Our First Week

Well, we've been home for a full week now. Hard to believe! A lot has gone on this week, and it's been tiring, but I think we're going to make it. Yesterday was the first day I really thought "I can do this!" We're all sleeping well now, everyone's healthy, and things are settling into a somewhat normal routine. We even got in 3 days of school for Ethan. Heath was home all week, which was probably the deciding factor between sanity and my going off the deep end. He's working today, and I think I'm finally to the point where I can survive a day on my own.

Tabitha's come a long way already. Here are some of the areas she's already made huge progress:

The Dog--When Tabitha first saw Shadow her face was more terrified than anything I'd ever seen! For the first couple days she would scream "Mei you! Mei you!" (no, no) whenever she saw Shadow. But soon the fear lessened, and it became more of a game. She'd still scream "mei you", but then she'd laugh. Yesterday she even pet Shadow and gave her a kiss! She still glares at her and says "mei you" if the dog dares come near her while she's eating though. Tabitha's also no longer afraid of dolls! In fact, she now carries her baby doll around the house with her, feeds her a bottle, and tucks her into bed. She did the same thing with a Curious George animal that has huge eyes--so I guess she's over that fear!

Sleep--When we were in China Tabitha slept beautifully. Went right to sleep, slept through anything for a good 11 hours or so. So we thought we had it made. But when we got home that all changed. She was up every couple of hours the first couple nights, and sometimes wouldn't go back to sleep for a long time. But the last two nights she's only woken up twice, and went right back to sleep. And one of those times was because she fell out of her bed, so we can't blame her for that. :) It's amazing how much better I feel when I get a good night's sleep too!

Language--Tabitha seems to understand most of what we tell her, based on context. And she definitely understands the words for eat, change your diaper, go night-night, and some others, and knows her name. She's learning fast! She's starting to mimic us too. So far, we've heard her say: no, uh-oh, mama, ow, Mommy, and yeah. Not bad for a week!

Medical--She's been to the doctor three days in a row, which she was none too happy about. But Heath and I are SO happy with the doctors helping her. Dr. Gearhart and Dr. Trinity at Johns Hopkins are awesome! They saw her Tuesday, were so good with her and made us feel completely comfortable too. They scheduled her to come back on Monday to do a scope surgery (I forget the technical name) to find out exactly what has been done during her surgeries in China, and what needs to be done next. And they'll also teach us how to catheterize her every few hours so she doesn't have to wear the tube all the time. They totally put us at ease about everything, and I am SO thankful to have such great doctors, and so thankful for the friends who referred us there!

Emotional--Well, I think things are going quite well for everyone. I did have a breakdown last Sunday. I was sick again, and overwhelmed by everything, still jetlagged, and not feeling any connection with Tabitha. Thank the Lord for my wonderful husband who took care of the kids and me! The rest of the week has been better, and I feel hopeful now. The kids are all adjusting well to each other, and the boys really enjoy Tabitha and take good care of her. I'm starting to feel like I'm really her mom, and Tabitha's behavior has been improving too. She's quite the drama queen when she doesn't get her way, but I think she's starting to realize that tantrums/hitting/biting don't work, and she's learning to accept "no" a little better--well, as much as can be expected at the age of 2. She's got quite the strong personality, which is challenging, but she also keeps us all entertained with her adorable little expressions and the funny things she does.

So that's how things are going at the Runkles' house. We have so much to be thankful for and are looking forward to what God has in store for our lives as a family of 5.