February 06, 2005
Right Around Her Finger
Little Kaylee girl and her daddy catching up on some sleep after a long flight home from China.
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This morning at 3:30am Naomi and I woke to the sound of a hungry baby. We both got up and fed her and changed her diaper. We put her back down hoping she would sleep until 6 or 7 but after about a half hour...
I got back up and brought Kaylee downstairs with me. She just wasn't tired. But you know, neither was I. I just wanted to hang out and play with her. So we've been sitting here entertaining each other.
She started getting a little fussy so I put her in her swing, turned the TV on, and put in her Baby Einstein DVD. She just loves those Baby Einstein DVD's. She is now sitting next to me in her swing and she is making all kinds of baby talk. And boy she can talk a big story! :-)
The past 72 hours have been more of a challenge with Kaylee than the previous week and a half. We know that she is just trying to adjust. And 31 hours of travel will make anyone a little cranky. She has good moments and bad moments. But overall she is doing great. Her muscle development is coming along well. She is doing much better sitting up. And we are giving her plenty of tummy time hoping to develop the muscles she needs to crawl.
It is our understanding that the orphanage takes the babies out of their cribs and puts them right into walkers. Unfortunately, if the baby is small, their little legs don't reach the ground in those walkers. And in Kaylee's case, she never had the opportunity to develop her leg muscles. This is the case with many of the babies from China. But the good news is that they all seem to catch up very quickly. And as I have mentioned, we have seen improvements in just the 2 weeks that we have had her.
Another area where Kaylee is under developed is in her hands and the ability to hold things. She hasn't figured out how to use her thumb to grip things yet. She tries and she is making improvements. But she still doesn't reach for things and pick them up. I noticed that all of the other babies in our adoption group where constantly holding things. Then it occurred to me that of all the babies from our group, Kaylee was one of the quietest and most content babies. She rarely cries. She is just always happy to be lying on the bed or propped up in a sitting position with pillows. So I began to put two and two together and I have come to the conclusion that the squeaky wheel gets the grease, right? If Kaylee did not cry much at the orphanage, and the other babies did, then the other babies were the ones that were held a lot. They received the attention. Of course this is all just wild speculation. I really have no idea why the other babies are more developed. And I don't know if Kaylee is any more content than the rest of them. But because my mind needs to find an answer, I will go with the squeaky wheel theory for now.
Doh! I just looked over and little Kaylee girl is sleeping in her swing. I will sign off for now and go put her in her crib.
Did I mention how absolutely wonderful this little child is?
Posted by Mark at February 6, 2005 05:09 AMGod Bless....Kaylee is so blessed having you two for Her wonderful parents....Many Hugs & Smackeroooos
Posted by: Auntie Fran at February 6, 2005 06:59 PMHey Mark, me thinks you think to much, please let the baby grow, you have only had her for a week. She was nine months old when you came into her life, she will be OK.
Your over analysing the situation, just keep doing everything your doing now and if in three months you have the same concerns then you might look into seeing someone to help. At her age everything she does will come in little spurts at a time. From your blog notes it sounds like your doing everything right so just give her a little time and I'm sure she'll come around. So might I suggest you just enjoy the hell out of her and your wife Naomi.
Hi Dick,
I understand what you are saying. But don't worry, we are absolutely enjoying Kaylee. And we know she is going to be just fine. We have talked with many people who have been down this road before us and everyone has confirmed that the developmental delays are only temporary and that the babies catch up to where they should be very quickly.
A lot of what I type here at the adoption blog is information (good & bad, positive & negative) that I want to document and also information that I think others who are on the same journey might find beneficial. I hope that perhaps talking about the development of Kaylee might help others who are in similar situations. So I will continue to share information as we discover it.
But I understand what you are saying and please know that Noami and I are enjoying every single minute with little Kaylee girl.
Kaylee and I have been up all night. Yesterday we thougth we our schedules back on track but today Kaylee slept all afternoon. I tried to wake her several times but she would not wake up. She woke up around eight tonight and she and I have been up all night. She did take a short nap, but now she is wide awake again. But I just don't mind at all. In fact, I have thoroughly enjoyed our evening together. First we watched or very first superbowl together, then we just set up camp on the living room floor and watched TV. I don't think I'll get any sleep tonight at all. She is wide awake! :-)
Posted by: :: m a r k :: at February 7, 2005 03:37 AMOh Naomi! She's gorgeous! I'm so happy for you both! Can't wait to meet her, momma!
Love you!
Congrats!
Posted by: Penny at February 7, 2005 11:11 AMDarling picture, Dad and daughter! I like your theory about the orphanage. Makes perfect sense to me, especially after reading so much about the orphanages. Children are so amazing! I teach preschool and I am constantly amazed at how quickly they learn and adapt. I'm sure you will continue to see many new improvements just as you have the past couple of weeks. I've been a member of the "all night club" before (I have 3 children)! Those moments are so incredibly precious. Hopefully you'll get to catch up on some of your rest when Kaylee does! :-)
Posted by: Mary at February 9, 2005 12:50 AMHi Mark and Naomi, congrats with your beautiful child! I've been following your log for not so long, but I enjoyed every word of it! I live in the Netherlands in Europe and we're going to adopt from China as well, so your story interested me a lot. Although the American procedure is very different from the Dutch one. (We have to wait at least 4 years!) I wish you all the love and luck for your new family. And congratulations to you Kaylee, for your new parents! :)
Posted by: Patrick at February 9, 2005 10:14 AMHi! I just wanted to drop you a note to let you know that I stumbled across your blog today and read pretty much all of it. :D I've recently come to the conclusion that adopting a Chinese daughter is something I'm supposed to do - I've a long way to wait, since I'm only a oollege student now. Lots of time to plan, I suppose!
Anyway, I've just enjoyed reading about a real family's real-life experiences, and I wanted to thank you for sharing it with all of us. I'm sure I'll keep reading your blog - and Kaylee is so adorable!
Thank you so much for sharing in your journey to bring Kaylee home. My husband and I live in Cary and are in the process of adopting from China (through CCAI). The honesty portrayed in your posts is something we have enjoyed reading. We'd love to talk to you and Naomi about your experiences, if you wouldn't mind getting in touch.
Posted by: Cheryl at February 24, 2005 01:43 PMLoved the pic, Mark... I hope to join ya in daddyhood soon. :)
Posted by: rob at February 24, 2005 04:17 PMI missed you getting your daughter home! I've been sick with morning sickness and haven't read the blogs. I just wanted to say CONGRATULATIONS she's a beautiful little girl!!!!