Little Sister Cora : I've got a shopper on my hands!

My mom and I had to laugh today, because we realized we have a little girl who really likes to shop, and really likes shoes (and even more so SOCKS, for some reason!) Grandma Jeanne finally got to meet Cora today, and I think it was love at first sight from both sides. Cora completely took to G'ma. Not that I was totally surprised, but you just never know. I doubt Cora knew many grandma's with beautiful silver hair in china - but this one is pretty great, so how could she resist! Chun wu couldn't decide if she could call her Nai Nai (paternal grandma in mandarin), Why-paw (maternal g'ma) or just Gramma in english. She rotated thru them all, but pretty much settled on Nai Nai. And then called for her over and over to make sure she was watching her all the time. It was so cool to see, and just kind of crazy to think our little girl is finally home, and meeting her family. Pretty soon, she will just be "one of the gang", racing around with her cousins at the family gatherings.

But yes, we hung out at the house for a while, and then decided we should go do some shopping. Sophie HATES shopping, pretty much always has, so just Mom, Cora and I went. Oh, and what made us go is that Cora is hell on wheels on her bike with training wheels. She doesn't watch where she's going, and just races all over, assuming mama is going to hold her upright and help her avoid wiping out. So far, we have been lucky, and that statement is true, but it's not going to last long. A big spill is sure to come soon. So we thought we needed to go get her a helmet, and some knee and elbow pads. Then I might have to just let her loose, and she will quickly figure out that she has to be more careful!

We hit Lands End, and bought all sorts of stuff. Don't feel bad, Mom - remember, we had 5 years of NOT shopping for her, so think of all the money we have saved so far! I think I'll be using that excuse a lot - maybe until college? But Cora loved it - tried it all on, picked out her favorite stuff. and charmed the sales ladies along the way. Those dimples are hard to resist.

Grandma went home after dinner. It's kind of exhausting being in our house right now - feels really chaotic to me, at least. So one day was probably enough! Cora was sad to see her go, but no meltdown. We just kept telling her we'll see her again soon!

So it's been 10 days home. I haven't written in a few days - it's been kind of a blur, but in a good way. James has been working 1/2 days, and that is going really well. Cora isn't happy about him leaving but does pretty well with it. Might cry for 5 mins, but might not. Just depends on her mood that day. But still definitely daddy's girl. She's gotten lots of good bonding time in with me and Sophie, too, though, and we all are just getting each other figured out. Cora is starting to chase Sophie around, and wants to do what the "big kids" are doing. Sophie is generally pretty good about waiting up for her. The other day Cora took off at top speed literally chasing sophie down the street. Quiet street, but still, yikes! So we had to nip that in the bud :)

We're all sleeping good, usually 10-12 hr a night for Cora, and almost as much for me. We've gotten to the next step of Cora actually falling asleep in a BED. Not her own bed (that would be jumping way ahead!), but a bed none the less. James tells her some story, either about the planets, or might be about roman catholic history, or maybe chinese history if she's lucky. And she's out in literally less than 5 mins. James lectures can put ANYONE to sleep, so it's perfect!

At this point, the hardest part is still the communication. Cora started talking more than ever today. We said it was my Mom's visit maybe. Who knows why, but she was mimicking way more than she usually does, and saying all sorts of things. But she still gets frustrated when she can't tell us something, and still has little fitsl But pretty normal stuff, and manageable. And just keeping up with her and keeping her entertained is a challenge. No wonder I'm sleeping 10 hrs a night. But it's fun mostly. Oh her first sentence today was "Where's the meme?"

Okay, I better go, I am up WAY past my bedtime! Jenny and Mariah are coming tomorrow afternoon, and then my Dad on Wednesday morning. And then we just need to see Paul and Kristin and all the Davis' . I wish everyone was closer!

chasing in the backyard