There are a lot of firsts happening over here: Firsts for Kiya, and firsts for all of us. Everything is brand new to Craig and me as parents, of course. There are some things that are probably not true firsts for Kiya, but we haven?t seen her do them before, so they are new to us.
This week, we?ve had our first successful (fun, even) bath at home. Bath time was a real challenge last week, but we finally have some smiles and some splashing in the bath now. We are also having our first exposure to the nonstop noises that come out of Kiya?s mouth! She is a big time talker ? from giggles to grunts, she says it all. We never heard her say much during our week in Ethiopia, so this has been really fun to watch unfold. And today, she and I took our first walk with the beagles (without another person to help with the dogs). I?m proud to report that each of us returned home in one piece.
We had our first lesson on who to root for in college football, no matter how disappointing it can be:
And our first family photo at home, wearing our Team Beth t-shirts to support our friend Beth at Race for the Cure (which we had to miss):
We also had our first walk at the lake:
And our first visitor (Grandma!):
Craig went back to work this week, and this was the scene when we welcomed him home on his first day:
Kiya had her first food other than formula or cereal (sweet potatoes, which were a big hit on the second try):
Kiya had her first nap in her crib:
And we had our first trip to the grocery store:
[Sorry for the random photo sizing and grainy quality of some photos. Some day I will get the real camera out again, right?]
In addition to all of this good stuff, we?re also having our first small struggles. I think we?ve had the honeymoon period I hear so many adoptive parents talk about, and now we?re entering Real Life. That?s not to say that things aren?t still generally very, very good over here. Kiya is a happy girl and we can tell she is really starting to bond with us. But today, our first day of just the two of us at home all day, we had an afternoon-long battle over a nap (she won) and some meltdowns that I described to Craig as ?in and out of Airplane mode.? [I believe "Airplane" is now our code word for something along the lines of Code Red. It stems from that flight from Amsterdam to Dulles that will be forever etched in our minds.] We?re pretty sure that her first tooth is on its way (and we know that teething throws everything out the window), and beyond that, it could have been any number of things. She could be grieving the loss of all she ever knew. She could be confused by the addition of Grandma for a few days and then Grandma?s departure. Should I have stayed at home instead of taking her out to the store? Or was it the introduction of her crib at her morning nap (which went fine)? The list goes on and on.
It?s hard to not know what?s going on, and of course, to not be able to fix it for her. But that, I suppose, is motherhood, isn?t it? This is my first go at it, you know, so I have a lot to learn.
I certainly know that today is only the first of many challenging times together. I?m hoping, though, that over time I will learn how to help her through the difficult days, and that, in turn, she will learn to let me help her.
Source: http://uninterruptedprosperity.wordpress.com/2012/10/25/firsts/
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