news from the blauwkamp beat

blizzard of 2009

2009-12-20T23:10:00.010-05:00

so yesterday we got some snow.

ok- that's an understatement.

we got A LOT of snow.

we lost count after 17 inches.

yesterday- I spent more time getting him dressed to go out in it- than he was actually out in it! today was a bit more of a success. I'm wondering if it has anything to do with the fact that the snow wasn't coming down in gale, blinding force on him.

Verdicts on the Snow:
xixi= LOVED it!
Zach- well= the verdict was out until today when he realized how many snowballs he could make.

it's not going anywhere anytime soon- so it looks like we'll be out there again tomorrow!

deck the halls...

2009-12-19T12:11:00.004-05:00

been having fun around here getting ready for Christmas...

On Thursday we went to the Pizza Mall and visited Santa on thursday with our China friends from Baltimore- we did this last year too- cute pics! were hoping for a cute pic of the kiddos in their matching outfits...Zach took one look at the bearded old man and flipped out! we put him in the middle of XiXi and her 4 friends for one of the pics- pretty hilarious! They also have an amazing train display there every year! Zach was totally digging that!

XiXi's friends adore Zach- it's like he has 7 older lady friends who are at his beck and call! He just takes it all in stride!

Behold the Cookies and SNOW!!!

2009-12-07T00:16:00.005-05:00

yesterday was one of those epic days...

I had about 15 McDaniel women over the bake and decorate Christmas cookies. I've been doing this almost every year I've been on staff- I've learned a few shortcuts over the years (like not rolling out and baking the cookies ahead of time, don't clean the house until AFTER everyone leaves b.c it'll get trashed with flour anyways!)

we had a blast- XiXi especially. she threw more than her fair share of flour at people, she caked it on the arms of one person, make designs with it on the backs of several shirts, and made a lot of "snow"! She also managed to talk one person into dressing up as Mary- complete withe baby Jesus in her tummy! too funny!

yesterday was also the first snow of the year- it was super fun getting zach out into the snow- I think the verdict is still out for him! XiXi loved crunching in it!

Random Snapshots

2009-12-02T16:49:00.004-05:00

Ok- so this is the most random post...a good picture of my crazy, random life right now.

) I started back to work this week- THANKFULLY- my job is REALLY flexible time wise- and with Zach being home I'm going from 20 hours/week to 10 hours/week for the time being. I LOVE my job- I work withe some of the greatest college students on the entire planet. Tonite is our last worship gathering of the semester and it always PUMPS me up! We will have 3 students sharing how Jesus has changed them- those stories NEVER get old. Here's the flyer for the event- we've been posting it as our FB profiles and all across campus. Good stuff!

2) URBANA is 25 days days away! I can't believe it! We have 23 McDaniel students attending. I'll be there doing prayer. I'm super pumped and super I don't know what about leaving the kids home for 5 days. Ah- the joys of my job!

3) I have my Christmas cards already- along with the stamps, return address labels, and our mini highlights sheet (who has time to read 2 pages of our life this year- really!). Last nite I went to my friend Jodie's house for a Christmas Card Party- got 73 of the 160 cards addressed- still not assembled. My goal is to get them out by Christmas!

4) Monday I walked into the living room to find XiXi putting one of my 5 pound free weights on Zach's legs. When I asked her why- she told me it was to keep him from moving too close to the TV.

Yesterday I saw XiXi laying on top of Zach in the living room. When I asked her why- she told me she didn't want him moving too close to the TV and obstructing her view.

Gotta give the girl points for creativity!

5) I'm having 20+ McDaniel women over on Saturday to make and decorate cookies. Taking wagers on how much flour will be thrown this year. At least they are super sweet and clean up after themselves! tee hee hee!

that's it for now!

Three Weeks and Two Days later...

2009-12-01T13:27:00.008-05:00

Sorry it has taken me so long to post. The last few weeks feel like a blur. This post is a bit long...hang in there!

We arrived home at 2:00 AM on November 8th- after traveling/flying for over 30 hours. Everyone adjusted well to EST except for me- it took me 10 days to get over the time zone change.

Zach is adjusting well. He loves exploring the house and the neighborhood. He loves playing with all of his new cars and trucks and legos. He loves trying to ride XiXi's big wheel. He loves chasing XiXi around. He loves scribbling on his art pad. He loves to laugh and smile.

the verdict is still out on the dog! he is slowly warming up to our furry canine friend- Xavier! :-)

XiXi is also adjusting to being a big sister and having to share the love and attention with someone else after being the sole recipient for the last 4.5 years. She has grown up so much since we flew out of Reagan on October 20. Much more confident, independent and nurturing. It was so much fun seeing China through her eyes. She just LOVED her time there! She talks about it all the time!

I'm adjusting to being a mom of two. We are so grateful to our wonderful friends at our amazing church who brought us meals the first few weeks we were back. We continue to be amazed at the ways God provides for us and these meals were such a tangible measure of that!

We were able to go to South Carolina for a quick trip for Thanksgiving. It was great seeing my parents my sisters, brother-in-law, and niece. Zach and Helen totally hit it off. I loved watching them play together!

At one point during- Helen came up to Zach and took a toy from him and he just looked at her and yelled, "MEI MEI!" (little sister) and started laughing. Mei Mei it is for Helen!

It was also fun to see Zach follow Ayi Jennie around again. His face just lit up when he saw her.

He loved getting to know his Lao Lao and Pop Pop- he would just smile and laugh everytime he saw them!

According to the doctors- Zach is in great health! 50% height and weight- on target for gross and find motor skills.

We had our first visit to the Hopkins Cleft Clinic last week. They are very optimistic about the palate repair and said they can do a great lip revision in the future as well. We are waiting to get scheduled for his palate surgery- it will probably be sometime in late January/early February.

So- yeah- we have a lot of be thankful to God for...a smooth and safe trip to and from China, Zach is adjusting well to our family (especially to MaMa after not wanting much to do with me in China!), our family is adjusting well to Zach.

Matching Christmas outfits courtesy of Lao Lao!

Belly Laughing on the Floor

What a difference 5 weeks makes!

Zach was not thrilled with XiXi's cuddling!

XiXi sure loves her DiDi!

Zach and his tractor! (this was Ross' when he was a kid!)

Cousins hanging out in their matching Oscar the Grouch shirts (in honor of Uncle Bo!)

Zach and Helen hitting it off!

Meet Zach and follow us on our journey!

2009-09-12T15:49:00.000-04:00

Hey!
yes- it's been almost a year since I posted!

so- most of you blog readers know that we are going to China to adopt a little brother for XiXi! We are so pumped and can't wait!

we're just created a new blog documenting our journey and would love to have you follow us on our amazing journey to China to get Zach!

if you'd like to follow us- you can click here

Madame Butterfly

2008-11-01T19:36:00.003-04:00

So-
Halloween came and went. XiXi wanted to be an azure butterfly and she wanted me to be a butterfly too!

