Christmas 2013...Quiet

Sydney (5yrs) was sooooo excited for Christmas to arrive she could hardly contain herself. Nothing was quiet before the big day. There was so much anticipation I thought she would burst!

Mailing Christmas letters to S.C.!

Samuel on the other hand was not too sure what all the fuss was about. This is only his 2nd Christmas celebration with us.  He hardly remembers anything from last year (less than 1 month home). He did recognize the tree and helped decorate (which included the family tradition of dancing around in the tree skirt),

but had no clue about Santa Claus or gift giving.

In fact he was pretty nervous for their Santa Claus picture.

Good thing Jie Jie was there or he wouldn't have gone to sit on his knee.


This year I ordered all new stockings with our names on them. I still have a childhood stocking with my name on it and I wanted to keep up the tradition with my children (especially since we have finally decided our family is complete!).

The stockings arrived in November and Samuel being curious asked "What are these?"

My reply, "Your Christmas sock", brought a mischevious smile to his face.

He picked up his "sock" and proceeded to stick his whole leg inside and then declared I had bought the wrong size...it was too big! Sydney had a good laugh at her brother's misunderstanding. Samuel did not seem to mind the as he quite enjoys being the center of attention!

We each have a special decoration (or two) on the tree and we keep adding to our collection each year.

After a very quiet Christmas eve at home (both kids were sick with bad colds) poor Sydney's excitement gave way to some anxious thoughts about a stranger (Santa Claus) being in her home during the night.

Security is a big theme for her this year.  Though most kids peacefully welcome this tradition Sydney was not so sure it was a good idea to let a stranger visit (even if he was bearing gifts). She finally submitted to sleep and pure exhaustion at 11pm!

Christmas morning the kids were up bright and early (too early), bursting with excitement about their Santa presents.

Christmas day we simply stayed home. The big family celebration and dinner had happened a week earlier.  Instead we enjoyed a whole day at home with our little family. (A rare thing now-a-days.) PJ's were worn for a very long time!  I can't remember a more restful day for all of us.

Sydney and Kevin were busy trying to solve the Kanoodle puzzles.

Our little girl is truly gifted at puzzles. She started at the 'adult' beginner level and has flown through to the 2D puzzles with out a problem. Her GoGo lends a helping hand if she gets a little stuck. He melts my heart with how patient he is with her.

Samuel's smile describes how he felt about spending all day with a new train set.

Our littles received an awesome gift from our teenage neighbors...a HUGE box full of Brio trains and track. That stuff never goes out of style! Perfect gift for Samuel as it entices him to sit quietly and engage his imagination! ;)


I am very, very thankful for the quiet that we experienced on Christmas day 2013.

Next up is packing for our first trip to the Hawiian Islands... :)

Forever Family Day!...Sydney Su Yee Year 3

I LOVE celebrating THIS day!

This is the day that a scared Cui Ping would become Sydney Su Yee and our forever daughter.

Our little package of Harmony in pink jelly shoes.

The most amazing little girl would become part of our family.

Those red threads stretched amazing distances to link this crazy little family together.

To bind us in a way that only family love can.

This day is nothing but JOY.

It is a celebration with pink cupcakes for breakfast.

Banners of celebration declaring that we are forever a family.

Blessing Crowns to declare our delight in this little blessing,

and even a gift for her to delight in.


A gift to remind her that she is a delight to us every day; that we understand how knowing her as our daughter is our privilege.

From the left: Samuel, BaBa, Sydney, MaMa, and GoGo in the house waiting for us (as per usual schedule). House has new shingles! ...and we all have two extra arms! :) 

Knowing what she thinks, how she feels and all the crazy creativity her spirit allows us to see and experience daily, are gifts to us, her parents and family members.

We think she is perfect for us.

Beautiful, resilient, hard-working, creative, daring, determined, lovely, graceful young soul.

An amazing little girl that we get to call our Daughter (or sister)!

Happy Forever Family Day Sydney Su Yee!

