Things I Want to Remember

From our trip...

-Dongfang Mei Fen, Willow's name assigned from her original SWI, is apparently a very nice name.  Two syllable last names (which are first in China) are extra special according to Grace.  She said when Willow Mei Fen's Chinese name was called out, all of the other guides looked up and said it was such a good name.  'Dongfang' means oriental, 'Mei' means beautiful, and 'Fen' means ladylike.  

-It seems as though there is meaning and symbolism to almost everything.  It's very interesting!  Cranes mean longevity, lotus flowers mean purity, dragons mean power, bats mean luck, banana leaves mean prosperity, etc.

-We saw only one or two stars in the night sky in China due to air pollution. It was worse in Luoyang than in Guangzhou.  It's a colder part of the country, and the pollution is caused by heating with coal in the winter.  Hopefully they will find an air pollution solution, as I know they are working on it!

-As we boarded the plane to come home, Kyle whispered,"Isn't that _______ from Maria's Big House of Hope?!"  We rode back next to a child that Willow shared a room with in Luoyang!  It was great to speak to his new parents, and we had actually asked about him in Luoyang, because we noticed he was already gone.  They had a connecting flight after ours to Nashville.

Willow is doing this stuff as of one week home:

-Places her thumb in her palm in the same way every time her hands are in water or she's cleaning them

-Smiles an adorable, fake smile for the camera as of about two days ago.  It's a little different than her genuine smile!

-Eats just about anything, and makes faces when she tries a new food

-Adores swinging and cries when we take her out

-Doesnt mind the feeling of our carpet or the grass anymore.  She still asks for a hand though to walk in grass, even with her shoes on.

-Sniffs the flowers and says that word all of the time

-Tries to feed herself with her fork or spoon, and she gets some food in!

-Repeats after us all throughout the day

-She can ride her little car by herself

-Loves to sing or bob her head to music (especially Twinkle Twinkle, Old McDonald, and songs from Ni Hao Kai Lan)

-Sometimes does what we want her to do and sometimes doesn't

-Says,"One, two, THREE!!!"

-Still sleeps in our bed and checks for us all throughout the night.  She woke up terrified and screaming the other night when we hadn't gone to bed yet.  It took her much longer than normal to settle back down.

-Likes her rice formula first thing in the morning and a bath right before bed each night

-Really wants the dogs to be near her or in the room, but screams when they get too close.  She hasn't left our laps with them yet.  Says,"Pippy!" for Pippin and can repeat Jax pretty well.

-Looks at videos or pictures of herself with great interest

-Has just started being interested in board books.  Hurray!

-She doesn't want to be rocked in the chair, which is one thing I was so looking forward to.  Maybe eventually she'll want to, but for now it's standing and swaying still!

Jet lag was SO hard.  Much harder with a toddler than without.  

Aunt Allison brought us some Buon Giorno coffee and played a little.  Local people, please tell me you know the bliss of this coffee.

The rough part about being outside is that mosquitos love our daughter, and she has a big reaction to them.  :(

Check out this awesome tshirt.  It's pajamas for now!  

This was the first time she had slept further away from us since meeting her than across the room.  She woke up crying once, and Kyle said he had never seen me move so fast.  I hurdled the baby gate and flew up those stairs!  When I brought her down, I was all emotional about it.  Ridiculous!  Those first two days home were extremely emotional for me!  In one day, I probably cried ten times.  

It's 2AM, and we gave up as you can see below.  Those first few nights were hard for us all.  Some nights she was awake from midnight to 5AM.  Usually she would go back down to sleep for three more hours eventually.  In between sleeps, she thought it was noon and time for lunch and playtime!  The hardest thing to do was to wake her during her afternoon nap, because she would've slept eight hours at that time of day if we had let her.  As I'm typing this, I'm so grateful at the progress we've made in a week at sleeping during the night!  She still won't leave our bed, and somehow she can tell the minute I lay her in a crib or playpen.  

Since we arrived home, she loves sitting with her daddy.  Sometimes she associates me with sleep and gets cranky when I hold her!  Those first two days home, I was so happy to see her with Kyle, but I was also missing my little girl.  I know it's just part of the attachment 'dance'!

Dinner from friends has been actually very helpful.  I thought pre-adoption that with Willow not being an infant, we might not need it.  We did need it!  Thanks, you guys!

Ready to meet Uncle Kade!

We went in and out quickly at the grocery store.  She did great for her first trip!  

Later that evening, we went to the park for the first time.

This stroller beats the one we used overseas!  Kyle would push her and she'd reach up to hold my hand.  Adorable.

She went down this slide repeatedly as long as there were no other kids around. When another little one started doing it, she got timid and stood aside.

Her reaction to the swing was complete awe!  It was so cool to see her enjoy that for the first time!  She screamed when we took her out.

Back home with my car...

Kyle and Willow both slept in one morning!  That's rare for both of them.  I didn't know what to do with the time!

We had an appointment at the International Adoption Clinic at Children's.  It was a good visit!  She's in the 6th percentile for height and weight.  She's already gained 11 ounces in the short time we've had her.  Her oxygen was also on the high end of the range we had expected, praise God!

Grandpa came by to help Kyle with putting up an awesome swing!  

How fun!  She did NOT want us to take her out until she kind of got a little bit sleepy...

We loved that Willow's first holiday in America was the Fourth of July!  Our newest American citizen had a relaxing and wonderful day, but we steered clear of fireworks this year.

First artwork:

"I'm not tired, and I really don't need sleep!"

We drove to Decatur to see Kyle's mom for her birthday and the rest of his family.  It was a special outing, our first dinner out in the USA!  (We randomly saw Daniel and Rhonda Robbins there also, which was cool!) 

Car seats are confusing, because you're supposed to pick me up when I cry, Mom.

Happy Birthday, Mimi!!

Four generations: