How is Isabella...

I haven't been blogging much these days... my little Pearl/Habenero Pepper keeps me quite busy.  I am amazed at how far our Isabella has come in her healing.  I have no doubt that it is Jesus answering our prayers of healing for her little mind and heart.  (I will just start by saying that for some reason I have had a difficult time writing down my thoughts, emotions, pretty much anything for  a while now... so once again my words will fail to express all that I want to say about my beloved daughter.) 
My little Pearl is sweet and spicy.... she amazes me at how smart she is, how resourceful she is, how creative she is, how determined she can be, and how strong willed she is.  She is my adventure baby.  I am such a wuss at times so I am amazed that the Lord thinks I can handle my daughter growing up to be a stunt woman or something..... if one of my kids will do something it will be the littlest one... in fact she comes up with things that the other two never dreamed of.... like putting the sit and spin on our narrow coffee table, sitting on it and spinning while she calls her big sister to come join her.  (who thinks of that?!)  She is my little monkey and I still am amazed that she had an opportunity to study chimpanzee behavior in the orphanage.... yet so many times she emulates one of these little cuties... the way she shakes her head no with such enthusiasm, just like a little monkey... you just have to see it, and oh, how she loves to climb... "oh, dear"...
If it is electronic and has buttons, she figures it out no problem, even if her help was not called upon.
Her little voice is just so adorable you can't help but smile.  She has this deep, throaty voice and a big ol' belly laugh that just brings a smile to your heart.  She works those sweet, beautiful pouty lips to pout and to kiss... sometimes she puckers and draws close so you will give her a kiss, she can get those little lips coming at you just like the aforementioned monkeys.  It is too cute!
In some ways she is doing amazing.... she has only gone into a rage I think once in the last 3 months!  This is God!!!  We know first hand that when a child rages, it is not months in between!  If you go for days with out one, it is amazing.  It takes years for healing.... But the Lord has answered our prayers and she is doing amazing.  In the beginning she had no regulation on her emotions, my Bella was on survival mode and her emotions were turned all the way on high... if it was fear, anger, or happy, what ever the mood was, she was in full force.  But she has quickly learned to regulate these emotions for the most part and once again I just have to say, "thank You Jesus."  Her tantrums are less and less.  She does not bang her head and feet as often and does not kick as often.  She is not having as many meltdowns as before when I hug my Hannah or she sits with me... although it does still happen several times a day.  Bella has a difficult time sharing mommy.  She had me all to herself the first two weeks in China, then we get home and she finds out she has to share me and she struggles in this area.  But she is making progress.  She loves her big sister but she will also push her, hit her, pinch her, bite her, kick her, pull her hair.... hmmmmmm have I left out anything... lol  She is getting better and better about not doing this as much but when Peep has something she wants she will do whatever is necessary to get it!  Being an only child growing up, I confess, I was living in a dream world..... I expected MY girls to get along famously, the best of friends.... oh, they would be so delighted to have a sister.  wellllllllllllllll, they are getting along FAMOUSLY! heehee  For the most part they really do get along well, but we have some growing to do.
Isabella is finally starting to sleep better through the night... some nights she is even sleeping all the way through and this is one thankful mama!  With both of my daughters having night time issues, this was one sleep deprived mama and I was loosing it for a while.... so I am thanking God for answering this prayer also and for letting me get some sleep.  I still greet each day with screams of anger coming from my little Pearl until I can make it the approx. 15 feet from my bed, and into the girls room and pick her up.  Then, she melts into my arms and all is right in the world again.....
My baby girl is filled with love and laughter and she just makes the world a better place.... and she gives of herself... we are a very dramatic family.... my kids are very entertaining in their  quirky, goofy little ways, (I can't imagine where they get it from... lol)  Nick and Hannah will be silly and make you laugh, but they often are doing it because they love to be the center of attention.  Bella will do things to make you laugh, but she does it to entertain you.... it is like she is doing it for you, not her... and she is so stinkin' funny... I am sitting here typing with a smile on my face as I see the funny little faces she makes and things she does in my mind.
She loves the water!  She is my little water baby and is always in the water... she will play for hours in her water table, then come inside and get in trouble for playing with the water in the bathroom sink, then move on to play in the dog's water... uggggg  She is a hands on girl!  She loves to sing and dance and she sings with such passion.... she scrunches up her little nose and shakes her head back and forth with her little arms held wide open and her eyes closed, (unless she is holding a microphone of coarse).  I always sang to Nicholas and Hannah when they were little to help them go to sleep... I cannot do that for Izzy... if I am in the girls room trying to put them to bed and I start singing a soft, slow song.... my little Pearl races out of bed and starts dancing and singing along.  It is so funny and too cute.  She likes to color and her favorite cartoon to watch is the Pink Panther. lol  I never liked him much but Bella loves him.
I thought my little Peal was going to be this quiet little girl who would one day write poetry and play the violin.... HA!  She is adventurous, full of life and laughter, smart, funny, sassy, and a little mischievous.  She is my precious, beloved Isabella and oh, how I love her!  ( I confess, some days I really need her to write me a poem though.... heehee)

Thank You Jesus for my little Pearl...
 
These pics were taken when Isabella had only been home for a short while but I love them and wanted to share.