May 11 2016 marked one year since a very small scared little boy was placed in our arms. His fear wasn't obvious at first. In China and even for months after being home he was just such a chill little guy. You would assume that was just his personality. A year later we can look back and see it was a coping mechanism. He is still a pretty chill little guy, but not nearly as withdrawn as those first few months. He was checking us out, getting a lay of the land and deciding if this was just another temporary placement for him.
Well a year later we have seen so much growth in Owen. He has a ready smile, a laugh that is so stinking cute you can't help but laugh with him and a big personality. He has definitely entered the 2's stage. Lots of "No No No," full on floor thrashing b/c I didn't get another popsicle fits and potty training (although I refuse to admit he is potty training until we are moved but he just kind of decided).
He LOVES his big brother and does absolutely everything Konnor does. He follows him around everywhere and is learning so much from imitating him. He is learning his colors and animals. Loves trucks and trains (b/c really is there anything else to play with ???). He is starting to like play dough and some occasional coloring. He is still doing speech and occupational therapy every week and they said he is doing great. He has developed the cutest smile that hikes up one side of his lip while he squints with one eye on the other side. It's adorable.
Two weeks ago he learned how to drink from a straw which is HUGE!!!! That is a really big milestone for a cleft kid so we are ecstatic. Now that he has some more control through the straw his fluid intake has really increased which has always been a concern. He has also really started to expand what he will eat. He is trying more foods and overall eating a much more balanced diet. He is no longer seeing a Dietician b/c she was so happy with how much he has expanded his diet and he is showing great "catch up" growth. She said he is eating a balanced diet, we just need to get more calories in him (working on it). He has grown 4 lbs and almost 6 inches in the last year. Most of the growth has been in the last few months so hopefully we will squeak onto the growth charts soon.
His attachment to us is going great. He actively seeks us out, looks for us if we are out of sight and comes to us for comfort. Yay!! Anytime a child has a history of trauma attachment is always ongoing concern. For Owen specifically he has had multiple placements prior to coming to us. What that means is that we will continue to have to prove to him that we will be here and that our family is forever. I suspicion when we move in 2 weeks we will see some regression as we will once again be changing his entire environment, but we are fully prepared to step up the attachment work to reassure him that we are still here for the long haul. We have really worked on when he wakes up instead of crying he should say "Mama" or just come get me. I think crying was automatic for him b/c he would wake up alone and scared. Well just the last few days he has started getting out of bed and quietly coming to the top of the stairs to say "Mama" in the sweetest little voice. Yes little guy, I am here, Mama will always be here.
Overall we couldn't have asked for Owen to have adjusted any better to our family. He is such a smart, funny, loving little boy and just such a blessing to all of us. We are so thankful to his birth family for choosing life and to God for then choosing us to walk him through life. Next update will be from our new house, in our new town where we will see what adventures await the Hendricks Family.
 |
| Precious Angel |
 |
| Officer Hendricks on the case! |
No comments:
Post a Comment