Sunday, December 30, 2012
Growing
Saturday, December 8, 2012
Christmas Clapping
Last night we attended Rachel's Christmas concert. Zac was so excited. He spontaneously clapped during the songs. It was so adorable. I just had to upload!
Look at my husband's smile. I love his smile.
Look at my husband's smile. I love his smile.
Here's the youtube link in case this one isn't good quality:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V0HHENNgo9o&feature=youtu.be
First Visit with the Social Worker
Thursday, December 6, we had our first visit by the Little Angels social worker.
She was really nice. We chatted about our adjustment period, and she watched us with Zac for a while. She looked to see where he sleeps and saw the types of things we do during the day.
She saw a can of spray snow and wondered what it was. (We have about half our Christmas decorations up; the rest is in a box in the corner.) I'm not sure if she has ever dealt with Americans before, or even seen American housing. I hope we didn't completely overwhelm her. I am curious what her report says though! Overall I think it was a good visit.
She was really nice. We chatted about our adjustment period, and she watched us with Zac for a while. She looked to see where he sleeps and saw the types of things we do during the day.
She saw a can of spray snow and wondered what it was. (We have about half our Christmas decorations up; the rest is in a box in the corner.) I'm not sure if she has ever dealt with Americans before, or even seen American housing. I hope we didn't completely overwhelm her. I am curious what her report says though! Overall I think it was a good visit.
Friday, December 7, 2012
Gotcha Day Video
I hope this works! I finally was able to upload our Gotcha Day Video. Enjoy :)
I uploaded it to YouTube in case this upload here doesn't work:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L4DGUpMh8ko
Thursday, December 6, 2012
Being Needed
Zac is sick. Had 104.3 fever during the night. The tylenol helped wonders and it went away.
I took him to the med unit this morning and he has a throat infection that has slipped over to a middle ear infection as well.
Yesterday he was very lethargic and the fever started around 5pm.
The weird thing is, his personality has been completely different these 24 hours and it totally changes the way I view him.
For the past couple of weeks, Zac has been naughty, naughty, naughty.
We are definitely working through behavioral issues like him slapping my 4 year old and then laughing about it (while the 4 year old cries). Or emptying out a drawer and laughing about it. Or pulling all the workbox numbers off all the kids' workboxes and then laughing about it. It outRAGES me.
Needless to say, I haven't been too happy with him lately. And I feel the disconnect with my other kids. The 4 year old is acting out now a bit and disobeying. Same with the others.
But since Zac has been sick, he isn't running around like a little Terror. He is sweet and cuddly. And funny! And fun to be with. I realized today: He Needs Me. Zac needs me. In all his naughtiness and mischievousness I sort of feel like he doesn't need my love sometimes (which I KNOW isn't true). But today I realized he DOES need me. That's the whole reason we adopted him! He has never had a mommy to rock him while he has a fever. He has never had a daddy to read to him and splash him when he is in the bathtub.
It's kind of cool, this "being needed". So while I hate that Zac has this throat infection, I am glad for the amazing things we have learned about each other in the process. Romans 8:28
Blessed,
I took him to the med unit this morning and he has a throat infection that has slipped over to a middle ear infection as well.
Yesterday he was very lethargic and the fever started around 5pm.
The weird thing is, his personality has been completely different these 24 hours and it totally changes the way I view him.
For the past couple of weeks, Zac has been naughty, naughty, naughty.
We are definitely working through behavioral issues like him slapping my 4 year old and then laughing about it (while the 4 year old cries). Or emptying out a drawer and laughing about it. Or pulling all the workbox numbers off all the kids' workboxes and then laughing about it. It outRAGES me.
Needless to say, I haven't been too happy with him lately. And I feel the disconnect with my other kids. The 4 year old is acting out now a bit and disobeying. Same with the others.
But since Zac has been sick, he isn't running around like a little Terror. He is sweet and cuddly. And funny! And fun to be with. I realized today: He Needs Me. Zac needs me. In all his naughtiness and mischievousness I sort of feel like he doesn't need my love sometimes (which I KNOW isn't true). But today I realized he DOES need me. That's the whole reason we adopted him! He has never had a mommy to rock him while he has a fever. He has never had a daddy to read to him and splash him when he is in the bathtub.
It's kind of cool, this "being needed". So while I hate that Zac has this throat infection, I am glad for the amazing things we have learned about each other in the process. Romans 8:28
Blessed,
Monday, December 3, 2012
The Mischievousness
This looks like a sweet little smile, doesn't it?
