Beach Baby Blog: Two Months Since our Travel Date

It's been almost two months since we left for China. In many ways it seems a lot longer as our China trip is like a distant memory. Chloe is adjusting more and more to our family life and showing her true personality. We're finding her to be a screamer, especially as she pulls hair.

Nilla our dog stays just beyond arm's reach as she's learned about Chloe's hair-pulling obsession. She also screams with delight or to say, "Don't mess with me!" when her sisters get too close. In general, she's just becoming more vocal.

One of her favorite things is to empty her toy basket. She'll spend quite a while doing this as long as we're nearby. Chloe still wants to stay close to mom and dad and doesn't let us set her down much to get something done. Elaine has arranged to take at least two more weeks off work to give Chloe more time to adjust. Otherwise, she'd be starting back this week.

Two weeks ago, a reporter from the local paper in town, The Budget, had come to interview us about the adoption. He was here more than an hour and asked lots of questions of us and the girls and took several pictures. The paper is a weekly publication and came out on Wednesday the 4th.

Last Sunday we met with several families who have either adopted or are waiting on their adoption. Altogether, there were 5 girls from China, two from Kazakhstan, and a single lady who had been adopted several years ago from Columbia.

One couple from Alliance who is waiting for their own China doll really enjoyed Chloe. They had never met an adopted Chinese girl so young and were really glad when Chloe warmed up to them. Talking to them brought back the reality of how long we waited. They're expecting another two years, but hoping and praying for the system to speed up. The family with the Kazakhstan girls are also expecting to wait another year for a daughter from China. We love the support of families with similar experiences as well as lending support to those who are waiting. Knowing how hard it is to wait, we want to be a shoulder to lean on.

Wednesday was another trip to Oak Adoption Clinic at Akron Children's Hospital. This visit was to assess Chloe's development and to check her hearing. First we came into a room full of toys and sat to play. The developmental therapist watched her as she played and gave her certain scenarios to see how she'd respond. All the while, she asked us questions about her at home. As far as her speech, her understanding of us, and ability to figure things out, she's right on track. Her hearing was perfect. Physical development, such as muscle tone and mobility, is a little behind, but she's made great strides. She suggested several things that we work on with her such as crawling and sitting from the lying down position. I thought to myself that we'll have lots of help in that department.

We were also told about an early intervention agency in Holmes county that provides free developmental assessment and rehab for children under 3. We'll be setting up an appointment with them soon. Much of what they do is teach us how to work with Chloe to accelerate the process of her catching up.