One year from our first meeting!

This week marked a year since we first met our daughter!  It seriously seems like the fastest year of my life.  It's just been such a blur -- we were so focused on paperwork and then traveling internationally 3 times last summer/fall, along with all the "normal" part of life with kids.  It's amazing to think back to where we were a year ago.  Right this second, we were in Russia.  We had just met this teeny little girl that they swore was shy and scared of people.  I wish they could see the little girl we have today!  We saw glimpses of her real personality that first meeting -- the constant curiosity and observation and how much she loves music.  Most of all, from those first meetings I remember her playing a game.  She would "fall" down and then see if Bryan would come and rescue her.  She thought it was the coolest thing in the world that EVERY time you have a problem someone would be there.  She would pretend to cry and then be smirking as soon as he would head her way.  I don't really have a lot to say...just amazed at what God has accomplished in and through us in the year since we first laid eyes on her!

This was actually the 2nd time we met her. The first time we had to be observed, the 2nd time they pretty much just sent us out the door with her.  We landed on the phone thing totally by accident -- and she loved it!  She'd also pitch a major fit if we tried to take it away, touch it, look at it...

Seriously, can you believe that tiny girl was over 2 years old?  Sooooo little.  Click on the picture to enlarge it.  She was very tentative around Bryan at first.  All the caretakers were women so she had never really been around a guy.  Here she was realizing that his face felt different.  :-)

This is actually part of dossier (file of paperwork for the adoption).  We needed to include 4 photos of us with the child we were asking to adopt for the judge to see.  

Can you even imagine that a year ago this little girl was in an orphanage?  It boggles my mind in some ways; most of the time it feels like she's always been here.  It's when you do things like this (go to the zoo for her first time ever) that you remember how much of the world is still new to her.

While I was putting these on she came by and got all excited and said "Gramma!  Where's Gramma?"