the further adventures of tub

. . . now featured in our dining room.

cb's new toy

happy birthday papa fry

a little older now,
but here he is at 5!

Have a great day
Dad!

welcome home emme lu!

You can follow their trip in china here.

mother's day

my second mother's day since we started the adoption process and we fully expect to be waiting through another one . . .

This year, I decided to do something that would make me feel a bit more "motherly" on Mother's Day. Last month, I read an article in Vanity Fair magazine's "The Green Issue". The article, "The Rise of Big Water," by Charles Mann profiled the plight of the Chinese water system and the rise of the big water companies. I think most people are aware of issues with drinking water in foreign countries like China, but this article really opened my eyes to the SERIOUS lack of availability of clean water throughout this entire country.

An excerpt from the article. . .
"The Rise of Big Water," by Charles Mann

"China is in particular trouble. The country's State Environmental
Protection Administration grades water on a scale from one to five, with three
being minimally acceptable and five a direct health hazard. According to
SEPA, for much of their length, five of China's seven main river basins are
rated at four or five - poisoned by rampant industrialization. Almost half
of China's municipalities - and most of its rural areas - have no systems in
place for treating waste at all. Between a quarter and a third of China's
population still do not have piped water."

Within the last few years, large, foreign, private water companies have been contracted by China's government to turn this crisis around. Surprisingly, even though hundreds of miles of new piping have been laid and new treatment and sewage plants have been constructed, Chinese residents must still boil their water. In fact, the Chinese are so used to the bad water, they do not expect to drink it straight from the tap.

Then, I heard about "A Child's Right", a non-profit humanitarian organization that focuses on providing clean water to children around the world.

"A Child's Right is committed to providing the very best in water purification technologies and clean water systems to desperate children in orphanages, street shelters, children's hospitals and schools in impoverished nations throughout the world."

This May, A Child's Right is working in China, assisting orphanages in Jiangxi and Sichuan Provinces as well as Chongqing municipality to install about (5) new water systems to help provide clean water to over 3000 Chinese orphans.

So, I made two donations - (1) on behalf of my cousin, friend and fellow adopter, Angie, and (1) for myself. We may not have our kids yet, but at least I can sleep better at night knowing that I hopefully have given them the opportunity to get some clean water. That is just about the best thing I could think of to do right now and the closest I have felt to being a mother yet.

Happy Mother's Day!

bowling

(5) tacos, chips & salsa, (2) sodas at Tito's - $13.50
(6) pairs of bowling shoes - $24.00

(1) game of bowling for six - $18.00

bowling with my nieces . . . PRICELESS!

eleven

eleven month LIDversary

Just for fun, here are some pics of us at age eleven.
Introducing:
The "Mork & Mindy" Fan and The Soccer Player
ahhhh, those were the days . . .

Check 'em out quick!
I don't know how long I am going to leave these up.

chinese national holiday - Youth Day *updated*

also known as the May Fourth Movement

[photo & quote courtesy of Wikipedia]

". . . an anti-imperialist, cultural, and political movement in early modern China. Beginning on May 4, 1919, it marked the upsurge of Chinese nationalism, and a re-evaluation of Chinese cultural institutions, such as Confucianism. The movement grew out of dissatisfaction with the Treaty of Versailles settlement, termed the Shandong Problem, and the effect of the New Cultural Movement."

This movement was significant for many reasons. It was a large scale movement involving 20 provinces and over 100 cities in the country. Young chinese students were the driving force of this shift in the political philosophy of China and it spread the ideas of Marxism as well as ultimately building the foundation of the Communist party in China.

*updated: I have been thinking more about this holiday and the whole thing just seems ironic to me. The day is a commemoration of an uprising, a student call-to-action, a very DEMOCRATIC way to put a public voice on an idea. And yet, the roots of this movement ended up creating the Communist political system in China. . .

referrals and a little perspective

Referrals arrived today. Babies have been referred to families who were logged in through November 1, 2005. That means they completed a total of (6) days. April showers bring May flowers? uh, sort of. . . at least better than last month.

They still haven't released any files from the review room passed March 31, 2006. But, they have been at holding at that date for a couple of months now, so we hope that they will announce some progress soon.

