Sonia Feeding herself...

Based on our pediatrician's advice, I've started letting Sonia feed herself more often. It's always an adventure!

Breakfast - Sonia loves organic Os (Cheerios) with a little milk. She's good at holding the spoon but seldom gets any cereal to her mouth in the spoon. After a few tries, she typically resorts to holding the spoon in one hand and with the other hand digging cereal out of the bowl and into her mouth. It's pretty funny to see how proud she is of eating it herself (albeit without the spoon). I can sometimes get her to put stickier stuff (like squash or mashed potatoes) into her mouth if I fill the spoon and put it in her hand.

Snack - Sonia loves fresh pear pieces. Since this is a fine motor exercise, she's good at it. Yay!

And, speaking of butternut squash, here's the result of a bit of "self feeding". It makes for a great picture but takes a bit of cleanup!

I guess we need to keep practicing! :o)

One Month Home...

Today marks one month since we arrived home (plus 11 days since Sonia day in case you're counting). It's amazing how in one moment in can both feel like I've known her forever and yet feel so brand new. I'm trying hard to enjoy every moment and soak it all in as I know time passes so quickly!

Since it's been a little bit since my last post, here are some updates...

On 9/11, we celebrated "Grandparent's Day" with my parents. Sonia made them a cute card with her hand prints on it. (Thanks to my friend Lacretia for her help with our craft project!) She was very happy to celebrate with Grandma and Grandpa!

Sonia continues to play and laugh more and more each day. Our neighbor across the street gave Sonia several toys and many outfits to enjoy that her daughter has grown out of. One of her favorites is a bouncing zebra toy that she can now get on and off of herself and bounce and laugh like crazy. She also loves her "Little People" zoo and farm sets. We imitate the animal noises which again brings huge laughter!

Sonia is getting more and more mobile. She isn't yet brave enough to take steps alone but she is becoming more and more confident walking with just one hand as security. She is also becoming more confident taking steps backwards and sideways. I'm guessing that one of these days she's going to take off... but, for now, this is a great stage as I can explore right along with her (and also keep close tabs on what she's going after!).

Thursday, Sonia had her pediatrician appointment. The good news is that all the blood, urine, and stool tests came back great. She also gained 2 inches in height and 1 pound since 8/26. She's now in the 74th percentile for height... maybe she'll be a tall girl like I always wished to be. Her weight is still in the 11th percentile but she's definitely feeling stronger and more solid. The bad news is that she had to get four shots and also a TB test. She ran a 101 degree temperature the next day and was quite miserable only wanting to be held and walked with. I felt so sorry for her. But, she bounced back and was in great form on Saturday.

Saturday, Sonia got a haircut and we had pictures taken. She wasn't a big fan of either but is a trooper and made the best of both.

The park with a 1 year old...

I decided to take Sonia to the park today. I was hoping we'd get the chance to see some other kids since Sonia loves to watch kids... but, since school is in session there were only a couple kids at the park.

Sonia really enjoyed the swing - at least for about 3 minutes. She also liked the small slide - but 3 times was enough. We tried the swing again which maybe pushed us to 10 minutes total at the park.

I guess it's great to know that we can squeeze a trip to the park into our schedule most any time we want since it doesn't take long :o)

Here's a couple quick pictures of our park play experience...

Grandma and Grandpa

My parents visited for a few days last week so that I could join a few necessary meetings at work. I was a bit worried about how Sonia would do with me leaving her for the first time since we met. But, she did great overall! I think it may have been harder for me to separate than her! But, we definitely both are enjoying having our days together again since!

She really loves spending time with her Grandma and Grandpa (and I think the feeling is quite mutual - everyone is full of smiles)! I so love seeing them together. Sonia tries to reach into the phone or computer to get to them when they call or Skype... she's disappointed when she can't get the hug in person but it's so cute to see her try!

She learned a few new tricks during their visit - "So Big" with arms stretched up and a stronger "throwing kiss", "Hi" and "Mama". I'm waiting for some more words but so far the rest sounds like babble to me.

Yes, We're still alive...

It has been a while since I posted. (Thanks everyone for checking on us - yes, we're doing fine just staying busy and catching up on sleep whenever we can.)

A quick update...

Sleep is much improved! Sonia is now sleeping at night and awake during the day. It's amazing how wonderful this truly is for us! She is now sleeping from something like 8-10pm until 6-7am and then taking a couple hours of naps during the day. Her doctor has said she should be still getting a bit more sleep but at least we're in the ballpark. This is something to celebrate!

Sonia is on the move! Sonia is now creeping along furniture and cabinets everywhere. Nothing is safe! But, it is lots of fun to watch her explore. She is also "walking" (with me holding her hands for balance) all over the house.

Sonia is also now a fan of the bath. She has started enjoying playing with her bath toys and splashing away. It's lots of fun now!

Overall, we're doing great!

Tuesday 8/23

After another long night, Sonia and I mostly played around the house today. We went out in the car on a couple quick errands to help Sonia get used to the carseat but otherwise spent the day playing with toys.

Sonia has figured out how to remove the puzzle pieces by grabbing the pegs with two fingers and her thumb (something she couldn't do yesterday) and then handing them to me to put back in place. She's also getting much stronger in pulling herself up. She has even mastered the yoga move of "Downward Dog" and likes to play from that position.

Her other favorite toy at the moment is the ball slide game that Lori gave us. She can pull herself up on the toy and then drop the balls down the chute. Since she generally crawls over and retrieves balls that she tosses aside, it's become a fun game.

Unfortunately, although she went to bed at 8pm tonight, she was already up by 9:45pm. We'll see how the rest of the night goes... I was hoping she'd sleep a bit longer tonight!

