Real words!

Eliana was fantastic on the trip. Not only was she well behaved and loved by all, but she had a great time. She had so much fun playing with all of the kids. She let anyone (and everyone) hold her, carry her around and kiss her hands and face (I know, no wonder she caught a cold). I have been so proud of her throughout these past 2 weeks. She has just been great and having a wonderful time. She loves having Abigia and Eldana here. Each morning when she sees them she does a little dance and claps her hands. She hugs and kisses them all day long. She's really excited to be a little sister. I thought she might have some jealousy over our attention, but so far no problem.
Eldana loves Eliana, too, and is always wanting to hug her and help her with things. Abigia has a little more trouble with sharing me and Matt, but is getting better. She hugged Eliana a couple of times today and is playing with her more often.

Eldana is a great kid! She's 6 years old and is a great big sister. She likes looking after the little ones and is eager to help with things around the house. She loves to sing and dance. She is not interested in cartoons but wants to watch movies ('dramas' she calls them) and real people shows. Yesterday we watched 2 episodes of Growing Pains. Ha! I'm afraid I see Hannah Montana in my very near future. She's a really bright kid and it's neat watching her figure things out. She started learning how to use the computer yesterday.
She is doing well with adjusting so far. She's had a few pouting/crying spells but they haven't lasted long. It's hard with the language barrier to know what sparks them and how to help her feel better. I think we're doing ok, though. She's going to have some sad times (she should - what a world of change and loss she's had in the past 2 weeks!) and so far she has, thankfully, allowed me to be with her and help her through them in a fumbling of charades and hugs.

Abigia is also a great kid. She is funny, silly, and very busy all of the time. Talk about pouting - this kid is the queen! When she gets mad - several times each day (remember she's 2) - she may scream and cry at the top of her lungs for a few moments or just pout with the full bottom lip and furrowed brows. When she is pouting there is no cajoling her into good humor. She pouts until SHE is ready to have fun again, no matter what we do. Loads of fun. Her crying times have gotten shorter, though, in the past few days, and she is allowing us to hold her while she screams, so that's progress. She also seems really smart. She's good at figuring things out, talks super fast in her teeny-tiny voice and is bossy! With her, it's hard to tell how much of her behavior is related to the transition, due to her age, or just her personality. It sure makes the day interesting!

Attachment-wise, both girls are on the right track. They have great eye contact. They come to both Matt and I for comfort and fun interaction. They definitely prefer us to anyone else (in the US anyway). They will play on their own a bit, but always seek us out to show us something or engage us in play. I know there will be tough times to come, but I feel good about our beginning together as a family.

We're finally having a little more energy after the girls go to bed. We'll go through pictures tonight, so I should be able to post some more tomorrow.

Thanks for checking in on us!