Norman Adoption Blog

We think we may have finally gotten Hannah on her regular schedule at night! My Mom and I experimented with her schedule a little bit the last two afternoons by keeping her mostly awake the whole time instead of letting her sleep 4 hours or more as she has been doing. She was cranky but very exhausted by nightfall.

Up until this point we thought it was either she still had her days and nights mixed up or it was allergies. She was always clogged up when we went into her room at night. We have been pumping that cool humidity into her room, giving her Tylenol cold medicine to open her up, and even adding a little bit of baby vicks after a warm and soothing bath. None of that seemed to work until we forced her to stay up a couple hours. She was waking up every 2 hours and having a hard time going back to sleep for over an hour each time. We were both exhausted.

Finally for two nights in a row she slept her long stretches again (usually 5-7 hours stretches before requiring some food or a diaper change). What wonderful nights they have been!

We had a wonderful (and still very sleepy) time with my Mom, Dad and Grandma this past weekend. I’m so glad Dad and Grandma decided to come up this weekend. They all seemed surprised at how strong Hannah is. She cooed and smiled at them. I was surprised that she never had any meltdowns meeting all the new people. She was held by everyone and never once seemed to get scared or upset being in someone else’s arms. That is good news to me.

David is still being such a sweet boy. I don’t know how I can be so lucky to have such a good-natured boy, that is so considerate and gentle. He likes to call Hannah “baby”. Yesterday I put Hannah in his lap so he could try to hold her and he kept leaning in and giving her kiss after kiss. It was really precious! He likes to entertain her and play near her. One aspect that may help David in this transition is that we introduced a baby to him (who is now 5 months!!) that can respond by laughs, coos, and cries. If we came home from the hospital with a baby that requires much more constant attention and only cries all the time, he may have struggled more I’m sure. I think having Grandma (my Mom) here has also helped to get him adjusted. She is his buddy. She has probably helped him to feel he has someone special around just for him.

We are surprised at how polite he has become (saying “Thank You”, “Sorry”) and how affectionate he has remained. He gives Patrick hugs and kisses before he leaves for work and will just grab me around the neck and squeeze sometimes when I don’t ask. We are so lucky to have David as our little man, and Hannah is also very lucky to have him as her big brother!

I could not feel more blessed by our new little addition and by the time I’ve had so far to reacquaint myself with David. I am also extremely moved by all the support we have received coming home. I’ve been amazed to learn just how many people have been following our blog and checking on our progress. It really warms me to know that so many people are concerned by our welfare and by our happiness. It has been incredible to have so much support of friends who have organized things like having dinner brought to our home and for all the hands that actually prepare the incredible meals. God couldn’t have blessed us any more in any aspect of our life. He is so good and has established this family for His good purpose- that I am sure! Thanks for being part of our journey and our story. Without you, nothing would have been the same!!

–Once I figure out the picture thing from home, I’ll post some of our latest!–