Life with Will & Ava

It has been almost 6 months exactly since we got back. The first few months were tough - for me, learning how to be a first-time mom with two infants was kinda like learning to ride a bike without training wheels. It's not always smooth sailing and you get banged up quite a bit. But I did it and both Ava and Will are doing wonderfully.

Will began walking back in December. No exaggeration. Everyone is amazed at how well-developed his motor skills are. I've never been comfortable with the fact that he was so spoiled, held, and coddled by the caregivers at the orphanage but I have no doubt that that is the reason for his advanced motor skills. By January, the boy was running thru the house and getting into everything that wasn't locked away. We had to move up the baby-proofing by a few months. His verbal skills aren't as well-developed but we had a specialist look at him. She told us not to worry and that most children with extremely developed motor skills lack a bit at first in verbal. She said not to worry; he'll catch up. So we're working with him. He says baba, dada, mama, and uh-oh (his favorite). And he did say "Dixie" the other day (the name of his grandparents' dog). The boy LOVES his Dada. We used to have problems in the morning when Dennis left for work. Will would hold on to Dennis's shirt like a little monkey cuddling into its mom to try to keep me from taking him. It's not so bad now. We go out onto the porch so Will can wave goodbye and that helped. He has 7 teeth right now and one on the way. Will is such a handsome boy and has such a good sense of humor. He'll probably be the class clown.



Our little lump (aka Ava) is advancing in leaps and bounds. She is just amazing. The girl is a crawling fiend. She has this funny gait where she slams her hands down onto the floor as she crawls along. We call it her "commando crawl." She's very determined and knows exactly where she's going. You can hear her from a mile away on our hardwood floors. My baby girl has advanced greatly from the tiny malnourished utterly underdeveloped premature baby we received that couldn't even lift her head off the floor at 4 months old. (Whew - take a breath.) I'm sure next time we go to the dr. we'll find she weighs more than Will. And beautiful? Omigod - the most beautiful baby I know and I'm not being prejudiced. ;-) She has stood a few times on her own, moves along the couch or table, and walks with us holding a finger. I can't wait until she walks on her own because it's going to be such a big deal to her. She's always laughing and just the sweetest little girl. Today I was getting a bit frustrated with both of the kids. They were grabbing everything off the tables and couches -- one thing after another -- while I was folding towels. I went to the kitchen to get bottles and heard a little voice say, "Mama." I looked to the gate we have up between the dining room and kitchen and there she was. "Mama," she said again. And just in case my heart hadn't completely split in two, "Mama," one more time. Frustration gone! God, I love these kids.

After reading so many blogs of our friends, we quit feeding the kids baby food and began feeding them whatever we're eating. They sure do eat much better. Ava, especially, loves cheese -- just like her mom.

And speaking of "just like her mom," Dennis and I are amazed at how much Ava is like me and Will is like him. Ava is very adventurous, jumps in with both feet and keeps on going. She loves swinging -- the higher the better and even likes spinning. I always told Dennis I wanted a child to ride the roller coaster with me (because he's too scared) and I got one! Will, on the other hand, is more cautious. We always laugh when we watch him swing as his face goes from pleasure to fear, pleasure to fear...and the swing's barely moving. I don't know how the adoption coordinators do it but they definitely choose the babies that fit best with your family.



I start back to grad school in a month. I'm both excited about going and reluctant to go. The time I've spent with the kids has gone by so fast and I'm glad I took the leave of absence from my studies. It is the best decision I have ever made and I will always treasure this time. It's gone by way too fast.