4 months post Gotcha Day

 Today marks the 4 month anniversary of the day our sweet MaeLynn was placed into our arms. Tonight I was reflecting on all that has happened this last month with MaeLynn and how much she is growing, changing and developing. It made me start to cry. This amazing little girl has given up her bottle this month (on her own without prompting:( ), taken her first steps between mommy and daddy and worn her first pigtails. So, while reflecting on this I did what any hormonal overbearing mom would do...I went in her room, got her out of her crib while sleeping and gently rocked her and sobbed.
   I feel overwhelmingly blessed to be her mom and to have her in our family. Sometimes it's easy to take for granite how far she's come and how far we have come during our journey to her and with her now. While rocking her, I kept being reminded of the night when I was 16 and my sister shared with our family her summer missions trip in China with FOCUS International and God speaking to me that one day I would adopt a little girl from this country. I could not have ever imagined how beautiful she would be. That when Mae smiles, her whole body smiles and everyone around her is in awe. How much she loves her sissy and bubba and how when she calls me Momma it melts me to the core.
   Oh how I pray that she will grow to be dangerous for the Lord. I pray that God will use her to change the hearts of others through her story. I pray God will equip me to teach her, love her and point her to Him. I pray Scott and I will lead her by example and through integrity. Please pray these things for her and for us as well my beloved friends and family that are reading this.
   Ok, whewwww I want to move on, quit crying and document this amazing month for MaeLynn. It has been busy but amazing;)
   4th of July is one of my personal favorite holidays and this year did not disappoint. My sister and her family and my parents joined us for the week here in Arkansas. Our neighborhood gathered at another location to set off fireworks, let the kids run wild on a wide open lawn with a bounce house and eat lots of great food surrounded by even better company. We had a BLAST!
   The rest of the week we spent on the lake. The cousins loved spending time together and riding on the boat. Our dear friends let us use their boat dock to tie up and we had so much fun visiting with them. They were so sweet to let our family use their jet ski's, paddle surfs and other fun dock toys. All of the kids threw mega fits when it was time to leave (including me;). MaeLynn loved the attention from Aunt Ginger and Uncle Ryan. It is precious to watch her cousins (Hope, Hannah, Harmony and Caleb) fight over who gets to be close to her. One night we even had an ice cream building contest with 3 types of ice cream, 5 syrup toppings and over 9 different candy/cookie toppings. Aunt Ginger won for best tasting and it was certainly interesting tasting some of the kiddos combinations;) What a blessing to have a fun LARGE family:)
   A few days after my side of the family left, we headed to Branson, MO to stay in cabins on Table Rock Lake with Scott's family. We trailored our boat up there to teach the neices and nephews how to knee board, water ski and how to survive a tubing excursion with their crazy Uncle Scott driving;) One morning while I was making MaeLynn's bottle, I turned around to give it to her and found her sucking down her brother's sippy cup with chocoloate milk in it. I tried to take it away and give her the bottle, to which she threw the bottle back at me shaking her head and straining to get the sippy cup back. I knew I had just ruined this little ones transition to "real milk". Oops! What can I say...the girl loves chocolate like her momma;)
We had so much fun overall on this trip! MaeLynn, Lilly and Fischer had a ball with even more cousins this week! They came home asking which cousins they were going to see next, as if our lives revolved around spending time with cousins;) One day we went to Silver Dollar City in the HOT HOT Missouri heat and had a blast wearing the kids out;) We were all reminded how much we love spending time together and are praying that Scott's sister Melissa and her family can move closer to us soon!
   The following week I had committed to travel with Lilly, Fischer and MaeLynn up to my parents house to visit my best friend from HS and a few other people. We were exhausted from the previous two weeks but time with Emily and her kiddos never disappoint. My parents were so sweet and watched the kids one night so Em and I could go out to celebrate her birthday that was earlier this month. Another fun trip in the books;)
   After we got back we had a short visit from two of my favorite girls from KC that were in the HS bible study Scott and I lead when we first got married. I can't believe these girls are seniors in college now! They have been so faithful to come every summer since we have moved here. The kiddos loved their attention and I enjoyed catching up with them. 
   This month MaeLynn has missed a lot of therapy. We were concerned it might slow her development but she proved us wrong. She has gotten more confident while around her cousins and family. She is cruising constantly and has figured out how to pull herself up on almost anything. I even found her trying to go from sitting to standing on her own yesterday! Today she walked from Daddy to me and we burst with excitement. You can see the pride all over her face and Mae even says "did it!!". It's sooo adorable.
   What a big girl our little sweetie is turning into. I just wish I could slow time:( So many people tell me that they block out these years when the kids are young and the fits are often but I have to feel sad for them. I know I look strung out from the outside while chasing my 3,2 and 1 year old but on the inside...this momma is filled with so much JOY I can't help but well up and spill out sometimes;) We are feeling blessed at this season of life here in the Bennington Bunch and pray that you are in your season as well.

