She is growing so fast

A few years ago my husband and I embarked on a journey; a journey in adoption.  I wanted to share that journey with you.  

January 11, 2009

Okay so motherhood has meant that I have not been able to post anything to the blog lately. So I will do my best to run through an update of the last 3 months.

We had a fantastic trip to Dallas. Nadia did great on the plane and was the life of the conference. Grammy B (my mom) came with us and we all had a great time. She was so interested in everything that she would just not sleep much. So she would play and laugh at everyone then crash.

Nadia had her TPR (Termination of Parental Rights) at the beginning of May. It went well, although there was one short scare. We thought we would have to come back to court because of some paperwork complications due to the fact that the adoption is a Safe Haven. The law is so new, that some of the people in the court and social services don't know exactly how it works. But Scott and I truly believe the judge decided to go forward with it because he saw Scott and me with Nadia. We are not sure but most foster and adoptive parents don't come to the TPR. We are so glad we went.

We love the summer with Nadia and have put her in a baby pool a few times. She loves the water if it's not too cold. She loves walks and has a great time anytime she is outside. She is now rolling over and scoots all over the place. She is close to sitting up. We have a Bumbo and she loves being "up" to look at everything. She is sleeping through the night from about 8-6 or 7. She grabs everything she can and loves to pull hair, especially daddy’s beard.

We have waited to introduce solids under the suggestion of our DR. But this past week we made the decision to start her on rice cereal. She is less and less interested in her bottle and is showing other signs that she is ready. She watches us eat and will open her mouth when food is brought near her mouth. American Diabetes Association is now recommending waiting until a baby is 4-6 months old before starting solid, because there are studies showing a link between starting solids early and Diabetes. So this morning she had her first experience. She was not too crazy about it and did not actually swallow much the first time. But she ate a little more the second feeding. I am sure it will take a week or so for her to really start eating.

We are still having our social worker visit us 2 times a month and are set to complete all the paper work at the end of this month. We have been given more hand-me-down clothes than I know what to do with. She is going to be the best dressed little girl. We will not need to buy clothes or shoes until she is 3 years old.

The adoption date has been set for August 28th at 8:30AM. Parents, brothers and our pastor will be present at the hearing. It’s going to be a big weekend. We are having a Party the next day Aug 29th and are having her dedicated at our church on Sunday. 

It is amazing to be a mother, but it has meant that I need to let go of some things. Being organized is one of them. I sometimes feel like I just can’t keep on top of the laundry, cleaning and organizing. Our house has been a mess lately. Scott has been such a help but it’s hard for him to keep up too. We have both been really tired too. Parenting is full of sacrifice and change, but every time she looks up and gives us a smile (which is all the time) my heart melts.