So, for the perspective. We have been getting a ton of questions lately about the wait, how long it is taking, how long it will take, why, etc. etc. etc. I think it is very important for everyone to understand what we are dealing with - so, I give you "The Numbers":

There are two things to count:

"days"
We were logged in on June 6, 2006.
The CCAA has referred children to families through November 1, 2005.
That means they still have to finish (217) days of dossiers in order to get to ours.
Last month they finished (2) days.
This month they finished (6) days.
It took (4) months just to finish all of the days in October.

and then there are the

"dossiers and babies"
We are told that there are currently around 25,000 dossiers on file at the CCAA.
We are told they usually refer approximately 400-600 babies per month.
We are told the CCAA can only refer 10,000 children for International Adoption per year.

Lots of days, lots of files, lots of c-a-l-c-u-l-a-t-i-o-n-s . . . I think I need a drink!

When will we get our referral? anyone care to guess, anyone?

chinese national holiday - International Labor Day or "May Day"

Today is Labor Day in China (as it is also celebrated in many other countries around the world - What's up with the US having Labor Day in September?). Labor Day in China has become one of the so-called "Golden Weeks"* in China. The holiday has grown from (1) paid day off to (3) paid days off in the early 1990's and now has become a full week off for most people in China. Most working people in China worked over the last weekend and then put those days together with today's holiday and next weekend to give them a full week off. During the "Golden Week" thousands of chinese workers (usually living far from home) travel back to visit with loved ones.

This holiday is also especially busy as it falls directly after the spring China Import and Export Fair held every year in Guangzhou, China (the last two weeks in April). As you can imagine, adoption travel is fairly difficult during these three weeks and highly discouraged - especially during the last two weeks of April since all Americans must go through Guangzhou to complete their adoption paperwork before leaving China with their children.

Happy Labor Day!

*Updated: I thought I should explain that there are (3) "Golden Weeks" in the Chinese year. The first is during the New Year celebration or "Spring Festival", the second is in celebration of Labor Day and the third is to commemorate "National Day" starting the first of October.

"the little bookshop around the corner"

The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books was held this weekend on the UCLA campus. This has become one of our favorite things to do in LA. UCLA is only a couple of miles from our place, so I took advantage of the great weather (I know, always great weather in LA) to walk over and indulge. This festival is probably the largest book festival in the country - an more than likely, the most CROWDED outdoor event I have ever been to. But, all you need is some time, a backpack and some lemonade and you have a really nice afternoon.

I am experimenting with a new feature I found - a photo slideshow thingy. The campus at UCLA is really beautiful and I took some shots around the festival. Hopefully it will work. I ended up coming home with (5) books - all new and all for $27 total. (by the way, mom, I am taking six books from my shelf to the thrift store for someone else to enjoy to make room for the new finds).

tub

in our living room . . . to be continued . . .

"the happy birthday girl"

Happy Birthday to our "Ninabel". Today was my niece's number 5 birthday. . . you have come a long way, baby, and still the star of the show! Have a great day!

Year 1

Nina makes her debut at 2 months old at our wedding.

Year 2

Nina becomes a BIG sister.

Year 3

Nina's First day of school.

Year 4

Hangin' out in the "O" at CalifOrnia

Adventure.

Year 5

Riding Blackjack on her number 5 birthday.

Happy Birthday! We love you!

earth day

[The famous "Blue Marble" photo taken by Apollo 17.]
I don't think I have heard the word "green" as many times as I have this week. And, that is a GOOD thing. Finally, Earth Day is getting the spotlight that it deserves. It seems everyone is getting into the act and I say "get on that bandwagon!" If you want to be trendy, this is the time to do it!

We have been mesmerized all day with a marathon of episodes called "Planet Earth" from the Discovery Channel. You MUST see this show. The series took five years to film and is an unprecedented collection of the wonder that is this planet. It will change the way you see and feel about this world. . . definitely.



We have been doing our small part for quite awhile now, mostly the usual stuff. Living in California makes that a little easier. However, we will be instituting some additional practices into our daily lives this year and plan to instill this philosophy of life to our children, too.




I did some quick research for some sites with activities for the little one:

Earth's Birthday Project - educating children about the earth

Planet Pals

Celebrate the planet with recipes, crafts and games

Activities for Earth Day

Books about Earth Day

Create a Neighborhood Earth Day

Owen & Mzee Kids Boma (Owen & Mzee are the baby hippo & turtle from Tsunami fame)

Earth Day for Kids website sponsored by the US Government

Earth Day for Kids website sponsored by the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency)

So, enjoy the day, celebrate our Planet Earth . . . and save some for my kid, ok?

like my new shoes???

couldn't leave that BLAH post at the top - so I thought I would show off my new shoes . . .

[mine are in brown]

referral BLAH!

Referrals for this past month were delivered on Friday, April 6, but most agencies didn't open them until Monday because of the holiday. It has taken me this long just to get used to the idea of ONLY 2 DAYS of referrals. BLAH!

The CCAA has matched families that were logged in before October 26, 2006.

No news on the Review Room progress yet - we should be in there soon!

10 things I want to remember about being a kid. . .

. . . even after I am a parent.

[backdated for posterity, blah, blah, blah, see previous post - April 10, 2007]

Today was our 10 month LID-aversary. In honor of this auspicious day (not only are we now in DOUBLE digits, it has also been 18 months since we began our adoption process) I have been thinking about how I want to parent - not just BE A parent, but how I want TO PARENT. Therefore, I have assembled a little list of 10 things I remember from being a kid, that I want to remember even after I am a parent.

1. Regarding FOOD - Peanut Butter is, BY FAR, best eaten directly out of the jar with a spoon.

2. Regarding DRESS CODE - As soon as possible, children should be allowed to make their own clothing choices, as long as they are within appropriate reason. Case in point, in 4th grade, I insisted on wearing a plaid button down shirt along with all of my "Mork and Mindy" regalia including rainbow suspenders, and "Mork and Mindy" button . . . to school picture day. I now have this photo for all of posterity.

3. Regarding CHAPERONES - It is never, I repeat NEVER a good idea to volunteer to be a chaperone at your child's junior high dance. And, if you find yourself in this situation anyway, PLEASE DO NOT DANCE. THIS IS NOT NEGOTIABLE.

4. Regarding MAKE-UP - Make-up can (and will be) applied in the junior high bathroom and removed before going home for the day.

5. Regarding DOUBLE PIERCED EARS, tattoos and similar, etc. - See above - DITTO. (never got a tattoo myself, but there were definitely some battles over ear piercing and holes in the jeans, etc. - I know HEAVY STUFF!)

6. Regarding CHOICES - Choices are good. Provide as much opportunity and information as possible and let kids make their own decision (and deal with the consequences). This is especially important when dealing with Peer Pressure, Religion, etc.

7. Regarding FUN - Let your kids see you having fun. Some of my favorite memories of childhood are those where I watched my parents hanging out with their friends, dancing together at weddings (not at the junior high dances) or entertaining guests.

8. Regarding DRINKING, etc., etc. - Assume your kid has experimented, assume they aren't going to tell you about it, and DON'T assume the worst - just PAY ATTENTION.

9. Regarding ENCOURAGEMENT - Even when your kid decides to give up a few scholarships to go to a tiny little art school far away from home, or convert to a different religion, or live with their boyfriend, let them follow their hearts and passions. TRUST (or at least hope) that you have brought them up right and RESPECT that they will make good decisions. (well, give them the chance)

10. Regarding PATIENCE - ummmmm . . . REQUIRES A LOT. But, I think we have that covered now, don't you think?

I must give credit to my parents for all of these items, EXCEPT for #1 - They NEVER let me eat the peanut butter out of the jar - and I will never forgive them for it!

chinese traditional holiday - Qing Ming (Pure & Bright in Chinese) (Fifth of the 24 Solar Terms)

[backdated since I am catching up on my blogging after a little hiatus of travelling - April 10, 2007. And, I apologize in advance for the copy and pasting from the website info - I wanted to describe this holiday in full and there is so little time, and so much to do!]

What a charming little holiday!

