Return Visit to China

A wonderful opportunity has presented itself for us to return to China, specifically to Lydia's birth city. We will take part in a Heritage Tour during Thanksgiving week, 2008 almost one year after we adopted Lydia into our family. A "windfall" connected with my new position at the University has enabled us to attend this fantastic event. The tour prices were extremely reasonable (airfare, hotel, meals, and activities included!) We leave on Friday, Nov 21st.

So, what are we doing there?? The parent group of Fuling adoptees has orchestrated a Homecoming trip to coincide with the opening of the beautiful new orphanage that has been recently completed. We will do some touring in Beijing, then on to Chongqing, and to Fuling (Lydia's birth city), where we will take part in helping to assist with the move to the new orphanage. We get to help move things, decorate baby rooms, take part in the opening ceremonies, and most importantly give love to babies/children who are without families. I think we even get to carry babies to the new building!

I know that Lydia will not remember this trip, but will know that we felt it was an important event...important enough to return to China just one year later. We also will get a connection with other families that have adopted from Fuling---last year, we were at the orphanage solo, for only one hour. This time, we will be with over 40 families of Fulingers, and be in Fuling for 4 days.

Jason was not excited about the idea initially. I had just happened upon the trip just one month before the registration deadline. With no time to waste, I crunched the numbers, scoured the calendar, and schemed how Lydia and I would get there. With no warning, I just sprung it on him as he poured over an Engineering book---he thought I was joking or crazy. In fact, I had to beg and finally said Lydia and I would go without him. I feel it is such an important part of learning more about her life before us and more importantly, her culture and heritage. When we returned to the US last Dec, I wondered if we would ever go back, as it was so overwhelming and exhausting. But, something is tugging my heart there and the opportunity is unique.

So, what was the final decision? Jason is going (and is now looking forward to a trip), but he only agreed after I suggested we take the boys! That was one factor last year that really put a damper on our trip...being away from our kiddos. So, he perked right up when I put pictures in his mind of him and his boys hiking the Great Wall together! AND, his mom is also going with us for extra support. She loves to travel and is quite adventurous and jumped at the chance to go around the world!

New Blog

The time has come for a new blog! I want this site to remain Lydia's adoption story. So, I've created a new site to post events regarding all of us.

The new site is: http://kemperkidz.blogspot.com

End of Summer

The boys at their first swim meet earlier this summer. Jack was so proud to finally get to do something that Sam does, especially swim team. On the first day of practice, we had not planned to let Jack participate this year because he was only 5 and not really a "swimmer" yet. But on the first day of practice, we said, hey why not? and after talking with the coaches, they felt he would do well.

The first meet was pretty tough. Sam did just as well as he did last summer (even better!) but Jack had to stop on the ropes several times to make it across the pool. He was quite discouraged, but we weren't. Just as Sam had done last summer, I was convinced that he would be swimming the length of the pool after the next two meets. And sure enough, by the third/fourth meet, he was making it across the pool with no problem---even trying the back and butterfly strokes! What a great way to teach kids to swim---they have practice every morning for two hours (6 weeks), and by the end are GREAT swimmers!

Sam had to do his first IM (Individual Medley) this year---all four strokes, meaning four laps down and back. He was crying by the end and I felt so sorry for him! The coaches have to put someone in the event and it was him---but by the end of summer, it was no big deal.

Sam is especially good at the butterfly and Jack excels with the freestyle---you can imagine how they were glued to the swimming events when we watched the summer Olympics :-).

Lydia is prepping for swim team!

Our weekend in St. Louis at the City Museum---what a GREAT place (for kids and adults!)

Lydia in the ball pit with Ben.

Funny New Words

Lydia’s vocabulary grows daily and her articulation is very appropriate for a 21 month old. Her newest words have given me a smile this week. She is starting 2-word combinations, which is great---her clearest are “hat off” with a prolonged “f” at the end, as she removes my hat after a workout; and last night we heard “bug bite” as she tends to be a sweet and tasty morsel for our backyard friends. Just a minute ago, I heard “China” as she matter-of-factly imitated Ben talking about a new magazine we received in the mail. We want her to feel that being Chinese is something to be proud of, so it’s wonderful to hear---that must mean it’s in our vocabulary enough to make its way into hers.

Perhaps the funniest word this past week, “Wii !!!” as she hops around squealing. She has no idea what the Wii is; but she just knows that whatever it is, it brings smiles and joy to the boys when we are at Grandma’s. So, she skips around the house hollering “Wee! Wee…”, content to just say it, and not play it. The Wii is providing much entertainment for the Kemper side of the family and we have a great portrait of Mii people on the system (for those who don’t know, those are the little characters you create of yourself that you play the games with).

Our Mii family is quite funny---I wish I could post them here, but don’t think that’s possible. Jason’s character is a bald old man, with square spectacles (he looks very much like his Grandpa Muenks). My character was created by the boys and looks amazingly like me---except they overdid it a bit with the blue eyeshadow :-) The boys each have characters that look pretty much like them, except “cooler” they say---I guess it’s the spikey hair they added, which we aren’t quite able to achieve with their real hair. Lydia is the only one without a Mii character, but I’m sure she’ll have one soon (when the boys are bored enough to think of creating her).