Monday 8/22 - First day alone - Mom and Sonia!

Monday, my parents headed home and Sonia and I had the chance to spend our first day together - just the 2 of us.

We had a pretty relaxed day as Sonia is still struggling with jet lag and the time change and all the new surroundings. We had breakfast, Sonia had a bath, listened / sang to silly kid's songs, played with her toys, had lunch, took naps (I needed the nap too!), played some more, skyped with Grandma and Grandpa, took a stroller walk in the neighborhood, played some more, and "read" books together. Overall, it was a great day. (Now if only the night would get better as she slept from 8-9pm, then was up until 9pm - 2am, slept 2am - 4am, was up 4am - 5am, and is now still sleeping (at 7am). The last 2 days she slept until 10-11am in this final stretch and then took an afternoon nap to further catch up. I figured I'd get my blog updated and a few work emails sent before going back to bed as well.)

Unfortunately, Sonia really hates baths! You would have thought I was torturing her to hear her screams during her quick 5 minute bath. She does love the part that comes after once she's dry with lotion and hair brushing. It's just the wet part that is horrible. I love baths so am hoping that this changes in time. Any tips are welcome!

Sonia really began to crawl distances. She is now crawling and following me from room to room. We also had some fun with a game I call "fetch for babies with puffs" where she hands me her little container of puffs, I open it and give her one, then slide the container across the floor. She giggles and crawls to get it and bring it back where I then open and give her another puff. She did this a dozen or so times in fits of gigggles! Very cute!

After the crawling game, she then decided to crawl over to my kitchen table and pull herself up to standing and walk around the table moving from chair to table leg to chair, etc. The rest of the night she pulled herself up on anything she could get to - kitchen cabinets, chairs, tables, toys, etc.

I guess my days of her staying where I "put her" are about done! :o)

(Note: I also added posts below to catch up on the trip and welcome home.)

Welcome Home!

My parents were at my house to welcome Sonia and I home.

When we pulled in the driveway, we saw a big banner with helium balloons welcoming Sonia home, an "It's a Girl" sign, and more balloons on the porch! It was amazing!! My neighbors (especially the kids) across the street also yelled "Welcome Home Sonia"... it was a pretty special homecoming. Inside, my parents also had roses, a card, and a "New Mom - Need Coffee" mug. They had also cut my lawn and done the trimming / weeding to allow me to not have to take time for this chore on return. Thanks so much Mom & Dad!!

The next couple days we spend playing with Sonia and trying to help her adjust to all the changes. The mug proved to be very true. I haven't had more than a few hours sleep any night since getting home as Sonia struggles with jet lag and is awake and out of sorts every night. I hope we're getting to the home stretch of this soon. I do like my sleep :o)

It was great to have the time for Sonia to get to know Nana and Grandpa in such a relaxed way. She clearly adores them already!

Heading Home!

It was a long journey home - train to Hong Kong, 14 hour flight from Hong Kong to Detroit, 5 hour layover, 1 hour flight to Milwaukee. My only advice is to expect it to be difficult and seemingly endless but know that, in the scheme of things, it's pretty short (at least in hindsight).

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On Aug 18, I received the final documents for Sonia which allowed her to become an American Citizen when her "feet touch the ground" in the US. Once we had her passport and documents, we said Goodbye to our guide Grace and boarded a train from Guangzhou to Hong Kong.

We had to wait in the train station for more than 2 hours and then take the couple hour train ride and then a taxi to our hotel and then endure an hour long hotel check in process (not sure what the problem was with check in but it took WAY too long!). We stayed overnight in the Hong Kong airport hotel and then flew home from Hong Kong on Friday.

I've traveled many times to Asia and am lucky to generally not have much of an issue with jet lag. However, I've never taken the flight having to constrain a 1 year old and gotten no sleep on the 14 hour flight. Sonia and I took a nap on her blanket on the floor for about an hour in the Delta Lounge in Detroit - Thank Goodness! and made it home safe and sound.

Sonia also decided to surprise us with a new trick and pulled herself up to a standing position on the coffee table in the room to get to my cell phone! She was confident in pulling up so I don't think it was the first time she did this - but, it was the first time we were able to witness it!

It was a great trip that I will always treasure, but I'm glad to be home to start my new life with Sonia!!

I will also always be thankful to my friends Lacretia and Lori for joining me on the journey and providing all the help that allowed me to spend time bonding with Sonia during the trip rather than worrying about all the details and helping me make the transition to being a Mom! They also did a great job with taking the pictures and video that will make my memories come to life in the future. Thank you so very much!!!

Wed - Consulate Appointment

We had our US Consulate Appointment on Wednesday. It was a bit different than I'd imagined - oath from behind windows, quick check of forms, and done. But, it's great to have the paperwork side of things done. Sonia will be a US Citizen as soon as her feet touch the ground at the airport in Detroit.

In the afternoon we finished up our shopping, picked up our last laundry - we're taking mostly clean clothes for the adults home, and said Goodbye to our travel group of new friends. We exchanged emails and will try to keep up on the growth and progress of all the little babies.

In the evening, we finally tried "the restaurant on the 5th floor above Jordans". It is not marked and felt a little strange walking in. But, the food was WONDERFUL!! Everything was so tasty and was freshly prepared when we arrived and only cost about 17USD total for the 3 of us to have a table full of food! The best meal we had in Guangzhou. We so wish we had found it earlier in the trip!

Thursday, we receive the final documents back from the US Embassy, pack up our stuff (after being in this hotel for 11 days), and take the train to Hong Kong. We will fly home on Friday morning!