Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Gotcha Day - Part II


I am so sorry for those who I have promised I'd call or contact. It's been a little crazy around here the last twenty-four hours. It's the middle of the night here and Ellie is awake and playing so I thought I'd catch a moment to blog about her Gotcha Day.

We left the hotel at 8:45 headed toward the orphanage. We stopped at a store for cakes, tea and coffee for the caregivers and also to buy fruit, fruit juice and cookies (Kat, it was MUCH appreciated), along with 500 diapers and five tubes of diaper rash ointment (Vonnie, they were absolutely beside themselves with your donation). We exchanged money to give as tokens of our appreciation for the staff at the orphanage and were on our way. Along the way we stopped to buy the fresh fruit for the orphanage. We stopped at a local bazaar/farmer's market. We got apples, bananas and grapes. It was a HUGE amount of fruit.


We arrived at the orphanage with tons of gifts and took them in to Tatiana's office. We had to sign her out which is when Tatiana said that she was "officially your baby". WOW! I almost cried at that point, but held myself together -- until we got to her room. We were told she was asleep. I rubbed my hand on her face and her eyes popped right open and Lord have mercy, SMILED at me. She knew her mama had come back to get her. I picked her up out of the crib and began to sob uncontrollably. She was finally ours -- after this LONG, LONG time, she was ours. Every time I kissed her, she giggled and stuck her tongue out. We had the greatest time laughing.

At that point, I gave Tatiana the head measuring tapes that Suzanne had sent (she was again very appreciative) and we were taken to another room to change her clothes.



The staff thought her pink boots were the bomb. After having been here and seen all the girls in boots, I suppose this was a very correct fashion choice (haha). They called Ellie a Princess. Hmmmmm.... does everyone know this?? *smile* We got her dressed and they wanted to feed her lunch. She was MOST uninterested in lunch, and we thought it was because it was a little early for her or because of all the excitement. Later in the evening we decided it is because she is teething and her gums must be hurting something fierce.




After dressing her, we were shuttled back to the director's office for cake and tea -- which we actually got to eat some of. WOW!!! Ellie fell asleep during this time.
I visited for a while and then, amazingly, it was time to leave. I got very emotional leaving the gates of what has always been her home and knowing she will not be coming back.


She slept about half the ride home and then woke up, sat up in my lap and looked out the window. She played with some toys and giggled and laughed all the way back to the hotel. We had several instances of spitting up, but with the drive and the roads being bumpy, I was not surprised.


We got back to the hotel, called daddy and brother and grandparents and knew we needed to eat. Good thing, because right after we got our food eaten, the power went off and didn't come back on until sometime in the night (well, it's still night). This, of course, prevented me from posting photos, etc. My apologies.





As I type, she is sitting in my lap watching the screen. She LOVES the computer -- she is obviously my girl. She loves watching the video we made (on the blog) of her Gotcha Day. She loves music, kisses, her travel bed that has toys hanging down and her hands. She LOVES her hands. I suspect she has just discovered them. She loves to kick her feet around too. I suspect there wasn't much of that in the orphanage due to being bundled up.

She has not eaten very much and this concerns me quite a bit. She took one 4 oz bottle and maybe an ounce out of three others. She has eaten some banana baby food. I was surprised to learn they had already started her on cereal and some food and juice.


I'm sure there is more, but The Princess and I have GOT to try to get some sleep. I saw lots of overstimulation and attachment issues last night -- back arching, head shaking, etc. She is happy, but yesterday was really a LOT for her to handle. She loves to look you in the eye, but I think it just became way too much late last night. We hope each day will be a bit better.

She is sneezing a lot, so I suspect she has a cold. She also has had several loose diapers. I suspect we will be whipping through the diapers.

I cannot tell you how invaluable Jennifer has been to me the last few days. She has helped me SO much, making bottles, fetching things, making sure I remember every thing, taking TONS of great photos (all the ones you see here are hers). I will never be able to appropriately thank her for all she has done.

23 comments:

Tricia said...

Wow! She is so beautiful. I can't wait to meet her. Congrats to the entire family. Miss you!

Mayme said...