                                                 Fourth of July with the family!

                                             Fun on Beaver Lake with the Stelk cousins.

                                          Silver Dollar City with Kasten and Waters familys!

                                                        Fun with cousin Kaitlyn!

 First pig tails!

 

                                         Loved visiting with Alaina and Allison!

                                                           What a beautiful little girl!

3 months Post Gotcha Day for MaeLynn

    Can you believe how much our sweet girl has grown and changed even since last month?! I love writing this monthly update and reminiscing on how MaeLynn has adapted even further into the Bennington Bunch. She is just precious!!!!
   This month MaeLynn gained another pound, grew another inch and gained 2 more teeth! She is truly thriving. This month is she continued to develop in physical, occupational and speech therapy. She is now able to get from her belly to a sitting position and from a standing position she can slowly start to cruise around things. She can get to most toys she wants by scooting on her belly or bottom. She is still soo joyful. This month I really feel like she has deepened her trust with us. She seems to have come into her own and realized we aren't going anywhere and we love her. MaeLynn loves loves loves her sister and brother and they all are getting along pretty well.
  Mae met her cousins and more family on the Bennington side. We traveled up to KC to visit family and go to Day Out with Thomas the Train. She soaked up all the attention and Scott and I always love seeing the cousins play. Her cousin Drew even came back to Arkansas with us to hang for a week.
   Next, her Nana and Papa visited for the weekend right before MaeLynn had to go to St.Louis for her big Shriner's hospital appointment. At this appointment the doctors and specialists confirmed that she has symbrachydactyly (limb deformity with no other medical deficiencies). The specialists all thought she was adorable and did not recommend a prosthetic as they believe she will learn to do everything on her own. If she decides later in life that she wants one or needs one for a special activity or sport, then we will fully support her. MaeLynn and Scott traveled to St.Louis together and really bonded. Mae gets soo excited now when daddy comes home from work.
   Following the Shriner's appointment, MaeLynn was dedicated at our church with her friends Khloe Kennett and Ana and Evan Fiet. It was such a special day as all the children that were being dedicated were adopted. MaeLynn was prayed for and loved by the whole church and she looked adorable as always in her yellow frilly dress.
   The rest of the month Nana (my mom) came to help and play. It was so fun to have her and watch the bond grow with MaeLynn and Nana. We did lots of fun things while she was here...went to kids movie, splash park, swimming pool and even traveled for the day to the Tulsa zoo. MaeLynn had her first boat ride and swim in Beaver lake while Nana was here too! Sooo much fun packed in to one month!.....that's how we roll;) hehe It is so hard not to want to spoil MaeLynn. She is soaking up her surroundings like a sponge and she even says "thank you"! We are so blessed and Scott and I are busy but loving our lives right now.

                                 MaeLynn and cousin Delaney at the KC farmer's market

                    Taking a ride with cousins, Noah and Isaiah Bennington, on Thomas the Train

                                                         Bonding with cousin Drew

                MaeLynn and her bestie, Khloe. Khloe and Mae love to feed each other! So cute!

               Splash park with the siblings! Lilly loves wearing matching clothes with Mae

                                                               Spoiled by Nana!

                                                            Jammin' in our jammies

                                    At MaeLynn's baby dedication. Poor girl was exhausted!

                                                            Breathtakingly Beautiful!

                                                                             Cheese!

                                                        First boat outing...LOVED!