From Wikipedia

"In solar terms, the Qingming festival is on the 1st day of the 5th solar
term, which is also named Qingming. Its name denotes a time for people to go
outside and enjoy the greenery of springtime (踏青 Tàqīng, "treading on the
greenery"), and also to tend to the graves of departed ones. It is an official
public holiday in the Republic of China, as well as in Hong Kong and Macau though not in mainland China.

Tomb Sweeping Day and Clear Brightness Festival are the most common English
translations of Qingming Festival. Tomb Sweeping Day is used in several English
language newspapers published in the Republic of
China.

For the Chinese, it is a day to remember and honour one's ancestors.
Young and old pray before the ancestors, sweep the tombs and offer food, tea,
wine, chopsticks, (joss) paper acessories, and/or libation to the ancestors. The
rites are very important to most Chinese and especially farmers. Some people
carry willow branches with them on Qingming, or put willow branches on their
gates and/or front doors. They think that willow branches help ward off the evil
ghosts that wander on Qingming. Also on Qingming, people go on family outings,
start the spring plowing, sing, dance, and Qingming is a time where young
couples start courting. Another popular thing to do is fly kites (in shapes of
animals, or characters from Chinese opera)."

Origins of the Festival - The Story of Chong'er and Jie Zitui
[from www.nychinatown.com]

"The Qing Ming Festival has its origins in the Cold Food Festival (Hanshi
Jie) of ancient times. On the Cold Food Festival, people could only eat cold
food or pre-cooked food. Heating by fire is not allowed. Do you know why?
This custom is said to have originated from the Spring
and Autumn Period (770-475 B.C.). In the state of Jin, there were evil men who
wanted the Duke of Jin's eldest son, Chong'er, dead. Jie Zitui, Chong'er's loyal
retainer, smuggled him out of the state of Jin in the middle of the night.
Because Chong'er had always shown concern for his people's welfare, Jie tried his best to take care of Chong'er during his exile. Once, when they were on the verge of starvation, Jie even cut out a piece of his own flesh to feed Chong'er. He did this in the hope that when Chong'er finally returned to the state of Jin, he would be a benevolent and dutiful ruler.
More than a decade later, Chong'er finally became
Duke Wen of Jin. He then rewarded all those who had given him assistance during
his exile. However, he forgot all about Jie. He only remembered Jie when someone
reminded him, and he immediately sent for him so that he could get his
reward.
But Jie had already gone into the mountains with his mother to live a life of seclusion. Duke Wen and his ministers looked for him in the mountains but to no avail. Just then someone suggested that they set fire to the mountains. Jie was well known for being a filial son, thus he would surely escape the blaze with his old mother.
The fire burnt for three days and three nights but Jie still did not appear. After the fire died down they found Jie with his mother on his back under a willow tree.
Both had been burnt to death. Duke Wen then regretted what he had done and was
extremely saddened. He decreed that this day be the Day of Cold Food. No one was
to use fire. Everyone had to eat cold food for a day to honor Jie Zitui's
loyalty.
In ancient times, the Cold Food and Qing Ming Festivals were both observed. The Cold Food Festival preceded the Qing Ming Festival by one or two days. The rituals for both festivals also bore strong resemblance to each other. In time, the Cold Food and Qing Ming Festivals merged into one."

The tradition of Sweeping the Graves
[from www.nychinatown.com]

"Sweeping the graves of one's ancestors is something descendents do as a
sign of respect. A proper sweeping consists of three steps: cleaning the grave,
making offerings to ancestors and burning ceremonial money.
Cleaning the grave was just what it sounds like -
removing weeds, making necessary repairs, and repainting the gravestone
engravings.
After the clean up, families made offerings of
meat and fruit to the guardian spirit of the graveyard (Hou Tu) followed by
incense offerings to their ancestors.
There are different ways to burn ceremonial money in different parts of China. Joss paper is usually burnt, however, in some places it is not burnt but tossed into the air. Then there is the practice of placing a stone over pieces of yellow and white or multi-colored joss paper on the gravestone, the front of the grave and at the
Hou Tu's alter. The offering of joss paper represents wealth given to the
ancestors for use in the underworld - it also shows that the descendents have
visited the graves!
The rituals of grave sweeping have been simplified by the Chinese in modern times. After sweeping the graves, families offer fruit and flowers to their ancestors and remember them in their hearts. Whatever the rituals may be, Qing Ming Festival is an expression of the filial spirit of the Chinese and the respect they have for their forefathers."

