Rockwell Family

2011-11-14T10:00:00.000-08:00

Wow it is November and fall is already gone and I have not posted since the spring. Boy how life goes so fast these days. I love watching my children grow and how quickly they change. Part of me is frightened at how quickly it goes by. This summer we introduced the kids to camping. Had a blast camping with some friends and family.

Hannah threw a surprise anniversary party for us. It is hard to imagine that Joe and I have been married for 15 years now. Hannah turned 9, Elainea turned 6 and Hayden turned 3. We will not discuss the other two birthdays in the family as they are now on the bi-annual basis (Joe and I both agree to this philosophy).

Learning a lot about ADHD and dyslexia. Hannah is learning how cruel kids can be. Trying to find so tools to help Hannah feel good about herself.

The girls joined the Children's Choir at St. Mary's. Hannah has a beautiful voice. Elainea has a contagious energy and sings with gusto. We just need to help her find the right notes...

Hayden started preschool and loves art. He is taking after his Grandpa and Grandma Joe and JoAnn in that department.

The kids started at a new daycare so they can start to take some music lessons. Hannah wants to play the guitar and Elainea wants to play the piano.

Hayden likes to play with cars and trucks!

Enjoy the pics!

Union Station

2011-07-24T06:59:00.000-07:00

Cute as a button.

I did not tell her to pose that way. It was all Hannah.

We took the kids to Union Station so Hayden could see the trains. Little did we know that he would be petrified because of the size of them. We thought he would love them since he is so enthralled with Thomas the Train. We tried to put him on the engines and he just cried and cried. The girls however loved it and we got some great photos.

Camping at North Fork

2011-07-07T18:38:00.000-07:00

We went camping with some friends and had a blast. They saved a spot for us and we joined them for a couple of days. When we pulled up they had reserved us a parking space and then made us a sign for our tent. I must say our tent received a lot of attention. All that seems to be missing is the picket fence and some window boxes! After getting back both Joe and I agree that we are too old for tent camping!

Elainea's Kindergarten Graduation

2011-06-08T18:30:00.000-07:00

She did it!

Not only did she do it, she nailed it! When Elainea started the year she was in the 30th percentile. They figured it was because of being in an orphanage. Then she started school and had Spainish thrown at her. She finished the year in the 90th percentile. YOU GO GIRL! Do not get me wrong I would have been proud of her anyway, but I am so proud to see that she is flourishing. She is so excited to start going to a full day of school next year. Lets hope for a fast summer!

Stevens Graduation

2011-05-28T06:52:00.000-07:00

My nephew graduated from High School and I did his senior pictures. I thought I would post a few.

Easter 2011 (cont.)

2011-04-25T10:17:00.001-07:00

Easter 2011

2011-04-25T10:00:00.000-07:00

Time is like the wind, it lifts the light and leaves the heavy. ~Doménico Cieri Estrada

So much time has gone by since I have posted last. Hayden had his tonsils out, Hannah got braces and Elainea is now reading. Wow! It is amazing how so much can change in four months. We just celebrated Easter and we are all pretty exhausted. When school is in we are pretty much in a rut of work, dinner, homework and bed during the week, and try to get the house in order on the weekend. I wonder what next school year will bring when Elainea will be going full days and Hannah starts the fourth grade. I am worried about her progress this year. I was so hoping we could get her up to standards with her schoolwork. The girl can not focus for more than five minutes on any task.

I thought I would share some pictures of the kids on Easter. I do not even know if anyone still looks at this blog or not, but I will maintain just in case...

Thanksgiving Day!

2010-11-27T08:57:00.000-08:00

Silent gratitude isn't much use to anyone. ~ GB Stern.

Well today I wanted to start some new Thanksgiving traditions in our family. I wanted to create something that was uniquely ours so our children would remember our holidays together. We started with our Thanksgiving tree. We drew a tree on a big strip of paper. I am going to transfer it to poster board and hung it on a door. We then cut out leaves and wrote on them what we are thankful for. Here is what we wrote:
Joe: The ability to provide.
Pam: My Faith
Hannah: Shelter, Food and Love
Elainea: My Family
Hayden: Frucks (Trucks)

We then sat around our candlelit table with our best linens and dishes and ate tacos with cold duck. We toated to each of our gratitudes. We laughed and had a wonderful time.

A day at Lagoon

2010-07-17T11:26:00.001-07:00

Joe and Hannah on the 'Turn of the Century'

Our little tail gunner. Grandpa Joe would have been so proud!

Our little flying ace!

Not sure who is driving this boat, but Hayden sure liked the bell.

My Mom works at Lagoon so we can afford to take the kids to Lagoon. Every year employee Lagoon day and Catholic Lagoon day are on the same Sunday. We go and have a blast. This year Hayden enjoyed all the rides. He loved driving the boats and cars, but I think he liked the helicopters the most. Here are some pictures of the fun we had. Enjoy...

Hannah's First Communion

2010-05-17T12:41:00.001-07:00

If we but paused for a moment to consider attentively what takes place in this Sacrament, I am sure that the thought of Christ's love for us would transform the coldness of our hearts into a fire of love and gratitude."
- St. Angela of Foligno

What a wonderful day we had! We did not think that Hannah would be ready for this special sacrament, but we were told by our spiritual advisor that she will be ready. She really surprised us. She was one of six children selected from the 77 that were receiving first communion to be part of the offeratory procession. She was to bring up a bouquet of flowers. We selected roses in honor of Mary. Hannah was so reverent and respectful during the service. We are so proud of her. She looked flawless in her dress even though she has a rash over 85% of her body. She handled herself with such grace. Thanks to all of our friends and family that made this day so special for her and our family. This will be a day we remember for the rest of our lives!

Elainea's Art Show

2010-05-17T11:39:00.000-07:00

A sincere artist is not one who makes a faithful attempt to put on to canvas what is in front of him, but one who tries to create something which is, in itself, a living thing.::: William Dobell :::

We are so proud of our little artist Elainea. Her preschool held an art show for all of the students. They had punch and cookies for all those that attended and I think Elainea ate her age in cookies and Hayden ate twice his age! Hayden thought it was awesome because the treats were on a table that was low enough for him to reach. I thought I would post some of the pictures of her artwork.

Happy Birthday Hannah

2010-03-30T02:24:00.000-07:00

Hannah and her best friend Emily
The party kids

A new case for her DS

Climbing poles in her dress. Typical Hannah!

It is official, Hannah is 8 years old. I can not believe how time flies. We had a party for her and 12 of her friends at a fun center. They played laser tag and miniature golf. Hannah is very blessed to have such fun friends.

It is 3:30 in the morning and I am unable to sleep. I am worried about her. Her pediatrician recommended that she be evaluated by a psychiatrist for autism and she is seeing a pediatric neurologist to be evaluated for a tic she has developed. The pediatrician suspects Turret's syndrome.

I think she is getting teased by some of the kids in school because she is in a special reading class. I ask her to talk to me and I get the feeling that she is too embarrassed to share with us. I think this stems from her perfectionist tendencies and she feels that if she is not perfect we will not love her. Oh if she only knew how much she is loved by so many people!

I feel so utterly helpless right now. All parents want the best for their children. They do not want them to have the same feelings of alienation as they had growing up. My poor daughter has is so much worse than I ever did. I do not know if anyone even reads this blog anymore. I have not been the best at keeping it current. I just needed to get this out and did not want to call anyone at such a horrid hour.

Wishing you all well. Love Ya, Pam

Elainea got her tonsils out

2010-03-08T13:16:00.000-08:00

Elainea opening her DS.
This boy could not ask for anything more...

Hayden helping Elainea recoperate.

Mommy and Hayden playing pass the nuk.

Elainea just got her tonsils out. It has been a real roller coaster ride for her. She is doing as well as can be expected. We hope that she will be back to normal by the end of the week. I have some pictures that I have been saving up. Enjoy.

Joe has asthma

2010-03-08T13:13:00.000-08:00

Joe was diagnosed with asthma this month. He was put on a steriod inhaler and had an adverse reaction to it. It took him two weeks to recover from the medication. Talk about if the illness doesn't kill you the cure will. He has an appointment with an allergist this month to see what could be triggering the asthma. Please keep him in your prayers.

Hayden is recovering nicely. He suffered with a case of RSV last month. He is back to being his playful and joyful self. We are so relieved.

Elainea's 5th Birthday

2010-03-08T09:17:00.001-08:00

'Versing' on their DSs
Lainey requested a pink cake with sprinkles

Right before she blew out her candles.

Yes it is true! Elainea turned 5 this year. We went to dinner for her birthday, she took treats to her daycare for all of her friends, and then we had anice family party on Superbowl Sunday. She has wanted a Nintendo DS for over a year now and since her older sister takes such good care of hers we decided to give it a try. They have had such fun playing each other with the game units.

We went to register Elainea for Kindergarten and she is so excited. Everywhere we go she tells everyone that she is 5 and in Kindergarten. We are so proud of our beautiful girl! Enjoy the pictures!

A Wonderful Christmas

2010-01-01T08:23:00.000-08:00

Hayden loves cars, flags and balls.
Elainea playing dress up.

Hayden and his new car.

Hannah and her games.

Elainea and her games. Note the forlorn look.

Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let each new year find you a better man. ~Benjamin Franklin

We had a wonderful Christmas this year. The children actually remembered the reason for the season and sang Happy Birthday to Jesus. The Advent wreath caught on fire but we caught it in time to blow it out with a single breath. The kids enjoyed time together but are ready to go back to school.

It was fun to have Hayden old enough to sort of understand what was going on and to enjoy the toy more than the box it came in. This year was the year of cars for him. He got lots of cars which he loves and he got a trike that he calls his car.

Hannah got a Mario game for her DS and she is having so much fun with it. She got a new bedspread for her bed and it looks so nice in her room.

Elainea got some board games, a bedspread and a remote control dog. She was very disappointed when Santa did not bring her a DS game. She did not say anything but she wears her heart on her sleeve. I guess she will be really happy on her birthday later this month.

Joe got a rack for the Kayaks that fits the truck. Needless to say he is really happy.

I got an electronic organizer which I desperately need. Having all of the appointments on a calendar at home and not on me at all times has proven to have disastrous consequences. I have mixed up more than one appointment lately.

We went to the Sequence tournament for New Year's Eve and lost the trophy. Yahoo! We gladly surrender it to the new champions! We are looking forward to a new year together with family and friends. May this year find you with health and happiness.

Thankful

2009-11-22T21:34:00.000-08:00

I have been thinking about how our health care standards might change now that we are one step closer to socialized medicine. I have to say that I have been very upset at the thought that we might receive care that might be less than the level of care we are used to. But then I started to think about the miracle that we were given. I keep thinking about how Elainea was thought to have Hepatitis C and how that must have affected the level of care that she was given.
I keep thinking that she must have been branded. That if she was ever injured that they would not rush to comfort her due to the fear of being infected with a disease she never had. I keep thinking about how blessed we are that she was able to come home with us and be cared for the way she should be cared for and the way she deserves to be cared for. I have decided to hang onto that thought and be thankful for what we have and not fear the upcoming changes.

More Pictures

2009-11-01T06:30:00.000-08:00

'Fall'en for my guy!

2009-10-18T21:09:00.000-07:00

Instantly a classic!

2009-10-18T21:03:00.000-07:00

Hayden's First Haircut

2009-10-18T15:01:00.000-07:00

More pictures from South Dakota

2009-10-18T14:36:00.000-07:00

Hayden doing a mock blasting of Mount Rushmore. Of course he loved it...it went BOOM!
Sometimes you love someone so much...it becomes a pain in the neck for the other person.

Underneath four great presidents is one remarkable girl.

They like each other I swear it!

Joe and his sister Theresa.

South Dakota Trip

2009-10-07T21:55:00.001-07:00

We visited family in South Dakota and here are a few of the pictures we took. What a wonderful time we had! We were able to reconnect with some family and our kids loved getting to play with some cousins they have not seen in a while. We totally enjoyed ourselves. The drive home was longer than expected when they closed 1-80 and we were delayed for 2.5 hours. We returned home tired but happy that we were not involved in the accident that closed the highway!

It is all Relative

2009-10-07T21:39:00.000-07:00

Modern Medicine Marvel!

2009-09-05T08:32:00.001-07:00

To educate yourself for the feeling of gratitude means to take nothing for granted, but to always seek out and value the kind that will stand behind the action. Nothing that is done for you is a matter of course. Everything originates in a will for the good, which is directed at you. Train yourself never to put off the word or action for the expression of gratitude.

Albert Schweitzer

I went in for surgery on my knee on Monday the 31st. Wow what a difference a little medical intervention can make! The surgeon found a T-shaped tear in my meniscus which settled in the joint in a way that is the most painful of all tears. Now that the pressure in the knee is gone I can not believe how bad it hurt before. It is amazing what your body can get used to. The outside of my knee is sore because of the surgery, but the inner pressure is totally gone. I wish I would have done it sooner. I was just trying to save our family the expense of surgery and the MRI to confirm if I definitely needed the surgery was just as much as the surgery itself.
There is now a cold running around in the family. By the time flu season is in full swing we should pretty well be immune to everything. It is Labor Day weekend and we are planning on getting Elainea's room ready. Currently she is sleeping on a mattress on the floor. Hayden is running eveywhere he goes now. He is quite the toddler. It is amazing how quickly they grow up. Hannah went to a birthday party yesterday and has another one next week. This makes us proud to know that she is a good friend to her classmates at school. I made Joe waffles for breakfast because the kids apparently do not like them. Go figure another item our picky kids will not eat!

More later!

Some more pictures

2009-08-31T09:20:00.000-07:00

The military honors for a fallen hero.

Elainea and her cousin Josh.

Brothers. The won't even sit down to have a picture taken with you!

Always busy.

Fencing the plants.

August is here and gone!

2009-08-30T18:54:00.001-07:00

Uncle Kenneth Wayne McCoy

Hannah at her desk on the first day of 2nd grade.

Hannah on the first day of school.

Hayden and his catchment basin (yes he can do what Hannah can not)!

Hayden and Aunt Nanny at Lagoon.

I can not believe how fast August went by. In our house it was again filled with the 24 hr flu and other random illnesses. We went to Lagoon and went boating but otherwise we pretty well stayed around the house.

It is with a sad heart that I report that I lost my Uncle Ken. My Dad's brother was 76 when he passed away on August 19th. I think I was in denial for a long time about how sick he was. It was easier to deal with it that way. The way that we lost him was so similar to my Dad's that it made it even more painful. All I can say is that I was a better person for knowing him. He was a very loving, kind and generous man that was always quick to smile. Whenever he would see Joe he would say "Hey Joe what do you know?" and flash his contagious smile. When we were kids he would always tickle us and spoil us with attention. We always looked forward to going to his house. He was an instrumental member of his church where he demonstrated the virtue of selflessness and service. He was a mentor and a friend and will be missed very much.

Hannah started school and loves her new teachers. She is in second grade. I can not believe it. Elainea is ready for school and wants to go so desperately, but she does not start kindergarten until next year. Until then she is proving herself worthy of being a big girl by getting potty-trained at night. We are so proud of our little girls that are growing up so strong and beautiful.

Hayden started walking which brings a whole new dynamic into the household. For instance, this morning I found that he transferred a bunch of garbage from the garbage can to the clothes hamper. What a big help he is (I type that sarcasticly of course).

Joe is hanging in there. Neither one of us are doing well under the pressures of lack of sleep. With all of the health issues in the house it has been hard to get good rest around here. We are trying to take it in good stride and not be the cranky parent, but most of the time it does get to us. It is a good thing that kids are resilent.

Today I go in to get my left knee repaired. It is a simple scope surgery and I should be good as new by tomorrow. I look forward to not having to deal with the pain at night so I can get some good sleep. I will post more pictures soon....

Cough it up!

2009-08-01T22:41:00.000-07:00

Dad and kids lounging on the lounge chair he got on Father's Day.
Our cute little Tinker Bell at her dance recital.

Aunt Marilyn and Uncle Arlen on the 50th Anniversary Party.

Kids can't wait to get a taste of those cookies!

Our poor little baby Hannah. We took her into the doctor for a persistent cough and it ended up that she has pneumonia. She has been on antibiotics for three days and does not understand why we still can not go out and socialize with everyone. So instead we have stayed inside and played video games and watched some movies. I rented a princess movie that aired on the ABC Family channel and boy was I disappointed. If that is what they call a family movie I am certainly glad that we do not have cable TV. Needless to say Hannah is sleeping in Elainea's room because she is too scared to sleep on her own tonight.

Hayden is almost walking. At last! I never thought I would be excited to see his milestones as he is our last baby, but there comes a time when even the most selfish of Mom's want it to happen. He is totally capable, he just does not see the need for walking. He already can power crawl faster than you think humanly possible. You need to sprint to keep up with him.

