Update...

First of all, thank you to those who have checked in on us over the past few weeks. I know many of you are wondering about us and our transition to a party of 5. Each day is a new day and we are so thankful.
Wild Man... he hasn't missed a beat. According to him, being the big brother of one or the big brother of two is "about the same". Girls are gross. Dolls are gross. Pink is gross. Princesses are gross. He loves the girls in his life-but they're still gross. In case you are wondering, that scenario includes ME. Hehehehe. The rhetorical question of the month is this... If Little Miss got a sister...why can't I have a brother? Hmmm...

Little Miss... well, she's had a hard transition. She is going to be the best Mommy some day. She is so sweet and attentive to MeiMei but she has no concept of personal space. :-) She's always up in her face, smothering her with bear hugs or trying to drag her around like a baby doll. Unfortunately it has led to SEVERAL "altercations" between the two of them over the past month. The good news is Little Miss and MeiMei are slowly becoming friends. It has been a tough transition in the sister department but they are making progress.

MeiMei... thankfully she has decided we're not so bad after all. The day I wrote this post, just as I speculated, something changed. I wish I knew WHAT CHANGED but at this point it's not important. She's feeling more comfortable in her new family. The stink eye has been replaced, most of the time, with random and unprompted toddler smiles and occasional giggles. She's picked up quite a few words already and her comprehension is pretty impressive. We know she speaks about 15 words (both English and the only Cantonese words WE understand combined) but since our Cantonese is nonexistent a little rusty we are clueless about the chatty chatter. :-) I'm pretty sure she's told me EXACTLY what she thinks of me a few times but unfortunately (or thankfully) I'll never know what she said. :-)

the Chief and Mommy... we are truckin' along. We survived the first month and lived to tell about it. At one point I thought it was questionable. Hahahaha. :-) We have run the gamut of emotions over the past month but at the end of the day we would do it all the same. We would pray the same prayers. We would rejoice in the same circumstances surrounding her care in China. We would circle the globe for the exact same reason. We would cry the same river of tears. We would embrace rejection in the midst of the same heartbreak. We would grieve along side the same broken child. We would fall flat on our faces in search of answers from the same God who brought us all together. Was it difficult? WITHOUT A DOUBT (and it still is even with the progress we've made). The first month was more than we could wrap our minds around---much harder than we ever imagined BC (before China)--but I think the most important thing is this. If rewinding the clock to September 9 were a possibility, would we still board the same bird to China and do it all over again to become her forever family? ABSOLUTELY! What an indescribable privilege it has been to watch her blossom over the past two weeks. They tell us the hardest part is behind us and we are starting to truly believe they are right.

I have photos to share and more stories to tell but for now this will have to suffice. Again, many thanks to those who have supported us so well over the past month. Some of you have heard the good, the bad and the incredibly ugly--both close friends and complete strangers with similar adoption experiences. Your unwavering friendship means the world to us.