Picture Worth a Thousand Laughs

N:

This is a picture that is in a book that Tryana & Kalysta look at to become familiar with relatives. Almost from the first time they saw it, they would point and yell, "Ee! Ee! Ee!"... and run away. Take a look at my floating arm! We have had some good laughs with this one.

Hugs & Kisses

L:

We are so encouraged to be receiving spontaneous hugs and kisses from Kalysta and Tryana the last few days! K is pretty cuddly and has hugged us from the beginning, but the kisses are new. And this is a huge change for T. We are so excited for this positive step in our bonding!

Shower

L:

The staff at Nick's school threw a shower for our family today. We really appreciate their generosity and support. And I think Tryana and Kalysta liked all the attention.

Tryana's Birthday

L:

It was Tryana's birthday yesterday. We "tested" her throughout the day by asking how old she is. She would get a big smile, hold up 4 fingers, and say "Four!"

We had a small family party last night. We had a car theme since Tryana is so fascinated by cars. Here are some pictures from her big day.

 

  

  

 

Update on Sleep & Friendship

L:

I'll start with an update on our sleeping. Kalysta still wakes up many nights screaming. Please pray for her fears to go away. It's not every night and she usually calms down and falls back to sleep quickly when Nick goes in to her, but of course, we don't like to see her so frightened.

Many people have asked us how they can help during this time of transition. We really appreciate that, but it's hard to know how to answer sometimes. We have come up with one answer, though. You can help by just being our friends. If you don't live near us, send us an e-mail. That will really encourage us. If you live here, invite us to do something. Focusing so much on training and bonding with our new daughters/sisters can be isolating and it all is very tiring, so we don't have the energy to initiate much ourselves yet. Spending time with us in adult conversation and/or playing with us would be a wonderful gift.