Anelya seems to be doing extraordinarily well in the settling in department. We are have a wee struggle with the jet lag, but that will blow over with time. Mom has been here the last two nights and has helped a lot, but the truth s, I have not slept for more than 3 hours in a row in 11 days now and I am running on empty. Anelya was up several times last night and at 4a.m. she was up for good. I had only just fallen asleep 30 minutes earlier from the last time she was awake. See, she can fall asleep after but I can't.
Anelya has become very "Mommyish" very fast. Even in Almaty it was kind of shocking to the other families how attached she became in such a short time. I feel wonderful about that. I am really looking forward to us both feeling rested so we can really enjoy each other to the fullest. I came home with a WICKED sore throat, which is starting to subside. Anelya still has a cough and some occasional sneezes, but since she has gotten here to the clean NH air, she's doing much better.
We started the day off with a walk in her stroller downtown. I took it easy, only about 30 minutes, because it was suddenly almost time for her to eat again! It really feels like it's always time for her to eat! I had a hard time putting her down for a nap, but I wanted her to sleep for an hour at two different points today. Eventually it worked out. I am working hard with this jet lag schedule because I really need to get back on schedule.
My sister and her family came to see Anelya today. Laura and her two sons met us at the airport, but my brother-in-law and niece were unable to make it, so it was their first meeting today. It was just so much fun to see how excited they are to have a cousin! My youngest nephew, Crosby, said, "She looks like a little chipmunk with five acorns in her cheeks." Yup, pretty much!
A visit from Anelya's cousins and Aunt Laura and Uncle Ted
Tucker, Margot, Anelya, and Crosby: Forever Family
Today I made sure to limit her naps to one hour each, just so she doesn't sleep too much on Kazakh time. She has been going to bed around 6-6:30 both in Almaty and since we got here, so I thought I would try to keep her awake until 7 tonight. Well, at about 5:55pm I ran upstairs to get something and this is what I found about 20 seconds later...
So, I failed to keep her up even past 6:15pm tonight. Hopefully she is tired enough from her day that she will sleep through the night, or at least until 5. I will dream feed her and change her at 10 or 11 to help her get through the night without being hungry. In her evening bottles, I have started to add rice cereal so she will feel full. Hopefully that will help.The transition with the dogs has been like a dream. She just loves them and is reaching for them to pet them and thinks it's funny when they kiss her. I was so worried about it, so I am happy that things went so smoothly. You see, my dogs are not particularly known for their timid nature... Funny enough, they are passed out too right now. I am just waiting for my Mom to get back so I can go to bed. It's 7. I may not even make it myself! What a group!
Before I say good night, I just want to welcome Tammy and Kalamkas home. They were scheduled to arrive 3 hours ago at Logan. I am thinking of you! I am also hoping that Mary Lou and Meleea have settled in nicely. Dave and Cindy should be arriving home within a couple of hours to Utah with Danara and that concludes our Semey group. Well done, everyone! We did it!
My friend Jen is a professional photographer and was kind enough to document our homecoming at Logan Airport. If you would like to see her pictures, please visit her website http://jenmurrayphotography.com/index2.php then click on "clients" on the bottom right corner. Where it says password, type anelya (all lower case) then click submit. Enjoy!
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2 comments:
Congratulations. My daughter Stephanie is following in your footsteps with an adoption in Kaz and my son (Hamzah Henshaw) knew you in college. Both have followed your blog. I too have followed your every blog (thank you) and am so glad that your journey has ended so well and only pray that my daughter and son-in-law's will be as wonderful. Thank you for the photos and the encouragement and good luck to you and your new family member.
The first week was no fun for anyone in our household too (in fact, we had a birthday party for MIras just after arriving home and he looks very jet-lagged and crabby in the photos!). Keep in mind that at Anelya's age she should be sleeping 14-16 hours+ per day so two 2-hour naps (or longer) may be what is needed during the day. Miras slept at least that long for his naps (now he'll do one 3-hour nap at home). In fact, they say that the more sleep they get overall, the better they sleep at night. So, try letting her sleep a little longer during the day and see if it helps at night. I know that even now if Miras gets shorted on his nap, he'll have a hard time going to sleep. Though I am lucky that my husband is able to do the middle of the night awakenings and fall right back asleep. I'm like you - once I'm awake it takes awhile to doze off again.
Miras was extremely Mommy clingy for about a month or so after we got home. To the point that I had to carry him around in the Ergo in order to get anything done in the house. Just think about what these kids are going through. Their little lives have been upended. Everything is different and now they are surrounded by a bunch of strangers. Anelya may be afraid and clinging to the one person she knows and trusts. Remember that this time now is for you two to bond and develop that deep trust between mother and daughter. The books say to try to keep things low key and you should be the one meeting her needs if possible (exhaustion notwithstanding). And if you have an Ergo, wearing the child close to your body is great to give them that sense of security when you are out and about. We spent the entire 2 months in Kaz with Miras and I was still amazed at how much more bonding happened for at least the first 6 months if not year after arriving home. Enjoy every minute of it!
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