Stefan has posted new pictures in the Picture archive.
They are in Pictures Archive, “Alex, Week 5”
It’s hard to believe that Alex has been with us 5 weeks already.   When I think back about how far he has come, and how much he has grown in such a short time…..I’m amazed.
Enjoy the pics, Michelle
hey Everyone,
We have new photos in the picture archive !!
Enjoy.
Hey there everyone,
Michelle Here.
We have been enjoying Alex soooooo much!    His personality is shining.   He is full of giggles, mischief, smiles, and is crawling all over the house in lightning-fast speed.    One of my favorite parts of my day is seeing him for the first time in the morning, right after he wakes up.  He’s usually a little cranky (just like me when I wake up).  When he sees me, a biiiiig smile spreads across his little face.  It melts my heart.
One of his favorite objects to play with is NOT the mound of toys on the living room floor, but the remote control.   He’ll be playing quietly, and I’ll hear a giggle come out of nowhere.   I look over, and there he is bouncing, smiling, and laughing….with the remote in his hand.   Now how can I take it out of his hands??  He has such joy in snatching it when we are not looking.
His other favorite thing to do is splash in the dog water bowl.   Need I say more.   I say NO to him; he turns around, and gives me a big smile.   Again, he’s learned already how to negociate with his mother.
Since we had to cancel our baby shower (we had to travel to Korea much sooner than we anticipated, and the shower was scheduled just as we were getting home from Korea), we had an open house on Sunday.   Approximately 40 people attended to meet Alex.  We were not too sure how he would take to all the strangers oooo-ing and ahhhh-ing over him.   He did great.  He took it in stride.  He ‘worked’ the room, and got lots of smiles out of everyone.   I think we may have a future politician here.  He has quite a fan club already.
Alex’ grandparents (both sides) have been visiting frequently too.  They and he have such fun playing and exploring.  Stefan and I also enjoy witnessing the great relationships and love he has for his grandparents.   It’s very special for us to witness.    It also gives Stefan and me a little time to do stuff around the house when they are here.   It’s amazing how much quicker we get things accomplished when we know we only have a small window to complete them!
Alex had his ‘one month’ checkup at the pediatrician’s last week.   He great an inch and a half in the last 3 weeks!!!  We can’t believe it.  He is now in the 72 percentile in height and the 24 percentile in weight (according to US babies).   I told the doctor that I wasn’t sure how much we should be feeding him, because he NEVER stops eating when we are feeding him.  The child eats large amounts of food.  We finally will stop feeding him when we can’t imagine his little belly can hold any more food.   Well, looking at his height/weight ratio…..we’re not over feeding him.   So now it’s more of mommy’s cooking.  The kid hasn’t met a root vegetable that he doesn’t eat.   So far, he’s also eating all sorts of squash, turnips, rutabaga, parsnips, and beets, as well as the standard sweet potatoes and carrots.  He’s also eating spinach, beans, and peas.  Also, the doc said he can eat chicken and hamburger.   So his personal chef has now added that to his menu.   If you wonder how we’re feeding him all this stuff…….Stefan and I belong to a Community Supported Agriculture program were we get a box of seasonal organic veggies every 2 weeks.  Well, whatever veggies Stefan and I don’t eat…..guess who gets them steamed, pureed, and served to him.  He hasn’t turned anything down yet.
hey there everyone,
Michelle here.
We have downloaded new photos in the ‘pictures gallery’ of the website…..enjoy!
The days have flown by, and I can’t believe we’re starting week #4 with Alex!!
He has become a giggly, happy, busy little boy, and we have enjoyed witnessing his many new experiences.   He has been GREAT in public, so we’ve been able to go out to eat many times, we took him to the pumpkin patch this weekend, and we’ve visited many of our friends.    If anyone would like to make a visit, just give us a call!
Our main focus is still establishing a sleep schedule, as well as establishing a routine for GOING TO SLEEP.   He has certainly figured out what he can get away with between mommy and daddy.   He does not like going to sleep, although he does go down better with Stefan.    We’ve established a ‘new’ method for him, and he’s taking to it well (OK…in other words, mommy and daddy are doing better).  We put him down in his crib still awake, and stay/sleep in the room with him.    If he cries, we let him, but all the time staying with him.    We are still being very aware that we need to establish his trust with us, and show him that we are always there for him…..even when it’s doing something that prevents him from playing with his toys (sleeping). 🙂
Stefan has been back to work for a week, and I am staying home with him, almost full time.   I have gone into the office twice, and plan on going in one day per week for the next few months.   It’s great to be able to focus my attention on him, and I feel very, very fortunate that we are able to work that out as a family.   I find it very funny that after being a professional for 20 years, my life now totally revolves around nap time.   My thought process goes something like this:       Hmmm…..should we go to the store?  What time is it now?  Do we have time to do it before nap time?    I need to make an appointment……I need to do it between naps………OR:    I have xxxx minutes before Alex should be waking up….do I have time to complete this task?        My how things change; and I would not have it any other way!
Have fun viewing the photos!
