On Saturday, we celebrated six sweet months with this precious girl!
Ha! This one has made these past six months FLY by. I don't know if it's her personality or the fact that she's the fourth and just has to be more go with the flow…but Madeley Moo (what we affectionally call her) has made this an incredibly easy, delightful, fun, and full of love six months.
…and our lives have been forever changed.
Miss Madeley has really blossomed these last six months, but I would say that over the last month, she's made the biggest strides. All of a sudden, she's "getting it". She's picking up the language at a much faster rate, and she has too many words to count now…she says so many things this month that she didn't even say last month. For example, we were in the car this week and she was trying to be funny and of course, wanted the other three to watch her and she kept saying "hey guys, hey guys, hey guys" over and over again so that they would watch her be funny. Who taught her that? Clearly, she picked it up from just watching us interact. She's way more physical now than even a month ago too. She can climb on and off the furniture with ease, go up and down stairs like a champ, scoot around on the tricycle, and has mastered the slide at the park. She's just growing by leaps and bounds in all departments.
As far as her diet goes, remember when we got her, she had been on an all formula diet for her entire life and didn't even know how to swallow simple things like yogurt. But…she has come a long, long way! Her favorite foods are protein. She wants all the eggs, bacon, chicken, ground beef, fish and such. She likes carbs like rice, pasta, and potatoes but isn't in to packaged food (she passes on things like goldfish crackers and cereal for the most part). She likes veggies if they're soft (she loves avocado and can't get enough guacamole) but does not want to eat a crunchy carrot. And I do not believe I've ever seen her eat fruit. Ever. Not even a banana. For some reason, she is not into fruit AT ALL.
This one is very smart! Her receptive language is amazing. I can ask her to do tasks that require multiple steps and she does them every time. She already knows simple things like when she walks in the house, she hangs her little bag on her hook and then sits down and takes off her shoes and puts them on the bottom step (like the big kids do). She now drags the little stool into the kitchen from the pantry any time she wants to see me cook or bake and she's constantly asking to go outside and play. She is also really, really funny! She may not have a large vocabulary but boy…she can make a joke without words. She is a little ham!
This kiddo right here is so SPUNKY! Her little personality is HUGE but at the same time, she is the most content and the happiest of all of our babies. She's all smiles the minute she wakes up and all smiles when it's time to go to bed (and every minute in-between). I know that I'm gushing…but Madeley James Shull deserves it. She has been pure joy for our family. Over spring break while we were on vacation, the three big kids would argue at EVERY SINGLE MEAL who got to sit next to Madeley and I said to Andrew, "shouldn't the newness of her have worn off?!" and we laughed because I really think as the youngest, she's always going to be the baby and everyone is always going to be vying for her attention…AND SHE EATS IT UP!
Here's the deal friends, if you have ever considered adding another kiddo to your family via adoption YOU SHOULD. What if we wouldn't have gotten these two girls? What if we would have let fear, anxiety, worry about the unknown or money stop us from doing this? What would have happened to them? We would have missed out on so much! They are amazing little girls and there are literally millions more out there just like them looking for forever families. If you feel a calling to be someone's forever family, ACT ON IT. Your sweet kiddo is out there waiting on you.
This makes my heart so happy! What a great reminder of God's love in what has been recently such a hard time for your family! Thanks for sharing your journey with adoption!
Happy 6 months to Madeley! What a bundle of joy, my heart warmed up reading this post.
The change in her appearance alone from Gotcha day to now says EVERYTHING! She's just adorable.
I love how much she is thriving! This post makes me miss my little China gal this morning. I can't wait to bring our number four home. Adoption is amazing! Thank you for being an advocate!
Oh, and I hope my other three are one day fighting over who gets to sit next to our little peanut as well.
Love these updates!!!! What a sweet little spirit Madeley has! ?
Love these updates – she seems like such a JOY to be around!
That was the perfect description of Miss Madeley! What a joy she is!
Oh, Madeley! She is such s precious girl! So fun and sweet! Her smile is the best! I am so thankful you followed the call to adopt and for that beautiful girl!
Love reading these updates – she just looks so happy, I can imagine what a joy she is!
Maybe she would like a "milkshake" fruit smoothie. Have a blessed day.
I love your driveway. Is it brick or stamped concrete? It looks different then the brick driveways in my neighborhood. (Suburb of Chicago). Thanks!
What a cutie and a blessing!
Awww how sweet your family is just the sweetest. Also I received my Kids in the Kitchen cookbook yesterday and it's so cute can't wait to sit and read it.
She is just absolutely adorable! I'm so glad that God sent you & your family to her.
Adorable! Love your adoption updates.
Sweet girl! All your kiddos are so sweet. Madeley just blends in perfectly!
Your adoption posts are some of my favorites! I love seeing the way your sweet girls just belong with your family! Absolutely precious!
Oh I love her!!! I just want to give an auntie cheek squeeze and cuddle her up.
We adopted a 12 year old from China 4 years ago, and we named her Marin….her nickname is Marin Moo. and I always call her moo moo, lol. Adoption is the BEST.
What a sweet girl! I can't believe it's already been 6 months. It seems like you just went to pick her up. So glad she's home!
oh it seems like she has been with you forever!
and how she has sprouted surrounded by your love.
She is thriving, Shay. Just thriving! What a special little girl you have there. I know that you are so blessed to be able to call her yours forever. I can't believe that it's already been a half a year! Where is the time going?
It seems like a silly question, but is there an age limit on how old the parents can be to adopt?
Yes! Different countries have different limits, but yes.
This is so true! We know that adoption is something God has called us to do right now! There are many scary parts about all types of adoption. Right now we are fundraising and working on a lot of grants to try to come up with the funds but we have been so blessed and humbled by all the people that desire to help and pray for us. We could not be more thankful that the fears didn't stop us from the journey we are on!
Madeley Moo! I've been called Mindy Moo since the day I was born… I'm now 30 and people STILL call me "Moo". She's such an adorable little girl!
Great update! We leave to pick up our 2 year old boy from China in less than 2 months. We can't wait!
I love these posts sooo much!! Fisher says "hey guys" allll the time too!! They would be besties!!! She has just blossomed so much!! I love watching her change.
You have such a beautiful family!! I love her fave-foods of the moment. But, what kid doesn't like bananas??? Especially since she loves squishy avocado! Glad to hear she has figured out oh-so many things and is growing into such a strong spunky little girl!
Oh Madeley is just the sweetest! I love reading these posts! Glad to see she is doing awesome!
It is SO wonderful to hear how she is doing. 'Hey guys, hey guys, hey guys!' How funny is that!? And the fact that she doesn't like fruit is so interesting to me. Does Ashby? Thank you so much for keeping us posted – you (and Madeley) are such an inspiration!
Love reading updates! In the picture of you holding Madeley, what lip product were you wearing and how did you get your hair to look like that (if you can recall haha)?
I had to go back and see…in my head, I was like "my hair was probably super dirty that day…it always looks better on dirty days!". Ha! And I have no clue what lip color that is. Sorry!
Love reading your updates! We are in the midst of adopting a little one internationally and the wait is painful at times! But, we know this is where we are supposed to be and trust that God's timing is always absolutely perfect. Thanks again for your constant encouragement to step out in faith.