Lotsa Palooza!

We think we'll define Palooza as "really good times", and claim that our June has been nothing but Paloozin!

The month started off with a grand celebration, as big brother Tyler graduated from high school. We are soooooo proud of Tyler, and we were so excited to attend the ceremony. It was a little nerve-wracking with Max, who has yet to master the talent of sitting still. He just kept pointing at all of the graduates, and saying "lots of people."

If we would have let him, he would have spent the entire ceremony swinging from a hand railing, but given that the drop was about 6 feet if he accidentally let go, we had to derail the monkey activities. He was not happy, but we all made it through the pomp and circumstance and posed for the requisite photos afterwards.

A few days later, we were off to Nashville, where we celebrated with 60+ other families who have adopted a child (or children) from Kazakhstan. "Kazapalooza" is the brainchild of four amazing women -- Muriel, Gretchen, Kristen, and Michelle -- who met through their journeys to their children. This was the second annual Kazapalooza event, and it was twice as big as last year's. Who knows what next year will bring?! The event took place in the Opryland Hotel, which we've come to believe might be the size of the City of Cincinnati. Seriously, I never did really get my bearings! It was a little overwhelming, and I'm happy that I set the bar very low for myself, expecting few if any "real" conversations, given the amount of people and the disproportionate amount of toddlers (who always have another agenda when two adults want to stop for a chat). We met so many people who supported us during our journey to Max, and for whom we tried to show that same support somewhere along the way. We wish we could have met even more people, and we certainly would have loved more adult conversation, but the event was just as much for our kids, and it was amazing to celebrate these children.

Glenn was a little overwhelmed by the entire thing (he's not quite the blog stalker that I am -- HA!), so he was happy to escape to our room with Max each night, giving me a chance to go out with a few of the other women each evening. I was so happy to have Lexi Karen by my side, as I felt a little out of sorts -- not sure if it was the toddler thing, or the fact that I knew absolutely no one other than her when we arrived. As always, she was a fantastic friend, and I just tagged along by her confident side!

This was Max on Friday night, as I was headed out the door to meet Karen and others. I kissed him good-night, and said, "Mama is going to meet her friends, okay?" He said, "Night night, Mama. I happy." King-size bed all to yourself. Personal DVD player with multiple DVD options. Elmo pajamas. Ahhhhh. Happiness.

I didn't end up taking very many pictures -- I can't even really explain why. Max was a bit overwhelmed, so I did spend alot of time with him in my arms (although he's getting heavy, I am not complaining -- I never grow tired of that little body snuggled against mine!) So, I guess it was never that easy to balance him AND the camera.

On the first night, we were thrilled to seek out and meet Diana and Bob, who traveled to Ust a few months after us to adopt their son Anton from the same baby house where Max lived for 18 months. Max wasn't too sure about having his picture taken (a theme throughout the weekend). Don't Anton and Max look alike?? Maybe cousins for real??

Thank you, Diana, for better pictures than I was able to capture!

"Don't touch me" - another common approach to the other children. Not typical, and I chalk it up to a bit of sensory overload.

I love this picture of Max. A true gift, from Diana, who took the photo and emailed it to me. I love that Max is wearing his lanyard, and you can almost make out the "Kazapalooza", but clearly see "2009." The lanyard may have been one of Max's favorite parts of the entire trip!

Saturday night, the organizers rented a space at a nearby Dave and Busters, and a "children's DJ" entertained the kids. As did a few parents, who got roped into a rockin' version of YMCA. Great stuff!

It seemed like alot of people headed for home Sunday morning, but we were staying an extra day. So we dressed for the pool and spent a bit of time saying our good-byes that morning on our way to the pool. Max was way more interested in the pool than he was sticking around while his Mom tried to have one last conversation. Hence, he once again wasn't crazy about the photos, but I gave it my best shot!

Someday, Max will not cry when two beautiful women are trying to touch him. :-) In the yellow is Leeza, daughter of the infamous Susan and Joe (and little sis to Sean). Susan posted to our blog EVERY SINGLE DAY when we were in Kaz and was truly a rock of support. When they traveled to Kaz to adopt Leeza several months later, their agency went out of business WHILE THEY WERE IN KAZAKHSTAN. Seriously, wouldn't anyone else freak out? Not Susan. She burrowed into Kaz for 10 weeks and didn't leave until her daughter was firmly strapped in her Ergo carrier for good. Amazing stuff. And, what a BEAUTIFUL daughter.

