I am continuing to answer a reader's email questions directly in my blog so I can share with everyone. The other questions that I've answered this week were: Food and Eating in Viet Nam, Wait Times and Expectations, Air Travel and Time in Viet Nam and Our Hotel in Viet Nam. I enjoy hearing from my readers, so if you ever have any questions or comments, please leave a comment below or email me at rebeccah@adoptionblogs.com.

How did the first few weeks go after returning home?

The first few weeks home were difficult. Looking back now, it’s all kind of a blur, but I think that’s probably some kind of survival mechanism kicking in! :) We were all incredibly sleep deprived, jet lagged and trying to adjust to being back at home. It definitely took a good few weeks (months, even!) for us to figure out some kind of schedule and feel like we had some kind of grasp on this new parenting thing.

As hard as it was, though, I wouldn’t trade those days for anything. I feel like the struggles kind of cemented us as a family, and we’re that much stronger for persevering. The biggest hurdle for us was getting on a sleep schedule. Today Ella is an amazing sleeper, but it took five or six months for us to get to that point. Writing this post makes me realize how easy it is to forget those early days!

My husband had to return to his teaching job only a few days after we got home, so that was quite a shock for all of us. When it was the three of us in Viet Nam with no other responsibilities, things were much easier. I am so grateful that we had that uninterrupted time together. As soon as we got home there was laundry to do, meals to prepare, a house to manage, bills to pay, cats to feed and all the other everyday stuff that seems a million times harder to accomplish once there’s a baby on your hip. Just getting a shower was (and still is) a huge feat to be proud of!

We had prepared some things in advance that made our home coming a bit easier. I had months worth of frozen meals ready to go, and that was incredible – I highly recommend doing that if possible. I had also purchased baby cereal and formula, so it was ready to go when we wanted to start transitioning her from her Vietnamese cereal and formula. Also, if you have friends or family members offering support, take it!

Despite all the new things that we had to get used to, it was fun too. Learning how to live a whole new life with the title of “Mom” can be exhausting, but it really is an amazing process. Every single little bump in the road or huge screaming, tears inducing baby disaster still made us feel extremely lucky. Our outlook has always been that we are grateful for having the chance to raise Miss Ella and we’ll take the bad right along with the good.


Photo © Rebecca Hess 2007 - this was taken about a week after we got home, when Ella turned 7 months old.

More Reading:
Post Placement Visit
Adjusting to Life at Home
The Power of Time

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