Adopting Juneau is definately one of the most wonderful things that has ever happened to our little family. We love her so much, and she fits in so perfectly. Every once in a while cris or i will comment on how it seems like she has always been a part of our family. I know everyone who adopts a child looks at things a little bit differently, but we look at Juneau's adoption as a one-time event. what i mean to say is that adoption is the way juneau became our daughter, but now that she s here she is just our daughter, not our adopted daughter. That being said, there have been a couple of things that have come up lately that have made me realize that i am probably handling things with her a little bit differently because she is adopted. For instance, Juneau is a typical one year old when it comes to going to sleep. Basically, she doesn't want to do it. Usually we take her up to her crib, lay her down, and then sit in the room with her until she falls asleep, which could sometimes be a VERY long time. The same thing at nap time. I want to get to the point where we can lay her in bed, and then just leave and let her fall asleep. The problem comes when she cries. I want her to know that we are going to be there for her, and i worry that by not going to her when she cries she will feel like she can't trust us. I think i worry about this more than usual because i'm not sure how things were for her in the orphanage for the first 10 months. I'm torn between wanting her to develop the habit of being able to go to sleep without someone sitting right next to her, and wanting to be there for her any second that she might need her mom or dad. I wonder how long it will be before i stop worrying that aspects of her behavior are related to her adoption. i worry so much about little things that probably have a lot more to do with her personality than her adoption. For example, Juneau isn't really a "silly" child. If you make funny faces, or talk silly to her she just kind of stares at you like something is seriously wrong with you. she doesn't have those giggle fits that a lot of little kids have. She seems happy overall, but doesn't really laugh a lot. I think she just has a very serious personality, but the contrast between her and Nova (who breaks into incessant giggling at random times) is striking. It's hard not to worry about her being unhappy or not well adjusted. it probably sounds like Juneau is ALWAYS serious and NEVER laughs. that isn't true, she does love to play, and definately laughs and giggles when Cris is playing with her, i think i'm just overly analytical of the situation because i want everything to be happy and wonderful for her.

The Magic of the Simultaneous Nap

"What? I meant to sit backwards in the bumbo. i can get out of this situation any time i want"

We like to say that Nova is an easy audience. She'll pretty much laugh at anything you throw at her.


Does it look like mass chaos in the Stickley home? Because it certainly feels like it!

addendum: i was just reading through this post, and I realized that neither Cris, Nova, or Juneau are wearing shirts in any of these pictures! that's a little embarrassing! I swear, the babies don't just run around in diapers only! They have a whole closet full of adorable clothes....seriously!