Love, 

MaMa and BaBa 
(GoGo and DiDi too!)

Birthday Girl! ...5 years old

Our little princess is 5 years old! She cashed in on celebrations this year.

She celebrated the with her close friends all decked out as princesses and pirates. Costumes were required for the Wide Open Theater fundraiser event which provided the bouncy castles and games. Once these crowned bandits were totally tuckered out we went back to the house for cake and a bit more fun!  

We also had a quiet birthday celebration with just our family on the actual Birthday date.

At school they have a Birthday Circle where they celebrate the life of each child by walking around the "sun" marking the earth's 12 month journey to complete one year. (They hold a tiny globe as they step on each month).  This year she walked around the circle 5 times. 

It is a wonderful celebration of all her milestones and accomplishments.

Everyone sings to her and sings a song of her choice. She choose to play London Bridge this year. 

Parents attend as special guests in the class room, bringing snacks and the birthday girl presented a small gift to the school.

We are to provide pictures to celebrate her accomplishments each year. 

The collage series was a big hit. (I have them labelled to help out the teachers who lead the celebration.)

It was really neat to go back and look at all that our little girl has accomplished in such a short time. I have two favorite photos. 

The first is that buttercup yellow nose! She was so into that flower! The second is the one of her and her glider bike; all decked out for the Canada Parade at Waskesui! (The parade was all self initiated. She begged me to participate. She helped decorate her bike and she did not shy away from going out with the older riders or waving sweetly to hundreds of onlookers).  

These two pictures remind me of her character at this wee age.  Intense, self- initiated, curious, determined and committed to do her best. I love that she will try over and over again until she gets things just right. I love her confidence, her smarts, her beauty, her free spirit and even her "flic-flac toes" (that one is just for her and MaMa!). 


We want to celebrate everything about her and can hardly wait to see what adventures the next year holds for her! 

Happy 5th Birthday little Princess! 

Mid-Autumn Moon Festival...中秋快乐!

The Mid-Autumn Moon Festival is widely celebrated and second only to Chinese New Year and every year it completely sneaks up on me.

I once again scrambled to get prepared and some of my chinese cooking attempts ended in tears over the trash bin. Chinese Snowball dessert is very fussy. You either get the chemistry it right or you don't.

Both my attempts ended up in the trash bin. I will see Peng Jan (Nie Nie) in two weeks and ask her to show me how to make them one more time! Something always goes wrong with my version of her snowball recipe! It is from memory and obviously my noggin' is too tired to recall what I learned two years ago.

Supper thankfully was simple. Lemon grass chicken, steamed rice and gai lon with oyster sauce.

Dessert as simple too. Hot tea, Lotus paste mooncakes and sesame rice balls (red beans) all store bought!

Then there were the pair of expensive pomelo's. It is hard to get any kind of decent asian fruit in this part of the country. Shiny and promising on the outside and drier than desert sand inside...

but we sure did have fun with the peels!


They make great hats! :)

We had a blast putting together the chinese paper lanterns and the block map while wearing pomelo hats!

We are thankful for the wonderful gifts that fall brings. Including time spent this weekend with family and friends.

Happy Moon Festival 2013! 

中秋快乐!

TuTu Cute...Sydney and Ballet

In the Guangzhou police station I first had a MaMa's hunch, you know, that niggling sense deep inside, that our little Sydney might like to dance.

We were waiting for our new family photo. The cue was very long. A group of families from the U.S. were playing a clapping/sing-song game off to the side of the waiting area. Su Yee and I stood on the edge and she watched the older girls intently, still as a board.

Then as they called our name for the photo our little miss started to shake, wiggle and move her feet to the clapping beat. Patrick hollered at me to hurry up but I stalled for as long as possible so she could continue to dance. I was beaming 'cause our little girl was dancing.

God certainly gave her a nice set of dancing feet.



I provided all the music, tutu's and tights any little ballet star could hope for!

My own Momma said that I unleashed her spirit. Set her free.

Dance is a natural part of our existance here, it is just like breathing. It happens daily and it is all joy. For Sydney it has become the perfect way to express herself. With dance there is no need for cumbersome words. Her cleft palate doesn't matter; it doesn't hinder her one tiny bit.

She is just "Tu-Tu" cute for words! I LOVE her little pre-schooler legs in ballet tights and Tu-tu's!

She takes class once a week from my mentor, Mrs. J.
She is a gifted teacher and her early ballet training classes are exceptional! Her classes are consistent, engeretic and peaceful. The kids learn so much more than ballet steps.

Photo 1: Year 1 fall session - An uncertain Sydney,  Photo 2: Year 2 Recital - A little nervous on stage, Photo 3: Year 2 -Skipping with Joy, Side Bar Photo's: Mrs J - Nuturing, teaching, correcting, modelling.
  

Sydney would not stay in class alone for the first 6 weeks of classes. I danced along and played all the games holding her hand and guiding her around the room.  One day she just walked in and sat down in the attendance circle and didn't need me. She felt safe and content in Mrs. J's ballet class.

Her first recital photo's cracked me up. I was there to help her with her pose and she was serious about getting it right.

The recital was similar. She was very proud to be on stage and was one of the few kids who remembered the routine.

This year lil'miss independent did not need me to help with her photo's.

I was told to "go away MaMa, I can do this myself".

And the photo turned out like this...

...you bet she is serious about this stuff! :)

For the year end recital she was mildly nervous and she wished that I could be on stage with her. In order to make her feel comfortable I made two classical parenting errors:

• during the rehearsal I sat where she could see me. 
• AND I conversed with her while she was on stage waiting for her music to start. 

Mrs. J was laughing in the wing and informed me what would come next " You know, she is going to do this at the show don't you?"...I looked at her surprised not certain what she meant?

True to the prediction, right at the midway point in the Ponies dance, Sydney stopped dead center on the stage. Hand over her eyebrows shielding her eyes from the bright stage lights, looking side to side while muttering loudly..."Now, where is my MaMa?... where is she?... I don't see her?... oh well!"

The kids danced around her as she searched.

As the scene unfolded a little panick rose in me. Was she going to be OK? Did I need to run down the theatre steps and scoop her up into my arms? I waved to her from the back of the audience but she  couldn't see me through the bright stage lights. I was half out of my seat.

Once she was convinced that she couldn't find me she carried on as if nothing had happened. She never missed a beat for the rest of the number.

In the end I was laughing so hard I was in tears! It was priceless. She was fine. Just curious if she could see me. It caught my Mom completely off guard. She was trying to video-tape her dance but the giggles consumed her ability to hold the camcorder still enough.  At least the "Ponies" dance will be etched in our memories for a long time!

I am looking forward to another year of dance with Mrs. Jaspar and all of the magic that she provides for the children....including our go-getter Samuel.

He is going to try the creative movement class.

I will keep you posted on how that goes! ;)

Summer Fun and Update on Samuel's Progress

This seems to be one of our busiest summers and I can't even say why? All I know is that the time flies by with one week blending into the other marked only by the number of times we have gone to Costco for groceries!

Thankfully the kiddo's and I have developed a sense of spontaneity.  I am glad they are always up for a little summer adventure! (...even if it is to the same play park, or gliding around the block a few more times, they think it is great fun.)

My diabolical motor learning plan with the glider bikes is beginning to pay off!  I can almost sneak in a light jog in while I accompany them to the park. They are pretty fast and I am sure BOTH will be ready for pedals come fall!

When Kevin was a little tyke I would jog and he would ride. We were both happy and I was MUCH fitter than I am today. I am getting close to re-launching my old jogging workout with these two! :)

Healthy competition is Ok...right?

Right now they pretend that they are either Lightning McQueen or Dinoco from the "Cars" movie and race like mad to the park.

The park has a few more little motor learning challenges like this nifty rock climbing ramp.






