Our First Christmas

My new cell phone from Santa

Mama and Daddy got me a Precious Moments doll

Checking out my Christmas books

The actual Christmas day was spent at our house, just the three of us. Landree woke up, had some milk and proceeded to open up her presents. We had so much fun watching her play with the paper and bows. I believe by the end of it, she may have actually been getting the idea of opening a present. It was pretty cute. I made a ham for dinner (thanks Mom Stewart) and it turned out great. That was pretty much our day. I talked to my Mom and Dad in North Carolina and they also seemed to have a good Christmas day. I sure miss them at Christmas time though!

We had our Stewart Christmas the weekend before. Scroll down to see pics from that adventure!

Landree in her beautiful Christmas dress from Grammie Dunn

Auntie Di Di visits all the way from Oregon!

My beautiful Mother-in-law ready to hand out chocolate cream pie...mmm!

Giggling with Grampy

Uncle Tracy with Landree's cousins MacKenzie and Jacob

What a great Christmas! We celebrated the weekend before at Dan's Mom and Dad's in Oxnard. I was so happy Landree got to spend her first Christmas where her Mama and Daddy grew up. It was a crowded house! All of Dan's brothers and sisters and their families were there. Landree, as usual, was spoiled rotten. She did really well though, all weekend long. She slept great in her pack-n-play and also as usual, didn't wake up once during the night. We arrived in Oxnard on Friday and left Monday morning. It was a nice weekend, especially since Dan's sister Diane visited from Oregon. We don't get to see her too often, so we all got in some nice, long chats!

We hope you all had a wonderful holiday. I know it was especially good for us this year.

So Much for Santa

How hilarious is this picture? Today, Landree and I met our FCC playgroup for some fun at the park. Guess who showed up? The jolly ol' man in the red suit himself. All of the other kiddos went running right up to him. Landree, quite curious, started to crawl toward him. As she got closer, she decided he wasn't her cup of tea and she continued to crawl right past him! We quickly took a group photo of all of the kids and all was well again. Too funny.

Landree is One!

Landree turned one this past Thursday. I'm a little behind getting pictures uploaded. On Thursday, we got her a chocolate cupcake for her to smash (which she promptly ate) and an ice-cream cake to put a candle on. It was just the three of us and was very nice. We didn't do the giant one-year birthday party because we just had her welcome home party. She was spoiled rotten that day! On Saturday, Auntie Taunya and Uncle Brad came over and we did the whole thing over again. Another couple we met in China got Landree this fabulous candle. When you light it, fireworks explode out of the middle of it, then it opens up and eight more candles light up. Meanwhile, the "Happy Birthday" song is playing. It was so cool! We gave Landree a slice of that cake and she tore it up!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

It's the Little Things

It's the little things that make life so grand. Like being able to put ponytails in your daughter's hair for the first time. Having her cooperate is even better! I know it's silly, but I love it. We have been having lots of fun with Landree, especially now that her true colors are coming out. She loves our glasses and is constantly trying to pull them off of our faces. So, one night I decided to let her wear them for a second and she was cracking up! She stood so still while we put them on her and even let us take her picture. Too funny.

On a side note: we want to wish all of our family and friends a very Happy Thanksgiving. We know we have a lot to be thankful for.

A Few Things to Catch Up On

The last two weeks have been a whirlwind of activity around here! First, we had a visit from Dan's parents. They stayed for the weekend and had a pretty good time with their newest granddaughter. After that was filled with lots of Halloween activities and before you knew it, my parents were here from North Carolina. This is my parent's first grandchild, so it was so much fun for me to watch them with her. Last Saturday, we had a welcome home party for Landree. It was amazing to see all of the people who love her! We had a house full of family and friends who were all so supportive! They brought the best food and again, spoiled Landree with toys and clothes. It was the best day and Landree did great through the whole thing!

On Tuesday, Grammy and "Ye Ye" Jim took Landree on a shopping spree for even more toys at ToysRUs. I don't know who had more fun-my Dad or Landree! The last picture is her surrounded by her new goodies.

Finally, yesterday was Landree's eleven month check up. It was such a hard day for both of us! She got three shots in her thigh, a TB skin test and then had to be poked again for bloodwork. She screamed bloody murder! And, to top it all off, they didn't even get all the blood they need, so we get to do that again next month. Dan is totally coming to that appt! The good news is, we got the results back today and Landree once again received a clean bill of health. She now weighs just over twenty-one pounds and is just a hair over thirty inches long!

I'm a little sad today though-I started looking for daycare for her today for when I go back to work in January. I hit nothing but dead ends all day. Suggestions anyone???

Happy Halloween!

