Floored, I am...

Chaz reporting:

Some days I am just amazed by Morgan and the things she does. When Trish called me at work today to report the pottie incident (somehow I knew it would be up here before I got home) it gave me a nice break from my very (*VERY*) busy workday to think for just a moment how far our Sweet Pea has come in the 4 months she's been home with us (yes, tomorrow is the 4-month anniversary of her homecoming and of her citizenship, and her 20-month birthday). Most nights before I go to bed I stop at her crib and just stare...I can't believe this tiny little person is in our house, our family now. But there she is...

But what is even more amazing is the journey this little girl (and thousands more just like her) has made in her short life so far. In the daily hubbub of chores, work, and minding Morgan I sometimes lose sight of this. A bunch of emails lately in one of our Yahoo groups made me pause and remember where she came from, left in February of last year at her orphanage gates in a dusty, dirty rural town in Southern China, just 20 days old and no doubt terrified and crying (certainly a memory that feeds the cry we hear on those nights when she wakes up and we are not in her room, or when she has an episode of night terrors). In her short life she has met her completely new parents (us!), flown halfway around the world (barely cried once during the whole flight), settled into a strange house full of strange creatures and strange stuff, adapted to strange food, and is today a happy, energetic, loving, and loved child who is basically on-track developmentally (in all aspects other than attachment/separation anxiety...and there is slow but sure progress there, too, tiny steps so subtle we barely notice them). A week ago at the Harvest Moon festival there were so many other little girls so much like her, of various ages, and they were all thriving too. Just to see these children and how well they were doing made the event worthwhile for me; the fact that Morgan had a ball made it special, and the yummy food was really just icing on the cake. But I digress...hardly a day passes that she doesn't blow my mind in some way or another, and when I really stop to think about it I really am just floored. We still have such a long road ahead of us...we have not yet even touched on the idea of adoption and her birthparents with her, and I'm sure that will bring a host of issues when it does come. But I know she will be okay, she will adapt and grow through anything she faces, and that we are lucky beyond belief to have her sharing our lives now.

WOW. Morgan used her potty today!

It almost appeared as an accident - I'm not sure if she knew exactly what she was doing (though she watches me and knows how it all works) or how important a moment it was...I was getting her tub ready ("bath-bath") and removed her diaper while we waited...she put that in the waste basket and walked back over to the tub. I asked her to sit on her potty, which is what we've done since bringing it home. She gladly did, and as the water filled the tub and I shut of the faucet, I noticed that there were a few drops on the soft seat of the potty where she had been. Hmmn, did I drip over from the tub? Nope. Upon further inspection, I saw the smallest pool inside the basin. Water but of a different kind!
My little girl, just shy of 20 months and of her own initiative, used her tiny toilet today!

Two other big advancements - she put herself to sleep this afternoon without me in the room (!!!) and then tried to towel-dry her hair after her bath.

:)

Did I mention that Sweet Pea is a girly-girl?

Daddy saw this cardigan and decided M had to have it (hey - it was on clearance in Macy's ;0)

I suspect, judging by her immediate acceptance of the style, we have a Betsey Johnson fan in the making...(this is both good and bad.)  

 

Eskimo kisses...Morgan nailed me right between the eyes with this little hard plastic toy today...oh, that did not feel good.

I need to find vitamin-enriched cookies.

It's Official!!!

Chaz Reporting:

Today Trish became 100% Mother. She pulled out the "You'll poke your eye out" card, not once but twice...so far.

I am as proud as I can be LOL.

One more from the Harvest Moon festival

Morgan's nap time coincided with our arrival. ;)

Over the bridge and then through the woods...oh - wait - this is Florida. Over the bridge and through the swamp, to Nana and Pop-Pop's house we go!

We had a great day out in Wellyworld yesterday - went over and hung around with my parents all day, again staying for dinner.
Morgan is taking quickly to both of them, keen on observing EVERYTHING that Nana does and constantly talking about "Pap-Pap"! (Yes, "PAP".)
I let both Mom and Dad hold her, and she enjoyed being held for a minute before she wanted to come back to me, but with no fuss at all.
Nana played with her on the floor, and for the first time Morgan rolled a ball back to someone. Until now, she has not been able to grasp that concept.

