Traveling fun as a family of 6

 We decided to take our 1st family outing as a family of 6 - so we headed to Vicksburg, MS for a quick trip.  It's not too far from home, and David has been wanting to visit the battlefield.  When I told the boys where we were going, Alex asked about the details - how far, where are we staying, etc.  He asked what was in the town, and when I told him a battlefield he said "I knew it!  Daddy loves those places..."

 During the 1st part of our drive through the 16 mile long tour of the battlefield, Alex decided that he wanted to run from one stop to the next through the field.  Nate joined him, and they started out very enthusiastically.  However, by the end of the run the tall grass and hills started to get to them (but thankfully they made it!)  Note the two small kids in the lower right of the picture...and they ran to the white building in the upper left part of the picture...

Visiting the USS Cairo

 

Anna and I mostly stayed in the car, since it was pretty hot and she started getting a little fussy

 And we read the brochure after this picture was taken that no climbing on any weapons is allowed....oh dear!

Anna sits in the shade while her brothers play at a park

And of course, the best part of any trip is the chance to swim in the pool at the hotel, right?  Even Anna enjoyed the pool!

And certainly I shouldn't encourage this, but I couldn't resist taking a picture of Will after he "labeled" his seat in the minivan.  Why did I ever let him hold a Sharpie marker?  Anyway, just in case you are wondering which seat is Will's seat in the minivan, now it is forever marked as his.  He was warned not to EVER do that again.  And yes, those are the ground-up crumbs of 2000 goldfish on the floor.

I wasn't exactly sure what to expect on the trip, but I figured that Anna would do fine in a different setting since she is a sweet natured baby.  However, sleeping in a hotel is a whole different story.  And I used to think traveling with 3 kids was a lot, but now I know that traveling with 4 kids is even more exciting!  I have to say, however, that I am very grateful for the marked change that I noticed in my daughter from the last time we stayed in a hotel together (in China) till now.  In China, poor Anna couldn't tolerate being held for long at all and cried until I put her in the crib.  Now, it is a totally different story - she would cry the minute I put her down in the crib in the hotel room, and she only wanted me to hold her.  We were all grateful to come back home, but I literally heard Anna let out a big sigh when I put her to bed in her own crib that first night back home.  I love that she is such a wonderful part of our family, and she completely feels at home with us now.  So - we had a great trip - BUT we are all thankful to be home!  

Anna's progress and trouble with teeth

Anna continues to do well; I feel like we've finally settled into a great therapy routine.  She gets therapy (PT/OT/speech) 4 times/ week.  I kept trying to squeeze 2 visits into one day, but Anna made it clear that it was way to much to ask of her to do that!  We have some great therapists, and we continue to work on all kinds of skills.  She is actually able to stay up on all fours now - but still a long way to go before she crawls! 

Anna really enjoys music, and I try to take her into church on Sunday evenings during the singing (NOT during the preaching...that would be way too disruptive for David - ha!)  She is sitting in my lap in the picture below, picking her favorite hymn out of the hymnal...

 A couple of weeks ago Will and I were at the store, and he spotted the baby princess costumes for Halloween.  He ran over to one and said, "Anna needs that!"  I totally agreed, so here's my little Asian Cinderella...(thanks to my friend June for getting pictures despite a very tired baby who didn't really want to cooperate...)

And finally, the big news of the day on Monday was Alex's tooth.  He was so excited to lose his tooth at school, and he proudly brought it home in a labeled ziploc bag.  Of course that was too much to keep it in the bag, so he lost it once in the car and then recovered it with the help of his brother Nate.  However, the temptation overtook him again and he pulled it out of the bag while he played in the backyard...and yes, he lost it again.  Much searching, tears...but no tooth!  Thankfully the tooth fairy was still able to visit, but Alex has been telling everyone very sadly..."I lost my tooth, then I LOST my tooth!"  Such is life...so many ups and downs...

Feeding fun

Anna has made some great strides over the past week with her feeding/drinking.  She has been so resistant to anything being put in her mouth except her own hand or her bottle...so it has been a very slow process to try to get her to eat baby food or try a cup, etc.  I have been very cautious, as I have read many stories about adopted children who were in great need of nutrition but started rejecting food out of fear or other reasons - so I have been very pleased that she has gained so much weight from her bottle feedings alone (she is up to 18 pounds now - woo hoo - which is very impressive since she only weighed 13 pounds when we met in May).  

This past week she tried a "honey bear" cup with her SLP - and Anna actually tried to close her lips around the straw as she had the water squeezed in her mouth - big deal for her!

This next picture marked the first time Anna finished her entire jar of baby food bananas...she had been taking only 4-5 bites at a time, but last week she ate the whole thing!

Will has been very anxious to help feed Anna, so I let him try it finally.  I coached him on how to do it...call her name, wait for her to open her mouth, etc.  I was surprised when Anna actually let Will feed her a few bites!  And I love how it is just universal that when you are trying to get a baby to open her mouth for food, the one feeding does the same...

Okay - WARNING - this next picture is kind of creepy, especially for you therapists who are concerned about hip positioning, but it was too crazy not to include.  Anna has started transitioning from sit to prone (on her tummy) by just leaning forward...not the best way to do it, but we're working on that.  However, I went in to check on Anna during nap time the other day, and I found her sleeping like this:

Thankfully she rolled over onto her side and moved her legs into a better position right after I took this picture...and to all my therapist friends, I am getting her some "hip helpers" to wear!

Therapy, visits, and football...oh my!