                                                                     Tulsa Zoo

2 months post Gotcha-May 2013

Time truly does fly by!!! We are out of the nesting phase, although I don't think we stayed in that much during the first 6 weeks. We were really strict on no one holding MaeLynn besides mom and dad and I really do think that helped our bond grow with her.
   MaeLynn now weighs 19lbs and is 31inches long. (That's a 2lb growth since Gotcha and 1 1/2 inches! and Mae even had the stomach bug last week so I know she lost some!) MaeLynn also got tubes in her ears this month as she was showing signs of hearing loss and cronic ear infections:( She started jabbering more right after she got them! Sooo cute! Mae is in therapy 4 hours a week and we are prescribed up to 6. She is not a fan of PT and OT and we are just getting going on Speech therapy for feeding and I think she will like that better. We are so blessed to have therapists that have a passion for adoption. Our OT has a daughter that is a little over a year older than MaeLynn and she was adopted from China with the same special need!?! Isn't God good!!! Our PT leads missions trips to Guatemala and really has a heart to help others. He is great with Mae although she tends to pitch pretty big fits with him;)
   In this last month, she has learned to army crawl and roll over both ways. She is standing more stable when propped up to something and she is trying to take steps if you hold her hands to help her stand. She still HATES to be alone or set down by herself to play. This is really challenging for me (mom) when Lilly and Fischer need something or I want to try to get something done around the house. The Lord and my dear adoptive mom friends have reminded me to rest in God's grace and that he didn't promise us that this road would be easy, just that we needed to walk faithfully in obedience. I find myself getting frustrated at times, especially when she cries  through her therapy sessions but I am reminded of the face of the lonely, scared little kids in the orphanage she came from and that she needs me more now than ever.
   MaeLynn LOVES being outside. She can sit and watch sissy and bubba for longer periods of time. She loves the breezy in her hair and being barefoot outside(she still refuses to wear anything on her feet and I can't say I blame her since her shoes used to be tied down to her feet all day! Good thing it's summer;) Other things Mae loves...being tossed in the air and caught by daddy, rocked in the rocking chair before bed, ice cream, playing Peek-a-boo, looking at pictures, watching Daniel Tiger on PBS, splashing in the the bath tub and attention from brother and sister.
   This month we celebrated Fischer's 2nd birthday, traveled to meet the Stelk cousins, played outside a lot and went to Silver Dollar City with Nana and Papa. This was also a very special Mother's Day with all three kiddos. MaeLynn loved eating cupcakes, she did not like icing on her hands though. She loved meeting the Stelk cousins. Especially Hope, who played with her the most. My parents had a really fun BBQ at their house to show off their new grand baby to all their friends and people who supported our adoption back in Derby. It was really special to let everyone dote on her;) MaeLynn really enjoyed people watching at Silver Dollar City and playing in the fountains in the kids area. I know she will really love it more when she can walk and chase brother and sister through the park.
   We are truly in love with our baby girl. I can't imagine our family without her. Yes, it is challenging at times and we do feel Satan attack us ( Scott and Rachel) with lies about our new daughter. But God is sovereign and gives us the strength, peace and joy to be thankful for our very blessed FAMILY OF 5!!!!!

                                             Fischer's 2nd birthday party at school.

                                                  At my parent's house for the BBQ.

      

Cousin Hope and Aunt Ginger

                                           My first Mother's Day with all three!!!

                                                Silver Dollar City and Nana and Papa time!

                                                        The fountains were Mae's favorite!

