Wow! It's been so long since I have updated this blog! Life has been wonderful with Alex the last few months! We took him to Disney in April for Spring Break and he loved EVERY second of it. He also lost a bunch of front teeth. He loved the rides, the warm weather and the swimming pool. He has learned to swim now with his big brother Jake.
In May, he tested out of the ESL/ELL program. He also started working with a Chinese tutor. Now that he is fluent in English, I want him to retain his Chinese. He is working hard with his tutor and it's starting to come back to him when he works with her.
In June, as school ended, we took the entire family to a rented beach house in Outerbanks, NC. Alex loved the beach, the four wheelin' the mini-golf, and spending time with his family!
He is such a joy! He loves new adventures, loves doing new things, and love his family as we love him. People think we have had him since he was a baby, and are always surprised (after hearing him speak or seeing him interact with us) that he only became part of our family less than 11 months ago!!!
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Monday, February 23, 2009
Happy 7th Birthday Alex!!!
This is Alex's first birthday home. He had a birthday party in school (cupcakes), a family party and then a kid party at a slot car racing party place. He had so much fun and got so many gifts! I think he was a little overwhelmed but he enjoyed it all! We also took him to NY City at the end of January for a Chinese New Year celebration. Jake loved it all but Alex seemed quite bored with it. It was as though it was nothing new to him! It was the show at Radio City Music Hall so we expected him to be surprised by it all and love it. He fell asleep about half way through.
Alex is speaking so well already. He is here 6 months now and I am so surprised by his quick understanding of the English language already. His main "mistake" is that he doesn't understand past and present tenses when he is speaking. That's pretty darn good. So, he will say, "Mommy, thi is bleed" if his finger is bleeding. He also says "rook" instead of "look" when he wants to show me something. But then I make a funny face and he corrects himself by trying overly hard to say "LLLLL" in Look. It's very cute!
He is so huggy and mushy ALL the time. He loves being tucked into bed and he loves storytime. He is such a sweetheart!
Alex is speaking so well already. He is here 6 months now and I am so surprised by his quick understanding of the English language already. His main "mistake" is that he doesn't understand past and present tenses when he is speaking. That's pretty darn good. So, he will say, "Mommy, thi is bleed" if his finger is bleeding. He also says "rook" instead of "look" when he wants to show me something. But then I make a funny face and he corrects himself by trying overly hard to say "LLLLL" in Look. It's very cute!
He is so huggy and mushy ALL the time. He loves being tucked into bed and he loves storytime. He is such a sweetheart!
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Alex's First Christmas Home
Alex had a great Christmas! Santa Claus brought everything on his list. He opened and played with each gift. It was amazing watching his little face with each gift he opened. It was hard to imagine what he was thinking, but his smile said it all! He got to play with a bunch of his cousins, open more presents, eat some of the cookies we spent all week making, and trying new foods that he had never had before. He loved it all! He told me they did have Christmas in Taiwan, but he got socks and underwear at Chung Yi (the orphange) but then he laughed so I am not sure if he was kidding or not. We also reminded him that we sent him Christmas presents at Chung Yi last year, but he couldn't remember what we sent (I don't either because we sent gifts every month last year). Alex also participated in our church pagaent by being a shephard. He worked hard at learning all of the songs and did very well. We were all very proud of him. Happy New Year!
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Alex's First Snow!!
Alex and Jake got out of school the other day and Alex got to feel, see and taste snow for the first time. He loved it although he was shocked at how cold it was. I gave him his gloves and then he was thrilled to make snowballs and throw them at me and to make a snowman with Jake. He loves anything new!
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Alex's Karate pictures
Alex just moved from his white belt to his yellow belt. He worked so hard and we were really proud of him!
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Alex's Baptism
What a little trooper! He entered the church in tears, just as he does almost every Sunday. Once inside, we brought him on the altar to practice before the mass began. He got to see the font and I explained everything to him. Once mass started, godfather, James, began doing magic tricks with his fingers to entertain him. He was giggling and having a great time. He was completely relaxed by the time he, Renee (his godmother), James, me, Heath, Richie, Michael and Jake were all called up to the altar. He did so well. He followed directions to the letter and went with what the pastor was doing. He was surprised by the water poured on his head and afterwards, he kept feeling it and then smelling it to see what was put on his head. He even wiped it off with his hand and tried to taste it. I could barely keep from cracking up while on the altar after watching his confusion. As much as we tried to explain it all to him, he just didn't comprehend what the pastor was pouring over his head.
After the baptism, we held his party the next day (the baptism was the Saturday night mass) and he had such a great time with his cousins and friends of the family. He ran with them ALL day. At the end of the day, he was able to open all of his presents. Everyone was so generous and thoughtful with their gifts. He was amazed. He kept opening things and then saying "mine?" and we would say "yes" and then he would smile. When he was finished, he packed it all up and put it in a giant gift bag and placed it by the front door. Our feeling was that if he was leaving, he would have it all there ready to go. I was so sad by that. After several different moves/placements, he doesn't fully accept or understand that he really is staying here forever. I took the bag, with Alex in tow, and brought him into the playroom. I took one of the many large stackable bins we have and emptied it and then carefully put all of his new toys in "his" bin. He still kept saying "mine" and I still kept telling him "yes, this is all yours". Then, we took all of his new clothes and went right up to his room and put them into his closet again repeating that this is all his. He seems to be happy with that. Interesting, huh? Through our training to be certified American foster parents (two years ago) we found that this was common behavior for kids who moved around a lot. So sad for them.
