Guess what guys?!! Do I look different? I feel different because I have been home for one month now and life is good!
One
month home and this girl's little bones are beginning to disapear under
her new chub. She is even getting little roles on her knuckles. What a
beautiful sight! Well, she does eat ALL the time. Its so fun to see her
change physically, mentally and emotionally right before our eyes. This
girl is so full of life, love, joy and passion that I often forget she
has only known freedom for one month. She LOVES to dance and sing to any
music, but Elmo lights up her face like no other. The dog is now pretty
cool, most of the time and this little girl is reminding me more of a
typical toddler everyday.
Her
social calender has been quite busy with many play dates,
medical exams and outings with her brother. This girl just loves
people! Its very common for institutionalized children to be "social"
because they are used to so many caregivers. They just don't know what
family means or what a stranger is. Their goal is to get as many needs
met by anyone who might be willing to meet them. The cute, charming and
loveable children tend to get more attention in the orphanages so the
art of charm is something they learn at a very young age for survival.
When someone new enters Elena's vision, she lights up. She is SO
charming and quickly has everyone commenting on her sweet smile, laugh,
joy, etc. She is all of these things, but she does change as you spend
more time with her. She relaxes and becomes a bit more real. She doesn't
always smile so much and yes, she throws fits too. Of course, she is a
toddler, but for Elena its not just age. Usually in Eastern European,
orphans are first charming and then if that doesn't
work, they are quiet....or even silent. Why? Because crying doesn't get
them anything so they have learned not to waste the energy. Elena
doesn't fit this mold though. It could be personality or maybe the staff
that was more attentive than most orphanages, but she learned that the
bigger the fit, the more attention she got. Even negative attention
means human contact and our daughter refused to be ignored. With us, she
is learning she does not have to be charming because we will feed and
comfort her anyways. She is also learning that fits are no longer the
best way to get attention. Even after the bonding occurs though I think
she will always be our social little girl, but who knows. She changes so
much each day that we still don't know what it truly her personality
and what is a product of her past. It is so fun to watch unconditional
love at work though. It is transforming this little girl and you can see
it all over her face. She loves her new life.
She loves hugs and kisses. She loves her brother and mimicking
everything he does. She loves freedom to move and explore. Watching her
sometimes brings tears to my eyes and reminds me how much I take for
granted in my life.
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| Yep, my brother teaches me everything I need to know about this family stuff |
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| Food anytime I want it! Could life get any better?!! |
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| This is my dog. I like him best when there is glass between us but he is growing on me. |
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| My brother sits at a table so I decided that must be the best way to eat. Freedom to figure things out is pretty darn great! |
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| This was exciting! I got to try farming for the first time. My caretakers said I was afraid of cows, but I don't know what they were talking about. And now I can make cow noises too! |
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| And grass. Oh, lovely grass! The excitement is almost more than I can bare. I just can't get over all the cool things I was missing out on. Thank you God for families! |
How
cool is it that of all the kids in all the world, God chose her from a
small area of a huge country, worked a series of miracles and here she
is, right where she was meant to be. In preparing for adoption, we
learned a great deal about being honest with our child about their
story. It is so important that they be able to have an identity and know
their past as they are ready to hear it. Usually this story involves
abandonment, rejection and heartbreak. For Elena, we feel so blessed to
get to tell her a story of thousands coming together to raise funds. A
community volunteering time and resources and an international network
of prayer. How could you not feel so loved with a story like that? We
are thankful
everyday for each of you who opened your heart to our little girl. We
are so thankful to be a part of something that has touched so many
hearts and pointed God's glory. This is ALL about God and how much He
loves each of us. He will work endless miracles and stop at nothing to
show us His love. We just have to say yes and I am so thankful that we
did because what an adventure it has been. We understand God's power and
love in a whole new way that has transformed us and the life on one
amazing child. And it gets even better because God isn't done.
