17 months old

Isaac has taken some huge leaps forward this past month. He has really started to become a little independent boy, knowing his likes and dislikes!
Today we went to the occupational therapist for an assessment through the adoption clinic at the Royal Alex hospital. I wasn't sure it would be worth going as I know Isaac is doing well and I really have no worries about how he is doing developmentally, but it was great to see him go through the testing! He did so well, the OT had him do a lot of copy cat games and I had no idea if he would go for it but he did! Every little game she had him do he would copy her and complete it. She was very impressed with were he was at and said he was up to par with where he should be at 18 months. Can you believe it????  Only 6 months ago this little baby was acting like a 6 month old, hardly able to sit up, unable to crawl and definitely not using his legs. I knew he could do all the games but at times he really did surprise me. She brought out a ball and showed him how to kick, to my amazement I watched as he walked up to the ball and not only kicked it but said "kick" as he did it! It's just all really amazing to me.
I had a moment in the car later on, just sat there bawling. It all hit me, God's grace, his protection, his favor. I prayed so hard for this boy before he was even born, I prayed even harder once I saw his face and knew he was waiting for us. I specifically prayed that Jesus would cover the time we were away from him, that he would watch over him. And it dawned on me in that moment that looking at Isaac today, it's like he was never in an orphanage at all. I often think of him when he was a baby just laying in his crib. It breaks my heart what my son had to go through in the most vulnerable year of his life. But today I realize all that Jesus protected him from and how far he has come since being in a family. It really floors me what love and a family can do. It's just a beautiful design. I was looking through some of our first photos of Isaac, when Arnie held him for the first time. He was looking right in his eyes like somehow he already trusted him, yes we had to earn his love, but I feel that God was preparing him for that.
So onto the little update...I'm changing some of the categories as I can't sit and list all his new words because there are a lot and some have stayed the same.

At 17 months you like to play:
-you love to run and climb, you insist that you should walk everywhere we go
-you still love things like little bottles with product in them, your toothbrush, packaging, spoons and lotion
-as far as toys you now like to throw them around and think that is pretty awesome
-you literally want everything we have, we try and let you be a part of what we are doing as we think the best toys are real life hands on things.
-you like things that play music and love to sing and dance

At 17 months you say the silliest things:
-you have so many new words and you are starting to string words together like: "more snack!"
-you say "ah-de-da" which means "give it to me" in Hungarian. You make us laugh with this one! You told the OT to give you the marker she was holding, she had no idea but I knew what you were saying!
-you also like to say "an-ge-da" which means "let it go" in Hungarian. You walked up to Daddy and looked at the pens that were hanging in his work pants pocket, you quicked yelled at him to let them go as we often say this to you when you are grabbing pens!
-your singing is so beautiful, you have been trying more and more to sing. You love the song "If your happy and you know it", you grab my hands and say happy so I will sing the song, everytime I sing the word happy you open your mouth and lip sing the word!
-the Dr said you should know 6-10 words, we told her you knew 11 in Hungarian and about 30 in total, she was amazed at that!
-I find that when you start to love someone, you learn their name. You say the names,  Papa, ungle(uncle), annie (aunty), Bobby, ma (grandma), Annie Yoyo (aunt lois), Booky (brooky), Addie, Oli, Rollie, Audrey, Emmy, Nunu (Nini), Gucky (Dak), and of course you most favorite to say DADA!!!!! (Mama too:))

At 17 months you weigh 20lbs, wear 6-12 month clothes and size 3-4 shoes. You love to wear your puppy slippers and will often wonder the house in a diaper and those slippers.

My favorite moments recently were:
-I rocked you to sleep a couple nights ago after a few minutes you puckered up to give me a kiss then snuggled into me and fell asleep, I was so shocked that you did that, it was so beautiful and kind.
-you have been working in the garage and working out with Daddy, he lets you follow him around and go on his back for push ups or take some tools to "fix" things.

