Photos: Hair Dryer

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Mom blow drying Lydia's hair after Lydia's bath.

Up until last week, Lydia was afraid of the hair dryer, so SiowFong used a towel to dry Lydia's hair as much as she could; then she allowed it to air dry.

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For seven and a half months, whenever SiowFong used the hair dryer to dry her own hair, Lydia would stand in the bathroom and watch her mom. When her mom turned the hair dryer towards Lydia, she would rush out of the room. Then a week ago when SiowFong did that, Lydia did not scamper out from the room, and ever since then, SiowFong has been using the hair dryer to dry Lydia's hair.



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Lydia standing still while her mother blow dries her hair.

Within the last few days, following Lydia's bath, SiowFong asks Lydia if she wants to have her hair dried. Then Lydia goes to the cabinet, opens it, and brings out the hair dryer for her mom.


Note: All of these images were taken in the upper bathroom of our home on August 12, 2007.

Fascination with Mechanical Things

August 17, 2007


Fascination with Mechanical Things


Following the playgroup, we stopped at a nearby Vietnamese produce store to buy fruits and vegetables. While SiowFong and I were turning our attention to the food, Lydia focused her interest on studying the refrigeration system that cooled the produce.

SiowFong witnessed that after Lydia heard noise from a chest refrigeration system, she squatted to discover the origin of the noise, then walked around the entire cooling unit four or five times to study it, and kept pointing at it while uttering “ooh, ooh, ooh” like a monkey. (Instead of Curious George, we have Curious Lydia.) When she bent down again, she saw some water trickling from a pipe, and more “ooh, oohs” resulted. Later she found an upright refrigeration system that was emitting hot air. She touched the hot air with her hand, and then she moved her hand through it.

Lydia enjoys trying to learn how things work. With her plastic lawnmower, for example, she likes turning it upside down and studying the screws that hold it together. Another longstanding example is her fascination with the latches and seat belts of the child car seats.

Photos: Green Lake Wading Pool

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Lydia observing other children

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Lydia dipping her feet into the wading pool while sitting on its ledge

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Lydia playing with a large multicolored ball.

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Lydia playing with her pink rubber duck.

Note: SiowFong took all of these pictures on August 15, 2007 around noon at Green Lake's Wading Pool, the largest wading pool in our area.

The End of an Era

August 17, 2007


The End of An Era

This morning was the last time that Iwen Chiu led a CISC playgroup. The event began as usual with arts and crafts time. Today’s project involved fashioning an oyster from pipe cleaner, two soft rubber cutouts in the shape of an oyster, a faux pearl, two eyes, and half of a seashell from a clam using glue and staples.

After introductions, music time, and story time, Iwen asked the children to gather around a small table (approximately 30 inches long, 18 inches wide, and 18 inches high), on which she placed a large chafer of homemade cupcakes. (I later asked her when she had time to make the cupcakes, and she replied that she arose at 5:00 AM this morning to bake them so that they would be fresh.) She announced that the cupcakes were for celebrating every child’s birthday today.

Then she asked the children to wash their hands in preparation for snack time, but instead of crackers or raisins, today’s snacks were those cupcakes. While the children were enjoying their cupcakes, Iwen distributed her second surprise, a bag of gifts for each child. In each gift bag were the following: a small memo pad, stickers, a small soft toy, a pen, and another toy.

The parents, grandparents, and children will miss Iwen dearly, but Iwen made today a memorable time for all and a special occasion for the children because of her two surprises, those homemade cupcakes and gift bags.

Photos: Lydia and Doll

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Lydia carrying Belle, a Disney Princess doll that Nelly Wee, her cousin,

gave to her when she was in Malaysia in June 2007.

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Lydia gazing at Belle, who is sitting on her lap.

(These shots are among some of SiowFong's favorites, so she asked me to post them tonight.)

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Lydia kissing Belle.

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Lydia cradling Belle again.

(Kids act fast; Lydia did all of these actions within the same minute.)


Note: All of the above photos were taken at 8:52 PM on July 30, 2007.

Photo notes: Many of the photos taken of Lydia in our home required that one parent remain close to her while the other parent took the picture. Such was the case here as SiowFong sat about two feet away from Lydia while I photographed Lydia.

Kids sometimes look their best about a half hour after they have taken their baths
(e.g. after their hair has dried).

To light the scene, a single flash was mounted on a lightstand with an attached 43 inch in diameter white, umbrella to the left of the camera that was positioned to cover Lydia's height and located about three feet away from Lydia. The light from the flash was shot through the umbrella, which softened the light before it reached Lydia. Because the flash unit can take up to 5 seconds to recharge fully, a portable battery unit was connected to the flash so that it could recharge completely in one second. This fast recharging time allows indoor, low light sequence shots like these to be done.

In addition, because the camera and the lens were mounted on a 2-inch high tabletop tripod before any shots were taken, the framing for the pictures was pretty much complete, which made it easy to focus on Lydia's interactions with Belle and then snap pictures as needed.

Drawing a Circle

August 15, 2007


Drawing A Circle

Tonight Ann Lawrence, our social worker, came to our home for dinner at 6:45 PM. SiowFong prepared a tasty meal that included stir-fried shrimp with sugar snap peas, stir-fried chicken breast slices with mushrooms and ginger, and steamed white rice. After the main meal concluded and before dessert was served, Ann spent about a half an hour to forty-five minutes with SiowFong and Lydia in the living room while I was washing the dishes. During that time, Lydia demonstrated to Ann how much she loves her soft animal toys as she held, hugged, and snuggled with some of them. Later SiowFong asked Lydia to show Ann the body parts that she knew in Spanish. Lydia was able to point correctly to most of them, including her head, ear, eye, nose, mouth, neck, shoulder, fingers, fingernail, back, leg, ankle, and foot, but Lydia did not know the body parts in Spanish corresponding to knee and elbow. In addition, SiowFong asked Lydia to use the Fisher Price magnet doodle tablet to draw a circle, and Lydia did just that, to which Ann replied, “That’s a good circle for this age.”

(Note: Auntie Janice helped to teach Lydia how to draw a circle during her recent visit at our home.)

Photos: Mink Fur and Shopping

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With her rattan handbag in her left hand and with a 32-inch long, lavendar fur scarf with a teddy bear on one end around her neck, Lydia looks like she is ready to go shopping.

Her auntie MayLee who lives in Melbourne, Australia and who enjoys shopping

gave her both of those gifts, which auntie Janice and uncle Tony brought for Lydia when they visited us last week.

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Lydia trying a new position with her handbag



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Lydia walking around with the scarf draped around her neck.

Photo note: Bounced flash was used in all three images. In this picture, the flash was aimed towards a wall located to the left of the camera. In the other two pictures above, the flash was aimed at the ceiling.


Note: All pictures were taken on August 9, 2007 in the living room of our home.

Green Lake Wading Pool

August 15, 2007


Green Lake Wading Pool


The largest outdoor wading pool in town is the a kidney shaped one that is located at Green Lake that measures approximately 60 feet in length, 30 feet in width, and six inches (at the periphery) to nine inches (at the center) in depth. This wading pool is also the cleanest in the area because during each evening, the entire contents of the pool are drained, and the pool is refilled the next morning. Because of those factors, many parents routinely bring their preschool-aged children to play in this shallow body of water. Today approximately sixty children were playing in the pool, and because of its size, every child had ample playing space.

After surveying the wading pool earlier this week, SiowFong and Lydia returned there at 11:15 AM today so that Lydia could play in the pool. Dressed in her long sleeve, aquamarine swimsuit (a gift from Frank Poon and Wee Kao) with her head shaded by her sky blue hat, Lydia enjoyed her hour of water play on a day of full sun with not cloud in the skies. During that time, she observed other parents with their children, walked in and around the pool, splashed in the water, and played with a large colorful inflatable ball that someone had brought. When Lydia returned to the car, she giggled with delight because of all the fun that she had experienced this morning.

Photos: Prisoner in the House

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Lydia standing in the upper landing area next to the gate.

