Six months ago today....

I can't believe it has been six months since Micalee was placed in our arms! And what a time we've had since! It is so cool to look back on pictures of Micalee while we were in China and see how much she has changed! That afternoon six months ago had to be the scariest day of her life! To be handed over to complete strangers who didn't look like anyone she'd ever seen before, who smelled different and spoke some strange language she'd never heard! No wonder she was so scared! I would've screamed & kicked & bit, too, and probably alot longer than she did! It's amazing that we ever saw her not crying (which wasn't too often in China!)! What an amazing little girl to be able to adjust to such a major change in everything she ever knew! She didn't ask for us & I'm sure she pretty much held it all against us for a while, but that has all changed now. She still has the occasional "bad day" (or more like a moment of sorrow & grief), but they are so few and far between now! Back then, I never thought I'd see the day when she would see me from a distance & run to me smiling & laughing, with her arms stretched out, waiting for me to pick her up! It just makes me melt inside! Her smiles and laughter are so genuine now! She gives the prettiest smiles just with those beautiful eyes of hers! I only wish I could capture it on camera! She sees the camera & forces herself not to smile (little stinker!). I just have to steal a shot when she doesn't notice I have the camera. And she was come such a long way physically! She could hardly take a couple of steps by herself in China! Now she's running and shimmying up the stairs (with me right behind!). She is so loving and caring! I love watching her play with her babies; she gives them kisses & hugs and talks softly to them & feeds them. She has such a sweet, caring soul. And she is so smart & has picked up so many new words! She's just wonderful!!! We love you, Micalee! I am so very glad that YOU are my little girl! I know it was traumatic for you, but I will always hold the 26th of July in a very special place in my heart, because that is when I first held you!

Happy New Year!!!

Happy New Year, Everybody!!! Wow, what a year it has been for us! I can't believe what a change over last year! No more moping around, wishing I had my little girl here; she IS here!!! And I'm having so much fun getting to stay home with her and watch her grow & blossom more and more every day! I now feel so lucky to have waited so long, so that we were matched with THIS beautiful little girl! I love you, Micalee! You have brought such joy to us! I hope this year brings even more joy! Here are a few updated pictures of little Miss Micalee Mei!!!
Micalee with her New Year's Eve tiara!

Here is Santa leaving Micalee way too many toys! We ate at a Chinese Buffet on Christmas Eve & Micalee's fortune cookie said "a visitor will soon delight you"! Wow cool was that!?

Here is Micalee opening one of her MANY gifts from our family! I guess they thought they had some catching up to do, although they have been buying gifts for her for years now!

I love this picture of Micalee in her hat & scarf her Aunt Jeanie had made for her! (Thanks for sending me the picture, too!)

And this is just a collage of some of the many faces of Micalee over the last few months!

Micalee's Christmas Photo Shoot....

I can't believe I can finally take pictures of my little girl for Christmas! I've waited for this for over four years! And yes, she was just as beautiful as I imagined she would be! I think I've had this dress for a few years, just waiting for her to wear it & it fit perfectly! We thought taking pictures ourselves would be less traumatic than doing professional photos. She's still a little unsure around strangers at times, and she is getting closer to Santa each time she sees him, but is not ready to have her picture made with him. Anyway, I love the way these came out! These are just a few of the many I took. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!

Some more fall pictures....

Here are a few more pictures of Micalee enjoying the fall weather. This is her on Halloween Night! The picture is a little blurry, but it's my favorite one of her in her Ladybug costume. She had so much fun Trick-or-Treating, then at Aunt Jeanie's house for a bonfire!!!

This is Micalee at the State Fair! She got to "hold" this little chick (with a little help)!She got to pet the little chick & then gave it a kiss (this was after she grabbed the little thing by the neck; kinda reminds me of me when I as little!). She loved the animals most of all! I think we have a little farm girl on our hands! She even loved this cute little pig, but she wasn't so sure about feeding him! Look how excited she is to see the Zebra! She is getting so much more expressive these days! She was a little scared of first (mostly of the "carnies"), but she did eventually pick up her duckies & "won" two little hand puppets (Mommy helped pick them out!)! She had so much fun just walking (and running!) around. No, she didn't drink that big drink all by herself (we all shared), but she wanted to be in control (see, she is fitting in just perfectly!).

