We Made It Home Safely!!

It has been a while since I've posted on this blog, and this is due to some major events taking place in our lives over here! We were never able to get to the mountains outside Almaty before we left, but this is a photo of the mountains which surround Almaty, and it was taken in Spring by a gentleman who traveled there. It is a beautiful sight, and you can get this view from the south side of the city.

After a 30-plus hour trip home, in which I paced up and down the 3 flights for about 9 1/2 hours with Sofia in my arms, we finally arrived in Los Angeles to find my husband, my 2 children, Grandparents Lawrence, and Auntie Amber. I was thin from not eating much, and was so exhausted that upon seeing them at the gate, I burst out crying and sobbed for a long time. It must have been the relief to know I was safe, at home, back in the USA, and with my loved ones. There is no better feeling!!

Sofia was exhausted as well, and all the commotion made her even more clingy. Mike, who had made progress at the Baby House in Rudny, and was able to play with her and even hold her about 3 1/2 weeks earlier, suddenly became the 'scary' guy to her. He tried to hold her, but she screamed. This, by the way, still stands. Mike can only hold her if I'm not in the house, or if she cannot hear me at all in another part of the house. The moment I walk into the room, I'm IT. Mike is bummed out, but he understands she has to adjust to another situation. To her this is overwhelming, and it's yet another change in her life. She spent about 3 months in a maternity hospital upon birth, then was moved to the Baby House for another 8 months, then lived with me in a hotel room for almost a month, went through a grueling 30-hour trip, and now has to adapt to a whole new house which contains many rooms. It's all scary to her, and it will take time.

It's been 2 weeks and she is finally feeling like she can walk around a bit more on her own, although she checks on me often to make sure I haven't left the room. Amazingly, she has been sleeping through the night since day 2 (for 12 hours each night!). It is a giant adjustment for the whole family to have a baby amongst us, but we are so happy she is with us and is part of our family! She is a happy, sweet, funny and smart little one! And she is very affectionate! One of the first things I had to do was to babyproof the house, and now gates are up everywhere, as well as toilet safety gadgets (which also seem to confuse adults quite often!), electric outlet protectors, and cushioned protectors to protect little heads from banging on table edges. Alex and Dominique adore their little sister, and can't get enough of her. We have had to train them to be gentle with her, though, because sometimes they think she is a toy. She adores them, squeals with delight when she sees them and loves to play!

Last weekend we celebrated her 1st birthday with some of our family. Grandparents Ebert were present, as well as Auntie Diane, and Uncles Russ, Chuck and Wayne. She received wonderful gifts. At the time of the Happy Birthday song and the candle blowing she was very fussy, but dared to touch the cake and put a bit in her mouth. Then she realized her fingers were sticky, and lost it. It was really funny to watch and it's such a girly thing to do!

We have put her on the swing and she loves that, but when she sat on the grass, both feet were up in the air, hands raised above the head and she screamed. The prickly feeling of the grass was not pleasant to her, and we realized that she had never been on grass before. Yesterday I placed her on the grass again, though, and she seemed fine with it, caressing it, and then pulling some out and playing with it. Same thing happened on the beach. She did not like the feel of the sand on her feet. We will try again some other time, and hopefully she will realize that it can also be fun to play in the sand and the beach. We are planning on going back this weekend, so more photos to follow soon!. . . .