6 months forever...growing up

watching TV this way??  I didn't ask:)

 Actually it's been a little more than six months since we've been home but I'm just now getting to this post:/  Things have been going pretty well at our house.  We are enjoying the warmer weather, well we were at least until yesterday.  Summer is looking to be a blast with our crazy 3 year old.  He has been changing so much lately, and all for the better!  Gone is the shy, scared, emotionally fragile little boy.  He has been replaced with an outgoing, silly, funny, smart, helpful,  BIG boy who has an undeniable zest for life and can't seem to quit smiling!  He greets nearly everyone we pass in a store or wherever we are with a hearty " HI HOW ARE YOU!"  He is also best friends with his cousins Marcus and Matthew, I'm pretty sure they are his hero's. LOL They come down to Grandma's house every day to play with Kai when he is there.  He loves every member of his family though, his Uncle Travis and Aunt Jamie are also favorites:)

Helping Mommy clean

 Kai has also been doing noticeably better at playing by himself and not having to follow me from room to room.  Now I'm not saying that he doesn't still follow me A LOT, just that it is getting better.  I've had my toes stepped on more in the last six months than ever before in my life and yesterday he was following me so close that when I stopped he ran into the back of me and flew backwards onto his bottom. HA  But I'll take progress and I have heard from others moms that there first child was like that too. 

 Kai on his"motorcycle"

 Other progress that Kai is making is he is now very good at riding a tricycle!  At first his legs were just so weak, he had no strength in them, he just couldn't push hard enough to peddle.  NO more!  He loves his trike I just wish we had a nicer and safer place for him to ride it.  Steering and concentration could use a little more practice but he gets by:)  He also used to have no interest in playing or interacting with children his age at all.  It was beginning to concern us, he would play with older kids or adults that would humor him and do what he told them to do, but a peer held no interest.  Well about three weeks ago he made friends with our little neighbor boy, they are so cute together I just can't stand it!  Since then he has shown more interest in other kids and does very well with sharing so far. 

finally getting some outside toys!

 Last week he played in his new sandbox by himself while I gardened for quite a while, I was so impressed!  Outside was especially bad for clinging and not wanting to play.  He did come over after about 30 minutes and did a very good job helping me plant beans.  He is really into helping right now and is so proud of himself after he does.  If I sweep the floor, he gets his little broom and sweeps too, if I vacuum, he gets his golf caddy and pretends its a vacuum and helps me, he even helps clean the toilet if I let him!

loving his sandbox!

finally getting his rowboat ride:)

 Kai is into rowboats right now, he has been begging for a boat ride for a while, last weekend he finally got his wish!  He also likes to fish but really isn't fit to have a real hook as it is flying everywhere the whole time!  His favorite show is Dora and they talk a lot about boats, and life jackets.  They also talk about wearing your seat belt so he has been known to remind folks to buckle up! ha!

ready for a picnic under the "brella"

 Language has improved so much it's crazy!  I notice a difference every week.  I once said that I don't care if he talks nonstop I just want him to speak English so bad.   Guess what?  I got my wish!  Seriously the kid never shuts up, he talks and talks and talks.  He talks about anything he sees or what ever pops into his head.  The Chinese has been long gone for a while now actually.  I really don't mind him talking as long as he isn't repeating the same thing over and over again. lol  He can now sing his favorite song in English, twinkle twinkle little star.  Before he sang it in his own made up language.  He can count to 12, and say his ABC's.  He is beginning to identify letters but just barely.  He is doing better with colors but still doesn't always get them right.  He knows how to write his name in his head, but just can't get his hand to do what he wants it to do. 

spending time with Great Grandma Smith!

 Another thing I noticed is that his attention span is a lot longer than what it used to be and he is getting better at using his imagination.  It used to be if I gave him play dough, he would just look at it, he didn't know what to make or how to make it.  He would maybe squish it around for about 5 minutes and then say all done.  I finally stopped giving it to him because he just didn't really like it.  Today I tried it again.  He played and played and made everything from a snake to french fries.  He was pretending and doing what I showed him to do.  It was so great to see him pretending and playing and talking to himself!

Just look at that form! Future Hiland Hawk:)))

Sports are also becoming more interesting to our little guy.  He's been asking for a soccer ball which he got yesterday and really likes his basketball hoop from Great Grandma Smith as well as baseball and golf.  This is quite hilarious as neither Reuben or I are into sports at all!  I do my best to play anyway, he doesn't know how bad I am at it:)  Other things Kai loves- firetrucks, pick-ups, trains, troll bridges, tunnels, semi's, teasing our elderly dogs, going to Gramma Cindy's, eating chips, watching TV in Mommy and Daddy's bed, playgrounds, ice cream, going bye-bye, suckers, gummy bears, drinking large amounts of water before bedtime, school buses, and rainbows.  The list really does go on.  He loves everything about life.  Even if he is in trouble I have to tell him to stop smiling.  He has been a little more naughty lately, probably due to his new found Independence.  He has also been eating a little better lately too.  He is just such a hoot.  We really enjoy him and so does everyone else.  What a little blesssing:)

A growing boy!