This is the "I-just-took-your-phone-and-I-know-exactly-what-I'm-doing" smirk. He does this all day long, pulling things off the shelf, pulling the neighbor's cat's tail, hitting Nick, etc. etc. I just happened to have the camera in my hand taking pictures of our school day when he snuck over, grabbed the phone, and ran off...
Friday, November 23, 2012
My 4:30am partner.
This is us at 4:30am the other morning.
I sat comatose in my LaZBoy while he played quietly in the floor. Tired.
I sat comatose in my LaZBoy while he played quietly in the floor. Tired.
Monday, November 19, 2012
Things Are Looking Up!
Okay, so two really huge things have happened that helped with our adjusting with each other.
1) Last Sunday (thanks JT for the advice!) I moved Zac's crib right next to my side of the bed. That night, he fell asleep holding my hand. He held my hand the entire night. Ever since then he has slept better, but still waking up every 3 hours (like an infant). Sometimes he goes right back to sleep after some patting on the back. Sometimes he needs a cup of milk and then goes right back to sleep. Sometimes he is awake that entire 3 hour period (which prompted me to write that last post about "losing my joy". I was so exhausted.)
But most nights in the past week he has gone back to sleep pretty quickly.
2) Thursday I realized maybe his tummy pains and dirty diapers could be caused by dairy products. We were having dairy often - he loves cheese, I mix yogurt with his oatmeal, cottage cheese with his oatmeal, etc. So when I cut out the diary, his dirty diapers literally dropped by half. His gas pains/fussiness seemed to go away completely. And he is in a better mood. He doesn't wake up crying with gas pains. And he doesn't cry endlessly at night anymore.
Ironically, a sweet Commenter on this blog mentioned the exact same thing in my "losing my joy" post. I have never had allergies or kids with allergies to anything, so all this is new to me. I didn't know the "warning signs" to look for. And I mentioned all this to the doctor here at the embassy -- we did 3 rounds of stool sample testing, but nothing showed up. So anyway, so I am so happy the Commenter mentioned that diary might be the issue, as it completely confirms what we experienced.
I still put a tablespoon of yogurt in the oatmeal (so it will have some taste!) but we definitely don't eat straight yogurt as a snack anymore.
Saturday night Zac only woke up at 3am to drink milk and go back to sleep.
LAST NIGHT Zac slept from 8:30pm-6:00am without waking up at all. He's NEVER done that in the 3 1/2 weeks he has been home.
When I woke up at 6am I thought: Okay I'm not exhausted, so either it's 11pm or 7am. What a wonderful surprise to see the clock read 6am!
He also took a really long, wonderful 3 hour nap Sunday afternoon. I think he is making up for lost sleep! He is in a better mood. Happier. Playing all over the house and outside. Things are much, much better the last few days.
Just as with any kid, there will be good days and there will be bad days. I pray that we see many, many more good days ahead. This sleeping-thing is quite AMAZING!!! Thank you Jesus!
1) Last Sunday (thanks JT for the advice!) I moved Zac's crib right next to my side of the bed. That night, he fell asleep holding my hand. He held my hand the entire night. Ever since then he has slept better, but still waking up every 3 hours (like an infant). Sometimes he goes right back to sleep after some patting on the back. Sometimes he needs a cup of milk and then goes right back to sleep. Sometimes he is awake that entire 3 hour period (which prompted me to write that last post about "losing my joy". I was so exhausted.)
But most nights in the past week he has gone back to sleep pretty quickly.
2) Thursday I realized maybe his tummy pains and dirty diapers could be caused by dairy products. We were having dairy often - he loves cheese, I mix yogurt with his oatmeal, cottage cheese with his oatmeal, etc. So when I cut out the diary, his dirty diapers literally dropped by half. His gas pains/fussiness seemed to go away completely. And he is in a better mood. He doesn't wake up crying with gas pains. And he doesn't cry endlessly at night anymore.
Ironically, a sweet Commenter on this blog mentioned the exact same thing in my "losing my joy" post. I have never had allergies or kids with allergies to anything, so all this is new to me. I didn't know the "warning signs" to look for. And I mentioned all this to the doctor here at the embassy -- we did 3 rounds of stool sample testing, but nothing showed up. So anyway, so I am so happy the Commenter mentioned that diary might be the issue, as it completely confirms what we experienced.
