More about our trip home

So, now that you know we made it, and I'm feeling like I can string a sentence together that makes sense, I'll give you more details!  Ella Grace slept a combined total of 30 minutes on our long journey home.  Yes, only 30 minutes.....she fell asleep on the first flight AFTER we landed and were taxiing to our gate, but woke up when Brad was strapping her into the carrier.  On our second flight, we thought for sure she would sleep great, but she fell asleep and woke up after about 20 minutes, wanting to stretch out and lay down, which wasn't a possibilty.  It was so sad watching her try so hard to get comfortable, but it just wouldn't work.   Needless to say, when we landed at 9:00 am on Friday morning, we were exhausted, and so was she.  She only had a couple of fussy spells on the flight, and Brad got her up and walked the aisles.  We just tried to keep her entertained, and meal times helped, too.  Really, she did SO well, and her not sleeping ended up being a blessing!

{We tried to get her to watch "Tangled" on the airplane, but she's really not interested in t.v., so she did her own thing with the headphones!}

 She did fall asleep once we got off our flight to Seattle, and slept all through customs and immigration.  Once we got through all of that she woke up just in time to see the family!  I was so glad.... I couldn't wait for everyone to see her!  She seemed pretty subdued through all the meeting of her siblings, cousins, aunt and uncle, and Brad's parents.  She was definitely taking it all in!  We strapped her in the car seat, and she seemed really pleased with the arrangement.  She never once fussed on the 30 plus minute drive home from the airport.  She kept looking over at Allyson and smiling... it's looking like they are really going to like each other, once they fully get used to each other!

{My sweet girls meeting for the first time!}

{Daddy with the girls}

{Jake saying hi to his new sister}

{All strapped in and ready to head home!}

  We got home and ate lunch (does anything taste better than a homecooked meal when you've been gone for 2 weeks?) and let her play for a while, until she just couldn't stand it anymore.  We laid her down and she zonked immediately, but we are hardcore about switching them over to our timezone, so we only let her sleep for two  hours and got her back up.  It's worth having a cranky one for a day to get things switched over!  By 7:30 last night, she had been bathed and was exhausted again, as well as Allyson, who was begging to go to bed with Ella Grace.  She couldn't wait to finally share her room with her sister!!!  They both fell right to sleep, and Ella Grace slept for a solid 12 hours!  Brad and I both went to bed early, too, and both woke up feeling so much better! 

{Welcome Home, sweet girl!}

She is taking in her HOME environment pretty well.  At first, I think it was a little overwhelming for her with so many new people, but as long as either Brad or I are in sight, she is fine.  If she loosest sight of us, she  cries a quiet little cry, but we make sure one of us is with her all the time.  Today has been fun to see her start to explore a little bit, she's been in the kitchen, and does really well going up and down the stairs, which has been a shock to me.  She definitely has been around stairs before and knows to come down on her belly.  We have gates that will help us keep her on the same level, but it's also a comfort to know that she can go up and down.  Today, her eating has been way off, she hasn't been too interested in food, until she ate my mother-in-laws roast, potatoes and carrotts tonight, then she couldn't get enough!  We mashed up the potatoes and carrots  and added a little gravy and put tiny pieces of the roast beef in it, and she at at least 3 helpings.  The family was completely amazed at how much she put away!  We are having trouble with her drinking anything.  She doesn't like juice, or water, and she spits out the milk.  Usually she drank the milk in China really well, but it was a yogurt milk with sweetener in it, so now she's not drinking hardly anything.  We are going to get some vanilla flavored soy milk tomorrow and see if she will take that. 

Today, we gave her a 30 minute nap, and she did pretty well all day, except for about an hour after we woke her up... she wasn't such a happy camper for a little while.  She was a little wired tonight, and Brad just got her to sleep, at about 10 pm, but she's out, so hopefully it will be night 2 with plenty of sleep.  She seems to be taking to her siblings really well.  All things take time, so we know once we settle into regular life, the kids will continue to bond in each their own way.  My 12 year old niece, Kaylee won her over tonight by sitting and playing with her for about 2 hours on the floor.  Kaylee has always been the "little mother" in our family, and couldn't stand it that Ella Grace didn't take right to her.  She lives 4 doors down from us, so I know she will be by every day to make sure Ella Grace really knows who she is!  It's so sweet to see her bond with the family, and for everyone to finally get to experience this sweet girl that we've been loving on for the last two weeks! 

{Do you think she gets any attention around here?}

 {Studying each other}

{With her big brothers}

{Hanging out with "Kay Kay"}

{Sisters!}

{Hanging out with Caleb}

We are going to attempt church in the morning.  We plan to arrive a little bit late to avoid causing too much commotion for her.  I already know that she's not going to sit quietly in church, but it will be a few weeks before we try the nursery.  Even then, I will stay in there with her for a while, until she is completely confident that we will be back to get her.  Too much change all at once takes a toll on these little ones.  It takes her a while to warm up to people, and we just don't want her overwhelmed, when what she has been through these past two weeks has been overwhelming enough!  What a brave little trooper she is, and how amazing our God is for giving her such a smooth transition through all of this.  I can't express enough how blessed we feel to be all together!  Definitely the prayers of so many people that have gotten us through these last two weeks!  We love each of you and can't thank you enough! 

{Snuggling with her Grandpa}