New Routines

I look back over the past five and a half months and wonder where the time has gone. I remember so vividly everything about the day we took Angelina in our arms forever. How she looked at her Papa with such innocence in her eyes and how she held her mouth out for me to feed her. How she fell asleep peacefully in the two arm chairs that we had to put together and line with numerous blankets. Now, 5.5 months later, I sit here on the brink of returning to work, wondering again where the time has gone.

Lina will be going to a small day care. The woman works from her home and is my girlfriend’s mother-in-law. I have all confidences in this woman and think she does an excellent job with the kids. On a full day, she cares for 7 children, and most days Lina will be one of three or four. This has brought me great peace of mind as the last thing I wanted was for Angelina to feel in any way that she was being brought back to an institution-like situation. I like to think that being in a smaller day care will help all of our transitions along and Angelina will not regress too badly. Only time will tell.

Lina has been going to day care for half days this week to ease into her new surroundings. She has been doing well, which makes me happy. I have not seen too much of a regression yet, though we are also not there full time. As I expected, she really is not that upset when I leave and has not gotten really excited when she sees me return. I know that this is because her attachment to us is not complete. I think the day she is upset that I leave her will be the first day I will feel not guilty for leaving her!

I suppose that if I do have to work, then returning to teaching is the best job a mom can have. I will be able to wake Lina up from her naps (that is, of course, if she has not spent the whole 2 hour nap time unzipping her sleeper and taking off her diaper). And, in 90 working days we will be able to enjoy the summer together – but, who’s counting?! I am ready for school, newly equipped with a new frame that has a picture of Lina and some new clothes. (Lesson plans…hmmm…I have no time for those now!)

My only hope is that our new routine does not interrupt our attachment progress or cause damage to the fragile attachment we have begun to secure. Wish us luck.

Bryansk Babies

Over the past several months, I have been very lucky to connect with two women who have also brought home children from the Bryansk region of Russia. Finally, after months of blogging and emailing, we were able to get the three Bryansk Babies together for some fun in Boston.

We spent the morning at the Boston Children's museum. The kids had a blast! All of the exhibits are centered around toddler play, with all hands-on activities. Of course, the children did not understand that significance of our play date, but the three of us are hopeful that as our children grow, they will feel connected to each other in this very unique way.

Here are some pictures of the day:

Angelina playing at a bubble station.

Sitting in a chair in the big play room.

Driving the boat.

And, of course, the three Bryansk Babies! (Don't they all look so thrilled that they have to sit and pose for a picture? hahaha)

From the left: Tammi's son Nicholas, Angelina, and Lori's son Aaden.

Happy Birthday, Angelina! Happy New Year! 5 Months Home...3 Posts in 1!

We have had 3 major happenings while on vacation in North Carolina, so here is the three-in-one blog post. And, just to note, Angelina did wonderfully on the 16 hour car ride down and back from NC. We drove through the night, and she slept relatively well in her car seat. This made her parents very, very happy!

The day we arrived in NC was also Angelina's birthday. We celebrated with a cake and a small party. She loved the new baby and stroller she received, as well as her cookie monster book. Nothing warmed my heart more to see my daughter opening her birthday gifts, I am so honored to be her mother and though it was her birthday, it was I who received the best gift. My wish for you, Angelina, is that you always are happy and feel loved by your Mama and Papa.

Here are a few pictures of our birthday celebration on her actual birthday and some pictures of when we celebrated Angelina's birthday with her grandparents.

I learned so much about how Russia celebrates New Year from our friend that we visited while in NC. I thought I'd share it for all of you who read this blog who also has a child adopted from Russia. Our friend, T, when she moved to America was surprised that, to Americans, New Year was basically an excuse to have a party. In Russia, it is more symbolic and meaningful. They follow the Chinese New Year system that assigns an animal to each year. So, 2009 is the year of the bull. On New Year's Eve, parties are centered around trying to please the animal of that year. This means wearing colors that are assigned to that animal, etc.... So, for the party that T threw, she asked all of her guests to wear yellows and oranges, earthy colors that represent the bull. Also, she did not serve red meat, as that would obviously upset the bull! The superstition goes that if you please the animal, you will have good fortune and prosperity through the year. We had a wonderful party, everyone had shades of orange and yellow, and as a centerpiece, we had a toy bull. We rang in the new year with wonderful tradition Russian food (no red meat!) And, of course, we had plenty of new year's hats, confetti and glitter! What a fun way to bring in 2009. I think that we made the bull happy!

In the morning, Angelina got to open up her gift bag that Father Frost left under the New Year's tree. In the bag was a stuffed animal, oranges, and Russian candy. Here are some pictures of Angelina seeing what Father Frost left her.

Last Friday marked 5 months as a family for us. I think that I will do a detailed update on her progress on another post, but watching Angelina grow and change has been such a joy for Ken and I. After 5 months, I finally feel that we are making excellent attachment strides and are starting down the road of building a secure attachment.

Here are a few pictures of 5 months home: