Christmas photos

This is our Santa photo from Christmas all four weren't bad none were truly amazing however not having one or two girls crying is always a blessing! Enjoy!

Some of Alice's looks could kill! LOL!

Hugs Ruth

Merry Christmas

May your Christmas be laid back and peaceful!

(This was taken before any of the Christmas partying!)
We wish you loads of fun, giggles, great food and wonderful company!
May the reason for the season be with you all and remember that it is about the moments!
We are positive that the children will be happy, no matter what they get, as they are so into Christmas. Most the gifts for people we are giving is homemade, with heapings of love, passion and significance for us!
So enjoy the holiday and don't eat too much ;)!
From our family to yours we wish you a very Merry Christmas.
Hugs Ruth, Keith, Aiden, Emily and Alice

Christmas Babies are special!

Last night friends of ours delivered a baby girl at 6:30 pm and she weighs 3.3 kgs ( the same size as Alice!) and luckily the baby arrived safe and sound almost 2 weeks late!
We went and visited her this afternoon and she is just beautiful!
Mumma Why is Lea's Baby so little? Where did it come from?

Actually half an hour ago I was making excuses for not coming? Now I want to hold this baby so many times!

She was so quite and amazingly loved being held by my three loud, rough housing, trouble makers!

Alice was so wanting to be in the mix! This precious baby was born by emergency C section with life threatening complications during the 24 hours in-utero that both Mother and father were very shakey! However Mum is doing well and looks amazing! talking about being back cleaning houses in a couple of weeks or less! I know!

It does make you feel special at this time of the year when the miracle of birth happens and now Emily wants to know if she is going to be adopted! :) Only by us!

Over her parents dead bodies! LOL!

Hugs Ruth in NZ

It is the Crazy season!

Tree all finished last weekend!
Caught red handed playing with the decorations!

Well this week has been full and difficult. One more week at work yet I have already completed my hours and the office isn't packed up yet and I need to work on that this week.

• Then we have Carol singing at Aiden's school on Tuesday evening.



• Thursday we have Aiden's final assembly and Prize giving for the end of school year!



• Friday my official last day of work. There is still database work and Meetings this week!



• Alice finishes Daycare until I get another job



• Then we have Saturday a gathering with the Chinese adopt Group here so hoping for fine weather!



• Sunday we have Chinese Language School end of year concert.



• Monday end of year Gymnastic display and prize giving!



• Next Tuesday Emily has her Junior class picnic. Aiden's Birth mother and family flies in from Scotland for a month.



• Next Thursday Emily finishes school for 7 weeks.

and then it is the rounds of baking and present giving!

Oh my I am exhausted!

Take care and know there will be time for me to breathe and have a jolly good cry or two between now and next week!

Hugs Ruth

The weekend in Review

The weekend started out with hut building on a small scale.

Then I went into hyper drive and sewed up around 60 bags so that I could wrap the presents we have.

So here are the presents on the bed and then I sorted and wrapped up most of the girls gifts.

See here they are wrapped and popped into bags for easy storage! Sadly my bedroom is still a mess!
Then it was onto the Christmas Tree.
It is a mammoth job and it is enough to send me into a migraine!

And it did! :(

So Saturday we got the tree up and the lights on and beads and teddy bears we bought back in 1993!

Keith said when Alice came out this morning I missed the best reaction of wow! I asked the kiddos to sort themselves out for the family photo for Christmas cards this year here is the first attempt I did get a couple later that are keepers but won't spoil the surprise for later now!
My big Angel! Too cool for words!

Papa angel if only he would wear them the right way!

My big girl angel when I first bought these wings she refused to wear them and screamed down the house!

My Baby angel who had a similar reaction not only to the wings but every item of clothing that was put on!

Hope that your weekend has been as relaxing as mine! ;)

Hugs Ruth

The many faces of Alice

This week we have had so many people tell us how cute the girls are and Alice certainly is going through a naughty stage and if she was so darn cute I am sure she would be in more trouble.

An action shot of her playing Emily's guitar!

Her posing for a photo!

She is into picking flowers from the garden for me or her hair!

This photo was from yesterday!

I said "please let me get a good photo of you for the Fengcheng calendar!

