Mama Makeover

My little orchard is very much a girly girl. She loves wearing dresses, doing hair and putting on make-up. I think the make-up especially increased after Halloween when mama did her makeup extra gaudy to be a princess & Tinkerbell. Just the other afternoon she wanted to do my hair and makeup. I actually had a lot of fun! I remember thinking it was so fun to things like this when I was her age, now I get to be her guinea pig.

The Little Nurse

My husband recently had his appendix removed. While in the hospital LanLan stayed at a friend's house. When her daddy came home it was apparent that she had missed him. I walked into the room and saw this scene. My husband, who was very tired laid down for a nap. LanLan pulled up a chair right next to him and held his hand. It was so sweet! She even got him his drink and later on brought him her stuffed animals as well. She really missed her daddy.

Popularity

Being a child with white skin in China can be a little overwhelming. Fair skin is considered true beauty in China. If you watch the ads or look at the skin products they sell here most things are to help whiten your skin. So when a Chinese person sees a child with white skin they are fascinated and think they are the most beautiful person they have ever seen. (I don't blame them, my children are the most beautiful! hehe)

We knew we were in for a ride when we took LanLan to the park when she was only a couple months old. In a matter of minutes we were surrounded by at least 25 people just looking at her, wanting to take her picture, or taking a picture with her. My husband had to stand on a ledge to get out of reach from people so they wouldn't touch her. It's been 4 years since that has happened and almost every time we go out (especially to parks or an attraction) people come crowding around to have a look. It can get taxing and most of the time LanLan doesn't appreciate it.

Yesterday I was shocked! I noticed that a woman was eyeing my two children and I saw her get her camera out (not surprising). But she had the sweetest spirit and spoke so kindly. She talked to LanLan, asking her name, telling her she was beautiful (also not surprising) and then asked if she could take a picture with her. Most of the time people don't even ask they just do it. Occasionally we will have someone ask but there was something totally different about this woman. LanLan I think was taken with this woman's kindness and agreed to take a picture with her! (LanLan will usually refuse)

What did YOU do today?

Everyday when I pick LanLan up from school I always ask her what she did that day. I try and get her to tell me what goes on in school since I can't really communicate with the teachers and they don't really offer any information. The first thing she usually tells me is how many times she went to the bathroom. I finally convinced her that that isn't very interesting and that I would like to hear about something fun that she did. So now when I ask "What did you do today most often than not she replies with "I Don't Know" or "Anything" (meaning "Nothing")

Today when I picked LanLan up from school the first thing she said to me before I could even say anything was "What did you do this night, Mama?"

(LanLan has no concept of time words like today, this morning, tonight etc. She says "this night" most often for some reason)

Mourning a Death

After using the net to remove a dead fish from her tank, Anna said, “Let’s get some more!” I think she’s taking the loss well…

4 in the bed and the little one said . . .

I walked into Xiao Bin's room and LanLan said: "Shhhh Mommy! The babies are sleeping!" She had brought in her pillow from her bed placed all the babies in the bed put toys in there for them to play with and then covered them with the blanket. She had even closed the curtain. She is a very good mama!

Sum Up

So every night before my little orchid goes to sleep there is a very specific bed time routine that we follow. Change into pajamas, brush teeth, go to the bathroom, Daddy reads a book and sings a song. When that is all done I usually go in and sing a song as well and then pray. Before we pray, though, I try and talk with her about her day. I ask her to tell me something that happened to her that made her sad and then talk about something that made her happy.

Tonight we had a very fun evening at a friend's house decorating Easter eggs. She told me that decorating the eggs was her favorite part of the party. She then said to me, very seriously and all grown-up like, "Did you have fun, Mommy?" I thought it was so sweet!! My sweet little girl wanted to know what I thought about the party and what my favorite part was.