So, I have a 2.5 year old. Since my last post she has become even more of the amazing little person she is. She is funny and wise. She is still an old soul. She still loves to read, play with our dog, do basically anything outside. She loves to climb anything and do everything herself. She loves her teddy bear Teddy. She loves Elmo and the Wiggles. She loves to help with basically anything I am doing.

She does have her dislikes. She dislikes wolves (fortunately, this is based only on wolves of the imaginary form). She prefers not to be anywhere close to people dressed up as characters. As a side note, the one time we saw Dora the Explorer dressed up, I was pretty scared myself as Dora was clearly a man and Dora's head was as large as Abby though Dora's body was half that size. But I digress. Abby dislikes wearing dresses.

I love trying to guess the person she is going to be.

Wow. So where to even start? We have had so much going on. Abby was in her first play at school. They did an impressive rendition of The Three Wolves. Abby was one of about eight pigs in the house made of wood. They had a confrontation with a small pack of three wolves. Abby learned ALL the lines and will still repeat them on command to this day (more than a month after the production). So, a career in the theatre for my little star? I do not know the answer to that one but I do know that she is quite good at memorizing lines. I have taught her a few more classic movie lines and she will happily repeat them. She can say "Mind you don't cut yourself Mordecai" from Raising Arizona, "Just when I thought I was out they pull me back" from the Godfather, and "what's happening hot stuff" from Sixteen Candles.

Abby is quite interested in anyone's name. And when I say anyone, I do mean anyone. It could be a news reporter on tv, a stranger in CVS, a random person out for a jog, and Abby will inevitably ask "what her name" (or "what his name" when the situation warrants)? If I say I don't know, Abby will promptly add "her name Go Go". Every single time the person's name is Go Go. The name carries over to stuffed animals, zoo animals, or dogs we meet at the park. At Abby's school, they recently acquired 2 new parakeets. Abby was the first kid there that morning and the director let her name one of the birds. Yes, that green parakeet's name is now Go Go. And a proud bird he is too!

We continue to get together with many friends. A couple of months ago we had a "mommy's night out" as I went out with 2 other friends. We hired one babysitter who came to my house and kept all 3 kids. Abby, Alec, and Avery all had a wonderful time and all 3 moms had a great dinner and even a little shopping too.

In September I had my first out of town work meeting since coming home with Abby. Oh how times have changed. I used to have about three trips a month and now I have more like one a year. I do not in any way miss all that travel. I used to wake up in a hotel and have no idea what city I was in. My friend Melanie and her family kept Abby while I made my trip to Minneapolis. I missed her like crazy but we both did fine. I was sooo excited to get home though!!! Because of a little mishap with my extra house key, our friends Rhoda and Doug had Abby at their house when I got home. Since it was after 10:00, Abby was asleep. I got her in the car and she woke up long enough to say "Hey Mommy. Where are my shoes?" :-)

Last month we went to the World Partners Adoption reunion. This was our second year to attend and it was definitely a good time! It really is incredible to see so many beautiful kids and so many happy families. We got to see friends including Charmaine and her precious daughter Jasmine (and Jasmine's grandmother). We first met them while we were still in Almaty and it is really cool to see how the kids grow and change. Both Abby and Jasmine were so very tiny then!

Last year Abby didn't really understand the whole Halloween concept but this year she was totally into it. She was a dog this year and got the chance to wear that costume quite a few times. Between the party at her school, a carnival at our church, Boo at the Zoo, two birthday parties the week of Halloween, and, of course, trick or treating, the dog costume got its fair share of wear. Heh. My poet skills do indeed still exist. Abby did opt out of wearing the costume for a couple of those events, but all in all, my cute little dog was very visible for the last several days.