It is not much of a vertical but after some coaxing they both have figured out how to use the "rocks" and problem solve their way to the top! I am thankful neither of them are daredevilish. (Well, our teeny little super guy does have a certain knack for leaping before he looks, or over running his own feet and toppling face first, but currently he is pretty cautious and doesn't like heights).

Today these two discovered "tree climbing" while I did some yard work. They are so busy it just makes me dizzy!

These two are doing really well with getting along. Siblings for only 8 months and sometimes they seem inseperable. They certainly collaborate on finding trouble! Sydney seems so much more settled since her little bro' has arrived! His transition into the family has been rather smooth due to her acceptance of his presence.

Samuel is currently into copying just about everything that Sydney does. She tolerates this better on some days than others. He was not like this one month ago and I suspect that by the time preschool starts in the fall the copying will lessen.

I think he is just looking for direction on what acceptable behaviour is at our house. He sees that she is praised for certain behaviours (going to the bathroom on time, brushing teeth, picking up toys, coloring pictures, gliding, swinging, reading books, dancing etc.) and he is searching for what is "OK to do at our house.

He came "programed" with some behaviours that have been hard to deal with. For example, rolling pieces of paper into cigarettes and pretending to smoke is NOT ok at our house. No one laughs...someone cries with a stern reprimand. He has tried to entertain us with this "habit" for the last eight months.

Other examples of Samuel trying to get attention:

• Eating as fast as he can, stuffing as much food into his mouth until he coughs, chokes and laughs ...NOT an acceptable dinner game at our house. It did not evoke laughing and positive attention from us. 
• Slapping people beside with your dinner fork, eating with a knife, spinning your utensils, kicking your sister, or taking food off of her plate didn't go over well either. BaBa sits beside him for a good reason! 
• Stealing your sister's cup because it must be better than yours doesn't help friendly sibling relations!  
• Hiding your trucks and cars in your bed so you can play with them at night didn't bring a smile to MaMa's face. 

It has taken Samuel a while to figure out what is going to get the right reaction from us. I KNOW that he misses the slapstick horsing around that used to happen with his caregiver in China. I am SURE that there was no discipline or training, only fooling around and a lot of laughing. Somedays I think the laughing is almost like a "high". He needs it like air.

Unfortunately, his experiences in China trained him in a way that made for an initial rough road to family life in North America. I was looking back at pictures...here is what happened at the party when we sent him a celebration cake...

shovelling food into someone elses mouth,

eating with a knife and laughing!

...he was probably also rolling napkins into cigarettes but they didn't think to get a picture! :O
(Oh, that one gets under my skin!)

Samuel definitely came to us wired to seek attention but with almost no ability to accept "nuturing". We are slowly changing those connections and I am thankful that he finally sees both Patrick and I as positive and nuturing parents. He will run to either one of us for soothing if he hurts himself and he seeks us out for "snuggles" and looks to us for direction most days. He still has a very strong need to do things "by-self" which is pretty normal for a three year old. This does get him into some trouble now and then when he steps out of bounds into "adult" territory (...like holding locking the doors from inside the house while the parents are outside!).

Samuel is actually good with the rules once he buy's into them, once he realizes he will get positive reinforcement for the desired behaviour. Now when he does something by himself he checks in with me. But I had no idea the impact on our "house rules" had on him until the other day.

"Did I do it perfect?" was what he asked the other day after washing his hands.

I have long, nasty history with that word "perfect"...I had no idea we came across to him as hard to please. My jaw dropped. I never asked for perfect, but he was feeling like I had. This was his word. His view of our demands on him.

I dropped to my knee and hugged him and told him he did it really good! And, I was very proud of him! He hugged me back, smiled and went on his way.

It has come up a couple more times and I am still trying to understand where he learned the word...he uses it correctly. Big sister does use it to describe her artwork which get ton's of praise. She will say "Look at my sun!" "I drew it perfectly!" Which I think my have originated from her school work but I hadn't processed it with any awareness. He obviously has. He is definitely trying to fit in. He is great at observing patterns. He wants to try and please us...perfectly.