Two families are responsible for this gate's presence. The first are the Wallaces as Phil and Alison gave us their extra wide wooden gate after their two boys, Kelvin and Rohan, outgrew it. The second are the Cranes as Al did most of the work to install the gate for us last December.

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Lydia wondering why her dad is not coming up the stairs.

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A close-up shot of Lydia

Note: All of these pictures were taken in the upper stairs and upper landing area of our home.

Photo note: Flash was not used for any of these images.

Bothell Visit

August 14, 2007


Bothell Visit

New places and new faces could be the theme of Lydia’s experiences during August. Today was a visit to SiowFong’s second workplace in Bothell as she brought Lydia to visit her coworkers in Bothell this morning at 10:00 AM.

Lydia enjoyed herself as she played with two stuffed dogs which Cheryl, one of SiowFong’s colleagues, loaned to her. After her snack at 10:30 AM, she focused her interest on the computer and phone on her mom’s desk, so while her mother was speaking with Cheryl, Lydia was pressing the buttons on both of those electronic devices, mimicking what she does at home with our landline phone. Later Cheryl let Lydia borrow a handheld calculator, whose buttons Lydia enjoyed pressing.

Near noon, Lydia and SiowFong ate lunch with her coworkers at a nearby restaurant. According to her mother, Lydia behaved well.

Photos: Bhagwandins

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Leila Bhagwandin and Lydia looking at Sarah Bhagwandin (who is not in the picture)

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Lydia, Sam Bhagwandin, and Leila playing together

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Leila and Lydia playing with a really BIG dog.

This brown and white stuffed dog makes Lydia's pink stuffed dog seem like a puppy by comparison.

Note: SiowFong took all of these pictures on August 13, 2007 in the living room at the Bhagwandin home in Seattle, WA.

Visit with the Bhagwandins

August 13, 2007


Visit with the Bhagwandins

One common theme of parents who adopt children from China is that most go there in groups to finalize the adoptions of their child(ren). Since the process in China takes two weeks, the people in these groups get to know each other, and many become friends; as a result, after everybody returns to the states, a number of families within these groups continue to try to get together, particularly if they live close to each other. Four families comprised our group, and one of them included Bryon, Sarah, Sam, and Leila Bhagwandin.

SiowFong and Lydia visited the Sarah, Sam, and Leila Bhagwandin in their home this morning from 9:30 AM until 11:00 AM. SiowFong discovered from Sarah that Leila has a hearty appetite. For example, with respect to breakfast, Leila routinely consumes two hard boiled eggs easily and if she is hungry, she eats three of them! (Lydia is doing well if she can eat one hard boiled egg for breakfast. Compared to Chelsya Cochran and Leila, who are also 19 months of age, Lydia is the smallest of the three.) With respect to her speech development, Leila has not yet begun to talk. Finally, because Sarah is working two and a half days a week in her job as an employee benefits lawyer and because Bryon works out of state for two weeks each month for a start-up biotechnology company (thus making Sarah a single mother for half the month), Leila has had few opportunities to experience life outside the home.

In her role as a guest, Lydia behaved cordially today. For the much of their time together, while their mothers conversed, Lydia and Leila played without conflict. When Leila expressed discontent that Lydia was playing with one of her toys, SiowFong then asked Lydia to relinquish it to Leila, and Lydia immediately obeyed. Near the end of the visit, when SiowFong asked Lydia to give Leila a hug, Lydia hugged her.

Photos: Mount Rainier, Lydia and Bear

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Lydia gazing at the wodden bear.

In the lobby of the lodge just several feet from the front desk is a wooden bear statue. When Lydia saw it, she immediately headed towards it to examine it.

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Squealing with delight, Lydia is getting ready to touch the bear.

SiowFong and I think that one reason why Lydia loves bears is because she loves stuffed animals, and several of her favorites are bears. In addition, she enjoys seeing picture books, and many of these children's books for toddlers feature bears as main characters in their stories.



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With her right hand on the bear statue, Lydia looks at mom, auntie Janice, and uncle Tony who are not in the picture but who are standing at the hotel's check in area.


