17 Meatballs!

Full Throttle! That is how life has been for us since arriving home. I know all the adoption books say limit your visitation and keep things quiet, but for us that sort of seems all wrong. For one, mommy would go stir crazy and I don't think anyone would want a crazy woman looking after two small children. Secondly, our reality is never quiet and our schedule is always full, so why adapt the newest member to lifestyle that is not the truth? Treya is sort of the driver, however, if she is okay with the level of activity we continue on, if not, we pull back. She is not too keen on others holding her yet, but she is fine with being with friends and family as long as we are there too and eagerly greets them with a "Hi", a wave and a bunch of blown kisses.


Treya and Devi are learning to play together nicely (with a few blows to the others' head from time to time). Dress up is a favorite, but our bossy Devi clearly lets Trey know that she is not allowed to be a princess yet, because she is too little. She is only allowed to be a nymph, which requires wings at all times. Much of Devi's dialogue is lost on Trey who still barely understands English. I find this hilarious as Devi thinks Treya is being compliant when in truth, she does not understand of word of what she is saying. I realize this will soon change, but at the moment it is working...hence the happy smiles on our pictured Princess and Nymph.

I can't think of a better way to learn English than through song, so we signed Treya up for Kindermusik (a music class the Devi has been taking since she was 18 months old). The first class for this term was last Saturday. I was worried how Devi would react, knowing that Treya is still in the classes that require a parent to attend with them, and Devi is in the class after Treya's where the adults wait in the hall. To my surprise, she was thrilled that she is a big girl and can take class (currently learning to read music and play the glockenspiel) all by HERSELF and her BABY sister needs a parent. Phew....skirted around that hurdle. Now, how would Treya react to a room full of strangers and their kids?

I figured if she sat on my lap and just watched we would be doing very good. Surprised again! By the end of class, she was leaving my lap to go pick out instruments on her own and bring them back to me for us to explore. She could put them away when told and seemed to thoroughly enjoy the whole class. Wow! It was really really fun. We have been listening to the CD from class at home and in the car and she seems to have a true fondness for music, head bobbing each time a good song starts to play.

We are attempting to have our first babysitting adventure. Oma is going to stay with Treya on Saturday so we can take Devi to the ballet. Cinderella is being performed and it is the first big sister outing Devi has earned. With this in mind, we have been doing all kinds of things with Oma so that Treya is familiar with her and ready for a couple hours from us...granted the ballet is during nap time too, making the timing a bit easy on us too.

In any case, one of those outings included baking cookies in Oma's kitchen. Heart cookies in preparation of Valentine's Day. I fondly remember those times I baked cookies with my grandmother and how much better they tasted when they had been mixed and touched by her loving hands. I believe it is obvious by the looks on my girl's faces that they feel the same is true.



Now the funny thing about Oma and Treya is that Treya puts on this pouting act every time Oma is around. She is not afraid or insecure, she has just decided in her strong willed way that Oma has got to work REALLY hard for a smile out of her.! Oma very patiently says every time..."I've got all the time in the world, sugar!" By the end of each visit, Oma usually wins at least a grin. We wonder what it is about Oma that brings out this behavior.? Does Oma remind her of someone? or look so unlike anyone she has ever met? It really makes no sense. Treya responds positively and goes willingly to our big, loud, hairy men friends, but not yet to our loving Oma unless sweets are involved.


Dare I mention sweets. I mentioned that Treya does not understand much English, but clearly knows the words "candy", "cookie", "cake" and basically any word that represents things that should be eaten sparingly! The girl can chow and from what we know was able to eat what she wanted and when she wanted in the quantity that she wanted before we came along. Availability of food for her was never an issue. Her willingness to try new things, however, has become much better now that she can not eat that way any longer. She has been a vegetarian her whole life so I wasn't quite sure how she would react to the taste of meat. Although I don't now, I've eaten a vegetarian diet for most of my life, and find my cooking style now to treat the meat portion of a meal more as the side dish with a larger focus on the vegetables or starch.

So what does Treya "discover" as a new favorite food, while at a super bowl party this past week? MEATBALLS!! I wasn't sure if there would be something that she would like, so I lovingly prepared an Indian rice and pea dish just for her. NOPE! the girl chose meatballs and by days end, had downed 17 of them and would have continued had daddy not cut her off! Each morsel was shoveled from plate to mouth with her own mastery of a spoon, a utensil she had never tried using until she saw Devi eat with one. If you attempt to help her, she screams bloody murder. Did I mention she has a strong will?


Everything is new for her. Even using the potty. But if big sister does it, she is willing to try too and has even produced results on a couple of occasions. Sleeping with sister is still going well. Treya still cries a bit, throws everything out of her crib because she is mad that it is night night and then settles down and sleeps on her face, legs folded under. She is grasping more words and signs and now can say apple, thank you, please, baby and more. I'm almost certain some speech therapy is in order, but we will know more about that after Friday when we go to our first pediatrician appointment. We hope to get orthopedic referrals too, as we still question our decision to end the wearing of her leg braces and ponder what she should wear for shoes. AND...after 17 meatballs we question if there may be some parasite or other creature that came home with us too. EWWWW....

One of her favorite people...Uncle Bill!

Is everything rosy? NOPE...but we are finding our way and being taught by a two year old! The journey is fun, exhausting, hard, joyful, and hilarious. Did I mention she ate 17 meatballs? Lord, help us!