1. Benadryl
2. Jet lag is a beast so be prepared for it to be miserable.
We stayed in a hotel on Wednesday night once we landed in Korea and the girls did well sleeping in one room with all of us but they only slept like 4-5 hours. It was new and they know something is changing so they were either waking up because of the newness or waking up to eat. The plane also went better than expected. Maddy was realizing that the people around her weren't trying to touch her and notice her so she calmed down quite a bit and actually slept on the 13 hour flight. Emma did as well but I had to hold her and nurse on demand. Nate did a great job with taking care of Madeline and all her needs on the whole flight while I was attached to Emma. We landed in Augusta at 3 p.m. on Thursday and took a short afternoon nap. The girls have done well with sleeping for the most part. Jet lag is a beast though. For those of you who may not know, jet lag is the adjustment when you travel through different time zones. Right now it is 3:15 p.m. on Sunday but our bodies feel like it is 3 a.m. on Monday because we were 12 hours ahead. Parents cannot get over jet lag until their kids do so it has been an exhausting few days.
Thursday night - Maddy woke up screaming at a 3 and Emma woke up at 11:30 - They both screamed for 1 hour or so because they can't figure out why they are sleeping when it should be afternoon play time.
Friday night - Maddy woke up at 3 and Emma woke up at 3. Emma seems to be doing better but Maddy still can't make it past the 3 a.m. mark.
Saturday night - Maddy up at 1, 2, 3, and 4 a.m. and Emma finally made it straight through the night.
Jet lag is horrible! Emma has done better with jet lag because she naps more during the day than Maddy. Maddy has had a horrible time. Between the combination of sleeping near us and not in her own room and getting over jet lag, Maddy spends the evenings screaming her guts out. She chooses not to sleep and wants to play instead. We are exhausted because we are just as messed up but can't help her see why she's so confused.
Right now we are both EXHAUSTED! I am choosing to avoid a nap right now because when I wake up from that much needed afternoon nap it takes me 1-2 hours just to regain composure. By the time I am awake enough to care for my kiddos it's time to eat dinner and go to bed. Maddy isn't sleeping and no matter how much was try to help her sleep she just wants to play instead. These past few days have been rough. I know it will get better but living through the day to day is hard. It's so hard to care for your kiddos when you are absolutely exhausted yourself. I feel like a mom of a new born all over again. However, I think I got more sleep with a newborn than I am right now. Nathan is doing a great job of being patient and gracious to Maddy, which I appreciate so much. Please lift us up!
Tomorrow we start looking at houses and our goal is to keep looking until we have made an offer. We want to get into a home as soon as possible. One advantage to living in China is that our standards for a home are very different. Let me explain: We have lived in apartments in the states and 4 in China. I don't have a dream home! I only really want three things: 1. Kitchen counter space 2. Bedrooms for the kids away from our room (so their crying doesn't drive me insane) and 3. Closeness to things so I can't bemoan not getting out. When you live in apartments in China your definition of "dream" changes. I had some quirky living spaces in China. My washing machine was in the bathroom. The shower was right over the toilet. You had to climb on the sink just to get to the mirror above it. I have experienced weird so this search is much more practical. I do want a house I love but my requirements aren't what they'd be if I were buying my first home pre-China. We want a home that meets the above standards and we want it before school starts. So, our process begins tomorrow.
On Wednesday we are taking Madeline to see a pediatric neurologist. Maddy has not been having those long seizures like she has had in the past that required hospitalization but she has been having these short 1 minute or less episodes that are alarming us. She will be playing and then run to you and be super cuddly. She snuggles you and you can hear her doing a clicking/chewing/swallowing noise as you hold her. Her eyes are glazed over and she looks in your general vicinity. After the 30 seconds to 2 minutes that they last she is extremely tired and cuddly for the next 5-10 minutes. We hope to get some answers as to what is going on.
Well, that is our schedule for the next little bit. We are back in the US but still feel a little out of sorts. I think it hasn't hit us yet that we are here for good. Nothing is different yet. I guess time will change that. In the meantime, your prayers are needed.
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