Settling Into Our New Routine

Things are definitely getting back to "normal" here. Maddie slept through the night without getting up once during the night last night. Mom got some much needed rest - YIPPEE!!!

Yesterday afternoon we took Doug to the airport to fly back to Atlanta for work. We miss him immensely!

When we pulled into the airport, something didn't sound right with the car. When we pulled up in front of the airport, we discovered that we had a flat tire. To complicate matters, once we removed all the lug nuts, the wheel would not budge as it had a bit of rust that had frozen it in place. Long story short, we called roadside assistance and they hooked us up. This was quite the distraction from what would otherwise have been a very difficult good-bye.

In true Snow fashion, after Doug got to Atlanta, his car wouldn't start. It had been sitting in employee parking for almost a month and the battery was dead. He finally made it to his crashpad sometime after midnight.

Maddie is just sheer bliss. While we were waiting on the tow truck at the airport, she was getting fussy in her carseat so I took her out. She is such a happy baby. She just jumped and squealed (happy squeals) and smiled and laughed. It was impossible to stay stressed or upset with our situation with such pure joy emanating from her.

The longer we're home, the more we are seeing of her personality. Maddie is silly, happy, and very, very active. She fusses only when she is very tired, hungry, or needs her diaper changed; and then, only enough fussing to let us know that she needs something. Just yesterday she started tilting her head to the side sometimes to get a different view of things. Look familiar Greg & Jen? At times, we are seeing the "obstinate sometimes" part of her personality that was declared in her referral report. In China and shortly after we got home, this girl ate anything and everything. Now, she is developing an opinion and will pinch her mouth shut if she does not care for the baby food we are feeding her.

TV seemed to be an activity of the past for us. However, we have discovered that Maddie loves the show Ni Hao, Kai-Lan. She actually holds still when that show is on TV.

Maddie has two new teeth - one on top and one on bottom - just barely peeking through. No wonder she was fussy for a few days after we got home!

The video below is of Maddie babbling right before naptime yesterday.

It feels great to be home and to be settling into a routine. Being a parent rocks! It is by far the most fulfilling thing we have ever done. We are making a concerted effort to enjoy every single moment as this time is so fleeting.

Our little princess is awake so, gotta go...