More Pictures from the Baby Shower

Couldn't fit these pictures on the previous post.

Isla playing with her new toys.

Isla before bed time after a happy day!

Isla Baby Shower

Thanks again to Julia, Maxine and Jen for hosting and putting together a wonderful baby shower. And also thanks to everyone for coming, it was wonderful to see you all and introduce you to Isla!

Thank you very much for all the generous gifts.

Julia's house was the perfect place to have a gathering of adults and kids and the selection of delicious things to eat was well... delicious.

Here are some pictures from the day!

Isla giving her puppy some loving kisses.

Isla showing momma how easy it is to stack blocks

Macho men at the baby shower.

Olivia the gift bearer

Isla and family opening gifts

A couple pictures

Here are a couple from this evening. Hi to all Isla's friends! Love, Isla, Barb and Will

First Week Home

We are just at the end of our first week home. What a great week it has been and a great week to get through!

Isla has done really well with the time change. It was very hard at first keeping up with her through the nights but as of last night she finally slept through the night... even though her parents didn't manage too. Baba is still trying to adjust to the time change after the night shifts and momma was so worried since Isla wasn't stirring that she kept checking on her. Ha!

We took Isla skiing for her second time today. No, it is not what you are thinking. We went for a short cross country ski and Isla followed in the Chariot. She still seems more stunned than happy in the Chariot but she doesn't cry or protest and sleeps most of the time and gets out happy and refreshed.

This is Baba's favorite picture of Isla and Momma to date!

We had her physical this week and all was well. Not too much else to report new. Oh, just tonight she started to feed herself crackers! That is huge since as of two weeks ago she would not put anything but her thumb in her mouth and had never had solid foods.

She is still marching her parents around the house (though we have put the squeaky shoes aside so she walks without stomping every step). Her parent think (and hope for their backs sake) that she will be walking solo in a couple weeks time.

Hope everyone is well. Love from Isla, Momma and Baba.

First Days Home

We are slowly getting settled into our new routine! It is challenging to get used to a new time zone along with so many other changes!! During the past few days, Isla has been slowly adjusting. We are ALL hoping for a more typical night of sleep tonight.

We have tried to expose her to more sunshine during the day to assist her adjustment, but as you can see from the pictures, "sunshine" has been hard to come by. Isla seems interested in the snow, however, and tolerates the cold well. She had her first ride in her "Chariot" today (thanks SSGK). She mostly looked stunned, but I think she will eventually enjoy it.

Isla is really seeming confident in her new home. She loves walking (with both hands held). We have a perfect area to do "laps" and Isla continues to improve her endurance while testing the endurance of her parents. She is also able to sit and play on her own for short periods. This is a great improvement as now we can actually prepare meals or fold laundry while she is happily playing.

Isla is finding her carseat and high-chair quite interesting. Luckily, she seems to be getting used to them. Her appetite continues to be good, and her new favorite is sweet potatoes. The canned mandarin oranges seem to be an ok substitute for the fresh ones in China. And cheese flavored crackers are really fun to crunch with Isla's front teeth!

Tomorrow is our first appointment with our pediatrician. Better get some sleep while we can!!

Love to all,

Isla, Barb, & Will

Back Home!

We made it home! Isla did amazing on the flights and seems to be handling the lack of sleep really well.



Isla and baba are currently passing the night hours with some bottles and play time. As to be expected Isla started waking up when we finally got to go to sleep. Mom will be taking the day shift so she is currently sleeping.

We got home and found that our neighbors cleared all the snow from our house while we were gone. A huge help. Thanks!

We haven't taken any picture except for the one with Isla and Mom outside her new home. We were really surprised to see that she seems completely comfortable here. She is crawling more than we have seen before and smiling and laughing readily. We promise more pictures soon. Love to all.



Isla and mom hanging out in Hong Kong waiting for the 'big' flight.



Mom and Isla playing during flight.

Baba and Isla sleeping in San Fransisco.

Last post from China

Well this is our last post from China. It makes us sad to leave but was are also very happy to bring Isla to her new home. The last three weeks where amazing to say the least. We went from traveling in rural China as childless climbers to parents!
Today we all went to the US Consulate where Isla received her Chinese passport with a visa for the US! We included a picture of her investigating the passport for correctness.
Sorry but we did not take many pictures today so there are only two for the blog. Isla is sharing the chair with her friend Leanna who is also from the Guangdong province and met her family on the same day.
We have lots of packing up to do now for our early departure! Can't wait to introduce you all to our new daughter! Next post will be from home sweet home!
Love,
The Jones'