Her two fingers are ALWAYS in her mouth!! so cute
In visiting the foster home I felt at peace as I knew that Eve was cared for in the way that the foster mother knew her and that it was as good a circumstance as could be expected but there were obvious signs that all the love and attention she showered on Eve at that meeting was not the norm. Signs such as; Eve is 8 months old and has difficulty holding up her head and cannot sit up by herself. When I first got her she just slumped over in my arms as if she had no muscle tone to hold herself up at all. I have caught a few pictures of her sitting up but that is with help and the minute the picture is taken she tumbles over. She can put NO weight on her legs. If I try to stand her up on my lap her legs collapse in a fetal position, it is obvious she spent most of her time in a chair maybe similar to the one in the picture of the child in the foster home ( a couple of post back) and she was most likely propped up for most, if not all of the day. She has never seen a toy and can’t grab or hold one. She also has never eaten anything but a bottle. Food of any kind is absolutely foreign to her.
Getting stronger every day
The first 3 days Eve was quite stoic. She would give a smile here and there but it was obvious that she was not used to being talked to, giggled at, kissed on or constantly loved. From the first day she always looked intently into our eyes as if searching and asking, “who are you? Are you here to stay? Can I trust you?” Well each day we have seen drastic improvement. I am actually in shock at what has happened in just 4-5 days. We have put her on her tummy to build up back and neck muscles, when we hold her we straighten out her legs and have her work those muscles and we look in her eyes and talk to her endlessly. She gets so much love attention and care and I can see that she is just soaking it all in. 
Well, she now can hold herself up when she is in my arms, her muscle tone has drastically improved and it is obvious. Two days ago it was like someone turned a light on to her soul. She just seemed to wake up to life and love and became herself. She is funny and silly and smiley and constantly coos and sticks her tongue out and makes funny sounds. She responds and plays little games and for the first time yesterday she began playing with toys, actually grabbing holding and playing with a toy. Yesterday, she rolled over for the first time (she is yet to repeat this feat but she did it twice so we know it is in her) .
It is hard to tell in words how night and day different we see in just 5 days but it is like her spirit said “Ok time to be yourself, trust and be happy”. As I have watched these warp speed improvements I can’t express how much joy I have. At times I am almost not sure I my physical body can take it all in. I am bursting with excitement as I can see directly how our love is causing her to blossom and open up. It is rewarding beyond belief. I feel such gratitude tonight!
Eve and Willa, these two were neighbors in foster care. We will make sure that they stay friends.
4 comments:
I cannot get over how insanely adorable Eve is! And Willa, too! I love how Willa's smiling at Eve in that one picture, and how Eve's just looking at her with those two fingers in her mouth. So precious.
I cannot even begin to put into words just how incredibly happy I am for all of you- for you, and for your husband, and for all of your children, Eve included. It's amazing how God brings people into each other's lives like that. What a huge blessing it is for all of you to have one another.
I cannot agree with you more about what you said about love. I have grown to learn that love is indeed a choice. So many people say that it is just a feeling, that either you have it or you don't, and that you cannot love everyone. I just can't buy into that. I know that it is possible to love everyone if you choose to. Our Father in Heaven is proof of that. He wants for us to love each and every one of His children. We just have to make the choice to love.
Ok, I'm going off on a tangent here. Sorry! I don't even know those people who you met at the clinic, but I feel inspired just from what you have said. What wonderful examples of amazing people who have chosen to love.
Thank you so much for sharing all of these amazing experiences. I know that you don't share them for me, but I have benefited from your words, and from your wisdom, and from your loving spirit, and from your example. I do feel the need to thank you. So thank you. Thank you, Gale, for being you.
The picture with Willa and Eve looking at each other should say "WE ARE GOING TO AMERICA! YAY!"
That is so amazing Gale, to hear how quickly she is learning and developing!! How amazing!! What beautiful babies!!
Gale and Chris, We need you to bring as many cute, wonderful, children back as you can! It makes me sad that so many are orphans when I can think of at least 20 families who would take them in a heartbeat!
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