I was on a quest- make a butterfly costume.

Saw a video clip on Martha Stewart.com

it looked SOOOO easy and doable.

Martha Stewart lies.

I spent days trying to figure out how to make the wire work with the panty hose. no luck. the best I could do was make the wings look like dragonflies. maybe. that would be a stretch.

the wings on Martha's video are fake. at least I think so!

anyway- glitter pant, gems, and lots of pretties later (all added by XiXi) we had a costume.

Assessorized with the help of matching black velvet dresses found on Ebay, 2 head bands, 4 pom-poms, and 4 pipe cleaner.

Ross completed the look by being an entymologist (which he made XiXi learn so she could sound smart!).

we were off on the quest for candy!

the wings didn't look THAT bad!

especially in light of the fake ones on martha's site!

REFRESH 2008

2008-10-23T19:40:00.004-04:00

So tomorrow-Sunday is REFRESH 2008- InterVarsity's Fall Conference for students in the Baltimore/Western Maryland area.

I'm super pumped about what God will do this weekend.

We have a RECORD 198 students attending! We are maxing out the camp! This is the largest turnout we've ever had- the highest attendance before this being 145.

Our speaker is Michael Koh- a pastor at a church in Pasadena, CA. He is an incredible speaker- he has such incredible spiritual insights and is so in-tune with the Holy Spirit. He spoke at our conference in 2005 and I have never seen so many students respond as powerfully as they did that weekend. Lots of students received prayer and major healing and several students made decisions to follow Jesus that weekend. Powerful stuff!

So- I'm expecting God to do great things this weekend. He is doing a mighty work in this generation of students in our area.

So- if you're the praying type- PLEASE PRAY for this weekend!

we have 47 McDaniel students attending (record number!) including several seekers!

also- please pray for me- I woke up yesterday with my 4th cold this fall (ugh!)! and I'm the MC this weekend (I know- shy little old me- what were they thinking?) and leading a seminar on "Power Packed Prayer- intercessory prayer for your campus".

I will pretty busy and wired all weekend and I need God to strengthen me- otherwise the gig is up with me!

Thanks Guys!
God is GOOD!!!

one more picture

2008-10-20T23:44:00.003-04:00

so- for my 4 friends who chimed in with their ideas of where XiXi was sleeping- it was in the linen closet at the end of our hallway-

and yes- it wasn't until I posted the picture that I realized it was once wired- which makes me think the "linen closet on steroids" as my friend, Tami, calls it- was not always a linen closet on steroids.

this last sleeping picture was taken in February- she made a bed in a box.

today she made a bed of pillows on the living room floor and we "took a nap"

oh to be 4.

encore

2008-10-20T17:37:00.003-04:00

since I have have at least 5 people following my blog- here is an encore sleeping picture- taken last fall-

can anyone guess where xixi was sleeping?

unusual spot

2008-10-18T15:22:00.003-04:00

so- last week xixi was being really quiet in the living room. I started to get nervous- as a good mother should. What could she possibly be getting into?

I went into the family room and couldn't find her- wasn't on either of the sofas asleep, or behind them, or in any of her usual napping spots.

fear and panic levels increased. where is she and what is she doing?

then I thought- look up.

there she was- balanced perfectly on the top of the sofa- sound asleep.

a very unusual spot to take a nap. but hey- whatever works!

ps- yes- for the 3 of you who actually read my blog- this is my 2nd post in less than a week. please try not to panic or die of shock over this!

Double Entendre

2008-10-14T15:13:00.004-04:00

Yes- I'm back- don't all of you drop dead of a heart attack over the SHOCK of seeing something next after a 10 week hiatus!

So- here are a few highlights of the last 10 weeks of my life
1) I became an aunt on August 12. Helen Katherine Crader made her debut into the world at 10:52pm weighing in at 7 pounds 2 ounces.
2) I've managed to be sick about 4.5 of the last 11 weeks- yuck!
3) I finally joined the IPod revolution and got an IPod nano for the my birthday (can you guess the color?) complete with the Nike running/walking feature so I can track my pace when I walk with my friend, Amy, who is the bomb diggity of a power walker!
3.5) I turned 39 on September 15- counting down the last days of my 4th decade of life. When did I get so old?
4) I spoke 3 times in 4 weeks at our Wednesday Nite Fellowship Meetings on campus- I was in the SWEET SPOT! LOVED IT!
5) XiXi started ballet and tap and actually likes it (YAY!)
6) Went on an amazing women's retreat last weekend with my church, played all 4 worship sets, had a blast with my roomies and small group and am now super energized!

So- for those of you who are still reading...here's the double entendre of the week....
Conversation in the car on the way home from school:
X: Mom, I really love Jesus and God.
J: That's great! Why do you love Jesus?
X: Cuz I do- I love everyone- Jesus helps me do that.
J: What does Jesus do in your heart?
X: He cleans my heart and puts all of my dirt on him. Then he cleans himself.
J: Can you clean yourself ?(trying to get a bit theological/faith vs works based at this point with her)
X: NO- WE NEED TO TAKE BATHS TO GET CLEAN.

enjoy! hopefully my next post won't be in 10 weeks.

Picture guides:
1) Helen Crader at 3 weeks
2) My freshman Bible Study surprised me with a pink cupcake party during our time weekly time together! They are so great!
3) XiXi - the aspriring jewelry designer (can you guess what her earrings are made out of?)

my wordle

2008-07-24T22:59:00.004-04:00

http://wordle.net/gallery/wrdl/87437/julie_blauwkamp
here is my lovely wordle.

I don't know exactly what a wordle is- is it like a girdle- only with words instead of cellulite?

okay- so I must confess that I did not spend countless hours perusing the internet for the latest, coolest thing to post on my blog.

i copied this from my friend Jen's blog.

she gets the kudos for the mindless, countless hours of searching to find this cool program.

and while I'm on the subject of my dear friend, Jen, if you haven't seen her blog- you should. it totally rocks and inspires me onto great things like this! :)

SQUASH the SQUASH!

2008-07-21T23:15:00.003-04:00

We've been growing yellow squash in our garden- YUMMY! here's a great recipe for a super yummy, southern-style, squash casserole-

try it and give me your feedback! enjoy! :)
******************************************************

SQUASH CASSEROLE- southern style :)

2 lb squash
1 cup chopped onion (I use vidalia)
4-5 slices of bacon- cooked and crumbled
1.5 cups of sharp cheddar cheese- shredded
2 eggs
1 1/4 -1 1/2 cups of breadcrumbs
salt and pepper to taste
2 Tbsp butter

preheat oven to 350

slice squash into thin slices- place in dutch oven- cover with water- brink to boil, reduce heat, cover and cook for 10 minutes. Drain water

meanwhile- saute onions in butter until tender. Add 3/4 cup of bread crumbs, cheese, eggs, bacon, salt, pepper and squash- mix well

pour into casserole dish or 9x 13 pan

cover with remaining bread crumbs

bake for 45 minutes- until brown and bubbling

enjoy! :)

face painting fun

2008-07-13T16:36:00.003-04:00

Last week, I watched my friend Amy's two daughter- Rachel and Chloe- for 2 days while she was helping out at Reality Week.