We have ventured into the world of children's sports activities. Abby recently began a gymnastics class at our local YMCA. Her first class was spent in the spectator mode as she spent it largely in my lap. The second class started much the same way. But then Miss Angelica brought out the big guns - in the form of an extra cool angled mat and showed the kids how to do a flip down it. That was all it took. Abby was a full-fledged member of the class at that point. The class is pretty funny as poor Miss Angelica spends the majority of the time chasing a little boy named Nicholas all around the gym. And for the record, Nicholas quickly figured out that when Miss Angelica counted to 5, nothing happened. So his game of "I can hands down get you to chase me all around the gym" worked like a charm.

Well, I am off to find ways to recover from my Halloween candy induced coma. When will I learn? Apparently not this year. Suffice it to say that I have had my fill of the sugary stuff. At least until next year.

In the week since I last posted, we have had a lot of milestones in our house. Yes, it has been a busy week for us. So without further ado, here's the scoop.

Milestone #1 - Abby has now officially travelled to 4 states. Well, technically, make that 3 countries (Kazakhstan, Germany, and the U.S.), but we are now counting states and she has been to Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, and North Carolina. Just 46 more to go.

Last weekend we travelled to Charlotte to see my good friend Jen, her husband, daughter, and sister-in-law. Her daughter is about Abby's age and though the two had never met prior to this weekend, you would have thought they have been playing together since birth. They were so great together and it was really fun to watch them. There was not a single meltdown the whole weekend either. Pretty amazing. Their new house is incredibly beautiful as is the neighborhood. We had a blast and I, for one, am so glad they now live within driving distance. They also fed us so well that I asked if we could just move in with them. They have already learned the polite southern response and just smiled and nodded at me.

Milestone #2 - With only a small setback over the weekend (because Mommy put her back in pull-ups due to a LONG time in the car - double what it should have taken and definitely a story for another day), Abby has continued to do so well with potty training. She had another completely dry day today. I have discovered the upside of potty training is not buying diapers. The downside is one must be prepared and know the location of every public bathroom within a five mile radius, preferably before leaving the house.

Milestone #3 - Abby is now out of the crib and sleeping in her big girl bed!! The first night she only fell out of the bed twice and the first time it happened she didn't even wake up. I should mention that her new bed is a toddler bed and thus the fall was a short one. Last night was not quite as smooth but tonight (so far!) she is quiet and I do believe even asleep. That's my girl!! Of course now, when she wakes up in the morning I have to bust a move to get to her so as I don't later find her up making pancakes or something. Hmmm, I do like pancakes though. Nah, might need to wait another year or two before I have her cooking. :-)

Milestone #4 - Abby is learning how to ride her new tricycle. She is quite the little picture of cute pedaling the little Red Ryder trike while sporting her Nemo helmet. She has really picked up the concept pretty fast. The only downside is our driveway is pretty much a hill (at least from the perspective of a 2 year old on a tricycle) so to really get some practice we are going to need to head to the park down the street. Fortunately it has the perfect (flat!) riding sidewalk.

So all in all, a busy week. All this plus even more talking too. Not a day goes by that I don't laugh at something she says or does.

This week's music of choice is Louis Armstrong. Abby's favorites include "Hello Dolly" (though I change the words and sing "Hello Abby" much to Abby's delight) and "Blueberry Hill" (which was inspired by Jen's daughter).

So that is our little corner of the world. Good night!

I could probably make up a million excuses. I wouldn't even bother with the amateur ones involving dogs and homework. No, I would jump straight to the hard core excuses. Excuses involving convoluted details with me doing things like saving lives or learning the forgotten art of churning my own butter. But in all honesty excuses require more energy than 95 degree weather in Atlanta will allow. So, I'll stick with the truth. I'm the mom of a busy 2 year old.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know. It's been more than a little while since I last posted. I even debated not doing this blog anymore. But when it got down to it, I just wasn't ready to give this up. Posting actually reminds me of my time in Kazakhstan. So, with all that unnecessary preamble, let me get to what we have been doing.

