The Quilt, Etc.

Debbie Solberg's glorious 100 Good Wishes quilt hanging above the fireplace. It is a thing of beauty and a joy forever. It is pleasant to lie on the couch and ponder it.

Emma enjoyed romping on the quilt before we hung it up.

More romping

We took Emma sledding at Sugar House park on Saturday. She liked it pretty well. She didn't squeal with delight, but patiently endured speeding down the hill on her saucer and didn't complain when we sent her on a couple more trips. I think she looks cool and tough in this photo.

Cool and tough, up close.

Things are going well chez Haynie. Emma is a scream and makes us laugh on a daily basis. She is beginning to say many words (dog, doll, bib, Annie, eye), raises her hand and says "me!" when we ask "Who's a cutie pie?", and will attempt to recreate pretty much any sound when it's repeated a few times. When we ask her what her name is she says "Em!" She still loves sign language, too, and has taken to signing "more" with tiny little movements as she fervently looks up at us with sad puppy dog eyes ("Oh pleeeaaaase give me more: crackers, cheese, gummy worms, carbonated beverage"). She likes to look at her books, slide down the stairs on her tummy, swing at the park if the weather's decent, ride in the big kid fake car shopping carts at the store, play in the bathtub, and dump out food on her highchair tray in order to examine it more closely. She's still a great sleeper, but I think it won't be long before she's out of the crib; she hoists herself up and perches precariously on the rail sometimes before realizing it's a long way down and backing off.

Emma increases in cuteness on an hourly basis and we're enjoying every day with her.

Where in the Heck Have We Been?

Man, we haven't posted since January 17Th. We've been very bad. Actually we've been very busy. Having a toddler around has the tendency to take what energy you have, and spread it over too many hours. I'm not complaining, however. Emma is a joy to have around. She is very healthy and happy. This past week, she seems to be teething. She had sixteen of her twenty teeth last November, and we think the "Final Four" is happening in February this year. Much drooling and discomfort has been had.

We took Emma to the temple and had her sealed to us last week. What a special experience that was! After the ceremony, everybody came back to the house for some mingling and Mexican food (Chinese food around here doesn't translate well for catering). As always, Emma was the hit of the party. It took a while to wind her down after everybody left. We hung up the large 100 Wishes quilt on the wall above the fireplace, and it seems to fit right in. We may leave it up there until we find something that we think fits better (which will be tough to beat).

This was the culmination of our two year odyssey, that took us from American Fork to Beijing, and many points in between. We made many new friends from different places, who hopefully we can keep in contact with. Many are still in the waiting stages, hoping to get their referrals sooner than later, and others have already been to China and picked up their baby. It will be great to see how Emma's travelmates progress through the years.

Thank you all for sharing our experiences with us. We had hoped to keep the blog updated more often, but our priorities are currently being dictated by our little whirlwind. So hang in there, and we will keep you posted whenever we get the chance.