Braggin Dragon and Tooth News

I think I've mentioned before about some of the challenges Henry has been having in first grade in the public school system.  His teacher has been awesome in working with both Henry and I.  One of the goals that the entire class has is to earn the title of Braggin Dragon for a week.  Ms. M clearly communicated to the children what they needed to do to earn the title.

Henry has wanted it for a while.  Ms. M explained to him very clearly what he needed to do in order to earn this goal.  He was very discouraged because some of the kids were on their second time around and he had yet to earn the title.

Then, we had a very bad week.  Actually, a couple of very bad weeks.  Okay...maybe they weren't so bad.  When we started this whole color coding thing, the infractions were many and they were major.  So now, the infractions aren't as many, and they aren't anything close to major.  But still, when you are looking at a color coded chart for the week that should be a sea of green, and you're seeing splashes of red and yellow all over it, it seems like a bad week.  I guess the reality was that we had made major improvements, and then we got stuck.  And I was tired of being stuck.

So Ms. M and I had a nice little email exchange, she had some conversations with Henry, and then I had some conversations with Henry.  Serious conversations.  Clear expectations.  Threats that he knew I would follow through on.  As a result, I missed going to my super bowl party and ended up watching most of the game by myself after he went to bed.  He was disappointed, but he got the point.  I was irritated that I lost my privilege of going to the party because of his behavior, and he got that point, too.

So before the next week started, he asked me:  "Mom, what would happen if I stayed green the whole week?"  Since that had never happened, I wasn't really thinking it was something that could be a reality.  So I responded:  "We'll have a party like you wouldn't believe!"  He knew that if he could pull it off, he'd also be a shoo-in for Braggin Dragon.

Monday:  All green...happy child, happy mama!
Tuesday:  All green...happy child, happy mama!
Wednesday:  All green...thrilled child, thrilled mama!
Thursday:  All green...proud child, worried mama (how was I going to plan the "Party That You Wouldn't Believe!")
Friday:  All green...Braggin Dragon child, ecstatic mama.  And special thanks to Leslie who found out that the Aeros hockey team was playing at home and offering special pricing for mid-field seating 9 rows behind the penalty box...instant "Party That You Wouldn't Believe!"

We rocked it and pumped it about how special it was to have that kind of week; how proud he should be of the effort he put into his behavior for the week; how much we knew that he had worked hard to achieve this goal.  If it provided positive reinforcement, then it happened.

One of the things about being the Braggin Dragon is that you get to bring in a poster all about you.  Since this wasn't necessarily meant to be an educational experience, I didn't feel guilty doing most of the work on this one myself.  I did let him select which pictures, help with the layout, and dictate the text that went with each photo.  It will hang outside his classroom all week.  Also, classroom time was dedicated to him explaining to his classmates what was on the poster.

Another part of the honors is to actually get to bring Braggin Dragon home for the weekend.  The kids are encouraged to interact with it during this time, and then are requested to provide an entry in the Braggin Dragon's journal about the time that they spent together.

Finally, there are some class room privileges that come with it as well.  Mainly, Braggin Dragon gets to sit on Henry's desk all week, and Henry gets to be the line leader and a few other things.

I was worried that his behavior last week was a flash in the pan.  However, this week is shaping up to go down as another great week.  We had one issue yesterday, but really, it was typical boy stuff and not really the behavior we have been so focused on.  However, one of my threats did include the condition that any further reds and yellows on his behavior chart would incur 5 "extra" chores each.  Since we had a yellow, I felt like it was my duty to consistent parenting and following through on my "threats" to actually assign them.

First, he actually reminded me that he needed to be assigned the 5 extra chores.  Then, as I announced the chores, he actually cheered.  And finally, went about happily singing while he dutifully accomplished all that was assigned.  Makes me wonder how effective that was as a form of discipline, but I'll stick with it for now.

And, our final news from last night, he officially lost one of his top teeth.  It has been loose...really loose, for several weeks now.  But it just wasn't ready.  Then he looked at me last night and moved it totally sideways with his tongue.  I decided it was time.  I reached in, gave it a tug and it was gone.  Henry wasn't too sure about it, but it was over before he had time to think about it and the look of surprise and relief on his face was priceless...wish I could have captured it with my camera.  Instead, here is a picture of his new smile:

Friday Flashback

Today is November 20, a day that is etched in my memory. It was a day of comfort of finally being at home and being a mommy. I felt like my new life could finally begin.

We had along journey from Vladivostok back to Russia and I don't have a lot of pictures to document it. Here are a few, though.

Here we are with the wonderful Irina at the airport in Vlad, before checking in for the first of 3 flights that would take us home.


Here is Henry and Nana peeking out the window before we took off on our first flight.


And here is Henry sleeping on the seat between me and Nana on the longest leg of our journey, the segment between Seoul and San Francisco.

Overall, Henry was a trooper on the flights. For the first segment (about 2 hours long), he fell asleep and they had a little bassinet that hooked to the wall in the bulkhead seat. However, being untrained as I was, I accidentally bumped his head while putting him in there (already asleep). This woke him up and that was the end of him being in the bassinet or sleeping for the rest of that segment.

For some reason, we had very little time between our connection in Seoul. We had to go through Security again, and we were concerned that we would miss our next flight. So we were pretty much running from the time we got off the first airplane until we finally sat down on the next. Henry was starving and I remember him gnawing on his Robeez shoes while he rode along in his stroller.

As soon as we got settled on the flight between Seoul and San Francisco, I asked the flight attendant to fill his bottle with warm water so he could eat. He gobbled that bottle down as if he hadn't eaten for days. I think he ate it so quickly, that a few minutes later, he vomited it all up...all over him and all over me! Fortunately, I was prepared with a few changes of outfits for him...not so much for me. However, I was wearing layers, so I removed my top layer and was in pretty good shape.

He slept off an on during that long flight. I don't remember exactly how long that flight lasted, but it was an overnight flight. However, we passed over the international date line coming home, so we arrived on the same evening that we left...even though the trip exceeded 24 hours.

As we landed in San Francisco and went through customs, Henry officially became a US Citizen. Unfortunately, the US Government doesn't allow cameras/picture-taking in that part of the airport, so I have nothing to share with you. San Francisco is where we parted paths with Nana. After customs, she went one direction for her flight to Chicago, and we went another for our flight to Houston. Henry and I freshened up a bit, ate a bagel and waited for that final leg that would take us HOME.

I don't remember much about that last flight. I don't think Henry slept, but he was quiet and content on my lap playing with the few toys and books that I had packed for him. When we arrived at the airport in Houston, Leslie was there waiting for us. Again, the details are a bit fuzzy, but it seems like it was late on a Saturday night. By this time, Henry was DONE. I buckled him into the car seat, which was a whole new experience for him and he was cranky the whole way home. The only thing that seemed to sooth him was for me to hum the theme to Batman. If I stopped, he started crying. So all of the way home, I hummed "na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na na BATMAN" over and over and over. Whatever it took.

Based on the recommendation of my pediatrician, and with the help of my wonderful best friend, Leslie, we had an open house the following day. Now, you may ask why it was recommended by my pediatrician. In fact, I had decided that we would "nest" when we arrived home to allow us both to bond to each other and to allow ourselves to begin settling into a routine of becoming a family. I wanted to limit external stimulation and allow Henry and I to merely focus on each other. However, I had a bunch of close friends that were just so excited to meet my new son that I couldn't put them off. So we decided to go with the "big bang approach" and let them all meet immediately. Then, we could settle down and focus on bonding and attaching.

Again, I don't have a lot of pictures from that evening as we were all just enjoying each others' company. And I can't say enough how nice and comforting it was just to be home. Here are a few:

And Henry seemed to instantly bond with Hailey!

That rest of November continued to be a steady stream of firsts, documented below with some of the pictures I have:

Wearing a "hand-me-down" outfit from his cousin, playing with some of his new toys.

Taking his first bath at home...he wasn't a fan of baths when he first arrived home, now I can't get him out of the shower!


His first piano recital!


Hanging out in his high chair while I prepared the next meal.


Attending his first book-study, back when we met in people's homes.


Being sized for his first pair of "good shoes".


Attending his first meeting at the Kingdom Hall.


Playing in his first box...favorite toy. Having a kid around 24/7 was new for Dolly, too. She's not quite sure what to think.


Having his first doctor's appointment with the wonderful Dr. Singhal (adoptive mother herself and featured on Discovery's Adoption Stories)


And all tuckered out after that doctor's visit, that involved drawing several vials of blood for all kinds of testing.

Reviewing these pictures to put together this blog post brought back all kinds of memories and reminded me of things I had totally forgotten about.