Elainea is still in her whiny stage. Let me tell you this one can not end soon enough! She is enough to drive you nuts. We love her so much but when she starts to whine we have to send her out of the room because it can not simply be ignored. I know that is one of the most powerful weapons we have as parents, but no amount of training can prepare you for the overwhelming manner in which she wines. She has it down to an art.

We got the truck back from the service shop and it looks great. What a relief that at least that part of our lives will be getting back to normal.

I will write more later....

Pam

Time to be reflective

2009-07-25T15:16:00.001-07:00

Wow a whole month has gone by since I have posted to our blog. So many things have happened since then. Joe and I are still fortunate to have our jobs in this tough economy. We are still able to maintain our four-day work schedules which results in our kids being in daycare only three days a week. That I feel is the greatest gift we could ask for. Spending time with our kids and making memories to last our lifetime is what it is all about.
You might be wondering why I am being so reflective. Well several things have happened this month to really make Joe and I reflect on our lives and what is really important. The first thing to happen is I injured my knee. Do not ask me what happened, because I really do not know. I wish I could tell people that I hurt it in a skydiving accident. I would really settle for something not so exotic like playing soccer or softball, but that too would be a huge fabrication. The truth is one day it did not hurt and the next day it did. I joked about it for a while and told people that my knees were buckling under the pressure of the twenty pounds I have put on since Hayden was born. Then the clicking in the knee was so consistent that Elainea would follow me laughing when my knee didn’t pop when I walked. Then the issue was the stairs in our house. The pain got so bad that I could not walk up and down them. I could not take care of my kids or maintain the house. I went to the doctor and he advised me it was because I needed to strengthen the muscles in my upper leg and then it would be fine. I told him I wanted to start exercising and he told me that was the best thing I could do for my knee. So I started slowly incorporating more exercise into my day. Sure enough my luck would soon change. It was a Monday and I took the girls to camp and went shopping with Hayden until it was time to pick them up. Sure enough I am in the Walmart parking lot and I am no longer able to put weight on my leg. With every step pain would radiate from my knee down to my feet and up to my hip. It was all I could do to get Hayden safely to the car. This time I knew it wasn’t just being out of shape. I went to a specialist and found out that I have torn my meniscus and it requires surgery to repair it. After wearing a brace for several weeks the swelling has gone down and I am once again keeping up with the household. I am postponing the surgery until December.
Next was the flu to hit the house. Elainea came home really ill and was in bed for two days. Anyone who knows Elainea knows that nothing keeps this girl down. She soon passed it to Hayden and then Hannah. Poor Hayden did not know what hit him. For him the flu was more serious as it caused his reactive airway disease to flare up. The poor kid was almost hospitalized when his oxygen levels dipped down to 83%. Luckily we were able to treat him with some steroids in the clinic and bring him home.
Next thing you know we are coming home from Mass on Saturday night and stopped at a traffic light when we were struck from behind by a car going over 35 mph. The kids were buckled in their carseats and are okay. Unfortunately I received cervical whiplash and strained my right shoulder. The paramedics convinced me to go to the hospital in an ambulance to avoid them writing up that I refused medical care at the scene. How traumatic for the kids to have their mom hauled away. We are very fortunate that the accident happened the way it did. Joe saw the car coming and let of the brake so the impact was not so hard.
Next thing to happen is a dear friend lost her battle with cancer. She was living in Virginia with her family and was brought back to Utah to be buried in the same cemetery as Joe’s Mom and Dad. We feel so lucky to have been able to participate in the burial of such a wonderful person. We met Holly when we traveled to China to get Elainea. Her family adopted a little girl from the same orphanage. In fact, many of the baby pictures that we received of Elainea have pictures of the children from the other five families we traveled with. Being able to spend time with Holly and Robert and their dear sweet children was wonderful. When we faced some challenges with the adoption in China they were there to help support us in any way they could. The cried with us and prayed with us. Holly was such a wonderful friend and support for us. Our children have prayed for her each day for the past year. She has become a part of our lives and will live on in our memories.
Just when you think it is all that could happen in a month…wrong! My sister traveled down to Mexico to try to obtain a visa for her husband David so he can come back to the states legally. Not so fast our government told them and advised them that he now has a lifetime ban that may be appealed in ten year if he stays in Mexico. Well how do you like that? Here is someone trying to right a wrong and what does he get?, a door slammed in his face. With this type of law in place where is the motivation to make things right for these people who immigrated here to help their families survive. We also pray for their family in that a miracle can happen and they can be together again.
Then we receive word of a close neighbor that went into the hospital for a routine day-surgery that ended up a major surgery where they had to reconstruct the structure of her digestive system. Doesn’t that beat all? She had a hysterectomy twenty years ago and the surgeon pulled out her intestines and did not put them back in correctly. Thankfully she is healing well and will get to come home soon.
All of these things make me appreciate what our family has even more. I will take our challenges head on as long as we are together that is all that matters. Life is fragile and ends all too quickly at times and we need to make every moment count. I for one will try to remember that each day throughout the rest of my days. I want to say to all of our friends and family that we care for you so much and we appreciate having you in our lives. You make all the difference in this world when not a whole lot of things make sense. We love you all and may God keep you in his loving care….

The Rockwell’s

A few recent pictures.

2009-06-08T13:24:00.000-07:00

Dad trying on the amazing boy boa
Hannah and her Dad

Hayden and his amazing boy boa.

Our beautiful girls.

Summer is here!

2009-05-23T15:04:00.001-07:00

Joe enjoying Mother's Day at the park.
Cute Hannah

Spaghetti anyone?

Nanny in Hayden's glasses.

Elainea (our little monkey) on the rings.

Is it possible to bend the human body in this way?

To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe.
Anatole France

OK. This is pathetic. I have not posted since February. Since then both Hannah and Hayden have had a birthday, we celebrated Easter and Hannah went to her first concert. Next week school is out and Hannah will have completed first grade. Where does the time go? I will try to catch you up through each member of the family.

JOE is still working for the State of Utah. He enjoys his job and has been asked to work on a focus group for writing new regulations. He is excited and we love the idea that he gets to come home at night to his family. He does go on some overnight inspections once every six months or so. This is still better than being gone three times a week like he was in water quality.

PAM is still working for Northrop Grumman. It has been a difficult week and a man that she worked with for years ended his own life last week. It has been hard to make sense of what happened and why it happened, but we are grateful that we do not understand. It is enough to know that God gives us grace to move past these events.

HANNAH is excited for summer vacation. We had her tested for dyslexia and have found that she has been diagnosed with ADHD. We are looking into some parenting guides for better ways to focus her energy. The phychologist was very impressed with her and she tested very high on the intelligence tests. She is in a school program next week and we have been working hard on a blue bird costume.

ELAINEA is getting bigger by the day. She is almost the size of Hannah. She has grown over three inches in the last two months. She still has her adorable dimples and makes me happy when she smiles. She looks forward to Thursday of each week so she can go to show and tell at preschool. She is looking forward to going to the Zoo this summer.

HAYDEN is one! It if official. He is small but mighty. He power crawls all over the house. He is quick and hard to keep up with. He is a mischievous little guy who likes to test out how serious you are when you say 'No'. His weight is still an issue. He is in the 1% ranking in weight and in the 70% percentile in height. We are keeping a close eye on him and hope he beefs up enough to move out of his baby carrier and into the big boy car seat soon.

We are constantly in motion with three kids in the house. It is a good thing but life seems to go faster and faster every day. I hope the next post is more timely than this one. Until then enjoy the photos.

The Rockwell Infirmary

2009-02-22T17:36:00.000-08:00

Hayden is ready to be folded.
Mom is catching some z's at the hospital.

The hospital crib. Hayden thinks it is baby jail!

Funeral flowers.

OK. I think it is safe to say UNCLE! Joe and I are just about overwhelmed caring for sick children. Hayden was hospitalized for RSV and recovering at home for about five days when Hannah starting getting sick. This is unusual for her because she built up her immunity when she was an infant and is now a very healthy girl. Her fever maxed out at 106 degrees and we rushed her to the clinic. As predicted it is viral (not the same one as Hayden has) and needs to run its course. This morning we woke up to Hayden having pink eyes again. His left eye was crusted shut and needed some cleaning up. Luckily we still have some medication from our last round of pink eye for him about 3 months ago.

Poor Hannah is quarantined in her room and not too happy about it. This is our social butterfly shut out from the rest of the world. Luckily the U of U gymnastics team had a meet on TV so we moved one into her room so she could watch it. She is more determined than ever to do gymnastics. Joe and I are thinking that maybe it is time for her to start. We started her in a class this past summer and they told us she has a substantial natural ability. I guess it is time to let her give it a try to see if she really likes it.

Elainea is taking it all in stride. The poor girl is caught in the middle and bored stiff. We are so busy playing nurse-maid that she is left to entertain herself inside and away from the other kids. She is being really good about it and is starting to make some progress on the potty-training front.

Overall we are hanging in there. We are still recovering from the loss of Dad and I suppose we will be for a good time to come. On a positive note. In between the crazy illnesses we were able to spend a night celebrating my Uncle and Aunt's fiftieth wedding anniversary. It was so inspiring. What a remarkable set of people that make up an incredible couple. Joe and I are determined to celebrate our own milestone anniversaries.

For Valentine's Day we gave the girls each a stuffed bear that coos like a real baby and some matching headbands. Joe and I decided to just enjoy the flower arrangement from the funeral and the excitement of our girls. Hayden needed a new bouncy seat so we decided to give it to him for Valentine's Day even though he still has no idea of what it is. Hope all is well with all of you and we hope to post soon.

Joseph Hayden Rockwell

2009-02-15T13:03:00.000-08:00

Dad at our house for Easter in 2005.

Giving Grandpa one last hug.
Dad on his way to rest next to Genny.

The Rockwell grandchildren outside the church.

Some of the kids cleaning out Dad's trailer.

It is with a heavy heart and a joyful spirit that we announce that Joe's Dad (and mine too) passed on January 31st 2009. We will miss his laugh and most of all his hugs. I thought I would post a wish I made to him at the funeral service.

The Real Father

It is not so common anymore to have a Dad who is really there. One who is the provider for his family.
One who comes home to his family every night. The kind of father whose predictability creates a sense of stability and security in his household.
Dad your routine may not have seemed valuable to you, but it meant the world to your kids.
Those kids will be forever grateful to you because they could depend on you to always be you.
That was a real father. One who was trustworthy and a great deal of things from your example.
Your kids have learned a great deal of things from your example.
They are our living legacy in which I will be eternally grateful to you.
God speed to my father and God-father.

Love,Your other daughter Pam.

More pictures of Family

2009-01-30T21:45:00.000-08:00

The Cousins

Liz and Dad

Liz and Hayden

Apparently the plates taste better than the pizza!

A nice picture of Cathy and Theresa

Time Warp!

2009-01-30T21:19:00.000-08:00

Fun at Chuck E Cheese's

Check out the baby blues!

I love the dimples
Joe and some of his sisters.

I love my little brother.

I swear we are in some kind of time warp. I can not believe how fast time is going by. I haven't even posted for Christmas and already it is Elainea's Birthday! Please accept my apologies. Now for the family news.

A visit with two sisters.

Joe's sisters Cathy and Theresa visited us recently. The flew in to visit Dad and then spent the night at our home. It was too short! We loved every minute of their visit. The important thing is they were able to spend some time with Dad and then finally got to meet Elainea and Hayden. They sure made an impression on Elainea who talks about them non stop.

Elainea:

Our baby is four! Elainea is becoming more secure and well-adjusted as each day goes by. Just last year I was scratching my head wondering about her reaction to her birthday. She shyed away from any attention and was almost hostile when we sang Happy Birthday. This year is the exact opposite. She is happy and excited for her special day. She was so excited to get phone calls and cards in the mail. She was particularly impressed with the princess balloon. To celebrate we went to Chuck E Cheese and the girls had a blast. Let me tell you that people do not go there for the food it is all about the environment.

We took Elainea to the doctor for her get well visit. She is 69 perecentile in height and 64 percentile in weight. That is fantastic. Here our daughter that was not even on the chart in weight two years ago is above average compared to American kids. We are so proud! I have posted some pictures that testify to how beautiful she is becoming.

Hannah:

Hannah continues to blossom in front of our eyes. She was recently nominated for the friendship club at school to help kids that are shy and having a hard time making friends. She is getting good grades in school despite certain challenges. She is taking swim lessons from her cousin and loving every minute of it.

Hayden:

Hayden continues to grow everyday. He started to crawl on the 17th of January and got his first two teeth on 12th of January. I cannot believe he is ten months old and will have his first birthday in two months.

Mom and Dad:

Joe and I are continuing to adjust to three children. We are at the MCF or maximum confusion factor and are developing new coping mechanisms everyday. We are in continuous marvel at our beautiful children that are so talented, kind, funny, thoughtful, and equally manipulative and cunning! We are amazed at how difficult parenting can be, but yet at the same time just can not get enough! Well it is late so I will post pictures and post again sooner. I promise.

More Pics

2008-12-11T07:21:00.000-08:00

There is a baby behind all the paper!

Ride 'em cowgirls!

Chilly goes for a ride in the car.

How do they look?

She is an American girl now!

Chilly the Penguin

2008-12-11T06:56:00.000-08:00

Hayden eats his first Christmas cookie at Elainea's concert.

Chilly the Christmas Penquin. Notice he is sporting a new bell.

Chilly sits on Santa's lap with Hannah.

Our little star!

We were prompted to open our front door by the neighbor when he was getting ready to pile in the van for a carpool. I went back into the house and to the front door and found that Chilly the Christmas Penguin had stopped by for a visit. The kids were so excited. The following note was attached:

Chilly the Christmas Penguin

My name is Chilly and I am here,
To bring good tidings and spread Holidaty Cheer!
Let me spend a day or two,
Then send me to someone who lives near to you.
Don’t send me to there empty and bare,
Let me take a treat to share.
Before I go be sure to take
Some photos of me with your family for my keepsake.
If you want some extra fun,
You can add to me until I am done. (hat, scarf, bells, etc,)
A new neighborhood tradition we will start,
With lasting memories to warm the heart.
If New Years Day I am with you,
Send me home where I will wiat to-
Plan for more Holiday Cheer,
And see you all again NEXT YEAR!
When all is done we can share a laugh or two.
The photos will be posted where you can see what I was up to!

http://chillychristmaspenguin.blogspot.com/

Chilly had fun sitting around the dinner table and attended Elainea's Christmas concert. Elainea was so adorable. What a difference from last year. One year ago she ran for shelter in her Dad's lap. This year she sat tall and sang her little heart out. The miracle of all is that you could understand what she was saying! He speech has progressed so much in the last year. She still pronounces her v's as b's and her f's as p's but she is getting there.

Hayden is growing like a weed. Still no teeth, but he is chewing on anything he can get in his mouth including your fingers! He is rolling over and trying to crawl. He greatest motivator is electronics. He is a gearhead for sure. He loves remotes, laptops and cameras. The more keys and buttons the better.

Hannah is growing up so fast lately. She loves to go to school, but getting her out the door is a daily challenge. She is not a morning person and add the drama on top of it and I think you get the picture. She is going through a phase with her clothes. She has a school wardrobe that she has not worn. She wears the same pair of jeans and one of three shirts daily. I guess as long as they are clean that is all that matters.

Joe is enjoying his job and we are fortunate that he is on a four day schedule. This compliments Pam's four day schedule so that the kids are only in daycare for three days.

We will post again for Christmas. Take Care!

Our Indian Summer

2008-11-23T07:08:00.000-08:00

Our Halloween witches.

Hayden and his Da Da.

I haven't posted in so long because here in Utah we are having an Indian Summer. The weather has been so nice that even though the swinset got put up so late in the year the kids are still playing on it. Halloween was so warm that the kids could go trick-or-treating without coats this year. Thw kids are all going through growth spurts. This is quite amuzing as for the first time food is a resource around the dinner table. The kids work on the division of the valuable commodity before the table is completely set. However the constant whinning over who got more can grind your nerves after a little while.

The girls are meshing like peas and carrots. They love to do things together and play together once Hannah is awake in the morning, and believe me this is not when she gets out of bed. The mornings are crazy as the girls are constantly getting on each other's nerves. There has been several mornings where I have had to seperate them. It is frustrating when you see them playing so well together later the same day. I guess this amounts to us being a normal dysfunctional family.

We look forward to Thanksgiving this week. I think with our two girls eating there will be no left-overs! Gotta get the girls to CCD. Love you all and will post soon.

Playing in the leaves

2008-11-16T15:29:00.000-08:00

Hannah and Elainea playing in the leaves.

Have you ever seen a more contagious grin?

She is growing up so fast!

More pics of fall

2008-11-16T15:22:00.000-08:00

Elainea in her costume.

At the pumpkin patch.

Gardner Village

Don't they look excited to get a pumpkin

A swingset at last!

