The holidays are upon us, and we will make this both our final post and a Christmas greeting to each of you who read this journal.
As we write this letter, we have had Aliyah officially as our daughter for three months. Last Christmas, we waited knowing only that our paperwork was being processed in China and that some time soon we would receive a referral of a child. Little did we know how the process would extend for this referral until the end of July 2006. God's timing was perfect, and we have been blessed with this special little (I use this term rather loosely as will be explained later) girl.
Transition to being parents is huge! Yet it is amazing how wonderful the transition has been. What great joy and laughs we have each day doing the little things that bring comfort, contentment, direction and laughs to Aliyah. We also share many laughs at the things she does and the crazy things we do to help her have fun.
Aliyah seems to learn new things each day. She is just on the cusp of walking, and has managed a step or two when she is not thinking about it. She is a determined girl, and we are fascinated as she will work so hard to figure out some new skill. She has a very interesting method of registering her frustration as she works out the details of a new skill as she will sternly talk to herself during the process. We can only imagine the day when she will strive to learn how to ride a bike in one day.
After a rough start for sleeping after we all returned from China, Aliyah has begun to sleep much better. She will still get up from time to time in the night but she is getting much easier to settle back into sleep. Of course if we stay up late we know the battery is charging on our Aliyah and her alarm clock does not allow for sleeping in. She still struggles with naps as she does not want to miss any moment of the day. Aliyah has been extremely healthy. We have each battled a serious cold or two and Aliyah had come through without an issue. After several doctors appointments the results are in ... Aliyah is in the 80th percentile for weight and 75th for height on the US growth charts so she is doing amazingly well considering all the change in her early life. This has all been a direct answer to prayer.
Aliyah enjoys music, singing (especially when daddy sings “Jesus is with me” and other bedtime stories), Cheerios, climbing stairs (or anything that appears climbable), unloading anything, and stacking cups. She claps, points, waves, and raises her arms to communicate one of the following (praise the Lord, I am this big, or to signals a touchdown). It is amazing to see how God has brought a peace to our hearts as we have seen Aliyah become more and more relaxed and content.
We thank you for following our journey as we awaited Aliyah, received her and brought our daughter home. We wish you a very special Christmas and hope you take time to reflect on the birth of our Savior ... the greatest gift of this season. We pray that your new year will be filled with many blessings.
For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6
