Our first full week Home.

I don’t know how business travelers do it that have to go back and forth from China to the U.S. We didn’t have that much of a problem going from the U.S. to China and adjusting to their time zone. We hit the ground running in China and were able to adjust quickly.
Coming back has been a different story. The difference in time and lack of sleep because Norah has a nightmare or thinks it is time to play not sleep, has had us wiped out for awhile.
We are starting to turn the corner now though. I can see progress everyday in both Norah and Lori and I.
Like I said we have only been home a week and I am not sure if Norah understands this is her home or just another hotel that we stay at traveling around like nomads. It my take some time for her to comprehend that this is where we all live permenatley. She recognizes the house when we pull up in the driveway and we do the sign from home before we head that way and when we pull up to reinforce it. She likes the house with the backyard to play in, the swing and the park within walking distance from the house. Still I wonder what is going through her head some times. We have had Norah 19 days now and moved to a different place every five days or so. After we have been home awhile she will start to understand the permanence of home.
She is still really attached to Lori, to the point if Norah could figure out how to hobble Lori I think she would. I have managed to move up on Norah’s totem pole of Love and Affection by constantly taking care of her, feeding her, playing with her, and Norah and I take trips out on purpose to have one on one time together.
It was raining the last two days so the play equipment at the park was wet, so I though we would go to McDonalds to see about playing inside on their play equipment. That was a bust there were kids there twice her size that had gone feral like wild animals. I had a flash back of the children of the corn movie and we quickly left to see about some calmer setting. We settled on feeding the ducks at the park. It all seems to be working and with time I will share the coveted spot with Lori at the head of the pole, believe me Lori won’t mind sharing.
Norah is make headway with her sign lanwage too and seems to relish in the fact that she can now ask for specific things she desires with hand gesters and we understand and give her more milk or a banana or that we can tell her she needs to go put her shoes by the door and at night I can tell her it is bath time and she goes into the bathroom to get ready for bath time. Some things are still lost in translation, like just now she saw me writing this post and caught a glimpse of herself on here and pointed to the photo and pointed to her room, and I would sign just a minute and she immediately would start pulling on my arm and pointed to her room, and I again told her just a minute. Then it dawned on me, she saw herself playing with the playdough in the picture and thinks it is in her room. So I got up and showed her the playdough in the pantry. She gave me the big raised eyebrow smile and the sign for yes!
I love this child, she has been through so much in her short life and is still ready to jive up a smile and giggle that makes your day. Now I must go and make a multi colored dinosaur.

Glen