Peace restored!

What a glorious day!!! We had our first fostering experience this weekend and if you didn't hear from us, that is because we were completely consumed and exhausted....more so than having a newborn. We picked him up on Sat. evening and he was very distraught. He was an 18 month old Romanian boy whose entire family was incarcerated. He was still breastfeeding and had a pretty good cold and mild fever, but it was very clear that he was well taken care of...seemed strange to us how this could happen. He was crying and saying, "mama, mama," over and over for hours on end. The only time he was silent was in the car because he thought he was going to see mom, so we went out, just to go out. He was sooo smart. He'd bring us our shoes/coats and get his ready, so that he could head out the door and find his family. If he could drive, he would've done it. What a determined little boy. This was VERY difficult for us...to watch how sad he was and the longing to be with his mom. The nights were very long and Ryan mentioned to me on Sunday that he didn't know if he could do this. God had a plan and he knew just what everyone in the situation could handle.

I went to pick up Reggie today from school and got a call that he was going to be returned to his family. I cried tears of joy for Avi. What great news :o). She asked if they could come get him with her (to avoid him being handed over to a stranger yet again), so they raced over and it was a joyous reunion, filled with lots of hugs and tears. They were so very grateful. Ryan raced home, but they were already gone when he arrived. The social worker said it was very rare for a child to be released at the first hearing and after the reunion, she said she'd never seen anything like it....the bond they had.

It was so awesome to see the support we got from friends....dinners, baby clothes/gear...thanks guys! The kids did absolutely awesome....I'm so proud of them. Reggie was a little overwhelmed the first day and told us he was ready to go to school so he could have a break....according to him little ones are a lot of work. I think the constant noise was hard on all of us, but they adjusted and after awhile, we got kinda used to it. Ainsley was very motherly and got him to smile several times. He followed them around and they liked that too. Ryan almost got him to laugh this morning, but his happy moments were few and far between. Even the kids were happy that he was going to be with his mom again...they saw how sad he was. Ryan asked them tonight what they thought and if they would like to have another foster child and they said, "yes." Of course Reggie wanted an older boy that he could play with :o).

All in all, I think that most foster children are not like this little boy as most are neglected and don't have that strong determination to get home. Hopefully, timing will be a little better next time...Ryan was pretty jet-lagged and I was still recovering from his trip too (I don't think I posted that the night before Ryan came home, Reggie had a double ear infection and we were both up most of the night. He's NEVER had an ear infection before, so I took him in just because and the Dr.'s face said how bad it was). We'll just wait and see who God has next for us.....

Ryan Asia Post

Well, I wanted to give you all an update regarding my Asia trip.

Singapore – Started my trip in S’pore last Monday and it was more like a resort type city.. very clean and didn’t have the feel of Malaysia as the City had more high rises than Seattle and Portland combined. The building architecture was tremendous and one of the coolest buildings I have ever seen was in the heart of the city. It was a hotel/casino that had 3 high rise towers that were all connected with sky bridges. Then on the top they had build what looks like a cruise ship that spans across all of the towers. They charge the tourists $100 US to enter the monstrosity. The weather there was very hot (90’s) and the humidity was probably 80%+. I ate Asian Fusion while I was there which was a little tough/chewy and not very good. Didn’t realize how close it was to Australia (probably a 2-3 hour flight). The airport in S’pore was the best as all of the security is located at each and every gate. So you check in, and make your way to the gate without any delay. And then each gate has glass doors and windows that opens once your flight is ready to board. At this time you go through the security line. Pretty slick but I’m sure expensive to do.

Penang – Its about an hour flight from S’pore. I took a day trip to see customers (its kind of like a trip to Spokane). It’s amazing what a one hour flight can do to the scenery. Penang is what I would call “real living”. Very busy with people, but our Molex people were very willing to accommodate. The weather there was even hotter than S’pore and more humid. I was drenched all day and every time I would enter a building I would start freezing because of the air conditioning and wet clothes. I went across a bridge that connects the main land of Penang to the Island which was about 2.5-3 miles long. It was huge. I was glad to fly back to S’pore that night only to have Pigeon for dinner with my colleagues.

