Homecoming Day!

Yesterday, July 15, was our one year anniversary of bringing Maya home to Minnesota! This was the end of not only our 2+ year wait for our girl but also to the excruciatingly long four weeks spent in Port-au-Prince.

We're celebrating together in Vail, CO, where two of Sean's very generous board members have given their condo to us for a few days. Maya is loving the mountains especially from the view of the gondola, which we took up and down and up and down and up and down. Another big highlight for her here is the bedroom with not one, but two sets of bunk beds! Each night she's tried out a different bed. :) And then there's the rental car. To keep her from breaking down in the airport while waiting for the rental car shuttle we started guessing what color it might be. We told the rental car attendant this and he gave Maya a choice of colors. We are now driving around Vail in the brightest yellow car you've ever seen (pink wasn't an option or I'm sure that's what we'd be sporting).

Speaking of the airport...when we were landing in Chicago, Maya said she had to use the bathroom. Well, we all know you can't get up during landing. Then as soon as we landed everyone stood up, trapping us in our seats. We ran off the plane and into the airport and as we stood searching for the closest restroom, Maya stood peeing on the carpet of O'Hare. We did our best to use the hand driers, but they were not going to do the trick. Maya walked around with her little blanket tied around her waist like a towel for quite a while, of course dropping it here and there to show her business to the world. There were no kids' clothing stores to be found and so our girl ended up wearing an adult sized Chicago t-shirt for the rest of the day. I don't think I've ever said, "Keep your arms down!" so many times in one day.

Another recent first for Maya was her first long road trip. Her 92.5-year-old great-grandfather passed away on July 8 in Indiana. We are so grateful that she got to meet him twice and vice versa! And so it was that we packed up our car and drove the ten hours from MN to IN. She handled it very well, only yelling, "I. WANT. TO. GET. OUT. OF. THE. CAR!" once or twice, many times fewer than I thought it!

Did I mention that she sleeps now??? Two weeks ago I was talking to some Early Childhood Special Ed friends and explaining the sleeping struggles we've had for the last year. They said that they think we've gone beyond attachment issues and have moved into a bad pattern. They suggested a no-nonsense method, one that we'd been discouraged from in the beginning, assuring us that she's attached enough to us now to try it. So we did. And now she sleeps. Not only sleeps, but puts herself to sleep, sleeps alone, and sleeps through the night. I cannot explain how much my life has changed. I have HOURS more time each day and am sleeping so well now that I'm in my room and in my bed. Hallelujah!

We continue to be amazed at what a wonderful child Maya is and have been loving these days of vacation together. Just now at breakfast Maya was asking what "believe" means (prompted by me saying, "I love you more than you can even believe!"). She didn't like my explanation and said, "No, it's like when I give you a present and you say, 'I can't believe it!'. You say that every time, mom." What a girl.