Be thankful that you don't live with this type of fear each day...but also do not forget that this DOES still happen around the world. Lord, break my heart for what breaks yours.
The LRA (rebels out of Uganda) are terrorizing children in Sudan, then taking them as soldiers and sex slaves. (Read more on this blog and this BBC article.) Please pray with me for Sudan. Pray with faith and pray with persistence.
What you REALLY want...
Sorry that I didn't put any pics in the last post. I put so many on facebook that I forgot about putting them on the blog. I'm going to redeem myself here....
Water Lover
Dog Lover
Upside-Down Lover
First Easter
Laughing with Auntie Rah-Rah
Laughing with Grandma
In the fire truck with Daddy
First (of many) trip to the zoo
In the sling with Mommy
Mother's Day and first trip to church
Eden Recap: month 8 of life; month 1 home
It has been quite a whirlwind since arriving home on April 23rd and settling in as a family of 3. As with all new parents, there is very little sleep going on in our house as well as the occasional moment of feeling completely overwhelmed; however, at the center of it all is our beautiful baby girl who we love more than anything. If you’re a parent, you get it. Our love for Eden is so deep that nothing else seems to matter.
We wanted to document some of Eden’s milestones and other things we want to remember about this time in her life. A snippet for her scrapbook, I guess.
Nickname
We call you “little bird” or “bird.” It just seemed to fit you from day one. Your little mouth looks like a little bird and your little chirps sound like a little bird. We LOVE our little bird!
Physical
You are 15 pounds (10th percentile) and 28 inches tall (90th percentile). Long and lean—just like your Ethiopian roots! And you are healthy as can be!
You have soft, tight curls and a widow’s peak hairline. You have very long fingers and fairly large feet for your age.
You don’t have any teeth yet, but you’ve been teething since we met you—everything goes in your mouth!
Temperament
You are a very content baby. You totally go with the flow and it’s awesome! You will play on the floor by yourself and just talk to all of your toys!
You have an extremely long attention span and are very smart. You will work on something for a while and then we’ll notice you doing it on your own! For example, we worked on you using your fingers to pick up puffs (instead of palming them) and you focused hard on it, practiced several times, and now you’ve got it down!
Development
You went from only rolling over to now sitting up on your own.
You haven’t quite figured out how to crawl, but you can scoot backwards and spin around on your tummy just fine!
Communication
You went from only saying “ba ba ba” to now being VERY vocal! You squeal a lot and you say something that sounds like “hi” and “ay” a lot. You also say “da da da” (which your Daddy loves!).
You love making sounds with your mouth (blub, bzzt, smack, etc.) and mimicking our sounds. You crack up laughing when we make silly sounds.
You have the funniest “trill” that you do when you are frustrated. It sounds like you are rolling your tongue and squealing at a high pitch. When people hear it, they always comment on it. It’s hilarious (not that you’re frustrated—just the sound)!
Your hands are always moving. You love feeling different textures—tags are your favorite! You wave your hands like you’re saying “hi” or “bye” (but you haven’t yet associated the waving with that). You will grab one hand with the other and move them up and down. You talk to your hands a lot…wonder what they are saying to you?
Medical
You had one visit to an international adoption pediatrician (Dr. Heidi Schwarzwald at Texas Children’s) when we got home, and one visit with your regular pediatrician (Dr. Richard Byrd at Kelsey-Seybold Fort Bend). You did great at both visits! Poor Mommy didn’t do so well when Daddy had to hold you down for them to draw LOTS of blood from your tiny little veins. But you did so good! You cried (who wouldn’t?) during the process, but you quickly calmed down after it was over. Same with the one vaccination you had to get. You weren’t a fan of them sticking you, but you calmed down very fast.
You had your first ear infection (in your right ear), but didn’t seem to mind it at all! We only knew about it from your routine pediatrician visit.
Skin
When we picked you up at Hannah’s Hope, we noticed some extremely dry patches of skin on you. Unfortunately, you have a bad habit of scratching one spot a lot—on your chest under your chin. So, we keep lots of anti-itch cream on it and we always have a bib on you to create an extra layer of protection from your little fingernails. We also cut your fingernails very often and we lather you with thick creamy lotion several times a day.
You also have a habit of scratching your forehead (by your hairline) when you are sleepy and even in your sleep. We’ve pretty much fixed that by keeping your nails very short and keeping your skin hydrated with lots of lotion.
Your little bottom has some very dry patches as well, so you get lots of creamy lotion there, too! You also have some skin discolorations on your bottom that we learned are called “Mongolian spots” and will disappear by the time you are in kindergarten. Thankfully they aren’t painful for you at all (we thought they were bruises when we first saw them!).
Food
You drink 4 bottles (approximately 6 ounces each) a day and you eat purees 3 times a day. You are such a good eater—you are not picky at all! You’ve had everything from spinach and lentils to apricots and prunes and you love all of it!
You love eating “puffs” (little Cheerio-type treats that dissolve in your mouth) and “mum-mums” (rice teething biscuits).
Sleep
You are consistently taking a 1 - 2 hour nap in the morning and the afternoon, which is awesome! You easily fall asleep in our arms when we give you the signal of draping a blanket over your eyes, then we put you in your crib and you take your nap. You wake up in SUCH a good mood—it’s so fun to go get you from your nap!
Like all of the infants at Hannah’s Hope, you were on a schedule of being woken up every 2 hours at night for feeding. Breaking that routine that you had for 5 months of your life has been our toughest challenge so far. Your bedtime now is around 8:00pm-8:30pm. You typically wake up a few times during the night, but only one of those times requires us to pick you up and do bedtime routine all over again because you are wide awake (typically around 3:00am). After that, you tend to sleep until 7:30am-8:00am.
You sleep with a humidifier in your room and when you have a runny nose, we put Vick’s in it. It has helped your nose tremendously!
Loves
You love having people around. You especially love being around your grandparents and aunts, uncles, and cousins! And when Grandpa makes all of his funny noises, you go nuts!
You love your 4-legged sisters. Heidi lets you play with her (pull her fur, her ears, her tail, etc.). Layla is more protective of you like your “Nana” from Peter Pan. She comes and checks on you if you’re fussing or if you’re squealing really loud, but she keeps her distance so you can’t hurt her. ;)
You love going places—to the store, to the zoo, anywhere. You’re not too keen on sitting in the car seat for very long, but you love getting to the destination!
You love being outside and feeling the breeze on your face.
You love TV (uh-oh—we’ll have to moderate you!). You mostly watch PBS shows like Dinosaur Train and Sesame Street, but you also like to watch the Ellen show with Mommy—especially during the dancing time!
You absolutely love water! Getting sprayed in the face is a particular favorite of yours! You love baths, swimming pools, water hoses,…anything with water!
You are hilarious to watch in your “Johnny jump-up!” You squeal and smile and kick your legs like crazy. You’ve also figured out how to twist it around and then you’ll pick up your feet, tilt your head back, and enjoy it spinning while it unwinds.
You love your “soothie” (pacifier)! We have several of them around the house and we keep one clipped to your bib during the day. You just pick it up and pop it in when you feel like you want it.
You love mirrors (everyone would if they were as cute as you!). You sit and talk to yourself and have the funniest conversations!
You love to be upside down. Daddy is mostly the one who will flip you around while he’s playing with you. But sometimes you’ll just arch your back and flip upside down while sitting in someone’s lap.
And you love your Mommy and Daddy! You are really recognizing us as your parents and that makes us SO happy! You will fuss if Mommy walks past you without picking you up—a great sign of attachment.
We wanted to document some of Eden’s milestones and other things we want to remember about this time in her life. A snippet for her scrapbook, I guess.
Nickname
We call you “little bird” or “bird.” It just seemed to fit you from day one. Your little mouth looks like a little bird and your little chirps sound like a little bird. We LOVE our little bird!
Physical
You are 15 pounds (10th percentile) and 28 inches tall (90th percentile). Long and lean—just like your Ethiopian roots! And you are healthy as can be!
You have soft, tight curls and a widow’s peak hairline. You have very long fingers and fairly large feet for your age.
You don’t have any teeth yet, but you’ve been teething since we met you—everything goes in your mouth!
Temperament
You are a very content baby. You totally go with the flow and it’s awesome! You will play on the floor by yourself and just talk to all of your toys!
