Some More Firsts...

Lilly's first time in a pool (fully in...she had previously enjoyed only putting her feet in our pool, and had then progressed to standing on the top step and dipping her hair in). She seems to like the water and even bath time is now lots more fun, with Lilly clapping and saying "yay!" when Anna or Mama rinses her hair. Progress! OK, this isn't Lilly, but Jared is still pretty cute in my book. Here's Jared and a few of the older kids from our Bible study buried in the sand at the beach today...

Lilly's first day at the beach! She seemed to enjoy it, to my surprise. I had thought she wouldn't really like the feel of the sand, but she seemed to get used to it quickly. She really liked going down to the water, even allowing me to carry her into the water for awhile to feel the waves pass us by. She did not, however, enjoy the big wave the splashed her in the face. But she quickly recovered.

She was so funny at one point, she walked toward the water, but not nearly close enough to the waves to get her feet wet. Wanting to fill a small bucket, she stood at her distance, and beckoned with her hand, saying "lai!" ("come!") to the water.

Man, does this girl get a killer tan fast! Even wearing sunblock.
First time in a beach hat, on a beach blanket...

First walk with Nana! My parents arrived yesterday for a week's visit (yay!) and Lilly has taken to them very quickly! She is learning to say "Nana" and "Pap "Pap."

Just moments after meeting Nana and Pap Pap. Lilly wasn't sure she was ready to get too close for this photo, but I'm sure if I had taken some today, she would have happily allowed Nana to hold her for a photo.

These next 3 don't depict any firsts, but they sure are cute...she just loves those babies!

First field trip...we accompanied Anna's 3rd grade class for an Earth Day celebration...what a day! Lilly wasn't too keen on having to be carried around as I herded Anna and a friend who were my charges as a chaperone. She wanted to be put down and allowed to wander wherever she liked, which wasn't possible this particular day with hundreds of kids from the entire county running around. She survived, however, and Anna's classmates and teachers gave her plenty of attention!

We are still struggling to maintain more than one or two nights in a row of uninterrupted sleep...I will be so happy when that happens regularly! Tom is gone for some training this week, so I am very happy to have my parents here (staying in a condo nearby) for the week!

We have Lilly's first orthopedic evaluation scheduled for May 6th, and we are eager to learn more about what her treatment plan will entail. I will likely have to take her in for some more immunizations this week, which doesn't thrill me after our rough night last week, but it must be done.

A few more words added to her English vocabulary: "hot," "wet," "ow" (does that count?), "I know" (I'm not sure she knows it's meaning, but she hears her older siblings saying it alot so she sometimes walks around saying it...). She is starting to be able to recognize colors by their English names (I'm actually not certain she can do this by their Chinese names yet!).

Anna is really coming along as a big sister! She has had such a great week or so of letting her big sisterly love and compassion shine, and has had a great attitude. I am so thankful! She enjoys helping Lilly to bathe (and Lilly likes to let her help), playing with Lilly on the floor, teaching her new words, etc. And now, rather than getting frustrated when Lilly shouts "Bu! Mei Mei de!" ("No! This is mine!") if Anna gets too close when Lilly has a toy or something to eat and is not in a great mood, Anna simply smiles, laughs, and says, "Dui! Shi Mei Mei de!" ("Yes, it's yours!") What an improvement. She used to get mad and frustrated, since she felt falsely accused (she had no intention of taking Lilly's things) and felt as if Lilly didn't like her. Now I think she understands that it's just one of Lilly's little quirks, which is quickly disarmed by agreeing with Lilly. Yay Anna!