One Year Later!

Today is the 1 year Anniversary of Lucy and I becoming a family.  Today I have been overwhelmed with emotion.  I can't believe how quickly this time has gone and how much my girl has blossomed.  A year ago, I had so much trepidation about being a Mother, creating a bond with Lucy and just figuring out a routine.  Today, we are two peas in a pod!  That pod gets very cramped every now and then but none the less, it's our pod.

A year ago, when Lucy and I were introduced to one another, she was not standing, sitting or walking.  She was not speaking or really even babbling.  Today, Lucy is not only walking, she is running, hopping and talking up a storm.  I hear "Hey, Mama!" or "Whatcha doing Mama?"  at least 10 times a day and all in a row. I have to remind myself to appreciate that little voice because SHE worked really hard this year to get there.  Even when that little voice keeps saying "I do it!"  I just breathe deeply and grin.

A year ago, Lucy had not had her palate repaired.  She was unable to suck from a straw.  She did not know how to blow bubbles or how to blow a whistle.  Today,  Lucy had her palate repaired in May and has been in speech therapy since June.  She is able to suck out of a straw, blow bubbles(even in the dog bowl), and blow a whistle.

A year ago, Lucy was funny and a prankster.  She was tenacious, independent and opinionated.  She was full of life and optimistic.  Today, Lucy is funny and a prankster.  She is tenacious, independent and opinionated.  She is full of life and optimistic.

A year ago, Lucy had been in a foster home and was waiting for a family.  A year ago, I was desperately waiting to be a Mom. 

Today, Lucy and I are a FAMILY and my cup runneth over!

Our First Christmas!

What a fantastic Christmas!  We were able to fly back to Nebraska and see the entire family for the holiday which was such a joy for her first Christmas.  The entire flight back to Nebraska, Lucy kept saying Poppy, Ya Ya, Poppy, Ya Ya and when we landed at the airport she yelled at the top of her lungs for Poppy.  When she finally spotted him, she ran into his arms like they never missed a beat.  Ya Ya was not able to greet us since she had just had knee surgery so her greeting had to wait until we made the trip to Lincoln.

Lucy had a blast playing with all of her cousins!  I was a little disappointed that we did not have any snow this year, but overall she had fun.

Lucy did not quite understand the concept of Santa (next year) but she absolutely loved opening gifts.  She is still at the age where ripping the paper off and opening the box is almost as much fun as the gift itself.  

Lucy and I have almost been together for 1 year and even though we have had our challenges, she has added so much joy to my life.  2011 will always be a special year for me.

Thanksgiving and Potty Training!

This Thanksgiving I had a lot to be Thankful for!  There were the obvious reasons, I have my health, a great job and been blessed to have Lucy in my life.  Who knew that I would add a potty trained child to my list!!  I chose to attack potty training during this time because I wanted to have a period of time where I would be able to be consistent and supportive of this new challenge in Lucy's life.  I got a lot of advice and opinions on how to navigate through potty training so with M&M's, new hello kitty panties and the potty set up in the living room we were armed and ready.  I even had back up in case I caved! ( Becky flew in from Denver).  The first few days Lucy went commando.   She ran around the house buck naked in hopes that she would feel the urge to use to potty a little sooner.  Instead of finding the potty, she found curtains to hide behind, dark bathroom floors and little nooks behind the chairs!  Here's a good place for my to enter what else I am thankful for...wood floors.  Day 1 was a BUST!  On Thanksgiving Day, Lucy was still running around commando and in between coaxing her to use the potty, my reinforcements showed up.  Now we were going to get this done!  Still, more dark rooms, behind the curtains etc.  I just kept thinking, if I can get her to understand the feeling, she can do this.  Lucy had no problem holding her blatter.  She can hold it, 3 and 4 hours.  So finally on one of those times where she hadn't gone potty for over 3 hours I decided to help mother nature. I sat her on the potty and filled a bucket with warm water and while she was sitting on the potty I put her foot in the bucket of water.  Sure enough, we had success!!!  Streamers, potty dances and M&M's galore.

  I continued this process for the next few days and even took her potty with us shopping on black Friday.  In between visits into different stores, she would have a potty break in the back of the car.  Needless to say, when she went back to school on Monday, she showed up in her hello kitty panties ready to go!  We had a lot to be Thankful for this year anyway, but now we can add POTTY TRAINED to that list!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN LUCY!

