Harper's 3rd Birthday!

Miss Harper is officially a 3 year old, and once she gets the potty training completely accomplished, very much not a baby anymore! That's okay, although my baby time with her was unbelievably short and so much of the time before we met is lost. I hope it does not become an issue for her in how little I know of her life up until 2 years, 3 months. There are some bits and pieces, and I have started up my digital scrapping again to start making pages of her life now and then. Jaden has been nonplussed about missing details about her first year, but it could be an issue any time, like hormonal teenage years.

Harper had a birthday weekend, in part because I had to travel for business on the afternoon of her actual birthday (a Sunday). Bad mommy, but employed mommy so off I go! She did even better with the sitters, and she loves her Dora bed; slept good 2 out of the 3 nights. Improvement.

Some pics.

Feb 8. (One of my favorites to date.) She picked out her birthday outfit (Hello Kitty head to toe, except
the leggings). On this day (Friday) she had cupcakes with her friends at school.

Feb 10. Her actual birthday started out a little chilly. And she wanted to bring
her packed backpack along with us as we had "coffee with the girls" after the gym.
This is her typical "smile" right now.

Feb 10. She did enjoy opening the presents so very much! And each
one was opened and the contents stuffed into the backpack.

8 months & 8 years

Harper has been home 8 months. And today marks 8 years since "Gotcha Day" with Jaden. The sisters get along quite well 95% of the time. Just once in a while Harper wants to annoy Jaden, and she knows exactly what to take/touch/move of Jaden's to elicit the desired response. But less and less of that lately, or maybe I am not paying as close of attention! And to be fair, sometimes Jaden has zero patience and knows that saying "bad Harper" will bring her little sister to tears. Pushing each other's buttons is part of the sibling relationship, I guess.

The month of January went fast. It included my first business trip since getting Harper. My usual great sitters (D&W) had the girls for two nights (I was in San Francisco). Harper was happy and did great, but kept asking "where is my mommy?". And did not sleep well. For this month's business trip, I purchased an inflatable toddler bed that D&W can put next to their bed, with Dora sheets, which should be a big hit. Harper LOVES Dora and watches dvds of nothing else. Travel is part of my job and so fingers are crossed this does not become an issue for Harper; Jaden has always done great in part because D&W bend over backwards to make her time with them fun. I am incredibly fortunate to have them.

I can say with conviction that Harper is now a sleeper (except for the travel caveat noted above). Yep, put her in bed and as long as she is not sick (don't get me started...), once she is asleep she is out for the night or maybe a peep and covering her up does the trick. A wonderful thing. I still have to lie next to her when she falls asleep (and we are in Jaden's room, and Jaden nods off super quick), but maybe I will start to sit at the edge of the mattress (aka "mommy's bed"), then by the door, to out in the hall. The problem is the cats that like to sashay around and meow if the door to the girls' room is open. I will have to formulate a plan, but not just yet. I am okay with things just as they are for now.

Harper will turn 3 on February 10. She loves presents, so I predict she will have a great day. I will try to post mid-month with some birthday pictures.

Jan 4. Harper is in the Penguin class at daycare, so occasionally,
Pete the penguin goes home with one of the kids for the weekend.
This was our weekend and Pete fit right in.  Here, enjoying some ice cream.

Jan 5. Harper sharing her beloved noodles.

Jan 5. Musical trio.

Jan 6. Harper pitched a fit about something, came down the hall and laid
down behind me while I was on the computer. Fell fast asleep on Pete.

Jan 5. Jaden and Mickey. Not a great hair day (for Jaden, not Mickey!).

Feb 1. Tonight. Silly girl. Notice the pizza and the Barbie. Adjusted well?
I would say yes!

Feb 1. Eight years ago. Scrapbook page commemorating the big event.

Happy New Year!

And the 7-month anniversary of Harper arriving home. I put all Christmas away today; Jaden was bemoaning the end of her favorite holiday and no more presents (her birthday is in December, too, so it is an explosion of gifts for her), but I am ready to move on. We did have a nice family Christmas on the 23rd, then a visit to Aunt Lisa and family from Dec. 25-29. Sorry, no pictures of our trip, and I am not sure of my excuse except we were always busy and I didn't really remember to take any. Harper had a doozy cold and most pictures would not have been pretty with that runny nose..... Jaden was healthy and loved the snow and the video/electronics household there.

