Wow! I said something to my husband about being home for 3 days and he needed to remind me that it has already been 5. Time is flying! My kids have been off this week for Spring Break and my husband only went into work on Thursday, so it's pretty much felt like a continuation of our time in Lithuania. One big happy family, hanging out together.
Our time at home has been a little bumpy, but progressing well. Viktorija is getting used to the surroundings and the dog. She's got a love/hate thing going on with him. One minute she's sitting on the dog telling him how much she loves him, to the next minute screaming because he's crossing the room towards her. He's being so tolerant of her. He's such a great dog!
Ok...truth time. I started the above 2 paragraphs on Monday. It's now Wednesday and I'm trying to finish a blog update. Oi! Do you know the movie Monster's Inc? The part where they bring Boo back to their apartment and the sweet little thing runs around exploring and knocking over the TV, spilling over books and goes goes goes until she passes out? Well this is pretty much my life right now. Everything is new to her and she's not afraid to explore. She loves to be outside, but it's been so cold and windy she hasn't wanted to go out. So I've had to get creative in finding different things for us to safely explore. It's been a lot of fun, but exhausting as well.
We didn't end up attending church for Easter, which I missed a lot. I sprained my knee playing outside with the kids and B is still fighting a terrible chest cold and ear infection. Also, I was too afraid of overwhelming Viktorija. The kids got up in the morning and looked for their Easter baskets. Viktorija thought this was really cool. A basket full of toys and treats some of which she was allowed to eat even before breakfast. You could just see the amazement in her eyes. She kept looking at me waiting for me to disapprove as she would pick up a jelly bean and when I would say "yes" she would pop it in her mouth fast before I could change my mind. I dressed her up in the Easter dress I got for our Easter dinner which had ketchup on it within 5 minutes. Thank goodness I took pictures first!! LOL!
Viktorija is extremely bright. She has picked up several English words already and uses them mixed in with her Lithuanian. Her favorite toys are her dolls and Leapfrog ABC magnets that sings the alphabet song and the sound the letters make. It's easy to tell when she overwhelmed or tired because she gets naughty. She does things trying to get me upset. I've learned that that's the time to scoop her up and find a quiet place to sit or to nap. She has been looking for a lot of extra comforting lately. Last night was a rough one. She didn't want to go to bed. She went from crying to playing to trying to be naughty. I think it was her effort to keep me in the room for as long as she could. Today she doesn't want to let me out of her eyesight. I can only imagine what thoughts are going through her head. I just try to redirect her bad behavior, keep her busy, and tell her I love her as much as I can.
From time to time I think, " I can't believe we made it!" The adoption was such a long journey. The pain of it all is beginning to fade, especially when she flashes me one of those adorable smiles. I'm enjoying getting to know her. She has so much personality and determination. Over all the whole family is doing really well. It's not always easy...it's not the movie Annie. But the sun does come out....(groan, I know). The lack of sleep, my injury and B's sickness has added an extra level of difficulty, but we're making it work. We've had a couple of friends bring us dinner which has been a huge help. We are very grateful to everyone who has helped us in anyway through this process and continues to support us. God has blessed us with us a beautiful daughter and wonderful friends and family. He has been our strength through this all. Praise God and we thank Him for the many many blessings He has given us.
Well said sweetheart
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