Tuesday, April 7, 2009

Day 2 with big kids back in school

Lilly and I have been savoring quiet days at home with Jared and Anna back in school these past two days. It has been great time for bonding with her--sitting on the floor playing, walking outside, playing with Tad outside, playing music, playing dolls, eating, feeding babies, etc. I am a little tired...and nothing is getting done around the house (well, I did fold 3 baskets of laundry, finally, that had been sitting on the couch staring me down for 3 days). But it has been good. I feel like Lilly and I sort of have our own language--a mixture of Chinese, sign, English, and gestures. It has been working out well for now! I have sent an e-mail to a language development expert at Towson University, hoping to get some advice on whether it is, indeed, good for me to continue to speak to Lilly mainly in Chinese.

As long as I am giving Lilly undivided attention and mostly following her lead in what she wants to do, all is well. When I have to do something besides play with her, she gets a bit upset, but I am working on helping her to understand that I'll soon be with her again. It's a struggle, but I know we'll get there!

Now that I've had two days of solitude with her, I am starting to think a small playgroup would be a good thing...so I'm keeping my ears and eyes open for something suitable.

I'm thankful for the fact that she is sleeping through the night (other than 1 night terror each night soon after she has fallen asleep, usually taking place before Tom and I have gone to sleep). Once we get her soothed again, she sleeps through till 7am or so.

She does ask about Jared and Anna now that they're in school...I think she understands when I tell her they went to school. They have been so good with her.

This is short as she is napping and I have much to do now that she is down!

More photos hopefully tomorrow!
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2 comments:

Nili said...

love the previous post..sounds like Lilly and you are adjusting pretty well...I can only imagine the adjustment this is for you...enjoy it!

April 7, 2009 at 10:35 PM
Kris said...

Amy, That is so wonderful that Jarad and Anna are doing well with Lilly!! Regina is having a tough time. Tonight was better so I'm sure with time it will be good! LuLu is doing the same she wants all of my attention all of the time but she is starting to understand that I will get back to her soon! I am falling in love...there is nothing better than a hug and a soft I love you to carry me through to the next tantrum! :0)

April 7, 2009 at 11:02 PM

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Why Adoption? Why China?

I'm sure that many of you, when you learned that Tom and I were pursuing adoption of a little girl from China, wondered "why?!" We may have taken some of you by surprise, and we thought it might be nice to share some of our thinking about this journey we are undertaking.

Adoption is something that, even from the earliest years of our marriage, we talked about as "maybe someday." The idea of adoption is appealing to us for many reasons. As Christians, we are adopted by God as his children through faith in Jesus. Adoption allows us to provide a child with the needed love, warmth, and financial resources we have been blessed with as a family. Finally, adoption allows us to add to our family at a time when our biological children are old enough to be more self-sufficient, and we are in a position financially to be able to welcome a child into our family in this way. What we hope to gain is an additional family member to love and learn from, and an opportunity to share the joy and love of our family.

We recognize that an adoption will bring unique parenting challenges to our family--especially since we are considering a child with special needs--and it is likely to put unique stresses on our family in a variety of ways. We are grateful for Tom's medical knowledge and for the great medical coverage we get through Tom's Air Force career, and we look forward to providing a forever family for a child whose medical needs might make it more difficult for another family to take on.

Finally, why China? My love for China, the Chinese language, and the Chinese people made China the natural choice. It was never really even a consideration whether to go with a domestic adoption or international; China was simply the natural choice that we immediately pursued, especially since there are so many children in China that need a forever family.

Chinese Word of the Day

The Time in China

When Love Takes You In

Our Adoption Timeline

  • Travel Dates--11-26 March
  • Swearing In Ceremony at Consulate--25 March (Lilly's 3rd Birthday!)
  • Consulate Appointment (CA)--24 March
  • Travel Approval (TA)--19 February 2009
  • Received Letter of Approval (LOA)--22 January 2009
  • Received Pre-Approval (PA)--25 November
  • Submitted Letter of Intent (LOI) to adopt An Xiao Xue, soon to be named Lillian Joy Xiao Xue, 1 November (logged in at CCAA 21 November)
  • Referral Call from CCAI asking us to consider An Xiao Xue's profile--31 October
  • Dossier Log-in-Date (LID) 3 July 2008
  • Dossier to China (DTC)--June 27 2008
  • Dossier Submitted to CCAI--June 2008
  • Fingerprinted at USCIS Jacksonville--April 2008
  • Application Approval ("We're Pregnant!") January 2008
  • Submitted Adoption Application and 3 References--December 2007
  • Requested Application from Chinese Children Adoption International (CCAI) --November 2007
  • Decided to Investigate Agencies--October 2007