Hong Kong – I flew from S’pore to HK (3.5hour flight). I got to the airport and low and behold my driver was nowhere to be found. Then I called the Sheraton and they said my reservation had been cancelled. At that point I didn’t know where I was supposed to go. So I called our admin in HK and she explained that they put me in a different hotel. Nice if someone would tell me. After I found out where I was supposed to stay I went to the hotel counter at the airport and requested limo transport. They told me that they were backed up and I should take a cab. So I took a cab and all was good until I got dropped off at the hotel and was told by the hotel concierge that I was ripped off. Evidentially I paid the cabby double what I was supposed to. They told me I should call the police and report it but I was way too tired. Once checked in it was all good. I was upgraded to the lounge floor where they treat you like kings and the food is very western and very good. The next day I had meetings all day at HK Cisco and the day was a success. After that I was taken to a local place to get a suit. Needless to say I stood out like a tall fat white guy that was going to get ripped off. But what they didn’t know is that I was with my local posse. I (they) negotiated a wool suit for $185.00 custom fit. All I did is pick out my material and color and they made it in 2 days. When I showed back up they had another suit that just happened to fit the same as the other one. So I negotiated to buy it for around $80.00. So I got two suites for cheap, did I mention that their custom fit, pretty cool. Friday night I went out with my colleagues and we had some fun. New York on steroids is how I would describe HK. Light when it’s really dark and people everywhere. There are so many people, cars, buildings, etc… Then I was taken to the local market. I got a bunch of knick knacks for friends and family and had fun negotiating with the locals. Again I was with my local posse and had them translating for me.

Chengdu – took a flight from HK to Chengdu China Sunday morning and I’m now here for 2 days. I’m sure I will see some interesting local food. I’m going to walk through our plant there tomorrow which is 1 million square feet in size. The hotel is beautiful and probably the nicest one so far, right behind S’pore. After this I’m on my way to Shanghai to finish off my trip where I will look to buy movies, and more gadgets. I miss all of you and especially my babies (including my lovely wife and sweetheart) Hope everyone is doing well. Love ya..

Ryan is on a plane as I write…only 11 hours…finally!

Random post

Train ride to pick popcorn:Last Sunday, we headed down to Fremont to Ardenwood farms to pick some delicious popcorn. Our good friends, the Penner’s, were kind enough to share some popcorn with us last year and let us tag along for the picking this year. It was a pretty hot day, but we were able to find some shade thanks to the corn stalks. Ainsley was my little helper and Reggie had a bag of his own. We picked several ears and shucked them right there. A few had worms/bugs, but most were in pretty good shape. The bummer of it is that it has to dry for 6-8 weeks, so we won’t get to enjoy it right away. The kids had a ball hanging out with their friends and enjoying all the sights. They had all kinds of farm things going on…apple pressing, ice cream making, corn milling and many things we could sample :o).

So heavy Reggie couldn't lift the bag of corn:

Little inventor

Reggie’s little mind is always going, creating one thing or another, with paper, lego’s or whatever he can find. He prefers to build with wood, but that is too difficult for mom and dad. His room is filled with the clutter of all of his projects, but I thought his most recent was worthy of a picture….

Reggie’s ipod holder:Clowning around

I’ve been waking up the past two mornings to a couple of clowns wanting their costumes tied. I’m glad they have some time to play in the morning because with school and activities, it is hard for them to have much time together. For some reason they are thinking it is really fun to go outside at 7 in the morning and play in their playhouse. Keep in mind that the weather has really cooled down, so it is probably in the high 50’s. They had all summer to play out there and I think they only did a handful of times….go figure?

Athletic girl

Ainsley has been going to a new gymnastics place and she has been challenged a bit more than before, but is really picking it up quickly. Last week, I had one of the girls’ nannies ask me if I knew who the mother was of the little blond girl. She went on to say that she would be the next gold medalist and she loved coming just to see what Ainsley would do next :o). Too bad she really likes dance! We had her dance class today and she is so focused on getting in the right position and she just lights up when she is there. I’ll cross my fingers that she’ll like gymnastics that much some day, but if not it will be a good place for her to build muscle, flexibility and coordination for awhile.

"Flying" He bounces them up from lying flat on the tramp and then tosses them into the pit.

Video of the girls dancing at Ardenwood Farms:

Flying solo

Ryan has been gone to China since last Sat. and things are going surprisingly well. We have been really busy, so the days are passing quickly....I'll post about our corn picking adventure later. I had a lot of things I planned on getting done, but I'm pooped by the end of the day and usually don't sit down until 9. It will be sooo nice to have Ryan back home :o).

Ryan has been busy traveling to Singapore, Penang and now to Hong Kong. He's eaten all kids of new things and has been having stomach issues because of it! His favorite thing was a glass of West Melon juice (tasted like watermelon). He has been very impressed by the airlines there, one was called Silk and he said it was so nice; video games, movies, etc. And, he's had a hot meal on every flight and he isn't even flying that far! He is doing a bit of shopping this weekend with some locals (so he won't get ripped off), so we'll see what goodies he brings home. He got fitted for a custom cashmere/wool suit yesterday that cost $180 :o). There are a lot of people from Molex US that are there right now, so he's having a nice time catching up with old friends. He travels to a couple more sites and returns on Thursday, so it is a long trip. He'll have just adjusted to the 13 hour time change by the time he comes back, just to do it all over again :o(.