Nina is in the blue. Towards the end of our first trip, Nina was moved into Max's room in the Baby House, and then we were able to visit with her again during our short second trip to reunite forever with Max. We fell in love with Nina, and we prayed that she would find her forever family. I literally cried when we found out she'd met her family -- a family who we'd already come to admire via their blog. It was so great to see Nina again, and to meet her parents, Lori and Dart (and big brother Nolan) in person (IRL -- "in real life"). We could not have hand-picked a better family for Nina if we'd been given the chance.

One last visit with Lexi Karen, her husband Pat, and Max's buddy Nick. Neither son was eager to pose for yet ANOTHER picture. :-)

We finally made it to the pool, and then spent time later that day exploring the rest of the hotel -- which included an indoor "river" complete with a boat ride. I was happy that we chose to stick around for some extra family time, and as you can see, Max (and Glenn) perked up when there was a little less action around.

I will never grow tired of these "father/son" moments.

Max was acting goofy, running around the hotel room in his "plastic pants." (I'm a little neurotic about my fear that he will somehow poop in the pool, so swim diapers alone don't cut it for me!) He has no idea that he should be mortified that I make him wear these plastic bloomers.

After a few short days at home, Glenn and I headed to Columbus to celebrate the marriage of my dear friend Kelly, to the amazing Gordie. They had a very private ceremony on Friday night, and then a kick-A$%# party on Saturday night. Glenn and I REALLY needed a night away, and Heather once again gave us the gift of keeping Max overnight so we could travel out of town. We had so much fun celebrating with this great couple and all of their great friends, and we were regulars on the dance floor all night long. We love, love, love being Max's parents, but it is so nice to occasionally remind ourselves that we also love being together as a couple.

I spent alot of time in my 20s with these women -- some of those memories are best left unspoken. :-) It was so great to reconnect, and we all share this overwhelming happiness that Kelly and Gordie found one another. Kelly is in the long black dress -- she's the one with the new bride glow. :-)

So, let's see ... we had a family weekend, and then a Glenn/Karen couple's weekend, so what was next? Time for Max and I to hit the road as a two-some. For Father's Day weekend, Max and I drove to my Mom's house on Saturday, spent the evening and the night with her, and then drove 90 minutes into Michigan to spend Father's Day at my dad's house. Was it lonely for Glenn to be without us for the weekend? Maybe so, but I think the 18 holes of golf on both Saturday AND Sunday helped ease the pain. Oh, and he sandwiched in a brunch with his other two children, Tyler and Jessica, between the rounds of golf, so I promise he was not feeling deserted.

My mom scooted Max off to the Build A Bear store at a mall in Toledo. Saturday was our "gotcha day" anniversary, and she wanted to be sure to commemorate the day by helping Max build a snow leopard -- the animal that is featured in alot of stories and pictures of Kazakhstan. I missed alot of the actual assembly, as I was back at the food court leisurely enjoying my dinner without toddler distraction. I came in at the end. I love that she did this with Max on June 20th ... Now, every year on June 20th (or at least until Build A Bear files bankruptcy or otherwise goes out of business) we'll receive a "happy birthday" email for "Zak", the snow leopard. What a great addition to our gotcha day celebration! (As a reminder, Max's first name is actually Zakary, and of course, Zak is Kaz spelled backwards. We are so clever in our family. HA!)

In actuality, we are making a bigger deal about "family" day, or the day that we came home to the US with Max. We know that Glenn will not be in Kaz for our second adoption on "gotcha" day, so our plan is to celebrate our sons' homecoming dates each year.

I think this was the reaction I received when I asked him to get down from the computer after we registered the leopard's birth.

Happier times.

When with Grandma, it's ice cream for dinner.

I have very few pictures of Max at my Dad's house, because Max and I spent much of the afternoon actually in the lake. I know that my dad, my step mom, and uncles Kendall (my brother) and Jason took alot more pictures, all featuring me in my bathing suit. Oh goody for me and them. We also spent some time sitting on the boat, and Max was happy to enjoy a drink while resting between swimming sessions. I spent my summers on this lake as a child, and it was really great to be in it again with my son!