The naughty things you do:
-you decided to be like the dogs and lap out of their water bowl...I just can't convince you it's yucky!
-you like to pull kleenex and wipes from their box as well as unroll toilet paper
-when I try to rinse your diapers in the toilet you like to take the opportunity to dive your hands in the water which is so disgusting and results in a lot of cleaning!
-you still love to squawk for things you want...you will correct yourself with the words, "help" or "please" but we have to remind you a lot ;)

We love you so much, we love laying around playing with you. You are so fun and full of life! You really have lighten up our lives :)

We did a little fall family photoshoot! 17 months old in these pictures and just figuring out walking alone!

Family Age

It's been 6 months since we became a forever family. To say these months have flown by is an understatement...I feel like I blinked and here we are! We are feeling more and more of a bond with everyday that passes. Our love for Isaac keeps growing, I can't explain to you how much we love this boy. You know when you here a good sappy story and your eyes well up? You don't full out cry or form tears that roll but emotions bring your eyes to well up. I get that almost everyday watching Isaac. I hate being the one that is all fairytales and sparkle dust because the reality of adoption is usually not that...but sometimes it is. Sometimes I look at Isaac and he runs to me to pick him up and hug him all silly then he bursts out laughing and in those moments the tears begin to form. Now I will be realistic, he is almost 18 months and with that bring a whole host of other emotions...like how I feel after I explained for the 50th time that he can not throw his food to the dogs, or the embarrassment of the shrieks in public, "no, no, no!" But it's all coming together, this imperfect, messy and beautiful life as a family. We are feeling like one. Isaac has always been ours but I'm at a point now when we go in public that I am almost shocked if someone thinks he isn't mine. I was extremely aware of the fact that Isaac is our son through adoption for the first few months of arriving home, but now I just don't think of it all the time. Occasionally I am very aware like when I attend my mom and baby workout classes, I often feel like an imposer at these, but I am thinking of it less. Maybe the fact that Isaac is my son is finally beginning to sink in, it's been a while since we have referred to ourselves as auntie and uncle!
Lately I have been thinking a lot of our family age. I find myself comparing to others with 18 month olds, they tend to be able to leave them easier, worry less about what they eat or play with, carry them less and not baby them as much...but I remind myself that our family age is only 6 months. In many ways we parent as if we have a 6 month old at home. We have been labelled the overachieving parents, in love of course, but it is true to say that of us. When we go in public you will often see us fussing over Isaac, pulling on his clothes, cleaning him, feeding him, and just generally over concerned with him. While this be hard for some people to understand or look to most people like we are over the top, to us he is 6 months old. I find myself mentally trying to catch up to his age. Like when he started to walk with confidence it was hard, and probably harder than people would understand, after all whose 5 month old walks by themselves?? And while I love watching Isaac grow, it's hard to see him grow out of being a baby. Sometimes I still see glimmers of his babyness and I almost sigh in relief that it is not all gone. When I lay him down to change his diaper he curls his legs up to look like a baby or when I rock him to sleep he will snuggle into me with his bottle or when I snuggle him up in my sling, I see bits of his baby side still lingering and I am in no hurry to see them vanish. While most people have long since rocked their baby to sleep at 18 months, I still do it as if it was the first week having him home. I watch him as his eyes fight to stay open and then finally give in to sleep and close. In these moments he is my 6 month old baby, I sigh and think "oh how sweet". So when people suggest I do away with these parts, carry him less, rock him less and baby him less...I just think they really don't understand that to me Isaac is 6 months new...and not 18 months old.
Don't get me wrong, I love to see Isaac grow and reach new achievements, nobody is prouder than us! But we do struggle with it, we were in no rush for him to walk, we were ok with him crawling for as long as he wanted and this should explain why. I am beginning to shift from baby to toddler in my mind, admitting that he is becoming a big boy, but I will still let the little baby parts of him linger for as long as he needs them to. So bare with us as we now begin to think of what it might look like for someone to watch him while we go on a date or the fact that he still sleeps in our bed or even that we haven't allowed him sugar yet... Trust me we will get there, it just might take us a little longer then usual :)

16 months old

I always intend to update more than once a month, but I am finding that life is just so busy...so finally here is the 16 month update.