chinese national holiday - Tree Planting Day

Government leaders, including President Hu Jintao (center), took part in tree planting activities at Beijing Olympic Forest Park on Saturday, April 1, 2006. Photo: Xinhua

{NOTE: I have a lot of links in this post. For those of you who are not as blog savvy, just click on any of the items that are underlined and it will take you to the article or link. (or at least I hope it will)}

Tree Planting Day has been highly promoted since the late 70's by the reformist government. It marks the beginning of a greening campaign all over the country during the month of April. I have read conflicting reports about this "holiday". Some say is a voluntary tradition in China, however, I have also found this:

"According to a government decision on tree planting issued in
1981, Chinese citizens aged from 11 to 55 are required to plant three to five
trees every year, aiming to increase China's forest coverage rate." Source:
Xinhua UPDATED: 13:39, April 01, 2007

It is also difficult to determine the exact date for this event. I have seen many dates in March, but I also have seen many sources that list the event to be on April 1. Regardless of the date, or the nature of the "holiday", I like the idea, and thought it worthy of a post.

China has become the country with the most "human planted" trees in the world. Tree Planting day attracts thousands of participants as the Chinese feel it is their duty to help preserve the land and the forests. However, it is also a well-loved tradition used as a symbol to commemorate special occasions such as birthdays, deaths, weddings, children's enrollment in school, or even colleague's service in the military. Tree planting kits are usually provided free and community events are planned in specific areas of need or According to the National Afforestation Commision in Beijing, more than 42 billion trees have been planted in China's parks and forests during the 1982-2003 period!

China now tops in most `human-planted' trees on Earth

By Liang Chao (China Daily)Updated: 2004-03-12 01:11

In 2006 and 2007, the planting focus has become the Olympic Forest Park in Beijing in preparation for the 2008 Olympic Games. Here is a quick article about today's events:

Senior Chinese leaders join Beijingers for tree planting

Source: Xinhua UPDATED: 13:39, April 01, 2007

I think what is most interesting about this event is the amount of governmental involvement there is in the both planning and participation. I have come to realize in the last year or so, that the Chinese people HIGHLY value their parks and green space and take great effort to include these spaces within their city fabric. There is an obvious commitment by both the government and its citizens to maintain the "greening" of their country. This holiday is a wonderful tribute to the citizens of China as well as an example for the rest of the world.

frog guts

Oh, how things have changed.

Remember junior high science? High school biology? I was just chatting with a junior high school teacher while getting my haircut last week and was shocked to find out that 7th, 8th and 9th graders no longer disect frogs. Well, they do, but not really . . . they do it virtually.

Just like everything else it seems, the art of disection has now turned high tech and apparently, froguts.com is the wave of the future. Check it out - you can do a demo on their website - it is actually very cool. It is as realistic as it probably could be. But, does anyone else mourn the loss of this REAL experience? I admit that science was not ever my favorite subject, and disection seemed totally disgusting to me at first. However, I am most definitely a "visual" learner and this kind of real interaction is part of the learning process. What's next? . . . virtual rye seed germination? I think we will have to screen our kid's school options and see if we can't find one that teaches this part of science the old fashioned way.

**UPDATED**
OK, before I get any other comments . . . I am not a little froggy hater - I love all of the earth's creatures - promise. But, maybe there could be a compromise? - (1) frog in the classroom for reality's sake? I need to do some more research since I am not sure how these little froggies are obtained in the first place (AFTER they have naturally passed on? like human cadavers?) I hope so. I guess I just wonder what is next. I think I would be a little more than uncomfortable to find out that the surgeon cutting into me completed their education with "virtual" operations. I will have to look into this further.

In the meantime, I leave you with PETA's comments, "CUT CLASS, NOT FROGS".

And, speaking of frogs - I think we will have to get this little "frog pod" for the kidlet bathtime. too cute