Post Adoption: 7 Months Home

This sweet boy has been home seven months! (Okay, seven months and some change. Summer is hard.) 

It's crazy to think that a year ago, we hadn't even seen his face yet, and now we can't imagine our life without him. What an amazing God we serve.

So, let's see...here's what has been going on this month with our Brooks!

PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT: Not a whole lot of change here...Brooks continues to be 90 mph most of the time. Blake and I have both noticed that he's gotten heavier lately, so I'm very curious what his weight is now. I'm guessing 21-22 pounds, but since we haven't been to the doctor in a while, I'm truthfully not sure. His clothes seem to be getting tighter, too, so I'm eager to see how he's grown! 

ATTACHMENT: All good things here! This month, he got pretty particular about only wanting Mommy to do certain things...that was kind of hard, but it's also totally normal toddler behavior. As I'm writing this, he's currently at his first preschool camp...his first separation for longer than an hour in a structured, school-like environment. Prayers! I'll let you know how he did later this week.

LANGUAGE: I'd definitely say this has been his biggest improvement again this month. He's trying to string words together which is super cute. He'll try to say "Bye bye Carter," "Night night Daddy," and things like that. It's not totally clear yet, but he's trying which is just about all I can hope for right now.

He's also gotten really into animal and vehicle sounds this month. He knows the sounds that cows, monkeys, snakes, dogs, cats, horses, ducks, and birds make, and he'll also say "beep beep" or "vroom" for cars and "chugga chugga choo choo" for trains. It's pretty adorable if I do say so myself. Also...I've never had a kid before that lined up cars. I've always seen other kids do it, but mine never have. Brooks LOVES to do this...and it's apparently exhausting. ;)

SLEEP: So, we finally weaned him off Melatonin this month which means the days of rocking him to sleep are gone. He has a very hard time winding down and shutting off at night, so we started a new ritual at night where we tuck in his stuffed animals ("woof woof" and "ah ah," his monkey and dog) with one of his blankets and then tuck him in with his blanket. We give everyone kisses and say "night night" and then I leave the room. 99.9% of the time he doesn't fuss and simply yells "night night" back to me once the door shuts and then he goes to sleep.

Part of me is so happy about this because it shows tremendous attachment growth and also shows that he feels safe, but I won't lie, I kind of miss the snuggles! Part of growing up, I know...but knowing he's probably our last baby, it's hard to let go!

FOOD: This continues to basically be his love language. No real change here other than he fell in love with whole milk yogurt pouches this month. Mom didn't fall in love with the price (over $1 per pouch...ouch!), but since we can't get more than a few sips of milk into him here and there, I know he needs the calcium and vitamin D, so we bite the bullet and pay it. 

HEALTH: No sickness this month, and we've cut our breathing treatments down to just once a day! WOO-freaking-HOO! He also got two thumbs up at his post-op check with the urologist, so that was great to hear! Healthy boy! 

RANDOM FACTS:

Brooks is no longer "unaware" when the big kids get treats...and must have one of his own. SIGH. So, this month, he's had his first Blizzard, Slurpee, and ice cream sandwich.

Maybe that's why he's heavier? ;) 

This kid will NOT be left out of pictures. He will weasel his little tushy in the middle of the mix and "DEE!" (cheese) until the cows come home. He wants to be IN the mix...such a stinker! Also, he has NO IDEA how many "big brothers" he actually has. This kid is so doted on by all of our friends and their kids that I'm quite certain NO ONE will mess with him. He has been so incredibly accepted and loved by so many...it truly takes a village, y'all. 

He has some mad love for the splash pad... 

and went to the zoo for the first time this month!

And got another haircut...why does he looks SO BIG?!! 

We love this little man something fierce...looking forward to all the next month will bring with his first trip to the lake, moving into our new house, and another week of camp! Happy Monday, friends! 

Post Adoption: 5 and 6 Months Home

Soooo...it's been a while. ;) And it would appear I have missed quite a few updates on my dusty little blog here. EEEK.

