Home for 24 days...

Anna Mei develops in front of our eyes daily.  When we met Anna she was not walking, barely crawling, and playing with toys mostly by banging and sucking on them.  She has taken off physically, crawls quickly, pushes up to stand independently, cruises around holding onto the furniture, and just this week took her first independent steps!!  Yes, she still mostly sucks on her toys, but is beginning to play more with cars, balls, and putting objects into and dumping them out of containers.

Many people ask if she is sleeping...well, mostly.  She naps once a day, and mostly sleeps through the night.  She wakes a few times each night, at times from sore ears and teething pain, and sometimes because she wants a hug from Mommy.  We are working through this little speed bump, and hope for some more restful nights maybe after she has her ear tube surgery in May.  Yes, her ears are packed with fluid, so while not always infected, she certainly feels discomfort and can not hear as well as she should.

We are working with her daily to introduce new tastes and textures. She is still mostly eating vanilla and banana yogurt, but does eat three meals a day plus her bottles.

Anna Mei also loves to be outside.  She has been on plenty of baseball fields, and is always happy to "talk" and cheer on the team!  She studies the trees and birds flying by.  From inside, she looks out the windows at the world around her.  Her eye contact with everyone at first was poor.  Now, she uses lots of eye contact and smiles for her family, and while still shy with strangers, she will eventually look them in the eye if they are persistent and sound and look friendly enough.  

Last weekend, our dear friends threw a beautiful welcome home "shower" for Tiffany and Anna Mei, complete with many balloons, flowers, cakes, fortune cookies, candies, and outstanding quiches with all wrapped up in tons of pink and brown polka dots!  It was a very special day for us, and the comfort and support of such a loving group of friends means so very much to all of us.

At this point, everyone seems to enjoy their time playing with Anna Mei, and our already busy family just may be a bit busier for now.  Many wishes for a healthy, Happy Easter for our friends and family!