So without further ado:
Playtime:
Decorating the tree:
Xmas cookie party:
The "traditional" World Junior Hockey Championship family photo op:
Monday, December 17, 2012
Holiday preparations and festivities
Well it's a busy time of year so the post will be all about the pics.
So without further ado:
Playtime:
Decorating the tree:
Xmas cookie party:
The "traditional" World Junior Hockey Championship family photo op:
So without further ado:
Playtime:
Decorating the tree:
Xmas cookie party:
The "traditional" World Junior Hockey Championship family photo op:
Friday, December 7, 2012
6 weeks
Well obviously my intention to blog more often is not coming to fruition. I blame the photographer (Pat) as he's not been as diligent with regards to the picture taking. Anyway, I have finally got a batch of pictures so am able to do a post, yay!
We are 6 weeks in and it's hard to believe that much time has already passed. On the one hand it seems like yesterday when Pat got home on the other hand it seems like Gerad has been with us forever! He is doing really well. Much better than expected considering all the upheavals he's been through. He is a remarkably easy going and happy little guy. I think that is likely why this transition for him has been quite smooth. We really could not ask for a smoother transition frankly and consider ourselves really lucky. The smooth transition is really appreciated by these battle worn parents as Van's transition was so long and so rough. Now we feel very lucky to have 2 wonderful kids.
A little about how they are doing in general.
Van:
He will be 3 1/2 at the end of January! He is doing really well right now. Many of the early signs of ASD have faded so we are hopeful he may lose the diagnosis when we go back in February. He still has his struggles believe me, however he's made such huge strides in the last year. I really believe the move to the early learning centre has been a huge help. He is really thriving there and they are so knowledgeable and helpful. He made a lot of improvement in the areas of focus, repetitive behaviours, stimming and hyperactivity. As well the early signs of aggression that he was showing have all but faded. Yay! This was the one that worried us the most with Gerad coming but he has been AMAZING with Gerad. He is loving and gentle and really engages with him. Even if Gerad is rough with him he does not retaliate. We will often catch him stroking Gerad's face or hands. He is such a great big brother and I truly feel that bringing Gerad into our home was the best thing for our family! Van's language skills have also improved dramatically. You can really have little conversations with him now. He comes up with some funny stuff too and often has us laughing. I love his "Well that's kind of silly" comments whenever something...well...silly is/or has happening/happened. He is also quite firm on things he likes and doesn't like. For instance:
Likes:
Music (big music fan, especially of The Boss and Mumford and Sons)
Macaroni and Cheese ("It's my favourite")
Cosmic Adventures indoor playground
Mighty Machines (a kids t.v show here in Canada that profiles all the mighty machines in day to day life. Every episode is about a different machine. He particularly likes the "building a truck" and "at the airport" episodes. He will watch these bad boys over and over again)
His stuffies (he likes to sleep with different ones every night)
Curious George (never gets tired of these stories)
His brother
Dislikes:
Smiling when having his picture taken (just plain refuses. Shakes his head no when asked)
Dancing (still can't get him to dance. If you catch him dancing he'll deny it)
Things that are scary (most costumes, pumpkins for awhile before he actually became somewhat obsessed with them)
Pooping on the big toilet (although has made the transition and seems to be sticking with it. Maybe it's the promise of not 1 but 2 smarties)
On to Gerad:
As mentioned above he's a very happy and easy going little guy. Doesn't really kick up much of a fuss about anything (except going to bed but even those protestations are dying down). He's very loud about his happiness though which is a joy to watch. He has a very deep from his belly giggle and laugh when he finds stuff funny. Which is much of the time. He really gets a kick out of Van and often laughs at his antics. He follows Van everywhere and wants to be with him always. Pat tells me he is easy during the week and is pretty much a go along to get along kind of kid. He enjoys playdates and especially likes being out and about. Any kind of attention is good attention as far as he's concerned. He is a pretty good eater although you have to sometimes give him one thing at a time because he will spit out what's in his mouth if he decides he wants to move on to the next item. Yes he is still doing that lol. He'll pretty much try anything although we have had to work on him with his refusal of things we know he likes because he's waiting for the next course (yoghurt for instance). He's learning though that this strategy doesn't work. He's picked up another couple of words. He says cheese when his picture is being taken. He has also started saying mama although not sure if he knows it's me or not. He basically started copying Van when Van would say mama. He is a quirky little guy and loves making faces and strange noises. He especially gets a kick out of imitating strange faces and noises made by us. He had his doctor's check-up last week and he's gained 2 pounds since joining us! Maybe that's why my back hurts so much lol. We suspect part of that is because he was only eating once a day with his foster mom (still mostly on formula) and now he is eating like a 19 month old (today!) should. He weaned himself off the bottle within the first 2 weeks. He is above the 50th percentile in weight and at the 50th for height. He is definitely bigger than Van was at the same age and is already in size 2 clothing.
Here are some pictures.