Max and I hit the road late that afternoon and drove the four and a half hours home so that we'd be home for a little Father's Day celebration with Glenn. It's actually a little creepy how quiet Max is in the car if there is a DVD playing. One of our blogger comrades labeled children's DVD's "toddler crack", and it is a bit freaky to see how quickly Max becomes absorbed. I can't say I'm crazy about the separation between parent and child when a DVD player comes into the car, but I also have to admit that it makes traveling with Max a total breeze. It's not my proudest parenting moment, but we traveled 500 miles with zero meltdowns, so I've learned to live with myself and those compromises now and again.

I love the next picture -- I'm not sure who was more excited to say "Happy Father's Day" when Glenn got home that night -- Boomer or Max!

Max had helped me wrap up a few gifts for Glenn, including a pair of shoes. We practiced saying "Happy Father's Day", and Max was eager to shout it when Glenn got home. It came out, "Happy Faddas' Day New Shoes." Clearly, keeping a secret is not Max's strength. He could not wait for Glenn to open those new shoes!

Other quick updates:

• Max sailed through his Early Intervention evaluations, and he does not qualify for any services. All great news, and fascinating to watch and observe. The evaluators and the session were amazing. It may be a new mission of mine to ensure that the under-served in our city absolutely know about this free service. I have to figure out a way to help.

• We are still awaiting our I-797 (final immigration paperwork), and we will then be ready to submit our dossier. Any. Day. Now.

• Glenn took Max to the dentist today, for the first time, where Glenn reports that Max was a rock star and lay quietly in the chair with his mouth wide open while they counted his teeth and gave them a thorough cleaning. (I am in New York on business, and hence missed the dentist visit, which may be a good thing -- I sense Max is a bit more "clingy" with his Mama than he is with his Papa!) This visit was important on a number of levels, including ensuring that Max does not have tooth issues that may be interfering with his willingness to eat/chew. All clear in that regard, so we're really narrowing Max's eating challenges down to "I just don't feel like eating." We'll check back in with his regular pediatrician in two weeks, during Max's 2 1/2 year check-up, and we'll decide then if there is any more that we should do in the eating area. Until then, no big deal, or as Max says, "No bippie." (No biggy....)

Happy Father's Day, especially to all of those first-time Fathers!

Summer's Here!

What better way to kick off summer and Memorial Day weekend than a family reunion?! Now, for some of you, family reunions may be a simple fact of life – but for me, coming from a very small family, I don’t ever recall attending a family reunion. That is, until I met Glenn, and was enveloped into the “Every year, on the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend” tradition. Like most families, Glenn’s family has subsets that are closer than others, but no matter what, that is now Max’s family too, and it is my life wish to ensure that at least once a year, he knows that he is loved by many aunts and uncles and cousins on Glenn’s side of the family. Glenn is one of seven brothers and sisters, and two of his sisters are already deceased, having both died premature deaths long before they should have had to leave this loving family. That’s even more reason to ensure that we make this effort every year to celebrate happier times as a family.

This is picture of all of Max's first cousins who attended the family reunion -- the children of all of his brothers and sisters. You can see that Max is the youngest cousin.

Glenn's brother, Uncle Ronnie, brings a pinata every year for the younger kids to bash. (There are plenty of kids Max's age -- second cousins, etc.) Max was more excited to help Uncle Ronnie hold the pinata rope than he was to actually take a whack at it.

This is Max, handing me back his lollipop. He took one lick, and that was it. He really doesn't like any candy. Strange, but true. Now, potato chips? That's another story...

This is Max giving our great-nephew, Tristan, a big kiss. Tristan's dad is our nephew, Dustin -- Max's cousin. So, I think Tristan is Max's cousin, once removed. I should probably know that stuff, but when you're from a small family, you never think about these things! I do not have any first cousins!

Later that weekend, we broke out Max’s little pitiful baby pool. I bought it last year, and as you’ll see in a minute, we have since upgraded him. I haven't really “sat in the sun” for years – I have no idea what I used to do with my time before Max, but in the last two weeks, I have sat by or near a pool more than I have in the entire last five years combined (not counting vacations, of course). We even joined a local pool! I am slowly but surely getting over my aversion to running into people I know (co-workers, for example) while wearing a bathing suit. I know the life jacket might have been a bit of overkill, but I wanted him to get used to wearing it before we headed off to a bigger pool a few days later.