I still put a tablespoon of yogurt in the oatmeal (so it will have some taste!) but we definitely don't eat straight yogurt as a snack anymore.
Saturday night Zac only woke up at 3am to drink milk and go back to sleep.
LAST NIGHT Zac slept from 8:30pm-6:00am without waking up at all. He's NEVER done that in the 3 1/2 weeks he has been home.
When I woke up at 6am I thought: Okay I'm not exhausted, so either it's 11pm or 7am. What a wonderful surprise to see the clock read 6am!
He also took a really long, wonderful 3 hour nap Sunday afternoon. I think he is making up for lost sleep! He is in a better mood. Happier. Playing all over the house and outside. Things are much, much better the last few days.
Just as with any kid, there will be good days and there will be bad days. I pray that we see many, many more good days ahead. This sleeping-thing is quite AMAZING!!! Thank you Jesus!
Saturday, November 17, 2012
Happy 1 and a Half Birthday, Issac
On November 8 Zac turned one and a half years old. We didn't have him on his first birthday, so we thought we would have a pecan pie celebration for his half birthday!
Friday, November 16, 2012
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
Losing My Joy...And Finding It Again
I have sort of lost my joy in the past several days. That is a terrible thing to type, isn't it? Especially for a Christian.
How could I write such a thing? I just get so frustrated at Zac when he, for example, completely freaks out when I put on his dinner bib. Then he is so mad he refuses to eat. What did I do?! I am trying to keep his shirt clean so I don't have to wash 7 loads of clothes per day. He wore a bib in the orphanage for every meal. It's not a new thing to him. But it makes me angry. Angry that he is so mad. Angry that he has now wasted the food that I took time to prepare for him. Angry that we cannot just be normal in normal things like sleeping and eating!!
So I took him out of the high chair and just had to leave the room before I completely lost it.
There are so many emotions. And the lack of sleep really brings out the worst in me: anger. Saturday night Zac was awake from 12-3am. Around 3am I just sat rocking him and I cried and cried. Actually, I bawled and bawled so much the front of my shirt was wet. After he FINally fell asleep and I put him back in his crib, I cried and cried on my pillow until I fell asleep too. I was mad at myself for being mad at him. Mad at myself that I thought we would instantly be this happy family together. Mad that I can't fix his problems. Mad that everything else in my life has taken a backseat.
Yesterday God whispered in my ear: The joy of the Lord is my strength. So I just sang that song in my head all day. And that's part of the problem: I've been too exhausted to pick up my bible or my prayer journal. I miss talking to God and spending time with Him. And his behavior and issues make me ask: "Why did we do this? Is this really what the rest of my life looks like at every meal, every bedtime?!"
I read this on Kris Vallotton's Ministry page yesterday and chuckled:
So I decided to fix my attitude today. I decided to open my Bible, even if the house is falling down. (This is something I do every single day, up until the day Baby came. I view my Bible-time and Prayer/Intercession-time as very, very important in my life.)
That's what I usually do when I have a problem: open my Bible and read. Read until I find an answer to my problem. Read until I hear a Word from the Lord. Read until I find my Joy back again. Because being joyful is a choice. Even if you have to fake it. Fake it until the emotions follow. So today I did my Bible time. I played the kids' Bible songs with breakfast. We did our usual Family Time at the dining room table before we started school. If I am miserable then everybody around me will be miserable as well. The Joy will come. This is a season. It does not last forever.
So I am reading in Joshua today. And he spends pages and pages describing the land God gave each tribe. Pages and pages of the blessings God gave each tribe.
Do not forget in the dark what God promised in the light.
**To make matters worse, most of my family is completely unsupportive (mine, not Kevin's). One aunt and two cousins are the only ones that have even acknowledged Zac's existence. It literally breaks my heart. Well at first it did. Now I am just mad about it, too. I just don't understand.
How could I write such a thing? I just get so frustrated at Zac when he, for example, completely freaks out when I put on his dinner bib. Then he is so mad he refuses to eat. What did I do?! I am trying to keep his shirt clean so I don't have to wash 7 loads of clothes per day. He wore a bib in the orphanage for every meal. It's not a new thing to him. But it makes me angry. Angry that he is so mad. Angry that he has now wasted the food that I took time to prepare for him. Angry that we cannot just be normal in normal things like sleeping and eating!!
So I took him out of the high chair and just had to leave the room before I completely lost it.