I am certain that eventually we will land in a place that all of us can live with...one where we respect his unique character and accept him as is without the need to be "perfect" and he will understand good things come from our house rules.

Good things come to those who wait 
-Benjamin Franklin-


I love this picture of him standing by tree because he was "asking" before "doing".
Asking first, is one of our house rules, one of those things we need to train him to do.
















"Mom, may I go climb tree?"  To which I answered with a huge smile "of course...way you go!".

They had so much fun last evening!

I hope that when Samuel looked at me he got the positive reinforcement he has been looking for.

We all had a good laugh together as they peaked in and out of the branches, thrilled that they were allowed to climb the big tree!

“Now then, my children, listen to me;

    blessed are those who keep my ways.

Listen to my instruction and be wise;

    do not disregard it."

Proverbs 8:31-33

He settles the childless woman in her home as a happy mother of children.

-Psalms: 113:9-

65th Wedding Anniversary...Albert and Zelda (A-Z)

Celebrating 65 years of Marriage

Hands worn with time still holding on to one another tenderly. 

Hands that worked hard and worked out how to love one another for a lifetime.

It all started in south Saskatchewan's dry western corner on some farm land not far from the little town of Eastend.They met, fell in love, and got married on a windy day in March. It was just that simple.

They tried their hand at farming when the south Saskatchewan soil was dry and parched. It was a hard beginning. However, their time on the farm produced their first son Dale. They moved back into town to find work and their family grew, first with Ronald and then with Lorne.  Three sons over 13 years.

Missing from picture but in attendance: Grandchildren Alyssa and Bradon.
Unable to attend Grandchild Lynn plus her husband and three children.

Those three sons eventually married and had, well, the rest of us!

I asked Grandpa Albert (Howdy): " Did you ever imagine that you would be responsible for filling two long banquet tables full of people?" 

He laughed and grinned widely, eyes sparkling and said "No, I don't suppose I did! It is quite the thing to see it!"

These two are both pretty spry for their age but I know those old bodies ache and get tired. They were the 'stars' in a come and go tea for their community friends and then our family banquet. At the end when I thought they would be ready to retire I caught the photo of Grandma Z all bright-eyed snuggling one of the babies!  

They love their children and their grandchildren, but it is those tiny wee great grandchildren that brings a certain lightness to their faces.  

Just look at Grandma Z's eyes with little Trenton (3 months) as she sneaks a kiss!

Sleepy Trenton (3 months), Lana and one of her twin boys , little Adynne 

It is hard to deny such sweet cuteness! Goodness knows the next round of babies has arrived with four new little ones under a year old in attendance.

I am always amazed at how the children rejunvenate and energize an older person. You see their eyes light up when their hearts delight in those little ones! 

Interesting my son Kevin has been blessed with knowing all EIGHT of his great grandparents including Grandma Z and Grandpa Albert (Howdy). It is a rare thing to know so many great grandparents. He has clear recollections of spending time with all of them.

Grandma Z always finds a few extra loonies in her purse and tells
Su Yee to go to the store and buy her self something good!  

I am glad that Sydney and Samuel will have some memories of their great grandparents too. Albert and Zelda's life stories, with all of their triumphs and tribulations, are an important part of our family heritage. I hope in understanding the resilience demonstrated by these two (and others in our family tree) it will positively shape how Sydney and Samuel view their own life stories.

Happy to get this picture taken with Great Grandparents with the promised balloon floating near by.

It was very special to be able to celebrate Grandma and Grandpa's (A-Z's) 65th wedding anniversary! It reminds me that God is able, God is good and God is gracious.



"Love is not about finding the right person, but creating a right relationship. It's not about how much love you have in the beginning but how much love you build till the end."
 -Jumar-

Ending on a High Note...Recital 2013 KDF

I love dance. Two science degree's (nutrition and kinesiology) and a lot of soul searching happened before I decided to teach dance. It was a long journey and one with many good life lessons. I love all that dance has taught me.