Maggie, Heather's oldest daughter, splashing up a storm...

... and Max signing and asking for "more."

Also on Memorial Day weekend, Mindy and I took Max to the Taste of Cincinnati festival downtown. (Glenn was golfing). We rode the city bus, which was overwhelmingly exciting for Max. He yells "big bus" every time we are near a bus, and he screams "wait, bus!" if one happens to pass on on the road. On the way downtown, I put his stroller in the seats next to us, and another passenger happened to sit down next to the stroller, and Max fretted for the remainder of the trip that somehow the person was going to take his stroller. On the way home, he made sure it was clear to everyone on the bus exactly whose stroller it was -- he stood up on his seat as we were pulling out of downtown (Mindy had a tight grip on him), and turned around to address all of the passengers. While wagging his finger at everyone, he announced: "People, people, no touch stroller. MY stroller." I have no idea where he got the "people, people" part -- we never say that, and I can't think of a show or a book that addresses "people, people" in that manner. Needless to say, the passengers got a giggle out of that, and he watched his stroller intently to ensure that his directions were followed in their entirety.

Aunt Mindy arranging for a balloon animal. They tell us it was a giraffe, but it had us guessing.

Playing in the fountain on Fountain Square. (Gross water, but I tried to get over it).

He had a death grip on this ride, and his experssion never changed. Afterwards, we asked him if he wanted to go on it again. No indecision on his part: "NO!"

The week after Memorial Day, we ran into a few child care challenges, and Heather, who is home on maternity leave with her 3rd child(!), agreed to let Max spend the day at their house. (Once you have 3 kids, do you think “The more the merrier?!” She’s such a trooper!). And, she was kind enough to send me pictures while I was at work of Max’s great big fun adventure at her house. I get all weepy-eyed when I think about how fortunate we are to have this family so lovingly welcome Max into their lives and their home.



After one weekend with that pitiful little pool, I scoured the Internet and bought Max a much more elaborate pool. Glenn says, “We’re in Hyde Park territory now” (a reference to the ritzy section of Cincinnati that is adjacent to our slightly more rif-raffy Oakley!). I thought Max would sit under the shower on this pool, as that’s what he will do forever if we will let him when he's bathing. Instead, he favors the little inflatable slide and he goes down it over and over again face first. He is fearless, and he really isn’t quite sure how to right himself when he gets turned around under water, so he’ll be wearing that life jacket around the bigger pool for some time to come.


I just have to include the next picture -- we were at Coney Island with Heather's entire family, and Ellie and Maggie would go on every ride, while Max watched (apparently still tramautized from the ATV ride at the Taste festival). I know tthe picture is a bit fuzzy, but I just love how Rich is riding in the middle with all of the kids. Note Max's BFF Ellie 2nd from the right (Maggie is next to her). She went on every ride, but Max just wasn't into it that day.


What’s new developmentally? (I have to note it on here as I can’t say that I’ve actually started a lifebook for him .. yet).

