Smooth Sailing So Far!

Just wanted to post a quick update on our lives for the past few days!  Everything is going really, really well so far.  Better than I could have anticipated!  Gideon is really a sweet, sweet boy, just as I had hoped.  He is adjusting really well to having a house full of siblings and we are LOVING having him home!!!!!

I have been trying to cook some foods he would enjoy the past few days to make his transition a little easier.  He has basically been eating noodles for breakfast and lunch, with a little bok choy mixed in that I bought from our local farmer's market.  Even my other kids have been enjoying that for lunch and keep telling me how yummy it is!

He has been good about trying new things though-- some he loves like blueberry milkshakes from Cook Out!  Some not so much, like pickles.  :)

It has been a whirlwind these past few days but oh, so fun.  We are using our handheld translator, as well as Google Translate, a lot.  But he is picking up on a lot so far too.  We have been writing out the alphabet, and a few common words for him to copy.  His handwriting is excellent!!  And we have been doing some simple math too so I can gauge where he is.  He has problems with borrowing and carrying in addition and subtraction, so we need to work on that over the summer.

So far though, all is going well.  My husband cannot wait to get home to see him every night and has been calling me from work during the day more than ever before!  Heehee!  He really wishes he could be home with us every day, especially during this new and wonderful time.  He simply LOVES showing him new things, like our garden or the horses down the street, and loves trying to speak with him and talk to him about our lives.  It is really precious.

He just couldn't wait to get Gideon home, and now that he is he is just so happy!  Tim is the one who showed him around the house the night he got home, and couldn't wait to show him his truck and motorcycle and the Wii-- all that "guy" stuff, and I am sooooo thankful for that.... and for him! 

I think Gideon feels the same way.  Every time we Skyped from China, when Gideon would see Tim in the background he would point excitedly at him and say "Baba!"  It is going to be a wonderful thing to watch their relationship grow.

So, in conclusion--

Some of Gideon's faves so far:
Soccer (he runs SO fast and has a great foot!), milkshakes, noodles, Nerf guns!!, playing the Wii

Some of his not-so-faves:
The dogs, the cats, pickles, flip-flops, sunglasses and rollerskating.
(Brought them all out to rollerskate at the rink the other night.  He really didn't want to do it, but after a few trips around the rink with Baba, he got the hang of it and did great!)

And....... one last picture.  He was ABSOLUTELY ECSTATIC after our consulate appointment.  I think he really, truly knew he was ours then!!

God is so good!  Thank you Lord.