I started dancing on stage at age nine. A late bloomer. Back then I LOVED to move to music. Mom never told me to practice dance. In fact she most often told me to "stop dancing" especially in the grocery store, in the living room, on the lawn... I was a little obsessed with dance as a kid. I figured I had a lot to catch up on to be "good". I loved performing too. It can be rather intoxicating (once you ditch the butterflies)!

Now I have the privilege of teaching dance (ballet) for my 2nd full season at Kristy's Dance Fusion.

In the upper levels of ballet being "on balance" or "centered" is really important. The movements require a delicate balance of athletic strength and a certain finesse that make the hard movements look exquisitely effortless. It's a game of human movement physics puzzles, put to music. Dancers will tell you their bodies are their instruments. The upper levels require A LOT of practice and patience. It is not easy to conform ones body to the required ballet standard and our genetic pre-dispositions' don't always co-operate with our hearts desire. I LOVE how hard my students try to get it just right!

Last June (2012) I travelled to San Francisco and was privileged to watch the San Francisco Ballet School's Graduation Recital. Western Symphony and some contemporary work by George Balachine (NYC Ballet) were featured. I fell in LOVE with Balanchine's ballet. Mesmorized.

This year I decided on exploring the work of the Balachine with my dancers. Balanchine dances are NOT easy. He was a "modern" choreographer that broke more than a few rules of traditional choreograhy. The movements can look deceptively simple in their steps and patterns, when actually it is very hard. Quick transfers, unusual weight changes, fast steps on each beat make the choreography challenging. You must be "on balance" to get this work right.

I, absent mindedly, did not take one single pictures of our vibrant Western Symphony Variation; Balanchine's lively celebration of Americana music and the Wild West. This saloon style choreography was enough to take your breath away...if you were dancing. The steps were FAST (petite allegro) and a certainly a great cardio workout for the young ladies in the group! I will have to get a copy of their class photo somehow?

I created a variation of "Diamonds" from Balanchine's "Jewels"series for the seniors ballet students.

Courtesy of Dave Meyer's Photography

These seven lovely young ladies (pictured dancing above) worked so hard to get this variatoin just right. They did well in competition, especially if you factor in it was their very first competitive pointe number! 

Courtesy of Dave Meyer's Photography

Unfortunately one of the dancers had a Grade 12 graduation which conflicted with the final Recital.

We were all very unhappy about Miss Chantal's departure. When you dance like this, as part of a long-standing team, you leave a big hole in hearts along with the routine.

By this point in the year, as I tried to balance work and home life, I can honestly say I was deliriously tired. One day I thought it would be easier to dance in Chantal's spot than re-choregraph the entire number. The students could carry on as usual and I like an understudy would just jump in her spot. Certainly less stress for them. I love the stage so I wasn't suffering any performance anxiety...just yet. How hard could it be? Did I mention earlier that Diamonds Variation by Balanchine looks deceptively simple, but certainly is NOT (as evidenced by my huffing and puffing by the second minute on stage!) 

I love how gracious these young dancers are. They helped me get things just right. For a moment they were the teacher(s) reminding me not to mirror my own choreography, or to straigthen my knees and turn in the right direction!  

On a high note and some sore old feet I danced as part of this senoir ballet troupe for the 2013 Recital.

The perfectionist in me thinks I could have done better, but I am GRATEFUL for the opportunity to be on the stage no matter what I really looked like. It reminds me of just how much the dancers must go through to put themselves out there (oh the nerves) and share their love of dance with their audience. What a delicate balance! 

I still really love to dance but even more I love TEACHING and SHARING this performing art form with my students...

even with all that "SASSY SAUCINESS" they give me in class! ;)

Going to miss teaching these hard working ladies over the summer but looking forward to a good rest before we tackle more exciting challenges next fall!