Friends!

This is the group. There were 7 boys. They may not be smiling -- we were lucky

just to get them to stay on the bench!
This is my friend and her son who are waiting on the twin girls. She's such a great mom!
They will name the girls Noel SoHyeon and Elise MeeHyeon.

A couple weeks ago we met some fellow adoptive families at the Botanical Gardens. Three of the little boys (including Henry) have come home from Korea in the past 3 months. One of the families is waiting on twin girls from Korea! Even though I'm so happy for them, I have to admit I'm just a tiny bit jealous. I have always wanted twins! I can't complain, though, since I'm crazy about the kids I do have!! Our day at the garden was fun and relaxing for me because it was just Henry and I that day. That doesn't happen very often, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. :)

The Chicago Highlight

Poor Henry got cut out of this picture -- he's in the stroller fast asleep!

The highlight of our Chicago trip was meeting the family of a dear bloggy friend at Shedd's Aquarium. Our children are almost identical in age and temperament, and everyone got along famously. We saw sea turtles, fish, dolphins, the beluga whale, and penguins. The children played penguin dress-up, touched starfish, climbed up walls and came down slides, and even got to play inside a submarine. We all ate lunch together and then went outside. We found a little grassy area with a few trees and the girls all started playing. There were no toys or anything to climb on, but they played for a very long time and my girls enjoyed this time playing even more than the aquarium! Funny how a whole lot of nothing can be so fun when you're with good friends! This gave the adults a great time to visit and watch our sons, who both came home from Korea within a month or so of each other. I really enjoyed exchanging stories about the boys because they are so incredibly similar -- I'm not the only one trying to figure out how to survive with 4&5 yr. old daughters and a son who climbs, empties everything (even the garbage can), and is having some sleep issues again. It's a shame we can't see these friends more often because, as Brent said on the way home, "What a fabulous family!"

Chicago!

We thought the sailboats on Lake Michigan were so pretty.

The girls had never seen a view like that before.
The fountain at Grant Park with skyscrapers behind it. I think that's a beautiful view!

This fountain at Grant park is what Trixie had noticed driving by and really wanted to see it up close.

Brent and the girls are in front of an Indian statue on Congress Plaza.

Lydia had noticed these statues while we were driving and really wanted

to see them up close.

Full of pancakes and having fun in the booth at the Artist's Cafe.

We took a quick weekend trip to Chicago. I really wanted the girls to see the big city -- I knew they'd love it. We all had a great time. We did a lot of exploring and of course there was swimming in the hotel pool. We walked around at Grant Park and Congress Plaza because those were 2 places the girls noticed and wanted to take a closer look. We ate pancakes at the Artist's Cafe. That was nostalgic for Brent and I because years ago -- before kids -- we ate pancakes at that exact cafe on a Christmas trip to Chicago. And we were able to walk along Michigan Ave. for a little bit. Several people have told me that we missed the boat by not going to Millenium Park. Next time...... This trip just whet my appetite to go back again. I'd like to go back and do some more with the kids, but I think I'd like another trip for shopping with girlfriends. Anyone game?

Evening Walk

The other night we were outside playing on our porch (we don't melt quite as quickly in the evening) and decided to take a short walk around our cul-de-sac. I got going first because that usually gets the kids going to follow me. Well, Henry decided that Trixie Lu had to be his partner. He went running up from behind her, grabbed her hand and pulled her along with him. He would not let go of her hand until we got back to the house. They really are becoming buddies. :)

16 months old!

This is a very familiar look. Henry's busy and on the move!

Henry climbs anything -- even windows! He is actually on the way
DOWN from standing on the windowsill.

Henry plays the piano and sings often.

Henry is 16 mos. old today! He is such a joy to have and so much fun. Henry can be challenging, but a lot of those challenges stem from the fact that he's only 16 mos. old and a boy. Henry is still very cuddly (which I love) and he is so very happy. If anyone laughs for any reason he starts laughing too because he wants to be in on the fun. Family hugs always make hime smile and laugh. Henry still dances anytime he hears music, and he has started singing, too. He sometimes sounds like he's singing to himself and he now joins in on a couple songs that we sing all the time. He doesn't sing every word, but he definitely sings some of them at the right time. He also says "two", "three", and "four" when I count to five with him. His very favorite thing to say is "bye-bye" with "hi" being a close second. When I tell Henry "love you" he will sometimes make enough of the correct sounds that I know he's saying it back even though it sounds like "luvalolo". Henry also loves to call out Lydia's name and show us where his nose is.

The sleeping is still going well and eating is definitely one of his favorite things to do, though we have discovered that restaurants aren't always a good place to take Henry. Henry has discovered our piano and he loves to climb up on the piano bench and start banging on the keys. Sometimes he doesn't bang and it actually resembles playing. Henry has also discovered that he likes swimming quite a bit. I would say at this point Henry plays with Trixie Lu as much as he plays with Lydia. The three have really done well this summer and they are a team. Henry doesn't know a stranger and he is friendly to everyone. He loves to wave and say "hi" to anyone he comes into contact with and every car he sees. Though he likes people so much, Henry does not always take kindly to me leaving him with others -- such as the church nursery and sometimes even grandparents. He always calms down within a few minutes. Thank goodness he's so distractable! Henry loves climbing above all else -- he's really taking it to new heights (ha ha!) When people are around Henry they always comment on how very busy he is and what a climber he is. Then they smile and say "He's just so happy and fits right in with your family." I love hearing that.

We think Henry is wonderful and I'm so glad we have him. Lucky us!

Henry really can say please even though he barely said it in the video. He says it real high pitched and cute!

Happy Birthday, America!

Missouri Botanical Garden

The Children's Garden is set up to be like an old Missouri frontier town -- such as Independence, MO. Here we are in a buggy they have set up.
They also have a dress up station. Lydia is pretending to be Sacajawea.

Henry really enjoyed the splash pad in the children's garden. He wanted to touch the bubbling fountains, but at the same time he didn't want to get too close.

Lydia is happy to have Henry with her at one of her favorite spots ever since she first visited the garden as a baby -- the little flock of sheep. I'm not sure Henry is as enthralled as Lydia is.

It's hard to tell, but Lydia, Trixie and Henry are on the bridge in the Chinese Garden -- one of Lydia's favorite spots.

Checking out one of the mama dinosaurs with her eggs. Henry was very interested in the dinosaur.

Lydia and Trixie wanted to have Henry join them as they held hands with their favorite statues. That is something the girls do every trip to the garden. Lydia wants to be sure that everyone notices she is kissing the hand of the statue. Her statue is named Maura and Trixie's is named Deidre.

Henry's favorite thing seemed to be pulling rose petals off one by one.

In front of Trixie's very favorite thing at the garden -- the onions. They are made of chihuly glass and look like floating onions. They really are beautiful.

The Missouri Botanical Garden is one of Lydia, Trixie and I's favorite places to go. Yesterday we finally had a chance to take Henry there. Lydia and Trixie were very excited to show him their favorite things. There's also a dinosaur exhibit right now, so that was an added bonus. :) It was much more difficult keeping an eye on my 3 kids than I realized it would be, but we had a great time.