My battery died so I don't have much to show, but when Mom gets her film developed (dinosaur! :P) I should have a few amusing shots of Sweet Pea wearing a plastic mixing bowl as a hat...it was her idea entirely.

DAAAAAYYY-OOO!!!

Chaz reporting:

Morgan loves her monkey. No, really, she LOOOOVES her monkey! Sometimes at bed time, or when her Mama is getting ready or something, we play with monkey together. Sometimes he jumps up in the air, or turns flips, or just claps his monkey paws together. But lately, monkey has been playing his drum. Morgan has an empty plastic Ritz crackers cup, she likes to keep an animal cookie in it, open it up, take the cookie out, put it back in, close it up, repeat about 100x. But the last few days the cup has become monkey's drum. He beats it like a bongo...and sometimes he sticks it under one arm and pounds it with the other, like Ricky Riccardo or Harry Belafonte or something. Speaking of Harry Belafonte, tonight while monkey was pounding on his drum, I started singing "Day-O", or at least the little bits of it I can remember. A few minutes after monkey and I were done, Morgan picked him up and we heard a tiny little "day-o!" coming from her. We about fell over laughing so hard.

Trish and I both love getting away to Key West when we can. One of our favorite things to do there has become the obligatory waterside sunset cocktail. We go down to Mallory Square, but we like to go off to the side away from the hubbub to enjoy the view, our cocktails, and some relative peace and quiet. There is a Jamaican fellow who plays guitar and sings down by where we sit, he has a nice, mellow voice and I enjoy hearing him while we sit. One of his songs is "Day-O". We are planning on going down again this December, and of course Sweet Pea will be going with us. We are hoping she likes it there as much as we do...and I can't wait for her to hear the nice Jamaican man singing Day-O!

New words:

PLANT

RAIN

WATEE (water)

MORGIE (Morgan)

and today she learned "ON" and "OFF" and demonstrates both. :)

And a few more:

Daddy kinda forgot about taking pictures on the boat today, and this afternoon it was difficult to both mind and photograph at the same time, but we have a few from the 'festival' which Morgan enjoyed (good food, lots of kids) as long as she was able to scurry about...she got a bit feisty when we had to hold her in one place, as is evident from some of these pictures.
She made a new friend named Ava who lives north of us, and I hope to get a copy of the picture(s) her family was able to take of those two funning it up. Both the same age, they really seemed to connect. :)

(P.S. also one of Morgan's new toothbrush!)

Blogger upload took a dump, so here are the rest..

(No, Mama - I'm not sleepy! Really!)

 

Several pictures from the past few weeks:

I moved the toddler bed to another wall (more light, not so gloomy) and got rid of camp BoHo...I'd tried a new twin air mattress instead of the comforters but the thing was uneven (return to Target!) and no better a solution. I then moved the futon over to where the crib was and opened it up - that mattress is shot, too, but with the featherbed on top we can make do for a while.
Also, as you might notice, I have a small pillow under the sheet at the opening of the safety rail. I also add another travel-sized pillow directly under the duvet that she sleeps on top of (baby featherbed ;)) to help control her midnight rolls (she has otherwise rolled right out of bed) and in addition tethered the new crib bumper with the opening in the front which at night is then tied closed to further prevent a fall during sleep.

She is now adjusted to her crib and last night went right to it ("Nap-nap") waiting to be put to bed. :)

Parenthood has taught me to be extremely creative.

The images are of Mama taking pictures in the master bathroom while Morgan brushes her teeth, Sweet Pea tweaking Mama, Her sleepy mode (finger in mouth), playing with Elmo, Monkey and Batty Bat...giving Eskimo kisses, and whatever else I throw in to the mix as I upload. ;)

(More to come later - time now for another load of laundry!)

Twice the excitement, double the fun!

This morning Morgan and Chaz are going out on his brother's new boat...I was originally to join them, but after looking around at the huge pile of laundry, dishes in the sink (and on the counter), a dirty litter box, thirsty plants and a hungry bird...I decided I could use the two hours to clean up around here (and check my email ;))
I made sure they took the camera and sunblock - hopefully we'll have some fun images to post later.