Her response!

While we were at the park a woman grabbed her arm and said "oh I want to look at her! She is so cute!"

I said "she is busy throwing a tantrum now isn't a good time!"

And kept walking. GRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!

A Pensive moment.

Refusing to look at the camera!

Oh the joys of being a tart!

She has a fascination with an upright broom and shovel.

She snuck past me on Friday while I was working and got it out of the cupboard!

She loves to poke out her tongue!

A smug shot of her at the wedding last weekend.

In her big girl bed finally!

Last morning on her big little girls bed!

Our everyday cute look which does melt the grumpiest of hearts!

Oh to be two again!

Hugs Ruth

What has been happening in my world!

This was a test shot to get everyone in the photo at the wedding last and someone to take a good family photo as you see no one is smiling!

And I am missing~
This photo is how I have been feeling alot lately.

I feel I am missing out on the family especially the children. Emily's anxiety has heightened again everytime I go away for work. And speaking of work~

I have been Constructively Dismissed which means I was left little or no choice but to resign. So as of December 11 I will have officially finished work. I have been reluctant to post that here as I know that people within my organisation do read this and I felt very threatened by the management and was left little or no choice. I am still pondering taking a Personal Grievance case against my employers.

We haven't told many people about me resigning however the Boss did send an email out to all the providers I work with so they all know now!
And it has become public knowledge.

So hence the fact that the last month has been taken up with such issues as well as waiting for both girls to have surgery and finding out Emily's hearing has improved dramatically. So only Alice needed surgery so a days sick leave for the operation and then she was bouncing from the walls! :)

A cheeky pair! Prior to Surgery.

She only wanted her Daddy! Mummy was a no go region!

Screaming down the ward she was first so no-one else was around luckily! all done by 9 am!

Asleep on Dad's back she woke up her normal self the second time we were all really happy to see her back!

4 Hours post surgery.

Bouncing after the Surgery.

Now I need Keith's work to improve so we can afford for me not to work for a while!

I am looking at my teacher's registration being completed again so at least I could do relief teaching which would bring in some income.

Life has certainly sent us some curve balls lately so now it is turning them into home home runs and loads of smiles on our faces.
I am looking forward to spending the summer off with the kids and will see if that gives me some clarity of thought.

Thanks for listening the pity party is now over! And I wrote this without one single tear something I haven't been able to do lately!

Hugs Ruth

Jae and Miriam's wedding

Spent Saturday at Aiden's Birth fathers wedding will write more but here are a few photos to tied you over! Caleb 12 (Aiden's half brother), Aaron (Aiden's birth uncle who was adopted by Aiden's grandparents), Aiden, Jae (Aiden's Birth father),
Miriam, Donald( Aiden's grandfather who has some contact), Maralyn (Aiden's Grandmother)

Caleb, Jae, Miriam and Aiden

Outside the church.
Jae looking a bit like Billy-Ray Cyrus:)
(According to Emily anyhow!)




Off to have photos taken!

Emily and Alice giving the bride a horse shoe each.

Emily and Alice loved being at their first wedding as unofficial guests and then spent the evening in a hotel room in Oamaru while Aiden and I went to the reception and Dad tried to get them to go to sleep! He finally managed it around 10 pm!

Hugs Ruth

Holiday recap!

The school Holidays started with a weekend of Basket ball games between the Canterbury and Otago Chinese associations!

The team with the coaches! Emily played 3 games over 2 days and went out with Daddy for the tournament dinner! She looked so fab!

Then last weekend moon festival and moon cakes and meeting up with another family who adopted from China!

Then Sunday we went to the Museum to meet up with a Chinese family who has 3 lovely girls and they had been away for 6 months in Boston and I finally emerged from my winter slump so emailed then and after a number of phone calls we all headed to the Museum! Their daughters were so happy that Alice had come out of her shell and let them all play with her!

We had a blast!

We also had a Chinese dance display!

Then Aiden did a stint of looking after Emily! and we scrapbooked all day with Aunty Joce, Kate and Christie who came over just to hang out!

Well off to blob on the couch!

Hugs Ruth

PS Barbara something new to see XXXXXX:)