Here is little Micalee at her favorite place in the whole world - The Boardwalk. She loves to just walk around & play in the shrubs. She is truly nature's child!

This is the petting zoo at the Carnival in Blanchard. She was fascinated by the donkey!

Maybe too much! I was so scared he was going to back-kick her when she grabbed his tail!
This is Micalee dancing with her very favorite cousin, Jacob! There was no music! Just the music in her head!

Another Micalee Dance Video

This one was at the Boardwalk. She LOVES that place, because she can just run around, and she loves the fountain! Most of the dancing was before we got the video going (of course), but check out her moves after she stops the stroller!

Some Fall Photos....

Here are some recent pictures of Micalee enjoying the fall weather (except the one of her wanting outside, even though it was pouring down rain....for days....)!  We took her to the pumpkin patch this past weekend & she had fun picking out pumpkins; she just didn't' want to pose for pictures!  We built a scarecrow in the front yard (like always, but this time had our little helper we have been waiting for years for!).  I thought she might be scared of him, but as you can see, she even tried to give him a kiss (or eat his carrot nose!)!  She wants to sit on the hay next to him every time she goes in the front yard, and she wants his arm around her shoulder!  She even waves hi & bye to him when we're coming or leaving home.  I will post another video of her after I get it uploaded.  Some more of her fancy dance moves! We're just having fun at home (except for when I work an occasional shift!) and enjoying this beautiful fall weather!  I hope it lasts!

Micalee gettin' down at the Revel...

Two months ago today.....

I can't believe it has been two months since Micalee was placed in my arms! In a way, it seems like she's been here forever, although she has certainly not been here long enough! I'm still sad sometimes about missing her first two years of life, but whatever she went through has made her what she is right now, and if we had gotten our referral sooner, or she had been place sooner, we wouldn't be together. We missed so many first, but we are creating alot of our own. When I look back over the pictures from the night we got her and our time we spent in China, I realize how much she has blossomed! Our little two-year-old could hardly walk (not much at all without support), and now look at her running to her Mommy! She would have run away from her Mommy if she could have a couple of months ago! I can't even think about the night we got her or those days in China without tearing up. It was the most heart-wrenching time of my life! Now, this little girl, who wanted nothing to do with me, wants me to hold her as much as possible. And she is so full of smiles and laughter, although, she does still have those far away serious looks that makes me wonder what she's thinking. I'm sure she's still processing everything that has happened to her in her short life. I hope she knows how much she was wanted and how much she is loved. She has filled a void that I never even realized existed. Happy two-months-a-family, Micalee!!! Mommy & Daddy love you so very much!!!

A Day in the Life of Micalee....

