Six Months Already!

Six months ago we were finishing up our last few days in China. The little girl I met back then spoke mostly Chinese and was only starting to really trust me.


The little girl that I know today still has the intense personality, I think her paperwork called her "irrascible".

Adjective (of a person) Easily made angry. Characterized by or arising from anger.

Synonyms irritable - quick-tempered - short-tempered - testy

I had to look up that definition to make sure I had the full meaning, back then I smiled and thought possibly something got changed in the translation. I think today I can tell you this child's paperwork has been the most accurate of any of my children (well some didn't come with paperwork, but you know what I mean).

This child is intense! and yes she can be easily angered. Since I refuse to walk on eggshells anymore I get to see her personality quite often. She is my first that can pitch a full tantrum complete with heels banging on the floor, spit and snot flying and anger so big it makes her shake. We have had crying fits in this house before and each child eventually has grown out of them. Most of them have saved their displays for the safety of our home, so I am not in despair here, but when you are old enough to be a grandma in November (see who notices this announcement) you think it would be nice if this snotty, kicking, screaming wouldn't last too many years.
I am working on ways to shorten these displays. No, I'm not allowed to "give her so amething to cry about"  I have to play by the rules.
I have started walking away and if possible closing a door if it is available....wait till the screaming changes pitch a bit, then go in with my very sympathetic voice and pick her up. Sometimes it works as if I'd flipped a switch, it's a bit disconcerting.  She can suddenly be a sweet, loving, hugging little girl.

This stuff doesn't hapen every day, so I don't get a lot of practice, but hopfully if I have a plan in place it doesn't reduce me to tears as well.

As to how she is doing otherwise?  She is funny, she can get a joke...loves doing the one knock-knock joke that her sister taught her.
She likes to carefully hand out her good night kisses, sometimes she makes her sisters beg. Daddy needs his kiss, but he also makes sure he gives me one before he goes off to bed.

She loves babies and will insist we check out each infant seat that we see while out shopping.
She loves meat...all of it is chicken to her.
She will say hi to most people, but if they try to pick her up, she will let them know that is not allowed.
She doesn't seem to notice that her fingers and toes are different from other people's, or if she does, she is matter of fact about it.
She loves her sisters and is very happy when they get home from school.
She didn't like Zoe (puppy) on Friday night, but by Sunday afternoon, she was picking up shredded tissues as the dog was producing them.
She can sing most of the songs that the girls practice around here...well, the tunes anyway, the words are usually borrowed from somewhere else.
She is sound asleep with her head on my lap right now. She gets one or three books, some 'nui nai" (Chinese word for milk) and then lays her head on my lap to fall asleep.  That suits me for now, we will transition back to falling asleep in bed eventually. I didn't get to rock this one to sleep when she was little, so I'll take this.

Tomorrow, I have an 11 year old girl!  Ai-yi-yi! I'll have to post pictures....