait some more!!!

Well - it's off to hockey for us. We have TWO tournaments this weekend - that means 6+ games (yes, I'm trying to smile!!!) - the positive side - at least they are all in the same city!!! Hang on - only a few weeks left!!

Favorite Photo Friday

What should any good librarian's daughter do?? You got it - read to her friends!!

The funny part of this is that this bear is supposed to read to her - nope, not for Chloe - "I read to Bear."

Mr. Cupid

Well - our Dad was quite "the Valentine guy" yesterday - we spent most of the day finding Valentine's all over our house - we went to the fridge - there were Valentine's for all of us, we got Chloe's clothes - there was a Valentine, the boys put their clothes away - there were more Valentines!! We had fun finding them - even Mom had a surprise or two!!! What a guy, I tell you!! He knows how to make a day special! (Wish I'd thought of that!!!!) :) Chloe wanted to show you her Valentine's!! (The boys weren't about to pose for a blog picture for me!!!)

Happy Valentine's Day

Just a small wish to send out to all who read my blog - hope you have a great day!!!

A Girl Can Dream, Can't She???

This is what I woke up to this morning.....

Ok, Just Kidding, but I would've loved to - it's beautiful!!! And you know how I am about winter ~ snow ~ and ice.

They were all taken in Switzerland - hmmmm, maybe we should see if Joe needs a job change!

Chloe's Sleeping Quarters

With the Big Move of the boys to the basement - Chloe also got to move. We moved her out of the baby's room and into her NEW ROOM!!! She is loving it in there - it's a little bigger room so she now even has toys in there - which we find all over her bed when she gets up from naps or nightime - hmmm, wonder what else she does besides sleep in there?!?! Joe got very creative on the paint job - I was warned by the boys NOT to even go in until he was done painting but I love it - very PEPTO PINK and YELLOW - what's not to love?!?!? The first time Chloe saw the paint she said - "It's my Dora Room." She has a point - it screams "Dora!!"

Chinese New Year Books

I have been asked a few times for recommendations on books for Chinese Celebrations so I'm going to post a bunch here - this will be a long post, sorry. I am also posting them this way so that in case you were interested in buying them from Amazon - if you click here off of my site then I can earn money towards our next adoption. So, here goes:

Favorite Photo Friday

I call these "Feline Going Fishing"

If I were these fish - I'd be VERY AFRAID, but they all come right to the top ~ we have some odd pets over here!!

And the Answer Is.....

3 MONTHS!!!! Yes, to all of you who voted 3 months - you were right!! NOW - I must explain.......We actually knew each other pretty well - we had been friends in a large group since the beginning of the school year - AND we were 21 and 22 yrs. old (see age has some bearing there too, right?!?!?!) We went on our first "official" date on Nov. 11 (I didn't know this but Joe was looking for rings over Christmas break already - yikes!!!) and he proposed on Feb. 11. So there you have it - 3 months - but then we didn't get married until that following December - so we were engaged quite a long time too!!! Now you know how the Bilby's began......I think the rest of you should share.......oh yes, but we need a poll first!!!

Look out Dora

"Oh MAN", said Swiper - there is a new love in our home (thanks to Verna) and Dora may be de-throned!!! You can see her in action here - Kai Lan has a few videos and games on Nick Jr. but is coming to their programming in March. Now we REALLY have a reason to get cable!! We'll make Chloe ask Daddy - that'll do it!!

She has been coloring this page I printed off now for hours - check this out:






Our Regular Picasso (We think she even stays in the lines pretty well for being 2!!!! Think we're biased???)





Hard at work.....












Stay tuned......tomorrow's post - the answer to the poll!!!!

Blessings

I have been complaining too much over here so I want to list some blessings today:
(can you tell I'm finally seeing some light at the end of a very long tunnel???)

*All of my kids are back in their beds to sleep - you remember this whole flu bug thing started exactly one week ago today!!

*No bloody noses last night!!

*No vomiting last night!!

