Ahhhh... The joy and bliss of connections...
Each day seems better than the day before. Lael is bonding with me by leaps and bounds, seeking me out, crawling to me for comfort, to give a hug, to share a toy. She continues to make more and more eye contact... I love seeing those baby blues!! After throwing a temper tantrum, she crawls over to me, as if to make sure we are still alright and snuggles down into my neck for a second, and then off again to play... all things right. She loves to play peak a boo hide and seek. I went into the other room to pack tonight and she came trailing after me, giggling, thinking I was playing our game again. Of course I had to hide and jump out and shout, "Kookoo!!" and kiss her several times.
Bonding with Tim is taking a little bit longer... but also is steadily growing. He gave her the first big test today when he went out to get her passport. He was only gone 30 or 40 minutes... and then HE CAME BACK!! That is what we are working on... the stability that we are here, and even when we leave, we will be back.
Funny stories.... She was in her highchair yesterday as we were eating. She was mad because the food wasn't coming fast enough when she was ready for it, so she arched her back, screaming, kicking... and she grabbed her own hair and pulled.... Then she started screaming because someone was pulling her hair. It was hilarious!! She quieted down immediately once I pulled her hand out of her hair:)
She is becoming more content when we put her down for her nap, usually crying for only a minute or less. She seems to cry on her back for a few seconds, then flips over on her knees, fingers in mouth and is very quiet and soon asleep.
When she first joined us on Friday, we noticed she would "shut us out" when it became too much for her. She would close her eyes and look like she couldn't hear and not see us... as if by closing her eyes, we could no longer see her.
She came running out of the bathroom tonight after Tim undressed her and sat there at the doorway watching him. Then, when he picked her up, we discovered she had "peed a river," with a huge puddle on the tile.
She loves her bath!! She splashes and giggles and love to jump up and give me big wet kisses and hugs. I am usually almost as wet as her by bath end, but love every minute of it. She loves to watch her reflection in the mirror chrome finish on the drain knob and slide back and forth- also one of Eli's favorite bath tub traditions when bathing:)
Tonight, we had the suitcase on the floor as we were placing clothes inside. She reached into the cabinet and grabbed her shoes and began throwing them in. So funny! Then, after her bath, she came over and crawled into the suitcase, like she was going to settle in and get comfortable. I think she was just looking for shoes, but it was sooooo funny!!
She babbles non stop when she feels really comfortable. She motioned for me to come with her into the living room today. I followed her in and she grabbed the photo album we gave her with close up shots of our family faces. I could swear she said "Brat".... said with an "ah" sound, not an "A" sound- it is the Russian word for brother. She opened it to Eli's picture and patted him. Either very bizarre coincidence, or God has put us in her heart as much as she is in ours. So excited to introduce her to her brother in person.
I laid down on the floor and put my feet up in the air to ease the pain in my hips and back from being on the tile floor for too long. She came scooting over to discover what I was doing, so I said, let's exercise. Tim got a few photos of us kicking our legs in the air, aerobic style...
Today, just before lunch, Daddy picked up his little girl and began swaying with her. Of course, like any good Mommy, I pulled Spotify up on the computer and he got to dance to the song Cinderella by Stephen Curtis Chapman. I sang along for as long as I could before I got choked up. Daddy dancing with his Cinderella, enjoying every second. May we always treasure every minute with our children. They are way too fleeting, and we often feel we are too busy with things that seem important at the time.
We are finally beginning to catch onto the schedule... only wore one outfit today and only a few diaper changes. And tomorrow morning, we travel 5 hours West to Moscow and experience our first time change of 4 hours. Tuesday afternoon through Friday we are celebrating in a hotel (thank you for prayers... so difficult to entertain a baby in a hotel room after cooping them up on a plane for 5 hours on our laps.) Friday we make the 10 hour transatlantic treck to New York and then customs and immigration and then another hour to PGH, then 1.5 hours by car to Mom and Dad's in Pennsylvania. A few days there for catching up... and Sunday we'll make the 3 hour treck home.
Our friends we visited our first day here came to visit tonight with us. How amazing and wonderful to spend a borrowed moment in time with them. We are sooo looking forward to continuing our friendship with this amazing family. They will always be a part of our story of completing our family. We all prayed together before they left and my heart feels so light. The Fellowship one has when praying together... nothing quite like it to compare on this Earth.
