Mad Max Tommy

Tommy and I drove to Iowa this weekend for baby Charlie's baptism. Tommy had a great time playing with Henry's toys - especially all of his trucks and cool trains. Henry has a cool ride-on train and "power wheels" and Tommy was the perfect size for the power wheels all-terrain vehicle. He jumped right on and figured out how to press the button to make it go - steering was a bit difficult, but then he'd just get off and push it where he wanted it to go.....

Henry on the train and Tommy on the ATV




Watch out!

Now, if I just press this button....

Sweet Baby Charlie - keeping a watchful eye on his big brother and cousin

Post Script - Tommy's shirt reads "Happy as a Clam, Ipswich, Massachusetts" - Doug's hometown that is famous for their clams.

15 Month Stats

Tommy had his 15 month dr's visit today and weighed in at 23.5 pounds and 30 inches long - he seems much heavier than that! Despite his frequent colds and respiratory issues, he is thriving.

We have all been stir crazy with the freezing cold weather and snow. Tommy loves to look out the backdoor at all of the snow and when one of us gets our coat and shoes on, he runs to the back door and is ready to go, too! So, we're hoping for nicer weather soon so we can get out and about easier.










More housework for Tommy




















Sitting inside the cardboard box that he prefers over all of his toys











Peeking out of one of the holes Doug cut in the box - he tips the box on its side and climbs in and stands up. He's a good problem solver!

















He fits just perfectly for now....


















Going back in to climb out and run off to make a mess somewhere else.









We are going to Florida in one month and we cannot wait. We usually love winter weather but this year has been especially cold and it's not easy or pleasant to take Tommy out in the extreme cold.

Stay warm!

One Year ago Today....

I was sitting at work when our program coordinator, Robyn, from CAS called and said, "Are you sitting down? This is it - this is your referral call." How could that be? We'd only sent in our dossier one week prior, and we thought we'd be waiting 3 or 4 months.

Robyn gave me all of the details - the baby's name, date of birth, height, weight, and location. Shortly after the call she sent an email with pictures and medical information. I quickly called Doug, who was on his way to a dentist appointment, and told him to pull over somewhere to get on email. He went into the local library and we both opened the email at the same time - and then Doug was a little weirded out because he was looking at pictures of a naked baby on the library computer! But we were both in awe of the gorgeous little boy whose face we saw that day - and I printed off several copies to carry with me - and just stared at his face.

We celebrated with dinner that night and when we told the waitress our good news, they brought us shots of grappa, which nearly burned our insides, but hey, they were happy for us!

All of our hardwork and waiting and hoping and praying were worth it - all of the sadness of the past couple of years melted away in the moment we saw his face. He was going to be our son.
We cannot believe that one year has passed since that day - a day we will never forget, Wednesday, January 17, 2007. We love you Tommy!

Tommy's referral picture, taken at 7 weeks old

Look at him now! Christmas 2007

Riding on his Spiderman car - Christmas 2007

Trying out the snowsuit - December 2007

Tommy loves the Swiffer - he grabs it every time the pantry door opens

We really didn't train him to do this.....

15 Months Old

Tommy turned 15 months old today - here are some of his newest tricks:
-pointing one arm straight up in the air and turning in a circle
-walking backwards until he hits a chair/couch/wall and then laughing when he bumps into it
-climbing off of chairs and the couch - but not yet climbing up
-using a spoon to eat yogurt and a fork to eat green beans
-looking at himself in the mirror and cracking up
He rarely walks these days - it's all running. He had a fun weekend at Grandma's house - we visited the Discovery Children's Museum where Tommy drove a tractor, and we met his friend Gracie (also from Vietnam) for dinner.
This week we will celebrate the one year anniversary of Tommy's referral, on January 17!






This is before the haircut - and despite Tommy's support, the Illini did not pull off a Rose Bowl victory. Maybe in another 20 years when he's a student there......


















Pushing the box that his kitchen came in - Doug cut holes in it for doors/windows and Tommy loves to play inside it.









Crawling inside the box to retrieve a toy



















Note the shorter hair - and round belly. On our scales, Tommy weighs 25 pounds! He's sitting in his new chair that fits him perfectly!











Driving the combine at the Discovery Children's Museum - Grandpa Buddy would be proud!












Lots of Tommys -- inside a mirrored tunnel at the museum.



















Pointing to Gracie - not sure why?













Please, no more pictures!

Merry Christmas and Happy 2008

We had a wonderful Christmas and New Year with Tommy - it was our best one yet, without a doubt.

Tomorrow marks the one year anniversary of sending our dossier to Vietnam - and one quick week after that we received our referral. It's hard to believe an entire year has gone by and we know that 2008 will be just as much fun as 2007. More pictures soon, to celebrate Tommy's referral day!

Hanging with some cousins on Christmas Eve - Tommy loved all of the attention.

Tommy's new basketball hoop from Grandma Sharon - he knew what to do without us prompting him. Superstar in the making?

Sitting inside the very small suitcase May Pops were taking back to Boston - again, this was unprompted.....

New Year's Eve/Tara's birthday dinner - Tommy was a great diner at our favorite Italian restaurant. He had his own order of buttery noodles, milk, and a scoop of vanilla gelato.

Walking in the snow with Daddy - he wasn't sure what to think of it.