At 16 months you like to play:
-you are starting to make friends, you like your cousins and have started to learn their names
-you are starting to ditch your baby toys and play with more "grown up" toys
-you love water, we have started swimming lessons which you like to be a part of
-you love your puppies and really enjoy playing in their cage

At 16 months you sleep:
-not much has changed but you are teething which sometimes keeps you up at night
-your naps have gotten longer which has been great, you will sleep almost 1.5 hours now!
-we absolutely love when you fall asleep in our arms, sometimes you fight it which is hard, but other times you curl right up and fall asleep. I don't ever want to forget these moments so I a lot of sleeping photos on my phone ;)

At 16 months you say:
-hioul (Hungarian for bend over) you say this when you want off the potty, you bend over so we can wipe... it's ridiculously cute
-stuck
-eper (H for strawberry)
-eni (H for food)
-wawa
-ora (H for nose)
I'm sure there are more I am forgetting, you also understand a lot... you understand both English and Hungarian as Daddy and I speak both to you. You have started to try singing and sing the word "Na" which is also ridiculously adorable.

At 16 months you eat:
-you eat whatever we eat, you like to beg off others and can't stand if someone has something you don't . The other morning Daddy gave you a banana and ate one himself, you put yours in one hand and reached the other out to Daddy's, you cried and whined because you wanted both bananas!
-you still dont eat sweets but last night at family dinner you snuck a mouth full of  whipped cream, we all laughed at how much you enjoyed it!

At 16 months you are developing:
-you can walk now!!!!!!!! You started to take your first steps. You still like to hold a hand to walk but you are slowly working up the courage to venture on your own
-I took you in to get properly weighed and you weigh 19.1 lbs,  you are still pretty little but very healthy so we aren't too worried.
-you sprouted your 7th tooth
-you love to climb at play places and parks
-you also like to help me with laundry and dishes, handing me each thing one at a time!

You friend, Emerson(10 weeks old), and you. 

I feel I need a new category now... the naughty things you do!
As you are gaining your independence you are learning what you can and can not do. You like to squeal when we take something from you or pick you up from something you are doing. You don't like if another kid takes your toys and will yell at them if they do so. You also like to touch everything, if mommy or daddy is doing something, you insist that you have to do the same. You have tried out swatting a few times, but we don't let you get away with this. You know when we say "Sapen" that you need to tough nicely.

We took you to Ontario to see your family, you loves seeing your aunties and cousins. You loved the beach and building in the sand. We enjoyed our time at the cottage. You did great on the airplane, thankfully a fairly short flight.

Sometimes we still worry about attachment and wonder if you feel safe, if we are overwhelming you with people or if you are ok. You started calling strangers mama which broke my heart but you seem to be getting over that now. You call "MAMA" about 50 times a day and I love it. We pray for wisdom as we try and put your needs above our own desires. We have missed some swimming classes and playdates to stay home and lay low. We are trying our best and pray God covers our mistakes!

We love every single day with you, you are the cutest thing we have laid our eyes on. You bring so much joy and make us laugh continually. We praise Jesus for giving you to us as I write this I have tears from my gratitude. We are so blessed!

15 months old

Well a month has gone by, I've been meaning to blog here and there but lately Isaac has needed me...a lot. He is growing into his toddler body and mind which means he has become very demanding :)

At 15 months you like to play:
-you still play mostly independently but you are starting to be more aware of others
-you notice when another child is over and they play with one of "your" toys...you immediately go over and start whining to have it, we are working on sharing!
-you love to be outside in your little playhouse slide and pool
-you love the swing at the park and the little driving wheels
-you enjoy bike rides and never complain about going in the chariot
-you still don't watch TV so we try to occupy you with other types of play, it's been so nice out so you have gone to the park many times to play with friends!