1st Santa visit with both boys (this santa is great. He loves his job and has so much patience and love for the kids):
Pat took the boys to the Korean adoption xmas party last Saturday (I didn't go as I was...ahem...hung over...). This picture makes me laugh as this is the first real smile Van has flashed in a photo in awhile and he looks seriously crazy haha:
Fun in the bath. I love Van's expression as obviously Gerad is being too loud:
Fun at Cosmic Adventures:
We are 6 weeks in and it's hard to believe that much time has already passed. On the one hand it seems like yesterday when Pat got home on the other hand it seems like Gerad has been with us forever! He is doing really well. Much better than expected considering all the upheavals he's been through. He is a remarkably easy going and happy little guy. I think that is likely why this transition for him has been quite smooth. We really could not ask for a smoother transition frankly and consider ourselves really lucky. The smooth transition is really appreciated by these battle worn parents as Van's transition was so long and so rough. Now we feel very lucky to have 2 wonderful kids.
A little about how they are doing in general.
Van:
He will be 3 1/2 at the end of January! He is doing really well right now. Many of the early signs of ASD have faded so we are hopeful he may lose the diagnosis when we go back in February. He still has his struggles believe me, however he's made such huge strides in the last year. I really believe the move to the early learning centre has been a huge help. He is really thriving there and they are so knowledgeable and helpful. He made a lot of improvement in the areas of focus, repetitive behaviours, stimming and hyperactivity. As well the early signs of aggression that he was showing have all but faded. Yay! This was the one that worried us the most with Gerad coming but he has been AMAZING with Gerad. He is loving and gentle and really engages with him. Even if Gerad is rough with him he does not retaliate. We will often catch him stroking Gerad's face or hands. He is such a great big brother and I truly feel that bringing Gerad into our home was the best thing for our family! Van's language skills have also improved dramatically. You can really have little conversations with him now. He comes up with some funny stuff too and often has us laughing. I love his "Well that's kind of silly" comments whenever something...well...silly is/or has happening/happened. He is also quite firm on things he likes and doesn't like. For instance:
Likes:
Music (big music fan, especially of The Boss and Mumford and Sons)
Macaroni and Cheese ("It's my favourite")
Cosmic Adventures indoor playground
Mighty Machines (a kids t.v show here in Canada that profiles all the mighty machines in day to day life. Every episode is about a different machine. He particularly likes the "building a truck" and "at the airport" episodes. He will watch these bad boys over and over again)
His stuffies (he likes to sleep with different ones every night)
Curious George (never gets tired of these stories)
His brother
Dislikes:
Smiling when having his picture taken (just plain refuses. Shakes his head no when asked)
Dancing (still can't get him to dance. If you catch him dancing he'll deny it)
Things that are scary (most costumes, pumpkins for awhile before he actually became somewhat obsessed with them)
Pooping on the big toilet (although has made the transition and seems to be sticking with it. Maybe it's the promise of not 1 but 2 smarties)
On to Gerad:
As mentioned above he's a very happy and easy going little guy. Doesn't really kick up much of a fuss about anything (except going to bed but even those protestations are dying down). He's very loud about his happiness though which is a joy to watch. He has a very deep from his belly giggle and laugh when he finds stuff funny. Which is much of the time. He really gets a kick out of Van and often laughs at his antics. He follows Van everywhere and wants to be with him always. Pat tells me he is easy during the week and is pretty much a go along to get along kind of kid. He enjoys playdates and especially likes being out and about. Any kind of attention is good attention as far as he's concerned. He is a pretty good eater although you have to sometimes give him one thing at a time because he will spit out what's in his mouth if he decides he wants to move on to the next item. Yes he is still doing that lol. He'll pretty much try anything although we have had to work on him with his refusal of things we know he likes because he's waiting for the next course (yoghurt for instance). He's learning though that this strategy doesn't work. He's picked up another couple of words. He says cheese when his picture is being taken. He has also started saying mama although not sure if he knows it's me or not. He basically started copying Van when Van would say mama. He is a quirky little guy and loves making faces and strange noises. He especially gets a kick out of imitating strange faces and noises made by us. He had his doctor's check-up last week and he's gained 2 pounds since joining us! Maybe that's why my back hurts so much lol. We suspect part of that is because he was only eating once a day with his foster mom (still mostly on formula) and now he is eating like a 19 month old (today!) should. He weaned himself off the bottle within the first 2 weeks. He is above the 50th percentile in weight and at the 50th for height. He is definitely bigger than Van was at the same age and is already in size 2 clothing.
Here are some pictures.
1st Santa visit with both boys (this santa is great. He loves his job and has so much patience and love for the kids):
Pat took the boys to the Korean adoption xmas party last Saturday (I didn't go as I was...ahem...hung over...). This picture makes me laugh as this is the first real smile Van has flashed in a photo in awhile and he looks seriously crazy haha:
Fun in the bath. I love Van's expression as obviously Gerad is being too loud:
Fun at Cosmic Adventures:
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)