6 Months Home!

December 21st will mark our 6 months since bringing Avah home. First of all, I am above all, thankful and humble. Here is an update:

1. Avah is potty trained during the day (with pee pee). She learned the first time I had Laney Girl (the other two year old I watch) show her how. I suspected and knew all along that Avah would be easy in this department. Seriously, she learned the first time! Now the poo thing? Not there yet!

2. Avah knows her colors. If you ask her for a blue, red, yellow, green, purple, etc she will hand it to you with the appropriate color.

3. Her self help skills are wonderful. She easily puts on any type of shoes, socks, etc. She will clean up any spills or mess she makes. She was a super cleaner when she came home and still is! Cleanup is the other half of fun during playtime for her!

4. She has a hard time admitting she likes her Daddy! No one can make her smile and squeal like Daddy can! Avah loves to "pretend" that no one holds a candle to Mommy but secretly she believes Daddy does (but won't admit it;) I mentioned that her Daddy calls her "huevos" because it sounds like "Avahs". . . well, Avah just LOVES it when her Daddy talks in Spanish to her! It is hysterical! He says things like, "Muy Bien Huevos" and he reads her Dora books to her in Spanish and she just loves it:)

5. She loves to do craft projects and is super proud of whatever she creates. She is always thinking of others...whenever we are getting ready to leave, she will bring me my jacket or shoes. She always hands them to me saying, "Mama!"She will also do this for Jaxon and Laney. She also loves Christmas lights. When we go out at dark, watch your eardrums...she will yell, "Christmas Lights" when she sees them!

6. She has very good fine motor skills. She recently made us some candy cane tree ornaments with pipe cleaners and small beads. She is a master at this type of thing

7. She does a great job with puzzles. Her therapists are constantly blown away with her ability to comprehend english and her problem solving skills. Her therapist brought over some tough puzzles boxes that require keys to get into and the idea was she wanted Avah to ask for help to do this complicated toy. We all watched as Avah figured out easily, how to do this toy. Her therapist was shocked! In Korea, her Fostermom and social worker warned us that she is very clever.

8. Avah now has an I.E.P. She will be going to preschool starting next August. She qualified for early childhood education due to her vision and hearing impairment. There has been some talk about teaching Avah to read Braille. This is due to the likelihood of her experiencing vision fatigue often. She would likely be able to read faster with her fingers. So, her school will be a ways away and is for the visually impaired. We are very lucky that she will be going there. We are confident that they will able to meet her needs. She will be riding a bus four days a week and will have an aid.

9. Speech seems to have plateaued again but she can say any word, any phrase when she hears it. She is mostly quiet and smilely. Part of her challenge has been that she cannot see people's mouths when they talk. This, we believe, could be a major reason she has been delayed. She speaks so much better WHEN she looks at our mouths and she can see how we form certain words and sounds. But, in the hurry of everyday life, we don't seem to have time to stop, and get down to her level and ask her to look at us...

She is so funny when you ask her "Avah, what are you doing?" She will answer, "Nothing". The way she says it totally makes us laugh everytime!

10. She is ridiculously beautiful! Sorry to be so biased, but she is:) But, when any of my friends/family post pics of their children I always think the same about their kids too!

11. The anxiety issue is still there. I read on an attachment website that her behavior could be described as "A normal reaction to an abnormal situation". Meaning, that she is living like she is a young child who lost her mother in a very confusing way...oh, wait, that did happen. Our Little A does not easily trust people or open up to people. I am trying hard to not let that bother me...and, I sincerely hope that anyone who knows her does not take it personally. Yes, it sucks. My daughter is still in the process of healing and I have to be ready to accept that she may never fully recover. I don't blame her, I don't think I'd ever recover if I went through the losses that she did. However, I am beyond thankful that I know my little girl has the power, and the passion to love fully. She loved her fosterfamily fiercely. This is a very good thing.

S0, that is our update, after 6 months. It is still so hard to believe that as hard as last Christmas was without her, here she is! She is home. Forever. On Friday, we officially make it Forever. We will finalize on the day before Christmas Eve. We are so blessed.