 I thought I would post a few more of the pictures we had taken of Kai.  I didn't really have any others that where blog worthy, I guess I'm slacking:)  Actually what I really wanted everyone to see is how much Kai has grown!  The pants he wore in these pictures are way too short these days, sometimes I can't believe how big he is when I look at him.  When Kai came home from China probably the biggest thing we where concerned about other than the obvious was his complexion.  In all the pictures we got from China we noticed he seemed to have zits on his face.  We thought this very weird for a two year old and where a little concerned there might be something underlying wrong with him.  Our Doctor wasn't too concerned so we just let it go but when we got him he had at least three or four hug zits on his face!  However with regular bathing and good nutrition we are happy to say he is zit free for the most part! 

 

 Another thing we noticed right away was how thin and dull looking his hair was.  I started him on flax oil and cod liver oil right away and now his hair is full and shiny and grows way too fast as do his finger nails and toe nails!  His skin is still pretty dry so he gets slathered in coconut oil from head to toe every night, it used to be his legs where very thin and flabby with no muscle tone at all, now  they are solid and very muscular, Kai has still only gained around 2 pounds or so:(

 In other Kai has been sleeping like a champ!  He is doing very well as far as potty training goes all except for night time.  I think back when I made the comment that he is so much more like a baby than I expected and he really was, not anymore!  I am so thankful that we did have that short period of time to experience that part of his life.  He has come so far in the short time he's been with us but every once in a while, when I am around a group of children his age, I get a reminder that he really is behind in some ways, he is so much more afraid than other children, so much more unsure, this is to be expected.  He also seems pretty anti-social when it comes to kids his age but is overly bossy and pushy with older kids and especially adults.  Sometimes it worries me but I try to just remember that this is all new to him. 

We have been working on a lot of things at our house, colors, numbers, letters, language, and obedience.  Kai being a lefty has proven to be quite annoying. ha He just doesn't seem interested in colors and gets them wrong every time.  I can tell him what color something is and ask him again thirty seconds later and he will not remember.  I wonder sometimes if he is just being stubborn because he most definitely does not have a memory problem!  Also letters and numbers, he is very interested in saying them but writing them or identifying them is impossible!  I tell myself all I can do is try to teach him and the rest is up to him.

Kai can still be a momma baby quite a bit but Reuben is awesome at working at their relationship and I know one day I will be kicked to the curb!  All in all I think things are going very well, Kai is a very affectionate little boy and has started occasionally saying I love you or kissing unprovoked!  He is very well behaved for the most part but does struggle with control issues, there is still a bit of a language barrier so explaining things is still hard at times.  I never know if he truly doesn't understand or is just acting like he doesn't.  Stay tuned for more "Kai" coming soon!  I'm so excited for this summer and all the firsts we get to experience:)

Four Months Forever

Hard to believe four months ago today we met our son for the first time.  I can't believe it's really been that long!  I'm not gonna lie, the last four months have been the hardest thing I've ever done.  After 32 years on this earth, and twelve years of marriage, the rug was literally  pulled out from beneath me and every"normal" I ever had was gone.  I mourned the loss of it so hard.   But it's been so worth it and I'm happy to say our new normal has arrived and it's so much better than the old one!  We are so in love with our little blessing and I'm so excited to see what God has in store for our family!

Spring is on its way:)

a little pre-photo shoot posing

 Hello all! I thought I'd post a few pics and some insights into what Mr. is up to and into these days.

 

peep peep!  Helping Mom get ready for Easter

Well we are really excited for Easter!  It's so fun having a little one around at holidays but we are also excited because my Grandma and Grandpa will be coming home from Florida and our relatives from Missouri are all coming in to meet KAI!  I know he is gonna love them all.  Kai enjoyed watching and helping me get the spring/summer decor out of the attic.  I just happened to have those little chicks and a couple things my mom had gotten us for our "daughter" (or so we thought at the time).
They were fine for Kai too so he played while I decorated.

A little sensory stim with split peas, what a mess! 