You have an extremely long attention span and are very smart. You will work on something for a while and then we’ll notice you doing it on your own! For example, we worked on you using your fingers to pick up puffs (instead of palming them) and you focused hard on it, practiced several times, and now you’ve got it down!
Development
You went from only rolling over to now sitting up on your own.
You haven’t quite figured out how to crawl, but you can scoot backwards and spin around on your tummy just fine!
Communication
You went from only saying “ba ba ba” to now being VERY vocal! You squeal a lot and you say something that sounds like “hi” and “ay” a lot. You also say “da da da” (which your Daddy loves!).
You love making sounds with your mouth (blub, bzzt, smack, etc.) and mimicking our sounds. You crack up laughing when we make silly sounds.
You have the funniest “trill” that you do when you are frustrated. It sounds like you are rolling your tongue and squealing at a high pitch. When people hear it, they always comment on it. It’s hilarious (not that you’re frustrated—just the sound)!
Your hands are always moving. You love feeling different textures—tags are your favorite! You wave your hands like you’re saying “hi” or “bye” (but you haven’t yet associated the waving with that). You will grab one hand with the other and move them up and down. You talk to your hands a lot…wonder what they are saying to you?
Medical
You had one visit to an international adoption pediatrician (Dr. Heidi Schwarzwald at Texas Children’s) when we got home, and one visit with your regular pediatrician (Dr. Richard Byrd at Kelsey-Seybold Fort Bend). You did great at both visits! Poor Mommy didn’t do so well when Daddy had to hold you down for them to draw LOTS of blood from your tiny little veins. But you did so good! You cried (who wouldn’t?) during the process, but you quickly calmed down after it was over. Same with the one vaccination you had to get. You weren’t a fan of them sticking you, but you calmed down very fast.
You had your first ear infection (in your right ear), but didn’t seem to mind it at all! We only knew about it from your routine pediatrician visit.
Skin
When we picked you up at Hannah’s Hope, we noticed some extremely dry patches of skin on you. Unfortunately, you have a bad habit of scratching one spot a lot—on your chest under your chin. So, we keep lots of anti-itch cream on it and we always have a bib on you to create an extra layer of protection from your little fingernails. We also cut your fingernails very often and we lather you with thick creamy lotion several times a day.
You also have a habit of scratching your forehead (by your hairline) when you are sleepy and even in your sleep. We’ve pretty much fixed that by keeping your nails very short and keeping your skin hydrated with lots of lotion.
Your little bottom has some very dry patches as well, so you get lots of creamy lotion there, too! You also have some skin discolorations on your bottom that we learned are called “Mongolian spots” and will disappear by the time you are in kindergarten. Thankfully they aren’t painful for you at all (we thought they were bruises when we first saw them!).
Food
You drink 4 bottles (approximately 6 ounces each) a day and you eat purees 3 times a day. You are such a good eater—you are not picky at all! You’ve had everything from spinach and lentils to apricots and prunes and you love all of it!
You love eating “puffs” (little Cheerio-type treats that dissolve in your mouth) and “mum-mums” (rice teething biscuits).
Sleep
You are consistently taking a 1 - 2 hour nap in the morning and the afternoon, which is awesome! You easily fall asleep in our arms when we give you the signal of draping a blanket over your eyes, then we put you in your crib and you take your nap. You wake up in SUCH a good mood—it’s so fun to go get you from your nap!
Like all of the infants at Hannah’s Hope, you were on a schedule of being woken up every 2 hours at night for feeding. Breaking that routine that you had for 5 months of your life has been our toughest challenge so far. Your bedtime now is around 8:00pm-8:30pm. You typically wake up a few times during the night, but only one of those times requires us to pick you up and do bedtime routine all over again because you are wide awake (typically around 3:00am). After that, you tend to sleep until 7:30am-8:00am.
You sleep with a humidifier in your room and when you have a runny nose, we put Vick’s in it. It has helped your nose tremendously!
Loves
You love having people around. You especially love being around your grandparents and aunts, uncles, and cousins! And when Grandpa makes all of his funny noises, you go nuts!