2008-11-16T15:08:00.000-08:00

Pinch me I am dreaming!

Putting on the final touches will have tp be done round the children.

Our little frog prince.

The tricopter swing under the clubhouse.

Clinbin up to the clubhouse.

It is October already!

2008-10-07T12:47:00.000-07:00

Who is under the hat?

It is Hayden the sorcerer!

Too cute!

Halloween Hayden.

Lazy Boys!

I can not believe that it is fall already. Moreover I can not believe that Hayden is sx months old. He is changing so fast lately. He is more engaged and love to play with toys. He gets bored easily and will cry unless he has a toy (I think he learned that one from his big sisters). His eczema is cleared up since we had him on a steriod treatment. We had no choice it had become really inflammed and infected. It got so bad that people were asking if he had chicken pox.

Elainea is doing well. She is still working on potty training. This girl is so stubborn! It all depends on what kind of mood she is in.

Hannah is doing well in first grade. She has lots of homework but for the most part she enjoys it. Hayden has phenomia and so I need to make this post short. I had to post these cute pictures!

A Month of Firsts

2008-09-07T16:02:00.000-07:00

Hannah's first day of school.
Cute pic of the kids
Elainea helping clear the weeds to make way for the swingset.
Joe and Hayden

To get it first is important - but more important is to get it right.
Jessica Savitch

So many of our dreams at first seem impossible, then they seem improbable, and then, when we summon the will, they soon become inevitable.
Christopher Reeve

I had to put two quotes in on firsts. I love the one by Christopher Reeve. When I look back it was only eight years ago that Joe and I thought we would never have children and now we are blessed with three! God is great and it is my sincere hope that I never take Joe or my children for granted.
Lately we have had a whole lot of firsts going on. Hannah went to her FIRST day of First grade. She loves her two teachers. She has one teacher for reading and writing and then a different teacher for math and science that teaches exclusively in Spanish. Hannah loves school and loves her friends.
Hayden let out his FIRST laugh during back to school night while her teacher was talking. We were trying really hard not to make a huge commotion in the back of the room.
Hannah had her FIRST sleepover at a friend's house. We were wondering if this was to soon for a six-year-old, but we let her go. All turned out well and she had fun with her friends.
Hannah lost her FIRST large front tooth. She pulled this tooth out all by herself. She was very excited.
Elainea asked us to go to the bathroom while we were out of the house. This was a HUGE FIRST for her! We hope that it turns into seconds and thirds and fourths!
Hannah contracted croup last week and since she has had it before we did not take her into the doctor. The surprising thing is that a six-year-old still catching it. Apparently there is a large outbreak of it in older kids in our county. We are a little concerned about her because she is still coughing (not barking anymore), but it has moved deep into her lungs. If she does not turn it around in the next couple of days we will take her to the doctor.
Hayden had to go to the clinic this week. The poor little guy. His eczema got infected and he had circular lesions on his arms. We thought he possibly had ring worm but apparently it ended up being something called Erythema Multiforma Minor which according to the doctor is a fancy way of saying he has a virus that he is allergic to. The one thing that we learned during our visit to the doctor is the right treatment for his eczema. The stuff is called Bag Balm and so far it is working. We slather it on him three times a day and we are seeing a huge difference.
Joe had is year-end review at work and received an excellent review. His boss had so many nice things to say. How wonderful it is to have people see the wonderful work that Joe does and then give him the recognition that he deserves. We are excited that he received a step promotion.
I just received my five-year service award from Northrop Grumman. Considering the economy and the military spending cut backs this is a small miracle. We are so fortunate to have two employers that allow us to work four day work weeks so that our kids are only in day care three days a week.
We are all looking forward to fall and the cooler weather. Love you all and God Bless!

Where did the summer go...

2008-08-26T20:50:00.000-07:00

Great shot of Hannah letting her hair down.

Uncle Ken, Joe, Elainea and Hayden.

Three of the four China girls at the BBQ.

Aunt Marilyn and Hayden

Whoever called em the lazy days of summer did not have three children. I am trying to remember the last day that did not entail 'plans'. Even days that we have not 'planned' anything end up in a whirlwind of activity.

So many things have happened, where do I start? How about a birthday party? My Uncle Ken (my second Dad) just celebrated his 75th birthday. It was so much fun to get together with my family and cousins and just 'be'. These are people that you can just be yourself and it is OK. The kids had a blast running around and chasing the dogs. Yes, even Elainea is starting to warm up to the whole pet idea. Who would have thought that a year ago that today she would be begging for a dog? This coming from the girl that would scream in fear at the site of one. Elainea you have come a long way baby!

Another big event was a get together with the China families. The Yarbouroghs were so generous and opened their home to us. We were able to meet with the Cummings and a special treat was to visit with the Baxter's from Virginia. The night was so much fun. It was so emotional as well. To see all of the girls so happy and so much a part of each family is nothing short of a miracle. I do not know how much Elainea remembers China or the other girls, or if she just seems to recognize the other girls from the reunions and looking at blogs. We pray for each of these families as they prayed for us in China. I feel a special bond with all of them and feel that they are part of our extended family. One family is having a particularly difficult time with health issues and behavior issues with other children. My heart goes out to them and I just wish I could do something, but alas all I can do is pray and I ask the same of all our friends and family. Please pray for the Baxter family so that the miracle we ask for is realized.

Dad is still living in Torrey and having a hard time getting around. We are going to have to see about bringing him up closer to family, especially during the winter. Joe has spent at least one weekend a month driving down to check in on him.

Needless to say with the hectic schedule lately, the front lawn has not been mowed in three weeks. Oh well, we do not even try to make excuses. We have three beautiful children that will not keep. We need to cherish each day with them and make them count. Meanwhile I count the hair that I am losing by the fistful and try not to cry as I see that I am thinning out on the top. Yahoo let's just add one more body part that no longer looks as good as it used to the list. I am so stoked for my fortieth birthday this year. I am baggy, saggy and now on top of it I am going bald. Your hair is supposed to be your fountain of youth. You know the one thing that you can say "Well at least I still have my hair". Nope, I am now joining the ranks of the follicly challenged. Is this it? Am I finally going to go through my mid-life crisis? I dropped Hannah off at her second day of school and I started crying my eyes out. I went to work and each time I saw a picture of our children I began to cry again. It is not a cry of dispair, in fact I do not know how to describe it. It is kind of a cross between remorse and guilt. I think all working Moms will understand what I am feeling. I mean it goes so fast. Each year seems faster than the one before it. Wow I just realized that I have been rambling. So sorry, but I guess my mental faculties are also becoming compromised!

Well I know all of you check this blog for the pictures. So I will start posting them so you can see why I am so pround. Love you all and God bless.

McCoy Family Reunion in Wyoming

2008-08-04T08:44:00.000-07:00

Every two years the McCoy family has a family reunion at Allred Flats campground just outside Afton. This year we elected not to camp since Hayden is still so young. We drove up and back on Saturday.

The campground brought back so many memories. I remember running around like a hulagin as a kid. So many fun memories with my cousins.

It was so wonderful to see mt kids start to create the same kind of memories. We will camp for sure in 2010. I am very proud of my sister KayDawn who organized the whole thing (along with her own wedding the week before).

The kids enjoyed the outdoors and climbing trees. I was amazed at how well my little glamor girls took to the great outdoors.

A Day at the Park

2008-08-01T08:17:00.000-07:00

I took the kids to the park and made them sit lond enough to take some photos.

KayDawn gets married!

2008-07-23T06:56:00.000-07:00

The Happy Couple

The Ring Exchange

Mother and Daughter

Pre-maritial Jitters

The degree of difficulty in combining two lives ranks somewhere between rerouting a hurricane and finding a parking place in downtown Manhattan. ~Claire Cloninger

Yes I had to see it to believe it! My sister KayDawn finally got married on the 23rd. She and David Lara tied the knot in front of a Justice of the Peace at the Indoor Pavilion in Sandy. The day went without a hitch except for the music. No one was in charge so I ran over and tried to find the right song on the CD player. The song that I thought was the wedding march was some weird operatic rendition of "Love Me Tender" so I switched it to the first song. The precession waited and waited for the correct music but to no avail as I was incapable of finding the right music. Needless to say the 'Love Me Tender' song was the correct one I just didn't want long enough. Hannah and Elainea were flower girls, but only Hannah walked down the aisle. We wish the newlyweds happiness and love in their lives together.

Idaho Falls 2008

2008-07-06T07:40:00.000-07:00

We went to Idaho Falls again this year to watch the fireworks and then visit Bear World. The fireworks were wonderful as usual. My sister LeAnn and her family were able to make the trip with us. As tradition calls my Mom went up with us. I was so excited at the chance to share bear world with Elainea. Hannah has been there before, but Elainea has not. Well needless to say we set Elainea up for a big disappointment. It started with a library book of "Little Rabbit Lost". It is a story of a rabbit that gets tickets to 'rabbit world' the local amusement park for her fifth birthday. Long story short the rabbit gets lost and then found. Well this caused Hannah to start calling Lagoon (our local amusement park) Rabbit World.

Needless to say we were driving through the nature park looking at the bears and asking Elainea if she liked Bear World. She looked at me and asked "Where are the rides?" OK this is where it hits me, once again I have tried to outguess a three-year-old and failed once again. Here are some fun pictures to share.

Baptism Day for Hayden

2008-06-25T15:43:00.000-07:00

The family hold the baptism candle together.
Hayden with his Godmother.
Hayden being fed by his Godmother
He has just been kissed by angels!
Doesn't that face just have trouble written all over it!

A child is a precious gift from God

And baptism is God's gift wrapping

~Traditional

“There is one body, and one Spirit, even as ye are called in one hope of your calling;
One Lord, one faith, one baptism,
One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.”

Hayden was baptized this last Sunday. We are so fortunate to have so many friends and family join us in celebrating his new birth. The baptism was held at our new church. He was the first baptism since the church was dedicated on the 8th of June. Hayden was the only one being baptized and so the atmosphere was very intimate with all that attended. We are honored to have Joe’s sister Eileen as Hayden’s godmother. She held him during the baptism on the blanket that my Dad bought for Hannah’s baptism. It is a frilly blanket, but we wanted to use it so he was represented.
A baptism is a wonderful event. Renewing your own baptism vows is powerful. I felt the overwhelming love that God has for all his children and I feel there is a strong purpose for Hayden.
Our little Elainea was full of energy (as usual). She has a hard time sitting down for Mass that lasts for one hour. To expect her to sit for an additional half hour after is too much. She started running around the periphery of the church and fell and got a huge rug burn on her head. She knew that she was not supposed to be running and so she stood up and put on the bravest face she could, but you could tell that she wanted to break out in tears. I love my brave girl.
Hannah continues to grow up and her wisdom amazes me. She has a way of understanding things that most six-year-olds do not. She was so excited for Hayden to have his big day. Instead of being jealous, she was very gracious and simply stated, “this is a day that will only happen once for Hayden and so we need to make it special”.
After the baptism friends and family joined us for a reception at our house. It was such a good time for all. It was an honor to have my Uncle Ken and Aunt Lorraine there to represent my Dad’s family. Eileen took the day off work to be there for her God-son. Pam’s sister LeAnn (and family) drove up from Sandy. It is times like this that you really find out how much family and friends mean to you. They remind you that life is full of these moments that you should never take for granted. You should never just go through the motions, make every moment and encounter mean something. Everyone should notice who and what blessings they have in their life, and if the relationships are not life-giving or you are not able to see the blessings that God has given you, then change something. My life is so full. I can not imagine changing anything. I hope this feeling of rejuvenation that I received today from renewing my baptism promises lasts throughout my lifetime. Moreover, I hope to give my children the example so they can feel it as well.

Father's Day in Torrey

2008-06-17T16:19:00.000-07:00

Blessed indeed is the man who hears many gentle voices call him father!
~ Lydia M. Child

It matters not that Time has shed
His thawless snow upon your head,
For he maintains, with wondrous art,
Perpetual summer in your heart.
~ William Hamilton Hayne

As a celebration of Father’s Day we took a spontaneous trip to Torrey to visit Joe’s Dad. It is the first time we have been able to get to visit since Hayden was born. It was important that he be able to see his newest grandchild and not be alone on Father’s Day. The trip was short and sweet. It was so nice to see Dad Rockwell and he really enjoyed seeing his grandchildren. This posting will be short as we are busy getting ready for Hayden’s baptism on Sunday. We will be sure to post again

Where Does the Time Go?

2008-06-05T14:52:00.000-07:00

Elainea loves her brother "Too Much"

Impromptu performance before the graduation ceremony.

Hannah during the performance with friends Kylie and McKenna.

The tassel's worth the hassle!
Hannah and her teacher Miss Shelley.

Hannah and her little brother.

The future lies before you Like a field of driven snow,
Be careful how you tread it, For every step will show.~Author Unknown

You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself in any direction you choose. You're on your own. And you know what you know. You are the guy who'll decide where to go.~Dr. Seuss

It is really pathetic when you look at how much faster time goes by as you get older. Wow Hayden is two months old and Hannah graduated from Kindergarten. Do not get me wrong. Life is so wonderful, but it is just going by too fast.
I remember when I was a young girl how Christmas would take forever to come again. Now it is the exact opposite, before you know it you are knee deep in snow and holiday commitments and you look around and the only testament for the year going by is the children are visibly larger and mature.
Hannah had a little Kindergarten graduation program on Wednesday, May 31, 2008. The program was very well put together and Hannah was so excited to get the chance to perform for everyone. We went to celebrate by going out to dinner after her program. She was so happy and excited until after the last day of school on the 30th. She came home very sad as she realized that things would change, she would never spend her days with Miss Shelley. She was very distraught at the thought of it. She felt much better after I told her that she has Miss Shelley’s contact information so it is not a permanent good-bye.
Hayden is two-months old and growing like a weed. He is over 11 pounds. We tease him that if he were a turkey he would be sweating it out right now. He started experiencing some feeding problems at about six weeks. I could not sustain my milk supply so he is exclusively on formula now. He started showing signs of a milk allergy with a horrible rash all over his face, chest, back and arms. I remembered what it looked like when Hannah went through the same allergy so we immediately put him on a soy-based formula, and that is when the colic symptoms started. For two days he would cry for hours on end with no consolation. On the third day when he refused to eat is when I realized it was a reaction to the soy formula that was causing the distress. Long story short we now have to feed him the most expensive formula available. It is a good thing he is so cute!
Elainea is doing really well. Her speech improves with each passing day. She loves being like her big sister Hannah. She loves dressing fancy, watching Barbie movies and figuring out how things work. We have to be cautious about what we leave placed around the house, because if she gets to it she will immediately try taking it apart. She is still very affectionate and tells me “I love Hayden too much!” She loves being a big sister and is flourishing.
The FBI called me the other day and need to set an appointment to serve me a summons to appear as a witness. This goes back to October of 2006 when Hannah and I were in a bank when a man fired a gun and proceeded to rob the bank at gun-point. I really did not get a good look at him and would not make a very good witness. My biggest concern was keeping Hannah safe. The entire time we were looking into each other’s eyes. So much time has passed since the event that I really take offense to reliving it again now. It is kicking up dust that settled long ago. Court was supposed to begin the second week of June, but has been postponed until September. Go figure!
Joe is doing really well at work. He comes home and works really hard trying to get the swing set installed. After he comes in from that he is busy helping me bathe and put the kids to bed. What an awesome husband I have!I returned back to work and to no surprise my job waited for me. Now instead of being two-weeks behind I am five weeks behind. It is all good. I would rather have too much to do than not enough. That is all the time I have to write for now. We love you all and take care!

Hayden is One Month Already!

2008-05-03T14:29:00.000-07:00

Hannah and her brother.
Hayden at one month.

Our American Idol.

Grandma and Hayden.

The family. We were a strange little band of characters trudging through life sharing diseases and toothpaste, coveting one another's desserts, hiding shampoo, borrowing money, locking each other out of our rooms, inflicting pain and kissing to heal it in the same instant, loving, laughing, defending, and trying to figure out the common thread that bound us all together.

~Erma Bombeck

It is official. Hayden is a month old and we could not be happier. The girls are getting adjusted to having "Master Hayden" controlling our family schedule. This consists of feedings every two hours day and night. He does have one five-hour stretch in the late afternoon and wakes up during dinner. Joe and I have decided that sleep deprivation is bad for the temperment as you get older. It is amazing how obsessed you can become with sleep when you do not get enough of it. We take turns on the weekend, but even then we are only getting four hours of continuous sleep each. This is all good and it goes with the territory, but I feel that I have turned stupid. A cognitive thought can not be found in my brain if my life depended on it right now. Joe is working hard on getting a swing set put together for the kids. It is quite the project as we need to pull up grass and then assemble the swing set. The swing set is sitting in a wooden crate in the driveway. The girls are going crazy with anticipation. It has a climbing wall, slide, cargo net, club house and swings. It will be nice to have something for them to do outside to get the wiggles out.

