Home.
How wonderful it is to be home.
It was a privilege to
be able to visit another country, experience its beautiful culture and meet so
many wonderful people. But coming home is like being wrapped in a warm
comforter on a cold winter’s night;
there's nothing else
like it.
And now, being home almost
two weeks with our new son, we are all adjusting and transitioning into our new
normal, and this normal feels great.
So much has happened
since we arrived home, and I want to share some of the highlights and fill
everyone in on how things are going.
We arrived home late
in the evening on August 24. Lani had Ella and Ross waiting for us at our
house, they had decorated with a welcome home banner, streamers and balloons.
I cannot put into words how I felt when Ross and Ella came running out of
the house to meet us, I had missed them so much and my heart was singing as I
smothered them with hugs and kisses. It
wasn’t long before they were running to the other side of the van to greet
Logan who was still in his car seat. Logan recognized them from the
pictures we had shown him and from our time Skyping together. They all
took to each other right away and are so close now that you'd think they’ve
been together for much, much longer.
Logan is doing incredibly
well. It’s so much fun sharing all his
new experiences with him. I’ve taken for
granted the simple pleasures in life that, to Logan, are amazing discoveries to
be explored and enjoyed.
It was adorable to
watch him walk through grass for the first time as he used large, exaggerated steps
to make his way across the yard. He was
a bit frightened with his first encounter with bubbles, but he soon realized
the fun of chasing and popping the bubbles as they floated by…
He’s conquered the
backyard slide…
And enjoyed his first
ride on a carousel…
Our only challenge
comes at naptime and bedtime. We were
told by the orphanage that Logan slept in a crib. We began his new bedtime routine his first
night with us and when we went to put him in the crib in the hotel room, a look
of terror came over his face and he began screaming and crying. We quickly understood that, for some reason,
bed time was traumatic for him. There
have been a couple days this week when naptime and bedtime have not brought
about such a frightening reaction by Logan and we’re starting to see a light at
the end of the tunnel for him. Slowly we’re
seeing him become calmer as we prepare him for sleep and we’re praying that
soon he’ll be able to enjoy the routine of snuggling up to read books, rocking,
lullabies and the comfort of a warm bed.
He is enjoying his
siblings and he loves having a big brother as much as Ross loves having a
little brother…
All the kids are
smitten with him and I so enjoy seeing them having fun together…
He celebrated his
third birthday this week…
And we look forward
to celebrating many more birthdays with him.
He has already
learned some English words and he has taught us quite a bit of Mandarin. But it’s remarkable how the love of a family
can break through the language barrier…
It’s been only two
weeks, but it seems like he’s always been with us. The journey to Logan was filled with endless
amounts of paperwork, anticipation and excitement. And now this journey with Logan is filled
with endless amounts of joy and thanksgiving…