Harper continues to talk, adding new words and phrases as she goes. Her "f" and "s" sounds are not there, but otherwise she is mostly understandable. She has had 8 or 9 colds since starting daycare (no kidding) and I hope this confers good immunity for her down the road. My fingers are crossed that her little classmates did not get new colds for Christmas as I would like a week or two reprieve! Yes, my sleep takes a hit, but luckily I seem to be immune to her colds and Jaden as well.

Wishing everyone a healthy and enjoyable 2013.

Dec 15. Jaden's 9th birthday party at Critter Camp.

Dec. 15. Cake. Yummy.

Dec. 23. Before family Christmas. She looks a tad bleary eyed -
no nap and her cold has kicked in.

Dec. 24. Preparing for arrival of Santa.

Dec. 24. "Harper, where are you?" Ha, butt naked downstairs playing with her
new Dora dollhouse.

Dec. 31. Jaden demonstrating scooter skills. (Jaden wrote in her Santa letter
to bring Harper a Dora bicycle, but I explained that this was typically for when
you are 4 years old, so Santa knew exactly what he was doing with the
scooter, which is intended for 3 [or almost] year olds!)

Dec. 31. A quick learner. She loved it!

Home for 6 Months

All is going quite well. The biggest news since the last post is that the last 2+ weeks have been blissful for me in terms of sleep. Nary a peep from down the hall, and at most, just covering Harper up with her blanket puts her back into dreamland. I am cautiously optimistic it can stay like this... Time will tell as they say. And Harper now likes to watch Dora the Explorer on TV, which has been great to use the 24 minutes to run up and down the stairs, do housework or bills, etc. without a 3 foot shadow.

We had a nice Thanksgiving here at home. The solo picture for this post is after my sister-in-law Anna gave Harper a whip cream shooter. We are looking forward to the holidays, our upcoming trip to Minnesota, and some time off of work and school. But you can be sure that there will be no picture of Harper with Santa - he strolled through the mall last weekend and Jaden was stoked; Harper was terrified. She might be mollified over time once she figures out the big red man brings presents.

A hit. (Thanks, Kim, for the picture.)

6 months ago today...

Miss Harper walked into my life ... literally. She was led into the hotel by the SWI director and a woman who I later found out was the doctor for the SWI. Harper was carrying a red plastic bag of snacks - individually wrapped crackers, cookies, and mini-cakes. They told me she likes to eat. I knew then we would get along just fine... I actually don't think fondly of that day. It makes my stomach knot up all over again to think about those first few hours, those first few days. But I kept thinking, and had faith, that she would come to accept me and all the changes that would take place for her. Now 6 months later, I think she has adjusted remarkably well to her new life. She is happy, affectionate, verbal, and in the past few days has gone to singing her own little song as she goes about her business. As we near Thanksgiving, it is easy for me to be thankful. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

My first glimpse of Harper (aka Min Yan; "Yin Yin").

She stalled and needed some encouragement.

Here she comes...

The doctor is trying to keep her from crying after
telling her this was "mama". Notice she has a snack in hand!

 

Home for 5 Months

Yes, it is the 5-month anniversary of coming home from China with Harper. Seems both a long and a short time ago, depending on what memory crops up. We are humming along and my new normal of two kids, two cats, one house, and a job where I wear multiple hats is sinking in. It is not likely to get easier any time soon, but the holidays should afford a nice break, although the work momentum as a major project is being launched could cut into the much-awaited time off. Employment, however, is still a nice thing...

Ah yes, the sleep. Better? Not really. If Harper is sick, it is going to be a long night. If she is feeling good, then there is a possibility she sleeps through the night (rare) or wakes up only once (piece of cake). But there was a pattern for a few nights in a row of waking every 15-30 min between 10 pm and 1 am. Almost did me in. Walking zombie. Luckily, that has not repeated. But I think there are other times she wakes up and knows Jaden is there, and doesn't cry out. Fortunately Jaden is still good with sharing a room, so time will tell if sleep becomes a non-issue for us in the coming months.

