We’ve made it back safe from the best trip home I’ve ever had. It was very special and gratifying to introduce Belle to a huge chunk of my family: grandparents, uncles and aunts, great-grandparents, cousins and friends. We also packed in an incredible amount of stuff over two weeks without the pace feeling frantic. I took too many pictures, which have taken us days to edit, upload and caption. They are divided into sections in case you don’t want to look at 400 pictures at once.
- Belle cried the last hour of the flight but otherwise acclimated to 12 hours of jet lag much better than we expected. Cynthia did not have it so easy, as Belle’s sole food supply she foreswore pharmaceutical sleep aids. Belle showed off her newest skills to everyone – she has control of her lower back and can stand up for long periods now, she holds her head up during tummy time and she can roll over (clockwise only) from front to back. Everyone was charmed by her smile.
- My cousin Lauren got married in Traverse city. We stayed with at Aunt Ellene’s with my family which was great.
(click for pictures)
- I got to see all of my brothers. Paul and Rachael drove over from Minneapolis to the wedding and so we got to spend a day or so all together. Sean, Dave and Louis were all on summer break from school during the whole of the trip. I went to the junkyard with my brother Sean and my dad to retrieve a power antenna for a 95 Probe and battle a wasp’s nest (it was a draw). David drove up with us to Traverse City. We also went to see the documentary Senna together which I highly recommend you catch at your own local quirky art theater.
- On the way back from the wedding we went to Grand Rapids to visit my Aunt/Uncle/Cousins and spend a last night in Spring Lake at the cottage which is about to be sold.
(click for pictures)
- Michelle and Mia came from California for the final weekend to surprise Cynthia. This made Cynthia cry, in a good way.
- I went to the Selfridge Air Show to see my cousin Rick jump as part of the Wings of Blue Air Force Academy jump team. After landing on target, Rick came out into the crowd and folded his parachute right in front of us which was cool.
(click for pictures)
- Belle was baptized at the same church Cynthia and I were married in (I was also baptized there 33 years ago).
(click for pictures)
- There were plenty of pics that didn’t fit into these other categories. This “dual raised eyebrow” one maybe my favorite of the all the pictures we got, but Godfather Sean and Belle were especially photogenic together in a lot of different shots.
(click for pictures)
- Our return flight to Taipei got cancelled on Monday, and we were forced to tack an extra day on, which also yielded better seats for the new return flight. We were hoping this extra time would help Belle fight off her first cold, but she still has it so I guess not.
- Also, I posted a regular update for Belle from the two weeks before our trip. Cuteness abounds.
(click for pictures)
No tags
You’ve now entered the world of you tube home videos in HD. . . don’t get your hopes up, these aren’t going to impress you with plot and special effects.
No tags
The picture below is blurry, because you only have one second to capture this face before the bawling starts. Even so, it’s my favorite expression. There are many smiley faces as well in the latest pics . . .
(click for pictures)
Belle hasn’t really developed any awesome skills since my last post , though she continues to polish her existing stuff. She still doesn’t really know she has arms and legs attached, though she does flail them with a lot more force than she used to. She also will carry on a conversation of coos and gurgles if you parrot them back at her. Overall, she’s a very happy baby who’s growing fast at over 14 pounds (93rd percentile!).
No tags
Belle is smiling and coo-ing at us now. I really miss her during my workdays and can’t wait to get home. Things are still a bit of a whirlwind – I’m a bit sleep deprived, Cynthia has it much worse. Belle is sleeping in a couple of 4 hour blocks at night but prefers 30minute naps during the day much the chagrin of her mother. Cynthia is armed with a baby sleep technique book on her Kindle, and we are in the midst of establishing rituals and schedules that hopefully will help things.
Belle is is not only cute but now also deductible with her immigration status in order- we’ve gotten a social security number for her as well as a passport and ARC (alien resident card). The bureaucracy is now clear for our highly anticipated trips back to the US in August and October to meet her grandparents in person.
(click for pictures)
No tags
Belle had her one month checkup and is up to 4700g/10.5lbs – so the eating is going well. Cynthia claims she rolled over and I claim she smiled on demand. Neither of us co-witnessed these events so it’s just hearsay at this point.
(click for pictures)
No tags