 I gave these split peas to Kai to play with also, I use them around my candles and stuff.  By the time he was done there was a LITTLE mess on the floor and that sucker was covered in split peas! lol

Posing with his new picture board and favorite picture:)

 My Mom and I went to the kids sale at valley view church and one of the things he got was this frog picture board.  He loves it, he loves pictures, and most of all he loves his Uncle Travis and Aunt Jamie.  He asks for them daily, and sometimes gets a little demanding chanting their names and jumping up and down:)

Helping Drew go night night, Adam of course was "above" being a part of such nonsense

And best of all under the covers with Drew:)

Kai had been really into putting his stuffed animals "night,night" and  Byohing them.  Not sure how to spell byoh???  ( Rocking)  He really likes Drew since he tends to be more of a "joiner" than Adam.  lol  Things Kai is into:  Kai-lan(of course), Dora, playgrounds, Buses, Semis, eating meat, imitating everything( good and bad).  He is so smart and he is really intrigued with going to church, he started imitating things he sees there and talking about Jesus at times!  It's an awesome and incredible feeling to introduce your child to Jesus and try to get him to understand as much as he can.  I hope his interest keeps growing!  Well lots to do today, until next time!

Big boy pants...

A baseball hat like Daddy!

             Hello everyone, I'm sure you all are getting spring fever as much as we are!  Poor Kai probably thinks his new home will never be warm and sunny.  We have just been moseying along.  Nothing really exciting or momentous.  I told Reuben the other day that I kind of feel like all the huge initial progress things are sorta over and we are going to get used to celebrating the small things. Like for example one of the things I'm  very used to with working in health care and with developmentally disabled people is giving choices.  This was always stressed so much and I love the concept.  Our social worker too has mentioned letting Kai control the things that aren't a big deal so he won't feel the need to control things we don't want him to.  Problem is, I don't know if it's the language barrier or if the notion of actually being given a choice is just so foreign but Kai will not choose between two things. ME- Kai, do you want milk or water?? KAI- Milk or water.  ME- No but do you want MILK or WATER??  KAI- Milk or water.  UGHHH!  Its kind of frustrating.  But this is one of those little things.  The other night I asked him at a restaurant if he wanted chicken or a hot dog.  He said " hot dog"  Wow!  I could have cheered.  Much easier than me guessing and him not eating it:) Today choice making was not as great but I see a light at the end of the tunnel. 

No caption needed:)

 Probably the biggest thing that has happened at the Miller house is pictured above.  Yes Kai is officially potty trained!  The reason it is not considered momentous is simply because it was incredibly easy!  Day one we had two accidents.  Day two one accident.  And none since.  I'm really not that good, I chalk it up to him being trained before, and regressing.  He still wears a diaper at night and naps, I'm not going to push that because I don't even want to consider waking him up in the night to go potty and having to try to get him back to sleep in his own bed. I know, selfish:)  Speaking of his own bed he has been doing pretty good with it.  We had a few nights of crying here and there but as of now things are going pretty well.

Kai loves to help Momma in the kitchen!  He has a mouthful of our healthy raw cookies

I told Reuben that this spring he is going to have to make it a point to do some manly things with Kai.  It makes me laugh how at the tender age of three he has no concept of gender specific things.  His favorite color seems to be pink.  yep.  He carries around a pink rhino.  Picks out pink balls etc.  He loves to help momma do whatever momma does.  I threw around the idea of getting him an apron but then thought, you know somethings I just wanna save for a daughter:)  So in general things are going well.  We have been home for three months now.  I do feel like the last couple weeks he was struggling somehow emotionally, the crying at night, seeming a little more grouchy at home and at Grandma's house, maybe a tad dramatic.  Nothing severe, just a little something under the surface.  Maybe the finality of it all hit him?  I was thinking that we really haven't had him that long at all, and then I though about when I was a kid, summer vacation was less than three months long.  And it lasted FOREVER!  Time went so much slower.  So to Kai, it probably seems like he has been with us such a long time, I like that.  I still struggle some days, patience doesn't come naturally to me.  I'm still adjusting, I still feel like I'm playing house at times.  But time heals everything, and with God's help I know I can do better and better to be the Mom this little guy deserves!

Life...

