We all share the same moon no matter where we are in the world!

Oct 31, 2009

Happy Halloween


What fun October is with friends, family and trick-or-treating! We had a few guests come stay at Chez Altman this past month and are looking forward to more in December. Our good friend Terra came for a visit as well as Grandma & Grandpa Altman. Taylor was on Fall Break for the week, so we covered just about everything from swimming to major snow with sledding and lots of Halloween fun. Taylor was a kitty for the library story-time and trick-or-treating and "I Dream of Genie" for the fun at the Wild Life Experience, and then back to the kitty at the fun-filled Halloween Eve event hosted by a local church. Taylor, Michelle, and Kristen all attended the fun-fest with jumping castles, more candy and a cake walk! Grandpa even won a pumpkin cake. The big excitement was when Taylor scaled a twenty foot rock wall at the event, as did Michelle and Kristen. Amazing to see the strong leg muscles she has while going up...even better to see her smile when she came down. Taylor's school also celebrated with a Fall festival and classroom party. October is host to more activities for us than any other month. I can't wait for November :)
Snow Day!
Did I mention we had 18+ inches of snow in our yard? Grandpa kept busy shoveling for a few days while the kids and I went sledding!

Oct 24, 2009

Taylor Alyene Measures Up!

Taylor is 3'7" and weighs 46 pounds! She has strong legs and loves to cartwheel across the yard, the living room, the family room, etc. Almost able to hold a handstand. enjoys roller skating too. Taylor is very active and yet likes to stay up like mommy. Did I mention she can kick over her head? Her reading is coming along nicely too.

Oct 22, 2009

Adoption Match Update from China-Oct 14. 2009

This is the latest update on matches from China.
China Center for Adoption Affairs, (CCAA) Status:
Children matched March 25 - March 28, 2006

WE ARE LID 5-16-06

Keeping the faith that we will go to China and bring home our little Kendy.

Oct 21, 2009

Riding bikes with Friends





Taylor, Jaida, and Sydney love to go out on their bikes, scooters, whatever....as long as it has wheels. Tay is not quite ready to ride without training wheels. She has had a few wipe outs rounding the corner down the street. No big scrapes, but a few jitters when she knows the corner is coming. She is ready for a new razor scooter like all the big kids :)

Oct 20, 2009

AKA Hannah

TAYLOR WANTS TO BE A SINGER!!

Oct 18, 2009

Taylor's Beautiful Creative Side

Taylor says she wants to be a singer when she grows up. Gotta love it! I tell her she can be anything she wants to be if she tries her best and loves it. She loves to tell make-up stories and color pictures to go along with the stories. Her art is so colorful and she expresses herself so well through her pictures. She always includes Kendy when she draws the family. Here are a few of her beautiful masterpieces!

Oct 14, 2009

Stay at Children's Hospital

Tonight we had our first visit, and hopefully our last, for Taylor to the emergency room at Children's Hospital. She started with a cold and then progressed to serious coughing within hours. She was in respiratory distress when we got to the hospital. She was put on an oxygen mask with some meds to open her airways. She took a while to respond, but once she did her body healed pretty quickly. She will need to use an inhaler and take some meds for the next 48 hours, but should be fine after that. No flu, no allergies, just some virus. Yuck! Pretty scary stuff especially when we have a healthy active 5 year old. Tay was a trooper and very polite even though she was scared. The nurses gave her a purple teddy bear and a few books. But coming home and getting to sleep in mommy & daddy's bed was the best treat!

Oct 12, 2009

The Moon Festival

The Mid-Autumn Festival, also known as the Moon Festival, is one of the most celebrated holidays in China, taking place in October with the full moon.
Our adoption agency's cultural school, the Joyous Chinese Cultural Center-JCCC, celebrated the Moon Festival this past Saturday. The kids were invited to help make moon cakes, a beautiful paper lantern, and play games. Taylor and her friend Sydney went together and had so much fun. Making the moon cakes was fun...but eating them was not! Hopefully we will be celebrating with Taylor & Kendy next year!



A little bit of history: The Moon Festival is a popular harvest festival celebrated by Chinese people and Vietnamese people (even though they celebrate it differently), dating back over 3,000 years to moon worship in China's Shang Dynasty. The Mid-Autumn Festival is held on the 15th day of the eighth month in the Chinese calendar, which is usually around late September or early October in the Gregorian calendar. It is a date that parallels the autumnal equinox of the solar calendar, when the moon is supposedly at its fullest and roundest. The traditional food of this festival is the mooncake. Farmers celebrate the end of the summer harvesting season on this date. Traditionally on this day, Chinese family members and friends will gather to admire the bright mid-autumn harvest moon and eat moon cakes together.