Harper picks up words and phrases at a rapid pace. My favorite of last night while trick'or'treating was "no touch my candy mama" when I asked if she wanted help to carry her plastic pumpkin stuffed with treats (how did she know I might snag one?!?). She continues to enjoy daycare, and they take good care of her. She and Jaden mostly get along, but Harper likes to tease and often insists "no", which can send Jaden into a tizzy. I am hoping as Harper gets older and more verbal there are less "incidences".

Some pictures...

Oct 7. Trying on hats from Aunt Lisa in
preparation for winter holiday trip to Minnesota.

Oct 13. Jaden and Harper with umbrellas on a rainy Saturday.

Oct 27. The girls in costume going to friend Kim's party.

Oct 31. Jaden as Yoshi (from Mario Bros) and Harper as Cinderella
before heading out. Jaden not pleased for the picture delay.

Oct 31. Cinderella and her candy stash.

Home 4 Months & the Sleep Experiment

Yes, it was 4 months ago today we became an official family of three (well, five if you count the cats!). It is still a work in progress as we continue to find our routines. The "sleep experiment" was at Jaden's insistence last week, following Harper's unwillingness (okay, complete defiance) in going to bed. It all started with her wanting to wear a dress to bed. I had to put my foot down, right? With this kid, you do something once she will want it that way every time (case in point, I let her wear Jaden's three-sizes-too-big shoes to Target on the weekend, and now she wants to wear them everywhere...!). But I digress...So with Harper throwing a beautiful temper tantrum that night and I had to just walk away and let her come back downstairs, Jaden takes over and asks her if she wants to sleep in her room? Hmm, crying stops and she nods her head. I take my cue - will she put on her pajamas and then she can sleep in Jaden's room? Yes, she nods again. So at 10:15 pm I am in the garage unearthing the toddler bed and dragging it up the stairs with two "helpers!". Everyone was asleep by 11 pm - not really a parenting success story but possibly the start of a better routine. Tonight is night #5. It is still exciting for Harper to have all that freedom so it takes her quite a while to settle down and finally get her head to stay on her new toddler pillow (the result of the Target trip, along with new sheets for Jaden). And if you read the post where I had dragged a mattress into Harper's room, yep, now dragged into Jaden's room. Almost 2200 sq ft of house and we are all in 100 sq ft of room for part of the night. But I have only stayed in there if Harper cries out and seems restless. Last night was the best so far, and I may have dreamt her saying "ma". I try to get down the hall fast so Jaden does not wake up. I went into the room to wake them up this morning and Harper had a stuffed animal in each hand and was happily jumping on the mattress. A better routine? Will she start sleeping through the night on a regular basis (4 consecutive nights is still the US record)? Stay tuned...

All else is going good. The amount of homework for 3rd grade seems ridiculous and our weekday schedule revolves around ensuring Jaden's tutor can come to the house at least 1-2 nights/week. Harper and I do a lot of quality grocery shopping during the tutor time. Harper continues to learn words and puts them together. Her usual expressions are "I did it!" and "wait for me". She sings her version of A-B-Cs and can count some of the numbers to 10 when Jaden gets her going on a sequence. She still adores Jaden, and in the last two weeks, Jaden has totally softened to her and is so good and patient with her. Randomly she will say "Harper, hug" and they embrace. Even when Harper is being an obstinate 2 year old, Jaden will get upset, but I haven't heard "and why did we get a baby sister?" for quite a while now. I have read that you need to give the family dynamics at least 6 months to settle. That sounds about right....

Lots of pictures, not quite in chronological order.

Sep 30. Harper the shopper.

Aug 25. After haircuts.

Sep 8. Sharing the whip cream at the bottom of the cup.

Sep 8. Lounging in friend's pool.

Sep 24. J & H with G'ma, Aunt Lisa (visiting from MN), and Uncle Matt.

Sep 24. First trip to the beach! A big thumbs up!!

A raisin snack before bed.

Aug 18. Special delivery!

Afternoon after Night #2 of the "sleep experiment". Poor Jaden!

Yesterday at local pumpkin patch. Harper was doing silly scrunched
up faces for all the pictures! (It was 90 degrees and hot!)