'You outta write a book....'

.... except for the minor fact that I haven't been able to effectively write a simple blog post since bringing home Lil' Olivia - much less start a huge undertaking such as a book.    Lil' Miss HATES the computer.   If I sit down in front of one, it doesn't matter what she was doing - her mission is to do her little drunk lady walk over to me and whine to be picked up. 

But, I've now been told I should write a book around 7 times in the last several months.   Usually it is right after I hear the question 'What made you decide to adopt from Ethiopia?' and I commence to exhibit diarrhea of the mouth with my 5 minute prepared service announcement regarding how we got on and sailed down (in the rough waters) our path of adoption and God's provision on getting us there.. See 'our story' to the right for said announcement.

(oh, and 8 people if you count Braeden, out of the blue, telling me I should write a children's book.  Which is a little more tempting as 10 lines vs. 4,587 lines just seems a little easier...)

SO.  With that said - I am here to make amends and write a simple blog post.   Just to show myself I still can.  

Olivia and the last 2 months --- what can I say besides amazing, miraculous, surprising??

To adopt we (as in me) had to read a couple books (and then give Tony the Cliff notes version), take a web course, and go through about 12 hours of training with our social worker.   Nothing prepared me for our little princess..  because she is completely a horse of a different color.   So far anyway.

Princesses First Birthday Pics - 1 Month HOME

I expected long nights of her up screaming and refusing to be comforted by us.  Kicking or pushing us away.   I didn't expect, from night one, her searching for us and waking just to make sure we were still there.   Wanting us to pick her up and cuddle her back to sleep.

Our Gotcha Day - May 7th, 2012 

I expected battles over food with bottles and spoons being pushed away.  I didn't expect this child to eat anything I put in front of her.  Even salmon cakes.   And spinach.   And no, you do not need to call DSS on me.  I've given her french fries and she had her first taste of cotton candy yesterday as well thankyouverymuch.

I expected the need to 'cocoon' and limit our outings for a couple months.  I didn't expect her to be completely at ease at church, sleepovers out of state, at the beach or movies.   As long as we are near her, she is at home and perfectly content to be there.    Now those first few days, me walking into the bathroom or shower resulted in complete melt-downs.   And I currently still usually have a little one at my feet in the shower or face to face with me while I'm in the bathroom.   A little TMI?  Hey, every mother reading this knows what I'm talking about!

Our happy little American citizen in Washington, DC

I expected the need to make sure we were the only ones to comfort her, feed her, attend to her needs.  The need to make sure she knows that WE are her mommy and daddy.  And not every other adult.   I didn't expect her to reject the nannies on our second day of having her, or push away from every Ethiopian that spoke to her on the plane.   I didn't expect her to plaster herself against me when someone puts out their arms to hold her.   Or to now, 2 months later, be comfortable enough to go to others for brief moments before wanting me again.

Our airport welcome crew, minus the photographers I absolutely love for dragging their children 2 hours just to show us some love - Keely and Farrah.

I guess my biggest surprise is how I expected how HARD the adjustment would be.   But once again, God showed me that 'He's got this'.   He knew that with 3 other kids, and my lack of the patience he had been trying to teach me the last 3 years - I might need a tiny bit of 'simple'.   If you can say mothering 4 children is simple.   (I expect the tougher times to begin hitting around this time next year at age 2.)  And yes, we have had the adjustment of getting up earlier, adjusting to a new baby and all the related paraphernalia..  but really, it's just like we woke up on May 13th, the morning after we came home - and our one year old baby was standing up with her cheesy grin in the crib beside us.   As if she had been there forever.   She knows we are hers, and we know she is ours.   And it just fits perfectly and is more beautiful than I could describe in a simple blog post anyway.  

Miss Personality at 10 days home.

As a post script, let me say that NOT all adoptions work out this simply at first.   And it doesn't mean they aren't God-willed.  And it doesn't mean that they are any less of a parent than I am or that their precious new one is any less of an angel than ours.   It just means that God knew they had more patience than I and could handle the more complicated cases while we still needed the preschooler's course in adoption.