There are so many emotions. And the lack of sleep really brings out the worst in me: anger. Saturday night Zac was awake from 12-3am. Around 3am I just sat rocking him and I cried and cried. Actually, I bawled and bawled so much the front of my shirt was wet. After he FINally fell asleep and I put him back in his crib, I cried and cried on my pillow until I fell asleep too. I was mad at myself for being mad at him. Mad at myself that I thought we would instantly be this happy family together. Mad that I can't fix his problems. Mad that everything else in my life has taken a backseat.
Yesterday God whispered in my ear: The joy of the Lord is my strength. So I just sang that song in my head all day. And that's part of the problem: I've been too exhausted to pick up my bible or my prayer journal. I miss talking to God and spending time with Him. And his behavior and issues make me ask: "Why did we do this? Is this really what the rest of my life looks like at every meal, every bedtime?!"
I read this on Kris Vallotton's Ministry page yesterday and chuckled:
Have you ever thrown a pity party and have no one show up? Feeling sorry for yourself is a recipe for disaster! So is blaming others for your lack of success. It may very well be true that you have been mistreated, abused, beaten etc, but God is able to restore, heal and deliver you. Let your identity be in your Christ not in your crisis. I certainly understand pain and depression. I know what it is like to not want to go on with life. But sitting around counting your crosses will only perpetuate the problem and leave you stuck in a pile of poo.
That's what I usually do when I have a problem: open my Bible and read. Read until I find an answer to my problem. Read until I hear a Word from the Lord. Read until I find my Joy back again. Because being joyful is a choice. Even if you have to fake it. Fake it until the emotions follow. So today I did my Bible time. I played the kids' Bible songs with breakfast. We did our usual Family Time at the dining room table before we started school. If I am miserable then everybody around me will be miserable as well. The Joy will come. This is a season. It does not last forever.
So I am reading in Joshua today. And he spends pages and pages describing the land God gave each tribe. Pages and pages of the blessings God gave each tribe.
44 And the Lord gave them rest on every side, just as he had solemnly promised their ancestors. None of their enemies could stand against them, for the Lord helped them conquer all their enemies. 45 Not a single one of all the good promises the Lord had given to the family of Israel was left unfulfilled; everything he had spoken came true. (Joshua 21).
I love that God speaks to me, especially when I need it so badly. God will give me rest. God will conquer my enemies one by one. God will fulfill all the good promises he made to me. Everything God speaks will come true. So I cling to that. I cling to Christ, my Joy.Do not forget in the dark what God promised in the light.
**To make matters worse, most of my family is completely unsupportive (mine, not Kevin's). One aunt and two cousins are the only ones that have even acknowledged Zac's existence. It literally breaks my heart. Well at first it did. Now I am just mad about it, too. I just don't understand.
Sunday, November 11, 2012
The Feet
All my kids have put their feet on the front of their highchair tray. And so does he. I think it is adorable.
Saturday, November 10, 2012
Friday, November 9, 2012
More Noodles
I try to keep Zac entertained while we do our Family Time. I changed around the activity with his colored noodles - I put them in drawers. He is so obsessed with opening drawers and putting things in and out. I figured this would keep him busy for a while!
Thursday, November 8, 2012
Fast Asleep
Today while feeding Zac his lunch, he fell fast asleep. I couldn't seem to wake him up for anything! So I just cleaned him up and put him in his crib.
Coming Out of the Fog
I went to bed at 8pm last night and woke up at 6am this morning. Those were Zac's hours too.
He also woke up at 9:30, 10:00, 1:30, and 4:30. Thankfully he went back to sleep all those times except at 4:30 when I fed him formula in a sippie cup. Mommy desperately needs her sleep.
I just can't figure out why he is waking up so much during the night.
The thing is, I always heard/read that orphanage kids are so UNDERstimulated at the orphanage, that they are like zombies when they get to their forever home. They sleep a lot and need lots of stimulation.
This was not the case with Zac. So I just wasn't prepared for this. He is so reminiscent of an infant to me. He is a LOT of work. It's obvious that he should be, I guess. I just wasn't prepared for it.
I have been so tired (and some of us have been terribly sick lately) that I have sort of just been able to focus on the Work part of the baby and haven't been as able to focus on the other parts.
He really is a joy. His smile is radiant. He has the cutest sounding voice. He laughs and laughs when we tickle him.
There are so many differences between his skin and mine.
