Getting to know Fuqi

Jaida is having a nap every afternoon. She has gone to sleep easily, within 5-10 minutes of being put down. We snuggle her for a bit and then put her down in the crib. She lies there and looks around until her little eyes close.

Bedtimes have gone smoothly as well. Last night she was sad at bedtime, whimpering softly in my arms. We have not heard her cry yet. It's just a very soft whimper. We gave her a sippy cup with water to take in her crib. She finds her sippy VERY comforting. She was asleep within a few minutes.

She is the last one up every morning. Marv and I are still waking through the night quite a bit. We went to bed around 10 last night and I woke at 12:30 and felt like I had slept for hours. We evenutally woke at 5 for the day. Hard part is, your body starts to crash around supper time...

Jaida becomes very serious and deliberate when she's eating. She's very handy with a spoon, catching any little bit that my drop from her mouth. She has eaten anything and everything we've given her (not surprising) and I've had to decide when her little belly should be full. She doesn't seem to know this yet (again, not uncommon for children who probably didn't have enough to eat at each meal).

When she starts to giggle and play she is very rambunctious and plays hard. The rest of the time she is the exact opposite: serious and unengaging. We're just starting to see the "in between" stage of smiling, looking around, talking, etc. As she becomes more comfortable, she lets us see more of her personality.

She can easily be thought of as much younger than she is (turns 3 next week) due to her size. However, when she plays and interacts, it reminds me that she's a big girl. Also, not speaking English yet, I find myself thinking of her as much younger than she is...

Jaida will have a much different reaction to our family/friends at home than Kennedy did coming home at 10 months. She will not be putting her arms out to strangers (yes, Kennedy did this in church, at zellers, anywhere and everywhere) and she will most likely only want to be with us. I'm certain that she will not explore her environment without one of us there with her. It's perfectly normal at this point and I expect it will quickly fade when she sees her sister interacting with others.

Today I put a pair of size 2 pants on her...Old Navy style. A bit big but do-able with the adjustable waist. I'd say size 18-24 months will be her size for now. If she keeps eating like she does, she may jump up a few sizes quickly :)

Right now, I'm taking care of most of her personal needs, but it's obvious that she is probably used to doing much of that herself. When I went to put her crocs on, she took them from me and slipped them on quick as anything. She also takes them off by stepping on the backs of them with each foot! Just like any other kid would, I suppose! She continues to go to the bathroom without any accidents. She slept last night from 9:30-7:00a.m and was still dry this morning. She still hasn't asked to go potty by herself, but I'm taking her regularly and saying "potty" so hopefully she will soon start to say the word. She's a dead give away when she needs to go poop. She gets a sad look on her face and looks like she's going to cry!! I've been right on the money all 3 times. Mother's instinct I guess!!

We were looking through some pictures on the digital camera today and she was talking away. (Thanks to Sue and her students and to Kath for doing some translating on the last video. You guys are great!!) When she saw herself she immediately said Qi-Qi (pronounced K-K). That was neat to hear because twice before, she had referred to herself and Fuqi (pronounced Fook-Kay). So I'm glad to hear that she recognizes both names. We are calling her all three at this point...

That's all for now.
Carolyn, Marvin and Jaida