2 Years Old!!!

I can't believe my little girl is two years old!! We had a big party for her and had a great time. She loved the Elmo theme and was so excited about her cake and HUGE Elmo balloon!

Writing for Peanuts

So writing has always been a love of mine and I often dream of publishing one day in the far, far future. After lots of encouragement I've decided to start in the public forum and write for the website www.eHow.com. It's a public site where anyone from novices (me!) to professionals can write simple articles on anything "How To". The bonus to this is that it's a great way for me to JUST WRITE. It's not very creative but hopefully will get me into the habit of writing a few times a week. The other thing is that you can earn money depending on how often your article is read and how popular it is. This is my shameless way of telling you to ready my stuff!! Leave feedback and comments, I'd love to hear from you!
I will probably focus on parenting/adoption issues in the hopes that it will actually help someone in cyberworld. My member name is "AprilinParis" so you can look me up that way or search for the two articles I've already written on "How to Encourage a Strong Sibling Relationship" or "How to help Children memorize Bible Verses".

My little girl is turning two in just four short days. I can't believe it and am just amazed by how quickly time has gone by. Things here are good. Prim has a bit of an ear infection so is on antibiotics for the second time since being home. She delights in being in public or with a large group of people and is the least satisfied just being at home. Often times I struggle with frustration-she is incredibly strong willed and cries often. On the flip side her smile lights up the room and I delight in having a daughter. Ahhh, life with a toddler:) I will post pics of her birthday sometime next week. I am going to bake an Elmo cake!! Wish me luck!

PS-A family in our church and who is a military family in our neighborhood (just like us!) is going through a difficult time since returning home with their one daughter from Vietnam having to leave another behind. Please read their website!
http://www.bringedenhome.com/

Here Kitty, Kitty, Kitty...

Happy Halloween! We had a GREAT night at our church's Trunk or Treat!!! Here are a few pics of our little kitty and Annakin Skywalker.

Pumpkin Patch

I can't believe it's been forever since I've posted. No one told me that life with two is a different kind of crazy! Prim is thriving and doing great. The appointment with the family therapist was nothing short of wonderful and it was just a relief to have a professional opinion and guidance on Prim's sleep issues. She guided us in our attachment process and it sounds like so far we are right on track. She even encouraged us to start leaving her for small amounts of time with friends that we are very close to. Last week for bible study we left her for one hour and she was awesome! She was great when we left and ran to give me a big hug when we came back. We'll only leave her with our one set of friends whom our kids call aunt and uncle (they are godparents to our kids) and she knows them very well. We spend most days together.
Prim is just a very social little girl. She likes to see and meet new people and is one of those kids who will probably love school. Maybe next year for preschool?? Her and G are doing great together and he is really taking on the role of big brother. He plays with her much more than he was after coming home and they love to wrestle together! We had our first home visit since being home which went very well. I love our social worker. She's so sweet and seemed to think that Prim has made herself right at home here. You should hear this girl talk!!! She is talking more than some 2 year olds I know. I am so impressed by her language skills and how quickly she is coming along, especially because she is learning both french and english at the same time. it's so cute b/c she'll say "i love you" and "hot" or "goodbye" to H in french. She is a really, really bright girl. It blows my mind a bit how intelligent she is and sometimes that makes life a bit harder for both of us. She catches on so quickly can manipulate a situation if we're not paying attention.
I hope all of the new babies home from Thailand are doing well. It's so exciting to read about the families that have traveled after us and see how well they are doing. I've been thinking of you all!!

Dedication

We were so thrilled to have Prim dedicated a few weeks ago and wanted to share the pics of her in her pretty white dress (thanks Grandma!!).
Things here are going great during the day, somewhat crazy still at night. We have an apt with a family therapist tomorrow to hopefully try and get a better handle on some sleep issues and see if we are doing everything we can to promote positive attachment. At this point the sleep issues have gotten worse, not better, and it would be nice to have a professional give us some tips on parenting our little one. We haven't met this therapist but she is experienced in adoption and attachment. I'm actaully really looking forward to the appointment. I'll let you know how it goes!

