One Week Home

What a week it has been!  So much better than I ever could have hoped for.  I had prayed so many times that Hannah would just blend seamlessly into our family, but to see it happen...what a gift!  It really feels as though she has always been here.  She brings such joy to all of us and waking up to her smile every day is just wonderful.

A little update on all of us this last week:

Miss Hannah - she is doing so well!  For the first 5 nights we saw a LOT of grief in the form of screams, tears, hysterics, back arching, sobbing at bedtime.  She was waking up a lot at night and crying (which she never did in China).  It was very difficult to watch and she did not really want comfort from me (well, she did and she didn't - she would push me away, then reach for me, then push me away...over and over until finally falling asleep).  The last two nights have been so much better as she has had a lot less crying at bedtime (none last night) and she has slept through the night!  Last night after she fell asleep in my arms I laid her in her crib and she stayed there asleep all night :)  I was so thankful as she has been a very restless sleeper and I've received quite a few blows to the head in the middle of the night!

During the day Hannah is pretty happy...except when I put her down :)  Actually, she will do okay for a little while playing on the floor or in the bouncer, but if I make eye contact she reaches for me.  I think it's a combo of having been carried a lot in her foster home and everything being so new here.  It's a bit of a struggle because I can't carry her around 24 hours a day, there are things to do, but I also want her to feel safe and secure, and I want her to have the chance to build some muscles, to realize she can get around on her own and that she has to work for that.  So we do short spurts on the floor or at the table in her booster seat and she does quite well.

We saw the pediatrician this week and it went very well - no surprises about her health which was wonderful.  Our little peanut weighs in at a whopping 17 pounds 10 ounces (which does not even put her on the chart!) but we expect her to do some catching up in the next few months and the doctor expects her to do just fine.  

Her motor skills are improving so much already.  When we met Hannah she was wobbly when sitting, and she did not want to put her feet down or try to stand up.  Let me tell you, this little girl now loves to motor!!!  Her favorite thing to do is for one of us to hold her hands while she walks around the room giggling, babbling and smiling!  We have an evaluation for physical therapy next week but honestly I don't think it's going to take her long to get going.  She'll soon be running after those brothers of hers!

Speaking of the big boys...they are doing amazingly well!  After we came home from Korea we had quite a challenging time because Nathan was M-A-D that we left him for a while and he let us know it! Thankfully this time he was back to his normal self after just a few minutes (he did snub me a bit when I first walked in the door - just had to let me know he wasn't happy I guess!).  The boys just love their little sister.  If you want to find Nathan, just look for Hannah and you will find Nathan about three inches away from her :)

We are getting into a groove and finding our new normal much more quickly than I expected.  I must admit, three kids under five is EXHAUSTING!  There is always somebody needing me, wanting up, asking for food, spilling something...you get the picture.  I don't sit down much but that is okay.  I'm so thankful for the chance to be Mom to these little ones.  It is such a blessing and I don't take any of it for granted.  

I look into these eyes and I know without a doubt that it is all worth it!