18 months

Le Le is 18 months old!

The last 3 months had been full of ups and downs.  We are so blessed to have our family together.  We are grateful everyday to have the most amazing daughter.  We are sleepless happy parents!

We have been so excited to introduce Le Le to her new family.  One of the most amazing moments was enjoying an afternoon with Brian's grandparents.  This was precious time that we will cherish as Brian's grandmother died 1 week later.  Grandma Bolander loved Le Le and couldn't be more excited to spend time with her.  She had always been one of our biggest supporters.  It was so difficult to go back to Idaho the following week for her funeral, but what an amazing family she is now apart of.  So much love and support!  Grandma Bolander is missed and loved more than words can express.

We are now home and finding out that there is a little toddler in our home too.  It is surreal, after such a long wait.  She is finding her voice and progressing quickly.  She is learning something new daily.  We couldn't be more excited.

New Family

(This post is from a month ago!  Sorry for the delay!!)

I apologize for all of you that have asked me or my family if we are all ok since we stopped updating the blog.  I am so sorry, but life has changed!  Reality is here and we are loving every sleep-deprived minute of it!  Le Le is doing amazing.  Since we got home she had been overwhelmed with new sites, sounds, people, and a whole new world.  She finally got a semi-sleep schedule and then she was pretty sick for 2 weeks.  We learned the heartbreak of having a sick child very quickly.  Her lungs didn't fully develop due to her prematurity and this caused her to have some reactive airway issues when whatever bug we ALL got came along.  She was getting breathing treatments 2-3 times a day and could only sleep on our chest.  As soon as you tried to lay her flat, she couldn't breath.  It was so hard to watch her struggle.  Then Brian ended up with pneumonia and the sickness overtook our home.  We were quarantined to our home.  Le Le is finally feeling better and I can't wait for her to have some play dates!  The silver lining to all of this, is that she is attaching beautifully.  She definitely knows mom and dad.  I am also happy to announce that I think she is becoming a little bit of a Mama's Girl (sorry Brian, you got your time being the favorite!).

She has also had numerous Doctors Appointments which have all gone great.  I am confident that she will catch up with all of her new friends and grow by leaps and bounds now that we have her in our arms.  We are still sorting through all of her medical history but she is adjusting quickly and I am excited to watch her change daily!  We have been weaning her off of her seizure medication and with that we have a whole new personality and she definitely has a little Sass now and we love seeing her personality coming out.

This is the sassy look!

To beat the heat, we do a lot of swimming and Le Le LOVES the water!  She loves to relax and drink the pool water.  She has really bonded with our pups and enjoys swimming daily with them.  Bath time is her favorite time of the day and the worst time of the day is when bath time ends.  She fights getting dressed and would rather stay naked.

Le Le is also becoming a big traveler.  My sister had her wedding reception shortly after getting home and we went to Washington to celebrate.  She meet some of her cousins and  enjoyed enjoyed being out of the heat.  We also we went to Lake Coeur d'Alene and Le Le loved being out on the boat.  We are now planning on leaving for Idaho for a family reunion.  Le Le will get to meet so much family!  Knowing her, she will do it with grace.  She is a little trooper and we are thrilled to have her in our life.

I am starting to go back to work part-time, which is so hard to be away!  I cried the first day I went back, but Brian is good about giving me updates and sending me snapshots throughout the day.  The best part of my day is when I walk in the door and she starts giggling and crawls as fast as she can to me.  It doesn't get better than that.

Le Le is HOME

Isabelle Le Le Bolander is home in Arizona!

Our last day in Taiwan was a mix of emotions.  We were leaving a country that means so much to us and gave us our beautiful daughter.  We are also so excited to go home and introduce Le Le to her friends and family.

We spent the last day packing and making sure we had enough formula and bottles from Taiwan to last her as long as possible.  I think she has more luggage than we do!

On our way to the airport, Yuan Bo wanted to take us to the Coca-cola museum.  This was oddly interesting.  I would have preferred a Dr. Pepper museum but since I never found a Dr. Pepper in Taiwan the entire trip, I dont think that would have been very successful!  I was nice to spend the last day we friends and hard to say goodbye!

Le Le's character is part of Coca Cola in Chinese.
I love that there is a music note too since her name
can meet with Happy Happy or Music.

Our Coke Group!

Le

Le

Saying Good-bye at the airport

Wish we were on the Hello Kitty plane but I guess it only goes to Japan!

