Oh My!

As I sit here with the girls watching them eat lunch I can't help but think of how lucky I am to have both of them. They are both wonderful and unique...and simply meant to be my daughters.

:)

I also can't help but think of some of the ignorant comments that I have heard this week.

:(

People really are ignorant. They will say things to you that they would never ever say if you were a biologically formed family. As a Mother of two daughters who are asian I expect people to ask questions and that is okay when they are respectful. I do wish that people would just ask me NORMAL questions sometimes...like "How old are they" or "What preschool does your daughter attend"?....but realistically that is not always going to happen. :) BUT-When they start to ask a barrage of personal questions and in front of my girls I get very angry. This week I have tried to simply cut inappropriate questions off before they start while still being polite.

A sampling of the questions and comments have been:

"Is she yours"?
(Duh....she calls me MOMMY)!

"Do they like to eat noodles"?
(Huh?! Yeah like all toddlers they like carbs...they also love Mexican food).

"Where was she found"?
(Excuse me but that is nobodys business).

"How much does it cost"?
(My children did not "cost" anything and how are the adoption fees your business)?

"Yeah- China does not want their girls. The parents just throw them away or kill them".
(Wow, did you just say that out loud? And in front of my daughter? China has a very different government and set of rules regarding pregnancy and families. Both of my daughter's birth mothers had to make a very, very difficult choice. I am grateful that they were strong enough to give their beautiful daughters a chance to have a good life).

Honestly I could go on and on with more examples, but I have made my point. Other adoptive Moms who read my blog will "get it".

Yes, She DOES SMILE!

Sophie is getting used to the camera. She is actually starting to smile-sometimes. She even says "Cheese"! :-)

Books...Cartoons...& Animal Crackers

I was talking to my Mom on the phone the other morning & I commented on how quietly the girls were playing in Emma's room. Hmmmmm, too quiet? I peeked in and this is what I found. I had to come back with the camera. ; ) Then I returned to the kitchen to finish unloading the dishwasher...after all they WERE being quiet and having fun TOGETHER, and the mess could be cleaned up later. (Is this REALLY ME talking?!).

Watching cartoons in Mommy and Daddy's room after dinner! : )

The girls wanted a snack last night. (They eat more than teenage boys...I think that they are BOTH in a growth spurt!). I poured Animal Crackers in ONE bowl so that they could practice sharing (We need A LOT of practice...). They did pretty well. Emma was even feeding Sophie and she wiped off her hands and mouth for her when they were finished! : )

*Do you see the ice on the windows? We got nailed with a horrible snow-ice storm yesterday. Only in Kansas can it be 75 degrees one day and have a storm like this roll in 4 days later--ugh.*

Sisters

I have realized that Emma and Sophie learning how to live together is much like an arranged marriage. :-) Yesterday I forced them to stay together in Emma's room and play-I will not lie, for a while it was not pretty! They both had countless redirections, reminders and a few time outs too! But, they DO like eachother and I peeked in to see them playing nicely (seperately!) & even giggling. As I type this entry I can proudly say that they are playing in Emma's room and there are NO tears! I hear Sophie singing something in Cantonese and Emma is re-creating an airplane out of stuffed animals. Today we have friends stopping by for a quick hello and then we are off to the grocery store (again) and Sams Club. We are supposedly in for a lot of snow starting tonight (URGH! It was 75 on Monday!) so I decided that we had better take care of things early today!

Sleepy....but, Settling In!

We arrived home on Friday afternoon and I am happy to say that all is well. :) The laundry is done, I cooked dinner last night, the girls are getting along quite well...if we were all sleeping regularly I would say that thing are near perfect. :-) Emma has been sleeping with Greg and I have been camping out in Sophie's room. But, Sophie wakes up every 30 minutes whimpering and Emma's body clock is still on China time. Last night was a little bit better though and I am sure that in another few days all four of us will be in our own beds sleeping soundly...unless that is my sleep deprived fingers typing. :)

The girls both did WONDERFULLY on the flights home...they were model passengers. I am VERY proud of Emma and the way that she handled herself during this journey. I know that it has taken every ounce of her self control to regulate herself; her meltdowns were truly kept to a minimum. She is a very loving big sister and she wants to be with Sophie all of the time. At times she is a bit of a mother hen and as I was typing just now she put Sophie in time out for some mysterious defense. :D Sophie has also handled her life transition better than I could have hoped for. She seems very comfortable with all of us and she LOVED being with her Lao Lao too while in China. Sophie cuddles with us, expresses her needs, has good eye contact and comes to us for comfort....a very good start! She began to repeat some words in English while in China and continues to repeat words now that we are home. As far as I can tell she is developmentally on target....or at least very close....and she shows no signs of neglect or trauma.

I want to apologize to all of my family and friends for not bloging often while in China. I had thought that I would be able to blog every day; and as Greg posted before there was a miscommunication with the hotel staff about WiiFi . I was disappointed that things did not go as planned. I will start posting to the blog on a regular basis in the next couple of days and share pictures. :) The ones that we have posted of Sophie really do not do her justice, she has a beautiful toothy smile!

Just China Pictures!! :-)

Our New Friend Judy...we shopped a lot at her place. Greg makes a friend at the park...

Megan's Reunion with her friend Kim-we met her while in China to adopt Emma in 2006. :) (L to R: Mandy, ME, Kim).

Sophie snacking in the stroller...she loves to eat!

Emma & Pooh. (Pooh was black and likely carrying Samonella and Herpes by the end of the trip....ICK)! ;)

1st bath together in Guangzhou

Snuggling with Lao Lao!

Emma and Sophie becoming friends.

Emma & Sophie with fancy hair styles...and our dirty laundry in the backround-nice. :)

The Famous Red Couch Picture!

Finally....pictures!!!

I know that it's shocking, but I (Greg) decided to finally contribute to the blog. We apologize for taking so long to upload pictures, however we just found out today (after nearly 1 1/2 weeks) that the hotel offers free wireless internet in the lobby. So much gets lost in translation in China...

Sophie is a sweetheart but also very dramatic and prone to hysterical outbursts at the drop of a dime. For the first few days, Sophie would cry any time that Emma even looked at her. Sophie has also been waking up the household the past 3 nights and for some reason enjoys sleeping at the foot of the bed. She'll be fighting with Mikey (our Sheltie) when we arrive home for the prime spot near our feet.

Emma has done very well and is off to a great start being a Jie Jie (older sister) to her Mei Mei (younger sister). With that being said, Emma loves to torment Sophie by grabbing her toys/blankets and puting them somewhere where Sophie can't reach.

Enjoy the pictures and keep us in your prayers for a safe trip home on Thursday/Friday. Take care and our love to all.

Rgs,

Greg M.