Latest Update

Thought I would let everyone know how the last week has gone. We have had lots of good progress and also lots of the normal grieving that comes with the territory. Everybody says how well Grace is doing and how well she is adjusting, which she is; but sometimes we forget how much she is still going through and how unbelievably difficult this still must be for her. She has moved into the big crib in Lily's room and is consistently sleeping through the night, even napping there as well. I think it's more comfortable for her and nice to have a big sister in the room to keep her company. We continue to have more friends and "new people" stop by to meet her and she is generally very tolerant of that.
Each day, sometimes several times, we have moments where she just cries, sometimes for up to a half an hour, and we just don't know why. It usually starts with something identifiable and then obviously becomes something more. Sometimes it can get pretty intense and we just have to hold her or walk with her until it subsides. We had read about the grieving process and were prepared for the worst, so when she didn't do that badly we considered ourselves lucky and prepared to move on, but although we have been lucky, there's still a lot of work to be done. We can see now that Grace needs us to work just as hard with her as if she were reacting much worse. She's still "on the edge" so to speak and we can't forget to treat her as such. Sometimes we forget that she's only been home for two weeks, and still probably has no idea that this is all permanent. For all we know, she may just be waiting around for her foster family to come pick her up.
Sophie and Lily are also adjusting. Sophie is doing fabulously well; she loves holding Grace's hand and helping her do things. Lily is very proud to have Grace in her room. There was some discussion about moving the crib into Sophie's room, but Lily decided she wanted to give it a try. She still has a harder time sharing all of her toys and enduring Grace's poking and prodding, but then, she's still only three herself. School starts next week and then everyone will have their own time in the afternoon and I think we will get into a good routine (I've been talked into being the room mother for Sophie's kindergarten class, so we will all have something to keep us busy!)