Our baby is an American!

Emma did so well on our flights.  She slept a lot!  She moves around a lot when she sleeps, so she'd wake up and whine a bit and then fall right back asleep.  If she wasn't sleeping, she was playing happily or watching Shaun the Sheep.

Our welcome home was a surprise blessing that speaks volumes of love to my heart...my mom and dad came!  Pictures will follow when they're emailed to me.  My brother and his girlfriend were there and my sister's family's picture was blown up on a poster.  :)  Emma was a bit overwhelmed at first, but she liked the balloons.  I told her we had a special seat for her in the car and she smiled when she saw her car seat.  She slept more on the way to my aunt and uncle's house where we're staying until we drive to Ohio on Wednesday.  When we got here there were more balloons and presents and a ginormous teddy bear that she thought was pretty fun.  It didn't take her long to warm up and she was running around giggling and playing until midnight.  Even though I was awake at 4:30, it's now 6:30 and she's still sleeping.  So thankful this girl can sleep!

We're going to enjoy a fun couple days with family...and some coffee.

America Bound

Tomorrow we're going to America!!!!  To get to Chicago where at least my brother and my uncle will be waiting for us, we have to take three airplanes for a total of about 24 hours.  I have some new toys for Emma including a magnadoodle, stickers, and some lacing cards.  Seattle is where Emma will become an American citizen but our lay over isn't very long...please pray there are no problems with that. 

Here's our pic from yesterday morning at the US consulate in Guangzhou.  She's sad because she was in the Ergo and I set her down to take it off for the photo.  She didn't want to get out.  She's excited to ride the airplanes tomorrow and when Mark prayed for safety to get to America tonight, she said, "mei guo (America)?!?"  We think she's going to like it.  :)

Parenting 101

We’ve had Emma  almost nine days now.  Wow.  We think she’s becoming more comfortable with us and therefore is testing the waters a bit.  “Do Mommy and Daddy really mean what they say?  Can I point to anything and get it?  What will they do if I refuse to listen?”  These are some of the questions I imagine swimming around in her head…and I think she’s surprised and frustrated at some of the answers.  Even though we’ve been waiting for this little one for a long time (I mean a really long time!), she’s not the center of our universe and she’s not going to rule this roost.  And we think she needs to know this from the beginning.  We think that structure and boundaries provide security and safety that kids need.  And we want her to learn how to connect with us and others.  We hope that all of this will help her see God’s heart modeled in us.  So, yes, we do mean what we say.  No, you cannot have anything and everything you want right now.  And you will need to learn to listen and obey. 

She’s actually doing remarkably well, all things considered.  We’ve had a few little tantrums, but she does obey.  We’re trying to practice Karen Purvis’s philosophy.  So I’m using phrases like, “Let Mommy see those beautiful eyes,” and “We don’t throw things.  We show respect.  Let’s try that again.”  I need to do better at saying these things playfully the first time and be slower to jump into my “mommy means it” voice. 

Besides discipline, another thing I’m thinking through is how independent she is.  Most moms celebrate when their three year old puts on his/her own shoes and feeds himself and folds things up.  But she learned these things in an orphanage when she didn’t have a mommy and a daddy to care for her.  So am I supposed to celebrate or be sad?  I know that some independence at this age is developmentally normal and good.  But I’ve also read a lot of adoption articles and books that say children need to learn that it’s okay to depend on Mommy and Daddy and so some reverting is okay and good. 

Parenting a three year old is a whole new world to me.  I really want to do it as I depend on God for my strength and guidance and comfort and discernment.  Otherwise, it’s not going to be pretty. 

Emma, on the other hand, is just beautiful. 

Butterflies and Bees

We've mostly been speaking Chinese.  But Emma learned the word "bee" from a book I brought along.  I thought you might like to hear her giggle.  :)

Our day at the zoo

...was oh so HOT!!!!  But we smiled and tried to have fun despite the heat.

a lot of the animals looked like this...hot and tired.

a seal, beluga whales and dolphins all performed...they weren't bad!

Emma liked the "da xiang"

It was way too hot to use the Ergo, so she walked a lot.  She was so tired she fell asleep in the ten minute cab ride back to the hotel.

Adoption travel pictures

Making it official...Emma's handprint

We're now a family of three!

Playing at a play-place after checking out of our hotel in Shijiazhuang

Waiting for Emma's first flight...She was basically running around the airport until we boarded at a little after 10pm!

Bonding with Daddy by playing the IPad.

I just said, "Let Mommy take your picture," and she did this...a very Chinese thing to do!

At a mall we visited.  So fun!

Medical Appt: Day 2 in GZ

This morning we met up with a bunch of other adoptive families and we were taken to the required medical appointment.  It was hot and crowded.  It went mostly okay until the room where they did a blood draw.  We were standing in line a bit and I told Emma, "This will hurt your arm, but Mommy will comfort you when it's done."  The nurses take the children into the room and shut the doors.  Until this point, we'd only seen Emma whimper...now we know she can scream!  She was NOT a happy girl.  She calmed down okay once she was back in my arms.

Thankfully, I'm feeling better today, but Emma is very hot again tonight.  I'm so glad I have the children's acetaminophen that my friend gave me a few months ago.  (Thank you, Heather!)  I'm not too worried about her yet because she's eating and drinking and playing and sleeping well too.

This afternoon while Emma napped I went to join the group to fill out the last round of papers.  Now we should be all set for her consulate appointment on June 6th.  The next several days, as long as Emma is feeling okay, we'll just play around Guangzhou.  We want to do some shopping and visit the aquarium and the zoo.  We'll be out in the mornings because the afternoons get really hot and sticky, and Emma's been taking at least two hour naps in the afternoon.  She's really been an easy going little girl!  Keep praying for her to take steps in bonding with Mark.  I know it's just a matter of time.  Have you ever known a little one not to like Mark?!?