And Now in this Corner...

The worst of the jetlag is over (mercifully!). We're all mostly sleeping through the night, even if our body clocks are still a little off.

All things considered, Eden seems to be adjusting well. She loves going to the park, playing in our backyard, and rummaging through all of the toy bins... which, until 3 weeks ago, were the exclusive domain of Malia. So the main entertainment (if you want to call it that) during the day is watching the two girls go at it. At different moments, it oscillates from total comedy to total headache. Mom and Dad are pretty much refereeing ever 15 seconds or so. Malia has learned the Chinese expression for "don't do that!" and chirps it at Eden all the time... We hope Malia will start showing that nurturing side we know she has and stop being so possessive with toys and things. This video clip gives a little glimpse of what it's like all the time in the Park home...

We're seeing a lot of good signs in Eden. She's not quite as picky about eating... or at least not as much as she showed in China. She enjoys hugs and kisses from Dad and now Mom, too. Dad had to go to work on Wed - Fri and Eden seemed to handle it without ill effects (although I absolutely cherished the big hug she and Malia gave me when I walked in the door from work).

Malia is also showing signs of better adjustment. Today on that same green chair in the video, when Malia saw Eden coming towards her, she made room for her little sister and even helped her get into the chair.

One gauge we are watching closely are Eden's tantrums. About 30 times a day, often triggered by very minor things, Eden will throw a temper tantrum complete with arched back, screaming, crying, and hitting. As I understand it, this is not uncommon for recently-arrived adoptees. We obviously are hoping to see less frequency, quicker recovery times and eventually the resiliency to find other ways to express herself without such intensity and rage.

One good friend asked me, "So when are you lifting the social quarantine?" I thought that was a funny way of putting it. We have had a few visitors, and we welcome them... with advance notice. One thing that might seem odd is that we will be the only people to hold Eden for awhile. From her perspective, she has only known us for 2+ weeks. The bond is forming, but we can't assume that she understand our permanent and unique place in her life as parents. We are following the wisdom of experienced adoptive parents who have suggested that, for an initial period of a few months, to take these small but significant measures to solidify the attachment between child and new parents. And as much as we are very eager to come to church as a whole family, we probably won't bring Eden to church for a few more weeks in order not to overwhelm her with too many new faces all of a sudden. But we are eager to see our church family soon, and Mom or Dad will be accompanying Malia starting this Sunday.

Thanks for all the comments and interest you are showing in our transition period. We are really enjoying being parents to our two adorable girls.