All is Well

We were up at 4AM on Friday (jet lag) and caught the royal wedding! Yeah!! Karina was not intrigued so much, and preferred trying on her clothes and pretending that she was Hannah Montana. Friday, we went to Wegman's grocery store and bought food. Karina was a great help! She pushed the cart and priced the vegetables and helped select what to buy. We rested a lot, learned about iCarly, the TV show, took care of the pets and tried to get in sync with the small stuff (making beds, doing laundry, picking up). Yesterday, we went to Papa's office, did some errands, swang at the park, walked, cooked, cleaned, and relaxed. Today, we had a cereal taste-test to figure out who liked who cereals, and that was fun! Now we are making cupcakes. She did it all - even using the mixer! This afternoon, several kids from camp who have already been adopted will meet at the camp and Karina cannot wait to be there! So far, all is terrific! We know there is bound to be a meltdown at some point, but so far, we are doing really well. We have some issues with trying to stretch bedtime past 9PM, but we are strict on that. Today, we are going to work on getting family rules in order and communicate those. We need to set boundaries clearly in order to increase her comfort level. So far, it has been like being on vacation here, and that is OK to ease into things, but her independence and growth depend on us setting clear boundaries. We will let you know how that goes. Finding time to do email, make phone calls, and do the things we used to do for ourselves is not as easy right now, but once we get into sync, we can each have our togetherness and independence, and that will be good. The best gift she got so far has been the journal (blank page book) and pens and markers. She loves having a book of her own, and carries it in her purse, which at this point (because it contains all candy, jewelry, and little trinkets she owns as well) weighs half a ton. Oh Well! Oh and Wii dance = awesome! She LOVES it! (And she's good at it!)

More Soon! Thank you to all for your support and well-wishes and love! We feel it! Happy Sunday!