SNOW DAYS

I'm on the back side of the snow now, and can look back on the Christmas snow surprise with some fond memories.  The losing power for 3 days with in-laws in town was anything but fun!

2 of my 5 have never experienced snow or cold weather for that matter.  I thought I would do a pic-to-post, since that's really what you've tuned in to see anyways! 

Starting Christmas afternoon, freezing rain and intermittent power outages had me thinking I might need to borrow this oven to cook dinner.  Kate, reading me the "rules" in her kitchen.

We woke to no power and a foot of snow!  Kate really was not liking the cold, brightness, restrictive layers.  Megan tried to coax her into the fun.

However, in the end....the lack of ability to bend any joint and mittens up to her elbows, Kate toppled over in the driveway and declared herself to be a beach girl instead!

Tim, Wes and Megan loved the snow and introduced Tim to sledding, icicles, and wet/soaked snow clothes!

Once you take the tree limb out of this, they aren't half bad ya know!  Before you send China a letter on Tim's behalf....he lived 5 years with unsanitary water, a little ice was probably cleaner than what he lived with for years!

Yes, you really do have to teach them everything.....such as... it might be easier to walk down the shoveled path vs making your own, through the snow, all the way to the sledding hill? No wonder he slept 13 straight hours that night?

Hey Tim......Can you ask that white guy the way back to our tropical home?

You mean the white guy with no face? Ok.

Cuse me Mister, my sister wants to know which way to China?  Either way, you say?  Ok, I'll let her know it's a long, long long way.  

But, you are on your own for that trip.  I am loving it here! .,/zZ?//p[-0

-=322-===3 The last little bit is Kate's thoughts.  She has her own language, or maybe she is writing code for software?  Maybe that's why she isn't interested in learning English...pffftt, it's so beneath her!

UNENDING JOY!!!

    Christmas at the Brakman's shaped up to be the crazy chaos is usually is.  Megan and Tim spent the weeks before counting and arranging all presents.....over and over again each night.  Tim was super excited he had the same number that Megan had under the tree.  Now mind you, Tim had no idea why gifts were there or that he would one day open them.  He was still processing this whole Santa and flying deer thing his sib's were telling him!  He had mastered Santa, Ho HO HO, Merry Chris-a-miss, Baby Jesus (to any sleeping baby), and most painfully.... if you disobey Mommy and pull on the stocking that has your name on it, the very heavy holder falls on your head and makes you bleed!

Kate really is completely oblivious aside from pulling off ornaments from the tree daily.  She is still working on sleeping through the night and not screaming when I leave the room.  Yepper's, she and I have a lot of togetherness! I will give ya a pictorgram of our Eve and Christmas day:

Christmas Eve

Tim opening his first present like an 88 year old grandpa!  So careful to pull all tape off and not rip paper, adding an occasional, "oh nice" even before the gift is open?  We swiftly showed him how to rip, tear and Woooo Hoooo like a kid should!

Then the 5 years as an orphan oozed out and Tim needed to hide and hoard his gifts in a safe place, so sad and hoping one day he will feel safe in his own home.

Kate seemed to wonder why is it today that we are opening these colorful boxes?  She needed help from her big sis and looked around for assurance that ripping this paper is ok with the "No, no" big people in the house.

And a sampling of the "Bigs" holiday splendor!

Beau, the leader of this tribe.

Megan, our "Big Sis" and my lifesaver on many occasions!

Wes, our middle and comedian, the glue that keeps us together!

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!  Now to dig out the xue (snow in mandarin) gear for the white stuff falling!  Could ya ask for a better first Christmas in Arkansas and as a family of 7?!!

Twas The Week Before Christmas

Wow!  Yes time has flown.  Let's catch up with the Brakman 5's transition progress............


Hmmmm, Does anyone remember these 3????

They don't make the FB postings often, but they are NOT invisible around the house.  After all, 3 teens are an eating, studying, sport playing blurrrr for the most part, in this house.  Megan is a mini Mama and both Tim and Kate are nuts about her.  Beau is Kate's favorite, and Beau changed his first diaper ever today....and it actually stayed on!  Wes is still finding his place.  He is just fine with Kate, but seems to not find a whole lotta patience for his brother.  We are giving it time. 

We are getting ready for Christmas and all the fun it brings.  Tim recognizes Santa and sings Jingle Bells and his Chinglish (Chinese, English and Spnaish) version of Feliz Navidad....however he seems to not grasp much of the holiday trappings.  We have only been home for 26 days now and the language barrier is one of the few things that prevent him from taking it all in with a complete understanding. 

 Imagine if someone told you a fat man, dressed in a red suit will drive a sleigh with flying deer and deliver colorful boxes through your fireplace to you on a specific day......well, he still thinks this is a head scratcher! 

Kate is completely oblivious to it all, except finds it fun to pull the ornaments off the tree daily!  She did say Ho, Ho, Ho when we passed a blow up of Santa on our walk today....so maybe she will have it all figured out in a weeks time!

Well, this was the runner up to our christmas photo this  year.  We wish all of you few who actually read this blog......A blessed and joyous holiday season!

Two Weeks Home!

A blog update from Cindy this time.....yes, you should be impressed!  Ok, Ok, let's quickly recap!

Tim waving goodbye to China

Tim has decided to conquer all play equipment all at once.  Loves puzzles, cars and on a rare occasion the Wii.  His behavior has dramatically improved.  Other than being a typical 5 year old with an opinion, he is a picky eater and has just recently started giving hugs!!!! Each day his english expands.  It is truly amazing to watch this transformation unfold before our eyes! 

Let me introduce my shadow next.....She still goes EVERYWHERE with me.  She walks miles each day on those tiny legs following my every move.  If she weren't so cute, I would complain!  Kate has a temper and honestly thinks she is me sometimes- while she gibber jabbers her bossing at her older sibs!  The hand on the hip so reminds me of my mother....must be in the DNA??? She is so trying to copy her brother and with a little help, she gets the job done!  She eats constantly and is never picky!  She had her blood drawn and was so darn brave!

We are still climbing to the month home and things are easier plateau, but are getting through each day just fine.  Both kids see the doctor for the first time on the 19th and should be moving along to the specialist from there.  Tim is on the waiting list for preschool, he would LOVE to go to school just like his big brother's and sister.  Prayers a spot opens up for him.  He puts his backpack in the car for carpool each day just in case!  

We are looking forward to the holiday season and all 5 of the kids enjoying each other.  Always love to hear from all of you.  My apologies if I haven't responded, I'll try and get better about that!

I'm off to get a crying little girl off the floor and rescue Tim from being closed in the pantry!  Oh the unending JOY!!!! 

Look! Up in the Sky!

It's a bird...it's a plane...no it's Superman ON a plane!!!

According to the airline website, Superman and Ladybug are in the air! They should arrive in Chicago around lunchtime tomorrow (Thanksgiving) and make the connection to Memphis. They will then make the 3 hour drive home. This will be Tim and Kate's first experience in a car seat. I am hoping the kids will be so tired that they just crash during that part of this long trip. If all goes well, the
Brakmans will arrive home Thanksgiving night. I don't know about you, but I can't WAIT to see pics of them all together at home! Thank you for your continued prayers. Really hoping that Cindy is the next one to blog here, but I'm thinking it may take a few days before we see a post! Happy Thanksgiving!!

The Homestretch!

Thank you to those of you who have kept the Brakmans, big and small, in your prayers.  Glimmers of hope are beginning to shine again.  Not only because the finish line is in sight (of sorts), but because they have begun to see baby steps of progress in Tim's and Kate's adjustment.  Bryce took Tim to the zoo on Monday, and he did pretty well.  And Kate was even playing with Bryce, whom she has been a little scared of for the last week!

Laughing while feeding Baba snacks

Tuesday was the all important Consulate Appointment.  All paperwork is done for China and the U.S., so as soon as they land in Chicago, they will officially be U.S. citizens!  After the CA, they went to Shaiman Island for a little more "touristy" stuff.  

Kate is a little scared of dolls. I think she is scared of the statues, too?  She tried to hit them!

It was quite a long day, and everyone was glad to get back to the hotel.  Cindy went to rock Kate in the other room, and when she returned to the bedroom, she saw this....

He has slept in his crib every night, but apparently he wanted to be a little closer to Mama and Baba this time!  So he just crawled right up!  With his blanket...and his superman...and his flashlight...and his cell phone...and fell right to sleep.

They have now spent their last night in Guangzhou and will be heading to Hong Kong soon!  This morning (Wednesday in China) they are all getting out and doing a little more sightseeing while they wait on the kids' visas to arrive.  By 4pm they should be loading up in their shuttle van and on their way to Hong Kong.  They will spend one more night there and then catch their Chicago bound flight on Thursday morning (Wednesday night for us!).  I know Cindy is beyond happy to be on her way back to see her 3 incredible kiddos at home, not to mention that she can sleep in her own bed soon!  I am sure with Mama and Baba having "home field advantage", the kids will settle in and make great strides very quickly.

Beau, Megan and Wes....Enjoy the last couple days of "normal."  No longer a trio, you're about to become part of the Fantastic Five!  We will be praying for you guys as well during this exciting and challenging time! Mamaw and Poppa...just 2 more sleeps!  

<3 Lori

Adoption is Hard

It is plain tough. And these last few days have been just that for Bryce and Cindy. The kids had their medical check ups on Saturday. No real surprises there. Sunday was a pre-scheduled shopping day with their group. I don't have many details about those days, because I haven't heard from them too much. What I do know is that these days with Tim have been really difficult. His behavior continues to be very bad at times and it is apparent that there is a lot of healing that needs to take place in his little heart...not just his physical one either. They have read all the books, done all the training, talked to other adoptive parents. So it's not like they were blind when they walked in to this adoption. But I am not sure that anyone else's story can fully prepare you for the tantrums, the intentional misbehavior, or the rejection that can come from the little boy in all of those adorable pictures that you've stared at and prayed for for months!

It. Is. Hard!

But this is adoption reality folks. And I think it is a true and accurate picture of the relationship with our Heavenly Father. He loves us more than we can imagine, but sometimes we just can't see it. How many tantrums and intentional misbehaviors have we been responsible for? We, like Tim, are often spoiled, selfish, unknowing, and lack understanding of His unfailing love for us.

"We love him, because he first loved us."
1 John 4:19

Please pray for Tim today. Pray that he begins to understand the love of a family. Pray that Bryce and Cindy can communicate well with him. Pray that his fearful heart is calmed and that a peace would settle over him during these final days in Guangzhou. Pray that Bryce and Cindy have extra grace and patience over the next few days and the ability to see past life in a hotel room.

Only three more sleeps for them until Hong Kong. Then only one day there before they board their flight home. They arrive in Memphis on Thanksgiving Day and make a 3 hour drive home. And there will then be two more little American citizens!

Hopefully Cindy will post again soon. But my guess is it may not be until after they come home. Feel free to leave encouraging comments for Bryce and Cindy below.

Lori :-)