As of yesterday, we have been home with Rachel for one month!  It is hard to believe how fast time is flying by.  It seems like just yesterday we were waiting in our hotel room for the call that Rachel was on her way to our room...and we finally became a family of three.

 

Now that we have been home, I'm really working on getting life back to normal.  Well...as normal as life can be with an active 14-month-old!  I've got about 4 weeks worth of email that has backed up on me and I'm slowly getting caught up.  So...if you've written to me since we've been home and I've not responded, I do apologize!

 

I look around at the state of our house and am amazed at how my standards have lowered as far as keeping organized!  At this moment, I have a couple of loads of laundry that have been washed and are on the floor in the bedroom waiting to be folded.  Okay...so one of those loads has been waiting to be folded for a couple of days now and I just added the second load to the pile.  I have found myself just grabbing towels from the pile as needed and the pile is getting smaller!  I've just managed to get back into my office for the first time this week...as Rachel has decided it is okay to play for short periods of time in her playpen in the office.  My desk is literally piled up with stuff... mail that has come in the last few weeks, adoption paperwork, insurance paperwork, Rachel's medical paperwork from her pediatrician and from her physical therapist, pictures that need to be put in albums, thank you cards that need to be written and mailed, Rachel's baby book that needs to be updated, and my school work that has been all but forgotten.  Yes, I am going to have to request an extension as my semester ends next week and I've only completed about half of the work! 

 

But... Rachel is learning to stand up and is walking around holding my hands.  I've learned to change a diaper fast enough that I can now get the new one in place before she goes again (yes...we've had quite a few clothing changes from her tendency to pee as soon as a diaper has been REMOVED!).  We've discovered the joys of bath toys, rolling a ball back and forth, and playing with fallen leaves while taking a walk.  I've learned that I can get Rachel to stop crying by pretending her stuffed animals are talking in my ear and then telling her what they are saying...a trick I remember my own mom doing with me when I was little!  I also actually sing to Rachel... she is the only person on the earth who can get me to sing to them (and probably the only one on earth who would even want me to sing!).  So while the house may be a disaster right now...we sure are having a wonderful time!