I absolutely love...

Just a few things I want to jot down about Eme Grace before 2009 comes to an end.

I absolutely LOVE....

*the way she stands in front of me with her hands up saying "up"?

*the way she looks at the furniture that she falls into that causes a booboo and shakes her finger saying, "nonono"

*the ways she attempts to say, "Oh know you didn't" while wagging her finger back and forth.

*the way she goes back and forth saying, "Mommy Daddy Mommy Daddy"

*when she stood up in church on Christmas Eve when she saw the baby Jesus on the big screen and yelled out for the congregation, "BABBBBY!"

*that she just started noticing her referral photo as a 'baby' but doesn't recognize that it is baby Eme at all.

*that she knows there's a bunch of her toys in a leather trunk and how she goes over to it and grunts to lift it up while saying, "Up"

*how her eyes were filled with ease & comfort when I found her laying on Daddy's chest early this morning wide awake with her arms wrapped around him tight as he rubbed her back so I could stay sleeping. & how she didn't move once she knew I was awake & looking at her.

*that she goes towards the garage and announces "Bye Bye" when she's ready to get out of the house for a bit.

*that she answers "Yeah" to every question you ask.

*that she sneaks her a bite of lunch and then Kita a bite while acting all nonchalant

*that every cup she points to that's hers is 'MOLK' 'MOLK'

*that she wants her toes painted and holds her foot up in my face and says "Toes"

*that all dogs are 'DOJIES' and she LOVES them all.

*that she loves all things bright and shiney, especially jewelry

*how she sways back and forth anytime, anywhere she hears music

*how she looks directly into my eyes and starts humming the tone when she wants me to sing the 'I Love You' song to her at bedtime

I so adore who Emerson Grace is and feel like the luckiest Mommy alive to have the privilege of not only knowing who she is but also getting to live, raise and enjoy her every single day. I remember staring for 6 long weeks into the eyes of a photograph and wondering who Wan Hu Ling really was. Is she a happy girl? A sad girl? A girly girl or a rough and tumble kind of girl? When I think back on our 2 weeks in China and how much she smiled then and how much she smiles now I am very confident she is a very happy girl, though her smile is now authentic towards us. It's definitely a better kind of different. I missed so much of Eme's beginnings and it's a part of her history that making up for lost time just doesn't really count, but I can also say that her history is our journey. It's what makes us who we are, completely real.

I could not possibly love this little girl any more if I tried. My heart physically aches every single time I think of her or look at her. She is no longer just a dream come true, but she is a reality into my every being. Her beautiful almond shaped eyes leave me completely in awe of her beauty.

Oh those eyes.... Every single time Eme Grace looks at me, I feel as though I am looking into my soul. My connection to her is so deep that I often wonder how it's even possible to feel that connected to any other human being. She holds my heart in her hands & I thank God every day that the wait quadrupled and He created this child to be my daughter.