I am going stir crazy in the house, but at the same time I am dreading going back to work on the 12th. This time with baby has gone by so fast. I can not believe that I will be leaving him for someone else to take care of. When they are older it is easier as they can do so much for themselves. When Elainea joined our family taking her to daycare was not as traumatic as she enjoyed playing with the other kids.

Hannah is graduating from Kindergarten on the 28th of May. She is so excited and her class is putting together a program for the parents. She is so excited as they are showing off their newly acquired Spanish skills. We will have to post pictures when we take them.

Elainea is continuing to do well. She had her first play date yesterday and went to the next-door neighbors house to play with her friend Jackie. She was so excited to do an activity that she has continually been told that she is "too young" to do. Hannah has at least two a week and Elainea has always felt left out. We have to watch her close now as she is consistently trying to go visit her friends next door. We have definitely created a monster. We recently had her tested for diabetes and are relieved to report that all the tests came back favorable. She and her liver and doing just fine.

The girls have started a new hobby of collecting and then pressing flowers. They love the idea of being able to create different crafts with the blooms they have collected. The trouble is that they are constantly trying to pick the neighbors flowers. They have realized that they need to ask before they pick, so now they are constantly knocking on the doors in the neighborhood. We are going to have to take them to a park and collect a whole bunch to help take the pressure of the neighborhood flower gardens.

Both girls needed to go to the dentist. Hannah needed to get two teeth pulled and Elainea needed to get some cavities filled. This was kind of an interesting afternoon for Mom. They were in adjacent rooms and Mom was running in between them to keep them calm. The girls were very brave and came out of the experience relatively unscathed. Hannah was excited for the two dollars she got from the tooth-fairy.

Mother's day is next week and we are going to try to get together with family at a park. I can not believe that I am the mother of three beautiful children. We are so blessed and each one is such a miracle. We certainly live a charmed life.

Just When You Think You Know it All.

2008-04-23T13:59:00.000-07:00

Hannah & Hayden

Elainea's Birthday Ding Dong (Cake).

This is a cute picture of Elainea.

Look at the expression on this little handsome guy's face!

Holding his own bottle at two weeks!

You can become blind by seeing each day as a similar one. Each day is a different one, each day brings a miracle of its own. It's just a matter of paying attention to this miracle.
Paulo Coelho

There are times when you think you have everything under control and everything that you had dreamed and aspired had become a reality and you think your life is just they way you want it. It is complete and fulfilling. That is how I felt after we came home with Elainea. I felt that our family was complete and we were settling into our lives together.

Then we found out that we were pregnant and all that security and certainly dissipated again. For nine months I was worried about whether I could do it. I hate to think that I feel so inadequate as a parent, but I did not think that I could handle three children. Now that Hayden is born, that has been confirmed for me, but I realize that it wasn't meant to be the same. He is just what God knew we needed. I am so hung up on what I want, that I sometimes forget that He knows exactly what we need and what we can handle.

Hayden is growing so quickly. He is now nine pounds and is starting to fill out. I can not believe how fast he is growing. The thought that I will be returning to work shortly breaks my heart. The girls love him to pieces and he has three mothers to ensure that no cry goes unanswered. He is still feeding every two hours so sleep is a valuable commodity right now. He has the most amazing blue eyes and it will be neat to see if they end up being blue like PaPa McCoy.

Elainea is trying to work through the insecurities of being the instant middle child. All the progress we had made towards potty training seems to have vanished. The progress on her speech has stopped and she has started to studder. However she never fails to amaze me with how observant and smart she is. She has a great sense of humor and keeps our house lively and fun. She is going through a huge growth spurt. She is finally wearing size 3 pants and size 4 in tops. She can wear size 9 in shoes. She is almost in the same size as Hannah.

Hannah is a proud big sister. She is doing really well in school and her reading is improving with each day. She graduates from Kindergarten in May which totally blows our minds. She started a summer gymnastics program and so far she loves the class. It will be fun to see where her interests take her. She is still the same lovable, precocious and fun girl that she has always been.

Well baby is crying so I have got to go. Enjoy the pictures. More to come!

Welcome to the Family Hayden!

2008-04-02T17:05:00.000-07:00

People who say they sleep like a baby usually don't have one. ~Leo J. Burke

Yes he is finally here! Will post more details later but here are the general statistics:

Date Born: 03/31/2008

Time Born: 11:46 am

Weight: 7 lbs 1 ounce

Length: 19.5 inches

Place: Ogden, Utah

Life in the Fast Lane

2008-03-25T22:43:00.000-07:00

Here is trouble times three!

Elainea and Joe on the boat.

Our niece Megan hunting eggs.

Megan and Elainea waiting to fetch eggs.

This picture is just too cute.

To live content with small means; to seek elegance rather than luxury, and refinement rather than fashion; to be worthy, not respectable, and wealthy, not rich; to study hard, think quietly, talk gently, act frankly; to listen to the stars and birds, to babes and sages, with open heart; to bear on cheerfully, do all bravely, awaiting occasions, worry never; in a word to, like the spiritual, unbidden and unconscious, grow up through the common.

William Ellery Channing

It has been a while since I have posted. So many things have occurred. We just found out today that Hayden will be born on Monday or Tuesday. I check into the hospital on Monday evening at 6:00 and they will induce labor. My blood pressure is not going down, but it has remained elevated. In the mean time I will be counting down the last six days.

Hannah's birthday is in 2 days and she will be a big 6-yr-old! I can not believe that she is growing up so fast. At least we know that Hayden will not be born on her birthday as well. She is doing really well in school and has expressed a great deal of interest in learning how to ice skate and to continue with her swimming lessons. Well I guess Mom had just better get on top of things.

We had Easter at our house and it was so much fun. I admit that I was unable to put much effort into the holiday and Joe did the majority of the work. I really appreciate him and all he has done for our family lately. I will post a couple of pictures that we have from Easter. My nephew and niece managed to catch ten snakes and transported them to Centerville. Hopefully if we keep moving them out we can eventually get rid of the snakes in our yard.

Christmas, New Years, Birthday and Gotcha Day!

2008-02-06T18:39:00.000-08:00

Our Little China Doll.
The Rockwell Family

Well another month has flown by and I failed to post. Christmas was wonderful and we were able to spend time with friends and family. Elainea has now decided that she likes Santa Claus and will probably be excited for Christmas next year. The girls were so excited to get their handheld game systems. I was excited that I could still fit into a new pair of pajamas. I now weigh my pre-pregnancy weight. I guess that is the advantage of getting cryptosporidium when you are pregnant.

New Years was a fun celebration. We went to a party to compete for the Sequence tournament trophy. The girls had fun until we had to play the tie-breaking match after midnight. Hannah was begging to go night-night, but Elainea was content to just keep partying. We did not win back-to-back championships, but we gave it our best shot.

January was somewhat stressful. We went to give our depositions to the attorneys for the contractor and sub-contractor that built our home. Little did we know that the builder's insurance company would not cover his workmanship, but they do cover his legal expenses. Long story short this lawyer decided on the "I am gonna bury 'em tactic". In the deposition he announced his intention to depose every contractor that worked on our home as well as every doctor that Hannah has ever seen. This would put the cost of the builder's defense at over $150,000.00 which was three times what we were suing for. The attitude of the insurance company is that they would rather pay a lawyer whom they have a business agreement with than some unknown homeowner. Nice news for us! If we went to court and lost we could stand to lose our house. This is a social outrage! I can not believe that in the United States the average family can not afford justice. We decided that rather than risk the stress of trial on the baby and the risk of losing our house forced us to settle out of court for only a small fraction of the cost to repair our house. On the upside we still have our house and it has a brand new outfit and we are glad that we can make it our home.

Elainea celebrated her 3rd birthday quietly at home. We were at church and they asked if anyone had a birthday and we nominated her. The whole congregation sang happy birthday to her and she started screaming and crying in anger. She could not handle the attention. We decided to tone down the actual birthday celebration. We put three candles in a ding dong for her birthday cake, gave her a balloon on her chair and sang quietly as a family. She was much more acceptable of this approach. We gave her a Chinese doll to play with, and she threw it on the floor and expressed her displeasure with the doll. She ran to the toy room and started playing with Hannah's old dolls. So much for thinking you understand someone.

Gotcha Day proved to be another interesting day. She started off with a low-grade fever and a cough, which quickly progressed into labored breathing and a high fever by the end of the day. Today we took her to the doctor and she was diagnosed with pneumonia. It is odd to see her laying down, totally lethargic and begging for medicine. She has been sick before, but even with a fever of 105 she was still running around. She is on medication and we expect that she will start feeling better tomorrow.

Hannah is doing really well. She is a straight A student and loves school. She and Elainea are starting to get along better. Hannah is funny and is a total delight to be around.

Elainea's speech has improved drastically in the last month. She is no longer considered with a disability. The speech therapists and social workers have been amazed with her progress since July. Except for speech she is advanced for her age. We are very proud of her.

Hayden is small for a baby at this stage, but our midwife says to not worry that he is not dangerously small. This makes us feel better, but we still are concerned and pray that he will be safe and born healthy.

If the past year has taught us anything it is this "As a family we can endure anything". We have been so blessed to have everything that we do, but most of all because we have each other.

What a Month!

2007-12-23T06:55:00.000-08:00

Snow? Good reason for Elainea to ride her trike.
Elainea not looking too happy in the show.

Hannah our little Snow Princess!

The first fall of snow is not only an event, but it is a magical event. You go to bed in one kind of world and wake up to find yourself in another quite different, and if this is not enchantment, then where is it to be found? J.B. Pristly

It is almost embarrassing that I have taken so long to post again. So many things have happened and I do not know where to begin.

First Snow: During our first snow of the season Joe took the girl's outside to build a snowfort. Hannah had a blast but as for Elainea, she tried to have a blast. Our poor little Island girl did not like the cold of snow. Her eyes would not stop watering and she clearly would rather be inside.

Thanksgiving: We celebrated Thanksgiving at Pam's sister's house. We celebrated with Pam's Mom, Aunt Marilyn, Uncle Arlen, LeAnn's Family, The Fuelner's and some of KayDawn's kids (KayDawn was sick). The day was wonderful from the food the the kid's behavior. The girls had so much fun playing with their cousins. I was finally recovered enough from the Crypto to eat myself stupid. The day was almost magical.

The Baby (a.k.a Hayden): Yes it is official! We had the big ultrasound and found out that we are having a boy! We are naming him Hayden Patrick Rockwell. Hayden is Joe's Dad's middle name, and Patrick is Joe's middle name. This way he is named after both of them without using the name Joe. Baby is doing really well. He is very active and can make Mom nauseated from moving around so much. His due date is still in April, but has been moved to the middle of April. The girls are very excited about getting a baby brother. Something tells me he will able to keep up with both of them. What a miracle we have in our unexpected child. God is good.

Hannah: Hannah is doing really well at school. She is getting more proficient with her reading every day. She is so excited to be able to be part of the world around her by being able to understand through reading. She was watching PBS kids the other day and read a word on the TV. She was so excited she started jumping up and down. She still likes everything fancy. She is more willing to wear pants (even jeans) now that the weather is cold. She dreams of growing up and become an engineer princess. I told her to "Go for it!". Her eyesight is becoming more of an issue now that she is in school. We will set an appointment to get her eyes checked again. I do not know what I would do without my precious Hannah. She is becoming such a special young lady. She is vibrant and fun to be around. I thank God for her everyday.

Elainea: Elainea has been going through a tough time lately. She has been down right defiant at times. This is a new side to her personality that we have never seen before. We are still working with Early Intervention on her speech and she is making some progress, but I do not know if that is the root of her defiance or not. She is being tested to see if she qualifies for the Head Start program for additional speech therapy after she turns 3. A speech therapist came to evaluate her and she was less than cooperative. I think when she left everyone was more than a little frustrated. The other day I told her she better be good because Santa was coming. She gave me her sign for scared. I asked her why she was scared of Santa. She replied "Love Mama, Stay Here". I believe she thought Santa was going to take her away! Poor thing. She processes so many things that we are not aware of. I assured her that she is part of our family and that this is her home and she belongs here. She gave me a big kiss and hug and gave her three of four back. What a precious gift we have been given.

Joe: Joe is really enjoying his new job with the State of Utah. He works four tens Tuesday through Friday. This makes the family schedule less hectic because Pam is able to work four days a week and can reduce her hours to eight each day. Joe enjoys his time with the girls on Mondays. He loves to take them sledding and staying active with them. They all look forward to Mondays each week. Joe is my rock. He is a strong, compassionate and loving. I can not imagine life without him.

Pam: I am the room Mom for Hannah's Kindergarten class. On Friday I hosted the Christmas Party. I have a new found respect for teacher's and the stress they go through before the Christmas break. The kids could not stay on task. Overall it was great fun and I enjoyed every minute of it. The Mom's in the area are awesome and are always willing to help in anyway with the festivities. The other Mom's brought snacks, drinks, stories and bingo. All I had to do was organize it and plan an art project. Elainea was able to sit next to her sister and she was trying to participate in all the activities with her sister. She felt like a big girl.

The Christmas Concert: Hannah and Elainea participated in a Christmas Program at their day care. The program is great fun. Hannah was excited to perform for everyone, while our little spitfire Elainea just retreated inside and cried. Having over two hundred people focused on her was a little too overwhelming for her. She eventually ran from the stage area and onto her daddy's lap. Santa was there to visit all of the kids. Hannah was so excited to tell him that she wants a billiards table. Yes, you heard that right, a billiards table. Where does she get this stuff? Elainea was not so happy about the prospect of sitting in his lap. She eventually sat long enough for us to get a picture by bribing her with a candy cane.

We look forward to Christmas and experiencing the magic of the season as a family. We wish all of you a wonderful Holiday Season and a New Year of prosperity.

Hannah's Next Milestone -- The first lost tooth!

2007-11-05T19:51:00.000-08:00

Joy is the feeling of grinning on the inside.

Dr. Melba Colgroue

We are so proud of Hannah. In August she went to the dentist for a dental exam. She allowed them to clean her teeth and take some x-rays. The dentist then told me that she had two bottom teeth coming in and that she would soon lose her two bottom teeth. Well as of November 2nd 2007 she lost her first tooth! It had been loose for several weeks and she was scared that she was going swallow it. We were walking out to the car and she looked at me and said, "Mommy look how loose it is!". I looked over and the tooth was completely sideways and it fell out into the front of her mouth. She was very releived to know that most people do not swallow their teeth, and maybe now she will believe me!

She was equally excited to know that the tooth fairy is real and she does leave compensation for her teeth under her pillow. We are so proud of our big Hannah and look forward to the many more major milestones we get to share with her.

Happy Hauntings

2007-11-04T03:44:00.000-08:00

Our Princess and Angel!

This angel doesn't like her halo.

Listen! The wind is rising, and the air is wild with leaves, we have had our summer evenings, now for October eves!
Humbert Wolfe

What a fun holiday! Joe and I took the day off work so we could host and assist with the halloween parties for both of the girls classes. We had so much fun! We saw Hannah off on the bus and then went to Elainea's party. We helped get the kids in their costumes and then helped the teachers with the activities.
After we went straight to Hannah's school to work with her class. The kids were so much fun. It was nice to be able to see Hannah in her class and to see how she interacts with them. We had four activities planned and three parent volunteers to help. They were awesome. The party was so much fun. We were so busy that we did not have time to take pictures.

Joe took the kids trick or treating. Elainea did not understand the concept of doing more than dressing up until her big sister filled her in. Then Elainea started jumping around the house chanting "candy". Then they shuffled out the door and I stayed behing to hand out the candy. The kids were so cute this year.

I think I will look for some costumes for next year tomorrow. Hopefully they will still like them when it is time to wear them.

We hope all is well with you.... God Bless!

Looking For Pumpkins

2007-10-23T03:15:00.000-07:00

Posing with Papa!
Mama loves her girls!

We were impressed with her determination to pull the wagon.

We caught her trying to sneak another one!

The air is crisp. The leaves are old. Rake them all - the red and gold. Scoop them up. The pile's so tall! Jump right in! I just love Fall!
S. Morrey

We went looking for pumpkins and had a blast. Elainea and Hannah were brimming with excitement over the idea of selecting a pumpkin. We went to a pumpkin patch up the street and the girls took turns pulling the wagon and picking out the pumpkins. We had so much fun! It was truly a miracle to see our girls working together. It gave me a sense of peace to know that they will always have each other.

Elainea continues to progress on her speech. She gets better and better all of the time. We are trying to set an appointment to get her hearing checked. She has been in the early intervention program, but when she turns three she will transition into head-start. Given the tough criteria for head-start I do not think she will qualify for the program. Part of me is excited, but part of me is scared at the thought that we will no longer have help for her.

