I had written a post that was intended to introduce my newest and youngest daughter, Chelsea. I had typed it up in Thailand and was prepared to copy and paste it from my tablet when she moved in.
But things changed, and you're not going to read that post.
See, Chelsea is mostly the same. She is still the beautiful 2 year old who is my princess. When I was just "Aunt Marla" living in the penthouse above Chelsea's former foster apartment, I knew this little cutie pie could be a stinker, I knew she is smart, and I knew she also deserved the title of being a princess from her little attitude!
Chelsea moved in with the school girls because, come June, she will begin playschool, and we figured it was easier to do the transitions in steps. While my other littles are gone at least until lunchtime, Chelsea is my shadow the whole morning. It's fun and cute, but the transition has been a little weary on us both: the first two days she spent a total of 20 minutes being more than 2 feet away from me. The next day, she started to become a little more used to having big sisters (and so many of them!) and even sat on my ayah's lap. Now, I'm finally able to leave the room and house without her crying (usually), but then nighttime comes and she clings to me relentlessly.
Most of this was expected, but what changed was me: Although Angel is "my baby girl" and I have other kids I feel especially close
to, Chelsea's presence has given me a new sense of motherhood. See, for
3 more months, until summer vacation in May, Chelsea is going to have
the closest thing to a normal childhood that maybe any of our kids have
ever had. Even if just for four hours a day where she is the only kiddo
needing my attention, the only helper who takes things to the dustbin,
the only one needing to play with puzzles and chalk while I do my
quiet time on the roof--it's going to change us both. She gets so excited when I come in the room and "yells" when I walk too fast to the kitchen. She plays in the kiddie pool while I wash my laundry on the roof. She "helps" me with all my chores and makes sure she gets a bit of my breakfast. We work on speech every day (she was born with cleft lip and palate), we have cuddle time from 6:30-7 a.m., we try to take a nap in the afternoon together.
Because she's sleeping with me until she better adjusts to this new home and being around so many big kids, Chelsea is my own personal teddy bear. But even before I go to bed, when she's sleeping at the foot of my bed while I'm online, she will wrap her little fingers around my big toe or turn my ankle into a pillow. It's adorable, I admit I love her attachment and cuddles, and of course, this will all probably decrease when she begins sleeping downstairs with her sisters.
Although I'm definitely getting "mom" experience out of fostering 21 girls, my few days with Chelsea have already taken it to a whole new level. It is actually quite pleasing to be the sole caregiver for my toddler as she follows me around the building in the mornings. It's quite nice to change diapers (soon to be potty training), get breakfast, help her brush her teeth, etc. all by myself--without my ayahs thinking that I shouldn't because it's their responsibility. I mean, they still probably do think it's their responsibility and hate that I do it, but, well, I don't need a toddler and a middle aged woman following me around the house for 4 hours a day!
But things changed, and you're not going to read that post.
See, Chelsea is mostly the same. She is still the beautiful 2 year old who is my princess. When I was just "Aunt Marla" living in the penthouse above Chelsea's former foster apartment, I knew this little cutie pie could be a stinker, I knew she is smart, and I knew she also deserved the title of being a princess from her little attitude!
Chelsea moved in with the school girls because, come June, she will begin playschool, and we figured it was easier to do the transitions in steps. While my other littles are gone at least until lunchtime, Chelsea is my shadow the whole morning. It's fun and cute, but the transition has been a little weary on us both: the first two days she spent a total of 20 minutes being more than 2 feet away from me. The next day, she started to become a little more used to having big sisters (and so many of them!) and even sat on my ayah's lap. Now, I'm finally able to leave the room and house without her crying (usually), but then nighttime comes and she clings to me relentlessly.
Most of this was expected, but what changed was me: Although Angel is "my baby girl" and I have other kids I feel especially close
to, Chelsea's presence has given me a new sense of motherhood. See, for
3 more months, until summer vacation in May, Chelsea is going to have
the closest thing to a normal childhood that maybe any of our kids have
ever had. Even if just for four hours a day where she is the only kiddo
needing my attention, the only helper who takes things to the dustbin,
the only one needing to play with puzzles and chalk while I do my
quiet time on the roof--it's going to change us both. She gets so excited when I come in the room and "yells" when I walk too fast to the kitchen. She plays in the kiddie pool while I wash my laundry on the roof. She "helps" me with all my chores and makes sure she gets a bit of my breakfast. We work on speech every day (she was born with cleft lip and palate), we have cuddle time from 6:30-7 a.m., we try to take a nap in the afternoon together.Because she's sleeping with me until she better adjusts to this new home and being around so many big kids, Chelsea is my own personal teddy bear. But even before I go to bed, when she's sleeping at the foot of my bed while I'm online, she will wrap her little fingers around my big toe or turn my ankle into a pillow. It's adorable, I admit I love her attachment and cuddles, and of course, this will all probably decrease when she begins sleeping downstairs with her sisters.
Although I'm definitely getting "mom" experience out of fostering 21 girls, my few days with Chelsea have already taken it to a whole new level. It is actually quite pleasing to be the sole caregiver for my toddler as she follows me around the building in the mornings. It's quite nice to change diapers (soon to be potty training), get breakfast, help her brush her teeth, etc. all by myself--without my ayahs thinking that I shouldn't because it's their responsibility. I mean, they still probably do think it's their responsibility and hate that I do it, but, well, I don't need a toddler and a middle aged woman following me around the house for 4 hours a day!
So, welcome, baby girl, to my crazy home.
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