Our first flight was 13 hours to LA and this flight has haunted me for weeks not knowing how it would go.  I am so proud of Le Le.  Although she didn't want to sleep the first half of the flight it was not beacuse she was fussy but beacuse she wanted to play.  It is hard to wish a happy baby to sleep!  She is such a trooper!  She slept in the basinet the entire second half of the flight.  Once we landed in the U.S. I was overcome with emotion.  Part of me felt like we just got away with something huge and the rest of me couldn't absorb the joy of making it this far.

Blogging at the airport with my sleepy girl.

She is so ready!

Xiao Gou and Le Le enjoying the flight from the bassinet.

In LA we saw a great little sign that said "Welcome to the United States of America"!  I wanted her to get a picture of her in from of it and we did and then we had to delete it.  Security was all over us!  I guess a picture in from of a sign on the wall is a security violation.  The security officer didnt even try to be nice about it.  Nice Welcome to the U.S. Le Le!  Well I was still excited we were able to bring her here and everyone else in immigration were great and so excited for us.

First Passport Stamp

Our Family United at Last.

I had no idea how great it was to an infant traveling. We skipped so many lines and and easily made it to our connecting flight to Phoenix easily.  During this flight we sat next to a Pilot hopping a ride.  She was so nice and very interested in our story.  She also offered all of her old baby items from her two girls.  It was such a nice gesture from a complete stranger.  She just wanted them to go to a good home. During this flight Le Le slept the entire flight and still won over the flight attendants!  I couldn't of asked for a better baby.  She continues to melt our heart as she gets to know us and grows with the help of a family.

When we got off the plane in Phoenix, we were greeted by my mom and dad and our friends Chad and Kayla and Josh, Dani, and Berkley!  We are so grateful that we have a great support system and so many others supporting us from afar.  She is going to be the luckiest little girl and we love her like crazy!  It will be so good to have her home and get on a routine eventually.

Now our Journey begins!

Nana grabbed her right up!

Grandpa had to beg a little to get some time!

Le Le gets kisses over and over again

and again. . . 

She got to take a ride on the luggage cart through the airport.

HOME
Thank You Aunt Kayla and Uncle Chad!  The balloon is a favorite.

Thank You Aunt Dani and Uncle Josh

Great Family Welcome Home!

There is no place like HOME

Catch Up

I am sitting in the airport playing catch-up with a beautiful little girl asleep on my chest.  What a wonderful feeling!  This is Brian’s favorite part of being a dad so far and she usually prefers him to me.  She is definitely a Baba’s girl!

Thursday:

Our first big outing as a family was to the zoo.  It takes a lot to get such a little thing to the zoo.  To all of you that are already parents then I am preaching to the choir but for me, this was a big event.  We were planning on using our Ergo Baby Carrier to build attachment while traveling on these outings but we did not take into account the heat!  She was so hot next to me and we felt horrible for her so we rented a stroller.  She is not a huge fan of the stroller.  This was her first time in a stroller and she really wasn’t sure what to think but she definitely preferred to be held. 

The zoo was Hot but enjoyable.  I couldn’t believe the cost.  It was only $2 each.  Seriously?!?!  The Panda was definitely the highlight but the Brown Bear was very entertaining coming right up to the glass.  Le Le enjoyed anything she could see up close.  We are going to need to get her vision checked right away because we are not sure what she can actually see.  Vision issues are common with prematurity and if she needs glasses, mom and dad are definitely in the know all!  The Taipei Zoo was so big and I wish we had the time and stamina to see more of it! 

I was told this says Taipei Zoo?!?!

Loved the Panda!

Colorful Poop

Bear was right next to the window and Le Le loved it!

After the zoo, we realized that a rash we noticed at the orphanage on her back had now spread to her arms and legs.  She was developing clusters of blisters.  They didn’t seem to bother her but she also doesn’t care about all her mosquito bites that would drive me nuts.  We decided to take her to the doctor.  She has a Taiwan Health Card, which allowed us to see a pediatric specialist for $3.  She is a pretty cheap date.  They think the rash developed from the heat since she used to be bundled all the time.  He also thinks she has some form of allergic reaction since she developed a hive on her face.  It is so heartbreaking!  Luckily this very expensive visit included her oral medications and topical cream.  I wish my healthcare cost us only $3 and we didn’t even have to go to a pharmacy. They were all inclusive!  I am happy to report that this is all clearing up nicely and no new patches have shown up.  As for the Mosquitos, they still love her!

Poor little rash

Now that we were all very very exhausted, Brian offered to get take-out and we all passed out! 

