We had a very exciting summer started off with our first trip to Disney World. I wasn’t really looking forward to going (quite honestly). The idea of non-stop theme parks didn’t sound like much of a vacation to me at all. But it was for the kids. But I was so surprised…we all had a wonderful time. It was probably our best family vacation yet! We went at the end of May. The parks were not at all crowded and the weather was great (not too hot). The kids had the most amazing time meeting all their cartoon friends and partaking of all the fun that Disney has to offer. We celebrated Aiden’s 4th birthday while there…it was a blast. He was served a small birthday cake by Cinderella and Prince Charming and became an honorary prince.
The summer months were a little crazy with Aiden not in school and out of routine. Plus, Liam discovered what it means to be a “terrible two” this summer too. Life got crazy, and I am pretty sure Chaunta was considering going back to work…and getting the heck out of the house! But through some planning and creativity, things finally came together just in time for school to start back up in late August. Aiden continues to go to preschool 4 half days a week. Liam also started going to preschool this year 2 half days a week. It is a nice break for all of us!
Speaking of Liam, he is growing up so fast. And he is so independent. I bet we hear him say “I do it myself” at least 20 times a day. Those of you that know us know that Aiden gave us a run for our money at that age too… But Liam takes things to a whole different level. He is extremely smart and always seems to be one step ahead of us. Aiden was always in trouble (and to some degree, still is)…but he easily corrects and apologizes. Liam doesn’t get into trouble as often…but when he does, it is usually bigger trouble and he refuses to relent. He is very strong willed. But he also has a great sense of humor and can sometimes weasel out of trouble by making us laugh. He talks a ton, although sometime we don’t understand what he is saying. He gets so frustrated with us when that happens. Usually his brother can translate. On Sunday we celebrated Liam’s “Gotcha Day”. It is hard to believe it has been two years since he joined our family. We are so thankful for him and the miracle of adoption. By the way, he will be turning 3 in just a few weeks too.
Aiden is growing fast too and getting so tall. We are so thankful that he is now four…he is maturing so much and becoming so much fun. I think 4 must be God’s reward with putting up with the 2’s and 3’s. We celebrated his 4th “Gotcha Day” in late August (for him it is the day he came home from spending the first 3 months of his life in the Hospital Neonatal Intensive Care Unit). He is of course still very busy, and it takes a lot of structure to keep him out of trouble. He started taking martial arts recently and really enjoys it. We are seeing great benefits in his behavior. He continues to work hard to overcome his disabilities. Most recently he was released from weekly physical therapy (the first time since birth).
As for our adoption, we continue to be on the “slow boat to China (Taiwan)”. We are expecting to receive a referral in the next 3-4 months. There seem to be several challenges facing multiple International Adoption programs that ultimately affect even the ones that are running smoothly. In any case, we aren’t in a huge hurry. As you can tell, our boys keep us pretty occupied. It will all happen in God’s timing.
All in all, we are doing great. We have taken so many pictures since our last update…I don’t even know where to begin. But here are Aiden’s 4th B-day pictures. There are of course more of Aiden than Liam. But we will be posting Liam’s 3rd B-day pictures as soon.
