Where does the time go!

Wow! I can hardly believe that it has been almost a week since we arrived home! Several friends and family have written or stopped by and asked the very same question..."So, how has your life changed?" Oh my, is that a loaded question! For those of you who have adopted or biological children, I am sure that you can provide a litany of examples for this question. Well, the same is true for us.

Our flight back to Harrisburg was on the scheduled flights our travel agency had provided. It was relatively uneventful with the exception of a rather toddler moment somewhere between, say, the Atlantic Ocean and Georgia. In short, Jonatan decided to let everyone know that he was ready for some more food and tried his little lungs out in a very quiet plane! Oh my word! I can't tell you what that was like! All I have to say is that both Dave and I wished to be in a much louder place...say Walmart, Wall Street, or Disney World...not an airplane in confined quiet space with who knows how many passengers! At one point, Dave leaned over and says "Sheila!"...to which, I turn and say, "Dave, do you actually think that I am doing this!"...we laugh about it now, but definitely found ourselves at the mercy of a 20 month old for what seemed like eternity! LOL! Really, his fussing didn't happen for long, but ironically, happened to be the biggest explosion that he had had with us up to that point...we later chalked it up to much change, hunger, and being very tired.

We had a wonderful 2 hour connection in Atlanta...in fact, made it through immigration and re-checking baggage in under an hour...which gave us time to hunt down some dinner before we were to board our plane bound for Harrisburg. In Harrisburg we were met by friends and family, which was such a welcomed event! My niece and nephew had arrived from the Pittsburgh area which helped to make Jonatan at ease with everyone! He quickly warmed up to his older cousin, Taylor, who just so happens to be an amazing big sister to her brother who is only a couple months younger than Jonatan. (BIG SMILE for Taylor!)

This week has been all about getting settled in and cleaning up from our arrival...I laugh as I write this, because I have said that I would finish unpacking and organizing by Friday and we are still officially unpacked...Dave has declared that the four outfits he took to Colombia can remain in the suitcases for a while longer as he would like to give the rest of his clothes a spin for a while...I must say that I am feeling the same way with that one! (LOL) Our friends, Jess and Amy, were wonderful in stocking our fridge and cupboards with groceries for arrival...and, not just for the humans of our household, but also our 5 faithful companions...4 cats and a dog! What a blessing to not have to go out for a while!

In addition, we arrived to a banner our church had made and plastered to the front of our house! It was such a giant and wonderful "Welcome Home" card! We have pictures and will post not just these, but some from this week and the final days of our time in Colombia, over this weekend. I am working from our home computer and the pictures are stored on our laptop, which, ironically, is also still unpacked and sitting in the dining room. So, stay tuned for more!

Last weekend, my Mom and sister had traveled in to welcome us home, and today, we traveled to Dave's parents in Williamsport, PA, and what a blessing this was. Dave's father is a fluent Spanish speaker from his days of working as a missionary in South America as well as here in the states with male Spanish speaking prisoners near their home. Jonatan lit up when he heard his Grandpa greet him in Spanish! In fact, it seemed that he couldn't get enough of him for most of the day...it was pretty cute! Jonatan equally enjoyed his Abuelita and her warm welcome. I should mention that usually Jonatan is pretty reserved in meeting people for the first time. He is not liberal with his kisses and hugs, so it was a huge surprise that when first meeting Dave's parents he very eagerly gave both hugs and kisses!

As for the rest of the week, Dave went back to work on Monday while Jonatan and I have worked to play, begin the monumental task cleaning up, and just work at getting some kind of routine down for the both of us as I am off through July 20th and will only be returning to work on a part-time basis. Our week has been rather dull and calm, which I believe both of us have needed. We have enjoyed long walks...sometimes Jonatan enjoys helping Mama push his stroller and other times he is in it taking a nice nap as Mama enjoys a quiet walk on some of the green paths around town...a highlight for Jonatan is a 'frog pool' that Amy left as a small gift for him! Amy, he absolutely loves your gift! If we haven't mentioned up until now...he is a natural fish! I am sure that some sort of water sport or past time will be in his future!

As for some other details of our week...we initially found that Jonatan was not fond of our dog, Fawn...this was not a suprise as his foster parents had mentioned this in information that we had received. Our first few days home were marked by a toddler ready to climb up our legs at the sight of Fawn, although we can now proudly report that they are like old buds...Jonatan is always finding a way to sneak Fawn some snacks from the table or from the cat food, while Fawn is always up for a good gentle romp with her new-found friend...as for the cats, that is a different story! Jonatn loved them from the beginning, yet the cats didn't feel the same way...while it is not a love-hate relationship...Jonatan's lack of fine motor skill control and high pitched voice send the cats running for the hills! They are so used to a quiet relatively calm environment, and Jonatan is anything but quiet and calm...he is a perpetual ball of energy, when awake, that is! I am sure that the cats' relationship with Jonatan will blossom in time, but for now they are keeping their distance. (Smile)

We are very proud parents, to say the least! It is neat to see the daily changes taking place in Jonatan...from in-coming teeth, to vocabulary development, as well as his toddler investigative talent we have enjoyed the journey so far and look forward to what the future holds. As for posts, our intention is to continue to document our journey here...as well as, perhaps, my own personal reflections along the way. We are in the midst of deciding what to do with our blog title and will reveal that in the coming month (as days would not be realistic...ha!). Thank you for your patience and encouragement as we get adjusted as a family, and, for those of you who are in Colombia or elsewhere adopting...we continue to pray for you and follow along as you journey to become family! Much love and hugs from afar!