Our Precious Ellye's 3 Year Forever Family Day!

• It is hard for me to believe that 3 years have passed by so quickly! It seems as if it were just yesterday that we were in China, anxiously awaiting May 8th, the day Ellye was handed to us in the Civil Affairs office in Guangzhou, China. Se was bigger than what I expected, very quiet, and more beautiful than I could have ever imagined! She came to us with no tears. I was the one who cried tears of sheer thankfulness and joy that I finally had my baby girl in my arms! Another couple that was with us received their little boy at the same time. When Joey came in he did fine, and when his nanny left, all chaos broke loose!
• Joey cried, Ellye cried...and I wanted to cry to!! My heart hurt for both of these little kids who had just lost all that had ever known! Unbeknownst to us, Ellye had come to Guangzhou and spent the night there with the director of the orphanage, so she was grieving terribly.The director was very close to, and involved with the kids on a daily basis.The 3 weeks in China were spent trying to comfort her from everything she had lost. She did not like her daddy, cried a lot, and clung to mommy for dear life. We could not get her to smile at all. It was hard. We wanted her to know how much we loved her and we wanted her to love us as well. I knew it would take time. Baby steps.
• Fast forward to today! Ellye is a beautiful, happy,healthy, and loved little girl! She is funny, smart, and a joy to be around! She loves to learn, to help me around the house, and she absolutely loves to be in the kitchen! She loves to cook and bake! She is thoughtful, kind, and very giving. But above all, she is our daughter! We love her and are so thankful that we were chosen to be her forever family! She has truly blessed our lives! We love you Eleanor Kathleen Jiang ChengYing!!!