Kerry had her 2 year old checkup today. This was our first visit with a new Pediatric office and we saw the nurse practicioner. She said Kerry appeared to be doing very well developmentally, and at 28 pounds and almost 35 inches, she's now at 75th percentile for height and weight. She got 2 immunizations before we left, poor baby, but as usual she got over it quickly.

We had really beautiful weather today so we spent the rest of the day out doors. Doug and I are both off work on Tuesdays so we typically spend the whole day together as a family. We went to a nearby historic home on the river after her appointment and just let Kerry run and play, which she did happily for about an hour, then she started getting sleepy and was starting to feel some effects from her shots so we went home for a nap. She grabbed her robe and her "babies" ( her latest obsession is her two stuffed pandas, I'll have to post about them later) and laid down on the living room rug. She was out cold in 2 minutes flat. When she woke up her little legs seemed to be hurting her from the shots, so I gave her some M*trin, which really seemed to help. So it was back outside to play in the back yard and feed the fish in our little pond until dinner time. After dinner, you guessed it, it was back outside. This time for a walk around the neighborhood and to her favorite store, the Feeder's S*pply at the end of our street. She's obsessed with the birds, especially the little Indian spice finches that they have. I guess I know what she's going to be asking for in a year or so =).

She's got rhythm!

We had a great time in Florida. The weather was nice, but could have been much warmer for my taste. Kerry did get to take her first trip to the beach, but it was a bit cold to get in the ocean, so she settled for playing and digging in the sand. However she refused to actually walk in it...go figure. Our hotel had a heated outdoor pool and hot tub, so she did get to play in the water quite a bit. She's quite the water-baby. The wedding was absolutely beautiful. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to take any photos since I was in the wedding. I was able to take some from the rest of the week, though along with the above video of Kerry boogie-ing down at the reception =).

Kerry was an excellent traveller. It helped that we packed along some of her favorite toys and my parent's mini-van is equipped with a DVD player so she got to watch her beloved K*i-Lan and D*ra movies.

Cutting loose at a rest stop.

She had fun peeking out of these cut-outs at the Florida welcome center.

My little "Southern Belle". This photo ablsolutely cracks me up!

We stopped somewhere in Georgia on the way down and took and took advantage of the indoor pool before calling it a night. Man, I wish I had her tan!

All of that time in a car can wear a girl out..

Kerry's first beach experience. It might not look like it, but she did have fun.

It's so cute to hear her say "beach" because it sounds exactly like another word when she says it (use your imagination, folks).

There was a great play structure on the beach.


Our hotel provided a crib for us, it reminded me so much of those first days with her in China...ten months ago.

On St. Patricks Day she wore this shirt that this sweet family sent last year, before she was even home =).

At the rehearsal dinner blowing bubbles with sweet little Tarah, who was flower girl in the wedding.

Having some fun around the hotel pool.

And having some fun on the luggage cart.

She was a wild woman at the reception and danced til she dropped. Literally...she was passed out asleep on my shoulder by the end of the reception.

The only picture I got of the Bride and Groom. I've known Jamie for over 25 years and I'm so happy for her and Chris.

See ya next week!

We're heading to the Sunshine State tomorrow for my best friend's wedding. I can't wait to introduce Kerry to the ocean for the first time. There are sure to be lots of pictures to post when we get back =).

Now that Kerry has turned two, I thought I should document all of the things she can do and some of the things that make up her personality now. I warn you, it may be long and rambling but I don't want to forget anything.

She has a vocabulary of 80+ words and is adding to it daily, especially over the last few weeks. She loves to identify objects, people, animals, body parts and then exclaim loudly "dehh-it-iss!" (there it is). It's really cute. This girl is LOUD when she wants to be..always has been. Thats another one of the things that we noticed first about her. She's not really stringing words together yet, but I think it won't be long. She's been getting especially frustrated lately when she can't communicate something to us in words.

She has known a lot of her shapes for months now, but has added a couple more recently. One of her favorite toys has always been her shape sorter, and she can consistently show you the heart, star, circle, square, triangle, rectangle, diamond, oval, and cross. I think she's ready to start learning colors, too, as I've noticed that she can often match two things of the same color now. She likes to "count" things as she puts them away, but every number is five, or "pive" so far.

When we met her at 15 months, she was walking, but I don't think she had been for more than a month or two. She had an adorable little Frankenstein/Zombie type walk. I believe she spent too much time in a walker, so she had the mechanics down, but lacked a bit in balance and core strength. Within a few weeks, that was gone and she now runs steadily, jumps and climbs constantly, and has great balance. Her fine motor skills have always been great. One of the first things we noticed about her was how well she used her hands.

She has a mouthful of pearly whites. Soon after we met her she cut her bottom eye-teeth, and she's currently cutting her bottom "two year" molars. She likes to brush her teeth herself (after Mama's gone at them first, of course). She's always been obsessed with teeth, and not just her own. I can't tell you how many thorough dental examinations we've gotten from her, especially in those first months home.

Her personality has shone through pretty much from the second day with us, but continues to blossom more and more. She's very much a multi-faceted girl. She has a great sense of humor, with the best laugh. She's silly and comical, yet can be very focused and serious about the task at hand, whatever it may be. She can be very her "hard on herself" and gets upset if she doesn't succeed at whatever it is she's attempting. She's always been very observant and can imitate or repeat almost anything she sees us do. We have to be careful what we do around her. Lately she likes to "help" clean. She especially likes to sweep and if she gets a hold of a paper towel, she'll go around wiping things down. She is an absolute bundle of energy....she is on the go all day long. Like I've mentioned before, several times a day she gets so excitable that she starts hopping in place, or she does a little tap dance that we've labeled her "happy feet" routine, all the while just squealing and giggling =).

It's a sight to behold.

She has become more and more affectionate lately. She give us hugs and kisses freely...well...mostly. We have this little game that we sometimes play, not sure how it started out. I'll ask for a hug or kiss, she'll say "no" with a playful little grin which is my cue to say "please?" and then pretend to cry, at which point she giggles and gives me the longed for hug or kiss.

Although she responds readily to Kerry or Kerry Lu, she still calls herself "Ying Ying" (her nickname in the orphanage).

Like any good southern gal, she loves sweet tea.

My girl is 2 years old now! I can hardly believe it. She has grown and changed so much since we met her 8 months ago. She was 15 months old and still a baby in a lot of ways. Not anymore. She is very much "two" and getting more so by the hour it seems. She is so funny and smart and energetic and stubborn and lovable.

Showing off her pretty red dress after church, minus the shoes and stockings which she insists come off the door.

Kerry, Miss A and Makenna

I wasn't able to get as many photos as I would have like because I was pretty busy.

She loved her "Kai L*n" cake.




This little "Whacky Ball" toy was a gift from Makenna and has been a huge hit. And, as you can see, she actually decided to leave her stockings on for a while after her shoes came off last night, probably to prove me wrong =).

I knew we'd been watching too much of the Olympics when Kerry built her own awards podium last night ( when we were supposed to be getting jammies put on).


Today she played with the little wooden train set we got her for a long time. She was sporting some serious nap hair. Jill, I think she's trying to do her best impression of the 'Lilah brows" in this photo.

On another note, just in time for her 2nd birthday, Kerry is cutting her first two year molar this week.