Back in June we went to Naples, Florida with our friends Julia and her daughter Katy, and Dawn and her son Alec. It was a really fun week and one I will long remember. Abby did great on the plane down to Naples (the flight home was a different story but hey, the plane did eventually land). She had not flown since last August but she got on that plane like a little pro. We stayed in a nice condo about 2 blocks from the beach. This year we had 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms and it definitely made bed and nap time so much easier. The kids all had a blast. We went to the beach, swam in the cool condo pool, took a dolphin cruise, did some shopping, did some good eating, and even found a nice playground. While we there, Abby got bit by something (still not sure just what it was) and it got infected so we also got to spend one morning at Urgent Care. After a week on antibiotics the infection was completely better! Traveling with medication which must be refrigerated though proved to be an interesting feat. We also got to see my brother, sister-in-law, nephews, and niece several times while were down there. They were wonderful hosts and Abby had so much fun playing with her cousins.

We continue to make (mostly) montly visits to Rome to see my mom, grandmother, and Bryan. Abby loves going up there and of course, gets spoiled each time we go. :-) Our last trip in June, we arrived to find the Green Beach. My mom had a pool, sand area, beach toys, chairs, and, well you name it. Short of a pool boy named Coco to fetch me drinks, I think the pool had all the makings of a Carribbean visit. It was a really fun day. Abby now "talks" on the phone to Gigi too. For a long time, she really had very little interest in the phone but now she likes to get her time in and is pretty good at repeating whatever I say to Gigi.

For the Fourth of July holiday, we went with the Brashers to Tybee Island. Tybee Island is on the Georgia coast. I had not been there in years. We really had a great time. The motel where we stayed was, how do I say, memorable. In that it reminded me of the motels where we stayed for spring break in college (with 7 of your closest friends in one room that cost $39.99 a night). But since we weren't even in the room that much (except for naps and night), it was really fine. And the people were so very nice. My favorite night was July 3 (the night they have fireworks on Tybee). We ate dinner at a little beach shack kind of place (appropriately right on the beach). We got to listen to a jazz band and Abby LOVED them. They even let her and Sam play with them in the band. Sam was quite the member of the band but Abby realized after about 20 seconds that she was in front of a lot of people she didn't know and she bolted. But not before she made her musical debut. :-) After dinner, we went to the beach to watch the fireworks. It just doesn't get any better than that.

For the last few weeks, Abby has been taking swimming lessons at Emory University. They do things like put their face under water, blow bubbles, jump in to mommy or daddy from the side, crawl along the side (alone!), and lots of kicking water. I'm really proud of how well Abby has done. She really has not been afraid at all - even putting her face under water. I may look into swimming lessons for the winter too - inside of course.

Abby has learned so many new things that I am quite certain I will leave something out. The big thing right now is potty training!! She has had several days when she stayed dry all day (not all in a row) and I do believe she is well on the way to leaving the diaper behind for good. Her teachers at school have been so wonderful working with all the kids and their patience truly shows.

Speaking of school, Abby still loves hers. She will be moving up to a new class at the end of August and is currently in the transition mode (visiting the new class for awhile each day). They move them up around 2.5 and Abby will be 2.5 in September. I am sad Abby will be leaving Ms. Kim and Ms. Laquita though as they are fantastic teachers.

Abby's vocabulary has absolutely and completely taken off. She talks in actual sentences now and says things that just amaze me. She picks up on everything!!! Below are some of my current favorite Abby sayings and their translations:

baking suit - bathing suit
Cingella - Cinderella
I love you mommy - needs no translation and absolutely melts my heart each and every time she says it :-)
Will cookie - yes, she still calls graham crackers Will cookies
keeta - mosquita
Lucy Liu - our dog Lucy's nickname
fimming - swimming
alligator - elevator

Abby still LOVES books. There is just no other way to say it. Her first request when we get home each day is to read books. She takes 2 books with her when we go to school (and "reads" them on the way). Her first request when she gets up in the morning is to read books. I so hope this love never changes. This is just one of the many many things we share.... our love of books and reading. Last week we made her first trip to the library. We walked in the door and Abby's mouth literally dropped open in awe. She just whispered to me "Books Mommy!!" It was a one of those moments I wish I had my camera even though I will never forget the look on her face.

