may be better than you dare think."
Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
I wanted to start today's entry off w/
a quote that is befitting our past
week. Wil and I have had the chats
about parenting; from discipline to
booger picking. It is one thing to
"talk the talk" and another thing to
"walk the walk." We have had the
pleasure of Lia's company 24/7 for
the past week and it has taught us a
good bit about communication,
patience, and absolute adoration
mixed w/ unconditional love. We
would be remiss in saying that we
had no fears or doubts about our
parenting abilities - they crouched in
the corners of our minds only to be
dispelled by the great joy that Lia
brings to our lives. Lia has had her
share of "no-no's" mixed w/ a few
love taps and a few tears when the
limits she pushes are cushioned w/
love and firmness. Wil and I were
concerned that we may fall short of
everything she needs despite the
pledge of devotion and love we made
to her months ago when we started
this journey to bring her home. Well,
we are days away from coming home
and a lifetime away of a job well
done, but we are thrilled at what lies
ahead in the rest of the journey w/
Ms Lia. One of the best things I
have ever been told in my life is, "it
is not always achieving the goal that
is most important, but the road along
the way." It is w/ affirmed
confidence and the knowledge that
we will make mistakes but not w/out
giving 150% to the effort that we will
raise our daughter w/ love, affection,
and God's blessings.
Today we walked to the Ramstore
with Lia and picked up what should
be a last bit of groceries before we
leave!!! From there we took Lia and
Natasha to a lunch of
SHASHLICKS! That is right, Lia
had her first taste of shashlick and
loved it!! What is not to love, it is
the best food here in central Asia.
We were a bit nervous how Lia
would act at a restaurant without a
highchair. All worries were
eliminated as Lia did a great job and
ate everything in site!! After the
Ramstore and lunch it was off to
British Airways to get our tickets to
come home!! The British Airways
office was A/C'd...yes, we are a BIT
preoccupied w/ A/C right now given
we have none and it is 98 during the
day and 88 at night w/ the fan :o(
We will arrive in Jax on Saturday
night around 6ish and will head home
to show Lia her crib...literally!!!!
Thankfully we will have some family
in town to help w/ our transition
stateside. I will be back to work
next Monday and Wil takes on the
Mr. Mom role :o) Love to everyone
for getting us through to this point
and we cannot thank you enough for
the love and support we have
received - it has been our sanity!
"The guardian angels of life
sometimes fly so high as to be
beyond our sight, but they are
always looking down on us."
Jean Paul Richter
Happy Monday All - Love,
Lisa, Wil, and Lia-Padia(Wil's new
nickname for our Monkey