For instance, after his bath I have to lather him down pretty good with Vaseline/Cocoa butter or the next day dry skin appears. If he doesn't drink water during the day, then his lips will chap severely the next day. He poops constantly. I have literally gone through 108 diapers in the two weeks we have had him. (Is that normal?!). But I don't know if he has diaper rash because his little skin is so dark that I can't notice it. His nails grow SUPER fast. So does his hair.
Oops he is awake from nap. I hear him in the monitor. Better run. He slept 12:30-3:00 today (only woke up at 1:00pm for a warm cup of milk. WooHoo!).
He also woke up at 9:30, 10:00, 1:30, and 4:30. Thankfully he went back to sleep all those times except at 4:30 when I fed him formula in a sippie cup. Mommy desperately needs her sleep.
I just can't figure out why he is waking up so much during the night.
The thing is, I always heard/read that orphanage kids are so UNDERstimulated at the orphanage, that they are like zombies when they get to their forever home. They sleep a lot and need lots of stimulation.
This was not the case with Zac. So I just wasn't prepared for this. He is so reminiscent of an infant to me. He is a LOT of work. It's obvious that he should be, I guess. I just wasn't prepared for it.
I have been so tired (and some of us have been terribly sick lately) that I have sort of just been able to focus on the Work part of the baby and haven't been as able to focus on the other parts.
He really is a joy. His smile is radiant. He has the cutest sounding voice. He laughs and laughs when we tickle him.
There are so many differences between his skin and mine.
For instance, after his bath I have to lather him down pretty good with Vaseline/Cocoa butter or the next day dry skin appears. If he doesn't drink water during the day, then his lips will chap severely the next day. He poops constantly. I have literally gone through 108 diapers in the two weeks we have had him. (Is that normal?!). But I don't know if he has diaper rash because his little skin is so dark that I can't notice it. His nails grow SUPER fast. So does his hair.
Oops he is awake from nap. I hear him in the monitor. Better run. He slept 12:30-3:00 today (only woke up at 1:00pm for a warm cup of milk. WooHoo!).
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Love This Man.
Kevin has been amazing with Zac since Day One. I love that after 10 years of marriage I am still learning more about him. The depth of his personality continues to baffle me!
Giving up on Re-lactating
Well, I guess I give up.
I have been trying to re-lactate for several weeks now. And it was easy pre-getting-Zac and while Kevin was on paternity leave to sneak upstairs for 10 minutes every 3 hours and pump.
But I just can't keep up with it anymore. I have been pumping for several weeks, and am getting little beads of milk each time now.
Even though I never planned to actually put Zac to the breast, I wanted to put my breast milk in his sippie cup to increase the amount of nutrition he was getting everyday, especially since he is 18 months old and wearing size 9 months old clothes!
But I can't keep up with it. So I am not going to feel guilty about it or bad about it.
I still grieve the fact I missed his first 18 months, and missed breastfeeding my 5th son altogether.
I have been trying to re-lactate for several weeks now. And it was easy pre-getting-Zac and while Kevin was on paternity leave to sneak upstairs for 10 minutes every 3 hours and pump.
But I just can't keep up with it anymore. I have been pumping for several weeks, and am getting little beads of milk each time now.
Even though I never planned to actually put Zac to the breast, I wanted to put my breast milk in his sippie cup to increase the amount of nutrition he was getting everyday, especially since he is 18 months old and wearing size 9 months old clothes!
But I can't keep up with it. So I am not going to feel guilty about it or bad about it.
I still grieve the fact I missed his first 18 months, and missed breastfeeding my 5th son altogether.
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Other Pictures
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| This was the first full day we had him. Happy Baby! |
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| He kept running away from me when I tried to get a photo of him! |
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| Coloring with Sabrina. |
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| He enjoyed throwing the crayons around the room. But then he picked every one up and put back into the blue crayon box without being told...Strange indeed! |
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| Eating lunch. He is always happy when he is eating! (IF he eats, sometimes he does not want to eat what we give him.) |
Monday, November 5, 2012
Welcome Home Signs
When we arrived home with Zac last Friday, Rachel orchestrated decorating the front door. What a surprise! She has done this with each kid we bring home from the hospital so of course she decorated this time, too.
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| Nick drew this. He said it is a picture of him and his little brother. |
Sunday, November 4, 2012
Pictures of Zac Trying New Things
We didn't show Zac everything right away. We took our time with him and let him explore on his own as he got more comfortable around the house. At first, he only wanted to be in my arms. Then each day he became braver and would walk to other rooms and explore. Then eventually he discovered the back yard and all its glory!! I'll try to post pictures each day of the things he discovered this week.
