5 months now

Its hard seeing that ticker hit the 5 month mark since we last held our little girl. I would NEVER have thought that the wait would come to this when we left her in July. I thought we would have her home for Thanksgiving and definitely for Christmas. Now I'm hoping for Easter! Hopefully the Russian passport office will process her paperwork right after the holidays and things will move quickly from there......one can hope. I look at all the clothes I've bought for her and can't help but wonder if she is out-growing most of them (I actually hope she is!) We'll just have more to donate to the orphanage if thats the case. I plan on actually opening up the feet in her snowsuit and hemming the bottom (ok, not me but my aunt!) since she's walking now......I bought the cutest pink snowboots she can wear instead. I find some comfort sitting here and staring for hours at the pictures I have of her from October when some friends took some pictures for us when they were at the baby home picking up their child. She looks healthy and happy, and what comforts me most are the expressions on the caregiver's face.....she really looks like she cares for her and looks very protective and adoring. I'm trying to hold onto that.

We had a good Christmas other than missing our little one. We got to spend lots of time with family, as well as lots of time Christmas morning in our pj's with presents exploded all over our house! I can't imagine how I'm going to find homes for all of them. Dylan said it was his best Christmas EVER and that he got EVERYTHING he wanted :o) That makes me feel good.