The pregnancy is progressing well. We found out that we are having a boy. The baby now has a name, Hayden Patrick Rockwell. This way he will be named after his Grandpa and Dad. The name is a concatenation of both their middle names, so he will be named after them without having to name him Joe.

We continue to enjoy God's abundant blessings.

Life is Full of Surprises

2007-09-20T02:31:00.000-07:00

A girl after her Daddy's heart!
Would she feel the same way if she were not floating on a sea of grass?

Elainea and her Mimzi.

Hannah at her first day of school.

I am ashamed when I look at how long it has been since I posted. So much has happened and every moment is worth sharing. Hannah started kindergarten and loves it. In fact she comes home in the afternoon and wants Mom to continue her school day. I really like the idea of all day kindergarten. She keeps telling me that she can not wait to start first grade so she can have more school in her day. What a difference from the scared and clingy little girl at kindergarten roundup in May.
She has an awesome teacher that we really like. I feel good that she is with Mrs. Shelley when she goes to school. The transition for me has been easier than I thought. I only cried once and that is when I put her on the school bus for the first time. Every protective Mom instinct came out and I had to force myself to let her on the bus. It felt strange to hand her over to people I did not know(the bus driver and assistant). Hannah had an adventure the first time she rode the bus home. She has a regular schedule, but she does not ride the bus home every day. On Mondays and Fridays either Joe or I are home and so she can ride the bus. On Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays she is picked up by her daycare. Well the first full day of Kindergarten was on a Wednesday, and they put her on the bus to come home. I was in Ogden with my Mom getting eye surgery and I get the phone call. One of the school secretaries ask me "Where would she go?" I felt the blood drain from my face. I pictured our daughter roaming the streets by herself crying and feeling abandoned. Luckily Hannah has memorized her parent's cell phone numbers. What a smart little girl we have. She was calm the whole time and requested the bus driver to call me. How grown up is that! Well when she called I was already on the phone with the secretary. Fortunately they felt they should take her back to the school where her daycare was waiting for her.
Elainea is doing well. We had her evaluated by early intervention because she is struggling with her speech. I see her get frustrated when she wants to have a conversation and she only can say certain sounds. She is making up signs to communicate words to us, but I can tell that she wants to express her thoughts and ideas. We were quite proud when she was evaluated on target or advanced for most areas, but her expressive language skills she falls short. They tell me she is on the level of a 14-month old. We start speech therapy this month and that should help her catch up.
Elainea is doing pretty well physically. She is only in the 25 percentile in height and in the 50 percentile in weight (she is totally American!) Her immunizations are finally caught up. The monthly trips to the clinic were starting to wear on me. Now for the interesting stuff. Utah has had a HUGE outbreak of a nasty parasite called Cryptosporidium. It is a fungal protozoa that is passed through fecal to mouth contact. Well these little parasites are in a protective hard cyst when you pass them through your system until someone swallows it. Then in your intestines it starts to break out of the cyst and make the poor victim sicker than sick. Well every public pool in Utah has been infected, and because they live in these little cysts, the normal water chlorination does not kill it. Needless to say we went swimming at our local pool and poor Elainea got infected first. This sickness is horrible as it gives you severe diarrhea and makes you throw up. Our poor daughter was so ill and so lethargic! It was strange to see her want to lay down instead of getting into mischief of one kind or another. She got so dehydrated that we took her to the doctor where they took a sample and verified that she had the parasite with a lab analysis. Joe was the next one to go down. Luckily he has a strong stomach so he was mostly just inconvenienced by the whole deal and had to cope with the cramping and eating near a bathroom.
I got a get-out-of-changing-the-stinky-diapers free card being that I was already fighting dehydration with my morning sickness. Yes you read that right. Joe and I are now part of that infamous statistic group where you adopt and then get pregnant. Despite our best efforts to avoid me getting it, I just came down with it. Boy is this awful! I had to go to the emergency room to get an IV because I could not even swallow without getting sick. We called my midwife who made an appointment for me to come in yesterday. Our midwife did an ultrasound and determined that the baby is no worse for the wear, but Mom is miserable. Baby is now due on April 6th. This would be fun because he or she would share a birthday with one of Joe's sisters.
My Mom did well with her surgery. The hole in her retina was surgically maintained and she has been positioning for two weeks now. Positioning involves holding your head down to the ground so the air bubble inserted into the eye settles over the hole letting it heal. This doesn't sound bad until you consider that you have to do it for 50 minutes of every hour! She has endured the trial remarkably well. We managed to borrow a massage table and put a flat screen TV underneath it. She has many friends and neighbors that brought in food. I had to keep a distance because of the outbreak at our house. My oldest sister stayed with her for the first three days and we are so grateful for her efforts. I call her daily and we are so fortunate that so many people love to help take care of her.
I have rambled on enough for one night. Take care and God Bless!

Readoption Day!

2007-08-27T07:13:00.000-07:00

She is mine, mine and all mine! Proud Daddy!

Happy Girls!

Whatever with the past has gone, the best is always yet to come.
Lucy Larcom

Today we went to court to readopt Elainea in the state of Utah. It was a day full of excitement for the two girls. It was clearly manifested in their behavior as they ran up and down the courtroom hall before we convened. Our lawyer had a look of panic on his face at the thought of taking these two little girls before the judge.
I called Hannah over and told her how important a judge was and how we need to respect his authority. I told her that she was to sit down at the table and color and be quiet as a mouse. I must admit that I was a little nervous on how they were going to behave in front of the judge. We went in the courtroom and I was surprised at how well behaved Hannah was. A magical transformation came over the girls and they were little angels. Imagine that from hooligans to angels in less than five minutes. Who would have thought?
The second district court recorded the adoption proceeding and gave us a copy. The judge asked us some relatively simple questions and then asked Hannah if we should keep Elainea and she very politely replied "yes". I thought we had pulled one over on the judge by sucessfully hiding the hooligan-like behavior sucessfully. He then looked at us and winked as he said, "It looks like you have your hands full." I think I turned 10 shades of red. then a sense of relief as he saw the good and the ugly. He continued to say that he thought we had a beautiful family. Then it was official, she is ours according to both countries! We then went to verify the information for her birth certificate. It has Joe and Pam Rockwell as her parents. Just think the only way people will know that she is a adopted is by seeing us all together!
We are so blessed and I can not even remember life without Elainea. Miracles happen!

Six Months Anniversary!

2007-08-02T08:08:00.000-07:00

Hannah in her China Dress.

Elainea in her China dress.

Our Family Photo.

Twenty Little Princess Toes.

Elainea and her cousin Katy.

Destiny is not a matter of chance, it is a matter of choice; it is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved.

William Jennings Bryan

My how time goes by so fast. I can not believe that it has been six months since Elainea joined our family. In a way it feels like she has always been here. There is no doubt in my mind that Elainea being part of our family was predestined and it was God's will to build our family using both methods.

We went to celebrate our six month anniversary by eating out at a restaurant. It was the first time we have had a nice dinner out in several months. We enjoyed ourselves and Elainea was on her best behavior so all of us got to sit through dinner. Elainea was being really cute with the waitress. She wanted to learn how to carry the tray.

We need some photos of the family to send to CCAA for our post placement study. My Aunt graciously volunteered to take pictures for us. We always manage to have a picture of three of us but never four because one of us is always behind the camera. We went to her house after spending the afternoon at the swimming pool. Well Elainea and Hannah had their fill of each other and wanted nothing to do with each other during the photo shoot. Elainea was wired and did not want to sit still for a minute. We ended up with one that will just have to do. Elainea has her tongue sticking out and she is trying to get out of my lap. Hannah is not smiling and is growing her bangs out so they are in her eyes. Oh well. Our family is not perfect, but we love each other and are happy so I guess they will just have to deal with the photo we send them.

We put the girls in their Chinese dresses and took some additional pictures. I hope you enjoy them as much as we do.

Time goes by!

2007-07-30T07:15:00.000-07:00

I promise this pose was not coached. She is all glamour and glitz!

Waiting for the fireworks to start can be so hard when you are a kid! Elainea wasn't sure if anything was worth staying up for.

Mornings are a little brighter with these smiles around!

You are never too old to play peek-a-boo!

Far away there in the sunshine are my highest aspirations. I may not reach them, but I can look up and see their beauty, believe in them, and try to follow where they lead.
Louisa May Alcott

I can not believe that the month is almost over. How times flies in the summer. We have done so many things since our last post. We have had a family reunion, a BBQ with some of the families that we adopted with in China, went to our Adoption Agency picnic. Hannah finally passed level 1 in swimming. This after a lifeguard had to pull her out of the pool when she went swimming with her preschool. She never quit breathing, but her Mom did when she found out! Hannah thpught that just because she was in swim lessons that it meant she could swim. When we knew she was going swimming with her class we told her she could go if she wore a life jacket and stayed out of the deep end. Well she made some bad choices and told everyone that she could swim as she headed off to the deep end. I hope she learned a valuable lesson from this.
Pam's Mom has ripped the retina of her eye. This will require corrective surgery. As it turns out the surgery is the easy part, the hard part is the recovery. She has to lie face down for 50 mins of each hour for two weeks! Pam also learned that her Aunt Arlene died this week. This means that out of her Dad's brothers and sisters only her Uncle Ken is still alive. We are very close to Ken and hope that this does not take a huge toll on his life. Pam's Aunt Arlene was a very kind and sweet woman. She donated a block to Elainea's Good Wishes Quilt and we will treasure it for always. She will be missed.
In the last couple of weeks several people have asked about the carrier that we used in China that worked for both Hannah and Elainea. It was a wonderfu carrier you can check them out at http://www.sutemigear.com/. This carrier can be used as a front, hip or back carrier. We bought one from the seconds page and it worked really well.
We are currently working on our first post placement study. Our social worker came to the house to complete her observations for her home study report. Well the girls got over-stimulated with the idea of a guest at our house that was not a relative. Furthermore she was paying attention to them. They were so rowdy. I figure that it is better for her to see us as we really are. We are a loud but happy family. Do not expect to come to our house for peace and tranquility. I guess that stage of life will come later, but not now with our dynamic duo!
Hannah starts school in a mere thirty days. My baby is growing up. How did it happen so fast? She has really started to mature in the last three months. I am so proud of the girl she is developing into to. She has a huge heart and a good moral compass. As a proud mother I could keep bragging for pages about my kids! They are such a miracle and I could not imagine our lives any differently. God is good!

2007-07-09T14:21:00.000-07:00

I love this picture of Hannah.

Anyone ask for a ham sandwich?

Swimming with cousins on the 4th of July.

Fun in the sun.

The finished product.

All green and fair the summer lies, Just budded from the bud of spring, With tender blue of wistful skies, And winds that softly sing.

Susan Coolidge

Summer is upon us and so our family is once again instantly busy at all times. It is like there is an invisible threshold between spring and summer and once you pass it your family life kicks into high gear.

This last week was eventful in many ways. The house is finally complete, we celebrated five months since Elainea joined our family, and she celebrated her first 4th of July as an American citizen. Hannah surprises me all the time with her observation skills. She came up to me and told me "I am so glad that we live in America so we can have twelve-hundred and sixty-six children if we want them." I do not know where she got the number from, but I thought how profound that is. There are many personal liberties we have in America that many people have payed the ultimate sacrifice so that we may enjoy them, and in some cases take them for granted.

I am once again reminded of how I felt when we landed back in the United States. Do not get me wrong, China is a beautiful country with wonderful people, but the people still struggle under a communist-like government. I keep thinking of how blessed we are together as a family. I wish there were some way that we could let Elainea's birth mother know that she is so healthy and happy now.

I will write more later....

A Rough Patch....

2007-06-28T17:38:00.001-07:00

I have been reluctant to post lately, in part due to embarrassment about being so depressed. Really our family has been through so much in the last year. Pam has survived several layoffs, but witnessed over 70% of the people that she works with leave. Joe has transitioned to a new job. We traveled half way across the world. We adopted a beautiful girl, only to face the possibility of losing her. We traveled home facing the horrible jet lag, had to adjust sleeping patterns, only to face night terrors. We then faced the issue of a rotting and mold-infested home, only to find out the entire exterior needed to be redone. We fumbled through retaining an attorney to help recover the HUGE expense of the remodel. In addition to this it seems that no one we cross paths with anymore can do their jobs. Pam suffered with an abscessed tooth in China. When we got home she had a root canal and cap done, this on top of a tooth getting capped last September. Thanks to the dentist not being able to file an insurance claim correctly, we amassed a very large dental bill. We have requested and worked with them for over five months trying to get the account straightened out. To date, they have filed one claim correctly after five attempts!
Still on top of this we have the IRS harassing us about our 2005 taxes. We hired a CPA firm to do our taxes. Apparently the staff at this firm was not aware of tax law changes and managed to get us an extra $600.00 in a refund we were not entitled to. Now the IRS thinks we owe them $900.00. With the firms help we filed two year worth of amended returns in which we sent the check . Well apparently the auditor at the IRS felt it necessary to accept our check, but not our amended return. Now they want additional money and more information. Furthermore, they sent us notification of non-payment even though they cashed our check. Arghhh!
Never have I felt such pressure. They say that God does not give you more than you can handle, well I wonder how much faith God must have in our family!
In the meantime we struggle with the regular everyday stuff. It seems that the little things that we could just let roll off our back send us into a down spiral. Over-reaction is the norm in the last two weeks. Our stress balloons are full and we respond by being cranky. It is not just Pam and Joe, but Hannah and Elainea too. They seem to absorb all of the issues that we are concerned about through osmosis. We try to shelter them, but they know things are not right. Poor Elainea is dealing with so much already, and now we through this additional stress upon her. Her response to all of this is to be extra needy and clingy of Mom’s attention. This just inflames the flames of stress as I try to juggle her needs as well as everything that is going on.
Next month we start our post-placement requirements. This ought to be interesting. At least the house will look good. I wonder if this is normal. You wait in anticipation for over two years to add another member to your family. You are on an adrenaline high when you receive your child. Experience the lowest of all low-points in your life when you think you might lose her. Experience another high when you find out that it was all a mistake. You come home and barely have time to gather yourselves then life starts throwing major events your way. Is all of this just a normal response to the adoption event and just exasperated by the fact that we have these additional issues?
They say that there is a Post Adoption Depression that is very similar to Post Partum Depression. I may have fallen victim to this. Even with the additional stresses that we are experiencing, we have so much to be thankful for. When we returned from China I vowed that I would never take my life for granted again. I know that even if we had to start over with nothing but the shirts on our backs that we are privileged to live in this country. We enjoy the freedom of worship and to choose our life vocations, and believe in our God without persecution. How blessed is that? It is funny because my brain is telling me one thing, but yet I am feeling something to the contrary.
I take comfort in knowing that every morning I am greeted by hugs and kisses from my girls (and Joe of course). I take comfort in knowing that this will pass and soon I will laugh about all of our fretting. Until then we will just huddle close and hang on!

Summer Heat

2007-06-25T09:06:00.000-07:00

Two sisters in the wagon. A picture we waited a long time for...

How do I look in chocolate?

Happiness is a butterfly, which, when pursued, is always just beyond your grasp, but which, if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you.

Nathaniel Hawthorne

What a week we have had. The house is almost finished. The new color looks fabulous. We really are impressed with the workmanship. This week they will finish the soffiting, put up the fixtures and clean up. We can hardly believe that this is almost over.

Hannah started swim lessons and is doing really well. She is growing up so fast. She is getting more and more independent. I didn't think this day would ever come. Hannah is starting to show signs of her stomach ailments again. We are starting her on some medication and we will see how she responds.

Elainea is continuing to progress. She is a sassy little girl that is full of energy. If you look up the term spitfire in the dictionary you will see her picture. Her and her sister have totally bonded and will be life-long sisters and friends. I am so proud at the progress she has made. She understands English very well and is working very hard at pronouncing new words.

Today we are supposed to hear the official response for the builder's lawyer. We are praying that they will settle out of court.

Talk to you soon....

Father's Day

2007-06-18T07:13:00.000-07:00

Lounging at the pool, or on the pool?

Doing a hick impersonation with toothpics.

I like M & Ms.

I love my sister.

A tricycle that is not built for two!

A truly rich man is one whose children run into his arms when his hands are empty. ~Author Unknown

We celebrated Father's Day yesterday. It was a simple but fun day. We went to eat and laughed the whole time. The girls were on their best behavior and it made the dinner so much fun. Joe ordered the salad bar and so he was able to get ice cream with various toppings. He brought it back to the table and the feedng frenzy with Elainea started. She showed us some incredible reflex action as she went in to swipe more M&Ms.

The house is getting closer to completion. They finished putting up the new basecoat for the stucco. It needs to cure for a week and then they can finish with the topcoat and trim. It will be such a relief to have it completed and the scaffolding and plastic taken down. Currently every window and door is covered with plastic. This makes the kids go crazy.