We had a super fun time together. XiXi especially enjoyed having two more girls around with whom to get into all sorts of mischevious fun!

one of the fun things we did was face painting. XiXi and Chloe were a bit more enthusiastic about the whole ordeal than Rachel was. This was one of the first times I'd tried face painting- good practice!

Here's a sampling...

w

psalm 119:15-16 in action

2008-07-12T21:31:00.002-04:00

I caught XiXi doing this the other day...

I've been told (and I humbly say this) that some things are caught and not taught...

when I asked her what she was doing she said, "I'm doing my Bible Study and I'm writing in my journal."

Sleepy Time

2008-07-03T16:40:00.002-04:00

I took these pictures of XiXi a few weeks ago- I took about 3 dozen shots and she just slept and slept- completely oblivious...looking like a complete angel!

RIP Simon!

2008-06-10T19:35:00.005-04:00

So- as the title indicates- we had to put our beloved Simon to sleep late this afternoon.

as some you know may know- simon was diagnosed with bone cancer back in late january. fortunately the cancer had not spread past his leg so the doctors were able to amputate the leg with the primary aim of alleviating any major pain from the cancer growth and the secondary hope of the cancer not spreading/matasticizing. There has always been a chance that there were some cells that spread and hence a possibility of growth elsewhere.

since the amputation he has not been as active as before- mainly on wood floors and going up and down stairs- otherwise- he was still pretty active and happy. He had fun with xavier and with us.

last week we began to notice a drastic change in simon's behavior. much more reluctance to move around and a decreased interest in eating/drinking. we started giving him some anti-inflmatory medicines in hopes to help with the pain. Monday morning he was yelping to go outside but not wanting to move.

we were suspecting the worse and made an appt. with the vet that morning- thinking this may be the day we have to put him to sleep. We all said our goodbyes and ross and I took him to the vet's office.

the vet looked him over and reported that his back leg was very stiff- it being obvious he is in a lot of pain. she gave us some more pain meds and told us to call her back tomorrow.

Last nite Ross and I were not seeing much change in Simon- he wasn't interested in water or much food and he was having trouble standing to even go to the bathroom- he simply can't support his weight on his back leg. He pees on himself as a result- something I'm sure he is not happy with. He just wants to sit down as quickly as possible. It is obvious he is in a lot of pain. Ross and I decided if we did not see a drastic improvement by this morning (tuesday) we were going to go ahead and have him put to sleep today.

i spoke with the vet this morning and gave her the update. She agreed with us that simon's comfort and quality of life were the most important things to consider and that it seems like this is the best decision for simon.

We put Simon to sleep late this afternoon. As God does have impecable timing and a sense of humor- he went peacefully to sleep during a loud and violent thunderstorm outside. He hated thunderstorms!

He had a loving, happy last day. We went to Burger King and got him 5 cheeseburgers this afternoon- which he seemed to enjoy. We groomed him all pretty and I took a lot of pictures. He had 4 pieces of cheese to eat at the vets office. He was a full, happy dog!

needless to say-we are deeply sad and grieving. Simon was our last remnant from our time together in Illinois- an era in our lives has ended. we are grateful for the 10 years we've had with simon and that we now have xavier to keep us company. there are a lot of things I will miss about simon...his head butts to get us to pet him, his glomming all over us, the way he ran circles around our backyard in IL to the point where we had to re-seed the yard twice, the way he would bark when you would say, "daddy!", his ability to catch treats/snowballs/balls in midair- sometimes jumping up to 2 feet!

xixi is aware simon was not well and needed to go to heaven in order to not be so sick as best as a 4 year old can comprehend. We expect a lot of question in the days to come as she processes all of this.

RIP Bubby! You were deeply loved!
Simon- 4.15.97-6.10.08

pictures speak > words

2008-06-05T22:59:00.004-04:00

so-
here are some pictures of my beloved students and me at our week at chapter camp.

chapter camp= week at beautiful Lake Champion (Young Life site) where we spend 7+ hours/day intensely studying scripture (mark or genesis).

the other 14 hours- well- the pictures speak for themselves.

I should make the contextual note that it did not get above 65 all week and it was very windy.

I love these guys.

they are my kind of crazy! :)

Elephants!

2008-06-05T01:16:00.003-04:00

So- we went to the circus last nite- all day long XiXi talked and talked about riding the elephants! couldn't wait.

we arrived and walked up to the elephants.

"no mommy- maybe later!"

intermission comes.

"maybe"

so we walk up to the elephant- I give the guys $10. we start climbing the steps to get on.

crying. major protests.

being the loving and supportive mom that I am, I put XiXi on the elephant and proceed into Cheerleader Mom mode. I want to ride the elephant- haven't ridden one since I was 4!

half way around the cirle- tears stop.

get off.

go back to Ross "that was okay mom"

after the circus to my folks on the phone "I rode and elephant. at first I was scared but it was SUPER FUN"

oh to be 4!

I wonder if this is what I was like when my mom plopped my and my 2 sisters on one!

2008-06-02T22:26:00.002-04:00

I was tagged by my good friend Amy in this question game, so here it goes:

1. The rules of the game get posted at the beginning.
2. Each player answers the questions about themselves.
3. At the end of the post, the player then tags five people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they've been tagged and asking them to read the player's blog.
4. Let the person who tagged you know when you've posted your answer.

What were you doing 5 years ago?

1. Starting Weight Watchers
2. Working for InterVarsity @ Johns Hopkins
3. Co-facilitating a covenant group with Ross at our church
4. Taking conga lessons
5. getting ready to participate in a great week of prayer ministry training

What are 5 things on your to-do list today (not in any particular order)?

1. Finish putting mulch on all of my beds in the yard
2. finish decorating the hall bathroom
3. finish decorating xixi's room
4. start planning for next year's ministry calendar
5. finalize summer activity schedule for everyone

What are 5 snacks you enjoy?

1. hummus and pretzels
2. fruit- watermelon, strawberries, and berries
3. anything chocolate
4. kettle corn
5. guacamole and chips

What 5 things would you do if you were a billionaire?

1. Help in major ways to help end the AIDS and other world health crisis
2. Pay off my house and put away money for my kid's college education
3. adopt 3 more kids instead of just one.
4. Set up a living trust so that I may be able to significantly support the ministries of my local Church, Lifepoint, and other people in fulltime mission work
5. make sure my extended family was provided for financially

What are 5 of your bad habits?

1. biting my nails
2. not finishing big projects that I get excited to start
3. too much time of facebook!
4. nervous graze eating
5. freaking out about people being mad at me for no apparent reason!

What are 5 jobs you have had?

1. Head of waterfront activities at a summer camp
2. Education coordinate at a psychiatric wildnerness camp for girls with severe emotional problems
3. Special Education Teacher
4. Marketing Director for an academic publishing company
5. Campus Staff Worker- InterVarsity Christian Fellowship

What are 5 places you have lived?

1. Clemson, SC
2. Anderson, SC
3. Champaign-Urbana, IL
4. Baltimore, MD
5. Westminster, MD

Everyone has been tagged or tagged me- I'm late in the game on this!

from fear to faith...

2008-04-25T13:09:00.002-04:00

that's the title of the women's conference I'm speaking at this weekend...at my former church in Baltimore

www.fcfchurch.org

yes- you read that correctly- I am the featured speaker at a women's conference!

pretty scary!

this is my first whole weekend speaking event- I've done a oodles of talks at various IV large group gatherings, taught hundreds of Bible studies, coordinated and lead dozens of Sunday school classes..

but this is my FIRST full out retreat!

so- 3 days- 4 talks

I've been marinating in the passage, praying, writing, re-writing, editing, listening to God, practicing, praying some-I mean ALOT more, working on the creative elements...

and today's the day!

my friend, Amy Burch will be traveling with me to be my "rock" of support! I'm so grateful she will be there!

so- here are my talks...I'm looking at 4 passages from Mark 4:35-5:43
Friday Nite: The Perfect Storm (the storm at sea - Mark 4:35-4:41)
Saturday Morning: Telling your WHOLE story (the bleeding woman - Mark 5:35-34)
Saturday Nite: Don't be Afraid (Jairus and his dying daughter in Mark 5:21-43)
Sunday Morning: Rescue (the Gerasenes Demoniac in Mark 5:1-20)

I covet your prayers...I'm excited

party trivia....

2008-04-21T19:03:00.003-04:00

here are some tidbits for those of you who are curious... (my 3 readers out there!)

1) my AMAZING MOM made all of the poodle skirts for the girls...custom sized and all!
2) she made matching bandanas for the dogs
3) there were NO icing, pizza or rubber stamp stains on the WHITE carpet after the party- AMAZING!
4) Xavier has yet to eat any of the presents XiXi received that day.

more party fotos!

2008-04-19T15:54:00.003-04:00

XiXi's Poodle Party

2008-04-19T15:41:00.002-04:00

only a few words...the rest I think are captured by the fotos...these are some of the best of the 300 that were taken between 2 cameras today...

PINK
POODLES
FUN!

feed yourself

2008-04-13T18:41:00.004-04:00

I LOVED the sermon my pastor gave at church today! I was particularly challenged and reminded again of my need to "feed myself" and practice the Spiritual Disciplines.

One of my all time favorite books- a true classic in the realm of spiritual formation and disciplines is Richard Foster's "The Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth"

I received this 13 years ago from my in-laws. This is the one book on my shelf (besides my Bible!) that I go back and read over and over. I have probably gone back read at least one or two chapters every year! I think I may have more underlined, highlighted, side bar notes in this book than any other book! This book is AMAZING!

Here are a few quotes from the first chapter "The Spiritual Disciplines: The Door to Liberation"

(first paragraph) "Superficiality is the curse of our age. The doctrine of instant satisfaction is a primary spiritual problem. The desperate need today is not for a great number of intelligent people, or gifted people, but for deep people."

here are a few more nuggets:

"JOY is the keynote of all the Disciplines. The purpose of the disciplines is liberation from the stifling slavery to self-interest and fear. When the inner spirit is liberated from all that weighs is down, it can hardly be described as dull drudgery."

"God has given us the Disciplines of the spiritual life as a means of receiving his grace. The Disciplines allow us to place ourselves before God so that He can transform us."

"The Disciplines are God's way of getting us into the ground; they put us where he can work within us and transform us. By themselves the Spiritual Disciplines can do nothing; they can only get us to the place where something can be done. They are God's means of grace. The inner righteousness we seek is not something that is poured on our heads. God has ordained that Disciplines of the spiritual life as the means by which we place ourselves where he can bless us."

Foster devotes the next 12 chapters to describing and explaining in detail the inward disciplines (meditation on the Word, prayer, fasting, study), the Outward Disciplines (Simplicity, Solitude, Submission, and Service) and the corporate Discipines (Confession, worship, guidance and celebration). He also goes into some detail of how to begin practicing each discipline.

one thing I appreciate is that Foster goes out of his way to distinguish between the ruts and traps of legalism and practicing the disciplines as means of grace in the believer's life!

this book is thick and meaty- and when I find myself in a "stuck" place- this book is a good reminder of WHY I need to practice the spiritual disciplines in my life- I need Jesus and putting myself in places where I am meditating on the word, fasting, solitude (a big challenge but SOOO necessary for me!), prayer, etc. actually enable me to come into the presence of Jesus. He is my treasure and my reward!

"The life that is pleasing to God is not a series of religious duties (AMEN!). We have only one thing to do- namely, to experience a life of relationship and intimacy with God."

Pic of the week

2008-04-11T20:11:00.003-04:00

princess in training? you decide!

Meet Xavier!

2008-04-07T23:17:00.002-04:00

here he is! isn't he just adorable?

we went to the breeders on saturday- we had first pick of the black males-

the breeder recommended the one dog to us as he was "more playful". She said the other dog was too clingy and wouldn't be good around kids.

turns out the "playful" one wanted nothing to do with us- the clingy dog, however- came right up to all of us and started licking our hands and playing with us. so we chose him...

or as Ross said- he chose us!

we're having a blast- xixi has a new mission in life- to have as much holding/playing time as possible with the dog!

Goodbye Steven Guttenberg

2008-04-02T22:55:00.002-04:00

Okay- I have to be honest here- I think the wrong person got kicked of DWS last nite!

Steve Guttenberg should not have been sent home- Marissa and Adam are far worse dancers- the judges thought so- I think America likes Adam's very attractive dance professional partner and they felt sorry for how harshly the judges treated Marissa that they are giving her a 2nd chance!

Steve is a definate shoo in for Mr. Congeniality and Spirit of all the stars.

I'm sad- but the show must go on!

April Fools mostly unknown but great faves (a day late!)

2008-04-02T22:37:00.004-04:00

I don't know where yesterday went- so here's a 2 for 1 blog day!

here are two more of my not so famous faves...