• Max continues to eat better than he had been, although we still have our moments where he just will not eat. We put food in front of him, and then he flashes his all done sign while saying "all done", and hands his plate back to whomever brought it to him. Ugh. His iron levels have improved, and I love the tip we got in our Comments about mixing his iron with a little strawberry ice cream sauce. I guess Mary Poppins knew what she was talking about (“just a spoon full of sugar….”) We’re trying not to get too caught up in his growth or weight, or his potential blood disorder, but we can tell he has grown quite a bit and put on a lot of weight. His latest shoes are a size 7, and he’s solidly in 2T clothing. He’ll have his 2 ½ year doctor appointment in two weeks, and we’ll get the official stats then.
• His vocabulary improves every day. He’s saying many, many more words, although we’re still working on getting beyond 3 words at a time. (He had his initial “intake” with Early Intervention last week, and his evaluation is next week). He is obsessed with manners, and I don’t really think we did that to him. Maybe school? He says “Please, Mama” and “Thank you, Mama” and “Excuse me” a lot! If he is walking around one of his toys that is anywhere near his path, he says “Excuse me” to the toy. (It sounds more like “scuuuuuz me” with a really nasally accent – again, not sure where that comes from!). It is just TOO cute!
• He can’t quite say “Okay”, so he answers a lot of questions with “Otay.” Love it! We’ll get that “k” eventually, but “Otay” is just the sweetest word to me, and not just because it generally means he is actually agreeing to do something that we ask him to do!
• He LOVES throwing things away. If you are at our house and you are eating something with a wrapper, just be prepared for him to perch himself at your side, waiting for you to be finished so he can ask you if he can throw away the wrapper. Not kidding.
• He is just starting to get the potty thing. One of our fave blogger moms wrote about her hesitancy to jump into potty training, and I have to steal her thoughts because she nailed my thinking (e.g. “diapers are easier, don’t want him to grow up too fast, public bathrooms – ick,” etc.). The other night Max and I were laying in bed together, reading books as we do every night as part of his bedtime routine before he heads to his own crib, and he reached down and touched his diaper and said, “pee pee, Mama.” I asked him, “did you go pee pee in your diaper?” and he said, “Yes, change diaper.” (Or, at least I think that’s what he said – even his parents have a difficult time interpreting some words). Now, I was super cozy and snuggled in for the books, and it was dark throughout our 2nd floor, except for a nightlight in his room and a reading lamp in our room. Honestly, I just didn’t feel like getting up at that minute! (No mother of the year award – AGAIN!) So, I said, “If you get down from this bed, go into your room, get a diaper, and bring it to me, I’ll change your diaper.” He shouted, “Otay”, and off he went, through the dark and returned with a diaper a few seconds later. There’s definitely nothing wrong with his receptive speech! Sigh, I guess he is growing up, and I guess we’ll be staring down potty-training sooner than later. ☺
• He is still just the happiest kid, but he does throw the occasional temper tantrums. The two biggest doozies I have witnessed have both been related to making him get out of the shower. He loves just sitting in the shower, playing with the soap, and letting the water pour down on his head. I’ve tried the “five more minutes, two more minutes”, etc. routine, I’ve pretended we’ve run out of water, and I’ve created major distractions post-shower .. but on a few occasions, he was just inconsolable for several minutes. He’ll probably quit taking showers when he turns 12 and I’ll long for the days when he would sit in there for hours if we’d let him!

One of the post-shower distractions is playing with a bag full of costume jewelry.

He is all boy, and he loves being outside, pushing his trucks around, kicking a ball, swinging a bat, etc. He had a stick in his hand the other day, and he pretended it was a golf club and kept “swinging” it like he was hitting a ball. I think I saw true tears of joy in Glenn’s eyes when that happened. We are having so much fun that we barely remember to make progress on our next adoption. We’re happy to report that we finally submitted our “final” home study to Immigration, so we’re now officially in waiting mode for that elusive I-797 form. (I put quotes around final because we’ve been forewarned that it will likely need an addedum, based on Embassy feedback, along with multiple other paperwork updates along the way). We have all of the other major paperwork gathered -- new stuff like a mortgage letter was super fun -- and once that I-797 hits the mailbox we will be ready to submit our dossier.

Things are really changing in Kaz, but we are plowing ahead and hoping for the best. If we are meant to find Max’s brother in Kazahkstan, then hopefully we will be on our way there sometime next year. If our child is not in Kaz, then we’ll just have to wait to see what path unrolls before us. We’re already so amazingly blessed, so whatever happens, happens.

A quick shout-out to my Mom. I knew Max would bring me insurmountable joy, but never realized how much joy he would bring to my mom -- and much joy I get out of seeing them together. It melts my heart when he recognizes her every time their paths cross. I'm at that age when many of my friends are losing their parents, and both of Glenn's parents are already deceased. I am so happy that both my mother and my father are alive to experience this amazing grandchild of theirs. My mom has also been focusing so well on her health, and I know she wants to make sure she is around for a LONG time to see Max (and his brother, when he ever arrives) grow up. My mom also has been making these AMAZING scrapbooks for Max that will be cherished FOREVER. The pics below are from the weekend following Mother's Day, when my mom made the trip to Cincinnati, not only to see her grandchild, but also to provide us with childcare so that Glenn and I could participate in a church/community service project all day on Saturday. Happy belated Mothers Day, Mom, and THANK YOU!





We just finished up a weekend in Nashville with alot of other families who have adopted children from Kazakhstan. Stay tuned for more about that, too. Also, we are just a few weeks away from our one-year anniversary of the moment we carried Max out of the baby house. We still aren't sure how we will commemorate that day, but stay tuned for that as well. Happy Summer!