Lucy has finally come down off of her Halloween sugar high!  We had a blast!  Ya-Ya and Poppy came down for a Birthday/Halloween bash.  We started the weekend at Sweet Berry Farms where Lucy went on a Hay rack ride, rode a pony, feed the goats and went through a corn maze. She had a fantastic time and may have even found her calling driving a John Deer!

Ya- Ya has a special place in Lucy's heart!  The saying holds true, "If Mom says No, ask Ya-Ya!"

On Halloween, Lucy dressed up as a cat! We went trick or treating at the Great Wall adoption agency where Lucy was able to meet all of the people who helped make our family complete.   

During the evening,  Lucy handed out candy to all of the trick or treaters.  She had as much fun handing out the candy as she did eating the candy and was very generous with the portions.  We are looking forward to Thanksgiving and Potty Training!!!

Guess who is Two!

Lucy is Two! 

We have decided that it would be Birthday Week in our house, so we spent the week celebrating her 2nd birthday and our first birthday as a family.  Every evening Lucy indulged in cupcakes, ice cream or cookies and I sang happy birthday to her.  She would then open one gift from her family.  She is still at the age where ripping the tissue and the boxes is as exciting as the gift itself. 

Sunday evening was the big finale when we were able to celebrate her birthday with Ya Ya and Poppy.  Their visit was enough of a gift for her as she is in love with her grandparents.

Lucy has been doing fantastic at school and was invited to her first birthday party.  At the end of November the toddler class is putting on a performance for Thanksgiving.  I can't wait to see this and will undoubtedly video tape the performance. 

Lucy has made new friends with our next door neighbors who are 8 and 5 years old.  They come over everyday and ask to play and she loves it.

We are getting close to potty training because the other day when she was playing with the neighbors in the driveway, she pulled down her pants, ripped off her diaper, handed it to me and said, "yuck!"  So I am planning on seeing if she is interested in getting rid of diapers over Thanksgiving!  Wish us Luck!

Lucy and I have been together for 8 months now and I could not have imagined the joy that she has brought to my life.  When I think back to that day 8 months ago, it feels like a life time ago and the change in Lucy is amazing.  She has blossomed so quickly at times it feels as though we have experienced a year and a half in 8 months.  She is a happy, loving and independent girl.  My life has been blessed!

6 Months later & still going strong!

It has been 6 months since we brought Lucy home.  She just received her 6 month post adoption placement home study, a small milestone for us.  What can I say, we have been gradually getting acclimated and uncovering each other's idiosyncrasies. 

She has been in speech therapy for 2 months now and can make a 'B', 'P' sound and blow bubbles in the water.  While I water flowers outside, she fills up the dog bowl with water, puts her face in the bowl and makes bubbles!  She is so proud of herself!  For those who are unaware, we repaired her cleft palate in May and without being able to previously use that muscle, we had to start from scratch to learn.  She graduated from physical therapy because she is walking, jumping and running like any 23 month old.

Lucy started school 3 weeks ago and LOVES it!  I walk her in, we put her lunch box down and then she turns, waves and says, "Bye, Bye Mama!"  Then walks off onto the playground.  She is so independent and confident.  The fun part is picking her up!!  I walk into the school and when she finally sees me, she comes running across the room to meet me.  One day, a poor little 2 year old boy got in between Lucy and me and she bulldozed him down.  He was OK but I am sure that my tenacious( almost 2 year old) will never let anything come between her and her prize, whatever that may be.

I am looking forward to her 2nd birthday, but the first birthday that we will be spending together in October.  Stay tuned for a slew of new firsts for Lucy in the upcoming months.

Lucy Meets the Family!

Here we are!  It has been 2 months since I have written, but as many of you are aware....kid's take TIME!  I love spending time with Lucy, but when I finally have a minute to myself, I am catching up on work or whatever I have on DVR!  So let me catch you all up to speed as to what has been happening in our world!

Lucy and I headed to Nebraska/Colorado for our family reunion and Lucy got to meet her Great Grandma and Great Grandpa as well as the extended family.  She had her first experience with a pinata and the competitive nature of her cousins as they all ran her over going for the candy!  She LOVED it!

We spent a few days in Colorado with the entire family.  We went swimming, hiking and played board games.  The best part of the trip was watching Lucy play ring around the rosy with her boy cousins who are 9, 12, 12.!  OH, they took bubble baths with her too!  I love how they love her!!! 

I couldn't have asked for a more supportive family.  Everyone has been so welcoming and supportive of us and I am truly appreciative of everyone.