Where did the blog go?
Well, life took over in full force when we returned home. Sorry for the delay in posting!
So, the flight home took about 27 hours from hotel room to home, and we have to give HUGE respect to our children for how they handled the entire trip! First we flew from Guangzhou to Beijing, a three hour flight. Then a 4 hour lay over, and our 13 1/2 hour nonstop from Beijing to Newark. Even Anna did well on the flights, and slept away most of the long flight home. We were a bit anxious to go through customs and immigration. Something went wrong here, and it may mean hopping a return flight to China! We handed over the brown sealed envelope from the US Consulate (unopened by us), and held our breath. The process was quick and smooth and we were on our way to collect luggage and hop a 2 hour car ride home! Now, the trip itself was reasonably painless. I was the next few days that would test us all a bit.
We were all on China time, exact reverse of days and nights. While the boys slowly adjusted over the next few days, they woke in the middle of the night often, and spent some groggy cranky days (oh yea, we adults did too!) Anna had the most difficult adjustment. She had always been on China time AND she is a very scheduled little girl. To add to the excitement, she happened to be breaking her 2 year molars AND we did not buy enough of the Chinese version of Enfagrow, so we had to transition to the US formula (No, she was not very happy with the switch since Chinese formulas are much sweeter). The photo of her playing with the balloon is from about 3 AM one of those first nights. Those balloons made her very happy, and we managed to not have her pop one in her face, so everyone was content :-) 
Thanks to all for the surprise treats and welcoming home surprises! Tif's dragonboat team came in and stocked the fridge, freezer, cabinets and counters with food for the whole family, along with banners and balloons. Other friends decorated the mailbox, and others left surprise gifts by the front door. And that was only our first night home! The response to Anna Mei's homecoming has been awesome. This little girl seems to have touched the heart of family, friends, and community. She will never want for a thing again if any one of us has anything to do with it!! 
As for Anna, she is developing beautifully! The same little girl that did not know to put one foot in front of the other when we held her hands is now grabbing hold of a toy shopping cart and walking across the room. She will never again sit in a walker, and loves her new independence. She confidently crawls about the house, explores, and is learning about all new things. Doors are fascinating to her. Bath time is no longer scary, but so much fun she often crawls to her tub and looks in throughout the day. Music makes her dance, and Barney is an early favorite. She also loves trees and the contrast of the branches against the sky. Happily, she loves to be outside as she has already been to about four of her brother's baseball games and was content to sit with mom and play!As many of you know, our biggest concern for Anna Mei is convincing her to eat solid food. Well, the good news is she is growing there as well! With many hours of play at the high chair with baby purees and things like cheerios, we have had a breakthrough!!! Yogurt. She likes yogurt. So her first meals have been either vanilla or banana yogurt. Feeling it and clapping is lots of fun! She is figuring out how to communicate when she is finished, when she wants more, and when she is happy. Today we began the process of trying to mix that with other baby foods. She successfully took some sweet potatoes today. The biggest barrier was getting her to trust us with that spoon near her mouth. Happily, she now does, so the whole new world of tastes and foods should be ahead for her.
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