Soccer Star & Biker Boy

Growing Together

It's been a while since my last post and I have so much to talk about. First, if you have emailed me asked how things are going and I haven't gotten back to you-please forgive me!! My email time these days is down to about ten minutes if I'm lucky. Thanks to everyone who continually check up on us to see how things are going.
And how are things? you may ask...I would say on a scale of 1 to 10 they are about a 7. After less than two months home I consider that a huge victory. Our night times still leave us scratching our heads. Maybe one night out of ten Prim sleeps quietly and soundly and then the rest of the time she is waking often with night terrors or wanting to be held. It's par for the course but we hope that she finds some peace soon. There are days when you can really tell the interrupted sleep gets to her and she is cranky and ornery.
Prim is really a social butterfly. We have not allowed anyone else to hold her-not even once-but she would probably welcome it. She loves people and to be around a group of people does not bother her one bit. She loves the activity and commotion and really makes herself at home where ever she goes. She is a whirlwind of activity and motion and most times I find myself spinning in circles to keep up with her.
Her and G are getting along much better and trying to find some common ground. He is being much more loving and helpful towards her and has really changed in his attitude. Not to say that it is all roses but the improvement has changed the energy in the house and H and I are extremely thankful for that!
There are some things that H and I still can't figure out and we are actively seeking an attachment therapist in our area. I think one of the hindrances of the adoption process is really not knowing your child from their early developmental stages. Sometimes Prim is very whiny and wants to be held at the worst times (she must have radar b/c she always wants to be held when I'm in the kitchen over a hot stove). I know you're probably thinking "ah, duh, you just brought her home!!" but sometimes I wonder if this is just her personality? We don't know. She can be manipulative just like any toddler but we always have to ask ourselves is this b/c of the transition or is it just a part of the process? Sometimes it feels like a disadvantage b/c with G we could say he's going through a phase or that's just the way he is right now. With Prim we're scratching our heads worrying if it's attachment issues or she's just being an almost two year old. Do you know how utterly guilty I feel when I have to tell her "honey, mommy can't hold you right now I'm cooking dinner" and she just cries and cries. It's really awful and I'm convinced she'll be telling this this to her therapist one day.....
G has learned to ride a two wheel bike so our family is in a new phase of out door enjoyment. We've all gotten bikes and are borrowing a trailer from a friend and I can't tell you how fun it is to go for family bike rides. We all look forward to them and it's so great to have one more thing we can do together. Prim loves to go in the bike trailer and there is nothing cuter than hearing her go "bonk, bonk, bonk" every time we go over a bump. She is really so adorable and sometimes we look at her and just laugh at her precocious nature!
My hubby is waiting for me to watch a movie so I must sign off. More coming this week hopefully...ta ta for now.

What Do You Do When...

...your almost five year old pees his pants three times in one week. G has never had accidents once he was fully potty trained. In fact, he's been potty trained since he was 2 1/2 almost 3 so it's hard to remember him in diapers. He doesn't seem very remorseful and not very embarrassed. I honestly think it's for attention and that both makes me mad and very sad altogether. Now is the time when I feel like I should rattle off my laundry list of complaints for the past month and how difficult things have been at times as we are adjusting. But then I remember how tonight I was able to spend almost an hour with G at bedtime reading him stories from the new Beatrix Potter book my in-laws sent and how I told him funny stories about when he was in my tummy. He laughed and laughed when I told him how he would get the hiccups almost every single day, sometimes two or three times a day, or how he was a good sleeper even before we met. His eyes became as big as saucers when I told him that I used to ask him (while he was in my belly) to give me one kick for this (cake) or two kicks for that (ice cream) or how I knew exactly where his bum was right before he was born and would rub that spot and sing him songs.
And then he told me, "Mommy, I'm so happy that we are a family" and I realize that there is nothing at all to complain about. The regressing will stop in time, the nights will get better and eventually their friendship will not be one sided.

Pictures

Some pics of our visit with my cousin and his family!

Sleep Deprivation

I can't believe it's been nine days since my last post. The days are flying by and are blurred together. Sleeplessness is the title of this new chapter in our lives as Prim is having night terrors (I'm almost positive)and I am having insomnia. Most nights I am down to two hours of sleep and maybe an hour nap during the day. Prim is doing great during the day, she is full of mischief and mayhem, looking for snacks to eat in the cupboard or flushing the toilet to her hearts content b/f mommy shows up to scold her with a firm "NO" and a tsk, tsk of my finger. I don't think I've said 'no' so many times in my life. This certainly was not how it went with G, but little miss finds herself in precarious situations and no amount of explaining is going to make her understand English any better so No will have to do for now.
It is only at night that she has such a hard time. The first few hours of sleep are peaceful but shortly after midnight it is quickly downhill and she is fitful and crying until the early hours of the morning. I'm not sure what to do. H and I spend most of the day trying to come up with a solution but this is new territory and we are at a loss. How can this little girl be so secure and happy during the day be so miserable at night? The miracle is that she wakes up with a huge smile on her face and is so happy to kiss good morning and start her day. Oblivious to her hours of sobbing or crying out.
I can only pray that in time she will find peace and that her nights will be filled with sweet dreams and deep slumber. I am off to try and sleep myself. Maybe tonight will be the night my head hits the pillow and I fall asleep. If not, Harry Potter and I are about to become acquainted.