What I haven't forgotten is how grateful I feel to get to be Henry's parent! Prospective Adoptive Parents go into the journey called adoption, not knowing what they are going to come out with on the other side. For me, I can honestly say I have no regrets. My journey to Henry is THE best thing I've done in my life. He has become my heart and soul. And as we celebrate 5 years of being HOME, I wouldn't change a thing. That boy is my life!

Wordless Wednesday

You just need to work it out...

So, in the spirit of getting back into the habit of blogging, rather than catching up on everything that's been missed, instead, I'll share a recap of our weekend.

We had a special Mommy/Son day on Saturday by attending the Children's Symphony. The theme of the event was "Rodeo". And that was quite appropriate, too, since the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo opened last week and runs through later this month. Henry enjoyed the music, which included a song from Toy Story 2. He also seemed to enjoy the song and story dealing with Billy the Kid, as he tried to repeat it later to Aunt Leslie.

After the concert, we attended the activities provided for the Junior Patrons. It included face/hand painting. Henry never wants to get this done...I'm not sure why. But I talked him into it this time and he really seemed to enjoy getting the cowboy boot painted on his hand. (Of course, later in the car when I wasn't looking, he used a bottle of water to wash it off and get the paint all over his new outfit!) So maybe next time I won't push for the face/hand painting quite so hard.

They also got to decorate a paper cut-out of a cowboy boot. And they had a sawhorse steer that they got to rope. All in all, we both had a good time.

Last night, at about 12:30, I heard the pitter patter of 5-year-old feet running into my room. The little guy jumped into bed with me and announced that he had a bad dream. He then decided he needed to "use the facilities". After that, he crawled back into bed with me, rolled over, and went back to sleep. There were a couple of times during the night where I needed to remind him that he could not put his feet on my head, but other than that, the rest of the night passed uneventfully.

So, this morning, I decided to discuss his dream with him to see what constituted a bad dream for Henry. He advised me that he had a dream about a tornado and that he got stuck somewhere and his house blew down. But some nice guy came along and helped him to get un-stuck and helped him to rebuild his house. So, he told me, it all ended well.

At this point, I asked him if the next time I had a bad dream, could I come and crawl into bed with him? To which, I was told "No, Mommy. You just need to work it out."

I agree with Henry's new favorite phrase: "Hrmph! It's just not fair!"

Adventures into the SNOW

This is Henry's first real experience with snow. Each day, the kids have gotten all bundled up and trekked out to play in the snow. Here is a few pictures of them:

Of course, with the sub-zero weather, they can't spend very long out there. So many long hours have been spent over the last couple of days on indoor activities. Football was on the TV on Sunday and the boys rooted against Minnesota (because of their impact on allowing the Bears to make it into the playoffs).

Henry has mastered the iPhone and pretty much hogs whoever's he can get ahold of to play the various games that are loaded. He's also enjoying playing "buzz" on the playstation that is here. We searched and found the directions for a dice game that we used to play. We decided it was straight-forward enough that Henry could play on his own merits. He won, of course.

There have been board games, art projects, dice games, and several other activities that have kept the kids from going totally stir crazy. And the biggest hit has been the car track Uncle Lester brought that has some kind of "evil" ice trap in the middle.

Somehow, Henry seems to insert himself in the middle of everything that is happening. Here are some of the pictures from the indoor activities.

And the whole clan will be glued to the TV tonight watching Monday Night Football. Why? Cuz Da Bears are playing.

Stay tuned for additional updates throughout the week.

Podunk

Podunk: A small isolated town, region, or place that is regarded as unimportant.

Other than the connotation of "unimportant", that pretty much describes where we are spending the week.

We left at 5:30 a.m. on Friday morning, with the goal of reaching Kansas City, MO to meet Dwight and Belkis for dinner. The temperature gauge in the van read 63 degrees as we pulled away, but would reach a high of 68 by the time we reached Dallas. We made a pit stop there for some Starbucks. Henry had fallen back asleep after our departure and was now awake.

Soon, we reached the Oklahoma welcome center. This is a new state for Henry, so we stopped and snapped this picture:

We had determined that we would try to push through as much as possible, so we had packed a nice little booty of snacks to munch on for lunch. After a tasty lunch/snack of cheese, sausage, crackers and apples, Henry took an afternoon snooze:

We arrived in KC right on time and pulled into the parking lot just as Dwight and Belkis were walking in. They were walking hand in hand and giggling to themselves...the perfect picture of newlyweds (remember the posts from just a few months ago when we attended their wedding). Here is a picture I snapped of them after we enjoyed a lovely dinner at a local Mexican restaurant:

The next morning, we got going at 6:45 a.m. after enjoying a little breakfast at the hotel. We anticipated that the weather wasn't going to be as amicable as it had been on Friday, and it's a good thing.

