Amazing

I know all moms and dads must feel this way, but I am continually blown away by how amazing our son is. Few little stories....

The week of vacation, Elisha was so entertaining for us (most of the time- he's not perfect :0))
He played "mule" most of the time- where he would sit on the porch with me and make motor noises, doing everything one would do on a mule (small all terrain-type vehicle- like a golf cart on steroids....) in order. That is to say, he begins by getting in, turning on the engine (with great starter noises), moving the gears, releasing the parking break and steering the wheel.

He stops frequently to get the mail out the nu baauux (mail box) and brings it over to give it to whomever is riding with him. This would go on for hours at a time- usually it was limited only by Mama and Papa's patience :0)

I don't think I mentioned our travel for our vacation. I was concerned about him worrying that we were taking him back to the orphanage, since it was our first big trip since he came home, so we left a ton of things undone at home, so he knew he was coming back- He helped scoop out Baka's food to take just enough for the week, we left some clothes out for him to help put away when we got back, that sort of thing. He did so well, though, I think it may have been God's way of reassuring me that he is attaching very well and is not afraid that we are going to leave him, too.

He was soo encouraging to the plane staff. Each landing was preceded by him clapping and giving the captain and crew a thumbs up- "Gooo Joob, Capin!!!" he would say as we left each flight (3 down, 3 back) He was so encouraging and seemed to really be a blessing and joy to those seated around us.

I was soooo happy that we were able to distract him this time so he wasn't playing with the tray table. He had his own seat and seatbelt and we explained that he had to keep his seatbelt on when the light was on. He checked that light- we realized how much when we went on a smaller plane- it only had the fasten seatbelt light every 4 or 5 seats or so. He didn't see it above us- so he said, "See bel off????" and began unfastening it- until we pointed out the different location. He seems to follow rules so well, it is, yes, you guessed it, amazing!!

We also found that if we could get him to relax for even a little bit- he'd take his nap.... Yeah!! Here is one of the photos we got of him nodding off.......Tim got him to play with Gabby, his little cell phone. It has a lot of great features, is not very loud, and was just the ticket to help him dial into dream land :0)

Sometime last week it clicked for him what "beating" someone meant. Since he came home, I would tell him I was going to beat him up to his room, or I would beat him to the bathroom, and then give a great demonstration of racing. This last week he finally got it. Now he says, "Beat Mama baa room!!" and takes off running, and he sometimes beats me for real!!!

I think about some of these little things and realize a lot of kids learn this from older siblings or family and know it when they are quite small. It is so amazing to watch as he just "picks up" all this stuff by simply observing what goes on around him in this new culture, with new language.

As far as personality- boy has he been developing that!! It is soooo ..... you guessed it.... AMAZING!!

Papa Gene (Tim's dad) went to the doctor last Friday for a check up- chest pains and the works- was admitted and spent the weekend in the hospital. We went in to visit, traveling in Elisha's new Jeep Liberty jogging stroller. It is so nice!! Any out there with a boy may want to look at it :0) (Babys R Us) It comes with cup holders, snack tray and a little steering wheel, car attachment- how much fun is that?


It even has ibaby- a speaker with a cord attachment so you and your child can listen to your ipod while you run around. I haven't taken up jogging- but this is sooo easy to push and pretty all terrain, which is good for living out in the woods like we do. Talk about the works!!

The little car part has an on/off button so you can use the ignition switch, play music and honk the horn. When we explained to Elisha that we had to be quiet when we went into the hospital, he sat very quietly- "driving" around the halls, making sure the unit was in the off position so we didn't disturb anyone. On the way out, after reminding him again that people were sleeping and we had to be quiet, he held his finger to his lips almost the whole way out. It was precious!


Papa Gene had a heart cath done on Monday, so Elisha and I went to Kidsville ( a great little park set up for kids of all ages in Zanesville- down along the river) to blow off some energy while Tim, his mom and siblings waited for news on Papa and the procedure to finish. We are continuing to thank God that all went well and Papa "passed" this test.

While we were there I was pushing him on the swings. Underdoggy became our thing :0) (If you don't know what an underdog is- the person pushing goes all the way under the one being pushed running out the other side) He would laugh hysterically as I would look up in the sky and all around and not find him until I turned all the way around. I love that he laughs so freely now!! Well- the humor part- My family is pretty well known for our corny sense of humor and love of puns and plays on words. We love it!! So after several (dozen????) underdoggies, he looks at me, grins that mischievous grin he has, and with a twinkle in his eye, says, "Baka????" instead of "underdoggie??????" Baka is our dog. What a hoot!! I laughed so hard I thought I might cry- way to go son!!