You love your 4-legged sisters. Heidi lets you play with her (pull her fur, her ears, her tail, etc.). Layla is more protective of you like your “Nana” from Peter Pan. She comes and checks on you if you’re fussing or if you’re squealing really loud, but she keeps her distance so you can’t hurt her. ;)
You love going places—to the store, to the zoo, anywhere. You’re not too keen on sitting in the car seat for very long, but you love getting to the destination!
You love being outside and feeling the breeze on your face.
You love TV (uh-oh—we’ll have to moderate you!). You mostly watch PBS shows like Dinosaur Train and Sesame Street, but you also like to watch the Ellen show with Mommy—especially during the dancing time!
You absolutely love water! Getting sprayed in the face is a particular favorite of yours! You love baths, swimming pools, water hoses,…anything with water!
You are hilarious to watch in your “Johnny jump-up!” You squeal and smile and kick your legs like crazy. You’ve also figured out how to twist it around and then you’ll pick up your feet, tilt your head back, and enjoy it spinning while it unwinds.
You love your “soothie” (pacifier)! We have several of them around the house and we keep one clipped to your bib during the day. You just pick it up and pop it in when you feel like you want it.
You love mirrors (everyone would if they were as cute as you!). You sit and talk to yourself and have the funniest conversations!
You love to be upside down. Daddy is mostly the one who will flip you around while he’s playing with you. But sometimes you’ll just arch your back and flip upside down while sitting in someone’s lap.
And you love your Mommy and Daddy! You are really recognizing us as your parents and that makes us SO happy! You will fuss if Mommy walks past you without picking you up—a great sign of attachment.
Two Mothers
In honor of Birthmother's Day, I wanted to share this little poem with you. I wrote it on February 4, 2011 for Eden (with inspiration from a different poem that I read). Happy Birthmother's Day!
There were once two women on different sides of the earth;
God’s plan brought them together through your birth.
One carried and delivered you—what God intended her to do;
The other prayed for a child, and God led her straight to you.
One made a painful choice to give you a better life;
The other is so grateful to her for that sacrifice.
Obedience and love—how both decisions were made;
You were CHOSEN, my child—and this love will never fade!
Your life is woven together by two different kinds of love;
This type of double-blessing was planned by God above.
You have the special love of a mother—multiplied by two!
One is in your heart forever; the other is “Mommy” to you.
There were once two women on different sides of the earth;
God’s plan brought them together through your birth.
One carried and delivered you—what God intended her to do;
The other prayed for a child, and God led her straight to you.
One made a painful choice to give you a better life;
The other is so grateful to her for that sacrifice.
Obedience and love—how both decisions were made;
You were CHOSEN, my child—and this love will never fade!
Your life is woven together by two different kinds of love;
This type of double-blessing was planned by God above.
You have the special love of a mother—multiplied by two!
One is in your heart forever; the other is “Mommy” to you.
Home Away from Home
Hannah's Hope - the transition home where our daughter spent her early days of life. This place is amazing. Let us give you a tour…
The road
The gate
Area inside the front gate - looked like they were growing herbs
Courtyard / Play area
Pathway in the back
Infant play room
One of the infant bedrooms (I think there were 4 total--2 girl and 2 boy)
Older kiddo play room
One of the older kiddo bedrooms (I think there were 4 total--2 girl and 2 boy)
Staircase to older kiddo bedrooms
Scripture painted on the wall
Kitchen
One of the bathrooms
Shoe storage
Making shiro (I think) for dinner
Not exactly sure what this is, but they were making something else
Cleaning EVERYTHING (they do this every day!)
Isn't it AMAZING?! Unfortunately, it is not the environment of most orphans in Ethiopia. We are incredibly grateful that Eden spent her time here, but also very aware of the great need that continues to exist for the millions of orphans around the globe.
We are SO grateful for all of the staff at Hannah's Hope! Their love and commitment to these kiddos is amazing! To find out more about Hannah's Hope, click here.
Lost in Translation
A friend came by last night to bring us dinner. She had her 2 girls with her (a 2.5 year-old and a 9 month-old). When they arrived, she shared this "funny" with us from the car ride...
Mom: We're going to see baby Eden!
2.5 year-old: What is her name?
Mom: Eden
2.5 year-old: Like eatin' fruit snacks?
