Adjustments

Overall Aliyah is adjusting really well. We are continually amazed that the child we first met in Ethiopia who was so withdrawn is the same little girl who is currently thriving in her new home. However, that's not to say that we don't have our challenges. It's not uncommon for Aliyah to have a meltdown, tantrum or whatever you want to call it. A good day is for her to have one but on a bad day she can have MANY. While we want her to feel loved and secure, we still have normal childhood issues liking learning to share and reacting to being told no by her parents. When Aliyah has these meltdowns we just hold her and try to comfort her but without giving in.

And then there are the boys. They are both really great with Aliyah but we have definitely had some behavioral challenges with each of them. It's not unexpected since they have experienced a lot of change but it definitely adds a lot of drama to our house. We have reimplemented good behavior charts and we are slowly seeing some improvements. However, there have been a few times where Pete and I have looked at each in the middle of a chaotic moment and just laughed because if we didn't laugh we would probably cry.