House of Flying Daggers:
this chinese film (in subtitles) is beautiful to watch and the plotline is so well written that it will keep surprising you until the very last scene. I had to watch it several times to figure it all out- but the movie is such a treat on all senses- I didn't mind! Ziyi Zhang (from Memoirs of a Geisha and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) is stellar in her role. The fights scenes are some of the most amazing I've seen- the special effects are incredible. even if foreign language films aren't your thing- you should watch this movie!

The Basics: Cosmic Neighborhood
I got turned onto this group from one of my old supervisors. This husband and wife songwriting team got their start in Northern California and have since moved to Chapel Hill, NC. Their lyrics are amazing tapestries of stories- ranging from parables to social commentaries with a ever present gospel thread that you have to have "eyes to see, ears to hear and hearts to understand".

One of my favorite songs on the CD is Impossible Promises. I often find myself asking these very hard questions and the line "me and Jesus are in therapy, I used to flirt with grace, took a leap of faith now I'm black and blue- trying to get to you" applies to my life more often than not!

Why chose to love, when you could walk away
Why not mortgage integrity with debts you cant pay
Why care about a single soul but yourself
When you can just consume and be like everyone else

Why give your time or your heart to friendship
When it’s costly and hard and you don’t see the benefit
Why stand for truth when your career could be at stake
Why fight the tide when the culture loves a fake

I don’t know but- this God I love, we don’t always agree
And me and Jesus- we’re in therapy
I used to flirt with grace, took a leap of faith and I’m black and blue
Trying to get to you

Why chose to rest or pursue solitude
When there’s always something else more important to do
Why bleed or risk to create a work of art
When it won’t sell as easily as a candy bar

Why have a child when you’re way too old
Why love your brother when your blessing he stole
Why challenge the king, when you can’t be his queen
Why leave your home for some place you’ve never even seen

I don’t know but- this God I love, we don’t always agree
And me and Jesus- we’re in therapy
I used to flirt with grace, took a leap of faith and I’m black and blue
Following after you

Oh, the hope born of promise but today the ache of the wait
And oh- the folly of the saints will I laugh with you
At impossible promises- unbroken and true
When the saints stumble in- count me in

I don’t know but- this God I love, we don’t always agree
And me and Jesus- we’re in therapy
I used to flirt with grace, but I took a leap of faith
This God I love, this God I love

I used to flirt with grace but I took a leap of faith
I may be black and blue I’ve taken a hit or two
I’m seeing mountains move
I want to be close to you
You are- the one that I love

sharp vigilance

2008-03-31T22:54:00.003-04:00

one of the things xixi's translated orphanage report stated about her was:
"Although enthusiastic to her family members, TianX i is a bit shy with strangers, to whom she maintains sharp vigilance."

see for yourselves!

1) in the hotel after 2.5 hours of crying
2) chinese new years 2007
3)2nd birthday- 2.24.06
4) september 2007

the time had arrived!

2008-03-30T22:22:00.007-04:00

for 14 months we had been praying and loving for our daughter a half a world away. when the whole adoption process began- she had not made her appearance into the world.

after 11.5 months of paperchasing and waiting- we received information on who and where our daughter was- Cheng Tian Xi was born on april 24, 2004 and was waiting for us in Xiaogan City- Hubei Province- Peoples Republic of China.

for 7 weeks- we had 3 pictures of our daughter. i studied those pictures until i had every detail of them burned into my memory. every detail from the dirty mismatched clothes, the rosy chubby cheeks, her sharp vigilance, her excited look when she tried something new.

yet- in spite of all of the praying, waiting, picture memorizing- nothing compared to the emotions I felt when I actually laid eyes on xixi for the first time.

at 3:30- we arrived at the civil affairs office where we would meet xixi for the first time and finalize the adoption-

our bus pulled up at the same time the babies did-

4 precious little girls in matching yellow sweat suits-

it took us a few minutes to figure out which child was xixi- she was bald in all of her referral pictures- but one of the other moms said "look- she's the one on the left- look at her face!"

of course! how could I forget those cheeks!

all of my hopes, love, excitement, joyful anticipation were thrown out of the window- I was looking at my daughter for the first time. the world stopped. all i wanted to do at that moment was hold her and never put her down.

as soon as I snapped a few pictures- the babies were whisked off to a room until we had signed and sealed all of the official paperwork.

that was the longest 45 minutes of my life!

when they brought xixi out to us- i grabbed her out of the nanny's hands. our 14 month journey to katherine grace tian xi blauwkamp had ended. GOD at last- had united us as a family!

xixi's first hours with us were not as joyful to her.

she took one look at us and screamed bloody murder for 2.5 straight hours.

in one short day she went from the foster family who had cared for her since she was two days old, put on a bus for 2 hours, had a hot and stuffy sweat suit stuffed on her and handed off to 2 people who looked like aliens and smelled like sour milk.

and yet- here were are- 3 years later- the family god put together.

god knew that xixi was our daughter and we were her parents. he sent us half way around the world to unite us- but here we are!

CZ 3118

2008-03-29T21:05:00.004-04:00

this was the last leg of our journey to xixi- a china airlines flight 3118 from beijing to wuhan-

this picture was taken 3 years ago about right now- (12 hour time difference!)

our guide had to bribe the airline to allow all of our luggage to make the flight without being fined for having too many and way too heavy bags- one of those bags being a new suitcase we'd purchased the nite before to hold all of the goodies we'd purchased in Beijing for XiXi's future family day gifts!

we took off over mountains and landed in rice paddies-

2.5 hours of flight time- an hour bus ride from the airport to the hotel- a crazy hour of unpacking and praying in the hotel room, and a crazy bus trip across town (READ- kinda like riding the Knight bus on Harry Potter!) separated us from our childless life and the little girl we'd been loving and praying for over the last 14 months.

can you feel the tension?

spelling bee

2008-03-28T15:27:00.001-04:00

this is a great video- I couldn't find the original- but the soundtrack is original- unfortunately it doen's capture will forte's facial expressions!

NUMB3R5

2008-03-26T22:58:00.009-04:00

number of houses we've owned, number of states Ross and I have both lived in (Ross- michigan, Illinois, Maryland) (Me- South Carolina, Illinois, Maryland), number of siblings in Ross' family

number of siblings in my family- ALL GIRLS!

number of weeks Ross and I knew each other before dating, number of weeks Ross and I dated before getting engaged, number of months we were engaged

13:

number of years we've been married, age I first started playing percussion

14:

number of years between Ross and his younger sister (he was the baby in the family until he was 28 and his folks adopted Irina at age 14!)

23,639:

approximate number of air miles traveled to and from China in 1995.

122,600:

number of frequent flyer miles my dad had on USAir that helped get us there and back for free!

