May 2009

Now that's it's 09-05-09, May seems like a lifetime ago. I remember that every single weekend except one we had to go out of town for one reason or the other. I also remember that Berik was very, very, very, well behaved for all of the trips!
We went to Dallas and had our annual social worker visit for our post placement report. Next year should be the last one and then we will be on our own! He was beyond well behaved during the visit which could have thrown off Mrs. Lewin, as she thinks he hung the moon and does nothing wrong and said so in the report! It didn't hurt that we met at a park where he could run and play and be "all boy"! It all ended about the time he whacked his head on this cross bar of the play structure and was screaming his lungs out, don't know who ran faster, me or daddy. Being hard headed has its advantages for B, as he didn't suffer any major injuries, just a big ol' bump.

He is still lining up things like his cars especially, not all the time but enough to where you need to watch your step while walking through the house. You know one could never have to many cars!

He is still getting plenty of mileage out of his play house, that we picked up for $30 bucks at the city drop off center. Someone dropped off all the pieces, daddy, Mr. eagle eye saw it leaned up against the building from the road and then called and made an offer and it was just that easy! Glad I didn't spend $300 or more on one. He loves this one just fine!





He continues to love to play with bubbles and thanks to Wal-Mart we now have a collection of bubble wands to choose from, some are still in tact, some now have teethmarks or chewed up handles all thanks to Duke, our beloved pup!









Speaking of loves.. he loves his robe that came to us from Matthew. I wonder if Matt loved it as much as B does. He asks us after every bath for his "whoab". His speech is getting better but those r's are hard for him.

We still opening up new toys from B's birthday in March as we got so many I had put some up. We had used the chalkboard side of the easel that we got from 'Auntie KK" but had never painted so,we painted for the first time this month and boy does he love to paint!! He told me one piece was a tractor and the other a carrot! ? ok, they look like tornadoes to me, but being the good mom I went ahead and labeled them as such. I know later on he will wonder why I keep all this art work but he is just so precious and I can't help it.
He also still likes us to say, "Fe Fi Fo Fum.... I smell the blood of a Kazakhstanian.. and I am going to grind your bones.. and make Berik bread.... ahh ha ha ha..." He runs from us, (daddy mostly) and squeals and giggles as we tickle him. Daddy made this up and Berik is now getting better and better at saying it to us. I am glad he didn't chose to repeat this to the social worker though she might want to add an additional page of questionable remarks to the report!
The old laptop is still down and I am sure that I wrote down some of Berik's funny comments but can't get to them just now so you'll just have to believe me when I say he can come up with some funny stuff! He seems to still be able to get himself into situations that he can't get out of.... like getting trapped in the spare car seat we had sitting in the living room. He was just a calling me and I kept telling him to come to me, until I saw him and figured out he couldn't, poor guy...lol!



We went to Alabama to see, Jessi,( B's step sister) graduate from high school. She looked beautiful and she beamed from ear to ear as she walked to get her diploma!! NHS student, 4.0 graduate!!!! You go girl!! Her mom, step dad had a graduation party for her and Jaimie and I chipped in for food, cooked out and had some fun. We sure enjoyed our visit although it was pretty short, 4 days. 10 hours in the car each way kind of eats up the time. Berik adores Jessi and was wrapped around her as much as possible.We always talk about her to him so he never has a chance to forget. She has 3 half siblings and then Berik. They all decided to try out the slip -n- slide, which had a water gun thing attached. You can see he is most amused with himself spraying Abbie in the backside!!!!
Well, let me hurry up and finish this so I can blog about June, which seems to be fresher in my mind..I think! Love to all!!

April 2009

Well since it is August I only know what went on in April based on some pictures. That's a real blog slacker for ya!
Berik is getting hip to the holidays now. Last year he wasn't into them all that much but this year we are hearing about the Easter Bunny and some eggs! He hunted eggs at daycare with such skill this year! It must have been those bunny ears that he made that helped him out so. He was into the goods from the daycare Easter party and that's what he thought he was having for breakfast, lunch and dinner, candy.... or Cannnny (no D ) that's what he calls it.
It rained all day on Easter Sunday so we hunted eggs inside and we hunted them again and again. He thought it was great!
We rescued a boxer dog from someone who couldn't take care of him. He looked so sad on the internet I just had to have him. His name is Duke, he is 11mths and hopefully he will be a good friend for Berik. We had 2 Boxers before, but had to put one down right before we left for Kaz and the other right after we returned from Kaz, due to cancer. We feel that Berik is big (old) enough to handle himself around a dog and Duke came from a family with 2 toddlers so this should be a good mix.
Berik finally got on the 4 wheeler (mommy not so happy) after Duke actually got on with daddy. Berik wasn't having any of that so he got Duke off and put himself up there. Now, he wants to be on it all the time.
We had B's 3 yr old check up and he is 41 3/4 inches tall and weighs 41 1/2 lbs. He is in a size 11W shoe now, growing everyday! He still has some nosebleeds and it seems like is really tired afterwards. We will have his iron checked at the next Dr. visit as his veins wouldn't cooperate this time around. For now he is on an iron supplement.
Some days he is so stubborn he will not take a nap and he ends up sacking out in the car on the way from daycare and not waking up until the next morning. The Dr. says that is ok, that he just needs lots of sleep. I think the 3's are going to more challenging for us than the 2's were as Berik is becoming more and more vocal and gets more and more clever everyday. He still likes his blocks and is determined to fit them all on the itty bitty 4-wheeler trailer. Great when they are on but he doesn't like it when they fall off. Wish us luck that we can stay one step ahead of him.

