Wordless Wednesday: Love & Attachment

Mail To Armenia

Since Ella has received multiple packages filled with generous gifts from her birth parents, she asked me if she could send them something to return the favor. Of course, I said yes.  We spent some time talking about the fact that shipping internationally is expensive and that we would need to choose items that were small, light, and not fragile.  With that in mind, Ella helped select the gifts: pajamas and socks for her baby brother, a tie for her birth father, and a shirt with her school logo on it for her brother in Kindergarten.  Upon my suggestion, we had a special necklace made for her birth mother.  We also added photos, some of Ella's work from school, and a photo magnet.

Last month, we mailed the package and it arrived in Armenia this week.  Ella's birth mother wrote us a lovely thank you message which included these words, "I want to say that the idea to make such a necklace is wonderful. I am touched. It is the best gift that I got in all my life. It's so invaluable for me to have a piece of my girl.I can't take it in my hands without crying. "

I am very glad that the gifts we chose were well-received as we are building a relationship across the miles with Ella's first family in southern Armenia.  So far, our contact with them has been very positive and helpful for all involved.

Picture Of The Day

Our lovely daughters

Glenwood Gardens & Highfield Discovery Gardens

Yesterday we met wonderful friends at a park none of us had ever been to before. We were very pleasantly surprised by its beauty and whimsy and glad we took advantage of the lovely weather to explore a new place.

We started our afternoon by walking one of the peaceful, comfortable trails.  With five kids between us, we had a lot of busy, happy feet.

Then we headed into the Highfield Discovery Garden which is a magical sort of place for children and adults alike.

Emilia off to play

Having herself a little tea party

Mushrooms loomed large in my childhood's lore
and I still find them enchanting as an adult

Delightful nooks and crannies everywhere

Some of our group playing in the discovery tree

There's also a nice vegetable garden in this park and when I asked staff what they do with their produce, they encouraged me to pick some.  So, both of our families ended up with a bag of fresh, locally grown tomatoes and butternut squash and I chose a few herbs, too.

We finished the outing with a picnic.  Our family had homemade flat bread, jajik, hummus and fruit.  The kids played a little hide and seek and petted some dogs before we headed back home.

We had such a great time yesterday afternoon and hope to return to this park again soon.

Beaming With Pride & Joy

I know I owe all of you a full update on how Emilia's doing, but I just received this message from her PROMPT speech therapist in regard to some testing they did with her over the last few weeks that I wanted to share.  This therapist has worked with her for two and a half years and remembers Emilia as completely nonverbal, fearful, sensory-overwhelmed, unable to eat solids or feed herself, without any pre-academic knowledge... which makes this particular therapist truly aware of the strides Emilia has made in the last few years.  Our sweet Bulgarian love is making her own path and we just couldn't be more grateful to be along for the ride.

"In watching it [the video of the test in progress] as we score it, I’m in tears. They are happy, proud tears though!! I tried giving this [test] to her last July/August right before we transitioned here and she really couldn’t participate in most of it. Watching her with [V.] is incredible! She’s following the verbal directions!! She’s imitating her motor movements and then to see the vast difference when the tactile is applied is such a beautiful thing! What I’m also amazed about is her easy interaction and engagement with [V.]. She’s thoroughly enjoying herself, showing off, being so cute, but all the while completely confident in herself. We haven’t gotten through all that we obtained last week yet (we will do more in just a couple of hrs), but thus far, you can really see a dramatic difference in her than where she was—I think even than where she was at the beginning of the summer. She’s just in such a growth right now I wish we could see her every day!"

The First Fifteen

As of today, the girls have been in school for fifteen days which means I have had 60 hours at home to tackle the tasks that are hard to complete with little ones around and also to take better care of myself.

I have spent these 60 hours largely giving our house a good top to bottom scrub.  I have dusted under the beds and washed some of the windows.  I have re-organized our hall closet and cleared off the fireplace mantle.  I have gone through the kids' wardrobes, sorted out what's too small now or will be next spring, and readied their fall/winter line-up.  As much as possible, I try to prepare our dinners in the mornings, so that I can give my full attention to Emilia and Ella when they come home at 1:00 and 4:00 - ish respectively.  That said, much remains to be done.  There are a few areas of the house that I haven't even touched yet (I'm looking at you, basement and garage) and plenty of special projects I would like to complete.

I devised a monthly schedule for the repetitive housekeeping jobs, so nothing falls by the wayside.  I am now in week three of a four week rotation and so far I really like my plan as it helps me prioritize and stay on target for each day.  I left enough flexibility in the schedule to give me some time for fun tasks like working on photo albums for the kids or decorating for holidays.  Thursdays are open for medical or educational appointments, volunteering at the school, etc.

As for taking care of myself, you know I hate exercise, but it's a necessary evil.  I have held myself to either walking one mile or biking three miles as soon as I put the girls on the bus.  I don't even go back into the house to make sure that I follow through with my fitness goals.  It takes me about 20 minutes to finish up my self-imposed daily exercise and I try to give myself 40 more minutes per morning to do what I enjoy: reading, blogging, crafting, emailing friends, etc.  You might also find me on the couch with a mineral face mask on or painting my toe nails or just taking a long and undisturbed shower.

I knew the start of the school year would be a change for all of us, but I feel that we adjusted well, as a family, to our new schedules. There have been a few bumps, especially for Ella who is facing increased expectations at school and at home, but overall, things are really good here right now.  Life at the moment feels like a long-awaited exhale for this busy mom of three.

Ella Is Seven

We recently celebrated Ella's seventh birthday, her first in a family.

Ella got to choose the menu for her birthday: fruit plate for breakfast, tomato soup for lunch, pizza for dinner, and homemade by her daddy peach milkshake for dessert.  Of course, she received a few gifts, too, practical and whimsical.

A few days later, we had a birthday pool party with family and friends. How happy we were to see our big girl surrounded by the love of her favorite people, enjoying her favorite foods, and doing her favorite things, like swimming, conversing, and taking pictures.

Happy birthday, Ella.  

We can't wait to see what this next year brings for you, 

how you will learn and grow and change.  

We're so blessed to have you 

as our playful, demanding, inquisitive, expressive daughter 

whose joie de vivre adds so much sparkle to our days.  

We love you forever.