Holiday Letter 2007

Ni hao friends and family,

As always, Travis and I hope this letter finds you and your family happy and healthy this holiday season…

I’m sure most of you know already, we had a little girl on June 28th, 2007. Her name is Gabriella Sophia Tebo and she’s awesome. At the risk of sounding cheesy- I have to say that creating life has been the best thing Travis and I have ever done. Parenthood has brought a lot of joy and challenges, but we wouldn’t take it back for the world. We love being parents and have a good routine worked out and feel like things are pretty balanced between work, home, and our social life. Gabby is hitting all the developmental milestones, and as healthy as can be. She was diagnosed with acid reflux in September but we got her some medication and all is well. As of right now, she’s 5 ½ months old. She’s laughing, smiling, scooting around on the floor, and grabbing at everything and promptly sticking it in her mouth. It’s been especially fun watching her personality unfold… so far she seems to be rather social and likes to be active- when we introduce to other babies she pumps her arms and legs and gets all excited. We’ve also learned that she doesn’t like to be bored and can be a drama queen. When she gets tired of whatever she’s doing, she’ll start to cry and push away whatever toy she’s playing with. People ask me if she’s a good baby and I have nothing to compare it to because this is my first one but I’ve been told by other people that she’s a “happy baby,” so I’ll take that. Everyday she does something new and we look forward to watching her grow and learn.

Check out the most recent pictures of Gabby: www.joyshare.com/sites/Gabriella

I had ten weeks off for maternity leave, so Gabby and I flew to Washington when she was seven weeks old to visit friends and family for a month and a half from the end of August to October. It was sort of a last minute decision but was needed after a long, humid summer in Beijing. The time went by really fast, but we got to see a lot of people including my brother and his wife who live in Boston. Gabby got to meet her cousins for the first time, Stuart (19 ½ months) and Emerson (4), which was fun to watch. Travis came down for two weeks and all three of us flew home together. Gabby did a pretty good job traveling, which is important because she will be doing a lot of it during her lifetime!

Travis and I are still living and working in Beijing, China. We decided to stay again next year and have no plans on moving back to the United States any time soon. Travis is completing his school administration internship through Western Washington University and will be done with everything in June. He’s been incredibly busy putting in hours to make this experience rewarding. He’s finding the challenges of running a school enjoyable and we’re both looking forward to him finding an assistant principal job overseas in the near future. As for me, I went back to work at the end of October but I can’t complain because I had four months off. Leaving Gabby as I went back to work was tough, but I was prepared for that. We have a caregiver (or ayi), named Chen, who loves Gabby as if she were her own child. I totally trust her and I know she’ll be well taken care of, so that relieves a lot of the worry. I’m still plugging away at my college counseling certificate through UCLA and should be done after I complete my internship next fall. The classes aren’t difficult, it’s just time consuming.

China continues to develop rapidly as the Olympic Games approach this summer. We ended-up getting tickets and will be attending the Final Team Gymnastics Ceremony (my choice) and a Beach Volleyball game (Trav’s choice). Although we have the cheapest tickets you can buy, it should still be a good time. However, I’ll be amazed if China actually pulls this off because there’s so much work left to do. Our school is postponing the start of the first day for two weeks so that the staff can attend the events, which means a longer summer- hooray! But a shorter winter break- boo! We will travel somewhere during that time or maybe just tour around in China. Oh yah! I can finally drive legally in China because I got my driver’s license.

Here are a some questions from the driving test that you may find humorous:
1. For an abdominal wound, such as the protrusion of the small intestine tube, we should:
A) put it back
B) no treatment
C) not put it back, but cover it with a bowl or jar, and bind the bowl or jar with a cloth belt.

ANSWER- C. Apparently, this has been a significant problem for the Chinese culture in the past. I guess we should keep a bowl in our car, just in case.

2. In summer, when a driver drives a vehicle he can _______
A) wear a pair of slippers
B) not wear slippers since it’s unsafe and impolite to wear them
C) wear any shoes, including slippers

ANSWER-B. Good to know, I guess.

For this winter break, we’re off again to Washington to spend it with family and friends. We wish everyone a safe and FUN holiday season and have a Happy New Year!