March -09 Berik turns 3 !!

We took Berik for his hearing tests and they hooked him up to the wires and gave him some knock out juice and proceeded with the hour long test. The results......................................................................HE CAN HEAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! So, he must just be ignoring us, hmmm? typical selective hearing maybe?
We are just really happy that he didn't have any nerve damage from all of his ear infections, we can work on the ignoring part :) .
Berik is really into playing with my knee highs stockings as he wears them on his arms and legs. I took a couple of pics one day so I can use them later on in his life to show his girlfriends. He still loves playing outside in his house and loves to play hide and seek. This is the smile you get when you bust open the door . He is so cute!, of course I am not biased a bit. :) When he finally stops playing he makes sure that Diego also gets a good nights rest too!! Too cute!!
We took a few pictures in the bluebonnets this year as they were so so pretty! There were tons of them everywhere but the best patches were right beside the highway and we opted not to stop there. We also went to the park to take a few pics and he enjoyed playing on the split rail fence. All 100% boy I'd say!
I spent most of the month planning for Berik's birthday. The big # 3 ! March 27! At first I was going to do a train themed party but trackless trains were really expensive and so we the party favors etc. While looking around at bouncy houses, I found this really cute barn shaped one and decided then that the farm was going to be the theme. After all Berik had be singing Old McDonald over and over and he was really into it so we went with it and it was so much fun!! We took cupcakes to daycare on Friday, his actual birthday. One of my friends gave B an easel and wrapped it up very cleverly!!
We named the party Berik's bouncin' barnyard birthday bash!! We had the bouncer, two goats, one miniature horse, a bale of hay with a saddle so the kids could pretend they were on a horse, farm hats, farm coloring pages etc.. As my luck runs, it rained the night before and was cold cold cold the morning of the party. All the party goers stayed inside the house for the first bit of the party but ventured out after a while to bounce and play with the animals. Thank God, as they were about 20 kids and 25 adults.
My friends are too cool!, as one friend brought both of her tamed goats, Simon and Alvin and my other friend brought Shadow, the mini horse, which the kids brushed and fed snacks to. Every kid played in the saddle and colored and bounced to the hearts content!
We had "chicken" nuggets, beanie weenies, and Mac/Cheese to eat. We also had "chicken feed" ( peanuts and candy corn mixed together) and hay snacks (old fashion potato snacks). I found mini barns for party favors and filled them with, John Deere fruit snacks, chicken marshmallow peeps, plastic farm animals and old fashion fun toys, either a top or a ball and some farm stickers. I "bawk bawk" bags for the older kids, that consisted of all the pieces necessary to make a chicken that makes chicken sounds.
We gave B, a Lego/train table combo and he got a stick horse, trucks, cars, adventure sets, crayons,puzzles, books etc.. you name it.. he got it. We will have to play with these a few at a time as it is even overwhelming for me. You may notice that he started out in a really cute tractor shirt but after a bit he a little accident so we had to get out his farmer overalls.
He did a great job blowing out the candles on his cake and last but not least Daddy took all the kids on a hayride! Wow , it was so much fun!! I was exhausted but it was so worth it because Berik had a really special day!! Happy #3 to my B !!

February 2009

Between me having Pnemonia for 2 weeks and Berik having "the crud" for several days we didn't have time for much so this post will be short!
I turned the big 44 on 02-04 and we celebrated quietly at home and had my parents over for dinner. My friend drove 30 miles one way, to get my cake, for my husband who had requested a really yummy birthday cake and boy was it good!!!

The weather has been really fantastic, which is giving Berik plenty of time to practice riding his tricycle. He is getting really good at pedaling and can now go faster than I can walk. He won't get on daddy's 4 wheeler yet (which I'm not complaining about), but he likes to race daddy, side by side. It is really fun to watch the excitement in Berik's face