Tim and I sit here in the kitchen, soft baby snores coming from the other room. The clothes are packed, a few more items to stow, and we gaze out the window looking out over Krasnoyarsk for possibly the last time. Can't wait to be home, feeling sad to leave. Hope one day our travels will bring us back before the folks we have built relationship here have moved on. There is a light cool breeze stirring around, caressing our skin gently as it blows in the open window we sit by. The traffic sounds come up through the window, but the birdsong is louder. We can barely make out the clock tower sounding the time- half past nine. The air is clear tonight, allowing our vision passage to mountain ranges in the distance we have never seen before. Ah, Krasnoyarsk, my God fill your streets and touch hearts and lives in every home. And may we, some day, see you once again.
Each day seems better than the day before. Lael is bonding with me by leaps and bounds, seeking me out, crawling to me for comfort, to give a hug, to share a toy. She continues to make more and more eye contact... I love seeing those baby blues!! After throwing a temper tantrum, she crawls over to me, as if to make sure we are still alright and snuggles down into my neck for a second, and then off again to play... all things right. She loves to play peak a boo hide and seek. I went into the other room to pack tonight and she came trailing after me, giggling, thinking I was playing our game again. Of course I had to hide and jump out and shout, "Kookoo!!" and kiss her several times.
Bonding with Tim is taking a little bit longer... but also is steadily growing. He gave her the first big test today when he went out to get her passport. He was only gone 30 or 40 minutes... and then HE CAME BACK!! That is what we are working on... the stability that we are here, and even when we leave, we will be back.
Funny stories.... She was in her highchair yesterday as we were eating. She was mad because the food wasn't coming fast enough when she was ready for it, so she arched her back, screaming, kicking... and she grabbed her own hair and pulled.... Then she started screaming because someone was pulling her hair. It was hilarious!! She quieted down immediately once I pulled her hand out of her hair:)
When she first joined us on Friday, we noticed she would "shut us out" when it became too much for her. She would close her eyes and look like she couldn't hear and not see us... as if by closing her eyes, we could no longer see her.
She came running out of the bathroom tonight after Tim undressed her and sat there at the doorway watching him. Then, when he picked her up, we discovered she had "peed a river," with a huge puddle on the tile.
Tonight, we had the suitcase on the floor as we were placing clothes inside. She reached into the cabinet and grabbed her shoes and began throwing them in. So funny! Then, after her bath, she came over and crawled into the suitcase, like she was going to settle in and get comfortable. I think she was just looking for shoes, but it was sooooo funny!!
She babbles non stop when she feels really comfortable. She motioned for me to come with her into the living room today. I followed her in and she grabbed the photo album we gave her with close up shots of our family faces. I could swear she said "Brat".... said with an "ah" sound, not an "A" sound- it is the Russian word for brother. She opened it to Eli's picture and patted him. Either very bizarre coincidence, or God has put us in her heart as much as she is in ours. So excited to introduce her to her brother in person.
Today, just before lunch, Daddy picked up his little girl and began swaying with her. Of course, like any good Mommy, I pulled Spotify up on the computer and he got to dance to the song Cinderella by Stephen Curtis Chapman. I sang along for as long as I could before I got choked up. Daddy dancing with his Cinderella, enjoying every second. May we always treasure every minute with our children. They are way too fleeting, and we often feel we are too busy with things that seem important at the time.
We are finally beginning to catch onto the schedule... only wore one outfit today and only a few diaper changes. And tomorrow morning, we travel 5 hours West to Moscow and experience our first time change of 4 hours. Tuesday afternoon through Friday we are celebrating in a hotel (thank you for prayers... so difficult to entertain a baby in a hotel room after cooping them up on a plane for 5 hours on our laps.) Friday we make the 10 hour transatlantic treck to New York and then customs and immigration and then another hour to PGH, then 1.5 hours by car to Mom and Dad's in Pennsylvania. A few days there for catching up... and Sunday we'll make the 3 hour treck home.
Our friends we visited our first day here came to visit tonight with us. How amazing and wonderful to spend a borrowed moment in time with them. We are sooo looking forward to continuing our friendship with this amazing family. They will always be a part of our story of completing our family. We all prayed together before they left and my heart feels so light. The Fellowship one has when praying together... nothing quite like it to compare on this Earth.
Tim and I sit here in the kitchen, soft baby snores coming from the other room. The clothes are packed, a few more items to stow, and we gaze out the window looking out over Krasnoyarsk for possibly the last time. Can't wait to be home, feeling sad to leave. Hope one day our travels will bring us back before the folks we have built relationship here have moved on. There is a light cool breeze stirring around, caressing our skin gently as it blows in the open window we sit by. The traffic sounds come up through the window, but the birdsong is louder. We can barely make out the clock tower sounding the time- half past nine. The air is clear tonight, allowing our vision passage to mountain ranges in the distance we have never seen before. Ah, Krasnoyarsk, my God fill your streets and touch hearts and lives in every home. And may we, some day, see you once again.
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