"And I'm breathing in your grace...and breathing out your praise...and breathing in your grace, forever"
There are a few reasons why today (11/6/13) is significant in the life of the St Clair Family; most importantly, it marks the 6 month date since we welcomed Fei into her forever family...wow! It was also a year ago this week (11/8...our anniversary!) that we first found out about her and were matched with our newest family member. It is really hard to wrap our heads around both of those milestones--it still seems very surreal that we were all in China together 6 months ago. Some days it seems like yesterday, as we began to watch her every move with anticipation of what personality trait would be revealed and other days, we sing "The Wheels on the Bus" 20x over, like we never had a 4 year hiatus since singing it with Owen.
While God continues to reveal more about this precious little one to us, He also continues to reveal more about Himself and allows us insight into how He is shaping us. We, both individually and together as a family, have grown in ways we never considered and have been blessed beyond imagination. As Fei has experienced new people (and animals, like dogs and turtles), a whole new language, strange foods, a different schedule, and a new home, we too have had the opportunity to experience a new normal...navigate life with a 2-year old (whew...a bit exhausting!), learn sign language, be reminded of the significance of structure/routine, and refer to ourselves as a family of SIX! To hear her hum, "Jesus Loves Me" with us as we put her to bed is amazing, recognizing the eternal significance of her being introduced to her creator through music, prayers and conversation. Listening to her laugh as Owen makes silly faces, right now next to me, is such a sweet sight; Fei unexpectedly kissing him is even cuter!
Here is a little glimpse into the past six months:
- Aspen, the family dog, is now a beloved friend, whom Fei enjoys petting and feeding...great gains from the initial screaming upon them meeting
- Her first word was "Ka-Ka" ("quack, quack"), said when she saw a duck in the shower...it also morphed into the same word for "Da-Da", though now more distinguishable
- Multiple times a day, Fei tells us that "Da-Da" is at work (by signing "work"), and proceeds to say "Ai-ee", "Eee-ay" and "Oh-Oh", expecting us to fill in "yes, they are at school"
- Ellie, TJ & Owen are definitely her favorite playmates...she will grab their hands and pull them to play, snuggle with them, seek their help and jump on them...all in a period of a few minutes!
- Whenever the door "beeps", she assumes it's Chris and yells "Da-Da", running to the door
- Her sign language continues to grow as she knows so many words (water, please, thank-you, boy, girl, apple, grape, banana, cracker, milk, food, hungry, yes, no, and her favorite ..."stop", which she likes to say emphatically!)
- She loves all food--haven't really found anything she won't eat, even salads, veggies & raw spinach!
- We learned this summer that she LOVES the water...the pool, slip & slides, shower, bath time
- Favorite songs to sing include "Wheels on the Bus", "Itsy Bitsy Spider", "Jesus Loves Me", "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" and "One Potato, Two Potato"
- A true 2-year old, she has learned to say "mine!" and reminds us often
- "May-mees" (babies) are her favorite thing to play with and take care of...and notice anywhere!
- So observant, Fei likes to point out birds, planes and helicopters, as well as ants and other insects
- A true StClair, she loves to go to Costco and gets very excited, pointing out when we come upon a sample
- She likes to name everything (sign/word) , or ask what they are, then wave & say "hi"
- Fei loves her "school" (a Mom's Day Out program she attends 2x/week), especially doing art and playing outside
- Shopping and long walks with mom are fun as she makes friends by waving at others, enjoying snacks and playing with the buckle
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