Little boys

The first time Mick ever put Sam on his shoulders he was terrified and cried to get down.
Now it's a preferred method of transportation.

This face makes me happy.

In a few days it will be five months. I get asked every day how the boys are doing, and how they are getting along. At the risk of sounding like a broken record- I'm amazed at them. For all of us, it feels as if there never was a "before Sam". Even Sam seems to believe he's been here his whole life. They are regular brothers- making sure things are even, play battles, tattling, reading books, partners-in-crime, racing. In less than 6 months they have moved through what could have been a long and challenging transition and are fast friends. Really, this is amazing. I am so very proud of them.

 

I wish these pictures had sound! "Faster, Baba! Faster!"

Sam speaks English exclusively now, to the point that he has started asking what the Chinese words mean sometimes when we say them. He gets his pronouns and verb tenses correct. He will tell you he has his opinion, "for reasons". We understand about 95% of what he says in his super-cute, squeaky, little boy voice. ("Probably" is one of my favorites.) As older siblings do, Isaac is right there to translate anything we can't get. He's always right, too. 

Bedtime reading is a favorite around here. Isaac now sometimes reads his own book, but sometimes offers to read to Didi (little brother). When I read to Sam he wants me to use his finger to point to every word and he repeats after me. After a page he will exclaim, "I'm a great reader!" He's in preschool this year and I expect he will be reading by Kindergarten. Definitely a lover of books.

If you get the chance to have a conversation with Sam you will hear all about the cars in his world. He is never bored with examining my headlights or tires, or talking car speeds and colors. He will beg to ride in your car and you will have a hard time saying no, so you will take him around the block and be rewarded with squeals of joy.

Last night our sweet neighbors gave the boys each a Hot Wheels car. Sam got a white Porsche and I looked it up for him on YouTube. The kid who can't sit for TV was engrossed in watching some guy walk around the car and talk about its features. It wasn't even driving! I couldn't take my eyes off of his delighted face. Just precious.

At this point we are through all of our initial doctor visits and even some follow-ups. Sam has high-muscle tension from his hip to his toes on his right side which pulls and twists his foot and leg. He has a leg brace he wears and we do stretches every day. The doctor says that it will help keep his leg from getting worse, but it won't really make it better. Surgery is a possibility but probably won't help much. He gets around well, though, and my priority is for him to feel good about all that he can do. An MRI showed he has a piece of bone in his spine that we will need to have removed, so that will probably happen this summer. 

Last weekend we took the boys to see Santa. Sam kept exclaiming, "It's my first time!" This is probably the only year we'll have where both boys will be "all in". Isaac asked for Pokemon and a Fitbit, Sam wants a race car and a police car. Simple pleasures. Is it strange that I can already feel my heart aching over the passing of time? I often ask Isaac if he will "please, always be my baby?". He used to emphatically agree. Now he just grins and shrugs as if to say, "No promises, Mama." 

These precious years are short for all of us. But for now we are enjoying our first Christmas as a family of four. Our hearts are full.