Gathering My Children: Home Almost Two Weeks!

What a difference two weeks can make in the life of a child! Timothy has integrated himself into his new family in record time. He still loves BaBa but I am now included in his circle of favorite people and am his go-to person for comfort, love, food, and clean pants. He tells me "Wo ai ni." (I love you.) He gives me kisses and snuggles. He also has a wide circle of adoring Jie Jies. I'm not sure if adding an s to the end of the word big sister is the correct way to make it plural but he has 3 and also includes any female under 15 as a big sister. This circle includes sisters, nieces, and friends of sisters and nieces. From any of these Jie Jies he expects and receives absolute servitude. At first he believed that any one in his fan club could trump a parent if a desire was not given immediately. Hmmm, a few tantrums later and he is starting to get the idea that MaMa and BaBa are the supreme rulers of this clan. Although, he knows he can count on Tobianna to give in when Mom's not looking.

The GeGes (brothers) are fun but must respect the cardinal rule of "all toys belong to Timothy." Luke isn't so sure about this arrangement and Tate and Teegan have learned to keep prized possessions out of sight. I've reassured them that as he learns more English, he will also learn more house rules.

Another biggie in the progress arena--he is no longer afraid of our dogs! My aching back is glad for that progress, since I had to carry him any time the dogs were out of their kennels in the house. Now we are working on appropriate behavior around dogs, such as no feeding them your lunch under the table and laughing hysterically about it. And, if you let them out of the kennels, you can't scream when they jump for joy.

He is a much happier and relaxed child than he was when we first arrived home. Part of this is a result of antibiotics for an infection in his bladder and having a 7 hour visit in the ER. Of course the ER visit wasn't the charm, it was the removal of the large blood clot blocking his catheter that gave him relief from the pain he had been experiencing since we first met him. He did enjoy having his nieces pop in for an hour or so while we waited and though he tried to teach Faith to count in Mandarin, she just couldn't get it right.

Timothy and I will be headed up to Johns Hopkins this Mother's Day. He will be meeting Dr. John Gearheart and undergoing a procedure to see how his bladder is functioning and to decide next steps. I'm hoping we can also get rid of the catheter. We are blessed to be flying free on "angel flight" with Southwest Airlines and staying at the Ronald McDonald house.

All in all, it has been a busy and hectic first couple of weeks home. We have already had 3 visits by DCF's contractors for our foster children. We have gone to Teegan's kindergarten class' Mother's Day Party. We have been to 2 award presentations for our excellent readers, Teegan and Tobianna. We have visited schools and camps for summer and enrolled Luke and Tate for summer VPK. We have wrangled with insurance companies and the State to get his benefits started immediately (as should be the norm but I'm over that bitterness now). We have had 2 doctors appointments and 1 ER visit. We have visited with Timothy's class that he will start when I return to work. We have had a double header birthday party for Teegan and Dawn (Dinosaurs and Princesses). Today we are meeting friends for lunch. Here are a few pictures of our wild ride.