  Sorry Guys no pictures today since I'm posting from work but I just wanted to just let everyone one know how Kai is doing!  Well wednesday of last week he ended up with the stomach flu, ya no fun at all.  The poor guy felt horrible but I'm happy to say he is a very responsible puker:)  Awesome for me as many of you know I have a puke phobia like no other.  It took several days for the fever to leave but we are back to good health now days.  Kai really just continues to amaze me with his adaptability.  I feel like sometimes Reuben and I maybe baby him to much or limit him in areas that maybe WE are afraid of or don't "think" he will be able to do something.  But then I think, you know what he deserves to be babied just a little bit.  He didn't have that in his life.  We recently came across some pictures online of him in the orphanage that we didn't see before, pictures of him playing with people from a company who came as a charity thing to the orphanage to play with the children and donate shoes.  That really struck me.  How soon I forget that he was an "orphan" , that he was in need of charity, donations, and attention from anyone who would give it to him.  It's hard for me to think of the little boy snug in his bed, a room full of toys, a closet full of clothes, who eats organic food everyday, and is so loved by family and friends as a child in an orphanage half way around the world. How soon he feels like MY child.  What an emotional journey this has been, harder than I ever imagined by far, and it's just beginning.  Kai is just learning so many new things.  New favorite words, semi, bus, uh oh, OUCH, nope, nope, nope, hey you, and Kai-lan.  He has started imitating the dogs, crawling around, pawing at my legs and making every noise they do.  He is serious about it too, no laughing, no talking, duh, dogs don't laugh or talk.  He still loves his bath and loves his "show" Kai-lan.  He can help a lot in dressing himself and I think he could actually do it himself but he is so headstrong.  This is the biggy though.  Guess who has slept in his own room, in his own bed, all the way through the night with not even a whimper??  Yep, my boy:)  I am so thrilled!  This is one of those things that I think Reuben and I where more scared of than he was.  He truly loves going to Grandma's house while I'm at work and was very ready to go yesterday after being cooped up in the house sick for four or five days.  New things we are planning on working on:  Continue with manners(does anyone know my husband?  I think I'll work on his too. ha), language, and POTTY TRAINING!  We where assured over and over in China that he is toilet trained yet he is not.  That is why we want to work on it soon, We feel like he really does know when he has to go but due to the trauma of everything has just regressed a little, ok a lot in that department.  So we just keep at it and I see big boy undies in Kai's near future!  Please just keep praying for our adjustment, kai's, but ours too.  This is one of those things that is new everyday, and everyday is a journey in itself:)

Weekend trips and Birthday Fun:D

Ready for his first trip to Wilmington!

First time eating ice cream and liking it!  He ate the whole bowl:)

Mr. Popular:)

Kai had to be close to his new friend Addy

Kai and his new friend!

First nap in his own room!  What a big boy

Birthday morning balloons in the bed!

Those things didn't leave his side all morning.

Kai posing with his new kitchen!

Party time at Grandma's House!

Uncle Travis and his crew getting into the party spirit

Even Grandpa is Rockin' the ears!

He really isn't picking his nose I promise:)

Kai's "horsey" cake from Litty's

Why is frosting so much better than cake??

Birthday Rockstar!

I know this is a lot of pictures to look at but believe me I scaled it down big time!  So to start with last weekend we went down to Wilmington with Kai for the first time.  For those of you who don't know Wilmington is a town just north of Cincinnati where Reuben and I used to live.  We have dear, dear friends who still live there.  These folks are really just those rare people you meet in your life that you know you could never forget and they will always have such a special place in our hearts.  Our Family away from home:)  Kai had such a good time getting to know the children and we did some much needed catching up!  It was also the longest car ride he has been on and he did wonderful! 
  This Saturday the 26th was Kai's 3rd Birthday.  I think he had a pretty amazing day!  It also started with the balloons in bed, a Birthday breakfast at Grandma's restaurant in Mt Eaton, and then a short nap followed by play time with the new kitchen we got him.  Later we all went to dinner at the Chinese Buffet where he always gets tons of attention from the waitresses.  They brought him a "cake" which consisted of some mandarin oranges and whip cream and half a banana with a candle stuck in it.  Seriously that just says it all about the difference between the Asian diet and big fat America:)  It was then off to Grandma's for a Mickey Mouse themed party with tons of presents and a horsey cake.  Best. Day. Ever.  Among his favorite gifts was the puppy guitar.  He has been imitating guitar playing lately so we thought he would like it.  Lets just say playing that thing is no laughing matter, it is serious business!  So funny:) 
  So other than partying hardy Kai has been spending his days soaking it all in, he really likes going to Grandma's house and playing with his cousins, he comes home wound up every night!  He is saying a lot more English words- horsey, buggy, ouch, brrr cold, all gone, see ya, car, semi, truck, kitty and the list goes on.  He seems to understand A LOT.  He can count to 5 in English unprovoked, knows basic colors, all his body parts and many animal names and sounds.  I am just so ready for him to speak lots and lots of English, I know I will probably regret saying that:)  So right now we are just chugging along living life, goals for the near future are still working towards getting him in his own room, working on manners and language skills.  He is doing so well, we are so pleased and feel so blessed to have such a super kid.  I'm starting to sound like a bragging Mom. Ha.  Hopefully a pediatric ortho surg appointment coming soon and I will let ya'll know how that goes!