We still dance a lot here in the Green house. Pretty much every night after dinner. Current music choices include The Carpenters (they sing "Sing a Song" on Sesame Street and Abby loves it - especially the la la la la la part), Squirrel Nut Zippers, some new music from Kazakhstan that another mom sent us, and Van Morrison.

So, my little girl is growing and learning and I am so proud of her that mere words can not describe. She is a sweet and loving little girl who loves to dance and laugh. Life with a two year old is the best kind of life.

Until next time, good night!

And it is finally summer!

Summer and toddlers just go hand in hand. Summer is sticky and relaxed. Summer is all about being with your friends and eating watermelon. Summer is about running around barefoot and getting wet in the pool (or in the daily afternoon thunderstorm-take your pick). On any given day at the end of the day, Abby will be simultaneously sticky, hot, covered in dirt, and completely tired out. It is as it should be.

We are indeed having a good summer so far. We play outside a LOT, take Lucy on walks, and visit with our neighbors most evenings. I love our late afternoon visits with Pete (he is like a grandpa to Abby), Miss Bert (she is 85 years old), Phoebe (the basset hound Pete is keeping this summer), and Kitten (Miss Bert's semi-wild cat). Our discussions range from the Braves' disabled list to potty training to the weather to politics to pop-culture. Pete is usually drinking his glass of sweet tea and Miss Bert is usually swinging in the big swing. Abby adores going over there. Talk about your generation range - I believe we are pretty well covered.

Since I last posted, we have gone to a few birthday parties (5 to be exact - all very fun), been to watch little league baseball and soccer, had friends come to town to visit, been to the zoo, the Natural History Museum, the Children's Museum, and to the Arts Festival. We have gone to Stone Mountain a few times, something Abby really loves this year. The train is still her favorite. I am quite happy that they have replaced the old fashioned gun showdown on the train with a mini-musical about, what else, songs involving trains. Abby clapped and danced through the whole thing. I was quite impressed how many train songs they were able to come up with. On Mother's Day, we spent the day at Stone Mountain and had a picnic by the mountain. It was the perfect Mother's Day.

About a week ago, we went through a mini-monsoon here in Atlanta. Rain. Every day. And then the next day? Some more rain. With a dog and a 2 year old, this got old very fast. It even rained most of Memorial Day weekend. So we took advantage and went to Abby's first movie. We saw Madagascar. I would have to rate it a B-. I have seen Shrek and this, sir, was no Shrek. Nor was it Finding Nemo, Ice Age, Toy Story or any other of a dozen kid movies that I absolutely loved. Not that it is fair to compare or anything. Abby had a good time but she was mostly interested in the popcorn and in moving her sippy cup from one cup holder to the other. So take that for what you will. We really had fun though. If the movie had been 10 minutes shorter, it would have been just right. Abby did get very fidgety those last 10 minutes but for a 2 year old? I was very proud. :-) Next up? Gone With The Wind. Heh. Yeah, I just got an image of that in my head. Maybe we'll wait another 10 years or so on that one.

I have to take a minute to hop up on my little soap box. I think it is time we officially declare Fisher Price to be in charge of national security. Why, one might ask. Well, I can tell you any person who has purchased something from Fisher Price (perfect example is anything involving The Little People) is already out there nodding their head with me. I really can't begin to imagine the shoplifting of Little People that prompted Fisher Price to secure EACH AND EVERY tiny piece with twisty ties that could hold giant flying elephants in place AND clear tape which could hold the space shuttle to the moon. Let's just say, it takes an act of congress, tools which would make Bob Villa drool, and a mighty strong prayer to successfully open Fisher Price toys. Put them in charge of security I say. Problems solved.

I will say this though, The Little People are just the best toy out there for kids. Abby uses her imagination, singing, and talking and creates and plays some elaborate games. For this I am willing to bow to the packaging that is Fisher Price. There is nothing fancy about Little People. No bells or light shows. No computer generated talking voice. No video nothing. And Abby loves playing with them just as much as I did. Not bad when a toy can cross from one generation to the next.