Today was my first full day back at work. It was a lot longer than I expected. After taking three weeks off and being with Alex the majority of the time, I definitly had a hard time focusing on the world of IT Security. I really only got through my email and claenday and after eight hours I was egar to return home. Luckily tomorrow is only a half day.
Hey y’all….
Michelle Here.
Thought I’d give you an update on our last few days.
Our main priority has been to get Alex on a sleeping and eating routine.    It is working!!!     For the last four nights, he has been in been from approx. 9 pm to 7 am.   He’s up for an average of an hour and a half at night.   MUCH IMPROVEMENT!!   I am calling Stefan the baby whisperer, because he has a soothing ability with Alex, and can get him to sleep with his magic routine of: bottle, patting, talking, and lullaby playing.   When Alex wakes up in the middle of the night, he talks him back to sleep.   Oh, my miracle worker.   Stefan and I trade off on baby duty each night, so it’s his turn tonight.
Alex is very social.   He doesn’t like strangers much, but he loves to watch people.   Stefan, Alex, and I went out to lunch for the first time today (for those of you who know our routine, this is a record for us….more than a week without going to a restaurant).   Alex did really well.   He just sat and ate his cheerios and watched everyone walk by him.    We also made an appearance at a bonfire last weekend.   With all the chaos of lots of children and adults running around, he just took everything in.
We have started him on ‘solid’ foods.   I’m the master at puree-ing vegetables.  His favorites are sweet potatoes, acorn squash, and carrots.   His least favorite are fresh boiled beets, and green beans……although he takes those hook, line, and sinker when camoflauged in with his favorite foods…..hee hee hee.   He has a pretty wide taste palette.  We’re trying to stay away from sweets (including limiting fruits, and concentrating on veggies) for now, since he’ll have a lifetime to eat the tastiest food group 🙂
hey there everyone,
We posted new pictures in the photo Gallery.   Go to the home page of www.wahe.us.  Click on “photo Gallery”.    Click on “Alex, Week 1”
Actually, this is not the first hair cut for Alex. Apperently his foster mother already gave him two cuts. However, since he was often mistaken for the Fifth Beatle at the doctors office, we decided to get him a new do. Luckily, our hair stylest was willing to give this a try. He started out well in Michelle’s lap, but once the water came to wet down those dark lock, the tears began to fall. It took several attempts, but the end result was a very nice looking hair cut. He is now all set for his professional world.
After the hair cut Alex celebrated with some tasty rice meal and mushed up bananas. A well earned treat after his big day.
Thank goodness for that surveillance system we had installed. Here is our little guy in the kitchen getting himself a midnight snack. Guess he was really ready for solid food 🙂
I finally have gotten on to our computer, and finally posting an entry!   Thanks so much everyone for all your support, love, and wonderful words.   We appreciate everything!!
Little Alex is full of smiles, giggles, and energy.   He LOVES to watch people and watch lots of action going on around him.  As a matter of fact, the only way to really keep him from wailing while we were in Seoul (the first night) was to carry him and walk with him out on the streets of Seoul.    He was totally taken in by all the action and people and lights.     Back at home, he loves splashing in the bathtub, watching our cats, babbling, playing with his noisiest toys, and going for walks.    He is pulling himself up from sitting, and he prefers experiencing his world from a standing position rather than a sitting position.   He is bonding to us amazingly well.   The first 3 or 4 days, he has extremely clingy to me.   I could not let him go without him wailing.     He’s now taken to Stefan and the two of them are buddies.    We are told that the children often take to one parent, and then later to the other, so this is normal behavior.
Since we weren’t quite sure what he’s experienced, and with his clingyness, we have introduced him to many things slowly.    He has taken to his exersaucer (at first he would only play with it from the outside).    We later introduced him to a high chair, a bath tub, his crib, his pack and play, his stroller.  He has taken all well…..thank god.   He is co-sleeping with us right now, and we intend to transition him to his crib when the time is right.   The Ergo baby carrier has been a godsend…..two reasons…..I’ve had to carry him non stop for the first days, and my arms were very tired.   Also, he’s very used to being ‘worn’ while he was in Korea, so when he fusses, I wear him, and he calms down.    Many times, when I need to get something done around the house, I wear him, and then we can do our tasks together.       Today I introduced him to rice cereal, mashed bananas, and a little carrot puree.    He was eating some solids while in Korea, so now we’ve introduced him to mommy’s cooking 🙂
We have had a challenge with him sleeping more than 2 hours at a time.   His foster mother said he slept thru the night, so he should be someday with us!    He wakes up from a deep sleep wailing.   Poor little guy.  Stefan and I believe that he is mourning for the loss of his familiar life.    We console him the best we can….we hold him, walk him around the house, play lullabies, sing to him, rock him, love him.   We are afraid of starting some ‘bad’ habits, but figure all bets are off when we’re in the middle of this huge transition for him.   We are trying to establish a routine/schedule so that should make life easier.
Well, send your postitive energies our way that tonight we make some headway in sleeping at night…..