Meeting 1

I met my babies today. My goodness, I couldn't ask for sweeter kids. The day went well. The language barrier is really hard, especially when there are many other men and women in the room with us to take care of needs. The children do not necessarily run to us for assistance.


Praises:

Everyone is healthy.

The oldest is wonderful. I was most worried about her transition to our family at her age. But what her foster mother said was that after she received the photo book I made she was all ours. I won her heart with the book and emotionally she is already transferring attachments. She is the sweetest thing in the world and may just be the easiest to transition, at least initially.

The girls adore Miriam. Straight from the get go, all they wanted to do was hold "sista's" hand, play with her, and touch her hair.

The kids are excited to meet Bea, our puppy.

The children are lively, playful and have a definite bond with each other. Upon greeting they were hugging and touching each other and very sweet. After a few hours, two of them started rough playing almost bickering, just like normal siblings. The second is exceptionally affectionate and expressive. I saw no unorganized attachment in any of the children. They all seemed very healthy, had appropriate boundaries, and well adjusted.


Things to pray for:

I (Crystal) was feeling really shy and overwhelmed. Towards the end of the day, I was getting to the point of shutting down, where it feels almost painful for me to talk which happens very infrequently in my adult years. This was not because of the children, but because of the many social workers, eyes, and lack of English spoken and 2.5 weeks in a foreign land. Along with everything else, it was emotionally exhausting for me. It would be far better to be put in a big room with just us and we could figure things out together for a personality like me. But as it is we have a psychologist, translator, and other social workers all trying to help us. Pray that I can relax and find an inroad with the children.

It is really cold here. About 15 deg. with a wind chill. Outdoor play is out of the question for any length of time and these are 4 very active children, especially the youngest 3. Pray we can figure it out and find a good play space that works and/or it warms above freezing (0 C/32 F).