Smiles All Around

This has been a week of smileyness. I don't think it's a word. But that's okay.

On Tuesday, good friends of ours who started their adoption paperwork not long after we did finally received their referral after a 27-month wait. They'll be traveling to China to pick up their daughter in April. And their daughter is from Chongqing, just like Marcie! She's also enormous, just like Marcie. And by enormous, I mean 17 pounds at 7 months. Off the Chinese charts.

On Wednesday, our kids visited the dentist. It was Casey's third time, but Marcie's first. Casey did a fantastic job letting them take x-rays and sitting still, mouth wide open for the polishing. The hygienist said he was her best behaved patient of the day! The dentist was impressed by the cleanliness of Casey's teeth, and the receptionist seemed surprised that we were walking out the door with two cavity-free children!

Marcie didn't appreciate the dentist experience as much as Casey did. She pretty much screamed tearfully the whole time he was looking in her mouth. Fortunately, screaming forces her mouth open, and that made his job relatively easy. I mean except for the noise and the wiggliness.

After we got home, I took the kids for a walk. At first I thought it was odd that so many people were smiling and laughing as they drove by. Especially male drivers. Then I remembered what Casey was wearing:

He's been wearing this costume in all his non-school time since it arrived on Tuesday (as a reward for 20 good behavior stickers). Even to bed (sans cape because we have a no-cape-to-bed rule-- too easy to get wrapped up and choked up in it). Glad I could provide the neighborhood some cheer.

And then today, we got word that our newest arrival (coming this July or August) will be a nephew. I already knew this unofficially because Jason has this uncanny knack for guessing a child's gender in utero before the 16-week ultra sound, and last week he offhandedly (and unintentionally) referred to the baby as a he. But today's phone call from Jason's sister confirmed it-- it's a boy. So that leaves Marcie with six male cousins. I think it's high time a family member produces a girl around here! Regardless of gender, we're looking forward to welcoming another S. child into the extended family fold. . .