Warm Wishes,

Travis, Cara, and Gabriella Tebo

August-November 2007 Gabby Update

As of November 28, 2007 Gabby Sophia is five months old. A lot has changed since the last entry and it’s safe to say that she’s hitting all the developmental milestones and then some. From August 19th to October 6th, Gabriella and I visited friends and family in Washington. Without Travis around, it kept me very busy (hence the lack of pictures on the website and journal entries). Soon after we returned from the States, I went back to work full-time. So far, we’re pretty happy with how we’ve balanced work, our social life, and parenthood but we have our days when we’re overwhelmed and exhausted. I can’t imagine having twins! Everybody keeps saying she looks like Travis and I guess she still does... She seems to really love music and it tends to calm her down when she’s fussy. Maybe she’ll be a musician like her daddy? She is continuing to be a strong little girl and her fine motor skills are developing quite nicely. She can even hold her own bottle. She LOVES other kids and babies. She pumps her arms and legs and gets all excited. She starts to grab at them too. It’s as if she wants to play but doesn’t quite know how. My friend who has teenagers said her daughter was the same way (I know her daughter and she is SUPER chatty and all about the social scene)... Not sure if that’s such a good thing??? She’s rolling over now which means we’re constantly trying to keep her from falling off the furniture. She’s all over her crib too, which freaks me out a bit. I don’t know how she does it but she scoots herself all over and gets in the weirdest positions. She can also grab her feet and stick her toes in her mouth. It’s crazy. In addition, Gabby is vocalizing a lot and so we like to engage in pretend conversations. She’s reaching for the toys she likes the best and she’s started the teething phase. Of course, Travis and I think she’s really awesome, but we have nothing to compare it to. We just love her to death. My favorite thing is hanging out with her when we get ready in the morning- she just smiles and smiles at us, which makes getting up in the morning not-so-bad. One of the coolest things ever is hearing her laugh… Oh man, I wish I could bottle up that feeling and give it away to people when they need to feel good. Seeing her smile and hearing her laugh just makes our hearts melt. I would consider her a good baby even though she has her drama queen moments. The only time she really cries is when she’s hungry. And man, you don’t want to mess around with a hungry Gabby! I’m sure I’m missing some other stuff that she’s doing, but stay posted… We’re starting solids soon and there are lots more things about to happen in the upcoming months…

Parenthood and Family Update

Hi kids,

The cloud has lifted and Travis and I can see the light… Yes, parenthood has been what people have described to us… crazy, tiring, amazing, and sometimes hard. Gabby is thriving and growing like a weed… She smiles now and makes lots of cooing sounds. Before she was one month, she rolled over on one side and does it all the time now. I have nothing to compare it to, but people say she’s really strong- and long for that matter too (in the 97th percentile). Last week we threw her a huge debut party and had over 100 people over at our place… Luckily, the weather was fabulous and she did great. She was alert and awake for a good two hours while she was being passed around from person to person. We were surprised because she can get pretty fussy, but I think it was just good timing with her eating and sleeping schedule.

I just love having a little girl. She’s like my little doll that I can dress-up, until, of course, she starts crying and pooping and so on… then reality hits… J In China, having a boy is considered good luck (hence the many girls up for adoption), so when I Chinese person asks what I had and I tell them we have a little girl they inevitably get the “I’m sorry” look and then without hesitation they add, “Oh, don’t worry the next one will be a boy!” I always make a point to say that I would be very happy with another girl…

And no, she’s not sleeping through the night yet (I get asked that a lot).

In other news, Travis has started work and he’ll be completing his administrative internship at the same time so it will be a very busy year. I’m on maternity leave right now until October 22nd and will leave this Sunday to go home to Washington for seven weeks. It was a pretty last minute decision and I’m really excited to see our family and friends. Travis is taking his paternity leave next to October break (the first week of October is a Chinese national holiday), so he will fly out to Washington and visit for two weeks and all three of us will travel back to China.

As always, I hope all is well with you and your family and please keep in touch!

Cheers,

Travis, Cara, and Gabriella (the Tebo Family)

July 2007 Gabby Update

So far the first month has had many ups and downs as Travis and I are transitioning into being parents... The first week was crazy but our life is slowly getting into a routine. Gabriella is a really strong girl (at least that’s what people tell us!) and she’s becoming much more alert and we’ve even seen some glimpses of smiles (not sure if that’s gas) which totally melts our hearts. She can lift her head up 90 degrees and practically does push-ups when we put her on her belly. She can roll over on one side too. She is getting bigger and bigger each day- it’s amazing and awesome to watch!

Gabriella Sophia Tebo is Born!

IT'S A GIRL!

