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| If you return to the Main Page, we hope that you will sign our guestbook. We hope to share the encouragement and kind words with Maria someday. |
| 10/12/2006
I almost by-passed tonight's entry (and maybe nobody would even notice), but I decided tomorrow I would be more tired than today, so I better get it done today. I cannot promise it will be exciting and full of incredibly intelligent words. My brain is tired. Maria had a good day at day care today. She did cry when Mark dropped her off. He said she looked "betrayed". Know that he has an incredible soft spot for his girls though, so it wouldn't take much of a look from her to get his heart. But when I picked her up, she was doing fine. The teacher commented on how sweet she is, and another worker mentioned how much calmer she seems to be as well as more adjusted. She is not crying when her regular teacher has to leave the room anymore. So that is progress! However, just when I think we are moving forward...we went to my parents' house tonight to see my sister and her kids. (Her hubby had to work). I couldn't wait for my sister to finally see Maria in person. My parents weren't there, so Maria was a little wary when she entered and realized that. However, she seemed calm. Then I called her over and picked her up to introduce her to my sister. Big mistake! She did not want me to put her down. I assured her I was NOT leaving and sat down with her. Then she started the wailing/fit throwing. She carried on for quite a while. She finally settled down about five minutes before we needed to leave. I know eventually these times will be a distant memory, but they aren't fun while they are happening! I better get some stuff together so I can get to bed. Have a great Friday the 13th! |
| 10/14/2006
Happy birthday, GG! We (the girls) enjoyed spending the evening with you. Of course, Maria wouldn't talk much while we were there, but all the way home, she said, "GG". Little turkey. We have had a girl's day out while the boys are camping. We hit the mall today. If you look closely at the picture, you will see one thing we did there. Maria got her ears pierced! If you have known us long, you know we had Lauren's done at 4 months. And I have wanted Maria to be in earrings for some time. Today I just thought, "Let's try it." I fully expected loud screams and a full tantrum. When I took her out of the stroller, she started to cry. (I don't know why, but she always cries when I take her out of the stroller.) I put her on my lap, and the piercer offered her a sucker. I wouldn't normally let her have hard candy, but I thought distraction would be good. It must have worked. The child did not even blink an eye...for EITHER ear. I had her in my lap. If she moved at all, she might have slightly flinched on the second one. Otherwise, there was NO reaction. Now she just touches her ears and says, "Pretty". Oh, by the way, as of this writing, Mark does NOT know about it. I am going to see how long it takes him to notice. (He is still camping.) Don't worry though, he wouldn't have cared one way or the other. After the mall and grocery shopping, we came home for naps. I decided to let the girls nap with me on my bed. (We don't typically do that, so it is a "treat".) We put Maria in the middle. At first, she would poke/rub our back, talk to us, etc. But eventually we all fell asleep. It was fun to be snuggled all together. We went to my parents' house tonight. My sister and her kids are staying in town. We went to show off the earrings and got a dinner invitation while there (A delicious steak!). It was fun, though Maria is still not sure what to do in groups of people. She is also back to shunning Grampops most of the time. Of course, she was like that with Mark for a couple of weeks...on and off like a faucet. Now she adores him. I suspect that will happen in this case too. Well, I better get myself to bed. I will have to get myself up in the morning. No Mark to help with the Sunday morning chaos. Please pray for Maria at church. I keep hoping it will get better! Thanks for checking in on us! Leave us a message sometime...we love to know who is reading. |
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| 10/15/2006
Hello on a Sunday! Have you ever seen one of those amusement mazes where you tie a bungee cord around your waist and you run as fast as you can until it won't stretch any more, then you go flying backwards? Yes...that is what I am feeling like today! I feel like we are running forward, making all kinds of progress, then we get yanked backwards...at church of all places. Maria is just not adjusting to church. I have come to dread Sundays and going and listening to the tears and the fits. I leave feeling defeated and not very fond of our little girl for a while. We are working on some strategies, including putting her in a younger class and my not helping in her class any more...so we will see. She is such a delightful girl much of the time. Unfortunately, nobody at church has gotten to witness it yet. Please continue to pray for that situation. I have always enjoyed going to church and want to again someday... On a positive note, some new words include "cold", "shoes" (instead of zapatos), feet, and day. Her vocabulary has almost reached 50 words in English. Quite a lot of progress in a few weeks time! |