She's Loves Me!!!

And I absolutely LOVE it! Miss Marley is doing wonderful! She's becoming so attached to me, and it's just such an amazing and monumental thing. I rarely hear many adoptive families talk about the attachment or bond, or lack thereof, with their adoptive child. Admitting that things may not be right can be hard. While at the same time, the boding process goes very smoothly for some families and not so with others. Ours has been pretty smooth. When Marley first came into our arms, she was hesitant. The best way to explain it would be to imagine your child, your baby being taken away and parented by a stranger. Marley is a happy, social baby. She gave us smiles and laughs from the moment she placed into our arms. She did, however, hold back on love. She really didn't know what to do when we wanted to hold her and kiss on her for hours on end. She didn't like to be held to often and would resist being too close. I'm not sure she had formed any kind of attachment before.
For me, I feel like it's easier to identify any non-attachment issues because I have an attached child. I've heard of first time adoptive parents having the mother's intuition as well. Over the past two months, Marley has definitely become a Mama's girl. She wines for me when I leave her sight, or when someone else is holding her near me. She snuggles into my chest and loves to give me kisses. She seeks me out when she is tired, hurt or in an unfamiliar place. I am simply happy. We had some really good quality Mommy & Marley time today. Gosh, this little girl is just such an amazing gift. I'm so glad she has come into our lives. She loves me, she really loves me!
Today was the day I realized that Marley considers me her Mommy! Today. We had some playtime, just us. I realized that we have so many games that just her and I get. She thinks I'm hilarious. She needs me, as her comforter, her nurturer, her guide, her teacher, her Mommy. As I was getting her ready for bed I fed her a bottle, she was cradled in my arms, her eyes closing and opening. The grunting noises she makes while drinking her bottled made me smile. She paused to make sure I was still there, took the bottle out of her mouth, and gave me the biggest smile. She squinted her eyes, scrunched up her nose and just let me absorb the beauty of her happiness. I held her tightly, pulled her up to my face and gave her Eskimo kisses, she gave me a belly laugh in return. The smell of baby, my baby is just perfect. I have loved this girl for years. For years, I waited for this day, the day that she loves me back!