Also, later on today we will be attending one of the local Harvest Moon Festivals, which is why I asked that my husband make the trip out on the river relatively short.

I'm thinking that Morgan will really enjoy this experience (if not both) because she so loves to be around other kids, even if she doesn't much interact with them. Judging by the picture of her in the orphanage, standing alone and aloof, I think this has always been her nature.

Two more...mama and baby.

(I'll post more later - Morgan will soon be awakening...)

She's a rock star...

Everywhere we go, people stop and take notice. It's kinda cool, really.

We went out to do some shopping for a potty (time to slowly start toilet training - M knows what the thing is for, waves "Bye Bye" to the excrement as it flushes down and often tells us when she is going to relieve herself) and then stopped at Cracker Barrel for an early dinner.
We now know that my girl loves dumplins' in addition to the tiniest amount of sweet tea (I'm avoiding too much sugar in her diet) and grits...being that we live in the South, I think gastronomically she'll do well.
Again we had people from other tables pleasantly eyeing us and fooling afar (long distance peek-a-boo) - she smiles and they just can't help it. ;)
One fellow was exiting and just stopped right there at our table to announce what a beautiful girl she was. It was odd but kind.
I was thrilled that he reckoned her a female - most people still mis-figure her as Master, hair not yet femme. Even in a dress, we get "How old is HE?"
Both Chaz and I were keeping her occupied and fed from our plates as well as her own selection, and although she was a bit loud, she was a happy hungry.
The table right behind us turned to me (my back to him) and said, "Could this baby be any more loved?" I smiled back and said we'd surely try. :)

A really, really, really good day today.

After Sweet Pea took her morning nap, I bathed her and got her ready for a big day out - we were heading 20 miles West to visit Nana and Pop-Pop. Morgan loves to travel, and this is the first time we've had a 'girls day out'.
It took almost an hour to get there (traffic is unreal, even on the turnpike) and once we got there, we all headed for the new community shopping mall. Morgan greatly enjoyed being out, smiling at everybody and greeting most of them with waves and 'Hi!!!!".
We went to TooJays for lunch, where M had a two egg omelete and some french fries but politely refused my rice pudding. ;)
She was a.m.a.z.i.n.g.
She ate with her utensils, proud and happy to have Nana fuss over her and us both praising her for her great efforts.
She was quiet and content the whole while, showing Nana how she could take her crayons out and then put them back in the box...and the elderly regulars were oggling my daughter. Cooing. It was sweet. One of the waitresses came over and praised us for Morgan's excellent demeanor - and thanked us for bringing her in! I think Morgan is perceptive enough to have picked up the general good vibe around her and she deserved every bit of commendation.
She's always a good kid, but today she was so above and beyond.

Nana bought Morgan a Halloween Tyson Bat - one of those silly plush dolls that collectors go insane over...well - guess what. The tag is coming off and Sweet Pea is going to PLAY with it. =:D She loves her Batty Bat.

We spent a few hours at the mall, one of which was at the great play area they have for young children. That rocked. She was soooo happy to see other kids and immediately fell in love with a sweet little girl of about 6 or so, and the girl seemed to enjoy Morgan coming over and noticing her. Morgan otherwise traveled around the area and I followed right behind her. She had her space, but I was there to keep bad things from happening. Oddly, I was the only parent who practiced this hands-on approach. Everyone else just kinda sat there, yakking on their cell phones or chatting with the person next to them while the kids ran around ape-shit. All the more reason for me to remain nearby.
Anyway - that was a blast.

Then we went back to Nana's and wound up staying for supper. Morgan was having such a wonderful time with her grandparents and Nana taught her four new words: "Up", "Down", "Open" and "Close". She at this point repeats almost anything immediately after she hears it, varying the vocal quality of response by interest. These were practiced while M stepped from the foyer to a lower living room and then by exploring the cabinets in the family room.
Not child-proof, I bet Mom will be sorry for that later. ;)

We came home after dinner, which Morgan had little interest in, and she was a bit wound up tonight...but now she's finally sleeping.

