We have our precious baby girl! We arrived at the orphanage around 9:00a.m. When we arrived we saw a few children outside playing then we were taken through a beautiful lobby into a meeting room. We had been thereabout 5 minutes filling out papers when in walked one of the care givers with Lydia. She is so beautiful and so petite. She looked so tiny still very much like a baby. She cried when they tried to put her down but when I broke out the snacks and sippy cup she stopped crying immediately.She loved the Kashi honey sunshine cereal and water. She let me feed her a few bites and she ate the entire bowl full quickly. We were there around 15 minutes and it was time to go. When I took her in my arms she cried but when I gave her more snacks she stopped. When we walked out the doors she started crying again. She was so scared. When we got in the van she buried her little head into me and didn’t say a word. She just stared at us. I sang to her and kept saying “boo koo” it’s okay. My heart was breaking for her. Then we had to stop and get photos taken at a photo shop and she started crying again. I don’t blame her…we had to walk up a set of dark stairs into a strange looking place for our photo. Before getting back in the van Mark went to a store and bought her a pack of Ritz crackers and a carton of milk. She ate until she couldn’t eat anymore. By the time we had reached the hotel she was smiling at us, playing with her toys and learning to trust us already. She was all smiles and giggles the rest of the evening. She has the cutest laugh and when she gets excited she laughs and screams at the same time.
I could go on and on but I will just give you a few highlights:
*She has personality with a capital "P"
*She is a very good eater
*She is a mommy’s girl right now (It's 4 a.m. and now she is daddy's girl, he is giving her Kashi cereal and milk)
*She has a sense of humor and likes to make us laugh
*She is soaking in all the new sounds, sights, textures, colors,…
*She is very bright and talking in Chinese but already saying Mama, dada, milk, baby, bye-bye, hello, …
*She is so petite but feels heavy to me. I haven't weighed her yet or tried on her clothes but I put 24 month P.J.’s on her and they were too long.
*She has a strong will and knows what she wants She went to sleep last night around 7:00. She was so tired but I could tell she was scared to go to sleep. She kept looking around the room and then at me. She cried when I put her in her crib…but she actually like her crib. So I sat her on the bed with her favorite book and we talked and then I said “do you want to lay beside mommy”…she let me take her in my arms and we put our heads on the pillow nose to nose. I sang to her and she fell asleep in my arms.
It’s now Friday morning and we have the weekend free. I think we are going to venture out and do some sightseeing. Olivia and Nana are doing well. They are enjoying their time together. What a blessing it is to have my precious mother-in-law with us. She is a jewel! Enjoy the photos and thank you for your continued prayers.
