She's going to be a great Jie Jie

We got this email from Maeve's daycare today:

Hi Patrick & Kathleen,

We just wanted to let you know how much we enjoy having Maeve here.

{Maeve's teacher} came to tell me what a great friend Maeve is. She told me a super cute story about what Maeve did this morning. One of her friends got dropped off this morning and was really sad. Maeve got out some markers, paper and pulled out a chair and invited her friend to colour with her. It was really sweet to see how she was trying to make her friend feel better. What a mother hen. :-) {Maeve's teacher} also mentioned that Maeve has been working very hard at tracing her name. We are all so very proud of her. It has been so great to see her grow and develop.

Have a great day
{Daycare Manager}

That's our girl! She is going to take great care of her Mei Mei Elspeth.

Family Fun

Earlier this month we had visits from Popo and GungGung, and Aunty Evelyn and Cousin Robyn. Maeve was thrilled to spend time with relatives whom she doesn't get to see very often.

We also took a road trip up to Caledon to help Robyn's Oma Renate celebrate her 70th birthday. Maeve was her usual shy self with Evelyn's family, but she had a great time playing with Robyn.

Her favorite game? Pulling Robyn around in a wagon. No wonder her foster family nicknamed her zhuang zhuang (which means strong; robust).


Maybe giving them big mallets wasn't a great idea...but at least they didn't hit any people with them.
Hanging out with Popo and Gunggung
Let's dig down to China to find my Mei Mei
Uhhhh, you're braver...you go first.
If you look closely, there are 2 rainbows in this photo. They appeared to help us celebrate Oma Renate's birthday.

Catching up with Eli

On July 4th we took a little road trip to Toronto for the annual FOI picnic. It was wonderful to see Yulin and Bob again and catch up with other friends. The biggest treat was meeting up with Maeve's Xinyu sister Elizabeth, her sister Katie, Aggie and Rob. Maeve was a little shy at first, but soon she was following Eli everywhere.

It was great to see you guys! Hope you enjoyed the rest of your vacation.

The girls check out a princess bride.
Maeve, Eli, Kaelin (a friend from Katie's adoption group), Katie
The Xinyu sisters sharing a moment
Say cheese girls!

Quiet Canada Day

Ok, I know this little late... Here are some photos from our quiet Canada Day. It rained in the morning and then was overcast all afternoon. The local Canada Day celebrations are in a grassy field, so we decided against checking them out in case it was all wet and muddy.

So we took a nice walk to the local park and then on to Starbucks for a treat.

That night PoPo and GungGung arrived for a visit. Maeve got to stay up late and watch the fireworks display, which we can see from her bedroom window.

Happy 3rd Canada Day Maevey!



Look there's a spot on this plane for my new MeiMei!