Other than lots of playing and doing as much as we can outside, Abby still loves her books. She is not big on tv but will every now and then watch Sesame Street (my personal favorite), The Wiggles (though the obsession has diminished greatly), and The Muppet Show. My friend Vicki gave her a muppets video and she just loves it. I do too. I have not seen them in ages and they are still very funny. Abby dances to the little opening song.

Abby now has an entourage. At any given time she can be found with Olga (her sheep), Max (her bear), Go Go (her dog), Igor (her Kaz dog) or Baby Jack (little baby doll). She really looks after her little gang. I love to look in the rear view mirror of the car and see her plant a wet kiss on Go Go's head.

So, that's the scoop from our little corner of the world. Good night and happy summer. :-)

Tree planting with Avery and Alec

Tree planting with Avery and Alec
Originally uploaded by gayla059.

Our first annual Kazakh New Year tree planting celebration.

Somehow, it is April. The end of April even. I'm not sure how that happened. So, I last posted in February. I think we have had a lifetime since then.

Where to start? Well, we have a new family member now. Lucy (or Lucy the Wonder Dog as she is affectionately known around here) joined our family 2 months ago. She is a four year old 60 pound black lab mix and is the sweetest, goofiest dog ever. We adopted her from the Dekalb Humane Society (now known as PAWS). I had been periodically checking shelter websites for over a year but just never found the dog. Until Lucy. One Friday afternoon I realized I had not looked at the PAWS site in awhile. The main things I had been looking for included good with children, calm, and housebroken. Lucy largely fits all of these with only occasional slips from "calm". The real test though was whether Abby would like her (and vice versa). Let's just say they immediately kissed upon meeting and it was a done deal. Lucy was meant to be in our family.

Lucy had been left at the shelter by her previous family. One of them had allergies to her. I'm sad that she had been abandonded, but we turned out to be the lucky ones to have found her. She is a genuine sweetheart and she and Abby absolutely love each other. That's not to say that the first couple of weeks she was home I didn't wonder just exactly what I had done. :-) I don't think Abby's feet touched the floor for a whole week. We are past that now and Abby and Lucy play, snuggle, and look out for each other.

In March we celebrated Abby's 2nd birthday. Like Mardi Gras, Abby's birthday celebration lasted a week. Over the course of the week we got together with friends and family, went to the Children's Museum, went to the zoo, blew out candles, ate cookies and cake, and just basically celebrated. The day before her actual birthday I made cookies shaped like Kazakhstan and took them to her class at school. This year the kids were too young to know what they meant but it is a tradition I suspect we will continue. To answer the question likely brewing by now..... Yes, I have a cookie cutter shaped like Kazakhstan. I never cease to be amazed by the things one can buy over the Internet.

A couple of days after her birthday, Abby came down with what at first seemed to be a really bad cold. Usually with a cold though, she still feels just fine. This time? Not so much. Tests run at her doctor's office proved that it turned out she had the flu. And this after she had the flu shot too. My poor little girl felt awful for a whole week. She did not want me to put her down for even one second. It was a rough week and I was so relieved when she began to feel better again.

This spring we began a tradition to celebrate the Kazakh New Year. Our friend Dawn (Alec's mommy) had a wonderful suggestion that each year we plant a tree. So Kris and her daughter Avery, Abby and I all gathered at Dawn and Alec's house as the site of the first annual tree planting. The day was beautiful, the kids were precious, and the tree (as I hear it) is still standing. :-) Dawn did most of the work as Kris and I wound up chasing busy toddlers but all 3 kids were very into the tree planting/playing in the dirt at the beginning. We also managed to only have 2 boo boos, one belonging to Alec and one belonging to Abby, which were fortunately pretty easily smoothed over with kisses.