1,573,770:

approximate number of minutes we've been blessed to be parents of XiXi (time taken as of 4am on 3.26.08)

tuesday's mostly unknown, but great faves

2008-03-25T19:37:00.007-04:00

here's my mostly unknown, but good faves for the week

movie:

Strictly Ballroom

this movie came out in 1992- was directed and produced by Baz Luhrmann and is the 1st of 3 of the Red Curtain Trilogy(Romeo and Juliet and Moulin Rouge top it out ). It follows the story of Scott Hastings- an up and coming ballroom champion and his desire to dance- not so "strictly ballroom".

There are some great themes of old vs new (like wineskins from the Gospels!), returning to your first love, and "a life lived in fear is a life half lived." There are some beautiful city shots and the dancing is not so bad either! If you like movies with dry humor and deep meaning- you'll love this one!

music:

Burlap to Cashmere

these guys put out an album in the late 1990s- Is there Anybody out there?

it's one of my all time faves- smoking guitars, kicking percussion, amazing lyrics- their musical genre is similar to Rusted Root-

i saw them in concert and I don't think I've ever seen anyone's hands move so fast on the guitar or the drums- they were amazing.

I'm sad they're not around anymore.

Fave songs: Diggee Dime (about Heaven), Eileen's Song (great love song), Scenes (just a great song musically) and Mansions (about the Kingdom of God)

3 years ago today...

2008-03-24T17:04:00.002-04:00

ross and i began our 16 day journey to china to meet and adopt xixi.

the above photo was taken at bwi at around 4:00am. 6 of my beloved hopkins students jumped out from behind a large plant near the air canada desk and gave us a wonderful surprise send off on our 20 hour journey to china.

the days preceding our trip were a blur of activity. we got "the travel call" only 72 hours prior to arriving at the airport. my dad had given us his frequent flyer miles so we were able to fly for free (YAY!) but spent several hours on the phone with USAir buying and rebuying tickets for our flight.

the floor of our basement was covered in travel items- clothes for 3, diapers, medicine of all sorts, cheerios, important documents...all to be packed in 2 suitcases and 2 carry on bags.

13.5 months of paperchasing, praying, hoping and waiting were coming down to the wire-

a plane trip over the north pole and 6 days in beijing were all that separated us from a country we had begun to love and adopt as our own , becoming parents, and xixi at last having a family....

it's hard to remember what life was like before that plane trip

we can't wait until our next farewell departure to china!!!

2 tombs at easter

2008-03-23T19:02:00.006-04:00

3 easters ago we were in Tiananmen Square with 3 other families on the first of 3 days of touring in Beijing.

one of the spots we saw was mao's tomb (pictured above). the building was ENORMOUS (look at the people in the picture to get a sense of scale!) and there was a line of at least a 1000 people waiting outside to see mao's body which is entombed in glass. seeing mao's body is a pilgrimage- a "must see"- for people in this beautiful country. a lot like seeing the statue of liberty or the washington monument.

to try to explain the influence of mao would be like trying to explain the influence of mickey mouse and dora on a toddler. it's complex and not always logical.

i remember having an eerie feeling when i saw the long line of people waiting to get a glimpse of the embalmed body of this iconic legend. at the time- i think it was more a feeling of how this man's leadership had resulted in the overpopulation of a country that couldn't sustain the birth rate and lead to one of the many factors in the complex tapestry of why we were in china in the first place.

adopting xixi.

what didn't hit me until the following easter was the irony and the sadness of the line of nameless, faceless people waiting to see an embalmed body in a tomb. the body of a man many have worshipped.

i was standing in tiananmen square on easter morning watching people pay tribute to a dead man. a man whose power and authority shaped the culture of a nation of a billion people over the course of the last 100 years.

what a shocking contrast to worshipping a man who rose from the tomb. a man who had
the power and authority to conquer death. a man who has had the power to transform the world for the last 2000 years. a man who knows me by name and knows my whole life story! a man who for the joy set before him suffered the cross, endured the shame, and sat down at the throne of God!

spending easter in tiananmen square witnessing this sharp contrast of tombs has been forever burned in my memory.

DWS predictions and the Oceanic 6

2008-03-20T16:40:00.012-04:00

after watching the ladies dance on DWS- here are my top picks

Kristi Yamguchi was the best of the bunch- hands down- I think she has a good shot at taking it all..

Marlee Matlin was amazing- especially considering she is profoundly deaf. Kudos to her dance partner as well- it will be exciting to watch them!

Surprise of the nite....

Priscilla Presley- for a woman of 63 this woman can move! and a death spiral to boot too!

here are my predictions of who is going home on tuesday:
Adam Corolla and Monica Seles...we'll see if America and the judges agree...

LOST SPOILER ALERT!!!

so now that we know WHO the Oceanic 6 are- we now have to stay tuned and see how they actually get OFF the island and how it is determined who actually get rescued and who is forced to stay...

and I'm also wondering if Jin is the one who dies tonite- would explain the tombstone from last week and also confirm the DUI/Death sentence rumor for the cast.

stay tuned!

a 3 foot -700 dollar drop!

2008-03-19T19:09:00.004-04:00

so- back at the end of january i bought a new mac powerbook pro! i was in dire need of a new laptop and after having a great december with my funding- i was given the green light to proceed with the purchase! i LOVE my new mac- it's totally dreamy.

21 days after pulling it out of the package, i was standing by my car talking to josh after a staff meeting and my backpack slipped out of my hand and fell MAYBE 3 feet to the street- the fall being cushioned by my foot.

now- i should add here- that i have a lap top back pack with a padded lap top holder. it's awesome- my computer doesn't move in it and has been great with my old lap top.

well- obviously that wasn't enough to protect my fragile new purchase.

when i got home and turned it on- the monitor went all tie-dye on me. we called apple and after being on the phone with tech support for an hour they didn't know what was wrong with it.

ross hooked it up to my old desk top monitor and i was back in business. at this point we knew it was probably something video related.

since this is spring break week- i felt i was able to potentially part with it for a few days- so ross finally took it into the apple store to have it assessed.

we were thinking it was probably a faulty wire or the video card needed replacing.

NOOOOOOO-HOOO-HOOOOO!

the "little 3 foot drop" ended up breaking my computer screen.

BREAKING IT!

the damage- $700!!!!

yes -you read that correctly.

ARGHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!

i'm buying a bullet proof steel lap top case for my not so dreamy new lap top.

Let me Entertain You!

2008-03-18T23:37:00.003-04:00

So- we watched the first nite of dancing with the Stars- I've never gotten into this show before- and now I'm seeing why it's so popular!
I can't get the Robbie Williams song out of my head that the pros danced to last nite! it was amazing! the band they have rocks too! unbelievable!
so- I didn't get to see tonite's show yet- but here are my favorites from last nite:

Mario (the best one of the nite)

Christian de la Fuente (he's got an amazing latin vibe going)

Steve Guttenburg- not the best dancer of the nite- but looked like he was having the most fun!