Oh Maria she is adorable. Congratulations and tell Jennifer she is doing a great job with the pics. Ellie looks very healthy and happy! God has blessed your family so much.
Mayme

Margaret and Tom said...

Oh my goodness...one picture is better than the others as I read through the post. Ellie is just as precious as ever, and now with that beautiful happy smile in her mama's arms she just looks soooooo wonderful :) Wow is all I can say.....what a wonderful day! Ellis is with her MAMA!!!!

Michele said...

Thank you for the good cry, it hit home so much. It was not that long ago that we were where you are. We are so happy for you & she looks BEAUTIFUL. You got your baby girl & she has you. We can see the joy all over both of your faces. You well be in our prayers, hope all feel better & stay well.

Rachel said...

So happy I could cry! YEA YEA YEA!!

VonneBarnett said...

Thanks so much for mentioning me in your blog. She is really a beautiful baby! Love is so powerful! Wow, she does look so happy! I am so inspired by your story and photos! Vonnie Barnett

Wisteria MacBain said...

Oh, she is BEAUTIFUL!! And she looks so happy! Congratulations to you and your family!!!

Marcy

Julie said...

YIPPIE!!!! SUCH WONDERFUL PHOTOS!! Congrats!!!

Jackie said...

Love love love the pics :) Keep 'em coming and get some rest when you can.

Jackie

Kelli said...

Ellie is perfect! Just beautiful.

Mala said...

Ellie looks so incredibly happy!!! And of course beautiful!

Anita said...

Oh my dear friends, Maria, Kevin and Josh.....ELLIE is ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL!! Maria, I KNOW, I KNOW the feelings that you had when you picked your daughter up out of that crib and held her for the first time as I did with Kaylin. I see the same look on your face that we captured that day too and there's nothing like it...pure joy and finally the fulfillment of all God had promised to you. I've cried along with you looking at your pics and video of her today as it brought back the flood of memories I hold dear too. God's presence is never so felt as in that moment. Love you my friends! ~Anita

Gen 's Family Story said...

Yahoo!!!!! So glad to see you reunited!!! Keep trying the formula, make sure it's warm enough, we'll pray she gobbles it up quickly!!! Take care of yourself!

Mom to 2 Angels said...

Oh the cuteness is too much to take in! She looks so happy to see you again, like she was thinking "hey, mom!" The sweet joy on your face is priceless. The Gotcha outfit looks perfect on her. Hope you guys got some sleep.

Melissa said...

She is just precious and looks like a little doll! Congrats, and I hope you're able to get some sleep!

Jeanne said...

Congratulations! How wonderful to see you two together. Don't worry about her not eating much. That's how my son showed his transition stress at that age, and in a few days it was over. Thanks for sharing so much with us all!

Christina said...

Congratulations on your Gotcha Day. Ellie really looks so happy. She is the most beautiful litle girl. Hopefully her eating will get better in the next few days. It is a transition for you and her so it will be okay. Keep the pictures coming!!

LaLa said...

She is so beautiful!!! I am so happy for you..love that pic of you looking at each other : )

Allison said...

Tears of happiness running down my face for you. Words escape me as I celebrate in this reunion with you both.
Congratulations my dear friend and little Ellie. She is truly beautiful!

Betsy said...

CONGRATULATIONS! Oh Maria, she is so beautiful. I am so happy for you! Be strong - those issues of loose diapers and colds and lack of appetite sound all too familiar but I'm sure it will get better as you get to know each other better. Love to you both - Betsy & Bryan

Jennifer G. said...

You all must be amazed and in shock that this special day has finally arrived! How could Ellie have gotten any cuter?!! Congrats to Big Brother Josh, too!

~Jennifer G.
www.thisisnow.org

littlebluecottage said...

Oh Maria,

I can literally feel the joy and happiness in your words. The pictures are so special. She is so beautiful.

Isabel went through all of what you're describing. The change in diet just wreaks havoc on their little system. Also, Isabel had a tough time the first day or two and was quiet. But then she just blossomed. Keep things simple and don't run around too much and she'll settle in. That tongue-sticking-out thing is telling me that she's a pretty happy little girl.

Keep those pictures coming!!

Tina

Anonymous said...

What a precious lil gift...God has truly graced you and yours.
Congrats!