Getting to Know You

I kept meaning to write a post at 1 month post adoption, 1 month home, 2 months post adoption, whatever. But life is messy sometimes and I am just not good at keeping things together, as anyone who has read my blog at all before knows. We've had Talitha for, eh, 9 weeks or so. In some ways, it seems strange to have her here and we're still getting used to things with our brand new toddler. But mostly, it just feels right. She has fit in really well and while there are certainly some difficult things, it has gone smoothly so far.

Here are the things we know about our sweet Tali so far:

• She is sassy. My goodness. She is very opinionated about what she wants and likes. If you try to hold her and she doesn't want you, she will slap your hand away and turn her cute little face away. Denied! 
• She eats most everything. Especially noodles, which she ate and ate and ate in China when we first got her. She is not crazy about the spinach in salads but we're working on it. She still raises her bowl or plate to lick it clean and she's gained 3 lbs since we've had her (from 15 to 18 lb). 
• She started walking about 3 weeks ago. She still walks like an adorable young toddler, arms out for balance, concentrating hard on what she's doing. She'll be running soon on her getting-stronger legs.
• She adores Jack, distrusts Noah (with good reason), and tolerates Kate with indifference. It breaks Kate's heart as she wants to baby Tali and snuggle her. It doesn't bother Noah one bit, he is too busy screaming "No" at everyone to care.
• She wants to be loved. Really, really wants to be loved. It's sweet and heartbreaking at once. Biological kids want to be loved, of course. Everyone does. But this is markedly different. When I walk by her without picking her up, she screeches a high-pitched cry of "Mom! Mom! Mom!" It's a cry of distress, unlike anything I've heard in a child. She will often take my hand and stroke her face with it which makes me want to cry. It reminds me that she is a child who has lost her mother a couple times and didn't have one to constantly hold her and hug her and kiss her. My biological kids like to be snuggled but not too much. They will tolerate it for a bit and then take off. Tali wants to be stroked and kissed and held often. I am making up for lost time and happy to do it. 
• She understands more and more when Matt and I kiss her. I often pucker up my lips so she can see my face and then slowly kiss her cheek. Now she expects it. She will lean in with her lips puckered, expecting a kiss from us. When I kiss her cheek, she will pull back a little and then lean back in for the kiss, over and over. Every time she is kissed and held and hugged, she is healing a little bit and it is balm to this Mama's soul.
• She is adorable. And she is loved.