A great trip to the Dells and my bully

This weekend we joined two other families from our Ethiopia travel group at the Dells. The weekend started off with a bang--a late start, traffic near Janesville, and......Dan forgot to pack the bag with my stuff and the Newbie's stuff in it. While he suggests that we should split the blame 50-50, I disagree. He was the one packing the car, he saw our bag--and the kicker--he's forgotten my bag before. Thankfully there was a very nice outlet mall there and I got everything I needed, including a mom-skirted swimsuit. I am happy to report I took the high road and didn't make a big deal about it, except here on the blog. I didn't want to ruin our weekend by whining. The one issue was that I didn't have my glasses, so once my contacts were out, Dan or one of the girls had to lead me to bed-- I am that blind without corrective lenses. In the morning, they had to hand me the contact case since I couldn't even see it on the nightstand!

I can't describe how amazing it was to be with our travel friends again. To ask questions that I had been wondering about. To see how much the kids have grown, but still are the same. To be with people who remember how sick the Newbie was, and can appreciate her development. To share stories, some not so nice, about what it is like to bring home a baby from Ethiopia. To relax and talk and laugh and remember. The bond we have is very special and I feel blessed that we had the opportunity to spend the weekend together. I am so thankful that the other families had this great idea and chose to invite us! I'm thrilled that this will be an annual event.

All of our kids got along very well, and my big girls have another special friend now. The Newbie was in rare form-- a total ham, dancing it up, loving the water. However, she also started pinching. Not a cute pinch on the cheeks, but quite a menacing pinch and usually not provoked. We had a few naughty chairs and two time-ins. I felt like I was yelling all weekend--not my best mom moment. However, we can be flexible about some things but not causing physical pain. I was embarassed by her behavior and frustrated. Dan thinks that I was taking things to personally and that almost-two-year-olds act out. Probably the truth lies somewhere in the middle of both of our perspectives.

I turned to my adoptive family forum, and they did not disappoint. A quote from one of the moms, "All behavior is communication." I'm going to reflect on that and try and figure out what was going on. Maybe too much vacation laxity and not enough routine. Although, her targets most often were the other adopted kids. Maybe there is something there, maybe not. She did get a time out for pulling out a clump of the Doodle's hair. I put Hoosier Girl on alert, and I'm going to see if the pinching persists.