Four Months Home With Ivy

Four months ago this morning, Ivy and I landed at the local airport, exhausted, excited, and nervous.  So much has happened...so much good stuff.  She's bonded so well to all of us.  She is comfortable with our touch and hugs and kisses.  She gets annoyed with her sisters.  She eats so much food, but hasn't gained any weight.  She's finally making it up the hill on her bicycle.  She's not afraid of the dog.  She's lost 3 teeth (one from the doctor).  I could go on and on, but you get the picture.  

Ivy has been sharing a lot of stories from her other "home".  Some of the stories are silly ones about her friends and people she will never see again.  I know she misses them.  She had cell phone numbers of many of the people and the orphanage.  One day she lost those numbers and was very distraught.  I was able to track down the orphanage phone number, which made her feel much better.  Ivy has also shared some sad stories about her life in China.  I used to feel badly for taking Ivy from all that she loved.  She seemed to be a very happy girl while in China.  After hearing stories from other adoptive families, I thought I'd ask Ivy some questions about some "mean people" at the orphanage.  When I started asking her about the "woman", she knew exactly who I was talking about.  Her eyes started darting back and forth with a very nervous look, and her eyes filled up with tears.  I asked Ivy why the "woman" did this to her and she replied with innocence and fear, "I don't know."  After lots of hugs and reassurance that I'd never do anything to hurt her, she was her happy self.  It makes me wonder what other stories she has hidden behind those big, brown eyes.  Maybe in time she will share, maybe she will forget.

Last week I sent an email to the orphanage with pictures telling them how well Ivy was doing.  I got a response with some wonderful pictures of Ivy when she was very little.

She looks so sad and beautiful.  I looked at these pictures, stared at these pictures of my daughter.  I did not know her.  I missed that part of her life, the beauty of babyhood, the activeness of toddler-hood, never to be found again.  But, I have her now.  There is so much to look forward to.

This is my favorite picture of Ivy.  She still gives me this look almost everyday when she is confused or does not understand what I am saying to her.  I love that brow!

We went to the cleft clinic this past week.  The doctors decided that Ivy needs to have her gum line repaired this fall.  I'm hoping it will happen in November.  One day after cleaning out her cleft area, I told her what the doctors were going to do to her mouth.  I showed her how my teeth went straight across.  She then went on to tell me that the reason for her crooked mouth was because she fell down as a baby.  So, I guess that was the story around the orphanage.  All the children there with clefts (and there were quite a few) had fallen and messed up their mouths, lips, and noses.

I found this photo online that was in the local newspaper.  Ivy looks so small.

I love the sneaky look in the passport photo.

Home 4 months.