Our First Two Weeks at Home

Hi, everyone!

More pictures coming later today!

Well, it's a beautiful Sunday afternoon, and I'm finally able to find some snippet of time to post! The girls are both napping peacefully. Whew. As of the last few days, Ava is sleeping from about 1-3, and Maia is sleeping from about 2-4ish. Since China, it's taken some time to get their naps remotely close to each other, and I've barely had any time to bathe much less read the mail or blog! :) I'm slowly resurfacing and thinking clearly and am hopeful to post today and get some pictures up from our first two weeks at home!



We're all doing well and are starting to get into our groove a little more this weekend as a family. We've spent the last two weeks adjusting to new schedules and routines and trying to maintain predictable ones for Miss Ava. Maia and Ava are like two peas in a pod, and Ava has been very loving with Maia and checks to be sure "Maia is ok" when she's crying. If she hears Maia crying, she'll say, "Be right back. Make sure Maia ok." She will then come over and pat Maia on the head just like she pets Saki, our cat, on the head, and then she'll hug her and give her a kiss. Maia thinks Ava is very entertaining and will giggle when Ava does something. Ava is miss busy bee ALL of the time now, so there's hardly a moment that's not entertaining for Maia. We've tried really hard to spend some one on one time with just Ava and do some fun things outside the house as new little sister is requiring a lot of care and attention right now. So far so good with jie jie and mei mei, big sister and little sister.



Maia is adjusting really well and is very vocal, active and curious about everything! She has a really fun little personality. She's now sleeping through the night and is on a more predictable schedule. She wakes up at about 7:00 a.m. and goes to bed with Ava at around 8:00 p.m. with two or three naps a day. She's been a little trooper, and we did venture to church today for the last service and all went well. I stared at the altar where Ben and I had knelt so many times throught the years of waiting and praying for her. Surely, "I would have lost heart unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living." He is faithful and good to each of us even in the midst of our hurting and WILL bring good out of it in His time. As unique as each of us is, so is his hand on each of us and in our lives, working all things together for good. I pray all of the time that what I've walked through will be a testimony to others that He CAN redeem suffering and give you beauty for ashes. Believe Him. His promises are true. For as long as I have breath, I hope to tell of His faithfulness and love, and my deepest prayer for Ava and Maia is that they will deeply know that they are first and foremost, daughters of a Heavenly King.

Our next steps with Maia are to complete 3, 6, and 9 month post-adoption reports and send pictures back to China, readopt her in the United States, acquire a U.S. certificate of citizenship, a passport and a social security number. This paperwork is involved, but honestly seems like a cake walk compared to all that we did preadoption to bring her home! We'll start all of this some time this week. :)



I'm still limiting her activities as I don't want to overwhelm her too much, but we have ventured out to the pediatrician, ET Children's hospital for medical testing, grocery store, swim lessons and preschool for Ava, church and one night of a pontoon boat ride and eating out with Mom and Dad. She turned six months old October 5, and we can't believe that we were in China a few weeks ago to meet her for the first time! She hasn't been with us for an entire month, yet it feels like she's always been here.



Again, MANY thanks to everyone for the phone calls before and after we got home, the cards, e-mails, comments on the blog and facebook and meals and phone calls and visits of support and encouragement. Please know how deeply grateful we are for you and how we thank God for you. He has blessed us through you!

Going to upload pictures now, that is if both girls stay asleep as I attempt to upload! If you read this and there aren't any pictures, I promise I'll get some up by some time today.

Blessings to all,

Emily