Landree and I got up bright and early this morning and went on over to my school for a twenty minute parade! It was the perfect amount of time...it was a lot for Landree to take in. So many kids! She had a blast and so did I. The first picture is of our Little Sugar Plum Fairy. How cute is that? (Ok, anyone puking yet)? I just love it and I think she looks great in lavender. The next pic is Landree with her first pumpkin patch pumpkin.

Things are still going great with the little one. She is teething horrendously right now! She's cutting two on the bottom at the same time and is drooling EVERYWHERE. She gets quite cranky before bed, but goes down easily. It's almost as if she's relieved to be in her crib some nights!

Danny and I continue to have the best time. Everyday gets better as we continue to get to know our daughter.

Home and Safe

Hey Everyone! We just wanted to let you know that after having to evacuate for two days, we are home and safe. At seven a.m. Tuesday morning, the sheriff drove through the neighborhood with the loudspeaker telling us it was mandatory that we evacuate. I was making coffee at the time! After forty-five minutes of packing up our things, we left and went to Matt, Gina and Lily's house! The night before, they had evacuated and came to our house! They were able to go back home and funny that we found ourselves at their house the next morning. The next day, we went to Rob and Marie's (Dan's sister) who had their evacuation orders lifted the night before. We came home this morning and all is well. We are so thankful. We know a few people personally who have lost their homes and our hearts go out to them.

Mommy for a Month

A month ago today was the day we met our daughter. I can't believe it's been a month! A month ago I had butterflies in my stomach that made my head spin. A month ago I wondered if I would be a good Mom. A month ago I had no idea how things would go.

Today, I know I'm a good Mom. I'm loving every minute of it (Ok-almost every minute. Those right-before-bed whinies aren't that fun). Every day we watch Landree's little personality come out more and more. She loves to bug Brassie. Brassie is so patient with her, luckily. She also loves the dog toys. I've learned it's ok to let her play with them. I put my foot down though, when she physically takes them away from them. It's funny-all these fabulous toys and she wants to play with the ninety-nine cent rubber dog toys from Wal-Mart. Bright orange dragons with purple horns that squeak are just so much more fun!



I like to tickle Landree's lower back. It makes her laugh every time. Today, we were sitting on the floor in my bedroom. She was playing and I had my back to her as I was cleaning out one of my dresser drawers. All of a sudden, I felt a little tickle on my lower back-I turned around and it was Landree playing with me! She was totally cracking up. It was the absolute best.

She also knows what "no, no, no" means. She discovered the dog's water dish. Every now and then, she crawls on over to it. Right before she gets there, she sits up and turns around. I then say, "no, no, no" and she starts shaking her head back and forth. It's hilarious (as I'm trying not to laugh).

Landree loves to pull up. She pulls up on the coffee table and the hearth (I know, I know, danger area, right)? She's not quite cruising the furniture, but it's going to happen soon. She's drooling all over the place too while her seventh tooth is busting through. Danny and I are so glad we didn't get new carpet in the family room yet!

Right now, she's sitting in her high-chair double-fisting cheerios. Every now and then she sticks her thumb in her mouth to unstick a cheerio from the roof of her mouth. I sit here realizing how lucky I am that I have a kiddo sitting in my kitchen unsticking cheerios from the roof of her mouth. Life is good.

Hangin' at home and the pumpkin patch

"Who like my dress from Auntie Taunya?"

"If I sit here really polite-like, someone might give me a meal."

A pumpkin patch play date with other kiddos from FCC

"I'll take this one mama."

Getting bundled up in new jammies from Grammy Dunn

Getting Adjusted

Things are going pretty good here. We are amazed at how well Landree is doing. As you can see by the pictures, she loves her highchair. She now knows it means she gets to eat. Which she loves. Danny and I both marvel about how things in the universe lined up so perfectly, so that we could raise this perfect daughter for us. We are amazed how she goes with us so well.

So yesterday was her first Doctor visit. I'm so proud of her. Her doctor was very happy with how healthy she is. Landree is twenty nine inches long and eighteen pounds eleven ounces. In China, she was nineteen and a half pounds, but they also weigh them with their clothes on. (Not that she was wearing that many clothes, but it's still not surprising). The only thing was she had some major wax build up in one of her ears. She wasn't too happy when the doctor pulled it out either. It was so gross! But we are both happy it's outta there!

She loves her toys and is right now, engrossed in her stacking rings. She loves those (thanks Mom)! She is also getting used to Brassie and Tanner and is reaching out for them and leaning in for doggies kisses. It's kinda yucky, but still really cute. Anyway, better go-she just now noticed the computer and is being very grabby!

We're Home!

Swimming at the White Swan Hotel

Just landed at LAX and Landree becomes a US citizen!

We are home and doing good. Out of a twelve and a half hour plane ride, Landree slept eleven hours! Unbelievable. We are now working hard on getting Landree on US time. Danny and I both have jet lag, but I'd say Dan has it worse. Upset stomach, headache and so on. I still have the sore throat, but I think it's getting a bit better. Tanner and Brassie are doing well with Landree. Tanner has figured out the best place is under Landree's high chair. Brassie has taken the protective mother role, which is really cute.

Danny and I both can't believe we have a baby in the house. It's wonderful.

Well, better go. It's only ten o'clock at night and Landree is waking up! Oh boy!

Our Last Post from China...

Ok, first scroll down to see the pics I posted. I had to get creative with Blogger today. The first one is the traditional red couch photo. Guess who's kid is being a bully? I think she was just really fascinated with the precious baby next to her! The second picture is us in front of the waterfall in the lobby of the White Swan Hotel.

So, this is our last day in China. It's a little bittersweet for me. Danny and I both love China, but at the same time, we are anxious to get home. We are looking forward to getting into a routine and getting healthy! (Still a little under the weather). And, to say we miss Tanner and Brassie would be an understatement. We miss them so much!

Yesterday, we went to the American Consulate and took an oath to always take care of our girl. No problem! It's crazy that today is our last day here. The day will most likely go as follows: first breakfast, then take a walk, then come back to the room and nap, then go eat lunch, come back to the room and nap again, pack up our luggage, shower, check out, then head to the airport! Our flight on China Southern leaves here at nine p.m. The funny thing is we land in LAX the same day at 6:50! It's nice to gain a little time at the end of this trip. As soon as our plane lands, Landree will be an American citizen!

We want to thank you all again for hangin' with us through this very long journey to our daughter. We will have to think of a new name for this blog, seeing as how we aren't "waiting" anymore! The next time we post will be from home!
Love from China,
Shannon, Dan and Landree

Stewart Trio at Yuntai Park

Mommy & Landree

Cute Pic For Everyone to Enjoy!!

A Happy Girl!

A big, cheesy smile!

Technical difficulties in Guangzhou

I'm going to make this short and sweet. We are having a very hard time with the internet here. And it's not free either! Grr.
So....everything is going fine. I'm still really sick but dealing with it. Danny is doing much better and Landree is great! She had her medical exam yesterday and weighed in at a hefty nineteen and a half pounds! Tonight we are going on a river/dinner cruise. Tonight is the Moon Festival.
Check back soon!
Love,
Shannon, Dan and Landree

Day 2 in Guangzhou

Sorry folks, I can only upload these two photos for now. It's taking forever to upload pics, and it's time for me to take a nap! Today, we visited the Chen Family Temple. We some some amazing art pieces created over many, many years. It was a very beautiful and peaceful place. Later on, I'll upload some pics to Flickr is blogger is still not cooperating.

Anyway, I was also able to upload this adorable picture of Landree taking a bath. She loves it! She keeps trying to "eat" the water. It's a total crack-up. She had a great day today. She made it through all of the touring without too much fussiness. It gets better and better every day. We still can't believe that someone a million miles away was able to match the perfect baby to us! I can't imagine it any other way. Landree is sleeping right now. So is Danny. We both have pretty bad colds, but his is worse today. It just so happens that we have a doctor in the group and she told me to give him Landree's Benadryl. That's what we did and boy, he is sleeping like a log, which is good because he hardly slept last night. He had a horrible headache. Better go for now. I have to try and get some shut-eye while I can as well. Will post again soon!

We Made it to Guangzhou

Yesterday was our last day in Chongqing. We went on a tour of an old architectural street that had some pretty fabulous shopping. The bummer was, we only had one hour there! However, that was all about Landree could handle. She was pretty fussy by the end of that trip. The rest of the day, Danny and I felt pretty terrible. We tried to rest the rest of the day. We are both feeling better today, but by the time we arrived here in Guangzhou, we both had headaches and our stomachs were all upset from the turbulent plane ride. Landree did great on the plane. She started screaming for awhile there, but it was because she was hungry. After she ate, she knocked out and all was well.

Guangzhou is pretty cool so far. We went and ate at Lucy's, which was pretty good. We walked around for a bit, but then came back to our room because Miss Landree needed her nap. She's sleeping pretty hard right now! We'll take some pics and upload soon. We just need some time to adjust. When Landree wakes up, we are going to hit the town I think. It looks like there is some great shopping here! It's also very pretty here. We have a week to enjoy it!
Love,
Shannon, Danny and Landree

Who Thinks I'm Cute?

More Pics From China