He is still into puzzles and enjoys lining up all the pieces. For Valentines day we made handmade cards for daycare. He liked having ink all over his hands for the handprints. He enjoys getting messy! We were the only ones in the class to make Valentines ourselves. What happened to the good ol' days? I thought at least one other mother would have time to sit down with their child and hand make them? Guess I was wrong. It wasn't that time consuming and believe me they weren't fancy at all. Best of all Berik had a super time making them!
He gave me these special handmade roses for my gift! Aren't they cute!
His speech still isn't all that clear and some words are really funny to us. For example, what are you doing? comes out, watcha dunin? Umbrella comes out , humm brella. We try not to repeat them but they are funny so sometimes we have to watch ourselves. Some sentences are completely clear and others are completely garble. We were going this month for more hearing tests but with all of the sickness we opted to wait until next month. His learning processes seem to be at or above level. He speaks Spanish words really well. He loves to throw his stuffed elephant on the ground and then say, "abajo" (down) and then bail off the bed or couch to get him and exclaim, "arriba" (up). He also knows what is "pequeno" (little) and "grande" (big). He knows lots of other words in Spanish too but these are the ones that he has been focusing on this month. He likes to go to the park that has the, teeter totter, and tell me up and down in Spanish. He is bossy at times and really takes your nerves to the limit but other times he is the sweetest thing on earth!
We are still potty training and he is not intersted. He will go when you put him on the potty but could careless about Skittles, M&M's, candy corn or anything else. He just as soon be wet as dry and so we are wondering when the light will ever turn on. I am sick of buying diapers and in Aug. they won't move him up to the next class unless he is trained. We took him for his first visit to the dentist this month, yeah I know a little late, but he loved it and said on the way home, (without prompting), "I like the dentist", that's a plus!
So see nothing exciting, we are just plugging along and making plans to go to Kazapalooza. We hope to see alot of you there!

Take Care, Gena

January!! Year I finally made it to 2009 post!

We rung in the New Year the old fashion way.. well old married way I should say! We stayed home and watched TV and or played on the internet. No big celebrations and we barely made it to midnight.
Berik is absolutely thrilled with his new tricycle! He can ride it really well and it beginning to go faster and faster almost to the point of tipping over. He doesn't mind, in fact he likes to wear his helmet, so that is good for us. We play train almost daily and he is enjoying his new puzzles immensly! He goes for a puzzle almost before anything else!
His tubes seem to be working although he didn't pass one of his follow up hearing tests so we will have to go back in Feb. He seems to becoming more and more verbal where you can clearly understand him.
He doesn't miss a chance to say bye to the house, the trees and any vehicle as he goes to school. He sings loud and proud and is now beginning to add his own endings to the songs to make them silly.
He keeps us going from daylight to dark and we are so blessed to have him. I will leave this here and just post a couple of pics of B man in action. There will be one picture that he is just staring. That is him concentrating on TV! Until Feb. you'll take care. Gena

December 2008 On a Roll!!

Before the month began good I had already decorated my parents house inside and out, as a surprise for them, while they were away for Thanksgiving! I had all my photo cards made and I even made some myself of Berik being Santa in the tub! I was on a roll !! I even managed to mail out 10 cards and was going to do the rest later. Back at my house, I got my artificial tree out, not wanting to spend the money on a real one, but I didn't have time to decorate it, so meanwhile, the cats climbed and climbed and climbed it for about a week, until it was completely demolished. Berik felt the need to hang a couple of coat hangers on it but other than that it was never decorated. I hauled the bent branches box and all to the curb and waved bye.
The rest of the month was a blurr!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I had one day off Dec. 5th, to take my mother shopping, as my weekends were all booked up with candy making and church Christmas parties, and wouldn't you know that Berik came down with his 3rd EAR INFECTION!!! , on Dec 4th at 1:30am with 103.5 fever poor guy! So to the Dr. we went and we got the referral to the ENT Dr. that we had asked for 2 ear infections ago. Long story short, Berik ended up taking antibiotics all weekend which didn't touch his infection and the Dr. had take a more serious approach with a series of injections, Mon, Tue. and Wed. 2 shots, one in each leg, simultaneously. He was not a happy camper and we felt so bad for him but his ears got better. So he ended up being sick for 10 days. The only day they had available for his tubes was 12-24, Christmas eve, so we scheduled it and waited hoping that he wouldn't get sick again before then. It snowed here by our standards on Dec. 11 and everyone was excited including Berik. He liked the sound of it crunching beneath his feet the best! One day we will take him to see "real" snow.
Meanwhile, Berik and I had fun making candy and cookies and all 3 of us went to our local Christmas parade. He loves parades and gets excited if he sees a string of cars, flags or people anywhere. Outside of the prison where I work, he saw a bunch of offenders that were being released on parole and exclaimed, " a parade, a parade!!" Jaimie and I laughed!
We celebrated our 3RD GOTCHA DAY on Dec. 23 and let Berik have his favorite meal of fried chicken and chocolate milk ! Mom and I never got to go shopping and I didn't get a tree until about 3 days before hand. I never mailed anymore cards and Jaimie and I barely managed to shop for Berik.All in all from Dec 4th-Dec. 24th it was a blurr!
He got his tubes on Christmas eve morning and was good to go to church in the evening. We put out cookies and milk for Santa and he seemed to get into that this year! He is at a really fun age!! Santa brought him a tricycle, which he pronounces bi sis sul.

and he got lacing boards, a memory game, pounding blocks, and a train. We kept it really minimal but he had a blast! Since we originally had planned to go to Alabama, my parents had made arrangements to spend the holidays out of town, so it was quiet here with just the 3 of us.
The weekend after Christmas we had my parents and my brother and his family over and had a whole other round of opening gifts. Berik loved helping everyone open their gifts! New Years slid by and that was it. Happy New Year!