Snehum = Love

The 'Delhi Belly' is subsiding and 'Mummi' is back on line... :-) Ed has been so wonderfully faithful with updates so I'll just catch up from where he's left off. We (Ed, Prathibha and I) just returned from our third and final visit to the embassy where we picked up her completed passport and visa, and the sealed envelope we will give to US CIS at the MSP airport. Surprisingly, some of the sweetest words we have ever heard came to us at the embassy where we first heard, "Everything is in order - you are good to go." And then, "Congratulations - we understand how long you have waited and all you've gone through to get to this point. We commend you for your patience and wish all the best to your new family." (Or something very similar to that). I tried not to cry. :-)

There is no exaggerating the beauty, sweetness and humor of our sweet Prathibha. Ed has already described so eloquently, but I will add some of my own perceptions about her, and our first days together:

1. She is strong and resilient, as evidenced by her embracing us as her parents, and handling all the ups and downs of this travel with courage and patience. I am truly in awe of how calm and good-natured she has been.

2. She loves men, in general, (often smiles and reaches out to them) and her Papa in particular. :-) He is the center of her world right now. This has shifted since the first couple days of our meeting and being together and may have had something to do with my being down and out while sick - though I did my best to connect during that time. We've been well prepared for the fact that it's common for children to connect most strongly with one parent or the other at first though, and this makes sense since a parenting and family dynamic is a completely new concept. I am thankful she is finding comfort in her Papa, thankful that she allows me to be part of that when she's in a happy mood, and knowing that this is part of a natural progression in our family's relational development. In the meantime, Papa needing to take a potty break can be a somewhat traumatic event. I told him, "Fame comes with a price." ;-)

3. Communication has not been a major issue. Either because of context, or our limited understanding of Malayalam (and of course, her intelligence), we have had no major incidents of her asking for something where we don't know how to provide what she needs. To me, this is completely amazing. Though we've heard her vocabulary in Malayalam is not large, we've sensed that she is highly intelligent and able to make some relatively complicated connections.

4. Prathibha has a very sweet, cuddly side - in general, but especially prior to nap and bed time. She loves to be tickled and nuzzled, and soaks in affection like a sponge.

5. There's a dog here - she's gone from screaming at it to, more recently, wimpering and half smiling at it. We think she's going to be fine once she gets used to Guff and Duncan... (Just now, Ed and P were outside - she saw the dog, pointed and smiled, and said 'Padi' - dog in Malayalam). :-)

A million more 'first' observations. She doesn't love baths (this will get better when we're not dumping water on her head). She has a thing for powder... we learned that this is because Deepa, her favorite caregiver, made a game of making designs of powder and water on her face - we're honored that Prathibha would desire to share this intimate tradition with us. She's 'girly' - loves bracelets, necklaces, brushing her hair - all that stuff - mummi and papa are in full support. :-) SO many more things... I am treasuring up each new moment of learning her, her needs and rhythms and heart. What a sweet time.

We finally learned to say her name right. PRAH-tee-pah. Same emphasis as 'Powderpuff', with a slight roll to the 'R'. We've only been using this name so far... it's so beautiful. Plus, if there's any sense, on her part, that something is being taken from her in these days so soon after we've brought her away from all she knows, it seems right to honor her name here. Perhaps when we're home, we'll move more into 'Eva Prathibha', then to 'Eva'. We're 'just feelin' that one...

Today we celebrate. We have the papers now - it's official. Tomorrow we head home to begin a brand new life together in WI. It's hard to express how much we've cherished every email and comment from all of you. Thank you for all your support and prayers and love. Snehum to you all. Snehum all around... :-)