As wonderful as it is to be home, which it absolutely is, these past few days have been tough. Hannah seems to be adjusting to the time change the best of any of us. The rest of us, however, are really having a hard time with this jet lag. In the past 5 nights, I think the longest stretch of sleep we have gotten is 4 hours. We have been downstairs having a meal or watching a show in the middle of the night every night. Yesterday I was on the verge of tears at every second, simply because I NEED SLEEP!!!!
Poor Z woke up the other morning completely sobbing, saying, “I miss China!!!!”. I know how he feels. There are some experiences in life that are so wonderful, and so profound, that you just want to hold on to them. I am so thankful for our experiences in China for a million reasons, but high among those reasons are what it meant to Z. He really came out of his shell on the trip. He made great friends (like his buddy Davis who he loved climbing the Great Wall with), took each new experience in stride, and most of all, he was so very happy. I am sad to know that he has to go back to school tomorrow. I have loved spending these couple of weeks with him so much. I am really going to miss him!
Hannah really is doing well, but she has definitely been fussier since we have been home than she ever was in China. I keep thinking about all the things that she has had to adjust to, and I really can’t blame her. Every single aspect of her life is different. Surely at some level she is also wondering how long this new situation is going to last. After all, even in her time with us we didn’t spend longer than 5 days in one place. We are just trying to shower her with as much love and understanding as we possibly can, and hope that in time she finds security and happiness here. We pray that it won’t take very long for her to embrace being a part of this family.
Please send us some good thoughts tomorrow as Jeff goes back to work and we really start getting back to reality. And if anyone has any hints for being 4 places at once, I would appreciate it! 🙂