I have my pre-seen women's favorites- but I'll wait to see how they actually do to form some opinions...

on april 5th- one of these puppies will be going home...

2008-03-17T09:41:00.004-04:00

to the blauwkamp house!

got these pics last nite- the puppies are now 5 weeks old- had their first hair cuts!

aren't they cute!

anyone dare to venture which one we'll pick?

we're still working on a name- xixi can only think of girl names...sophie, mia, tootie (don't know where that one came from!)

"And now compelled by the Spirit, I am going...

2008-03-16T21:13:00.006-04:00

to McDaniel College,
though I know now what will be happen to me there. I only know that in every city the Holy Spirit warns me that prison and hardships are facing me. However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God's grace." - paul to the ephesian church (acts 20:22-24)

the LORD had released me from my time of serving at johns hopkins (6 years!) and was sending me onto mcdaniel college. and despite some scary unknowns, i knew that my life call was and would continue to be to testify to the good news of GOD's grace to the next generation...

in some ways- this calling seemed like a "duh!" moment.

i had a great working relationships with josh. we had always enjoyed serving together and had dreamed off and on about what it would be like to actually serve together on the same campus.
i had developed a great rapport over the years with mcdaniel students. i had spoken at their wednesday nite fellowship meetings at least twice a year since coming to the baltimore area and i always enjoyed the time i spent with students.
the campus culture was very community oriented and spiritually open. it was a "sweet spot" to use my gift mix of evangelism, high relational and incarnational ministry style and creativity.
my going to mcdaniel seemed like a perfect "fit" for me- which was confirmed by all of my ministry partners and ross.

so- YAY! onto mcdaniel!

BUT....

as the pieces of this calling came together- I realized several things...
1) this was a call- not only to me- but to my entire family- we all needed to hear from the Holy Spirit that we were to move on...
from our life in baltimore-
our friends
our great house and neighborhood
our amazing church community
xixi's great preschool
our chinese adoption community
our love of charm city urban life

to "quiet carroll county living"

it was one thing to change campus assignments- I had done that already- U of Illinois, Loyola College, Johns Hopkins

it was entirely different thing to up and move.

we had done that 7 years prior with some painful outcomes in the process.

there were a few SCARY unknowns about this new calling to go to mcdaniel college- and before I was ready to go for it- i knew i had to wrestle with GOD about them. here were a few of the SUWIs (scary unknown wrestling items)

will we find a good church community?
will we be able to foster xixi's ethnic identity development in a similar way as we were able to in baltimore?
how long will i even stay on staff? is a move worth it if we don't know?
will we develop new friends and deep, meaningful relationships here?

good thing GOD can handle my wrestling matches

and it's awesome when GOD speaks to the SUWIs deep in my soul...

one year ago...

2008-03-15T14:17:00.005-04:00

i was nearing the end of my period of discernment about whether after 6 years of hard and faithful service, GOD was releasing me from my position as campus staff at johns hopkins and to transition to partnering with josh at mcdaniel college.

i spent about an hour a day for 3 weeks journaling, praying, and discerning where GOD was leading me. my supervisor gave me some insightful questions to work through. i treasured afternoon nap times to sit with jesus and hear from him.

as i prayed and listened- jesus brought these verses to mind from psalm 71:

"but as for me, I will always have hope;

I will praise you more and more.

My mouth will tell of your righteousness,

of your salvation all day long-

though I know not its measure.

I will come and proclaim your mights acts, O Sovereign Lord;

I will proclaim your righteousness, yours alone.

Sine my youth, O God, you have taught me,

and to this day I declare your marvelous deeds.

Even when I am old and gray- do not forsake me, O God.

'TILL I DECLARE YOUR POWER TO THE NEXT GENERATION-

YOUR MIGHT TO ALL WHO ARE TO COME." - psalm 71:14-18

at the time I read this- the words spurred me on to remember where my hope lies- in the Sovereign Lord. the words spurred me on to remember the call i received 9 years prior to go and proclaim the love of jesus and the power of his kingdom to college students.

even in the midst of a risky and scary discerning process- i wanted to continue to give praise to jesus more and more- to tell people about his righteousness and salvation.

despite the events leading up to this process of discernment and regardless of the decision- my heart's desire was to continue to have hope in the true and living GOD and to proclaim that hope to the people HE put in my path.

as i marinated in the words and the truths that lay within them- i felt freedom to hear what jesus was calling me to- i felt a deep peace when i remembered the ways GOD had been there for and with me during prior times of transition- and that part of him being everlasting and unchanging meant that he would be there for me again on the next leg of my journey.

these words gave me the courage and strength to hear jesus say, "your time at hopkins is at an end. well done- good and faithful servant. i'm ready to reveal to you the next leg of your journey with me. are you ready to receive it?"

i'll reveal that tomorrow!

He's in there somewhere

2008-03-14T17:23:00.003-04:00

puppies at 2 weeks

puppies at 3 weeks

So-

in case you haven't heard- we're getting a puppy next month.

Yup- you read that right. A puppy! a black standard poodle puppy to be exact.

we figure with Simon's cancer and unknown lifespan, our probable traveling to China next summer to get XiXi's mei mei or di di, that now was the time to take the puppy plunge.

The litter was born on February 9th. We have 1st pick of the two black males.

We travel up to PA (just north of Scranton for your Office lovers!) on April 5th to pick him up and bring him home.

I'm excited, yet becoming ever more aware that I have no idea what I'm about to get myself into. Puppies are so stinkin' cute- yet a ton of work. Kinda like a baby.

the idea that my summer will be spent raising a puppy is slowly sinking in.

At least this way we won't have two "diapers" at the same time (baby + puppy).

consider the lillies

2008-02-21T17:38:00.004-05:00

one of my creative hobbies is floral arranging. It all started back in 1995 when I took a floral arranging class thru the local community college while I was living in Illinois. Over the years, I've enjoyed doing arrangement for parties and gatherings. In 2005, I did my first wedding.

Since then, I've done 5 more.

I love working with the couple and dreaming with them about how they want the flowers to look. Each wedding has been different and fun and a total reflection of the couples' personalities and how that is expressed throughout their wedding celebration!

Last June, I did the flowers for my friends, Nik and Laura. Laura had some really cool, two-toned bridemaids dresses and wanted gerber daisies and roses. the wedding was held at my old church in Baltimore which has a beautiful pipe organ in the front of the sanctuary- I knew I needed to have something tall and which some texture and height- so I used curly willow and hung votives down and put gerbers in them.

