One Month...

Nyah has been an "S" family member now for 1 month. What a fun month it has been for the rest of us! I will never know what she is thinking inside that tiny head of hers but I do know that I have seen far more smiles than tears in the past few weeks so I think she has decided that we are okay people to be around.

Here is a picture of Nyah on the morning of September 1st when we first saw her in person. It is one of two pictures I have of the moments before we were allowed to scoop her up; in the other she has her eyes closed lightly and purposefully, shutting us out and trying to escape. I didn't know then that that was her coping technique. We have seen less and less of it recently and sometimes now she does it to be funny.

She looks so tiny and sad and not at all like the girl I see today. Below are pictures of her this morning, one month later.

I do not think it is fair to compare the pictures from then and now and say that she is happier now, with us, than before, as I am fairly certain that the silly, smiley girl we have in our home was also a silly, smiley girl in her foster home. She doesn't know that what she has now is a forever family (and maybe fattier foods since she is looking a bit fuller). We have not changed her personality; she is who she is AND I am sure who she was before we came for her. She was not looking for us, waiting for us, miserable without us. While September 1st was a great day for us, it was not for her. She was taken from her family and then put in a car for 2 1/2 hours. She was carsick. She was grieving and shut down. Everything was unfamiliar. The "Gotcha" pictures capture what was simply a terrible moment in time for her. I cannot wait to send her foster family pictures of Nyah now because I want them to know she is doing well and is happy here too. I can tell she was well cared for for her first 17 1/2 months. I want to thank them for loving her into the girl she is today. I want them to know that she brings us joy and laughter each day.

Really, Nyah has changed very little over the few weeks she has been home. She has adjusted so well. She is still a busy collector of things... here she is putting things in/pulling things out of her baggie:

Here she is chopping on a puzzle piece. She also likes to gnaw on Pokemon cards.

And if she for some reason cannot find a sibling's belonging to bite, then her fingers are good enough:

In the black and white pictures, she is sitting at the table. Eating is still her favorite thing and she has developed a little belly from her snacking. She has become a pickier eater though and I have learned that rice, noodles, goldfish crackers, and watermelon have to be dessert if I want her to eat anything else. And bananas are only good if they are eaten standing up with mommy or Evan offering the banana.

Because she spends so much time at the table, and it is the only time she is still, I have quite a collection of "eating" pictures and very few others that are not blurry (from her activity) or way close-up (from her breaks in my lap).

Pictures really don't truly capture Nyah... she is just very animated, very flirty and friendly (as long as she is secure in Mommy's arms or I am close by), and has a great sense of humor.

She still plays in her crib awhile before she sleeps, even if she is exhausted. But when she sleeps she sleeps. When I sing to her right before I lay her down, she joins me. Then again, she may be trying to drown me out!

Oh, and if you think she is a girly-girl because I have a clip in her hair... well, no. Today I decided to try one in her hair since it is getting longer and I don't see a haircut in her future for many months. I was successful because she understands "no touch" and believe me, I have had to repeat it about a hundred times. When she realizes there is no consequence for touching and pulling out a hair clip, it is all over.

We're in LOVE!!!! Hopefully she will still be too after tomorrow... her first medical appointment!