Note: All of these pictures were taken on Friday, August 10, 2007 between 2:10 PM and 2:12 PM in the lobby of the National Park Inn, where we stayed that night, at Longmire, which is part of Mount Rainier National Park.

Staying Connected

August 12, 2007


Staying Connected

This afternoon we said goodbye to Tony and Janice at the airport as they began their journey home to Melbourne, Australia. Prior to this week, the last time we saw them both was in 2004 when we visited them in Melbourne. If they do not make a return visit to America or Malaysia (during the time we are there visiting the rest of the Wee family) in the next several years, we may not see them until 2014, the year that we are tentatively planning to make a return visit to their home in “The Land Down Under”.

Until then, we will continue to rely on and use 21st century technology to stay connected to them and other loved ones who reside thousands of miles away through a variety of methods, including but not limited to emails, phone calls, letters, photo CDs, and DVDs (filled with home video).

On a related note, we thank those of you who have communicated to us through whatever method(s) you have employed during the last eight months since Lydia’s blog became operational. We enjoy hearing from you and learning about what is happening in your life.

Photos: Opening Aussie Gifts

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Lydia, who is attired in a pink, furry bear scarf that is wrapped around her neck, tries wearing a bracelet on her right hand, which her auntie Janice is placing there. Her uncle Tony is looking at something on a piece of paper. Both the scarf and bracelet are gifts from Lydia's aunt, MayLee.

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Auntie Janice preparing to present Lydia with two books that she and uncle Tony gave to Lydia. These two books are The Big Book of Colours, Shapes, and Opposites by Mary Novick and Sybel Harlin and My Animals ABC: A Moving Pictures Book by Garry Fleming. Uncle Tony is getting ready to give Lydia a Westin Kids Club bag.




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Auntie Janice handing Lydia a rattan handbag, another present from Lydia's auntie MayLee.


Note: SiowFong took all of these pictures on August 7, 2007 in the living room of our home.

Quotable Quotes

August 12, 2007


Quotable Quotes


It is always interesting to see life from another person’s perspective. During the six days when Tony and Janice were visiting us, they voiced some memorable comments. Below are a few of them.

After accompanying SiowFong and Lydia to local grocery stores and warehouse stores, including Costco and Sam’s Club, Lydia’s aunt Janice kept saying, “Everything is big in America.” Some examples that Janice pointed out were the wider roads and the much bigger food packages.

After eating meals at a few Chinese restaurants in the area, Lydia’s uncle Tony and her aunt Janice remarked, “Food is so cheap here,” and they added that similar dishes in Australia cost anywhere from 50 % to 100 % more in price. For instance, a dish of stir-fried vegetables costs between $ 12 and $ 15, and any dish with shrimp is around $ 20. I replied that we who live in America just do not realize how good we have it compared to the rest of the world, even first world countries like Australia. As Lydia grows up, SiowFong and I hope that she will recognize what a privilege it is to live in the United States and that she will respond regularly and generously to those many around the world who are much less fortunate than she.

Uncle Tony jokingly called Lydia the “kimchee girl” because according to him, Lydia’s face resembles that of a typical Korean toddler. Another potential reason why he gave her that nickname was that he discovered that Lydia liked spicy food. He had given Lydia some potato chips made with Jalapeno and labeled as “Hot” to eat, and although Lydia contorted her mouth somewhat as she was eating them, she consumed them and then asked for more.

Photos: Mount Rainier, Family

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Lydia and dad

The Skyline Trail to Myrtle Falls

August 10, 2007 at 5:08 PM

Photographer: SiowFong Wee

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Mount Rainier as seen from the back porch area of the National Park Inn at Longmire

August 11, 2007 at 9:36 AM




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Dad, mom, and Lydia sitting atop a log bench at a viewpoint on the Nisqually Vista Trail.

August 11, 2007 at 11:57 AM

Photographer: Janice Chai




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Mount Rainier as seen from Reflection Lakes

August 11, 2007 at 1:21 PM



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Mom carrying Lydia with dad in the back
(The background shows some of the wildflower-covered meadows and other mountains around Mount Rainier.)

Skyline Trail to Myrtle Falls

August 10, 2007

Photographer: Janice Chai

Camera: Janice's Canon G3 Powershot


Notes: All of these photos were taken at Mount Rainier National Park.

Except for the last picture, all of them were taken with the Sony HDR-SR1 camcorder.

Mount Rainier National Park, Part 2

August 11, 2007


Mount Rainier National Park, Part 2


Following breakfast and check out at the National Park Inn, we left Longmire and headed for Paradise, which is where many of the park’s popular trails originate. In contrast to the previous day, which had partly to mostly cloudy weather, this Saturday revealed blue, cloudless skies.

On the way to Paradise, SiowFong slowed and then stopped the car when she saw a doe grazing near the road. After the doe saw the car, it slowly crossed the road, and another doe that had been camouflaged in the brush bounded across the road also.

After reaching Paradise at 10:30 AM, we were fortunate to find one last available parking space in front of the Henry Jackson Visitors Center, where we spent the next hour.

After leaving the Visitors Center, we drove to the next parking area that is closer to the trailheads. We selected another trail rated as an easy hike, an asphalt-paved route that is suitable for families with young children and strollers, called the Nisqually Vista Trail, a 1.2 mile round-trip trek with 200 feet of elevation gain and an average hiking time of 45 minutes.

Unlike the Skyline Trail to Myrtle Falls, whose entire path is exposed to the sun’s rays, the Nisqually Vista Trail mainly passes through forested areas, so we enjoyed good protection from the sun and cooler temperatures during our walk. One disadvantage of the forest compared to the open meadows of the Skyline Trail was the presence of mosquitoes. Although she wore her blue baseball hat with coverage of her ears and neck, Lydia quickly sustained three mosquito bites to her forehead at the start of the hike. Fortunately her uncle Tony and aunt Janice packed some mosquito repellent with a pleasant aroma that they had brought from Australia, which Lydia received, and the mosquitoes did not bother her again for the rest of the morning. Once again Lydia was most interested in examining the wildflowers, so SiowFong paused her stroller so that Lydia could see and touch them. At various viewpoints, we clearly saw Mount Rainier towering over the surrounding landscape. By 12:30 PM, an hour after we began, we had completed the hike.

Before we returned home, we made one final stop inside the park, which was to see Reflection Lakes. This trip was the first US national park visit for Uncle Tony, Aunt Janice, and Lydia, and they thoroughly enjoyed their experience.

Photos: Uncle Tony and Aunt Janice

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Auntie Janice helping Lydia draw something on Lydia's Fisher Price Magnet Doodle toy

Living room of our home

August 9, 2007

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Auntie Janice, Lydia, and Uncle Tony

Kitchen of our home

August 9, 2007



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Uncle Tony reading to Lydia

Living room of our home

August 9, 2007




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Aunt Janice next to Lydia, who is in her stroller, while Uncle Tony is behind the stroller

Skyline Trail to Myrtle Falls
Mount Rainier National Park

August 10, 2007

"Can You Leave Her As A Tip?"

August 11, 2007


National Park Inn

Since the larger, busier Paradise Inn is closed for renovations, we stayed Friday night at the only available hotel inside the park, the National Park Inn, at Longmire, which is located six miles from the southwest entrance to Mount Rainier National Park.

Described as a “small but nice two-story wooden lodge with twenty-five overnight rooms. . .the inn is at an altitude of 2,700 feet, surrounded by an old-growth forest of Douglas fir, western red cedar, and western hemlock. National Park Inn retains the character of an early 1900s lodge even though the building has been completely modernized. . .

The twenty-five rooms. . .are very different in terms of size, beds, and bathrooms. In general, the rooms are comfortable but small. Two suites each have two rooms, one room with a double bed and the other with two twin beds. [We stayed in one of the suites with a private bathroom.] All of the rooms have heat, window fans, coffeemakers, [and] hair dryers. . .but no air conditioning, telephone, or television.” (Source: David Scott and Kay Scott. The Complete Guide to National Park Lodges. The Globe Pequot Press: 2006. pages 179-180.)