I could write a litany of excuses as to why I haven't updated anything here in almost two months, but the truth is that life just gets crazy sometimes and the hobbies take a back seat. I know you all understand that! BUT, I'm no quitter, and I promised a monthly update from each month of Brooks's first year home, so let's play a little catch-up, shall we?

5 Months Home on 4/14 - EASTER! 

Let's call this the 5/6 Months Home Update...because truthfully, I'm not sure anymore what he did at five months home and what happened at six. #thirdkidproblems

PHYSICAL DEVELOPMENT: So, this little ninja has grown quite a bit since coming home! At his 18-month check-up, he weighed in at just over 20 pounds (1st percentile) and was 30.25 inches tall (2nd percentile). His head was still the same and they marked that as the 5th percentile. He's small and mighty, but no one seems concerned because he is continuing to grow on his own tiny curve. A month after these measurements were taken, he went in for a little surgical procedure and weighed in at 21 pounds, so we'll take it! He continues to be a non-stop, all boy, Energizer bunny. His favorite word is GO, and that totally personifies him. He loves to climb, jump, slide, and hang on the monkey bars. We're fairly certain he will one day excel at gymnastics. 

ATTACHMENT: He continues to do so well in this department. No tears at drop-off at church for several weeks in a row now. He has gotten a little more particular about who he lets hold him and always looks to me for approval before allowing one of my friends or a family member to interact with him which is totally appropriate and a GOOD thing. I really couldn't be any more grateful for how well his attachment has gone. He continues to prefer me for comfort and Daddy for play time...just like my other two did at this age! 

LANGUAGE: So, this has been a HUGE season of development here. He attempts to say 50-100 words now (all in English...his Mandarin is long gone) and has begun to try putting words together. He'll sing song lyrics ("Row row row ba boat") and understands generally everything we say. He follows commands, "talks" with his siblings, and has a very clear NO. (His favorite word...oy.) It's really been shocking to me just how far he's come in just six months of hearing English. He's a little sponge and it's such a gift to see him learn! 

SLEEP: We had a few rough nights over the last few months, primarily due to travel and some fear/anxiety over seeing us start packing to move later this summer, but I generally can't complain. He fought a few naps here and there, but he really has done so well here. 

FOOD: No huge changes here, but he did discover a few new favorites the last few months. Lately, he's become a BIG fan of ice cream, clementines, Cheerios with milk, donuts, and he FINALLY accepted chicken nuggets. (Is it sad that I'm secretly thrilled about this? If you're going to survive in this family, you've gotta eat nuggets. Sorry not sorry.) He continues to love all noodles, soups, eggs, blueberries, fruit snacks, yogurt, grapes, rice, quesadillas, and queso. The only things I really can't get him to eat are ground meats and watermelon. :) 

HEALTH: Alllllllll the praise hands here - we seem to FINALLY have his asthma under control! We have not needed Albuterol in over two months, and we go back to the doctor this month to discuss weaning him off the steroids. I think the increasing heat has killed off some of his allergy triggers, and the steroids helped him through that rough patch. Also, knock on wood, we haven't dealt with any sickness since late March. Praise the LORD! 

RANDOM FACTS: Brooks celebrated his first Easter since last update! 

He also enjoyed celebrating Carter's birthday...

and loved our first family trip as a family of five! 

He is LOVING all the pool days...

and went to the splash pad for the first time! 

I know all parents think their children are the greatest, but you guys, everyone, and I do mean EVERYONE, who meets this precious little guy remarks on how special he is. I was sitting at a girls' night dinner last night, and one sweet friend said to me, "I just feel like he's going to be something really special." At the risk of sounding all gushy, I couldn't agree more! Brooks is truly a GIFT to us, and when I think of all the times during the adoption process that we felt like throwing in the towel, I just about lose it. We could've missed this...and I'm SO GLAD we didn't let fear stop us from saying YES to this precious one. What an awesome God we serve.