We inflated the pool and let the kids go swimming. They had so much fun together. Seeing the two girls together reminds us about what life is really about. They are so amazing. They both are changing so much right now.

There is no doubt that the sacarament of marriage was our true vocation and God gives us the grace we need to be parents. What a priceless gift we have in them.

Keep on keeping on!

2007-06-13T18:20:00.000-07:00

Having fun at Lagoon!
Walking Grandma to the car.

Walking Grandpa to the car.

A work in progress.

A beautiful girl and her Dad. Life does not get better.

For you have need of ENDURANCE, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised.

Hebrews 10:36

What a fun week with the girls! We started the week with Hannah going on a field trip with her preschool class. She went to a bird refuge and came back very excited to learn more. She cheerfully sits in the back seat of the van naming the various species of birds that she learned about in school. We then went for a weekend trip to Torrey, Utah so Elainea could finally meet her Grandpa Joe. We went to mass and she held her Grandpa’s hand out to the car. She then ran back and grabbed her Grandmother’s hand. What a sweet girl!
I was amazed at her reaction when we arrived home from the trip. This was our first major trip (staying overnight in a hotel) since we got back from China. I think Elainea was a little un-nerved by it all. When we pulled into the driveway you should have seen the elation on her little face. I think she thought she was going through another life transition. If you think about it, she was sheltered in an orphanage until we show up. We take her away from her familiar surroundings, travel extensively and stay in hotel rooms. No wonder she thought something was up. She got out of the car and just started laughing and riding her bike!

We were amazed at the progress they have made on the house. The old stucco is completely gone and they have wrapped the house and are almost done putting up the wire. We can not wait until the project is complete.

We were able to spend the day at Lagoon yesterday. We thought little Miss Elainea would laugh herself sick on the rides. Her reaction was not exactly what we were expecting. She did not cry, but she was totally serious when riding the rides. We actually think she enjoyed a couple of them, but she was all business about it. Hannah was excited to finally go to Lagoon with someone to sit with on the rides. I would take them into the ride and fasten them in and wait at the exit with the rest of the over-protective mothers. Hannah loved the time between being buckled in with her sister and when the ride started. She had Elainea all to herself and she could smother her in kisses without abandon. Many of the mothers noticed her display of deep affection and commented on it to me. Well I guess that Elainea finally felt like she was being mauled and hit Hannah in complete frustration! All the mother’s standing in line were laughing hysterically. As it turns out I went to high school with one of the mothers. I learned that my 20-year class reunion is this September. I do not know about this. Where did the time go? Could it really be 20 years since I graduated from high school? We will see how this story progresses.

Home Sweet Home?

2007-06-07T13:21:00.000-07:00

A forced smile on the merry-go-round.

Black mold and rotten board anyone?

Elainea in time out. Yes, the thumb has a HUGE callous!

We love our happy girl in her BIG bow!

In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt.

Margaret Atwood

It has been awhile since we have posted. There is so much going on. We are in the middle of a lawsuit. The 24hr flu went through the house and now it Elainea has pink eyes. The stucco has been totally stripped off the house and they are getting ready to put the new stucco up. They had to clean up both white and black mold. We sold the truck and with the proceeds bought a minivan. Hannah calls it her house on wheels. Hannah started summer camp at preschool. No matter what happens we are just happy to be together.

The Journey's End

2007-06-05T13:19:00.000-07:00

Let your mind start a journey thru a strange new world. Leave all thoughts of the world you knew before. Let your soul take you where you long to be...Close your eyes let your spirit start to soar, and you'll live as you've never lived before.”
Erich Fromm

It is hard to call this journey as concluded and consider this as an official end to our wonderful adoption story. Our family is complete, but our family story is far from over. We must admit that we are addicted to maintaining a blog (ok maybe not frequently), but it is a nice way to document what is happening and share our experiences with others. We have a new blog at www.rockwellfamilyutah.blogspot.com. We will continue to document our adventures there.
Elainea if you are reading this blog searching for answers we hope that you find the ones you are looking for. We want you to know that everyone who has had the privilege of knowing you has loved you. You were never given up, that would deny God’s will in His plan of adoption. Please know that your biological parents could not raise you, so you were destined to be part of our family. You were never rejected, only loved. Your being adopted is part of God’s plan for you. We were blessed to be part of that plan. During these past few months our love for you has grown. We can no longer imagine our lives without you. Does being adopted make you different from your sister, in the eyes of your parents, absolutely no! Historically you two have a different past, but that just makes you special. This entry is not meant to substitute all of the talks that we should have, but just serves as a testament of how we have felt all along.We love you Elainea and Welcome Home!

The Best is Yet to Come

2007-05-25T13:18:00.000-07:00

Blessed are those who give without remembering. And blessed are those who take without forgetting.
Bernard Meltzer

I really have not had very much time for reflection with all that is going on since we have gotten back from China. I had a moment of inspiration today as I was thinking back on our time in China. I can not thank the families that traveled with us enough for their love and compassion as we worked through the Hep C scare. I do not know if we could have made it though that difficult time without them. They rallied behind us and helped us in so many ways. They helped us stay in our hotel for the extended stay; they helped my Mom get home safely (to her door) and continued to check in on us after they left.
I then think about all of the email of love and support for our daughter and our family. How could we ever thank everyone? Most of these people I still have not had the opportunity to email back. We can not express gratitude to those that helped us through this ordeal without mentioning the staff at WIAA and Sabrina and our guide Jo Jo and even though we never met her Judy Wu. They all worked hard to see that we received all the assistance we needed to make it through.
So why did I suddenly have time for reflection? Let us just say I couldn’t sleep. It has to do with a couple we met in the Little Swan Room at the White Swan Hotel. It was on Thursday and the other families had left. We had no desire to tour or see China with all of the Chinese New Year celebrations. I took the girls down to the toy room so they wouldn’t bounce off the room walls any longer. I do not remember the names of this couple, but I remember what they told us. “She will be OK. There is something special about that little girl. We just know this to be true.” I had so many doubts that I dismissed it at first. Last night as I lay in bed I was almost asleep when the words came back and washed over me like a huge wave. It was at that moment I realized that they really did know! How fortunate are we! This could have played out in so many different ways! God is truly great and good in all his works.
I am so thankful for our little piece of Heaven on Earth. The girls are changing so rapidly right now and it is so fun to watch. As time passes I see that it will not be long before the parents will no longer be the center of their universe. We need to hang onto these moments and never let them go.
Elainea continues to amaze us with her progress. She is a very fun girl who loves to tease people. She is smart and very active. She can not sit still for a minute. She is starting to show signs of frustration with not being able to speak clearly. She no longer wants to use sign to communicate. She wants to speak English like the rest of us. She tries to form the words and gets frustrated when everything comes out “Baa”. She can say many words, but she seems to be losing her momentum with learning any new words. She just recently started to enjoy singing. We put a kids CD on in the van and the next thing you know she is singing in her car seat.Hannah is getting so mature. Her friends are starting to become so important to her. She is such a wonderful big sister. She is kind and generous and loves her to a fault. She smothers her sister with hugs and kisses until she can not stand it anymore. I look at them and feels a sense of hope and joy. They will always have each other….life is good!

Gotta keep looking on the bright side.

2007-05-15T13:11:00.000-07:00

Swimming is better with a sister.

Award winning smile!

I finally got a bow in her hair!

Having fun running through Sponge Bob.

Elainea has been taking cheesy grin lessons from her big sister.

It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see.

Henry David Thoreau

Life never ceases to amaze us. It was such a wonderful Mother's Day this weekend. We have two beautiful daughters and our family feels complete. There is so much going on, but together we can do anything. The girls are so happy with each other and they love to play with each other. I look at them together and I think "this is perfection". We are amazed at the gifts we have received and we feel so blessed. Little Elainea has just fit into our family and we can not imagine life without her. She is getting very attached to her Dad. We went looking for used cars this last weekend and Joe went for a test drive and I stayed back with the girls. Elainea cried when her Dad left. I just held her close and told her she was a good girl.We are selling the truck to help out with the immediate need for funds to fix the stucco on our home. We found out that the builders insurance company does not cover his workmanship. This is very disappointing and our prospects of getting money from him are not promising. We have discussed other options than stripping the entire house and reinstalling the stucco. We will have to see how they pan out.We have learned exactly what a small world we live in. We went to look at a minivan last night and the sellers recognized us but could not figure out where he knew us from. Come to find out he recognized us from the Cummings blog. The Cumming's were one of the wonderful families we met in China. Apparently they are very good friends with them. What a cooincidene! We are going to purchase the van next month after we sell the truck.Elainea got her root canal and cap on her tooth. Her smile looks awesome. The dentist still thinks that she will lose the tooth before her permanent tooth comes in, but the proceedure will probably extend the life of the tooth for several years. She is progressing nicely with the potty training. I am really not pursuing it as hard as I should, but it will happen in its own time.We look forward to spending a fun summer together. Here are some great photos of the girls.

Settling into a Routine?

2007-04-30T13:03:00.000-07:00

Even waiting for a table can be fun with a sister.

She still loves the slide!

Girls at the Monastary

Can it get any cheesier?

Hannah is growing up so fast!

There are some things you learn best in calm, and some in storm.
Willa Carter

Well what a wild ride we have had over the last few weeks! The girls are behaving as all normal siblings do. They argue over who has the bigger half or who goes first. It seems as though Elainea has been with our family for years, and not just months. She is starting to potty train herself. The only consolation Pam had when we found out that she was already two was that she was still in diapers. In her mind that made it acceptable because she would have a baby for a little while longer. Elainea will say bathroom after she has already soiled her diaper and then take off her diaper and run into the bathroom and climb onto the toilet! Pam will just have to relent and let her grow up.
We are still trying to put together the paperwork for the lawsuit. The latest development is that we are no longer going to small claims court because the whole house needs to be redone! Well over the $7500 small claims limit. The good news is that the builder advised us that they will file a claim with their insurance company. We have contacted a lawyer and he advised us that we are getting close to a time limit where the builder would no longer be liable. We are so fortunate that we discovered the problem when we did. In the meantime, we are living in a fishbowl as every window has scaffolding outside it and people are all over working on the house. It scares Elainea a little when the workers are by the windows.
This week was full of fun activities. We went on trips to the park, monastery and a family get together.
A picture is worth a thousand words so here is some more from the girls.

A New Creation

2007-04-15T09:43:00.000-07:00

Proud parents with Elainea and Deacon Jack Clark.

Proxy Godparents, Deacon Jack Clark, Mama, Baba and Elainea.

I love the expression of love and happiness on Hannah's face!

Two peas in a pod.

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

"Our love to God is measured by our everyday fellowship with others and the love it displays."
Andrew Murray

The purpose of Christianity is not to avoid difficulty, but to produce a character adequate to meet it when it comes. It does not make life easy; rather it tries to make us great enough for life.
James L. Christensen

We were so blessed to experience the sacrament of baptism with Elainea this weekend. The day was wonderful and we were able to celebrate with family and friends. She wore a beautiful white dress that was able to stay white despite her activity level. We are finding out that she really has difficulty sitting through mass, let alone mass and then a baptism ceremony. Joe had to take her outside to get the wiggles out several times. When the ceremony began she ran out of Pam’s arms and behind the altar. When she peeked out from behind the altar and saw people looking at her she would smile and run in the other direction. She finally settled down long enough to complete the baptism. Our gratitude goes out to Uncle Lowell and Aunt Mary Jane for standing in as god parents for Uncle Gary and Aunt Elizabeth and to Deacon Jack Clark for performing the sacrament with such warm affection.Afterwards we were fortunate enough to have family and friends join us in a small reception. She loved being the center of attention. She has a magical way of melting people’s hearts.Our wish is that some day she will understand and appreciate the wonderful gift of being part of a Christian community. This community is another extended family that she will find in all corners of the world. Keeping this in mind she will will never be alone no matter where she goes. We will do our best to show her God’s love for her through our special vocation of family. Our promise to her is that we will help her understand that she is a special creation and a unique expression of God’s word and that the world would not be the same without her.We hope these photos will let you experience the sacrament, or help you remember how special it was.

The good, the bad and the ugly.

2007-04-14T09:31:00.000-07:00

What, is the necklace too much?

Having Fun in the Wagon

Sisters stick together!

A tisket, a tasket, a cute girl with her Easter basket!

Hannah scored an egg.

Expect to have hope rekindled. Expect your prayers to be answered in wondrous ways. The dry seasons in life do not last. The spring rains will come again.
Sarah Ban Breathnach

It is time to document some reality about parenting in general. It is a romantic vocation, by that we mean that when you sit down to discuss it with other people, you tend to romanticize it and you forget about the stuff that makes it real. Well here is our reality check.
Elainea is still having night terrors, which means Pam has gone about three months with inconsistent sleep. We were hoping that maybe once the language barrier had been breached then they would subside. We guess only time will tell. She has been through so many things that she does not understand.At first we would tell everyone how well she listened and obeyed. Well that stage has officially passed. Case in point, she used to pull out her changing pad, diaper and wipes when she needed her diaper changed. Well she no longer sees the need to change her diaper because she is too busy. One must first detect the potty infraction and wrestle her down to the diaper pad. Then it is like a pit stop in stock car racing because she does not have time for more than a 40 second pit stop. What happens when you have crossed the timeline? Well she gets up and off she runs laughing at our incompetence.We took her to the dentist and she is missing two teeth on the bottom. In addition the dentist is strongly suggesting we do a root canal and cap the front tooth that is grey. A cap on a baby tooth, does that sound absurd to anyone else? Moreover he wants to put her out to do that, take x-rays (to see if she will have permanent teeth where she is missing her two baby teeth), perform a cleaning, and seal her back molars. Once again Joe and Pam come from two different perspectives. Joe thinks the doctor is just out for our money, whereas Pam is more apt to trust the dentist’s opinion. Some people advise us to get a second opinion from another dentist. This is going to sound like a lame excuse, but we just do not have the energy or ambition to do it. It is like the saying from Larry the Cable Guy keeps going off in the back of our heads “Get her done!”Leaving the dentist was another adventure. While trying to work out the insurance and billing, Elainea decided that it was time she go see what the dentist is doing to all of the other kids. Pam asked her to come back to Mommy. She turned and smiled at her and started running! Pam chased her through three exams rooms. Then the minute we get out the front door Miss Elainea thinks that it is time to run around in the parking lot. Being the self-sufficient two-year-old that she is, she does not need to hold any person’s hand because she can run out in front of a car as well as they can! That puts a few grey hairs on your head! Meanwhile we are trying to put together a case to present in small claims court. The stucco was installed incorrectly on our house and it is going to cost a small fortune to get it fixed. Unfortunately we can not find all of the documentation that we need. We know we have it because we have enough “documentation” of various kinds to fill an Olympic sized swimming pool. So we continue to wade through the waves of paper until we find what we need.On a positive note we did get her social security number last month and her citizenship papers a couple of weeks ago. We have also retained an attorney that is preparing our petition of readoption. This process will put her into the vital statistics system and she will receive a birth certificate from the State of Utah. We can file the petition now, but we can not go to family court until she has been in our home for six months. This means that we should be through the adoption paperwork in August!Elainea has a blanket phobia. She refuses to sleep with covers. This means that she is even more prone to rolling off the bed. We had to fortify the bed so she will not roll off. She still reluctantly takes a nap. She has come to the conclusion that the most exciting things in life happen while she is asleep. When we lay her down because she is so tired that she is bumping into walls, she lays there moving her legs up and down so she doesn’t drift off. I feel so cruel in making her lay there, sometimes it takes her about three hours to get in a forty-five minute nap. So much for the idea of post-institutionalized kids craving structure and routine, or at least when nap is part of it!Pam has returned to work and so Elainea has started to go to daycare three days a week. It is obvious that Pam is having a harder time of it than Elainea. Elainea loves the idea of having tables and chairs in her size that she can push around all day. Her teachers love her as well as all of the kids in Hannah’s class.We suspect that Elainea is lactose intolerant. She has had diarrhea since the first day she became part of our family. Little did we know that over 90% of Asian Americans are lactose intolerant. We are going to put her on rice milk to see if that helps.With all that has been said, please do not think that we are complaining. We are not. We have been given so much and are so grateful. We are so grateful for our wonderful family and friends! We have seen a medical miracle with the ongoing recovery of Pam’s aunt. She considers her to be her second mother. We look forward to they day she can meet Elainea.

Easter 2007

2007-04-13T09:23:00.000-07:00

Hunting for Eggs.

More Eggs than you can shake a stick at! But look out for snakes!

Elainea and her cousin Andriana

Did anyone see the size of that snake?

Elainea and Megan

Grace isn't a little prayer you chant before receiving a meal. It's a way to live.