*Chloe only got up THREE times last night!!

*I got five hours of sleep IN A ROW last night!!

*The boys slept ALL NIGHT!!

*When I got home from work last night, Joe had the whole house cleaned and sanitized and I AM NOT KIDDING!! I love that guy!!!

*All of my little ones are up and around today!

*Chloe is the only one still on meds! (Well, if you count cough medicine, then so is Aaron!)

*There is NEW SNOW on the ground!!

*I have super friends and family!!

*Through this past week, Chloe has started telling us when she has to go potty!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Don't say it too loudly, I don't want her to know it's a GOOD thing!!!!) It may be those pull-ups Joe bought that turn cold when she pees - he is brilliant!!

*We have a BIG GOD that heals our frail bodies even after they've been through "the wringer" - Thank you God!

A Poll at Mr. Brian's Request

Couldn't Resist

I saw this on my friend Sue's blog so I had to try it:

Your 1920's Name is:

Robbie Amalia

What's Your 1920's Name?

If you play along - let me know - these are quite the names, huh??!?!? Sorry this is the kind of blogging you get with only a few hours of sleep!!

Sleepyheads

Double Happiness had another Photo Challenge that I thought would be fun to participate in. They are all truly "sleeping pics" except that top one of the guys - they called me to come take it - thought it would be fun!! (You can double click on the collage if you want to see it larger.)

Where are the Bilby's????

I truly mean this - your kind comments and emails have kept me going over here - we thought we were "in the clear" last night as we went to bed - Micah and Caleb had no fevers (still laying flat - but no fevers!!) and Aaron and Chloe seemed great. 11:00 pm - Aaron's up with a raging fever and Chloe walks out of her room and her face is VERY red - here we go again!! If I thought the boys with high fevers was yucky, imagine a 2 year old with a raging fever - she acts dillusional - she cries, whimpers, thrashes all over the bed and then tries to get up and come find us - I finally gave in and slept in her bed (I NEVER do that - I love my sleep too much!!!) But that didn't even work - she just kept saying - "Mommy, I NEED you to howd me." (That's "hold" in Chloe language.) But after hours of sitting up in bed holding a little one that becomes dangerous - I was afraid I'd fall off the bed!! She only sleeps for 30-45 min. at a time and then spends an hour crying because she's so uncomfortable. Tonight I'm sleeping on the couch - one of the boys will have to be de-throned - I've got to find a spot I can sleep sitting up with her! SO, there it is - the Bilby Saga in a nutshell - just wanted to catch you all up since you aren't here to experience it with us!! :) Thanks for thinking of us though - I'm feeling like I need it at this point!!

Favorite Photo Friday

LOVE THIS ONE !! My boys at their best!!

**Update #1 - yes, I am feeling rather unpopular with the comments but I do know that it is blogger - I've been in touch with them and they are working on it - mine is not the only one - if there's comfort in that!! So keep trying to post - it will work eventually! Thanks for all of the nice emails though - I still felt loved!

**Update #2 - sick update - well fevers are down now to 102 - that's good for us - Caleb got over 105 today and Micah was right behind him - scary!! Aaron and Chloe, Dad and Mom are still "holding their own"!! Say a prayer - this is yucky and WE DON'T WANT IT!!!

**Guess what we won't be doing this weekend?!?!? HOCKEY!! (Don't say this too loudly but I may even miss it!!)

The Flu Bug

I am wondering at this point - what are those flu shots for anyway?!?!? I have two down with fevers that just don't stop rising - at one point last night they both reached 104 - THAT I DO NOT LIKE!!! I have one that can not stand up or he vomits, and mostly both just stay flat in their beds all day. AND another just came up from sleeping and announced that his throat was hurting and he was feeling a little funny. So far, Chloe is holding her own - running around like Florence Nightingale to see who needs a bucket and if they don't need the bucket then I have caught her with it on her head - LOVELY!!! Now she is asking who needs juice and offering each of them her sippy cup in turn - good thing they know not to drink out of it. Our coughs are horrible and our Kleenex supply is nearing it's end. I ran out of liquid Acetaminophen last night and the Ibuprofen in quickly vanishing as well - this blinkie says it all

