I can't believe it!

I can't believe that this 14 lb 11.8 oz chunk (yes he did gain 11.8 oz in the last 8 days) is the same 8 lb baby I met 3 months ago.  I can't believe he is the same baby that I had to syringe feed for the first week and a half that he lived here because he refused to drink or eat!  He now eats ANYTHING I give him.  I haven't found a single food he won't eat.

I can't believe that this baby who couldn't even hold his head up at 6 months old, or roll over at 8 months, can now sit for long periods of time, stand, bounce, roll over, and almost crawl!

                                              

I can't believe that the little baby I held in my arms at the hospital 2 months ago, who I honestly believed wouldn't live more than a few hours is now this happy, energetic, little guy who never stops smiling and laughing.

                                        

And most importantly, I can't believe that this amazing human being is MY son!!  I am so blessed to get to spend every day with him!  The first thing I do every morning when he wakes up is bring him into bed with me to cuddle, and the last thing I do at night before he goes to sleep, is play with him in our bed, read him a scripture from his beginners bible, read him a story, pray with him, and put him in his bed with a hug and kiss.  No matter how much time I spend with him, it's never enough.

                                                  

Each day I fall more in love with him.  Each day I get to know him a little better.  Each day, a little bit more of his personality shows through!  He is developing and changing daily.  Nick and I originally said that we were hoping for him to be fully caught up developmentally by time he was 18 months (so 9 months from now), but I think we were very wrong on that estimate.  I now think he will be caught up way before then.  Currently the only area he is behind in is crawling, which we are working on.  I think that he is capable of doing it fairly soon, however he hates tummy time so much that he never wants to even try it.  If we can just get him to play on his belly, he will be moving all over the place in no time.  Although it's probably a good thing he's not moving yet because then he would be pulling things off the Christmas tree and getting into everything!!

I know people will make fun of me for saying this, but his language skills are amazing.  Yeah he just babbles, but I'm very glad he does.  This is one area that most of our kids are very far behind in, so the fact that he babbles all the time is amazing!  He can say Dada (his favorite word), Mama (he rarely says this except for when he's mad), Nana, Baba, and a lot of other weird sounds!  He is constantly experimenting with his voice and trying things in different pitches, tones, etc.  Eventz is the easiest, happiest baby I know, and I know a lot of babies!!  I can't say enough how lucky I feel that I get to be his Mom!!

His biological Mom and Dad came today to do some paperwork and we talked to them about the fact that we want to adopt him.  I'm pretty sure they already knew this, but she smiled when we said it anyways, so I think that she is happy!  They both seem really nice!  His Dad pushed him in the swing for a while today and let Eventz suck on his nose, which is one of Eventz favorite things to do.  His Mom said that his two siblings cried today because they wanted to come see him but couldn't because they were in school (I was very glad to hear that they are able to go to school)!  I also learned that his sister is 7 and his brother is 5!

                                        

  

                                        

Eventz has made amazing strides in the last 2 months since coming home from the hospital and we are so proud of our son.  Living and working here is so amazing, because we are surrounded by success stories like these all the time!  Everyday when I walk through the baby house, I am amazed by how fat, healthy, and happy all of our children look.  With many of them it's hard to remember how small and sick they were when they first came!  We get to watch as their personality develops and as they grow.

Yesterday I was in the baby house, and the little girl that stayed with us when we visited in January walked over to me.  She just learned to walk this week and I'm so thankful I get to be apart of her story.  Two of our children returned home to their biological parents last week.  It's amazing how far they came in the three months in our care.  Please pray that they transition well back to their parents care and that they thrive there!  Also please continue to pray for Eventz and that he will flourish in our care!  He is really starting to bond with us and you can tell that he knows he is well loved!  He already is beginning to realize that I am his Mom and is a little unsure of other people holding him!