Wednesday, September 17, 2008

More Six Months

From Gotcha day to now.....6 months in the making


Our six month Gotcha Day has come and gone....the children are all in bed fast asleep and the normal nighttime quietness is lurking. I did take a few pictures though, of course. It is the smaller things in life that can amuse and entertain a toddler....thus, the majority of the pix that were taken involve MK trying to put her pjs on. Quite a task for a 20 month old. She literally spent about 20 minutes playing with these two pieces of clothing, she managed to turn them inside out, she had the shirt on one leg and the pants on her arm...she figured out how wrong that was when she attempted to stand up and walk, so she tried yet another way to put them on...and this went on and on, attempt after attempt until finally it was time to go get the boys! It was a fun day just watching her and taking yet another moment to realize just how far we have all come in this journey.




Sunday, September 14, 2008

Six Months

Six months ago today we were in China, Chongqing to be exact. We were anxious, excited, scared and nervous. Our 4 lives were about to become 5 in just a matter of seconds. It really was much like actual childbirth. There was a lot of anticipation. There were a lot of plans for our daughter yet uncertainty in how it would all come to be. We have two biological children, two wonderful, happy, and handsome boys. In the delivery room, I heard each of their cries before I ever laid eyes on their sweet faces. With MK, it was no different. As we stepped off the elevator to meet her for the first time ever, we heard her cries first. She was crying (or at least babbling loud enough for us to hear her) and crying is good, right, especially in the delivery room! It was all good. We have come a long way in six months. I remember Gotcha Day just like I remember the birthdays (or nights rather) of the boys. We were so relieved to have her, so excited to finally hold her, we took a gazillion pictures with everyone holding her yet I was a bit overwhelmed with the sudden realization that I (we) had the responsibility to take care of this child. She was no longer just a beautiful face in a picture that we had looked at for months, she was REAL. Since that day, I find myself thinking of her past, the past we will never know the answers to. I think of the woman that gave birth to her and the person that placed her ever so carefully (and intentionally) in front of the orphanage, just hours after she entered this world, so that she would quickly be found and cared for. I think of the questions that MK will have about this whole scenario and the answers that she will expect me to have for her. I think of her birth country, the traditions and the conditions of the Chinese society. I wonder what parts of her heritage will be important to her, what part she will wish to feel closer to. While thinking of her future, I have also realized just how important it is to me that she know how much she was wanted. We wanted her. We planned for her (Pryce saw to it that we prepared for her to arrive....every visit to Target he would ask me to get her some diapers. I would tell him that we didn't know what size to buy. He would matter-of-factly tell me to just "call the China man and ask him what size!") We waited for her. We prayed for her. We loved her before we knew her and we fell in love with her the day we met her. She is our "baby girl", our sister who calls for her "bro-bers" all day because she can't get enough of them and, most importantly, she is our family, one of us. No, she will never look like us on the outside but our hearts are all one on the inside. Happy Six Month Gotcha Day, Mason-Kate!
Here is our weekend through pictures. It was a fun, full weekend. Saturday we attended a carnival sponsored by Ryan's company. The boys were thrilled to be allowed to do and eat whatever they wanted. MK stayed close to us not sure yet what to think of large crowds. Saturday we met some friends for dinner at a local Chinese restaurant to celebrate the Moon Festival. From what I understand, the Moon Festival in China is similar to Thanksgiving in the States. It is celebrated every year in autumn and it is a time to give thanks. We even sampled the traditional "Moon Cakes"....Mason-Kate was impressed with her Moon Cake and chose to devour the whole thing. The rest of us spent a lot of time trying to figure out exactly what a Moon Cake consisted of as they each do have a different filling. Fun was had by all!


Family Fun Day









Moon Festival Dinner



And to complete the day, MK taking in some college football