By the way - thanks Mom for all the times you sat up with me - that's a big job!! :)

January 31, 2005

Two years ago today we got our long-awaited phone call - I was sick - flat in bed with the stomach flu and our social worker called and said - "We have your referral - you can come in tomorrow to see her." That was quite a day - I mean really, how do you sleep at all when you know that you will see your daughter in less than 24 hours?!?! We knew her Chinese Name - Jiang Liang and that she was in Pingjiang, Hunan China and that she was born on June 21, 2004. That is all we knew at that moment but we also knew we loved that little girl and she was ours!! Somehow we at least closed our eyes that night and first thing in the morning Joe met the boys and I at our Bethany office to see our Chloe's face. When our social worker pulled out those pictures I remember just staring - she was beautiful and it was so odd - we had never seen her before but we instantly bonded with that face.

Our social worker told us we had 24 hours to

decide if we wanted to keep that referral or say no - we hadn't even gotten out of the building and Caleb said, "We are going to say Yes, aren't we?!?" There was no doubt!!! We came home and made a million copies of her three pictures and off we went to show the world.

This is the email we sent to all of our family and friends:

We found out at exactly 10:30 this morning who our new daughter
would be!!!! We are attaching a picture (we have a few more in case
anyone wants to be bored to tears with our photo album!!!!) and I have some
info. Her name is Jiang Liang. Jiang is the city where her orphanage
is located and Liang is the name her caregivers gave her meaning “Best
Wishes”. We know her first name will be Chloe but we are unsure at this
point of her middle name and then we will use Liang in her name as
well.

She is in Pingjiang in the Hunan Province. She was
abandoned at the doorstep of the orphanage on June 28, 04 and the orphanage
doctor guessed her to be about a week old at that time – so they say her
birthday is June 21, 2004. We were told that we got one of the youngest
babies they have ever seen out of China – usually they are closer to a year
old. She was about 7 lbs. at birth so we are thrilled to have such a
healthy little one!! We took all of her medical papers to our family
doctor today and he was extremely pleased. He said there was nothing that
would even hint at a problem and for that we are very grateful!! We got a
lot of fun information on her – she loves music and being outdoors and sucks her
thumb to get to sleep. They said she is very happy and rarely
cries!!! (We’ll take that!!) They also said that she is such a
wonderful baby that her caregiver is very attached. That will be
hard! We did some searching on the internet and there is a site for this
orphanage and it said that this is one of the few orphanages where there is
a nanny for each baby. Wow – what a blessing – we have been praying from day
one that she would be held often and taken good care of – God is so
good!!

So, she is about 7 months now and this picture was probably
taken when she was 3-4 months old. They bundle them in many layers in
China and we have seen many babies with hair sticking straight up – so it
must be the style for little ones!!! Caleb has said we need to make sure and
take along gel to make that hair lay down, but Mom thinks we just need a bow
or two!!!

Anyway, just wanted to share our news – we are thrilled
and what is most amazing is to see how God has worked through all of our
prayers!!! We are told to expect to travel in late March so we shall see!!! It
is hard now that we’ve seen her – we just want to go get her!! Keep praying
for us in that – we are anxious to leave our boys for two weeks, but we know
that it is only short term and it is to go get another to add to our
family!! The boys are so excited – each one has something fun they want to
teach her!!! I think she will not be lacking for attention!!

Thanks again for all of your prayers-

Joe and Becky Micah, Caleb and Aaron and now Chloe!!!

Favorite Blinkie Wednesday

Ok - so we find all these great blinkies and when will we ever be able to use them all?!?! So (since I have nothing else to post) we can share some favorites today. If you chose to play along - just add your name and blog address to Mr. Linky and then post your favorite blinky on your blog today - we can all come and visit!!

Here's Mine (Thanks Verna)