I'm thankful for: Kai

It is impossible for me to express in words how much I love Kai, and how much joy he has brought to my life.  He is truly the most amazing blessing in our lives.  The day we adopted Kai and became a family of three was a day that changed us forever.  Having Kai in our lives has strengthened our bond as a couple, and helped us appreciate each other more. When Kai had his encounter with the donkey this summer, I literally cried for weeks.  I couldn't get over how close we could have been to losing him.  Even as I type this now, tears are welling up in my eyes.  He is such a precious gift, and we are so blessed that he escaped the incident with a scar and a story to tell.  He is such a sweet little guy.  Now that he's two, it seems like he learns something new every day.  He's talking up a storm, and loves to mimic everything that Pla Shee says and does.  He adores "Baby Roo," and is constantly tucking in her blanket or retrieving her pacifier for her.  No matter how overwhelmed I'm feeling, he always knows how to make me laugh.  He's a little tiny ball of energy with a smile that literally lights up the room.

 Kai at 2 months old

 

6 months old

 9 months old

 1 year old

 18 months old

 22 months old

 2 years old

And just for fun, a video of Kai singing his favorite songs yesterday.

I'm thankful for: Pla Shee

At the Texas State Fair a few weeks ago.

If you read this blog, you probably know that Pla Shee has been a part of our family for about a year and a half now, since May of 2010.  Pla Shee is 10 years old (almost 11, as he reminds me often), and is the youngest child of Pu Lue and Pa Moo, our good friends who are Karen refugees from Burma.  Pla Shee lives with us and attends Venus Elementary, and visits his family and friends in Dallas on the weekends.  Sometimes Pu Lue stays with us, too, during the week, so Pla Shee has lots of adults he has to answer to!

Pla Shee and Kai in November 2010

I am thankful for Pla Shee because he has added a tremendous amount of love and joy to our family.  He has a fun-loving, easy going personality that makes him fun to be around.  He's always cracking jokes and is literally happy 99% of the time.  Pla Shee inspires me to relax and reminds me to laugh.  He is an incredible big brother to Kai, who absolutely adores everything about his "ja ja" (big brother in Karen).  And Pla Shee is a calming presence to Ruby, whom he cradles in the evening as his "reward" for getting his homework finished.

Spring 2011

Waiting to receive the "Principal's Award" for his

outstanding effort in 3rd grade in May 2010

I am awestruck by Pla Shee's ability to navigate between two cultures.  He glides into and out of each almost effortlessly.  He's playing sports for the first time in his life, makes friends easily, and just rolls with the punches. We're blessed to have Pla Shee in our family, and we have a lot to learn from him.

Pla Shee's 10th Birthday Party

Being Thankful

Things have been crazy in our house as we've spent the last couple of months trying to find a new normal.  Ruby has thrown us all for a loop as we're finding out what it's like to have very little sleep, full time jobs, a farm, and now 3 kids!  Mostly, it's really busy, and often chaotic.  But despite the craziness, I catch myself at certain moment each day thinking "Remember this time...treasure this moment."  I don't want to get so caught up in the daily grind that I lose sight of the fact that this life that I have, right here and now, is amazing. So, to get this blog back on track and to keep me focused on all of the great stuff I sometimes forget to appreciate, I'm stealing an idea from a friend's blog and dedicating the month of November to "thankfulness."  No guarantees that I'll remember to post every day, or that when I do remember I'll have the energy to write something that's actually coherent, but I'll give it a shot.

Introducing...Ruby Nell Mitschke

The newest member of our family officially arrived on Wednesday, September 21st, 2011 at 12:00 noon.  Ruby weighed in at 6 lbs and was 18.5 inches long, and was a full month early.  We're glad she decided to go ahead and join the outside world, and we think she's a keeper.  Kai and Pla Shee are absolutely in love with their new baby sister.
Despite having had some complications with my blood pressure during the pregnancy (hence, Ruby's early arrival), the birth itself was amazing and a really wonderful experience.  We are so glad that we chose the Birth and Women's Center for our birth, and are proud to report that Ruby was born without the assistance of any pain medication and labor lasted only 3 hours.  It was an incredible experience and we are honored to welcome little Miss Ruby into our family!

Kai's Magic Ball

This is a video of Kai and my dad playing their "Magic Ball" game.  I just can't get over how cute it is that Kai plays along.  Just in case it's not obvious, the magic ball is imaginary.  Now, every time we visit my dad, Kai asks to play "Magic Ball." 

Road Trip finale

I realized that with all of the craziness that occurred the week after we returned from our big summer road trip, I never posted pics from the last segment of the trip.  We spent a couple of days in Charleston, SC, soaking up the sun and enjoying some of the "tourist-y" kinds of things in the city.  It was really enjoyable and we definitely needed a couple of days of rest before our long trip home.

At the Charleston Children's Museum:

The last day of our trip we drove all the way home from Birmingham, Alabama.  It was a REALLY long day, but we stopped along the way at a cute little park with fountains in Mississippi at one point in the afternoon so that the boys wouldn't totally lose it.

The pit stop worked, and we ended up making it home in time for bed.  All in all it was a great trip and we're already looking forward to making a similar trip next summer with our new little one in tow as well!

Getting back to normal

Just a lazy Saturday thankful for being at home and hanging out as a family.