Christmas Pictures

This is actually from Thanksgiving but an activity Zoe continued to demand from my brother at Christmas...blowing bubbles!


Eric, Zoe, and Santa at the daycare photo day. Her second visit with Santa and she wouldn't sit on his lap without daddy being there.

Finally getting to read his daughter, "The Night Before Christmas". My father used to read this story to me on this same couch when I was little. I was very choked up taking these pictures, and sorry again my dad didn't get to meet Zoe.

In her Santa hoody Christmas morning. Herman's stuffed airplane in the background :)


Elf Sized and playing with new toys at my mom's house.

I don't have a picture of this but Zoe proved herself to be a true Hockensmith this weekend. Eric and I had taught her to do the "touchdown" gesture for the college football season so it shouldn't have surprised us that our daughter, who only has about 15 words, watched a football game on the 23rd and again yesterday, listened to the commentators during a score, put her arms above her head and said, "Tutdown!".

Baptism and Belated Merry Christmas

Zoe was baptized on December 22nd at my mom's house by the Reverend who married Eric and I in 2004. She was a trooper and did really well during the service, even when the water was put on her head :) My brother took more pictures during the day and I will hopefully get a disc from him soon so I can upload them.

Merry Belated Christmas! I do have some very cute pictures of Zoe in her "Elf Sized" t-shirt but I can't find the cable to hook the camera to the computer at the moment. I hope your Christmas was as nice as ours. From the baptism to Christmas evening it felt like we were constantly on the go, but it was so nice to see and catch up with family. This Christmas is especially special as it was Zoe's first Christmas at home. She sure was spoiled. My brother and sister-in-law had gotten her so many toys that Eric and I had to hold off giving her some of the ones we bought her :) More importantly, Zoe had a ton of fun playing with everyone and showing off her dance moves. If possible, she gets cuter and more fun every day. More pictures later! Hope everyone has a very Happy New Year.

A Few of My Favorite Things

In the spirit of Oprah, I'm always trolling blogs looking for cool things so I thought I'd share what I enjoy as well.




If you are as obsessed with hairbows as I am, you need to check out Charlotte's Bows. http://www.charlottesbows.com/ The bows are dainty (not ginormous like some in stores), stay in Zoe's fine hair, come in a great variety, and are shipped quickly. We have a ton and keep going back for more. They also make great gifts if you know someone who is expecting a little girl.


Praise baby: http://www.praisebabycollection.com/ I've posted before that we're not terribly religious but these videos are amazing. Zoe is not a fan of Baby Einstein but she will sit quietly for the entire 30 minutes these videos are on. She had to start nebulizer treatments this week for bronchiolitis and watching these videos is the only thing that calms her with the mask on her face. I highly recommend, ended up being our best shower gift. Also great for restless late nights.



My Coach diaper bag. Okay, it's a big expense. I'm not even going to link to it BUT how many diaper bags can go from an outing with your baby to meetings with other professionals. It's both my work and diaper bag and I unapologetically love it. And Shawn and Karen, don't even think of posting "I can't believe you..." :)

Things without pictures:

• Doodle Doo Designs: http://www.doodledoodesigns.com/ The best shirt I ever got Zoe was the Fantasy football one. Love it!
• Hormel foods- They make a great potroast, turkey dinner, meatloaf, ect. Zoe loves them and actually eats meat this way. It's great for nights that we're eating something different from her. 4 minutes in the microwave and done.
• Our Maclaren Triumph Charcoal/Pink stroller~ It's pink, I waited forever for a daughter, and as a bonus she actually rides in it without screaming.
• Gymboree and Janie and Jack~ I have a shopping problem. See above: I waited forever for a daughter

While I love to shop, is there anything better than giving? Not only does it help others and make you feel good, but it provides a much needed tax break. Two of the charities we support are below. Whoever you decide to donate to, find something that matters to you and do your research. Websites such as http://www.charitynavigator.org/ can help you learn where your money is going.

One of the defining events of my life was losing my sister to cancer when I was 10. We were lucky to live near NIH which also provided outstanding experimental care, but other families traveled from all over the US. Now that I'm a parent, I can't even imagine how my mom and dad went on breathing after Kathy died. St. Jude's is a research hospital that provides treatment to those who can't afford it. http://www.stjude.com/


Obviously the orphans left behind in China are a concern for us. Zoe spent the first 9 months of her life in an orphanage and came to us probably 3 months delayed. Through their Baby Sisters Infant Nuture program, Half the Sky employs, trains and supervises local women to work as full-time nannies, providing orphaned babies the stimulation, bonding and affection that are essential to a healthy start. Children who have benefited from the Half the Sky programs are usually on target developmentally. http://www.halfthesky.com/ For relatively little money you can sponser a child for a year.

Happy Holidays!!

A Few Pictures

Last Sunday we got together with our local adoption group friends for a holiday celebration. We're finally all home with our girls!

Zoe's first Virginia snow. We're not sure if it snowed in Jiangxi or not, but she's not so crazy about the stuff. We took her outside at 6am (brrr) so we could both experience the moment with her.

Not a great picture, but Zoe is in love with the little chair from Pottery Barn Kids I got her (yes, another X-mas present given early). She feels very adult in it :)

Quick "Phew" post

Just a quick post to update on two issues that I've been worried about....1) Zoe had her 15 month appointment today and she's finally on the curve (5th percentile) for head circumference. She's 10-25% for weight and 25-50% for height. The weight and head were the ones we were most worried about since our first appointment home from China when the doctor said Zoe was microcephalic (which can cause mental retardation). So HA HA bad poorly informed doctor. Actually when were were in Guangzhou the doctor measured her head and then did it again and asked, "How old is she?" I should have known then about the effects of the malnutrition....but we're good now!

Second, and probably more important since we've known Zoe is developing well.....she's learned to come down stairs safely on her bottom. While I hope she never does it on her own while she's still so little, at least we can relax a little bit. She's so cute...she drops to her bottom like 3 feet from the top of the stairs and then "scootches" (a new vocab word for her :) ) to the top and then comes down. The stairs in the townhome have been my greatest worry so I'm so proud of her. This house is impossible to gate.