She had us laughing at her cute little walk, the way she would pass toys between me and Shane, the way she would very hurriedly try to get away from Shane and then plop herself down on my lap, the way she would try very hard not to smile when I was trying to show her HOW to smile, the way she fed herself lunch, the way she would jam HUGE bites of food in her mouth and then store it in her cheeks, the way she propped her sweet little elbows on the table as she was looking at her book we brought, and then the way she looked at us with a "what?" when she saw us dying in laughter, and the way she would shake her head and say "niet" in her mouth (not outloud, of course) whenever we showed her a stuffed animal ("Niet" is No in Russian)!!!
She was such a character today.
She still doesn't speak with us...the "niet" was literally in her mouth, she never opened her lips to say it. But she made it clear that she was saying "niet" to those stuffed animals!!! Ha, ha.
And she DID still cry when they brought her to us. But it lasts for a couple of minutes.
Sooo, at one point she kept patting her bottom and heading for the door, so I told Shane that I think she needs to go potty. (Yes, they already have her in panties-*sigh*) So I take her down the hall and use charades to tell them that I think she needs to use the potty. So they take her and do their thing. So, they bring her back into us and she pitches a FIT! We can just imagine what she was thinking: "Noooo, I was just able to runaway from these people and now you are bringing me back!!! Noooo!!!! Darn, I thought I made a clean getaway!!"
But, once we sat her down and looked through our books with her, she calmed right away. DANA- She LOVES the "Back in my arms" book!!!! She really does. She points to the Mommy and we say "mama" and then point to me. Then she points to the Daddy and we say "Papa" and then we point to Shane. And then she points to the little girl and we say Selah and then pat her. Then we started asking her "where is mama?" and she would point to the Mom on the page! Brilliant child! Brilliant! LOL Ha, Ha. We are using Mama and Papa because that is the Russian words for it and that is what the caregivers tell her we are. So we are trying to keep it consistent, but eventually we would prefer mommy and daddy. (Lately, Seth has been trying out new names for us. Its funny.)
We get to be with her every day this week from 10-12. We end our session with feeding her lunch and then they take her for her nap.
We know that each day will get better. And then we need the 10th to deliver us GOOD news so that we can continue this time with her and then eventually bring her home!
9 comments:
Oh how wonderful that you had a good visit! I am looking forward to hearing her voice and her laugh!
This made me laugh. And it reminded me of how Seth use to call me Mickey Mouse. Or Batman. He thought he was being so clever...
Love youuuuu!
Looooooo
You made me laugh too!!! I can just see her little expressions, especially since I had the privelege of watching Sophie bond with Winston and Teresa, and she did many of the same things. They just cracked me up!!!! I sending lots of hugs and kisses her way, and I can't wait until it all clicks for her and she realizes that you are the mama and papa for her:O) Much prayers for you and lots of love, ~jenn
I'm glad to hear you had a visit filled with laughter :) I can picture the two of you laughing and smiling and little Selah looking at you both and planning her escape. LOL! Love you all-Olga
Oh the description of your time together with Selah just warms my heart. Praying for positive turn of events for all you on the 10th.
Love,Beckie
Dear Greta,
You have all been on my mind and in my prayers over the past week, and I just now read up on the events.
More waiting??!! Surely not what you want, but I trust God is still on His throne and working all things out perfectly. And I love the things you have shared - how your faith has grown and how He has opened your eyes.
Yes, my friend, I think this adoption process is about sooooo much more than the adoption.
*God is making you more beautiful as He makes you more like Jesus through the wait.
*He is growing your faith, and that of your family.
*Each of us following your journey gets to witness this transformation and we get to see God's faithfulness through trials.
*God will be glorified as we all see His power in working things out.
And I am trusting that in the end, you will also be bringing that baby girl home!
Not sure if I have ever told you about my brain surgery, but it was a similar thing. It wasn't about me or my seizures. It was all about God - and Him glorified.
Let's pray.
Father in heaven, thank You for Your perfect love. Thank You for Your perfect care and Your perfect timing.
Thank You that before last week's court date, You knew what the judgement would be. And it was OK with You.
Thank You that You know exactly how things will go on the 10th.
And, Father, thank You for the work You have done and are doing in Greta and Shane and their boys. Though the waiting is hard, we know we can trust You and I pray You will continue to bulid that trust in the Owens'.
Please use this time, Lord, the two hours Shane and Greta have with Selah each day to grow her trust in them so that when it is time for them to bring her home she will not be afraid.
Is that what this is all about, Lord? Are You allowing this extended time in Kaz so Selah will have a better transition?
Lord, we can do nothing but trust You - for You are good and everything You do is good. If You are willing, please give Greta a glimpse of what You are doing now - the reason for the wait. And grow that praise in her, Lord.
Be glorified, in Jesus' name!!!
Amen and amen.
Wow. This comment got really long...Praying He's speaking!
Love you,
Karen
hey guys. you're constantly in my thoughts and prayers. everything will be okay. i know it. love you. xoxo rach
Greta, Shane and Selah,
I nearly cried when i read this post. I saw Jenn's comment about Sophie, and she is right. Sophie did so many of those things with us! And she would cry for a couple of minutes not necessarily when she saw us but when she knew that the nurse would leave the room. I have a much better perspective on things now; she still to this day wants other women and a few men to pick her up. She still has issues because of her age, which is the same age Selah is now. But the rewards are amazing, she will fall in love with you too, the way you have with her!
And for the potty training thing, just FYI, Sophie was NOT potty trained. They told me she was, but once I started giving her food and water during the day she wasn't at all! She still went to the potty once in a while, and I still encourage it. But right now, that's low on my list. In fact, I just ordered and Ergo, and if you don't have one, you might want to order it and have it home by the time you get home. I am going to start carrying her around in that thing. I think it will be great for her, she needs more of the one on one close time. With a three year old bio, it makes things more difficult to get Sophie to settle down enough to just want to stay near to me. She wants to be around Jasmine and running around. And while some of that is good, we're still in the bonding period. I just thought I should share that with you to let you know what you might expect in the coming months.
I think of you daily and can't wait to hear more.
Love,
Teresa and Sophie
thank you Lord for a great day... she is so sweet...
we're lifting you up in prayers....
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