If you read yesterday's post, you know
that we received a surprise update at the beginning of December that was
nothing short of a Divine moment that only God could orchestrate. We were
thankful for that snippet of information while we waited on our agency to
contact us with our final update. (just typing those words is sad as we could be 6-8 weeks away from traveling still and so much can change in that amount of time) Fast forward a few days and on Monday,
December 8th, we received our update. Of course I know every agency staff
member probably says this, but you have to love it when you open an email that
says, "Attached is an update on your daughter....she is just
precious!" (yeah, we think so too even if you most likely say that to
every family)
With every little note you obtain about
your child, you learn just a little bit more. A another little piece to the
puzzle of her life, another short glimpse into who she is. Working in the
adoption field, I'm all too familiar with knowing that these updates are
usually quite brief and never quite as long as we wish an orphanage would provide,
mainly because the orphanage determines how much info they want to give and
when they'll provide it. These updates are a treasured piece of information, but
none even come close to capturing all that a family longs to know about their
little one. We, too, were caught in the "we wish we had a better update"
trap that many adoptive families long for and instead of being thankful in that
moment, we allowed ourselves (maybe for just a minute) to be disappointed by
the fact that there was such little information given. Thankful? Of course we
were. Disappointed that it wasn't more? We'd be lying if we didn't say
yes.
Though we had asked for more video,
unfortunately there were none provided and the photos the orphanage sent were
the exact same ones we saw 6 weeks ago of her, rather than new ones that we
were so desirous of. We still had to smile big again at them- those
flowered PJ bottoms...that wild green boy shirt...those big Asian eyes staring
blankly back at us complete with her girly mohawk hair-do (and we all know
that little bald head is just screaming for a girly headband...poor thing has
no idea what's about to come her way)
Here's a quick Chinese cultural lesson for you: We often think that orphanages just shave their little heads to keep maintenance down to a minimum with the number of children being cared for or to prevent things like lice, etc. Well, my Chinese co-worker also noted that most children in China will at some point, have their heads shaved by their family as a young child. This is practiced so that it will make the hair come back thicker and more beautiful. Anyone in the states want to start this trend with their wee ones or any adults that would like to try this one out? (I have a feeling I'm not going to get many takers on this one)
As my sister and I have compared photos of our two, we keep laughing at how both Brielle and Grayson, her son, are indeed cousins sporting the same hair style right now.
Can't.
Even.
Handle.
It.
Yes, my little nephew is the cutest
little thing ever- chipmunk cheeks and all.
Love those little expressions.
It's ok, you're allowed to agree with me, at least I think you
should.
He has amazing eyes, doesn't he?
So what did we learn in this most recent
update from our agency? Here are just a few things...
Personality:
• The nannies call her by her Chinese name
• She is affectionate
• She can get upset when she is not held (Yikes,
this could get interesting!)
• She is best comforted when she is
held
• She likes fruits and biscuits
(yep,
just like her momma. You're going to fit into this family just fine, little one)
• She still takes a bottle
• She sleeps in a crib with a small light
(LOVE how God
works. When we began her nursery about a year ago, Nate & I picked out
a really dim light that we loved for her room, one that we thought would be just perfect
if she was
the type who liked a small light left on. So with that, one more item can be
checked off our list!
Health:
• Her current health is good
• She can crawl and sit on her own and walk
(personally, we are still debating the walking
part being accurate as her last
videos a few weeks ago didn't quite show a stable walker
yet, but they do learn
fast)
• She is babbling and can say
"mama"
• They felt that her health condition
hasn't changed (which is good)
• She has not yet had a surgery (which she
still may not need, time will tell)
• They did say that she appears to tire more
easily after eating (which could be a result of
part of her medical need or
just a random observation that staff have of her that
may/may not be 100%
accurate. Again, very hard to know for sure)
General:
• They provided us with the names of her
favorite caregivers
• They noted that she was named by the
staff at her orphanage
Measurements: (As
of 12/7/14- two days shy of 16 months)
Weight: 15.6 lbs
Height: 29.1 inches
Head: 17.5 inches
Foot: 5.9 inches
Teeth: 10
She's definitely a little peanut for
sure and if they measured her feet right, she just might have her daddy's long
feet! Obviously there is no way to know if all of the measurements given are
accurate and oftentimes, families find that their little one is smaller/larger
than what was presented in reports. That said, we are going to have to just do
our best to guess based on what has been given.
We've also been pleasantly surprised that the few things we bought very early along the way that were smaller, are most likely going to fit her just perfectly. We definitely guessed way back then, but we also know it's no coincidence that those items are probably going to be just right. Just another example that God knew.
I know just a few individuals (not naming any names) that can't wait to do a little bit of shopping for this little one! We promise to give you a sneak peek very soon into a few of her very first little "winter" items that were ironically purchased way back when we first began this journey.
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