Abby's vocabulary has taken off in a way that amazes me. I know every parent must go through this but all of a sudden I can have a conversation with my daughter. Now, to be fair, it is one of those conversations that others would only understand half of it, but since Abby and I are together so much, I really know what she is saying (most of the time!) Some of my absolute favorites include:

Tallypidder - catepillar (and my current favorite)
Right der - it is right there
Dat Mommy? - Still a favorite and means what is that Mommy?
My Mommy - She has started saying this when I pick her up because several of her little friends now give me a hug when I arrive
My Lucy - needs no explanation but is so sweet
My supper - again, no explanation needed but you are likely to notice the pattern of "my" :-)
banaid - band aid
puter - computer
stickuh - sticker

There are so many more things she says. Those are the things that currently stand out.

Abby's coordination has really improved in a major way lately too. She can now manage steps (both up and down) really well, she can jump (complete with feet actually leaving the ground), and she loves to climb. Now that the weather is nice, the sand box is first on the request list. Just today she found a "tallypidder" in it. :-) Actually, her first word when we get home is usually "OUTSIDE". Most afternoons we will take Lucy for a walk and/or play in the backyard. During today's walk, we found 3 tallypidders. They were all, um, napping. As in permanently napping. Poor tallypidders.

And so is life in our corner of the world.

You know, life with a toddler is without doubt one of the funniest and best experiences. Yeah, when I decided to become a parent, I will admit I kind of wondered how one really survived the toddler years. I mean look at the rep. Tantrums, moodiness, "MINE", and did I mention tantrums? Sure, all that stuff exists but people forget to talk about the cool and funny stuff. Life with a toddler is truly a lot of fun.

My little toddler is the most amazing creature. Yes, she does have moments of tantrums, moodiness, and "MINE" is definitely the word of each and every day. But hey, who doesn't have those moments? I can name many the adult with the same characteristics. Only they are adults and quite frankly, not as cute. Plus, 98% of the time Abby is just a very happy and incredibly sweet kid.

Abby is learning so much each and every day. And talking, well, mostly non-stop. Some of her key vocabulary words and phrases include:

fick it mommy --> translation: fix it mommy (yeah, that one makes me laugh every time)
bless you mommy --> she says this each and every time I sneeze or blow my nose
Will cookie --> translation: the cookie her little buddy Will brings her every morning to school
eyuh --> translation: ear
doah --> translation: door
hayuh --> translation: hair
that --> translation: what is that?
mine --> needs no translation. The funny thing is everything is "mine"
I do it --> again, no translation needed
MOMMMMYYYYYY --> sweetest sound in the world
no crying baseball --> I taught her to say the "there's no crying in baseball" line from A League of Their Own. It is hilarious!
steppen time --> Current favorite song/dance - Step in Time from Mary Poppins

She says a lot more but those are the things that stand out to me right now.

She loves to help me around the house and has her own little chores. These include putting her dirty clothes in her hamper, bringing in groceries (I rearrange to give her the light bags), handing me "dishes" (tupperware) from her own drawer in the kitchen while I am cooking dinner, and putting away her toys at the end of the day. My little helper.

Abby is a great little sleeper but the last couple of weeks naptime has been a bit of a challenge. Once she finally goes to sleep, she is out for a couple of hours. I think she has begun to realize that while she is asleep she is missing stuff. So far, she is still sleeping well at night and goes to bed without incident. Well, with a couple of exceptions. I have no idea what happened last week but one night every time I tried to leave the room she would screem bloody murder. I even took her to the doctor as a few friends had suggested she might have an ear infection but all was fine and the next night she went to sleep like nothing had ever happened. Who knows what that was about. Maybe just a bad dream.

Then, a few nights ago, I was keeping my friends' kids and they were here during Abby's bedtime. Let's just say she was not going to miss anything that night by going to bed. That was the night she tried to escape from her crib. We all heard this loud "splat" and sure enough, Abby was on the floor. Fortunately a) she was not hurt and b) has not tried it since. I just do not think either one of us is ready to give up that crib just yet. Ok, mostly I am not ready. :-)

As most of you know, Abby and I have just celebrated our one year anniversary as a family. We will call this day (January 21) Family Day. This year we celebrated by going to the park, getting ice cream, and ordering pizza. It was the perfect day. One year ago, my life changed for the absolute better. One year ago, the most serious of judges proclaimed that I was officially mommy to Abigail. I will never forget that moment, or, for that matter, my entire time in Kazakhstan. I was extremely nostalgic all of January. I was then, and will forever be, incredibly grateful to the people who helped my dream to become a mom come true. I really have no idea how they make the perfect match for each family but it is so true. Abby is the perfect kid for me.