Adoption Playgroup!

At 15 months you sleep:

-you have had a few sleepovers with your cousins and friends

-you still sleep in our bed (we aren't ready for you to leave yet;)

-you have started to fall asleep facing me and snuggled right up next to me instead of your usual facing away from me...I really enjoy this time we have together

-you still fall asleep faster for Daddy but you actually enjoy bedtime as we always stay with you until you fall asleep so you have nothing to be afraid of

-you love to fall asleep in your ergo still which was great when we went to a wedding, we put you in your car seat and stayed out until 1030 (you know your parents when...)

Sleep over with cousins Rollie and Oli

Asleep at your first wedding...your so good to us

With your Ethiopian friend, Eli

At 15 months you say:

-hot

-NO (ugh...this one is getting tiring)

-Wee (for the slide)

-alma (apple in Hungarian)

-up (you spit on the p sound)

-ow don't do that (you learned that from biting me too many times!)

Every baby needs to have a bath in their sink at least once

At 15 months you eat:
-you still aren't picky but you have shown more interest in some foods than others. You don't really like raw lettuce but Daddy makes you eat it anyways!  You will eat spicy food, sour food and just about anything else. You made your first sour face at a lemon...so cute!
-you love bananas so much that we can't leave them on the counter or you will beg for them
-the only issue we see arising is that you want everyone's food, if someone has something you want you will take it from them or at least try to!
-you still haven't had any sugary treats ;)

you love corn, bananas, peaches

 At 15 months you are developing:
-you are almost walking! You took your first falling step...we aren't sure it counts but you are getting close!
-you haven't grown too much in the last month but I can see some new chunk on your thighs which makes me very happy!
-you have started going on the potty! You poo every morning and every time we put you on the potty throughout the day you either pee or poo! Lately I have had to clean very few poopy diapers which is so amazing! We still can't believe you use the potty before you can walk!
-you are understanding a lot more words and Daddy has been speaking only in Hungarian to you which you are catching on to.

We continue to thank God daily for you life. Although this is a demanding time and you require a lot from us, we remind ourselves that a day will come where you won't need us anymore. You grab my fingers and make me walk with you wherever it is you want to go, sometimes I am so tired but I always get up and go...soon you will walk on your own and you won't need my hand to help you so I am enjoying it while it is here. You love being carried still and will follow me around saying, "up,up,up". We all feel very attached to each other...sometimes you reach for strangers which breaks my heart but it reminds me that attachment takes time. You love Dada and shout for him whenever you hear the door open, you also learned that Daddy drives a white truck, if you see one on the street you point and yell, "Dada"! You also love me, there was a time I wasn't sure you did...but you have made it clear that I am your Mama. We have a special bond, when I feed you your milk and rock you to sleep we have so many great moments...they always remind me of the first time I held you...you were mine and always will be.

14 months

I am writing this a few days early... I have time now so I want to make sure I get it done!! Again the time is flying past, I wish we could make it slow down somehow :)


At 14 months you like to play:
-you figured out how to go down a slide. We went to Cafe o play and you figured out how to crawl up the baby slide stairs, get yourself in seated position at the top and then push yourself down the slide. A friend brought you over you very own slide which you love playing with in the backyard!
-you also love being driven in cars. Daddy bought you your first car and you love climbing all around in it. You figured out to motion and call out to me to pick you up, once you are in my arms you point and call for me to put you in the car! Smart little boy!
-you love playing in your pool
-you have gotten a lot more brave and will crawl all over the yard now. You want to crawl at the park and climb on things.