Highs and Lows (Elation, stress and frustration)

Morgan had another series of (4) vaccinations this morning, and handled it very well. She did cry and certainly in no way enjoyed the experience, but did not put her parents in to a state of panic this time. She just cried, and then gave me a kiss and said "Bye Bye" to the nurse.

It's been a rough week. I've been sick (it's fading, but slowly) and am feeling quite overwhelmed by the constant 24/7 of motherhood. My vast amount of patience is being tested. My inability to clean the house on a regular basis is un-nerving me. My beautiful Morgan with her never-ending need to have me pick her up and put her down and pick her up...It's just that I literally can not for one minute walk away without my baby wailing; needing me, and it has been like this for almost 4 months now. (I'm not looking for pity, so please don't offer any. Instead, heed my words.) I didn't realize just how far over the edge I was until we visited my parents this weekend and I received a bit of old-fashioned criticism for following what the 'professional experts' state as gospel for handling an adopted orphan. I was told that she is teaching ME instead of the other way around, and I collapsed in to tears. Probably because it felt so much like the truth at that moment, I did not know any more which end was up.
She's 19 months old now, and I can not wait until she can TELL me what's going on in her head. I can't wait to be able to explain to her that I need to sweep the floor and do the dishes and run a load of laundry and that it doesn't mean I'm never coming back to her.
I told my father point blank that I knew this wouldn't be easy...I just didn't know it would be so hard.

This afternoon, it took three hours in the nursery to put her down for her nap. Mind you, she was tired. She was tired and asking for her nap-nap, and starting to act in her very moody I need a nap behavior, so we went in and laid down. She laid down, got up, laid down...finger in her mouth (her sign) and yawning, but then she'd sit up and start telling me a story. Then she'd cry. No sleep. Start over again. For three hours.
Bring her out after an hour of this...she wants to go back in.
OK.
Try again.
Same thing, again.
Finally, she appears to be ready to sleep. She has assumed the position. I know she feels awful even with a couple of doses taken, so a nap should befall her easily if she can just hold still long enough to let it happen.
Not moving.
OK.
I suddenly realize that I need to use the restroom and with great urgency, due to the delicious but dangerous black bean soup we consumed last night.
Normally, I can not go to the bathroom without her going in there with me unless I am sure she is fast asleep...but this can't wait. And I can't keep both of us contained...
I hope for the best and make a run for it, pun intended.
It isn't but a minute and Morgan starts screaming because I'm not in the room and I can't do a damn thing about it. I am stuck where I am. She is howling. I am still unable to go to her.
By the time I finish and get to her she's a mess, trembling and inconsolable.
I am my own mixture of distraught/fed up.
I keep it together and hold her until she calms, and then place her back in the crib, which of course starts another round of tears.
Finally, she curls up and closes her eyes.

Now for some good news:
Morgan today started animating her dolls. By that I mean really playing with them - and playing with them together. Little Felix ("Cat, meow-meow"), Elmo (La-la-la) and Monkey (Nana). She had them all hugging and playing and talking to each other.
It was very special.

She's up again - we got a 20 minute nap out of all this.

Time to go.

A quick jot...

I'm sick as a dog (what exactly does that mean, anyway?) and stretching my brain to the limit right now, not to mention the aches that accompany this cold/flu/whatever.

Morgan was sick yesterday and is still sneezing today, but seems to be on the upside of the bug. I, on the other hand, felt fine until yesterday afternoon and then went downhill fast. Today has been i.c.k.y. (nasal drip, sneezing, coughing, sore throat, head ache, sinus pressure and total body pain) and Chaz has done me the favor of taking baby M out shopping and now to her first ball game so I can rest. I need it.

Morgan has made some serious strides in the past few days; she is now singing, really singing and making up her own songs...forming sentences which almost make sense.
She is also using the toddler toothbrush and begs to brush her teeth several times a day - the teeth are coming in and she's not complaining.

She also ate peas and carrots and small cut green beans - three things that she previously would not go near unless mushed into something unrecognizable.

She can count up to FIVE, uses her fingers to identify the first three and is reciting the alphabet; not in any order but as she sees fit.

There was something else...my mind has gone blank. Ack.

Maybe I'll remember later.