[Tip: For anyone visiting a US national park, booking lodging inside the park usually is the best idea because this is a tremendous timesaver during one’s visit to the park.]


“Can You Leave Her As A Tip?”

Outside of Yosemite, Yellowstone, and the Grand Canyon, all of which have an assortment of cafeterias and restaurants, the other US national parks have much more limited dining options. At Mount Rainier National Park, the only place serving food is the restaurant on the first floor at the National Park Inn.

For dinner on Friday night, we ate there. For breakfast on Saturday, we did the same.

During the breakfast, we noticed that a number of the other patrons were observing Lydia and our interactions with her. At the end of our meal, while Vicki, our waitress, was giving us the bill, she glanced at Lydia and asked, “Can you leave her as a tip?” Laughter erupted from our table as we responded to her question.

Photos: Kiwi Fruits

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Auntie Janice (whose hands are shown on the right) shows Lydia how to scoop out the golden kiwi, which is named for its yellow pulp. Kiwi is quite common in Australia, where Uncle Tony and Auntie Janice live. Tonight was the first time that Lydia ate kiwi.

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Lydia spooning some kiwi into her mouth with her left hand while her right hand clutches the fruit. After finishing the first half of the golden kiwi, Lydia asked for more, and she eventually ate the entire piece of fruit.

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Lydia concentrates while digging out the kiwi with her spoon.

Among the different food groups, Lydia definitely prefers vegetables and fruits.

Note: All pictures were taken on August 9, 2007 around 7:30 PM in the dining room of our home.

Mount Rainier National Park, Part 1

August 10, 2007


Mount Rainier National Park, Part 1


SiowFong, Lydia, Tony, Janice, and I left this morning on a road trip to spend two days at Mount Rainier National Park.

“An enormous active volcano, Mount Rainier soars to 14,411 feet, towering over nearby peaks in the Cascade Range by more than 8,000 feet. Often hidden by clouds, the mountain’s isolated, ice-clad profile dominates the landscape for 100 miles in every direction on clear days. Its 25 major glaciers, spread over 35 square miles, comprise the largest mass of permanent ice on any mountain in the lower 48 states. Below its shining photogenic crown, the slopes are carpeted by lush subalpine meadows renowned for their displays of wildflowers during summer. Various forest types sheath the middle slopes and foothills of the mountain, including temperate rainforests with giant specimens of Douglas-fir, western red cedar, Sitka spruce, and mountain hemlock soaring 25 stories. Adding to these attractions are white water streams and rivers, cascades, waterfalls, lakes, and tarns, and a confiding menagerie of alpine birds and mammals. . .

More than 2,000,000 visitors enjoy the park each year. . .July and August are also the best times for shooting due to the display of subalpine wildflowers, one of the most impressive in North America. . .September is the next best month when the waning wildflower show is invigorated by colorful displays of autumn foliage.” (Source: Tim Fitzharris. National Park Photography. AAA Publishing: 2002. page 121.)

After lunch, we officially entered the national park and checked into our hotel room at the National Park Inn at Longmire. Then we drove to Paradise and began our trek on the Skyline Trail to Myrtle Falls, a familiar trail rated as an easy hike that is a 1 mile round-trip experience with a 100 feet elevation gain. The average hiking time for the Skyline Trail to Myrtle Falls is 35 minutes, and we completed our leisurely walk in an hour.

Since the Skyline Trail is one that is paved with asphalt, SiowFong and Tony took turns pushing the stroller while Lydia sat and leaned forward in it to observe the scenery. During the hike, Janice took photographs with her reliable Canon G3 Powershot digital point and shoot camera while I was videotaping our time together.

Lydia especially enjoyed seeing the wildflowers. When she was tired of sitting in the stroller, Lydia walked holding onto her mother’s hand with one hand and holding onto the stroller with her other hand. If she saw a wildflower close to the path, Lydia would stop to look and to touch it. Another thing that fascinated Lydia was the stream that fed Myrtle Falls. She paused at the edge of the bridge that spanned the stream, and then she tugged her mother’s arm to communicate to SiowFong that she wanted to go into the stream; however, we firmly said no, and Lydia relented.