Well, I guess I've been too busy having fun with Micalee to post lately, but here are some pictures from the last few weeks!  Micalee is getting more & more comfortable around the house.  She is truly fitting in around here!  She is getting funnier & goofier as she gets more settled in.  Sometimes she walks around the house just laughing to herself (maybe a psych consult is in order!)!  She loves to play outside & she really liked her tent/house we set up for her.  She was scared at first, but once Mommy got in with her, she didn't want to come out.  She is still loving her kitty cat & he is being SO tolerant with her that I'm still amazed (he has a history of biting when he's bothered)!  And now, she even loves Millie!  Millie loves her, too (Micalee is always dropping her snacks!).  The one picture I posted was a "stare down" sparked by a piece of cheese.  You don't mess with Micalee's food!  She is still loving bath time & still goes to sleep so easily (at night & for naps).  It's the complete opposite as it was while in China!  She got to enjoy her first birthday party last weekend when my nephew, Jacob, had his 7th birthday party.  He had been asking since his 4th if Micalee was going to be there & FINALLY she was!  It was SO good to see her there playing with her cousins!  She is so easy-going (most of the time!).  I'm having the time of my life staying home with her!  She is finally starting to speak a little more.  She tries to copy most everything we say now (David is trying not to use his usual language!)!  She now tells Millie to sit, she is finally saying juice, she says night-night, bath, pee-you (stinky diaper), shoes, Mama, Daddy, and today, starting saying "rock on", when David said it to her when she was singing & dancing in her car seat.  The girl was got some moves!  I may try to put some video on if I can figure it out!  Her arms start flailing in the air as soon as she hears music!!! It's too cute!  She's just busy being a 2-year old & still learning the language!  I think her vocabulary is about to burst!  She's trying harder & harder.  She had her first set of vaccinations a couple of weeks ago, and I was traumatized!  She screamed like the day we got her & it broke my heart!  She had to have FOUR injections!  Poor baby!  I can't stand to see her crying!  I did, however, cause the biggest near-fatal incident!  A couple of nights ago, I fell down the stairs when I was carrying her!  I think I missed the step above the landing & just stumbled right on down.  I clutched her & screamed for David before we hit.  Amazingly, she only had a scratch on the back of her neck (we hit a meta candle holder), but she was shaking when David took her from me.  I would have never forgiven myself if something worse had happened to her.  I'm still shook up from the ordeal.  I also have a few scratches & bruises & very sore muscles (like a truck hit me!) to remind me of it.  We are both very lucky not to have broken something! Someone was definitely looking out for us!  I'll try to post more often.  I know the pictures are what you want to see anyway!

More pictures....

While Micalee is napping, I thought I'd post a few more pictures from this week.  There are a couple more of the pool (2nd time in!).  She wouldn't let me stay out for long, so I got to enjoy the water, too!  As you can see, she is letting Millie get closer to her without a problem.  In the one picture, Micalee is trying to drink water from the pool, just like Millie had done.  Then she poured a stacking cup full of water on Millie's head!  We went to the park one day this week & had a picnic.  Of course she liked it; there was food (she now likes french fries!)!  She played on some of the equipment, but I think I'll need to go back when David can go with us, so she can have one of us on each end of the slide to feel more comfortable!  She did get to feed the ducks some crackers, but wanted to get dangerously close to the water.  The girl is fearless!  She chased the geese, but we were out of crackers & didn't get to feed them.  She ran from them when they started heading in our direction. We also planted some flowers in pots, but she was mostly interested in shoveling the dirt in & out.  She could care less if the flowers ever got in the pots!  But, she did want to water them this morning!  She is still letting us know what she wants & needs (mostly food!) by leading us around & pointing,  I'm sure it's just a matter of time before some good English comes from her lips.  She understands what words are for things, but chooses not to try to say too much for now.  She imitates some things, but nothing to help us know what she wants or needs.  She certainly has her ways of letting us know for now!  She is still sleeping very well through the night & goes to sleep without much trouble.  Nap time is pretty good, too!  She likes to go outside & sit on the front steps (& eat her snacks)!  She loves riding in her stroller every night after dinner.  She LOVES her bath & quiet playtime in her room before bed.  She loves riding in her car seat & going shopping (she loves the carts now!).  She loves waking up in the morning & waving at her tree above her crib & the butterfly & bird in the tree.  I think she even loves her Mommy & Daddy!  I know we love her!

Pool Time!!!

Well, last weekend we tried to get Micalee in the kiddie pool, but it was nothing but tears.  We thought she would love it, because she loves her bath SO much.  This time we got in with her and she LOVED it!  Here are some of the pictures of her playing in her pool.  The one with her mouth wide open isn't crying; it's her getting squirted in the face with one of her toys!  She loves it & squeals in delight!  She did want out once I got out, but I think that will change quickly (it did with the bath!).  Right now, she is taking her "right on time" nap.  I'm starting to love nap time, and not because I get a break from her, but because I love the quiet time before she goes to sleep, when I'm rocking her & head is on my shoulder & her arm around mine.  Then I miss her & can't wait 'til she wakes up!  Tomorrow David goes to back to work & then it's just the two of us.  I hope she doesn't miss her Daddy too much & does okay with only me at home.  We'll keep you posted!