At 14 months you say:
- today you learned the sign for snack, I showed you once then a while later asked if you wanted a snack...to my surprise you signed the word after only being shown one time and hours earlier.
-your cousin Dakary was here for two weeks visiting, you learned to say Duck and sometimes call her Guck!
-When I say silly face, you close your eyes and make the cutest little face
-When I say angry face you frown and shake your head like you are stressed out. We laugh so hard when you do this as we have no idea where it came from!
-we think we heard you say "no" but not sure if it was an accident

Silly face

Angry face

At 14 months you sing:
-We sing "no more monkeys jumping on the bed" When I get to that line you shake your finger and try to sing but your words come out "dadadada"
-you fall asleep to Jesus Loves Me or any hymn I can remember the words to
-Pat a cake
-sleeping bunnies

At 14 months you sleep:
-one to two naps a day of about 1 hour each
-12 ish hours a night
-you have been waking up twice for water, you drink it and fall back asleep

At 14 months you have grown:
-you now weigh 18.8 pounds
-you have been especially whiny lately... and then we noticed a tiny white spot on your gums! Your growing your 5th tooth!
-you have been doing more standing for a few seconds on your own, but you don't like to do it
-you turn yourself around at the top of the stairs and go down them! Again, Dada showed you one time and you learned how to do it!

At 14 months you like:
-your mom and dad. You have been showing us more and more affection lately...putting your head down on our shoulder, hugging us and kissing us. Just tonight you were in the tub with Daddy when you pointed at me to come to you. I came over and you leaned over the tub to kiss me on the lips! You did it five times. I had tears in my eyes, I can't believe you are showing us this kind of love already. You are such a brave boy to trust us the way you do. You now cry if you see me leaving the house, I rarely leave and if I do it is to run a quick errand usually. We honestly can't get enough of your cuddles, kisses and hugs, we cherish everyone you give.

Isaacs mosaic aunties

We had the privilege of going out for dinner with some of our favorite people. These women have prayed for Isaac since before he was born... and finally it was their chance to meet him. If only Isaac knew all the love that was at our table tonight...and maybe he could feel it as he sure was showing off for the ladies this evening!
These are the ladies who run the Mosaic Centre, the place Arnie and I volunteer. They have hearts of gold. On our drive home, Arnie says, "Why do you have a big grin on your face, what are you thinking about?" My response, "Those ladies just make you feel like a million bucks." I think when you spend all your time serving others, you end up looking like Jesus. I look at these women and their faces glow, they are truly beautiful in every way. Arnie and I have always looked up to them, he has said on many occasions that he feels they are his mentors.
I won't give all the props to them, of course they wouldn't want that. I truly believe that a love like theirs is given by God. It is because of His love to us that they are able to love others as they do.
We had such a good night. We are humbled by the way they care about us. They have seen us through many of the ups and downs of the last couple years, but there we were tonight...watching Isaac...finally seeing the reason we waited. At the end of the night he leaned in for kisses from them, they deserved every one.
We love you ladies and can't wait to be a part of Mosaic again!!!!

Her greatest tragedy

I've been thinking of this post on and off for the post 2.5 months, but more recently. I'm not sure how to write it so please bare with me if a thought comes out as unfinished or perhaps in some perspectives just wrong.

I read a quote on pinterest that said :

"A child born to another women calls me Mommy, the magnitude of that tragedy & the depth of that privilege are not lost on me"

I've been thinking about Isaac's birthmom lately. Maybe the word is more like mourning over her. It wasn't until I held my baby in my arms that it really sunk in that I am holding him because another women who should be, couldn't. There are many reasons for a women choosing adoption for their child, I don't know why Isaac's birthmom did...if I did I wouldn't make it public knowledge either as that is his story to tell. But among those top reasons, poverty is on top. So I am left with a lot of questions and very few answers.

Dispite her reason, I mourn over her. There is so much I want her to know... that her son is loved, he has parents, he has a bedroom, toys and clothes, we feed him well.... the list goes on. I just want her to know these things, it honestly eats me up inside.