Jackie Windspear

This was a magical Easter in so many ways. Our family has returned from China complete, we are looking forward to Elainea's baptism next week, Pam’s aunt will make a recovery from her recent critical illness, and we celebrate Fr. Pat's 80th birthday. I do not know how much I tell people about Fr. Pat, so I will explain a little to you. Fr. Pat is a monk up at the Monastery in Huntsville, Utah. If you are interested they have a website www.holytrinityabbey.org. He is even pictured on the page about the gift shop. He is our spiritual advisor and helps to keep us on the path of straight and narrow. We see him once a month for confession and was one of the inspirations for my conversion to the Catholic faith. I was spiritual dead before I met Joe, his family and this great man. Since I have re-established a relationship with God my life has meaning again. It helps to know that even our trial we had in China has a purpose behind it. We may not always understand it, but God has complete control and his grace is immense.I remember my first confession with Fr. Pat. It was absolutely incredible! I told him my deepest, darkest secrets and he just listened so intently. I could actually feel him listening to me! I thought after all I had told him he would condemn me, or at the very least be disappointed with me. Instead he knelt down and kissed my feet! What a humble and kind spirit. He made no judgement and instead showed me God's grace. We are so blessed to have Fr. Pat in our lives. He is a major source of support during our adoption journey. He was born on Easter and celebrates his first birthday that falls on Easter since his birth this year. We love him and wish him well on his special day.This Easter was spiritual and fun. It is hard to contemplate the suffering and resurrection of our Lord when you have two small children. It seems you are always attending to some one's need and time for reflection is sandwiched into the five minutes between when you lay your head down and you fall asleep exhausted.On Easter we dressed the kids in their beautiful new dresses and went to Mass. Then we came home to prepare for members of both sides of the family to come over for Easter dinner. It was great fun and we had the annual Easter egg hunt. Pam’s mom saves her change throughout the year and puts it into Easter eggs for the hunt. We hide either small toys or candy in the eggs and this year Joe’s sister Jane sponsored some eggs as well. The hunt was so much fun and Elainea caught on quick to the idea of gathering eggs into her basket.Of course the party did not conclude without a hitch. We have what is called a hibernaculum under our front walk. For those that do not know what this is (I only recently found out) it is a snake den where snakes come to hibernate from miles around in the winter. This means that we have a high density of snakes in our yard. Well Pam’s mom came over for Easter and about stepped on one in the garage. Well she has a snake phobia and came inside and collapsed in a chair. And being the loving daughters that they are, Pam’s sister snapped a picture to commemorate the moment. Needless to say the snake drama continued to unfold during the egg hunt! It added an element of thrill and surprise for the kids looking for eggs.We posted some pictures of the egg hunt for all to enjoy!

Life as Normal?

2007-04-06T09:18:00.000-07:00

Love the matching dresses!

Our China Doll

Glamour Girl

I will not get down until we make cookies.

I LOVE frosting!!

If you must do something ridiculous, outrageous or stupid, at least do it enthusiastically!

Author Unknown

Just when you think you have the mom thing down to a science, something happens to give you a dose of humility. When Hannah was little she had so many health issues that once a doctor told me to quit being an overprotective mother. That really stuck with me until this weekend. Elainea was acting like she was not feeling well. I tried to rationalize the symptoms as something to not worry about. The diarrehea was because of her diet and the rash was because of dry skin etc. She was still active and playing so how serious could it be? When she started to develop a fever and felt like a boiler I decided to take her temperature. The thermometer read 99.9 degrees. Well I knew our thermometer always registered a couple of degrees low, so I decided to take her into the doctors office. I sat there thinking that I would get the "lecture" again until they took her temperature. They immediately told me to take her clothes off. She had a fever of 105! Before our trip to China the Health Department told me that if any of us manifested flu-like symptoms to tell the doctor where we have been. The next thing you know they are drawing blood to test for malaria. Poor Elainea, every time we go to the doctor she is getting shots or blood drawn. Then came the six day wait for the results. One day I got so anxious that I called Kathy at WIAA to ask how many children has come over with Malaria, she calmed my fears when she told me "none". Well we got the results yesterday and she does not have Malaria. Thank goodness!This week I had to take her to daycare for one day. How traumatic that was for me as a mom. This was mom guilt on steriods! I kept thinking all day about whether she realized that I was coming to pick her up or if she thought of the daycare as her new orphanage. The joy I felt as I was able to pick up both of my girls after work was so overwhelming. They both ran into my arms and I just had to hold them for a little while. They will be this age for only a short time and soon they will be too busy for their mom.I took some cute photos of Hannah and Elainea the other day wearing some matching dresses. This morning we made some sugar cookies for Easter this weekend. We look forward to spending the day with family and celebrating in God's glory.

A Birthday Party for the Girls

2007-03-31T09:12:00.000-07:00

Elainea taking a seat at Hannah's CCD class.

Sisters playing in a chair.

Elainea on her new tricycle.

Dad and Elainea having fun on the rink.

Hannah on her new scooter.

Today well-lived...makes every tomorrow a vision of hope.

Anonymous

On Saturday the 24th we celebrated Hannah and Elainea's birthdays. We went to the Classic Fun Center in Layton so Hannah could try out her new scooter and Elainea could ride her new tricycle. We learned a very valuable lesson today. Whatever big sister has little sister wants. We ended up renting a scooter for Elainea and we were all amazed at what a little thrill seeker we have.Joe would push Elainea from behind while on roller skates and he could not go fast enough. The faster he went the more she liked it. She would jump up and down with excitement and let go of the handle bars and clap her hands. She is all about being active and enjoys any type of physical activity.Elainea is learning quickly. She does not like to sit down for longer than five minutes unless the Teletubbies are on the TV. She loves to watch LaLa play with her ball. She clearly shows that she does not care for the mischeviousness of Naughty Noo Noo the vaccuum that sometimes sucks up LaLa's ball.Elainea is also picking up some English words. She says Night-Night when it is time to go to bed, of course she says La La when watching Teletubbies. She said Lettuce at dinner the other night. When she knocks her head or pinches her fingers she will hit the object that hurt her and say "Bad", then she will come to me and say "Boo-Boo".I am so amazed at how well she is adapting to life in our family. I was so worried about bringing in a child at the age of two that had spent two of her most important years of growth in an institution. We have not seen significant behavior or attachment issues. She is very attached to her family and beginning to become attached to her extended family as well. She still has night terrors which means we still do not get very much sleep, but it is all good. She is a very loving child that loves to give hugs and kisses.We have set a date for her baptism. It will be on April 15th after the 11:30 mass at Saint Mary's Catholic Church. We are so excited for the big day. All are welcome to come and see the big event.We are preparing the house for the big Easter party at our house next week. It is tradition to have Easter at our house. The girls have been helping me prepare the house and we are all excited for Elainea to experience her first Easter egg hunt. We will definately have to post again for the each of these events over the next few weeks.We can not imagine our lives without our Little Miss Elainea and look forward to participate in her amazing life journey.

Adjusting to Home Life

2007-03-14T09:03:00.000-07:00

Enjoying the swing with Jei Jei

Party Girls

Grandma with almost all her Grandchildren

Elainea fixing Aunt Nanny's hair

Jei Jei left holding the bag

William Ellery Channing

It is hard to believe that we have been home for almost a month now. Our days are hardly typical yet, but we are communicating quite effectively with each other. Elainea's still likes to eat in large quantities, but she will refuse food that she does not like. She seems to prefer meat, fruit and crackers. Occasionally she will throw in a token lima bean or green bean, but otherwise veggies are met with a sour face and get spit out immediately.Elainea is fearful of animals and bugs. She likes to hide in the pantry and say "Bye-Bye" as she shuts the door. Today she went in and started screaming because she saw a spider. The poor thing will not go in there anymore. She whimpers around her Grandma's cat and does like stuffed animals.We were given the opportunity to speak at a parent's meeting for WIAA. It was difficult to talk about our experience again and it brought back many emotions. I still do not think any of us have finished processing what has happened in the last two months. We are way too busy to sit to think, analyze or reflect on what has happened. However, I would not have my life any other way. Elainea is the most precious gift we could have ever received. I am so proud of her and would not change a thing about my life now. Adoption is truly a miracle and is not to be considered as the last resort to complete a family. It was predestined for us to adopt and to have Elainea in our family. To all the families that are still waiting for their children, we can not offer any advice for the long wait, it is difficult and nothing makes it any easier. The best thing you can do is just find a coping mechanism and hang in there. Once you are on the other side you will think it is worth it!We are trying to plan for Elainea's baptism. We have scheduled it for April 15th. We bought a beautiful white dress and when we tried it on Elainea beamed from ear to ear. She ran around and twirled in the dress and did not want to take it off. We look forward to the day that she will join her Catholic family.We celebrated Pam's mother's birthday this weekend. It was wonderful. "Having Elainea come home was the best gift I could have asked for", she told us. That speaks volumes of her. Elainea is very lucky to have her as her Nei Nei. She watches Elainea on Thursdays when MaMa is at work. When Pam leaves she cries for a half hour. We are so proud! She is bonding with our family. She is also getting closer to her Aunt LeAnn (Nanny) and KayDawn (KK). They were so happy to spend some time with her during the birthday party and Elainea was just loving every minute of it. Aunt Nanny surprised us with a beautiful scrapbook derived from our blog entries. It is so well put together and Elainea loves to look at the pictures in it. How wonderful it is to have such family support. Both sides of our family have welcomed her with open arms and hearts. Our family would not be complete without her. All of our family members on both sides are truly grateful for God's grace and blessing of our newest family member.

Home is Where the Heart Is

2007-02-28T08:54:00.000-08:00

A Huge Welcome Home

Big Girl in Mama's Shoes

Laundry can be Fun

Spinning Easter Eggs

Eating Lunch with Dad

I may not be rich in material terms, but... I feel right in spirit, that's all that counts to me.
Amelia Rudolph

We have been home for over a week and things are going well. We have fabulous neighbors, friends and family that are making sure of it. It is amazing how much we have gained from the adoption process, and I am not just talking about a daughter. This has truly been a journey of faith and love. We have been given so much, probably more than we deserve. We have definitely not the same people that boarded a plane in January. We have seen how people live that have absolutely nothing, not even hope. Our troubles seem to pale in comparison.
Elainea looks so much different than when we first saw her. It is amazing, but she sounds different too. Her cries no longer ring with desperation and she laughs all the time. Her eyes are full of life and there is hardly any moments where the sadness comes back. The night terrors are calming down. She actually had one night where she only woke up crying only once. She still eats more than any one else in the family, and weighs three pounds less than her referral said she did after three weeks of continuous eating! Physically she looks more robust and is starting to get baby fat on her legs.
The biggest change we have noticed lately is in the sister relationship. Elainea initially saw Hannah as competition. This seems consistent with her history in an orphanage. She would watch Hannah and try to emulate her, but really did not interact with her. She would try to prevent Hannah from getting any food or attention that she was craving. This was heart-breaking for Hannah. Slowly her attitude is changing. She now likes to interact with Hannah and shows genuine affection for her.
The most amazing part of this is how much they are alike. Both of them are funny, outgoing, precocious, and delightful. They both have a special ability to make people happy. I would love to bottle each of their laughs and make it available for anyone having a bad day. No one could be sad when either one of them laugh.
This whole experience would make a great Mastercard commercial that would go something like this:
3 Roundtrip tickets to China - $3,000
4 day Beijing tour - $400
1 orphanage donation - $3200
Forever sisters – priceless.
I have to explain one of the pictures. Every year before Easter we break out the plastic Easter eggs and spin them on the tile floor. Do not even ask how we figured this out, but it is great fun. Hannah starts talking about getting them out the day after Christmas. We finally decided that it is time. Every one should try Easter egg spinning at least once in their lifetime!

We are finally home

2007-02-24T08:45:00.000-08:00

A view of SLC skyline from the airport.

Elainea playing with toys.

Elainea doing a Brat Doll impersonation.

Trying to get Moms attention.

Playing with Daddy.

If you enjoy living, it is not difficult to keep the sense of wonder.
Ray Bradbury

We finally arrived home last Saturday night. Since then life has been a blur. We wake up wondering what hotel and city we are at, followed by a short relief when we realize that we are home. We use the term “wake up” lightly as one child is on US time and the other is on China time. The parents have found a happy medium somewhere in the middle. Not that it does us any good with kids up 24 hrs a day.
The days are full of appointments and ‘catching up’ with all of the stuff we put on the backburner while we were in China. Most of all our days are full of laughter and fun as we get to know our newest member.
We went to the doctor to have all of the blood tests redone. They tried to draw blood from Elainea at the doctor’s office and gave up and sent us to the hospital. They successfully drew her blood so it was back to the doctor’s office to get her immunizations. Poor Elainea. She thinks we live out of hotels and spend the day on a bus, plane or in a doctor’s office!
We have some wonderful news. All of the American blood tests have come back and Elainea is healthy. She does not have any type of blood-borne disease. What a relief for our family.
Meanwhile, Elainea is blooming more and more everyday. When we first got her there was an air of sadness about her with intermittent spurts of tantrums or happiness, with an underlying layer of sadness. That is slowly going away. She smiles frequently and her eyes now smile. She is so funny and smart. She said her first American word yesterday “shoe”. (We are dismissing MaMa and DaDa because she came with those). She loves to take a bath and brush her teeth. She sits in her highchair at home, but forget it when you are out. She is so helpful. She will layout her diaper pad and diaper when she needs to be changed. She is a typical American girl because she fights to answer the phone. When it rings all the girls jump and race to the phone! Hannah knows better than to answer it, but she thinks it is fun to race Elainea to the phone.
When we arrived home we once again realized what wonderful neighbors we have. There were balloons on the mailbox and a huge sign on the garage welcoming us home. Some other dear neighbors brought us in a few groceries to get us by for a couple of days. This whole experience has changed all of us. We came back from China better people than when we left. No longer will we ever take for granted what we have in our lives. We have a reaffirmed belief in the goodness of people and are grateful for the wonderful friends and family we have.
Life is good for the Rockwell family and we again send out a heartfelt thanks to all of those people that helped us make this happen.

The Prayers Have Been Answered

2007-02-17T08:34:00.000-08:00

A Street by the White Swan Hotel

Girls playing in the hotel room

Playing in thr Swan Room

Had to have a red couch photo

Hannah at the Pearl Market

It is good to have an end to journey toward, but it is the journey that matters in the end.
Ursula K. LeGuin

Now that the crisis is over we should elaborate a little on the events of the past few days. We are all in LA and recovering from the flight. We ate a huge pizza and enjoying the fact that we do not have to boil the water before we brush our teeth!Now to fill you in… in a nutshell we found out the day before we had our consulate appointment and were to fly home that there is documentation that Elainea has Hepatitis C. We were at the conclusion of a celebration dinner with the other five families that have shared our journey, when our guide came to us and gave us Elainea’s immunization record and told us that it states that Elainea was not vaccinated for Hep B because she has contracted Hepatitis C. We walked back to the hotel crying as we knew this changed everything.We immediately set an appointment to get Elainea’s blood checked. We know that not everyone can understand our decision making process or perspective on this, but we needed to do what was best for our family and for Elainea. Having Hepatitis C would classify Elainea as a special needs child. We did not apply for a special needs child because we understand our own abilities and limitations. We still would have accepted her given some other type of issues, but this one we really needed to consider. This was one of the greatest challenges we faced as a family.During this process there was a silver lining. I can not begin to tell you how touched we are by all of the love and support. After we heard that she could have Hep C a friend told me that “It may be hard to see God’s hand in all of this, but keep in mind that God does not make mistakes, just people do.” Well I am telling you we did experience God in all of this. God planned the special group of families that would travel together and become friends. We saw God when our family group celebrated a Sunday devotional together to celebrate Him and the miracles that we just received in our adoption children. We saw God when we prayed with the Baptists when we received the news. We saw God when we received a sacramental blessing from three Priesthood holders in the LDS faith. We saw God when we received a flood of emails of support from our family, friends, agency, and soon-to-be friends. We saw God when he gave us support when we prayed for his grace to be with us. God was with us when we trusted his will and took our leap of faith with only preliminary results.
Finally we can say that even though there was the trial, eventually the grace of God allowed for the completion of our family.
We will post more about the return home tomorrow. For now please accept our sincere thanks for all of your love and support.
Sincerely,The Rockwells ~ Joe, Pam, Hannah and Elainea

A Leap of Faith

2007-02-15T08:30:00.000-08:00

Whatever with the past has gone, the best is always yet to come. Lucy Larcom

We took a huge leap of faith today. We finished processing the paperwork and for better or worse she our offically our girl and will be coming home with us! We based our decision of the preliminary test results due to the fact that we are faced with the Chinese New Year and the whole country will shut down in a matter of hours, and the final results will not be available until after the shutdown. That puts us in China for another week if we did not request her visa this morning.
We are flying into LA tonight and will return to SLC on February 17th at 6:07 pm. We will talk to you again when we are in the States!
All Our Love,
The RockwellsJoe, Pam, Hannah and Elainea.