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| Riding in my police car. |
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| Love those eyebrows. He has so many expressions. |
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| Hmmmm, he spotted a water puddle. |
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| There's that famous mischievous grin! And yes, he walked right through it and splashed and had a blast! |
Saturday, November 3, 2012
Frustrated. Having Sleep and Food Issues.
We are having issues with food and sleep the last couple of days. And it makes me so mad that I can't figure out the problem!! I'm just being real, folks. I cannot understand this little dude. And I know it will take a long while, but it is so frustrating during the process.
Our food issues. For example, someone brought us over a beef stew a few nights ago and Zac ate 6 kid-size servings of the stuff. So I froze the leftovers in little ziplocs to pull out for lunches since he loved it so much. But when I gave it to him again, he threw it on the floor. I took away his plate and put it on the table and he screamed and cried like somebody broke his heart. I know he is hungry. I know he likes this food. He is crying and pointing to Sabrina's plate. I tried giving him a bite of her food. He got even madder/sadder. He wanted her fork. He wanted her cup.
He seems to only want what other people have. About 50% of the time. The other 50% of the time he shoves food in his mouth like he is starving. There seems to be no pattern.
So the problem is, when he doesn't EAT then he doesn't sleep well. He wakes up every 3 hours like an infant and wants to have a sippie cup of formula. It took a really long time to get him to sleep last night. He twists and fidgets his little hands back and forth, he shakes his left leg back and forth. I figure since he was in the orphanage he didn't have a mommy to rock him to sleep, so these are the ways he soothed himself to fall asleep for 17 months. He doesn't understand that he has a mommy to rock him now. He doesn't understand that I won't leave when he falls asleep, that I will be here when he wakes up. I get that. Last night I desperately posted on the Trust-Based Parenting facebook group (join it if you are adopting - - so helpful!!). Other mommies with similar situations said their kiddos had sensory issues or were really feeling the trauma of switching caregivers (from orphanage to mommy) or were self-soothing also. I really have to finish the book The Connected Child by Karyn Purvis because she discusses these types of issues.
I know it takes patience. Holy Spirit please pour your Patience and Love into our house every morning!
I need to pray these problems away. I have not started his prayer journal yet. I have a separate notebook for each of my kids, and I write out any behavioral or health problems so I can pray them out and declare blessings over them. Then I write out when the prayers are answered. I just realized we have been so busy adjusting that I have not even started his prayer journal. Will do that today!
Our food issues. For example, someone brought us over a beef stew a few nights ago and Zac ate 6 kid-size servings of the stuff. So I froze the leftovers in little ziplocs to pull out for lunches since he loved it so much. But when I gave it to him again, he threw it on the floor. I took away his plate and put it on the table and he screamed and cried like somebody broke his heart. I know he is hungry. I know he likes this food. He is crying and pointing to Sabrina's plate. I tried giving him a bite of her food. He got even madder/sadder. He wanted her fork. He wanted her cup.
He seems to only want what other people have. About 50% of the time. The other 50% of the time he shoves food in his mouth like he is starving. There seems to be no pattern.
So the problem is, when he doesn't EAT then he doesn't sleep well. He wakes up every 3 hours like an infant and wants to have a sippie cup of formula. It took a really long time to get him to sleep last night. He twists and fidgets his little hands back and forth, he shakes his left leg back and forth. I figure since he was in the orphanage he didn't have a mommy to rock him to sleep, so these are the ways he soothed himself to fall asleep for 17 months. He doesn't understand that he has a mommy to rock him now. He doesn't understand that I won't leave when he falls asleep, that I will be here when he wakes up. I get that. Last night I desperately posted on the Trust-Based Parenting facebook group (join it if you are adopting - - so helpful!!). Other mommies with similar situations said their kiddos had sensory issues or were really feeling the trauma of switching caregivers (from orphanage to mommy) or were self-soothing also. I really have to finish the book The Connected Child by Karyn Purvis because she discusses these types of issues.
I know it takes patience. Holy Spirit please pour your Patience and Love into our house every morning!
I need to pray these problems away. I have not started his prayer journal yet. I have a separate notebook for each of my kids, and I write out any behavioral or health problems so I can pray them out and declare blessings over them. Then I write out when the prayers are answered. I just realized we have been so busy adjusting that I have not even started his prayer journal. Will do that today!
Friday, November 2, 2012
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