Two Twos and a Tutu: 9 Months Home

Sunset on the Baro River, where Anya was born

Two years ago today, a young woman in a remote region of Africa was recovering from child birth, lovingly looking at her daughter and realizing her fears of letting another family raise her beloved firstborn.  I'm sure she wondered if she was making the right decision, wondering if she could make a go of it, and wondering if she could keep both of them alive.  I'm sure she looked at her daughter and saw her own features mirrored in the tiny face, and her heart hurt over the realization that she wouldn't see her beautiful child grow up.  She would have treasured every snuggle, every smile and yawn, and every time her baby's fingers wrapped around her own, hanging onto those memories because they would be all she would have in the coming years.

I wish I could hug this beautiful mama, and thank her once again for the privilege of raising my daughter.  I would thank her for her sacrifice, and acknowledge her selflessness of putting her daughter's needs above her own desires.  I would tell her that her beautiful baby is safe, healthy, and thriving.  Her baby is tenderly loved, and brings joy to everyone who knows her.

I pray that this young mama's heart heals and is filled with joy again.  I hope she is able to continue her life and find love and happiness.  I hope her needs are met and she sees beauty around her.  I hope she is able to share the tenderness and compassion that she has inside her, and be a blessing to others.  I hope that God will give her comfort and peace.

My daughter is officially two!  I've thought of her as "two" for so long that it doesn't feel as monumental as maybe it should.  Last Saturday we had a big, fluffy, pink princess party.  We were blessed that so many people came to share in this celebration.  It was busy, messy, and full of sugar.  Everyone had a blast!  Anya was a vision in pink tulle, and she enjoyed every moment of it.

Much of the food was pink, and
Auntie Grace made a beautiful cake,
perfectly Anya-style

The princess eating her
fruit-loop necklace

Princess and her Da-Dat

So many friends came to help celebrate!
We made crowns, foam pictures, and necklaces

The princess surveying her domain

MaBee and Prince Charming

Jayce was a bit overwhelmed with the pink and the people.  He was able to snag a few quiet moments here and there, but this was definitely and Anya-party.  Jayce was just along for the ride.

Anya loves her new
lip gloss (chapstick)

We had a pink princess pinata!
Jayce was ALL over that idea, and
was thrilled to use a stick on something.
I love his sturdy stance!

Everyone sang Happy Birthday to Anya,
and she had two candles that she looked at.
Mama had to blow them out for her.

At the end of the day, the Princess crashed
in a big, pink, fluffy pile.

We are so proud of our Baby Girl.  She has grown, developed, learned and bounced these past 9 months that she has been home.  Anya loves people, loves laughing and giggling, and loves pink.  She adores her big brother, and mimics him in everything he does, with increasing levels of success.  Both she and Jayce have grown 4 inches in the 9 months they have been home.  She is wearing 2T, and Jayce is in 3T clothing.

Sissy and her Brother.  Ha ha, Jayce is less
than thrilled at her giggliness

One of my favorite pictures of the two
munchkins.  They are each others best friends,
and each others greatest torments.
#normalsiblings

Jayce and Anya love to be in the middle of everything I'm doing.  I have to remind myself to include them as much as I can.  Every time I'm in the kitchen, they want to be on the counter watching, helping stir, adding ingredients, sorting silverware, etc, even when there is positively no extra space in my kitchen for them.  I think part of the attraction is being invited over the "blue line" that they are not allowed to cross.

Sissy, jammies, and a gecko 

When I'm outside, they do not want to dig in the dirt with their trucks.  (What toddler doesn't want to dig in the dirt??) They would rather pull weeds and trim plants.  The trick is making sure they know what's a weed and what's a plant.  I haven't perfected that yet.  In fact, when I try to get them to play in the dirt, they are immobilized if any dirt sticks on their hands, requesting a napkin to wash.  Silly kiddos :)

For Anya's party, I requested that people bring her flowers and plants instead of normal gifts-- we will plant the plants this week and hopefully help the kids develop a better understanding of gardening and growing things.  I'm hoping to direct some of their energy into something useful and rewarding that they can enjoy over the summer.

Between the two kiddos, I still have to work harder at connecting with Anya.  She is SO social, and I think her love language may be quality time and physical touch- two of my weakest love languages.  My prayer is that she will never loose her love of life and her joy, despite having a somewhat cynical mama.   She is a precious bundle, always smiling and always happy.  I love her so much!  She is actually further along in her speech and pronunciation that Jayce is.  I think this is because she is willing to "try" new words and sounds, and it doesn't bother her if she doesn't get them right.  Jayce prefers to have something correct first.

My little Prince Charming

Jayce and I connect better and continue to be very similar, needing our quiet time, enjoying snuggles and quiet play without fuss and lots of talking.  He loves to serve, and continues to anticipate what others need (something he does better than I do!).  He is growing in his ability to trust Philip and I as parents.  He used to be very anxious that we were not taking care of Anya, as if we didn't know what she needed.  He would try to fill in the gaps.  He continues to be aware of Anya and what she needs, but seems to be less concerned that she won't be taken care of.  He still draws our attention to her, but doesn't feel the need to fill in for us.  He is more precise in his speech and his thoughts.  He understands humor, and his facial expressions communicate more than his words.  Jayce has begun to smile and laugh a lot more in the last few months.  It took almost 6 months before he opened up and began to seem truly happy.  He's ticklish now, not nearly as reserved, and is more expressive about what he wants and prefers.  His belly-laughs are no longer a rarity.

Both kids are incredibly grateful little folks.  I don't know if it's because they are legitimately thankful, or if they just know that they have to say "thank you" when they are given something.  It's nice, though, to be thanked for dinner, for washing their hands, for playing with them, for giving them a bath, for putting clothes on them, for changing their diaper, etc etc.  Or, both Philip and I try to express gratitude towards those who bless us, so maybe (just maybe!) we are influencing them?

They use phrases like "Here ya go, mama" "Yeah" "Where did Daddy go?" "Excuse me, kitty!" and "No gee-noo mama!" (no thank you).  They enjoy music, singing (oddly enough they prefer it when I sing instead of listening to a CD), and bath time.  Anya loves frilly dresses and Jayce loves to be the gentleman.  They both count 1, 2, 3, 6.....  despite our best efforts.  In fact, Anya can count to 10....  but still misses 4 and 5.  They are learning the alphabet, shapes, and colors, although it's a work in progress.  Anya's default color is "green".  It usually works since almost everything in my house is either green or brown, she has a pretty good chance of getting the color correct.

GrandmaBee playing with Anya after her party

We continue to live a crazy life.  Nine months ago, I had no idea what God would have ahead for us.  While I wish we could have avoided some tantrums and some poop, I'm grateful to Him for giving us children that are so beautiful and fit so perfectly into our family.  He's so kind!