This week we also learning that Alex has an amazing ability to add numbers in his head. He is only in kindergarten. I was doing some review homework with Jake and while he was doing his own homework (cutting and pasting patterns) he started saying the answers to Jake's homework. So we then started asking him problems aloud and he got them all right up to the 20s. He is still learing the other numbers in English otherwise I think he would have got them.
He still has his moments of pouting, stubborness and some anger when he doesn't get his way, but at this point, we understand that every kid does this sometimes, and with normal limits, he is understanding that he can't always get what he wants. After having three other boys, we have seen this time and time before, so we are not shocked or surprised by this at all. He just pouts for a longer time than they ever did. But, he eventually gets over it!
After the baptism, we held his party the next day (the baptism was the Saturday night mass) and he had such a great time with his cousins and friends of the family. He ran with them ALL day. At the end of the day, he was able to open all of his presents. Everyone was so generous and thoughtful with their gifts. He was amazed. He kept opening things and then saying "mine?" and we would say "yes" and then he would smile. When he was finished, he packed it all up and put it in a giant gift bag and placed it by the front door. Our feeling was that if he was leaving, he would have it all there ready to go. I was so sad by that. After several different moves/placements, he doesn't fully accept or understand that he really is staying here forever. I took the bag, with Alex in tow, and brought him into the playroom. I took one of the many large stackable bins we have and emptied it and then carefully put all of his new toys in "his" bin. He still kept saying "mine" and I still kept telling him "yes, this is all yours". Then, we took all of his new clothes and went right up to his room and put them into his closet again repeating that this is all his. He seems to be happy with that. Interesting, huh? Through our training to be certified American foster parents (two years ago) we found that this was common behavior for kids who moved around a lot. So sad for them.
This week we also learning that Alex has an amazing ability to add numbers in his head. He is only in kindergarten. I was doing some review homework with Jake and while he was doing his own homework (cutting and pasting patterns) he started saying the answers to Jake's homework. So we then started asking him problems aloud and he got them all right up to the 20s. He is still learing the other numbers in English otherwise I think he would have got them.
He still has his moments of pouting, stubborness and some anger when he doesn't get his way, but at this point, we understand that every kid does this sometimes, and with normal limits, he is understanding that he can't always get what he wants. After having three other boys, we have seen this time and time before, so we are not shocked or surprised by this at all. He just pouts for a longer time than they ever did. But, he eventually gets over it!
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Home Three Weeks!!!
We are now calling En Yang by his American name, Alex. He says he likes it very much. He also started school and is really enjoying it. The teacher said he fits right in with the class and seems very smart. He gets finished with his work faster than a lot of the other kids AND he still speaks 90% Chinese!!!! He's amazing.
He loves to swim, jump on the trampoline, ride scooters, go to the playground, and play video games. He understands a lot of the house rules, although he definately tries to argue them. For example, we only let the kids play video games on Friday, Saturday and Sunday and he will ask everyday and then he will say, "Friday, I know, I know". He cracks us up. He has started using many English phrases. When he doesn't like a decision we make, he stomps his feet and says, "Oh C'Mon". He knows all his food words, toy words, he is starting to sit longer and longer for bedtime stories, and he is accepting of the basic routines we have here.
He chooses American food over Asian food all the time. I bought an Asian cookbook over the summer and cooked like crazy. Our existing family loved several of the meals and were excited to share them with Alex. Since Alex has come home, he makes faces at all Asian food and asks for hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken, ice cream, meatballs, and tacos. And, he eats soooo much for his little, bitty body. He looks like he is finally gaining a couple of pounds. I hope you enjoy our updated photos!!!!
He loves to swim, jump on the trampoline, ride scooters, go to the playground, and play video games. He understands a lot of the house rules, although he definately tries to argue them. For example, we only let the kids play video games on Friday, Saturday and Sunday and he will ask everyday and then he will say, "Friday, I know, I know". He cracks us up. He has started using many English phrases. When he doesn't like a decision we make, he stomps his feet and says, "Oh C'Mon". He knows all his food words, toy words, he is starting to sit longer and longer for bedtime stories, and he is accepting of the basic routines we have here.
He chooses American food over Asian food all the time. I bought an Asian cookbook over the summer and cooked like crazy. Our existing family loved several of the meals and were excited to share them with Alex. Since Alex has come home, he makes faces at all Asian food and asks for hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken, ice cream, meatballs, and tacos. And, he eats soooo much for his little, bitty body. He looks like he is finally gaining a couple of pounds. I hope you enjoy our updated photos!!!!
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