The kids got a new cold earlier in the week, so sleep was a bit of an issue, but I got one really good night with 7 hours straight and that recharged my batteries. On Monday, I had a bit of a stomach bug. Thankfully, the intense part passed in a couple hours...God knew mom couldn't be sick! I kept waiting for the kids to get it and thought we were out of the woods, but last night Ainsley was complaining of a stomach ache and threw up at about 8:45 last night and again at 12:00 and again at 2:30. I felt so bad for her because the last round was the dry heaves and that really hurts. She was up several times in between thinking she was going to throw up, but couldn't get it out. She ended up sleeping with me and it was a long, rough, night, but she woke up feeling much better. I'm not sure if it was the whole experience and the smell/lack of sleep, but I'm not feeling very well today. My bout earlier in the week was GI related, so I'm hoping this isn't a different bug. I'm also wondering if Reggie man is going to get it. I kept him home today, so we are having a nice relaxing time reading books, watching t.v. and doing crafts :o). I hope they decide they don't want to be sick a lot!

All caught up, just in time!

Life feels pretty good these days. My to do list is very short and I’ve been able to volunteer in Reggie’s classroom and have some time to work-out/grocery shop during the day. It is nice having some free time to knock things out, but that is all going to end soon. We are officially certified Foster Parents and already received a call last Friday. Unfortunately, Ryan left for China (for 12 days) the next day and we didn’t think it was a good idea for all parties. It has been a pretty long process, so now that we are nearing the end, it is a crazy reality to think how different our lives could be in just a few weeks! The kids keep asking when we are going to get our new kid. I’m glad they are excited and hopefully, they are going to be good helpers :o).

Trip to Lake Tahoe

Last weekend we took a spontaneous trip to Lake Tahoe. I’ve never been there and wanted to see what all the hype was about. On Wed., I got on-line and found a hotel for $44.00! It had the same review stars as hotels 3 times the cost, so I figured why not. We left Sat. morning and got there around 1:30. We left in a hurry, surprise, surprise, so I didn’t even know what time check-in was. The Blue Lake Inn is a smaller hotel, so he said if the room was ready, we could have the keys. As Ryan was checking in, I could hear him telling Ryan that he didn’t know how we got that rate, but since that what it said, that is what he would charge us. Since Ryan has traveled a lot recently, he has become a hotel snob and was not impressed with our room. Reggie, however, walked in and said, “this is the best hotel ever!” Ainsley was also excited about our home for the night.

Enjoying our hotel room:

The weather was beautiful, so we got our suits on and headed to the pool. Reggie has turned into quite the swimmer and was having a lot of fun. The princess was in the hot tub because the pool was too cold. Thankfully, it was a relatively cool hot tub…she would have stayed in there all day if we would have let her. After that, we decided to head to the beach to check out the lake. The location of the hotel was great! It was about a block off the busy strip and a couple blocks from a semi-private beach that we were given passes for. The kids dug in the sand, threw the frisbee with Ryan and played on the play structure a bit. It was record breaking hot weather there, which thankfully was only in the high 70’s, but it felt really warm. We went to test out the water and quickly realized we’d just be looking at it. It was freezing! It was fun to watch the parasailers and be amazed at the size of the lake. Reggie called it a sea-lake, as big as a sea but really a lake! By the end of our play time, no one could walk on the sand because it hurt our feet so bad. It was like tiny, tiny pebbles and our feet got some exfoliation. We like the smooth sand at Lake Cavanaugh much better :o).

Ryan’s favorite part about heading somewhere new is eating out. Since we were in South Lake Tahoe, which is technically Nevada, we were going to go to a casino buffet, but decided not to take the kids through the smoky, game-filled casino. We ended up at Denny’s and haven’t been there in a long time, so it was REALLY good and it happened to be kids eat free night, so that was a nice bonus. By the time we got back, it was movie time and then to bed. Bedtime is always a bit challenging and since Ainsley’s took a little snooze in the car, she was up until 9:15.

They were up bright and early at 6:45, but played quietly so mama and papa bear could get a little more sleep. That morning, we decided to ride the gondola up to the top of the hill. It was very expensive, but worth it! Reggie was pretty nervous (he doesn’t like heights), but ended up doing great. There was a nice viewing area at the top where we took pictures and had a snack. We rode it a little further where we got off and went for a little hike and spotted some big prints, but thankfully, we didn’t see what belonged to those prints. The top is over 10,000 feet and it is a little crazy on the way down. The gondola stopped a couple times and I could see the panic on Reggie’s face. His thoughts seem so much older than the thoughts of a six year old. He’s recently decided he won’t sleep in his room and Ainsley told us it was because he was afraid someone would come in the front door and take him and we asked him if that was true and he said no, he was worried the spider’s were going to get him. So, I guess Ainsley has some big thoughts for a 4 year old! Before I had kids, I thought they had to be like 8 or 10 before they understood things, but now it know it is more like 3!!! It is pretty amazing how smart they are :o). That was a bit of a tangent….we headed out after lunch and both slept a good amount on our 3 ½ hour drive home.