Today was our last "visit" with Lael. Tomorrow we will not ever have to leave her behind again.
She was rather lethargic today, not wanting to play with much. She just wanted to be cuddled.
After about an hour of trying to interact with her, we finally let her go to sleep, thinking she may be a bit more alert and wanting to play if she rested a bit. Her little belly was so full from the lunch she had eaten just before she came to us, it was hard as a rock.
After about 1/2 hour we gently wakened her and she still seemed very subdued- a little more fussy and just wanting to sleep, laying her head on our chest.
We spoke with Svetlana, the Baby Home director in Galina's absence, who told us Lael had received her vaccinations yesterday. Ahaaa!!! We thought!! That explains why she was acting the way she was!
The ride to and from the baby home has been so different as we watch the changing seasons. For Eli it was White and Grey. For Lael it has ranged from light green, to black, to tiny plants, to full grown produce. The first trip was just at the end of winter, still some snow and ice in places, but just beginning to turn green. Then, as we were here a few days, we found the fields were black as they burned off the shrub growth. On our second trip the ground was tilled- beautiful, rich black soil- and planted and a bit of growth had occurred, but not enough to tell what was growing. On this trip today, the fields were almost ripe for harvest. Potatoes were so tall and flowering, the cabbage heads were immense, covering field after field. Those were the main crops we saw on our way there today.
It was a bizarre dichotomy for me as we pulled away from the orphanage. I am SOOOOOO excited to bring Lael home forever and settle into our family. Yet I felt a little melancholy today as we passed buildings that we, most likely, will never see again. Then, as I began thinking about all the folks here that feel a part of our family, I began to see a little deeper into these strange emotions.
When we came for Eli we were here for almost 3 weeks. We were so sick of traveling everyday back and forth and never getting to take Eli home that it seemed a relief somehow to be able to leave and not look back.
With these multiple short visits, we have not had time to get bored or tired with anything. We are more comfortable with the language, the signs, the people and just how to get around in general. It seems a bit strange, but the 10 day wait allowed us concentrated time to get to know Eli, more about his personality and temperament.
The shorter time, more trips has allowed us the same time with Lael, but spread over 4 months instead of 2 weeks. And each visit has been the same time of day on these current trips. It was nice with Eli to visit at different times and get to see how he is at different parts of the day. We are hoping to see a little more of where Lael is now with her groupa, but it doesn't seem likely.
So..... Tomorrow.... We say good bye to the place our babies spent their first few months of life and the folks that took such excellent care of our babies. That is the bittersweet--- we are soooo stinking excited about bringing our baby home we can hardly stand it!! Thank you for your prayers!!
She was rather lethargic today, not wanting to play with much. She just wanted to be cuddled.
After about an hour of trying to interact with her, we finally let her go to sleep, thinking she may be a bit more alert and wanting to play if she rested a bit. Her little belly was so full from the lunch she had eaten just before she came to us, it was hard as a rock.
After about 1/2 hour we gently wakened her and she still seemed very subdued- a little more fussy and just wanting to sleep, laying her head on our chest.
We spoke with Svetlana, the Baby Home director in Galina's absence, who told us Lael had received her vaccinations yesterday. Ahaaa!!! We thought!! That explains why she was acting the way she was!
The ride to and from the baby home has been so different as we watch the changing seasons. For Eli it was White and Grey. For Lael it has ranged from light green, to black, to tiny plants, to full grown produce. The first trip was just at the end of winter, still some snow and ice in places, but just beginning to turn green. Then, as we were here a few days, we found the fields were black as they burned off the shrub growth. On our second trip the ground was tilled- beautiful, rich black soil- and planted and a bit of growth had occurred, but not enough to tell what was growing. On this trip today, the fields were almost ripe for harvest. Potatoes were so tall and flowering, the cabbage heads were immense, covering field after field. Those were the main crops we saw on our way there today.
It was a bizarre dichotomy for me as we pulled away from the orphanage. I am SOOOOOO excited to bring Lael home forever and settle into our family. Yet I felt a little melancholy today as we passed buildings that we, most likely, will never see again. Then, as I began thinking about all the folks here that feel a part of our family, I began to see a little deeper into these strange emotions.
When we came for Eli we were here for almost 3 weeks. We were so sick of traveling everyday back and forth and never getting to take Eli home that it seemed a relief somehow to be able to leave and not look back.
With these multiple short visits, we have not had time to get bored or tired with anything. We are more comfortable with the language, the signs, the people and just how to get around in general. It seems a bit strange, but the 10 day wait allowed us concentrated time to get to know Eli, more about his personality and temperament.
The shorter time, more trips has allowed us the same time with Lael, but spread over 4 months instead of 2 weeks. And each visit has been the same time of day on these current trips. It was nice with Eli to visit at different times and get to see how he is at different parts of the day. We are hoping to see a little more of where Lael is now with her groupa, but it doesn't seem likely.
So..... Tomorrow.... We say good bye to the place our babies spent their first few months of life and the folks that took such excellent care of our babies. That is the bittersweet--- we are soooo stinking excited about bringing our baby home we can hardly stand it!! Thank you for your prayers!!
We are so excited for you!!! We're you able to bring the orphanage photos of Eli? I bet they were surprised at how big he's grown!
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