I've been telling Sarah that we're going in an airplane to visit Grammy, and I think she gets it. She points to Mom's photo on the fridge and smiles. I've been trying to prepare her for meeting her uncles and cousins, too, but I think that will still be a bit overwhelming. Then again, she loves people, so I'm sure she'll just roll with it.
The sleeping is going okay. We had some really good nights last week, then a couple of bad. Thursday night, she got up in the middle of the night and screamed when I put her back in the crib. I decided to try leaving the room, since I've sensed that I just antagonize her by being there and ignoring her. She screamed for 55 minutes. I went back in at intervals, the way "they" say to, but she just got progressively angrier until she wore herself out and went to sleep. She showed no signs of trauma in the morning, but I'm not happy that I did it. I really don't know what the right thing to do is, but that doesn't feel right. I'm still determined to get her to sleep without crying.
To make matters worse, we took her to an opthalmologist on Friday (per the International Adoption Clinic's recommendation). We had no idea how invasive it would be. They put drops in her eyes, which made her scream, then came back ten minutes later (after she had recovered) and put more in. The nurse then told me she'd need another round of drops, since her eyes are so dark. She also said they would strap her to a "papoose board" to hold her down to see into her eyes.
At that point, Don and I decided to just leave and cut our losses. We told the doctor, and he said, "We won't do more drops, and I'll just see what I can see with her in your lap." He did, and he saw enough to say there aren't any tumors or anything, but that's about it. I feel awful that we put her through that. It seems unnecessary. I can't help but think that doctors sometimes do procedures, or recommend them, just because they're available, not because they're needed. No other kids get their eyes checked at 16 months....
As if that weren't enough, she got her seasonal flu booster and her first H1N1 shot, also. It was one hellacious day for Sarah Grace. I can't believe she has to get an H1N1 booster in a month. Will the torture never end?
In cheerier news, Sarah seems to be learning new skills every day. She has finally mastered stacking the wooden rings on the spindle, and she's starting to figure out puzzles, which is exciting. What I find most impressive, though, is that she's learned matching. She has a wooden Noah's Ark set. She'll pick up an animal, and I'll tell her the name, then I'll say, "Where's the other one?" She scans the pile, and picks the right one every time! That reminds me, I need to go get the monkey out of the pile. Its mate is missing, and she goes crazy looking for it.
She now crawls like the wind and pulls herself up on everything, including the dog. Thankfully, Cadi is very patient. She loves to stand at our big picture window and look for the donkeys and watch cars going by. She can stand on her own for maybe five seconds and cruises the furniture with ease. We have a stained glass rooster hanging in an east-facing window in the living room, and she looks for it every morning as the sun comes up, then does her "cock-a-doodle-do" rendition.
There's so much to be grateful for this Thanksgiving. We are blessed.
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