Below is the email I sent my other single mom friends on our Family Day. I thought I would post it here too.

One Year Ago - Celebrating our first year as a family
I truly can't believe I am writing a "one year ago" email. It justdoesn't seem possible that it has already been one year. And yet, one year ago today a very stern and serious judge in Uralsk, Kazakhstan officially proclaimed me to be the mommy of the most amazing baby girl in the world. This year with Abby has been the best of my life. My daughter has grown from a sweet and loving baby to a sweet, loving, happy, giggly, and very funny toddler. She has captured the hearts of all my family and friends. I am so incredibly proud of Abby and so incredibly proud to be her mother. I love watching her learn something new every single day. I love watching her figure things out. I love her laugh. I love her hugs and her wet kisses. I love how excited she gets when she eats ice cream. I love to see her dance. I love how she runs to me smiling and yelling "MOMMMMYYY" when I pick her up each day. I love how she "helps"me with household chores. I love that she adores books.

We have had so many firsts this year. So many new things. So many things we have outgrown. Abby long ago gave up the bottle. She no longer fits in the baby carrier and she no longer uses a pacifier. I have been witness to her first kisses, her first day at "school", her first trip to the beach, her first parade, and her first grown up food. She has taught me many things too. How to store the remote in the refrigerator, how to wear spaghetti in your hair, how to love theWiggles, how to sing all the way through Target, how to squeal with delight at the appearance of bananas. It has been an amazing year. I wouldn't trade a second of it for anything in the world. As much as the trip to Kazakhstan itself was a journey, the best one began once we got home.

Reading on the couch

Reading on the couch
Originally uploaded by gayla059.

My little book lover. No, I did not pose her. Just got lucky and had the camera close by. I'm just checking out the posting of pictures. If this works I will do more!

I'm not even going to make up excuses. I confess I have gotten out of the habit of writing here. If I were someone who believed in new year's resolutions, I would make one to get back in the swing of writing regularly. But for me new year's resolutions are something that last until the end of January and I would rather this journal last longer so I'm not calling it a resolution. Pure coincidence that I'm starting again at the beginning of January.

So where was I? :-) I do believe I last left off around Halloween. Yeah, a lot has happened since then. Here goes a little catch up. It might be a good time to play some moving end of year music like all the networks like to do around the last year in December. Just a suggestion.

I finally bought a new car (had my last one for 9 years). Exactly 2 weeks after I got it, Abby and I were stopped at a redlight when all of a sudden we were plowed from behind by a woman driving (and I use that term loosely) a jeep wrangler. The woman was speeding and looking down. An excellent combination for someone driving. Fortunately Abby and I were okay (I was just very sore for a few days). The car? Not so much. Five weeks later I got my car back. Yes, the woman did a lot of damage. Amazing how something like that can make you grateful, but I felt so incredibly fortunate that we were not hurt. The car was a mere after thought. I did suggest the woman slow down. And look up. I doubt she did either but I can hope.

The holidays were wonderful for us. Abby had her first Thanksgiving, her first Christmas (at home that is) and her first New Year's (at home). Though sitting on Santa's lap simply did not happen this year (she became velcro toddler whenever Santa was close by and would not budge), she seemed to love all the rest of the excitement of the holidays. Especially the tree. Every day the first thing she wanted to do was check out the tree. She loved to play beside it and dance beside it and read beside it. I have always loved the holidays but nothing can compare to this year and seeing everything through Abby's eyes.