Friday:

Sleeping in the car is now my new favorite thing, both for Le Le and me!  Today we got up early to go to Yilan.  This is a city along the east coast and we were planning on going to the beach and watching the surfers but it was too hot so we went museum hopping.  The first museum included history of Taiwan and Yilan in particular.   The second was designed like an old street in Taiwan with shopping, music, opera, food, etc.  This was pretty fun and tons of great unique shops!  We found Le Le some dragon slippers.  She seemed to like all the new sites and sounds.   What we both loved the most was the trip to and from Yilan since we could catch up on some sleep.

Chinese opera

Le Le might not like the stroller but Xiao Gou does!

We were thrilled to go with some old school friends Max and Charlene!  Last time we were in Taiwan they had just had Sophie and now she is so big and they have added Ian!  This is an amazing family who we have fell in love with!  Yuan Bo was also with us but he is always with us!!! 

We have some pretty great friends that have been so wonderful to take us out and make sure we have everything we need.  We couldn’t be more grateful.  Brian asked once why everyone was so willing to help out and Yuan Bo said that first it is because we are HIS friends and second it is because we adopted from Taiwan.  I can feel the love they have for us and particularly Le Le.  She will be so loved in two worlds so far away from each other!

Yuan Bo and Le Le

Saturday:

Saturday Yuan Bo introduced us to a whole new group of friends!  This included: David and Amanda with their two little girls, Bella (Annabella) and Leena.  They are a beautiful family and have really helped us out on this trip with needed advice.  David is from the UK and it was awesome to have English speakers around!  Nick and Michelle also came with their daughter who is another Le Le!  Her English name is Emma and she is flat out adorable.  She is only 1 month older than our Le Le.  We quickly found out that Nick was in the same surfing class as Brian and I when we were going to school in Hawaii!!!  What are the odds?!?!  It was so great to have other kids around for Le Le and she thrived.  She has a long way to go with socialization but is doing so well.  

Surfing class!  So many great friends in this picture.

We met everyone at a great little brunch place.  When you order your entrée you also get a soda, guava juice, and dessert (banana bread).  It seemed like such an event.  The conversation was great since there were a lot of English speakers.  From there we went to a pottery museum in Yin Ge.  They are well known for their pottery.  I found this museum fascinating and Le Le enjoyed napping again.  The napping was good since we hung out with the other Le Le’s (Emma) for a few hours after and Le Le enjoyed having some time to get down and play!

Brunch

Museum with Bella and Leena

Le Le and Le Le

Sunday:

Church was a big event for us in Taiwan.  Brian knew many of the congregation and they were so excited to see all of us.  He was even asked to speak in church minutes before the meeting.  He did a beautiful job but I am sure it was difficult seeing Le Le in the crowd and trying to talk about his many blessings in Chinese. 

At church with Zhong Mama

Sophie loves Xiao Gou

After church we had lunch at a dear friend of Brian’s and they made us some great dumplings.  Le Le loved playing in their little play area and is adjusting great.  She was able to even do more of this with all the couples we met earlier for a dinner by Yuan Bo later that night.  His food was amazing but it was the company we enjoyed.  I’m so glad that Le Le will always have a second family in Taiwan and we even suggested that when the girls become teenagers then we can do a foreign exchange with them.  Such an awesome idea!

Flora and her family.
We gave the youngest her English name Fiona last year.

How many family members can you fit on a scooter?

Play Time

Bella, Sophie. and Leena

Getting all the girls is a challenge!

Sunday was pretty rough for me.  I developed a horrible middle ear infection with pain and constant drainage.  By Sunday night I was miserable and didn’t sleep more than 1 hour.  We went to the doctor first thing in the morning and he laughed as I suggested flying that night!  He put me on topical and oral medications.  I also needed a pain reliever to make it through the day and the flight.  Again, I love Taiwan Healthcare.  I am self pay and the office visit and all the meds came to $20.  I wish I could tell you that I was feeling a lot better but I’m not.  I feel so bad for little kids with multiple ear infections.  I am just praying that I will make it on the flight!  Nothing will keep me from bringing home my beautiful daughter. 

Over the last few days, we have been staying with the Liu Family.  This was very generous.  They have been great taking care of us.  The only difficult part is hauling Le Le and all our luggage up 4 flights of stairs!  Their home is beautiful and goes straight up!

We are all now getting very eager for our flights home and we can’t wait to introduce her to all of our family and friends!

She fell asleep like this!