We Are Home!

We have been home a little less than 48 hours now. Coming back to the states was soooooo nice. You really never realize how much you miss home until you are away. I think both Paul and I feel we are blessed to live in the USA – for so many reasons. The plane rides home were long. Ella doesn’t like to wear her seat belt and screamed at the top of her lungs to announce this to everybody on the plane both at departure and landing – JOY! She also spoke Chinese in an angry voice and we are sure she was letting the world know that we are awful parents J She threw up 3 hours in to the 14 hour plane trip. Probably from being so upset. We survived and are home and that is all that matters. Paul and I were instantly emotional upon landing in Indy. We couldn’t help ourselves. I will never forget turning the corner and seeing Colin! The tears flowed as we hugged and kissed. Carleigh was void of emotion at first. I handed her back to my Aunt and she cried because she wanted me to hold her – happy mommy moment. Ella was quite at first and then broke into tears of her own. Paul and I rushed to hold her and within a few minutes she was on the ground standing next to her brother and holding his hand – our hearts be still. Colin and Ella bonded instantly. Ella had smiles and opened the gift Colin brought her – Kai Lan play set and silly bands. The silly bands were a hit!! Colin and Ella never stopped standing next to each other the rest of the night. Our family and close friends were at the airport to meet us and a dear friend and took pictures to capture the moment. It was so nice to see everyone and be surrounded by love. We were up to 2am visiting with the kids and telling stories about our journey. We are still catching up on sleep and I have a nasty stomach bug to make things all the more interesting.
Ella is doing remarkably well. She follows her big brother’s lead and for the time being, Colin is agreeable to this arrangement. Colin takes his time to show Ella how to do things and repeats words for her. He is being a stellar big brother and is a great help. Ella seemed to know from the moment she walked in the door that she was home. She walked in like she owned the place and checked everything out. The toy room was the big draw. She is eager to learn the Hammond family ways and tonight put away all of the neighbors shoes when they came to bring us dinner J There are moments of sadness and she seeks us out and we hold her. She is a daddy’s girl. The screaming and fit throwing continue – mostly over sharing. Even that is only once or twice a day so maybe it is just normal 3 year old behavior. Ella repeats may words each day and uses them correctly. I asked her today to please put away her shoes after coming in from outside and she did just that!! It amazes me how much communication really is taking place with such a small use of vocabulary spoken on both ends.
Ella saw the pediatrician today and all seems to be well. She needs to have shots which we are putting off for a week and some blood work done. We head to the cardiologist tomorrow for several tests and to talk with the doctor. This will be a telling visit. We obviously know there are heart issues but I’m hoping to get a better picture tomorrow of the extent and options for treatment.
We are grateful for the opportunity to expand our family. There are and will be bumps as we figure it all out and come up with a new routine. However, Ella is a perfect fit in the Hammond family. God’s hand is all over this and it feels good. From the way the referral happened, to the people we met and shared the adoption process with and then the home coming. It is right, it is good and we are blessed.
We will continue to post updates but less often. Thank you all for your support. Love, Paul, Amy, Colin, Ella and Carleigh