A Ray of Hope

2007-02-15T08:27:00.000-08:00

Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all.Dale Carnegie

Based on the volume of email we are receiving we know that many people are awaiting to hear news on our situation. Although we are not out of the woods yet, there seems to be a glimmer of hope for Elainea.
The preliminary results are back and they are very favorable. We still are waiting for a DNA marker test which should be back in about twelve hours. When these results come back things are going to happen in rapid fire succession and so we may not be able to post the results for a while. If the results come back negative then we will be able to bring Elainea home with us. If they come back positive then we will need to spend several hours "undoing" paperwork before hopping on a plane home.
We just received word that Grandma made it home safely and that helps us feel better. Hannah misses her Grandma and can't wait to see her at the airport. Speaking of Hannah Joe and I have to say that we have an awesome kid. She has been so understanding of the circumstances and has been so brave about everything. She flairs up every once in a while, but for the most part she has handled this situation with a strength and courage that is not typical of a four-year-old.
As far as Joe and I are concerned we are doing as well as can be expected. Between crying a river of tears, fighting back nausea and praying on our sore knees we are working through this whole thing. In the mean time Elainea is blossoming. She has the funniest personality! When she smiles she does it with her whole face bringing happiness to those around her. Her laugh is totally contagious and she looks up to her big sister and tries to do everything that she does.
Elainea still eats her weight everyday, but there is small gaps between the perpetual snacking now. She is getting very picky about what she eats and so we are going to have to reel her in once we get home (hopefully).
We have packed our bags so we can hit the ground running tomorrow. We strategically packed Elainea's things on top so they can be gathered to go back with her if need be. We love her so much and can not picture our lives without her at this point. The Chinese Center for Adoption Affairs is asking us some very heavy questions such as: "Would you like to stay for another three weeks to get another referral", our resounding response is 'no'. If it comes to that we need to come home and regroup and continue on from there. We need to work through what will be an unconsolable loss of one of our daughters. We thank all of our family and friends and look forward to seeing you soon.

On pins and needles

2007-02-14T08:24:00.000-08:00

Well another day has passed and we hopefully the next one will go by faster. Time is going by so slow for us and we await the results of Elainea's blood test. This experience has tested all of us in every way. It has tested our faith, character, relationship and patience. The thrill of visiting this place is gone and now we are just marking time until we find out which direction ours lives will take. We have struggled with the idea of keeping Elainea. We love her so much already, but we have to consider all of the ramifications of such a choice. This is the worst kind of torture a family can go through. I do not know how we will find the strength to give her back if it comes to that. We appreciate all of the emails of support we have received from everyone. They mean so much to us. With your thoughts and prayers and the strength of God we will make it through this tragedy. We will post again when we get the results.....

A bump in the road home

2007-02-14T08:23:00.000-08:00

It looks like we will be staying Guangzhou for a couple of extra days. We ran into some unexpected health considerations with Elainea and we need to wait to get some lab tests back.
We ask that you all pray for us and her as the test results will determine if we bring her home or not.
We are being very well taken care of by our agency, guide and other families within our group. The outpouring of love and support has touched us so deeply and we will forever be grateful for the special care that the other families have given us.
They have all gone to the consulate appointment and we will remain at the hotel for two days until the results get back.
We will keep you all informed of any news that we may get.

Guangzhou is Amazing

2007-02-12T18:08:00.000-08:00

Chen Family Hall

Intricate Buildings

Grandma in the Gardens

Look at the Pillows

Adventure can take many forms. Sometimes, following your heart is the greatest one of all.
Dagny Scott

Yesterday afternoon we toured the Chen Family Ancestral Hall. The building is absolutely gorgeous and local artists displayed some of their work. The sand paintings were incredible. I wish we could afford to buy one and bring it home. We have had a wonderful time together as we get to know each other. Elainea smiles all the time now and she loves it when we pass cars and Mom says “beep-beep”.
We still have not been successful at slowing her eating down. She eats her weight in Cheerios a day. I have never seen anything like it. She has a little budda belly and the diapers really do not fit her well anymore. Yesterday our guide Jo Jo told us that we really should not be feeding her so much and so she took her bowl of Cheerios away. Elainea screamed for about 20 minutes straight until Jo Jo said, “Maybe we should give them back.” Yep, one word to describe Elainea would be spitfire! She is full of fun and adventure and she loves her Mommy. This morning she ran down the hotel hall and into her Daddy’s arms.
I can not imagine our lives without her. We have been given such a special gift. How can we ever thank everyone that made this possible for us? I guess that is something that we will have to work on.
Tomorrow we have the consulate ceremony and then we leave for home. Our poor little Elainea probably thinks we live in hotels and eat out everyday. Boy will she have a shock when we get home! Baby boot camp is on the itinerary when we get home. No more temper tantrums. She is so funny she throws herself on the floor, gently places her head on the floor and then starts to scream!By the time you all read this it will be Valentines Day! We wish you a Happy Valentines Day with people you love surrounding you. We get an extra long one as we fly home and gain a day again. We love you all and can not wait to show you our funny little Valentine!

The Medical Examination

2007-02-11T18:02:00.000-08:00

The Medical Center
Waiting for the Exam

More of our Group waiting for the Exam

Elainea and Mom after the Exam

In Front of the Medical Exam Office

Write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year.
Ralph Waldo Emerson

We our on the last leg of our journey and having a blast! The White Swan Hotel is wonderful and is filled with hundreds of adoptive families and their beautiful babies. Yesterday was full of travel and we did not get lunch. When we got to the hotel we had to run to get dinner and then put the kids to bed. Elainea had to get her visa photo and her medical examination this morning. She did great.
On the way back to the hotel we went to a grocery store and Hannah had an allergic reaction to something in the store. Luckily I had some Benedryl fast melts in my purse and she appears to be doing fine now.
We are going on a tour this afternoon after Joe runs back to the market for some diapers. Grandma is having a ball shopping all of the stores.We look forward to our journey home.

A Day in Paradise?

2007-02-10T17:55:00.000-08:00

Grandma and Elainea Poolside
Elainea feeling brave and exploring on her own.

One of the hotel verandas

Sanya Sunset

Incredible Beauty

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
Proverbs 3: 5-6

Today was an interesting day. The hotel, although beautiful, has a few quirks that need to be worked out. The most apparent would be water. We have been without water for the majority of our stay. The shower sends water all over the bathroom floor making it very slick. Another issue is the food is very expensive. To compensate we are only eating two meals a day. Breakfast is included and then we eat a late lunch. We are really glad to have these special days in this special place, but are also looking forward to the next leg of our journey.
This morning Pam needed to do some paperwork for the American Consulate appointment. We all went to the appointment together. While there Elainea decided to get into some mischief and had a complete meltdown when Mommy said ‘No’. Dad had to take her to the room which made her even more upset. Eventually she cried herself to sleep in her Daddy’s arms and so it turned out to be a good bonding experience.
The rest of the day was spent by the pool and walking around the hotel. Elainea is into everything. We forgot what the terrible twos are like.
When then ran back to the room when we heard there was running water and filled up the bathtub on the balcony of our room. Yes, you heard it right, on the balcony. Pam packed while Elainea unpacked the suitcases while we all took baths before we settled in for the night.
Just a final thought for today. When we observe each of the six families that are here and the children that they received, we are overwhelmed with the sensation of God’s will and grace. Every family has a child that fits into that family. I really could not see the children allocated in any other way. The adoption journey has helped affirm that this is God’s plan for us.
Tomorrow we fly to Guangzhou and prepare for Elainea’s doctor appointment on Monday. We can not wait to share it with you.

The Trip to Sanya

2007-02-09T17:49:00.000-08:00

Baby picture of Elainea
The highway to Sanya, a road carved into the hillsides.

Farmers working the fields.

The Girls on the Bus

The view outside our hotel window.

I find the great thing in this world is not so much where we stand, as in what direction we are moving.Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr.

Today was a day of traveling and fun. We were not looking forward to the four hour bus ride with two kids! We all piled onto the bus and started off to our new hotel. At first we were not thrilled to pack our bags and move again, but we know that there is a reason for the move. The hotel rooms in Haikou were very nice but too small. It was hard to find activities to keep the children occupied. So the thought of being close to the beach was consoling as we packed our wet clothes (it is so humid that our laundry does not dry).
We traveled to the southern tip of the island and we were overwhelmed with the beauty of her homeland. I tried to soak it all in, but as soon as Elainea fell asleep I drifted off to sleep as well. The bus ride was symbolic of the events of the previous day. Elainea was leaving behind her old life and joining us in ours. What a precious gift! We do not know how to express the gratitude we have in our hearts.
We arrived at the Kempinski Resort and Spa and were amazed! The resort was built by a German hotel chain and just opened in January. We walked into the lobby and saw the gardens and we thought to ourselves, ‘Yes!’ No more being cramped into a little room. We will have so much to do here! Thank You to all that made this possible. It was the pick-me-up we all needed!
Joe, Hannah and Grandma went to the pool and I stayed in the room with Elainea to perform diaper duty. She again opened up a little more. She started running around the room and laughing. She then started moving her crib around the room. She then started playing with the phone, closet doors, bathroom doors, mosquito trap, TV, etc. She is a very active 2-yr-old and is into everything. She is so smart and clever and her laugh is music to our ears. We have noticed that she no longer stands in the corner when Mom is involved with Hannah. She is becoming comfortable with us, and is starting to enjoy life.
We took her down to the pool and she will have nothing to do with the water. She screams when we try to give her a bath, oh well, all in good time. She is so much fun and we look forward to having more time here tomorrow.

The Orphanage Tour

2007-02-08T17:42:00.000-08:00

Meeting the orphanage director.
The Adopting Families and Administrative Staff

Having Fun with Mommy at Lunch

Sisters doing Lunch

Elainea's Abandonment Site

Most people who succeed in the face of seemingly impossible conditions are people who simply don't know how to quit.
Robert Schuller

Today we visited the Haikou Social Children’s Institute where Elainea lived for the past two years. I do not think there was any parent that knew what to expect. We were very anxious as we drove up. I put Elainea in her carrier so I could keep her close because I did not know what she would expect. Many of the parents were not going to go to the orphanage until our guide advised us that although it is optional, it is an experience that can benefit the families by giving them closure. We all decided to go except for one parent that stayed behind with one child. Five little children that had just learned how to smile again were going to return to the only home they knew. How would this turn out?
We arrived at the orphanage and went to the administrative building. The director and assistant director of the orphanage greeted us and gave us a photo album with baby pictures of our children. He also gave us a Chinese passport for our children. He told us that they would like to stay in touch with the families to know that the children are well and thriving. They in turn would stay in contact with us and answer any questions or help address any issues that may arise. We then went downstairs and out to the orphanage. We went inside the gate and were immediately surrounded by children. We looked at the playground and saw the children interacting with one another. We then took family and group photos in front of the building. It was then that I recognized Elainea’s nanny among a group of women. I smiled at her and she smiled back at me. She came over to Elainea and immediately wanted to hold her. Elainea cried because I could not get her out of the carrier fast enough. I was overwhelmed with emotions. I was happy to see that someone who cared for her so much was involved in her life, and it is obvious that Elainea cares for her in return. Another part of me was jealous that my child cared so deeply for another woman and called her MaMa. I was so overwhelmed and did not know what to do. What could I do besides cry…. I cried because of all the anxiety that I felt, the grief that I have experienced with her, and the wound that was just reopened. The nanny held her for a little while and then whispered something to the effect of good-bye and go to your new mommy now. Elainea just screamed and cried. I held her close and looked at some of the Nannies and told them Thank You. They nodded their head in acknowledgement. The idea of seeing the Nanny again in the orphanage went we would go inside was too much.
I took Elainea back to the bus and she calmed down. Joe, Hannah, Grandma and Rose toured the orphanage. The orphanage was very clean, organized and the staff love the children. The Chinese people in general love children. They are as well cared for as they have the means. Many people here live in shanties and life is hard. These children although on the verge of malnutrition are totally well adjusted and fun-loving. They have been provided the best life that can be given to them. I am so glad that we visited the orphanage. I was glad that the Nanny was able to see that she would be well-loved.
I worried that Elainea would sink back into the sadness that we had seen for the first few days. I was relieved when we finally left.
On the way back to the Hotel we stopped at the market and she fell asleep in my arms. She woke up when we sat down at KFC to eat and that is when she really warmed up to us. She started feeding me and laughing with me. She has a sense-of-humor that is so fun. She laughed and we had fun playing during lunch. Since then we have been back at the room kicking a ball and playing with balloons. She is drawing with her big sister right now. How much richer and fulfilling all our lives will be because of her becoming part of it.
I vow that I will keep in contact with the orphanage so they know that she will be given the same type of love that she has already received.
Tomorrow we are off to Sanya to enjoy the beach!

The Third Day ~ The First Smile

2007-02-07T19:35:00.000-08:00

Elainea and Mom on the Beach

Girls at the Beach

The First Smile

The Dimples

The Rockwell Family

Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.
Thich Nhat Hanh

Everyone has said that the third day a blanket of calm and happiness wraps around the children and they begin to emerge from the sadness. Well today was the third day and this morning Elainea was still sad. She followed me around with a pout on her face. She threw a temper tantrum when I left the room without her. It seemed that the cloud of gloom was not lifting. We ate breakfast and then hung out in our room for a little while. Then it was off to the beach and then the park. The beach was so beautiful. It was exactly what we needed. I stripped of Elainea’s shoes and put them into the sand. She was beginning to get playful and so I took her down to the shore and let her feet get wet. That is when the crying began. I looked into her eyes and there was still a sadness about them. After Hannah built her first sandcastle and Elainea put her feet into the pantry breaking down one of the walls, we all started laughing, except Elainea.

We then went to the park and the kids began to play. I helped Elainea slide down the slide and then it happened, a genuine smile! A couple of more times down the slide and then laughter! She has the cutest dimples!

She is Our Daughter

2007-02-06T19:24:00.000-08:00

Keep the Cheerios coming and everything will be alright!

Hannah and Elainea, Sisters at Last!

It was but a fleeting moment the first night.

Elainea and her Grandmother.

Just hanging out in our room.

Happiness is a butterfly, which, when pursued, is always just beyond your grasp, but which, if you will sit down quietly, may alight upon you.Nathaniel Hawthorne

Today we signed the final Chinese adoption papers. According to the Chinese Civil Affairs Administration we are her parents!

Our first day together went better than I expected, but the night was a different story (she did not sleep well). I was overwhelmed with the amount of food she was eating. I finally had to cut her off so she would not get herself sick. Food was going in, but nothing was coming out. Then she had her first diaper. I learned that changing a diaper is like riding a bike, you never forget.
Elainea is very sweet. She clings to the little photo book we sent. She loves to look at the photos. She knows that I am her “MaMa”, Joe is “BeBe” and Hannah is “Jie Jie” but she still does not know exactly what a family is. She is very curious and has been getting into everything in the hotel room. She is very independent and you can tell that they expect the children in the orphanage to be self-reliant. She grabbed onto three hard candies at the civil affairs office and would not let them go. She would put them into something and then take them back out. She knew she had three and would look for them if one ended up missing.

We went to the market today. It is the equivalent of what we would call the mall. We bought Elainea some clothes because none of the ones we brought fit her. The local people are very kind and curious to see a white family carrying around a little Chinese girl. I was holding Elainea when a store attendant Elainea to come to her, Elainea quickly shook her head ‘No”. Way to go Elainea! This is not bonding yet, but it shows that she feels safer with a white ‘MaMa’ then with an unknown Chinese woman.

The orphanage director seemed to really care about the children at the orphanage. This orphanage had a schooling program called, Half The Sky Foundation. They created a memory book of Elainea at the orphanage. It was neat to see that she was in a photograph holding hands with another little girl in our group Emma. We are going to make sure that they remain friends when they come back home.

The culture here is slowly transforming. The country is called “New China” as it was only unified under Chairman Mao and the communist party in the late 1940’s. As the industrial revolution is taking hold of the country so is a huge cultural shift. The young people are moving to the city where they have access to the amenities of modern living. The older generation holds onto their traditional ways and live in the countryside and ghettos of the city. The generation gap here is both cultural and geographical. Still they find a way of reconciling and still maintain close relationships with their families.

The difference is also marked when you are in the ancient compound of the Forbidden City and you look out into high rise buildings.

I will never complain again about Utah drivers. Traffic here is in a whole new league. It appears to be a free-for-all between motorized vehicles, bicycles and pedestrians. Crossing the street I get the feeling that I am the frog in the Frogger arcade game.

Enough about China I am sure you all want to know about our little Elainea. Tomorrow we will visit some botanical gardens and then maybe the beach. Each day brings us one step closer to being home.