More amazing every day

Sophia was not keen on wearing her hat. In all fairness, it is pretty big on her so had to be flipped up just so she can see. As soon as we put it on her head, she would take it off, again, and again....until she got distracted by her lady bug book and forgot about it for a few minutes. Which gave us this wonderful opportunity to take these photos....



Sophia is a very wonderful, very complicated little girl and we wouldn't have it any other way. She is one of the smallest in our group but she is a spitfire. She let's know, in no uncertain terms, her likes and dislikes. She is surprisingly strong, pushing or pulling with Herculean strength.

The nickname that seems to be sticking is 'Peanut'. Apparently we are not the only ones who think the name is appropriate since practically everyone in our group has taken to calling her that. On gotcha day, the caregiver from the orphanage told us her nickname is 'Chi-Chi' but she doesn't seem to respond to it. We probably are not pronouncing it right.

She is so petite that the size 3 diapers we brought will be used quite some time from now. She fits into size 1 and 2 diapers and size 3/9 months clothing. Translation, she is swimming in a lot of the clothing we brought. Fortunately, I had rushed out at the last minute and bought some smaller sizes (just in case) and I am sure glad I did.

She is crawling (Sophia style-meaning she pauses every two steps and tripods before continuing) and she pulls herself up and will walk several steps when we hold her hands or arms.

We all have a cold now and that isn't so fun for any of us, but she seems remarkably un-bothered by it in general. When she is tired, hungry or needs to b.m., she is quite cranky, and most of all, squirmy. At those times, she won't tolerate the stroller and wants to be held but insists on shifting her position every other minute. If we don't respond quick enough, she arcs her back in protest.

In all other respects, her temperament is remarkably even. She smiles and even giggles if Daddy does something silly enough. She thinks peek-a-boo is the best game ever and will reward us with the most incredible smiles and laughs. Every day we are learning something new about her and she is fascinated by her surroundings. Her favorite toys are a set of plastic baby keys and a lady bug book we had bought her ages ago. There is a hole through the book and the 'ladybug' cloth puppet sticks through the hole. She will play with the other toys but these two hold her attention the longest.

After we got our referral for Sophia, we sent a care package to the orphanage. We included some toys, a disposable camera, an outfit and photo album with pictures of us, our animals and our family. On Gotcha Day, all these items were returned to us, including the camera. We can't wait to have the photos developed. We had a letter translated to the orphanage requesting they take photos of her, the orphanage and her caretakers.

Last night we gave her the photo album to play with and it was clear to us by the way she handled it, that she was very familiar with it. Unlike some of the baby books we brought, she actually looks at the photos in the book, especially the ones of us. I would like to think that she is saying to herself 'hey, I know those people, they seem to like to hang out with me a lot, change my diapers, feed me and hold me'. Fanciful thinking to be sure, but then again, I always have been a dreamer.

Going to post some more photos as I know that is what everyone wants to see. Keep checking back, because often we will download more photos to a previous post. Thanks again for everyone's lovely comments. We miss all our friends and family and can't wait to see you in just over a week! We also can't wait until you meet Sophia.


Family in the park