1 Month since Gotcha Day with MaeLynn

Wow, I can't believe 1 Month ago we were sitting in a small room in China awaiting the arrival of our precious MaeLynn. In one day there was so much loss and love. We have come a long way in just a few short weeks.
This month has been filled with lots of tears, cheers and overall praise to the Lord for his awesomeness;) MaeLynn really hasn't grieved since we have been home. I think she knows now that we love her and we will be here. I know time and consistency will prove that to her.
Our time in China was amazing with MaeLynn. Scott and I had so much freedom there to love her and focus only on her. We were very excited to bring her home and unite her with her siblings but we were also a little worried how all that was going to go. Again, we of little faith...
Fischer and Lilly have been amazing with her! From day one, they called her baby sissy and both of them fight to holder, play with her and help mommy feed her. She loves their attention. As the days have gone by, Fischer and Lilly have settled back into their regular routines and I see a few minor things popping up that I didn't expect.
One thing that has been interesting is that Fischer and Lilly haven't shown jealousy of Mae but she gets SUPER jealous if I am holding her and I scoop up one of the other kiddos in my other arm. She grunts and wiggles until I put the other child down! (Territorial already:0 ) Another thing that has popped up is Mae has a little temper!! This adorable little ball of cuteness can throw the biggest fits I have seen when I set her down to go to the bathroom, get lunch/dinner ready, or help one of the other kiddos. I know she could not have possibly been held non stop at the orphanage but maybe she has had a little taste of what it is like to be loved/spoiled by a mommy and she can't get enough...can't say I blame her;)))
MaeLynn has grown 1/2 an inch this month and already put on 1 lbs. She only gained 1lb in the 3 months we waited until we were able to get her and now she gained 1 lb in the 4 weeks we have had her!! Baby girl LOVES to eat!!! We are having so much fun watching her too;)))) Her smile when she tries something she likes is priceless!!!! (cookies are her fav ofcourse;))
Another thing that took me by surprise was my overspill of emotions and hormones after bringing her home. Seriously, it was just the same with my two bio kids!!! I was crying all the time and felt "out of body". Scott would ask if I was ok and I would sob back, "I just can't believe she is finally here...she is finally ours...I am so happy...I am soo overwhelmed...I don't know why I am crying this time..." and a number of other things.
In processing everything over the past three weeks one thing I have had to grieve was the loss of the first year of MaeLynn's life. Even though I felt incredibly connected to her (as most of you have read our blog and heard how the Lord connected us before we were even matched with Mae), I still get sad about the little things...I never got to feel her kick in my womb, see her breathe her first breath, hear her utter her first giggle, see her first smile and a number of other "firsts" and special moments. In the past, this would be something I would just brush over and say, no big deal I have her for the rest of her life. And even though that it true, she will be ours forever, those things are important and something that I have come to realize is okay to be sad about and give to the Lord.
MaeLynn is truely amazing. She reaches for mommy and loves to play with daddy. She gets the biggest laughs when playing with bubba and is already trying to mimic sister. My heart is just plain over flowing with the fullness of Gods blessings on our family.
Thank you all for being apart of this journey, donating to help bring MaeLynn home and most of all being consistent prayer warriors for us and our baby girl. There were so many precious babies we had to leave behind and we ask that you continue to pray that the Lord will stir the hearts of their forever families. IF THAT IS YOU...please contact us! We have access to picture lists of children just waiting to be loved!!!!
"May you be blessed by the Lord, the Maker of Heaven and Earth." Ps 115:15

                              MaeLynn and Lilly playing dress up in their new Chinese dresses
           

                                                      First visit with Nana and Papa

                                                  Love playing trains with Bubba

                                                         Love being silly with Big sissy!

                                                   MaeLynn loves her siblings and they love her!

Happy Easter! Christ is Risen! GZ day 2

Day 2 in Guangzhou...Today was a really fun day. We shopped on Shamian Island to buy the girls some silk dresses and a few things for future Gotcha day gifts for MaeLynn. We want to celebrate this special time each year. Mae is continuing to bond with us. When she gets over stimulated she continues a couple nervous ticks from the orphanage but we are seeing less and less of those everyday. She is really bonding with Daddy. She left him hold her at dinner and feed her mexican rice. (Yes, ofcourse our third child loves mexican food like the rest of us;))
What a special gift MaeLynn is. She is so full of joy. Her smiles lights up the room. We are slowly working her into baby food and she is doing great! She had never had baby food yet. She does not like anything sweet! She won't drink ANY liquids other than her bottle, it's been a little difficult to keep her hydrated. She will only drink that bottle from the one the orphanage gave us, trust us we have tried many;)
Tonight we went to dinner with 5 other adoptive families at the same yummy mexican restaurant as last night. MaeLynn love all the smiles and attention from the other children. She is really going to love her brother and sister.
I can't tell you how much this little girl already feels like apart of us that has always belonged. I was telling Scott that tomorrow marks one day with her and I already can't imagine life without her. The Lord has been knitting our hearts together for many months and it's aparent to all when you see us with her. We feel so blessed to experience life with her and I know we will be better people because she is in our lives.
Thinking of our visit to the orphanage and all the children laying in there beds. She was just one of those little persons not too long ago, waiting on a family that was open to love. The sweet faces of these children, I will never forget. God made each one of them unique in their own special ways. I will continue to pray everyday that he uses MaeLynn, our story of her expanding our family, and also for the hearts of those that come in contact with us, that the Lord will use it all to impact the children that are left in the orphanages here...ready to be loved by a forever family.
If you or anyone you know is open to adoption, please feel free to give out our information. We are happy to answer questions, pray with you/them and point you in the right direction for resources;)

