Looking back at the past week I'm amazed at the progress we've made with Jessica. It's still baby steps but those steps are getting bigger and more frequent. Our visit last Tuesday went well; Jess was a little guarded but the interaction was good, thanks again to the boys. We talked about our weekend plans and even did a little arm wrestling. Jess went and got some paper & pencil crayons, and sat on the kitchen floor with one of her foster-sisters. While they stenciled Angel & I sat down on the floor too, not far from where Jess sat, and played cards. We chatted back & forth, doing our own thing, before Jess decided to go out and play. We were the ones who prompted her to dress warmly, and out the door she went. After about 15 minutes of chatting with Brigitte & Dale we suddenly remembered that Jess had homework! So I went out & called Jess in, and once again she's on the kitchen floor doing math questions. Angel helped her with homework before it was time for her bedtime routine. Before we left we told her we would call the next day, see her on Thursday and call on Friday. She asks us, "You're not coming over Friday?"
It's Thursday afternoon, and Jess is playing street hockey with the boys. She greets us enthusiastically and whacks me with her long scarf. However things are still on her terms, as she won't let me return the favor. We all have a quick supper of soup & grilled cheese sandwiches before heading out the door for Jess' swim lesson. Jess rides with us as we follow Brigitte and Dale in her car. The atmosphere is a little tense, as this is the first time Jess has ever been alone with us. We talk about our Saturday plans for West Edmonton Mall to pass the time and calm the nerves, but as soon as we arrive Jess bolts from the car and makes a bee line for Brigitte. Angel & I exchange a look, and then head inside. We make our way onto the pool deck, find a seat, and shortly afterwards Jess comes out of the change room all wet from her shower. This is good for her and bad for me, as she decides to spray me with her wet hands... She jumps in the water with her class mates and looks at us occasionally. We smile at her and she smiles back. "Wanna see me do back-flips?" And with that she's underwater, showing off her skills to us. The car ride back is much more relaxed, and there's no running for the door when we arrive back at the foster-home. As we all sat at the kitchen table Angel & I feel like some more of those baby steps were taken. Maybe she's starting to like us...
Saturday morning - the day of the big outing. We wonder what space Jess will be in, as she didn't want to come to the phone when we called the night before. When we arrive we find Jess a little apprehensive, as she had to give Brigitte more than one good-bye hug. But we come prepared with an ice-breaker; knowing she likes Grease and Michael Jackson, we brought a CD of each to play. "Thriller" was just what the doctor ordered here, and we arrive at WEM all ready for adventure. Our first stop was the candy store, where Angel spent a bit more money on Jess than she realized; the cost of jelly-beans, it turns out, adds up really fast... Next stop was Galaxyland, where we all did the "Swing of the Century" ride. Jess went on the bumper cars and then the two of us went on the roller coaster; thankfully we did this before and not after lunch. We went back into Galaxyland afterwards to play some games; unfortunately I was having so much fun I didn't realize that I had misplaced my digital camera, with photos of our outing on it. I made the best of it, as I didn't care about the camera so much as the pictures on them. Then, after checking out the "Twilight" stars who came to the mall, some window shopping, a show at the Sea Lions Rock and a tour of the Sea Caverns it was time for supper and then back home. Jess was disappointed that it was time to go! We saw the progress made through the day, where Jess felt comfortable bugging both of us and telling us about her likes. It was one of the happiest days of my life.
Yesterday morning we arrive to pick up Jess for church. Today it's a quick goodbye hug for Brigitte and we're out the door. We hit Tim Horton's for donuts first, as we're earlier than we thought, then we arrive just before the service starts. Last Sunday we announced that we would bring Jess with us to church, and asked everyone to play it cool so as not to overwhelm her. In spite of people giving us our space the experience is still a bit much for her, and after 1/2 hour she asks us if we can leave. Once we do Jess becomes more lively, which tells us she was anxious since we first picked her up. We head to South Edmonton Common and browsed in Wal Mart, where "Dad" became Jess' hero. Just what did I do? Nothing much, I just happened to spy the last set of Jonas Brothers bed sheets. Oh, did I mention Jess is nuts about the Jonas Brothers? After purchase of said sheets we hit Chucky Cheese's for lunch and more games. Dale joins us there and is encouraged by the progress we've made. After browsing Michael's crafts and a trip to IKEA to buy some things for Jess's room we have supper and a quick browse through Future Shop before heading back. We leave feeling exhausted from the weekend, but also feeling good about how far we've come. We learned a lot about Jess (like not to give her too much sugar!) and even though our conversations were light for the most part, we did talk a little about how she felt about things like her church experience that morning. But the icing on the cake was when we asked to give her a goodbye hug, and she said yes.
It was a nice hug too :)
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