I was able to borrow some really tall, cylindar vases from my friend, Lela. A challenge was hanging the gerbers within the arrangement of the curly willow!The flowers turned out great- the bouquets, centerpieces at the reception, the flowers at the front of the church, the boutinieres. I'm still trying to get the corsage thing down...

Laura recently sent me a disk with photos of the flowers!

I love doing floral designing for big events- especially if it's for people I love. Doing time sensitive, big events, like weddings, reminds me why I'm in full time ministry and NOT in a profession like floral design. While I love the challenge of doing a time sensitive, creative events- it can be pretty exhausting!

smack talking grapes

2008-02-21T16:39:00.008-05:00

So I was urged by one of my blogging friends to post again- so here goes!

my lack of posting is due to four facts: sick kid, chinese new year, 2 back-to-back Wednesday Nite Fellowship talks, and winter conference- phew- would make anyone tired a bit distracted to blog about it all!

*******************

I did a two week series at Wednesday Nite Fellowship on "how's your breath?" looking at how our words can bring life or death to people- pretty intense- but good. I was able to draw on

a lot of my past failures in this area and the ways Jesus has redeemed my blunders. I received some great feedback from the students. We'll see what fruit it produces...

XiXi was out of school for 5 days which "conveniently" was in the midst of one of the weeks I was prepping to speak. Needless to say, it made for some interesting time management- or lack thereof!

*********************

my brand new- less than a month macbook pro decided to have a faulty video card last week- not the greatest timing ever- but what can I do? Fortunately Ross hooked it up to our old mac monitor- so I'm still in business until I can take it down to the apple store to have them ship it off for repairs! ugh!

the nite it broke- I was rather upset- and Ross had to gently remind me not to take my anger out on those around me! Good teaching example in the middle of my two week talk series! Gotta love it when Jesus gives you those humble teaching moments and then you get to share them with others!

*************************

Chinese New Years was a blast- we had to miss the first of the two parties we were going to attend due to XiXi being sick, but the second one in Baltimore was fabulous! I've attached some pictures below.

My parents and sister, Jennie, came up for the weekend. After the party we went to China Chef in Columbia for some authentic Chinese food. This is the best food we've have since being in China. We love going there. Their dishes are very authentically Chinese. We were just bummed they didn't have fish- our FAVORITE chinese dish. sigh.

My mom gave XiXi a few CNY gifts- a "beauty parlor" kit, some handmade doll clothes and hand made dog collars for Simon that fit thru his dog collar. Pretty cute!

The next nite we invited our friends, the Burchs, over for a chinese new year dinner- XiXi and Chloe got the costumes out and I gave Hannah the camera to take some photos. I'm featuring her work below!

***********************

The well drillers came and dug 2 400 foot wells for the geo-thermal system- now there is a huge pile of ???? from the earth- the yard looks like something you'd see at Yellowstone Park in one spot- or maybe a 5th grade science project. Needless to say- we'll be having some re-seeding and landscaping done once it gets warmer.

************************

Our InterVarsity Winter conference was last weekend. I am continuing to learn more and more about McDaniel student culture at these events. My latest discovery was watch the smack talk.

One male student was licking the bowl our baked ziti was just in and asked me if I was grossed out. Now having been the ONLY female in my high school percussion section and worked at a predominately male sports publishing company- it takes a lot to get to me. So I stupidly said, "I'd be more impressed if you put grapes up your nose!"

BAD CHOICE!

in the next 5 minutes about 7-8 mcdaniel students put grapes up their noses! One of them blew it out- another put grapes in both nostrils. lesson learned! although I have to say- I didn't know that grapes could actually fit up one's nostrils until Saturday nite.

despite this new and scary discovery- I was reminded of how grateful I am to be with this amazing group of students!

*******************

Finally- the last bit of amazing news on our front involves new life...

the first was when I got a call during the Super Bowl from my sister, Debbie, announcing that they are expecting in early August! I was shocked and estatic and made quite the announcement at the party I was attending at the time!

What's even more amazing is that our entire family was at the beach together for a week over Christmas and they didn't let on at all that they were pregnant! Impressive- especially in my family!

my only wish as a doting aunt is that I knew if I'm going to have a niece or nephew. It's so much easier to buy clothes that way!

the second involves the birth of our future puppy on Feb. 8th. We got a call about 20 minutes after the first black male of the litter was born- there were 7 puppies total- 4 black females, 2 black males and one white male. We get first pick of the black males. We'll get him the first weekend in april!

3 legs, a rat, the others, small plates, and permit pending

2008-01-31T15:07:00.000-05:00

i never imagined how much chaos would ensue from having simon go from being a normal 4-legged canine to a 3-legged tripawd.

i'm amazed at the depth of questions it has evoked from a 3.5 year old mind! "did they throw simon's leg away?" "how did they remove his leg?" "how do we get sick?" "how do the staples and stitches work to keep his skin together?" "why do people die?"

so, in case you haven't heard- we had to have simon's leg amputated on monday. this is actually a good thing- he had cancer in his leg and in order to prevent it from spreading and painfully and quickly killing him, they discovered the cancer hadn't spread- so in a two-pronged focus- the amputation stops the spread of the cancer and reduces the pain this poor guys been feeling.

in an effort to prepare xixi for this- we watched a lot of 3-legged dog videos on You Tube along with the Clifford episode about KC the 3 legged dog.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lx6Wg*ht2vE

yet- the abstract concept of a 3 legged simon and the reality of xixi's best bud sporting an elizabethan collar, 25+staples, bad bruising, and only 3 legs are as far as east is from the west in a 3.5 year old's mind!

we've been encouraged by simon's resiliance and he's been astounding everyone at his quick recovery. i'll be glad when the collar comes off- bad shin bruises!

xixi's been stepping up and making a great nurse maid!

in other news....

this saturday starts our chinese new year party season! we have 2 big parties we'll be attending this year- the 2nd and 9th. for those of you born in 1996, 1984, and 1972- this is your year! rats are known for being great leaders, highly organized, meticulous, and purveyors of only a few close friends! gong hay fat choy!
the season premiere of lost starts tonite. ross and i stayed up until after midnite watching the season finale of season 3 and trying to figure out why charlie could drown in an air tight underwater station (ross) and whether my theory of why jack has to go back and kate is filthy rich is correct. we're praying the writer's strike ends soon!
this is another baltimore restaurant week and ross and i are going with our friends, lance and amy, to pazo- a great spanish tapas restaurant in fells point tomorrow nite. tapas means small plates. small plates full of incredible flavor! i've been drooling in anticipation since saturday nite.
finally- the permits people from carroll county finally came out today, looked at where the ground loop people want to put the 2 400 foot wells from our new geo-thermal system and gave the heads up. hopefully the heating/cooling system that was delivered and is now in our garage will be installed soon. we'll deal with the aftermath of the well drilling on our yard soon enough!