Jeremiah is one AMAZING little boy. I still can't believe God is allowing us to be his parents. We are so blessed!!! It seems as though he has been with us always and fits perfectly with our family dynamic. He has an incredible sense of humor, loves to play and do artwork, and will wrestle with Elijah and has given him quite the run for his money!
Jeremiah came home a month ago on a Thursday, and by the following Monday had his first doctors appointment. We found out he was very healthy overall and needed only 2 vaccinations to catch him up to where he should be. He took the shots like a champ, smile on his face and all. He also had to give 4 vials of blood, and he giggled at that, thinking it was funny watching the blood shoot into the tube and vials. That day we were referred to the spina bifida clinic at the hospital and told it would be about 8 weeks before we got in.
The next day I received a call to schedule our appointment and was told it would be April before we got in to see them. I was not too excited about my boy having to wait that long seeing as how we needed many answers about his condition. After talking through some concerns we got an appointment for the very next day!!! We spent 5 hours that Thursday seeing several doctors, therapists, getting x-rays, and being fit for his foot/leg braces and wheelchair. It was incredible how much was accomplished!! But.... A 6 year old in a hospital for 5 hours after only being home a week... He was not impressed. So we had a fun lunch and ice cream afterwards. And all was right with the world again! The kid loves ice cream!!
Since then, Jeremiah has gotten a temporary wheelchair, for long distances, and his leg and foot braces. He is getting around so well! The day he got fit for them, they put the braces on him and asked him to stand to see how they felt. He stood and looked up at me in amazement with the biggest smile on his face. "Mama!!!! Look Jeremiah!!" My boy was freely standing by himself for the very first time. Before then, he was able to stand up, but had to keep his feet moving to maintain balance without support. Tears began to flow from my eyes, and then also from the doctors eyes that we had only known for a couple of hours. Jeremiah was so excited and proud of himself. He walked around and just giggled for a few minutes. When he got home he wanted to go out and walk around in the snow, so I let him of course! Now, every morning he is ready to get those braces on and take off!! I told you he's amazing....
At home we began working on letters, numbers, colors and shapes. He has picked them up instantaneously. Not once, after we've worked on something has he forgotten it. Pretty sure we have a genius on our hands! His English is also flourishing. Some of our favorite things to hear him say are: "Oh No!!!!", "Ninja turtle", "booyakasha", "sorry", and of course "I love you". He has the most precious little voice, and I just want to kiss his little cheeks every time he talks. He has also been teaching me how to say several things in Chinese!
Within a few days of him being home, Jeremiah began to get into the routine of taking his brothers to school in amongst all of our doctors appointments. A few days in Jeremiah decided he was going to start wearing his own backpack when we took the other boys. Then he would say, "Jeremiah?" And hold up his hands and point like, "when do I get to go to school mom?" He had been going to school in China, but I figured he needed to be home and adjust to family life before starting school. I fully expected to keep him home a couple of months for bonding purposes, but he was doing rather well. I realized it was me that wanted to keep him home and love on him, but he was ready to join his brothers at school; so after two weeks we started the enrollment process, and he started school this last Friday. He absolutely loves it!!! And so do Micah and Elijah. They love showing him off to all the students and teachers. Elijah and Jeremiah have already been on a field trip together. We have this really neat creative art place nearby and the whole kindergarten class got to go and then have pizza for lunch. It was so fun to see all the kids welcome and have fun with Jeremiah.
This past week was also Chinese New Year. We celebrated early at a New Years party at the Nelson Atkins Museum of Art. We had a great time with friends and family and were able to see lots of native cultural performances. On New Years we sat together as a family and had a feast of Chinese food. Yum!!
So as you can see a lot has gone on for this amazing little guy in just a month. His entire world has changed, and he has taken it all on, full steam ahead. We can't wait to see what all is in store for our family!! Here are just a few more glimpses of Mr. Handsome...
On a side note, recently something else amazing has happened. Jeremiah's best friend at Alenah's Home, JiaJia, that we've talked about, has a family!!! The best part is, they are like family to us!!!! Within the next year, Jeremiah and JiaJia, who have been separated by thousands of miles, will be reunited and live only a few miles apart. God is good and His plans are amazing and unfathomable. We are so excited for this boy and his family. Please be in prayer for all of them during the long adoption process. If you'd like, they've also started a blog, so you can follow his journey at, amamaandbabaforjiajia.blogspot.com
There will be many fundraising opportunities to help cover costs to bring JiaJia home!!!
