Praying for Ansley

Sunday, April 6, 2008

Return to Me

Hi everyone! We made it home and returned to all of our loved ones. Oh, how sweet it is!!
I won't lie, the trip home was L O N G. But I also won't sit here and whine about it. Even by myself, it would have been a long, terrible trip... add a 17 month old... and what did I expect? She did WONDERFULLY, but she is 17 months old... and I was tired. (Why are the only flights leaving Almaty at 3:20 a.m??) The worst was the second flight - completely filled and over 8 hours long. Add a medical emergency on board the flight (none of us!!) and added time waiting on the plane after landing to await the paremedics, and then clearing customs and immigration... it was LONG and TIRING. The thought of family and HOME kept us going though. Nothing was going to stop us now!
The awesome part came (and is what kept us going all day) when we cleared immigration and walked out and saw Matthew waiting for us! He pointed across the walkway (as if to let others know we were there (I did wonder where dad was!)) and I turned to see Regan, Marie, Caleb, Kate and Ezra all there as well to welcome us home and to meet Maia! They had a wonderful sign and balloons, and it was just so so wonderful!! We were so thrilled to see Dad and Matthew and so excited to have the extra bonus of having Regan and the kids meet us there too. What fun!! Regan and her family could stay until Sunday (today!) so we had a nice long time to get to catch up and for them to get to really meet Maia. My brother Bobby was also able to come on Saturday for the day and WOW! Did Maia take to HIM!! It was amazing! She wouldn't let him put her down almost all day.
Regan cooked delicious meals and desserts and really made us all feel special. She even stopped and got us our first Starbucks yesterday. Yummy! We are very sad to see them head home, but also ready to try to settle in to a 'normal' routine and figure out what that even means!
I let Matthew stay home on Thursday with us all. He did go to school on Friday. He gets Monday off for a teacher work day, so our 'normal' should start on Tuesday. He has adjusted very well to Maia. Maia, on the other hand, took a few days to adjust to Matthew for some reason. No huge deal, we're pretty good now, but she was more excited with younger cousins or woman (like Regan) than Matthew or my Dad. As I said, each day has gotten better and she seems fine with Matthew now. I am really pushing some time together so that she gets used to him too. I'll need him to be able to help sometimes, so I need her to know who he is and accept his help.
It has been rainy pretty much since we got home. I promised I wouldn't complain about the weather, but I am ready for some nice sunshine to brighten the days. As excited as I am to be home, a nice sunny day would be great and would really be nice to be able to walk outside. I may try an outing with Maia tomorrow - we'll see!
We've had calls from family which has been really nice. It's always nice talking to family - and even nicer to celebrate special occassions together, if only long distance. Family is great!
I haven't downloaded pictures yet. I am still trying to baby proof a room or two that Maia can play in without getting in trouble or without getting hurt! :) Then, maybe I can focus on pictures again. There is so much 'to do' being back home, I must admit, I'm not much in the computer mood... I will try to continue with updates at least weekly though to chronicle our adjustments and changes as Maia grows!
She seems very excited and happy. I am so glad. She has been such a trooper and is just so good. She even slept through the night the very first night home and hasn't looked back since. WoW! How did that happen? I won't question it, I'll just accept that! :) Yeah!
Thanks for all the well wishes and emails too. All is well and I will email you all back as soon as I can. So much to do!! :)

Stay tuned - more to come.

11 comments:

Tammy said...

Congrats on being home. It must feel s good! Can't wait to hear more updates and see more pictures but take your time to get settled. We've been patient this long :-)

Catalina said...

Kristen, welcome back home, I am glad you had a safe trip, I am sure it was very long and tiring. We still have jet lag.
I hope you are not worried about Maia and Mattew, I think is very normal, since she has never been around older brothers. I am sure in couple of weeks, everything will be just perfect, Maia seems to adjust pretty fast. I hope Yulia and Maia will get to meet each other again soon, as American-Kazakhstan friends. Even if we have all been stressed out and did not get chance to spend too much time together, It was very nice to meet you and Marry.

Sandi said...

I am so happy you are home safe and sound. I have been checking in daily. How exciting that you had some company and someone to help take care of you while you got settled. Maia is going to love her new home and her brother.

Can't wait to see pictures.
Sandi

Kim said...

So glad you are home. I know it is hard to adjust at times for everyone but it's so worth it right? Enjoy getting back to "normal" although I don't think any of us will be the same after that trip!

Jennifer said...

I am so glad to hear you are home, healthy, safe, and happy! And had your Starbucks! :-)

The transition sounds like it is going so well, and hopefully by now, the jet lag has worn off. We can hope!

I look forward to seeing new posts once you all get settled into a routine, and you have a little time on your hands!

Soooooo glad you are home!

Theresa said...

Kristen,

I am so happy you all made it home safely. I've been thinking about you and checking your blog alot the last few days looking for an update. Believe me, now that you are home with that little one you'll have to make time to check in on blogs and update your own. My computer time drastically cut down once home with Cameron.

Congrats again and welcome home!

Michelle said...

Welcome home, how wonderful you made it home, and it sounds like Maia and Matthew will get a long just beautifully. I know you wall be much happier once you are all in the routine of things and you will then have time to share pictures.

Welcome home.

Masha said...

Dear Kristen, dear Maia, dear Mary! I am happy for you to be home. Finally :-) New life for all of you begins.
Thank you that you changed the life of this little sweet person!

The Gobble's (Lanetta) said...

Kristen,
So happy you are home...
keep us updated as you can on how things are going.... I will be praying for Matt and Maia.. they will adjust to each other..
You are in our prayers still...
In him,
Lanetta

The Gobble's (Lanetta) said...

Kristen,
So happy you are home...
keep us updated as you can on how things are going.... I will be praying for Matt and Maia.. they will adjust to each other..
You are in our prayers still...
In him,
Lanetta

Unknown said...

I am so happy for you that you made it home with Maia and had a wonderful reunion with your family. Try to take it easy the next few weeks getting into a routine. Try that nap when she naps theory to try and get your energy back. I imagine it will take a while to adjust to the time change, especially for Maia. Don't worry about Maia and Matthew. Now that it is just the 3 of you they will adjust. For Maia, all that focus on her must have been very exciting. Also, she may be a little jealous that out of all those family members Matthew directed your attention away from her maybe? It will take some time to get into a routine. Hopefully I will get to see you all this summer! Congratulations again! Now that you are home and finished with the adoption process it must be a secure feeling that Maia is a part of your family. I admire your perserverance through this year and a half to find your daughter and bring her home. It certainly proves that if you focus on a goal that you can accomplish anything, within your control of course! It brings tears of joy to my eyes. We can all be patient and wait a couple of weeks for you to settle in, but hopefully after that you will have time to get a few pictures posted and give us an update.