It Works

A new post...finally.

I cannot believe that it has been over two weeks since I talked to you. Wow, time flies when you are having fun. That is what I have been having.

Fun.

We have moved into our new house and for those of you who are wondering- Jacie does sleep in her own room (well, most of the time.) Sometimes, when the wind is blowing, she schmoozes one of her brothers into letting her sleep on their floor but for the most part we're good. It has been neat to work on decorating her tiger room with her. She has really gotten into it. I have always wondered if she was born in the year of the tiger because of her fascination with them. I really should check it out. I actually just googled that and it looks like no- 2002 is the year of the horse. Uhhmmm... Interesting.

Jacie did have a couple of firsts since we last visited. She lost her first tooth on American soil. I couldn't believe how loud she bellowed. You would have thought that I was ripping it from her face when in reality it was just sitting in its spot, not hooked at all. What a piece of work. She also had her first visit from the tooth fairy. She was quite fascinated with the concept and wanted to stay up and watch for her.

"I've never seen a fairy before," she pleaded.

"I don't think she'll come if you don't sleep," I replied.

"Maybe I will pull out all of my teeth and put them in a bag with a note telling her that they are mine. Then she will be able to build a big house."

"How will you eat?"

"Oh, I hadn't thought of that."

I am paraphrasing here because though she does know English- she is by no means 100% fluent. Loren said today that he wished she could understand when he was making fun of her because it would make it so much more fun. Nice kid, huh?

She has also decided that she really wants to learn Chinese (Mandarin) again. I find that quite interesting because she has never been willing to speak it in any form to us because she thinks that we wouldn't understand. I have offered her classes before and she was not interested. I know that a lot of people think that it is vital that adopted children maintain their native tongue but my husband and I agreed that to force her at the time when she came would not be positive. So... now she is in. I am really excited for her and looking forward to hearing how much of the language she still has. I am starting her in Level 1 for that reason. If she knows it all- she will breeze through it.

Another first... she is starting to learn her alphabet. It is actually quite difficult for her because everything sounds the same. I think as she becomes more fluent, we will see a change. I know that she has been here for over a year but learning a new language has been a lot of work for her. I heard that it can take about four months for some kids. She, though smart, has taken longer.

She is quite a funny girl with a big heart. I have learned that she and Jared share the trait of wasting time and not getting work done. They 'worked' outside today. It took them four hours, the loss of TV viewing time and a couple of stern talking to(s) to finish a forty-five minute job. They couldn't believe that I actually made them stay out (after the sun had set and the cold had settled) to finish their job. What a mean mom.

I love being the mom in this joint. Life is crazy, the kids are crazy but so am I. I guess it just works.

~CP