One of her favorite parts of Christmas was handing out gifts to others. She was quite good at it too. :-) She was so cute handing all of her teachers their gifts. She would give each one a gift and then give a hug. That is one image I will never forget. Her Christmas party at school was one of the sweetest sights ever. Mostly the kids just danced. And oh how they danced.

Abby still loves her class, her teacher, and especially her friends. Every single morning one little boy, Will, brings Abby a "cookie" (graham cracker really). He walks in each day with a cookie in each hand and makes a beeline for Abby. Abby now starts saying "Will! Cookie!" when we are about 3 blocks from the school. Last week was "A" week. They did apple art and read "A" books (among other A things). This week will be "B" week. I'm sure you are seeing a pattern here. :-)

Christmas Eve night we went to the family oriented service at church. Abby did very well considering it was her first time in big church (since her baptism). She is normally in the nursery. I mean, the bulletins are really there for coloring, right? She did like to clap after someone sang. Christmas day we went up to Rome to spend a few days with my mom, grandmother, and Bryan. They had a great time spoiling Abby and she had fun being spoiled.

New Year's Eve we went to the Children's Museum with Kris, Avery, Dawn, Alec, and Gerri and Corre (and some of their friends). It was a really fun morning though the kids were mostly off and running in their own directions. We did manage to corral them long enough at noon to celebrate New Year's (Kazakhstan time) with a toast of sparkling cider. Abby did drink some but seemed to wonder why that juice was all bubbly. We finished the day with her first lunch at The Varsity (which she really loved). We rarely eat fast food and The Varsity is the definition of fast food but hey, you have to celebrate the end of a wonderful year in style.

This week we had a really huge milestone at the Green house. The end of the pacifier. We are still in the middle of withdrawal but have now made it 6 days without. The real tough times were bed time and nap time as she mostly used the pacifier when going to sleep. I'll suffice it to say we have had significantly less collective sleep but I think we are moving in the right direction. It has been a 2 steps forward, 1 step back kind of week. I'm very proud of her!! It is hard to kick that first habit!

Abby is talking so much now. She flat out repeats everything that is said. She has even said her first curse word. I'm going to put in her baby book that Papa Bryan is responsible for teaching the word to her. :-) I'm just glad it wasn't me! I'm also proud to report that she even repeated his inflection and tone. Hey, if you are going to do it, then you must do it right. Some of Abby's other words/sentences include: I love du (I love you), Allo (telephone - means hello), tank tu (thank you), peas (please), hug, shoe off (usually said just as she manages to take off her shoe), mommy's shoes (usually said just as she has put my shoes on), Giggles! (Wiggles), applesauce (stands for anything in a small container such as yogurt, applesauce, etc.). These are just to name a few of my favorites. She truly is talking all the time now.

Well, the last couple of months have been a major fit of nostalgia for me. November 19 marked one year since I received Abby's referral. December 19 marked one year since I received travel dates. January 5 marked one year since the day I left for Kazakhstan. Yesterday (January 8) marked one year since I first met Abby, first held her, first kissed those cheeks. Those around me have been politely nodding and smiling when I mention these anniversaries. For me, I simply can not believe it has been a year. I scarcely remember my life before Abby. In some ways, I can't believe we have been home a year and in some ways it seems she has always been with me.

My sweet, goofy, funny, smart, loving girl has captured my heart in a way I'm not sure I even knew was possible. It's hard to have a bad day when a 21 month old brings you a plate she "cooked" in her new kitchen containing chocolate cake, garden peas, and ketchup. It is hard to have a bad day when you hear a little voice asking you to read a book. It is hard to have a bad day when you hear "MOMMMMMYYYYY" as your daughter runs to you at the end of the day. Never before did I ever think to store the remote control in the refrigerator. Never before did I think I would love (and know) the words to "Hot Potato Cold Spaghetti" as I now do.

Yeah, it has been an incredible year. I'm sure I will have much more to say on January 21, our first Family Day (the anniversary of the day we became a family). But for now, I will sign off determined to update this journal on a regular basis. :-) Good night from Atlanta.