Friday, September 14, 2007
CLUBB FAMILY UPDATE

It seems that the 14th of each month comes faster and faster each month as our days are packed full of adventures and constant changes with Ainsley and Griffin. It feels like we blink and it is update time again!

Among many new highlights we have to share, this past month was filled with a visit from Meme (David’s mom), a trip to the zoo, lots of hikes at North Park, swimming in the summer sun, our first trip to Lancaster, PA to visit Shannon’s side of the family (for a family reunion nonetheless!), and much more.

Meme’s visit came at just the right time as David was in one of the busiest times of year at work. Meme’s help with the kids during this time was much appreciated and needed. We went to the zoo over Labor Day weekend when the weather here in Pittsburgh was just gorgeous. Ainsley and Griffin really had little interest in most of the animals though! Griffin loved watching the utility trucks pass us by and Ainsley liked watching the other people! They both seemed to enjoy the fish in the aquarium the best of all.

Ainsley turned 17 months old on September 5th. She continues to keep us (and herself!) very entertained. Her vocabulary is increasing daily and some of her current favorites are baby, uh-oh, all gone, hot, "mmmuh" (milk), "bah" for back (as in “Put your toys back!”), bye-bye, eye (and points to her and/or your eye), and more. She also discovered shaking her head “no” as well as the occasional “yes,” but she seems to favor “no.” She has attached herself to her baby doll and pretty much takes her everywhere. She laughs hysterically when she finds we have put her baby in funny places like Griffin’s bouncy seat, standing on her head, in the high chair, etc. She took her baby in the bathtub with her one night and got her drenched, so we had to take the clothes off and let them dry out for a few days. In the meantime, when we tried to give Ainsley her doll with no clothes, she just shook her head “no.” A few days later when the doll was dressed again, Ainsley picked her up and kissed her three times and they have been inseparable since! She continues to mimic much of what we do too – putting lotion on, getting dressed, burping Griffin, and more. One of her favorite “games” right now is to spin round and round and then stop and catch her balance by staring at the floor (watching it spin we assume).
 

Finally, in Lancaster Ainsley also learned some motions to the songs “Head and Shoulders, Knees and Toes” and “Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed.” She most enjoys pointing her finger and shaking it when the doctor says “no more monkeys jumping on the bed!” The list goes on and on with the things she is learning and doing and saying. It’s amazing to see her grow and change. And it is still so hard to believe that only a little more than five months ago she was in an orphanage in China! It is still so surreal at times. We constantly have to remind ourselves of how much this cute little girl has overcome as she continues to develop into a strong, adventurous, full-of-love little girl! So precious!

Griffin turned 6 months old on September 9th. – HALF of a YEAR! Time is flying by and it is hard to keep up with all the new skills Griffin is learning. One of his biggest achievements this past month is starting to crawl. Even though he is not 100% there yet, he is still pretty fast. He gets up on all fours, rocks around, and scoots along the floor, but it is not yet the fine art of crawling. He still loves Bosco and, in fact, even as this is being typed he is on the floor surrounded by toys and yet is still making a beeline for Bosco. Lucky for us, Bosco is so easy-going because both kids have discovered what fun it can be to sit on him, pull his hair, pat him (saying “ahhh”), kiss him, and play with his feet (something Bosco has never liked!). Of course, Ainsley makes up for it by giving Bosco his treats. But, back to Griffin…he can sit up by himself when leaning on his hands (they call this the tripod), blow raspberries, put weight on his legs, and scoot/”crawl” all over the place looking at toys. He seems to most enjoy inspecting the wheels on Ainsley’s doll stroller, walker, and shopping cart! He is content in his Exersaucer and absolutely LOVES his “Johnny-jump-up,” which is a contraption that hangs from a doorframe and he sits in. It enables him to jump and play with the gadgets that are on it as well. He jumps like crazy and when he gets to the point of being tired, he starts crying but can’t seem to make himself stop jumping! He is such a jumping bean now that tries to jump while we’re holding him on our laps now. One of the funniest and strangest things is that Griffin loves when Shannon sings him a line from some country song - “The Boot Scootin’ Boogie!” For some reason (and don’t ask her why) Shannon sang the main line of this song to him one night and he laughed. From that point on, no matter when, where, why, or how, if you sing that line, he will give you his biggest smile! Family and friends – come on up and visit and see for yourself!
 

 You may recall that back in July we went to court in Pennsylvania to finalize the re-adoption process for Ainsley, a step made necessary since David traveled to China without Shannon. After waiting many weeks now, we finally received in the mail not long ago the Pennsylvania Certificate of Adoption, as well as Ainsley’s Pennsylvania birth certificate. We now have all the documentation we need to apply for proof of US citizenship for Ainsley. We have completed almost all of the paperwork required and hope to submit the application to the US Citizenship & Immigration Services in the next few weeks. Once they approve her application, she will receive proof of her US citizenship, which will then enable her to apply for a US passport! And she will need it because we have more trips outside of the US planned for October and December! We are excited that all of these complex and time-consuming paperwork processes are nearing an end.