Here is a picture I took with my phone as we drove down I-29 through either Northern Iowa or at some point in South Dakota. I don't really recall exactly when it was, but it looked pretty much the same all day long. It was not snowing on us, the but the wind was blowing hard and the snow drifted across the road, sometimes reducing the visibility to almost nothing.

Henry's favorite past time during the trip was to watch the thermometer display. He kept a very watchful eye on it and made regular announcements of changes. We watched it fall from the 68 degree high we had in Dallas down to -14 as we arrived at our final destination. Talk about culture shock!

We finally arrived around 8:30 p.m. (after stopping for dinner) and we were all very relieved to have arrived safe and sound. We were also extremely grateful that Uncle Donny had come to the house earlier in the day and turned on the heat and plowed/shoveled the driveway and walkways.

Now, all that was left was to wait for the cousins to arrive. They were on their own adventure driving for the Chicago area under blizzard conditions. Happily, they arrived about 90 minutes later, also safe and sound and grateful for the warm refuge awaiting them.

Wordless Wednesday

Recap of our Family Day Celebration

Henry and I played hooky Tuesday afternoon. I picked him up at lunch time and asked him where he wanted to eat. What do you think he picked? McDonald's? Chuck E. Cheese's? Chik-Fil-A? Nope! The boy picked Sweet Tomatoes. Now that was a choice that I didn't mind at all.

Our intention was to go bowling (again, the choice that Henry made since there were no kid movies playing at the theater). We arrived at the bowling alley to find that they had upgraded their software and couldn't figure out how to get the lanes to work. We waited around for 15-20 minutes to see if they could get it working, but no go.

So we headed off to the next bowling alley we thought of. We arrived there to find that they were only open on the weekends. By this time, the only other bowling alley that I knew of was a good 20 minutes drive away.

Instead, we headed home and decided to watch a movie from Henry's vast DVD collection. He chose "Sound of Music" and we crawled into my bed and enjoyed a lazy afternoon.

All day, he begged me to tell him different stories about 'when he was a baby'. We talked about my two trips to Russia to visit him, the trip home from Russia, our ride home from the airport, our first week of dealing with jetlag, our trip a month later to Chicago to meet the rest of the family, and his subsequent stay at the hospital while there. Even so, he kept begging for more. It was fun reminiscing about those days.

Last night, we celebrated with our annual dinner at The Melting Pot. It was fun to see Henry get so into his "Family Day" celebration this year. It was fun that our celebration included Papa this year. And of course, Leslie and Nada were there as well. Our favorite courses remain the cheese and the chocolate.

As I mentioned earlier, Henry and Leslie had been conspiring to get me a gift this year. Henry tried really hard to keep it a secret. Here are things he did tell me:

Mama, it is your favorite color. But, I'm not going to tell you what animal it is because I want that to be a surprise. And I'm not going to tell you about building it.

Hmmm, I wonder what that could be? To give him credit, he didn't tell me. And he insisted that Leslie wrap the house/box so that I wouldn't peek in the window and see it. Here is what Henry got for me:

It is a white bear with blue (my favorite color) accents. He added on the accessories of a box of chocolates and a flower, and a heart that says "I Love You!". He also insisted that it needed to have shoes. He named it Sugar. His reasoning for picking a "build-a-bear" to get for me was that when he visited me in my bed in the mornings, there were no stuffed animals. So now, with Sugar there, he won't need to bring any from his own room. Makes perfect sense to me and is really just the sweetest thing ever.

Henry enjoyed the gifts he got, and especially liked that Papa brought more gifts. Here he is opening the gifts from Nana and Auntie Margot:

And here are a few more pictures. One of the group minus Nada (she was taking the picture), and one of me and my boy:

Henry had grand plans of reading some of the Berenstein Bears books he got from Aunt Nada, and trying on the new Nascar costume from Auntie Margot when he got home. However, he totally crashed and was sound asleep when we arrived home.

In the end, a great time was had by all. And thus, another grand year of being a family comes to a close and another spectacular year lies ahead of us. I can't wait to see what this year brings to us.