Date: June 28th, 2007
Time of Birth: 4:30 P.M.
Weight: 8.25 lbs.
Length: 20 inches
Chinese Name: 明美 or Ming Mei “Smart/Beautiful”

Hello Everyone,

As you can tell, Travis and I are parents!! It’s been quite a transition but Gabby, Travis, and I are doing well and slowly getting a routine down. And yes, we’re EXHAUSTED! Labor was pretty intense, to say the least. I slept through a lot of the pre-labor contractions and kept myself busy throughout the morning, thinking that it could possibly be false labor. Things progressed rather fast and I “came in like a freight train” as Dr. Brooks said. I was 8 cm dilated and fully effaced when we finally got to the hospital. The worst part was being in the transitional part of labor when there was an accident and heavy traffic on the highway. After we arrived at the hospital, it was about two hours later and out came our baby girl… A great set of lungs and the most precious dimple on the right side of her face. It was truly amazing, breathtaking, and surreal when they put her on my chest and said “It’s a girl!” One of those moments that will be etched in my memory forever…

I’ll eventually send some more pics. I hope all is well in your neck of woods!

Cheers,
Cara

We have Good News! Plus Another Update...

Hello Family and Friends,

Happy New Year of the Pig! That’s actually year of the “golden” pig… every 60 years this happens and anyone born during this year will have great luck and fortune. In fact, hospitals have already seen a rise in births because people want their children to be a “year of the golden pig” baby. We had this past week off and it’s been nice just hanging around the house…

Speaking of births and babies… A lot of you already know, but Travis and I are expecting our first baby this June. Obviously, we’re ecstatic but a little anxious too because we know our life is going to totally change but we just can’t imagine how... Yes, we know to sleep when the baby sleeps. And yes, we know to enjoy sleeping-in late now. I can’t tell you how many times people have said that me. : ) I’ll be 23 weeks tomorrow and I feel awesome- almost too good, I’m waiting for total exhaustion and uncomfortable-ness to hit me and I’m sure it will. I had some morning (actually all day) sickness at the beginning but that passed and things are rockin’ along now just fine. I honestly don’t feel that much different and I still can’t believe I’m pregnant. However, I can feel the baby move now and that’s been really cool and has made it more real. At night, when I’m ready to sleep, is when the baby is the most active. My favorite thing to do is lay there and feel it move. It’s pretty surreal knowing that you have a live being in your belly! We had the big ultrasound and everything looks great, which is a relief. We decided not to find out the sex (I know, we’re boring) and we’ll have the baby in China. In fact, we’re staying here the whole summer. The hospital where I’ll have the baby is western style (doctors are all trained somewhere in the west) and the maternity suites are fabulous and they really take good care of you. There have been quite of few women who’ve had babies there that teach at my school and they all were pleased with the care. Quite a few of you have been requesting belly pics- I’m not that big yet, so I’ll wait a little bit and send some soon.

We haven’t really been up to much… We went home for winter break and enjoyed the three weeks back there visiting with friends and family. Travis went on a boy’s only trip with his buddies to Harbin, China at the beginning of February. It’s a town up north that’s very close to the Russian border. It’s known for these really cool ice sculptures. It’s freezing up there, though, and you need to bundle up. They had a blast doing guy things- drinking beer, staying up late, laughing at fart jokes, or whatever they do… you can fill in the blanks. They also went to this snow tiger reserve where they watched the tigers being fed a whole cow. Isn’t that weird? They also ate a hot-pot dinner in an igloo, which looked really fun. There’s a lot of Russian influence in that city, with their food and churches. It’s an interesting little town and a nice weekend trip because it’s only an hour plane ride away. He came back exhausted, in fact he got sick and had to stay home from school one day, but he gained tons of good memories.

Work is going well for both of us. There will be a new counselor next year because one of them will be leaving, so it’ll be nice to get some new energy in my department. I’m taking advantage of some professional development opportunities- a conference on motivational interviewing, one on teenage brain research, and I began taking some online classes through UCLA to get my college counseling certificate. I’ve never taken an online class before but it’s been really good and the information I’ve learned I can take right to my job- which is great. Travis found out that he’ll be able to complete his administration internship at the school. He’ll be working primarily in the middle school, but in addition, have the option to help-out the elementary and high school principals. He’s looking forward to this and the administration has been very supportive as well.

We’re heading off to Thailand again in March for our spring break vacation- also known as a “baby-moon” or some cheesy saying. It’s my last chance to travel before the baby is born and we need to get out of China for a bit, especially since we’re staying the whole summer. There’s also a teacher/counselor conference at the end of the week in Bangkok that we’ll attend. We love it there and can’t wait to see it again…

We hope all is well on your end… As always we love hearing from you even if it’s just to say hello…

Cheers,
Cara and Travis