I'm becoming more and more aware that adoption happens at a huge loss. I've been so into my own joy of having a new son, that it side swiped me the sorrow I would have over the situation as well. My joy came at the cost of another women's sorrow. I'm not sure how that is to be processed. For now all I can think of doing is praying for her. I pray that she would know Jesus, that maybe we could meet her one day, that she is safe, warm, fed... and I pray that one day she will know that Isaac is ok.

And as much as I want this for her, I want this for Isaac too. I want to give him answers, I want him to know who she is... I don't know I ever can, but I want to. Maybe it has to do with growing up without answers of my own....but I pray that I could give this to him one day.

Maybe my thoughts are wrong, invasive, insensitive, too sensitive, etc...but they are mine. I am finding the adoption community (not my direct one) to be very opinionated when it comes to these types of sensitive topics so I wrestle with posting this at all, but this is the reality of adoption. It is hard on many levels. It is not perfect, in fact it only exists because of imperfection. It kinda leaves you hanging there with a mix of love and sorrow. Many people are against international adoption for this reason, but I can't look my son in the face and think that an orphanage would have been better, and I also can't fix the magnitude of the problem that landed him there in the first place. I do, however, try to take a holistic approach. I would work to the end that orphanages are empty, but the orphans currently occupying them need a solution as well. We sponsor children so they don't fill Isaac's bed. I try to think on both ends, prevention and dealing with the current problem.

So as I work out this sorrow, this joy that came at a price, I ask for prayers. For Isaac's birth mother and others a like, that this cycle could stop but also that these children could find forever families. I know that is a random thought to end on and this post is seemingly incomplete... but maybe that is the state until heaven...

Attachment Update

Many people have been asking us lately how attachment is going and I realized since we have been home 4 weeks I should give an update from our "when we get home" post.

We have seen some great signs in Isaac in the past little while. While we can never say we have arrived as attachment is life long, we feel we have made a pretty good foundation. He is such a trooper and has adapted so well to his new life. Now that the four weeks are over and we have been venturing out and seeing more people we are feeling like a new chapter has begun.

While it was necessary to be as strick as we have been for the last weeks, we feel we can loosen up just a little. We still feel that all this is fresh. It's like removing a cast after the healing of a broken bone... you don't just go right into using it full force, but you ease it in, baby it a little and take it slowly.

We have slowly been allowing family to hold him for a minute and give him a kiss, but we are still not passing him around. Although we feel he knows us and is feeling attached to us as his primary caregivers...we don't want to just brake that. We want to secure our foundation. Only time will do this. We also don't want to hand him to just anyone he has seen for the first time. Family is different because they will be around always in his life. We just ask that everyone be patient with us and understanding of the situation... with that said I do have to say a huge thank-you to everyone! We feel so respected in how polite and understanding everyone has been. We feel incredibly loved that you would think enough to ask us how he is doing and were we are standing. This weekend we went camping with some close friends. The first question we were asked was what was what was the protocol with Isaac for the weekend. We appreciated that beyond words and although Isaac is clueless to it, he appreciated it to. You know that kind of love that will lay aside their own desires for the better of someone else, that is the kind of love we feel from these friends. This weekend was perfect, we were worried about being in a tent for two nights, but Isaac did so well. Our friends were so helpful and loving to us, they warmed his milk, gave us a black out tarp so Isaac could sleep, offered to help us clean up and gave Isaac lots of love from a distance. It was a good experience. We came home feeling like our attachment had not been damaged in any way. Isaac was confident in knowing we were his still.

So as we slowly emerge from our cocoon, we ask you still take it easy on Isaac. We are allowing family to slowly have a chance to spend a little more quality time with him for now and we will keep watching him to see how he is doing.

Again we thank-you for your respect, we feel very loved and it is again another thing I get to tell Isaac one day when I tell him about all the people who loved him home.

We thank God for the attachment that we see, knowing that ultimately he is the healer. He is the one who will put Isaac's heart back in place. He is the one who will mend his spirit. So we continue to pray that God will teach him who we are and more importantly who he is.