Guangzhou Day 1

Hooray! We are finally here in Guangzhou. This is the final leg of our adoption journey. MaeLynn had a fever yesterday but it broke by her morning nap and she was all smiles when she woke up. We took the in country flight to Guangzhou and didn’t get in until 11pm last night because we had a 2 hr delay. MaeLynn did amazing!!! Momma on the other hand, was about to have a nervous break down in the airport! No one spoke English and the signs were VERY hard to read. Sooo stressful!
BUT WE ARE HERE!!! We went to breakfast and it was soooo great to see our friends again and hug their sweetie pie, Khloe. She and MaeLynn are only 4 months apart and really had fun talking to each other today and playing. I am soo glad the girls will have each other over the years to process and celebrate all this with. Good friends are priceless;))))
We went the the US approved doctors office this morning and had the girls do their final evaluation. They are healthy and happy:) Although both girls DID NOT enjoy being out of momma’s arms when they were being checked out by the doctor. MaeLynn is 18 lbs very long and skinny.
Our guide here, Jack, is amazing. He zipped us in and out of there in about 1 1/2 hours and the room was filled with adoptive families. It was so great to meet another couple with a little boy who was born with the same arm missing as Mae. Their little boy was running around crazy like a typical 2 year old boy;)
We came back to the hotel for a brief meeting with Jack about the game plan for the week and then a quick lunch before naps. Today MaeLynn had a rough couple hours in the afternoon. She was grieving again. I took her in the quite dark room and sang to her in my arms while she cried and screamed a little. I could tell she just needed to get it out. Then she fell asleep in my arms. She woke up about 45 mins later all smiles again. I am sure she will have more of these moments and I know consistency and love will eventually win out;)
To end the day off, we ate at this AMAZING Mexican restaurant...Tequilas. Scott claims he had the best burrito he has had in his whole life. He said it’s just like his Aunt Dana makes them and that says a lot because those are his favorite;) Although, I am not sure if it was just because we are getting burnt out on noodles and rice;)) I will say the Margarita hit the spot;) I am exhausted and ready for bed. Night from Guangzhou, China!!!;)

MaeLynn's 1st birthday!!!

Today is MaeLynn’s special day! We feel so blessed to be able to celebrate her birthday with her in person! She will never spend a single birthday in the orphanage. We had hoped and prayed for this from the day we got matched with her.
Today was very special. We woke up and Mae was all smiles as usual. We skyped and played after breakfast. Then we napped and relaxed for a bit. MaeLynn loves waking up to us watching her!
Next, we headed to the Confucius Temple area. It was so beautiful! The teachings of Confucius are still a part of the Chinese way of life today. Live life by peace, harmony and kindness. We toured the temple area and read all the history. It was very interesting.
The city is still decorated from the Nanjing Lantern Festival held every year the following 2 weeks after Chinese New year. The whole city has these beautiful silk lanterns all around that are shaped like different things. Scott and I had fun taking in all the lanterns and getting some great pics;) MaeLynn loved the bright colors.
In the temple area we took a ride in this little cart thingy this guy ran with. We were quit the site. These funny Americans with the Chinese baby in an all Asian market area. It was hilarious. Everyone was taking pictures of us. Probably because we are much bigger than the average people they pull in these and our men were working up a sweat!
After all that, we left with Micheal, our guide, to do some more touring. We went to the mausoleum of Seno Sans ( sounds like that but spelled totally different). He was a president in China that helped lead the people revolution. He is very respected and revered. The area was beautiful at the top!
Then we toured the city wall that was over 600 years old. This city wall used to go completely around the city but a part was torn down when the Japanese invaded China in the 1940s. The was is 4 layers deep at the entrance. This was so that if people made it through the first layer, they would close the outer layers and trap the enemy in the inner layers and kill them. The sights of the city from here were sooo beautiful!!!
Last, we went to a famous cake shop and celebrated MaeLynn’s birthday. It was so fun to sing happy birthday to her. A dear friend, and fellow adoptive momma, gave me this precious bib and birthday hat she was wearing in the pics! So fun! BUT the cake here is not the same:/ Frosting is all whippy (which for those of you that know me...I LOVE butter creme frosting!) MaeLynn did not like the cake either but really loved all the special attention from everyone there;)
What a special day! Tomorrow we head to Guangzhou! We will meet back up with our friends Erica and Jason Kennett and meet there new daughter Khloe. Then we finish the last leg of our adoption journey before we get to come home! I am missing Lilly and Fischer like CRAZY!!!!! Love you all!!!