Anna continues to work hard and scream her way through therapy sessions - below is a picture that my OT friends should appreciate, as she is starting to bang 2 objects together.  She is really enjoying playing with toys, which is such a change from when I first met her in China!  David and I were just saying tonight that we almost never see her just staring at her hands anymore, as she would do almost constantly when she first came home.  In the beginning it seemed like I was almost constantly trying to redirect her from just staring at her hand 2 inches from her face...and now she is fascinated with her toys!  I also feel like Anna is giving me a look of "Mom...do you really have to take a picture of me now?"

Anna is getting a jump on her technology knowledge - pretty soon she will probably be using Skype on her own to call her grandparents.

My friend Allyson came for a visit last weekend, and Anna had a great time getting to meet another new friend!  Ally was a good sport as she endured 2 back-to-back football games on Saturday in about 125 degree heat and took care of Anna the whole time.  This enabled me to nervously watch the 1st 2 games of the season with Nate playing quarterback, Alex in his first football game, and the inaugural game for Coach David (who was quite anxious, I must say...)

A day I am thankful to have behind me is the nightmare checkup/doctor visits yesterday.  All four Goza children received immunizations, for a total of 10 shots.  Poor Anna is still in the process of catching up on her immunizations, so she is going every 6 weeks for shots.  Two of my boys had their yearly well-child visits, and then Nate just came along for his flu shot.  At one point, Anna was screaming (because I had put her in the stroller while the boys were getting their shots), Will was yelling/asking over and over if he was going to get "a bandaid" (translation: a shot), and Alex was sobbing uncontrollably as Nate received his flu shot...when I asked Alex what was wrong, he cried "I just feel so bad for Nate!"  Nate and Alex stood outside the exam room when they were finished so they wouldn't have to see their younger siblings receive their shots...and the nurse said she overheard Alex saying,"That wasn't so bad - I can't believe I cried that much!"  The easiest part of the day was the hearing test, seen below, which Will happily participated in until I think he started getting a little claustrophobic in that little room.  So Nate gladly went in there with him and helped him out.

 Finally, a few pictures of a happy Anna today.  She is quite flexible, as you can see - we have a lot of work ahead of us to get her hip muscles stronger, but she is doing better every day!

And this is a typical Anna reaction when she is having fun - David was laughing and playing with her when I took this picture. When she gets really excited and happy, she waves her arms and legs in the air like a little "crazy baby" (one of Nate's favorite nicknames for Anna).

Good news, bad news

Bad news:  Anna was sick a couple of weeks ago, and we missed out on pretty much everything, including church.  

Good news:  Anna and I got to watch David preach on TV since our service is broadcast live - woo hoo!  I don't know if Anna really understood, but she seemed to at least recognize his voice...

Good news:  Alex turned 7 a week and a half ago, and my mom and nephew Titus came down to celebrate!  Alex was very excited, and he chose Chuck E. Cheese as his "fun place" to visit with the family in town.

Bad news:  The only time we could go to Chuck E. Cheese was on a Saturday.  It is generally a crazy place, but anyone who has ever gone to Chuck E. Cheese on a Saturday knows that it is a bad idea to attempt such a feat.  However, despite the crowds, all seemed to have a good time. 

Having Mom hold Anna at Chuck E. Cheese was especially helpful - I kept thinking about the contrast that this poor baby was experiencing!  Three months ago she was lying on her back, staring at her hands with practically no stimulation...now she is smack in the middle of the loudest possible place you can find in America - a crazy game filled/children screaming/music blaring place!

The birthday boy earned lots of tickets - and was able to get a lot of "valuable" prizes!

Bad news: Hurricane Isaac was heading our way last Tuesday...

Good news: The kids and I took off for Texas to stay with family, and we had a great week visiting friends and family!  (and we only lost part of a fence in the storm)

Anna showed off her new skill of sitting independently!  She is still very unsteady, but she is making great progress.

The kids and I got to visit my brother's new house out in the country, and Anna got to meet Tom and my dad for the first time.  Tom took my 2 older boys for a drive in his truck to practice their driving skills - the rule was no shirts for boys learning to drive in the country!

 

We also got to visit with some dear friends whom I 

have known since college - it was great for Anna to get to meet them, too!

And then a quick visit with the cousins at the zoo in Tyler!

Anna does not like...

Fun things to learn about Anna...she does NOT like popsicles (or anything put in her mouth except her bottle or fingers).

Anna also does not like Target after about 10 minutes...so we screamed our way throughout the store (yes, I was THAT parent that everyone felt sorry for and moved out of the way so you could get out of the store quickly).  But at least she had a cute shopping cart cover (thanks, Hannah) - it was my first attempt to try Anna in the cart instead of pushing her in her stroller.

Finally, Anna does not like having to wait for her bottle while in the carpool line - but thankfully there is a (mostly) willing participant to assist with feeding.

Back to school and family outings

We successfully attempted a family outing on Saturday to New Orleans for lunch and a visit to the Chalmette Battlefield (the site of the Battle of New Orleans in 1815).  Anna did pretty well, and thankfully it was cloudy so it wasn't too hot!

This was our best one of about 80,000 attempts to get everyone to at least look in the general direction of the camera...

On Sunday Anna wore her new dress, and Nate took a picture for me!

And today was back to school for the "big boys"...

...and this is really how they felt about going back to school

Sweet Will continues to shower attention on Anna...sometimes she is less than enthusiastic about all the interaction, but she does love her brothers!