At 13 months

I have been trying to find some time to update my blog but it seems time is a precious commodity these days. So before this boy turns 14 months I am finally writing his 13 month old update!!

At 13 months you like to eat:
-blueberries, strawberries, cherries
-pasta and breads that you can hold yourself
-baby mum mums
-plain oatmeal and greek yogurt with pureed fruit mixed in
-things that are chopped
-you still eat chewed food from Dada's mouth as sometimes you need your meat pureed still (I know gross, but when you need a quick grind, it's just too convenient)
-"protein blasts" after Dada works out (sometimes with you on his back) he takes you inside for a protein blast, usually cottage cheese
-you share a banana with Daddy every morning before he goes to work
-you still eat anything we give you (no sugary things yet) and we are so grateful for this!!
-you drink 15-20 ounces of breastmilk a day and you love it!

First time at our park, loving the swing

At 13 months you like to play:
-with your puppies, you climb on them and whollap them on the head while yelling...we try to teach you to be "nice" to them and pet them, but you get so excited you just want to hit them
-outside, you don't like grass and do the funniest crawl but you love to sit on a blanket or the big swing and just climb
-you love your baby pool and going in the hot tub
-in your jolly jumper
-with pots and pans, things that go in the recycling bin, things that bang and the dog cage
-you are starting to get a little more interested in toys, especially ones that make music, you have been playing a little more independently with your toys
-you play with cars and make a broom broom noise, you will pick a car out of a pile of toys and start to drive it!!!

I love to make us matching so everyone knows you are mine!

At 13 months you say (in addition from the words at 12 months):
-Baba (baby)
-Pup pup (puppy)
-poo poo (you say this when you are pooing)
-anana (banana)
-you sign the word milk
-you love to scream and squawk with joy especially when Dada is playing with you!





















At 13 months you like to sleep:
-12 hours a night (unless you decide to throw a 4am party)
-2 naps of 1 hour and the pas two days 1 nap of 1 hour
-you nap in your crib and sleep the night in our bed
-you roll around and love to kick Dada, you tend to roll onto his side and love to touch his arm or poke him wit your feet... makes Mama jealous ;)
-you still like to be rocked to sleep but you recently have started to to fight it more than you used to so we cut out a nap and you seem to go down easier
-we are always there when you wake up and you are seeming to be more confident that we won't leave you everytime you see us when you wake up









At 13 months you like:
-all I can think of is: your life. You are mostly content and if you aren't it's either you are hungry, tired or bored of a particular thing you are doing. You rarely just cry and it is easy to make you happy again. You just really enjoy your new life, your new family, cousins, grandma, papa, puppies, house... and everything else. You are really attaching to us and know when you want to be picked up, snuggled, played with and held. You are starting to ask for what you need, we remind you to say please when you are whining and you will quickly correct yourself to sign please instead of whining.

At 13 months you don't like:
-waiting for milk
-sharing with other babies
-honestly there is not much you don't like...it's one of our favorite things about you. You are easy going and content in most circumstances, as long as one of us is with you, you seem to take on the world with great joy :)




Developmentally you are growing fast. Since being home you have gained 1.5 pounds which is about 0.5 pounds a week. You are now up to 17.5 pounds which is great!! You were 15 pounds when you first arrived in our arms. You can now pull yourself up on furniture and walk around it. Your crawl has increased speed and you held yourself in a standing position for one second without help! We are so excited for you to be developing like this, but we are also wanting you to slow down just a little:)  After all you are still our baby!















We couldn't be more blessed to be your parents, you are truly a joy to have in our lives. We LOVE having you around and really like who you are becoming. You make us laugh all the time with all your cute things you do. You love to copy us, especially everything that Daddy does. Everyday we thank God for you, we are well aware that he did not have to give you to us but from His heart of love and compassion, He choose to.