Ah, I LOVE it! That's what a good ol' East Texas accent (from both of her parents) will do. Thanks for the laughs!
Mom: We're going to see baby Eden!
2.5 year-old: What is her name?
Mom: Eden
2.5 year-old: Like eatin' fruit snacks?
Ah, I LOVE it! That's what a good ol' East Texas accent (from both of her parents) will do. Thanks for the laughs!
Confession Time
I'm not really a "kid person." This reality scared me as we began the adoption process. The thought of becoming a Mommy was exciting, but completely overwhelming at the same time. Luckily, the reason I'm blogging about this is that God truly changed me and I'm absolutely loving being a Mommy (especially since I'm off work for 8 weeks)!
First, let me explain why I don't consider myself a "kid person" even though I've always been around kiddos (I've been babysitting since I was 14 years old; I have 6 nieces and nephews and consider myself very involved in their lives; most of my friends have kids; etc.).
Facts about me:
I'm a very independent person and I really enjoy my alone time.
I love the quiet. Too much loud noise for a long period of time makes me anxious.
I tend to be very selfish with my time.
As a side note: Luckily, I married a man who is the opposite of me in this area. He is the one who wanted kids so badly. He defines success in life by being a Daddy. He is very giving of his time. Thankfully, throughout our marriage, these amazing qualities in my husband have helped me grow into a more giving person. I've begun to realize that helping others is much more gratifying than being alone to read (although, I still do that sometimes to maintain my sanity).
These are some of the worries that went through my head as I thought of becoming a Mommy...
What if I get annoyed by her like I sometimes do with other kids?
What if I want to "send her home" like I look forward to doing when I'm babysitting?
What if I don't want to play with her?
What if this is the end to my alone time? Can I survive like that?
Before we left for Ethiopia, I wrote down many of my worries and also wrote down Phillipians 4:6-7. This was written from Paul while he was in prison:
Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. If you do this, you will experience God's peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand.
I prayed about all of my worries. And guess what? I experienced God's peace. And He blessed me with a daughter who is SO cute and is SUCH a good baby that it was super-easy to bond with her. It has been completely natural, which isn't something I thought could happen with me. It was never "natural" for me with other people's kids, so I honestly thought it would take time for me to enjoy being around my child. Thankfully, I was wrong!
Bottom line: God favors adoption, He absolutely loves children, and He took all of my worries and turned them into blessings! I know there will be challenges to being a Mommy, but I also know that I can lean on Him for guidance.
First, let me explain why I don't consider myself a "kid person" even though I've always been around kiddos (I've been babysitting since I was 14 years old; I have 6 nieces and nephews and consider myself very involved in their lives; most of my friends have kids; etc.).
Facts about me:
I'm a very independent person and I really enjoy my alone time.
I love the quiet. Too much loud noise for a long period of time makes me anxious.
I tend to be very selfish with my time.
As a side note: Luckily, I married a man who is the opposite of me in this area. He is the one who wanted kids so badly. He defines success in life by being a Daddy. He is very giving of his time. Thankfully, throughout our marriage, these amazing qualities in my husband have helped me grow into a more giving person. I've begun to realize that helping others is much more gratifying than being alone to read (although, I still do that sometimes to maintain my sanity).
These are some of the worries that went through my head as I thought of becoming a Mommy...
What if I get annoyed by her like I sometimes do with other kids?
What if I want to "send her home" like I look forward to doing when I'm babysitting?
What if I don't want to play with her?
What if this is the end to my alone time? Can I survive like that?
Before we left for Ethiopia, I wrote down many of my worries and also wrote down Phillipians 4:6-7. This was written from Paul while he was in prison:
Don't worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. If you do this, you will experience God's peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand.
I prayed about all of my worries. And guess what? I experienced God's peace. And He blessed me with a daughter who is SO cute and is SUCH a good baby that it was super-easy to bond with her. It has been completely natural, which isn't something I thought could happen with me. It was never "natural" for me with other people's kids, so I honestly thought it would take time for me to enjoy being around my child. Thankfully, I was wrong!
Bottom line: God favors adoption, He absolutely loves children, and He took all of my worries and turned them into blessings! I know there will be challenges to being a Mommy, but I also know that I can lean on Him for guidance.
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