Wow!!! What a difference a year makes!!!

Last week, May 18th, marked 1 year since I finally held James in my arms again 

after having to say good-bye in Korea and continue to wait. It marked one year that Daddy and Zoey

met him for the very first time. Most importantly, it marked one year that we became a family of four. 

To celebrate we of course had to start the day with a cake pop just like he had on his very first outing in America - to Target of course!!! Nothing like Starbucks and Target as a first trip. 

 May 23, 2012

May 18, 2013 

Just amazing how much my baby has changed in a year. 

He is growing up WAY TOO FAST!!! 

I also find it so sweet that every single time he gets a special cake pop at Target he always picks pink - just like his very first visit. 

AT ONE YEAR HOME

32 months old

Favorite Foods: 

Everything!!! He no longer says "KaKa" for snack and is very precise in saying exactly what he wants as a snack. He loves fruit - Strawberries, grapes, watermelon, oranges, apples and he still likes bananas too. He loves treats and asks for "special treat" all day long. He also loves "special ice cream drink" - aka - fruit smoothies. This boy loves to go out to eat too - whenever I stop somewhere new that he has never been he usually asks me if it is time to "eat eat". He still likes his seaweed but the last time we went out for Korean he was kinda peeved that they didn't have a "burga and french fry" or "scaggeties". 

Favorite Toys:

Still loves everything with wheels but fire trucks are his absolute favorite- and buses aren't far behind.  He likes to play trains on his train table, doll house, puzzles, blocks, and of course EVERYTHING that sister plays. He loves playing doctor, cooking, and taking care of baby dolls.  He recently started playing board games (Candy Land and Chutes and Ladders) but still needs some help at turn taking. He loves the Ipad and works it quite well. 

Achievements:

James amazes us every day. He has been in big boy underwear all the time since he was 28 months old. He has Mickey, Thomas, and Jake but prefers his little man boxer briefs. He knows all of his colors, shapes, and the majority of his letters. He understands the concept of having one and having two. He also has learned to clean up his toys very well. He is counting (although not always in order), sings Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, "Rock the Baby", and most of  his favorite song "The Wheels on the Bus". He had an Early Intervention evaluation a few months ago and scored above average in all areas except speech which was average - which they thought was great being he wasn't even home a year yet and English wasn't the first language he heard and spoke. 

Stayed the Same: 

Little man did not keep very much of his Korean language so what he does still use I love to hear. 

He no longer calls me Omma :( now I am  Mommy. 

He still asks for "ah-boo-bah" when he wants to get on my back (we don't do it as often anymore) or when he wants a baby doll tied onto his back. 

He still calls his blanket "Chikim" which some of us adoptive mama's found to mean "go to sleep". 

He answers to Jun-ha and we still use Hajima. 

Random Facts:

When James came home he pushed us away as he grieved. He did not want to be rocked. Now, several times a day he will climb up in my lap and tell me to "rock my baby".  Talk about melt my mama heart. I might not have been able to rock him at a week old, a month old, or even a year old - but at two + years he lets me rock and cuddle him all the time. 

James has a picture of him and his Omma ( his foster mother who took care of him in Korea). When he started calling me Omma (which he did on his own) I was quiet honored because he finally saw me as someone who meant so much to him, someone who met his needs and cared for him for so long. Now, when he looks at the picture from Korea he recognizes himself as the baby in the photo and sometimes will look at me and look at the pictures and say "2 mama". Smart boy knows exactly what a mother is. It doesn't matter if they are an Omma or Mama or Mommy - what matters is whats in the heart. 

James came home a pretty great sleeper. We still co-slept for months (James has never slept in a crib) because that was what he was used to in Korea. We would take turns sleeping in his room with him so he never slept in our room. In December we started having him sleep on his own and aside from waking early we had no issues. Then about 3-4 months ago we started hearing the pitter patter of little feet and all of a sudden he would be in my bed. Now, he comes every night. Sometime between 2 and 6 he finds his way into the middle of the bed and snuggles right up with me. Some nights at bedtime he even tries to get over on me. He will drag me in my room, point to one end of the bed and say "Daddy bed"...point to the other end and say "Mommy bed" and then point right in the middle with his larger then life smile and say "Jame bed mama, Jame bed". While we always make him start out in his bed, he always ends up in ours. 

And I am pretty okay with that. I know, like Zoey, it wont last forever. So, for a little while longer we just want him to be little. 

Little guy has a love for bedtime stories. He asks for one more over and over and over again. 

I draw the line at 12. 

He listens and focuses and studies the pictures. 

Some favorites: Baa Baa Bedtime, 10 in the Bed, Max and Ruby, Biscuit, Good Night Moon, All the Ways I Love You, Sleep Tight Kitty, and my childhood favorite The Pokey Little Puppy. 

He also has started reading himself. ;) I will hear him in his room trying to retell a story I read him while looking at the pages and always ending with The End. 

Still can't believe what a difference a year makes. 

Can we freeze time? 

Because my baby is turning into a big boy way too fast!!!!

5/26/2013