some pics

Climbing everything and anything is also a favourite past time, which is fine except for the no fear of running off the edge when he wants to get down.

JJ loves his baths and says bath at any given opportunity. The orphanage washed the children by pouring cups of cold water over them, so for Jeremiah's first bath I sat with him in 2cm of cold water and slowly filled and warmed the bath. He was so amazed that his foot kept floating and has since discovered just how wet you can make mummy with splashing!

Apparently, this toy highchair is not for dolls to sit in. JJ ditched the doll, knocked the highchair over and found it's true purpose....to make really loud sounds whilst dragging it on tiles!

This phone was the first toy we bought in the Philippines, because he constantly wanted ours. JJ didn't play with it over there, he just wanted something to hold. Now he loves to "talk" on the phone and has just figured out that my phone takes pictures, so this is JJ taking a picture of himself with his toy phone.

This is my beautiful sister Samantha, she was the first person I hugged when we arrived at the airport. Sam has travelled this long road with us very closely, so you can imagine how emotional she was to meet her new nephew.

JJ will pick up any bag, no matter how big or heavy, put the straps on his shoulder and wave bye-bye. This bag proved too heavy, so with many failed attempts, he decided to drag it to the front door and dump it there as if to say, "this ones a dud, get rid of it!"

Jordan made this welcome home cake, it was so special that all of the kids had their own way of welcoming their little brother (thanks to Phoebe).

I've said before how I'm not allowed to show any distinguishing photos of Jeremiah on the web until our court day in a years time, but I can still e-mail a photo, so if you've been tracking my blog and want to see a photo of Jeremiah, I'd be proud to e-mail you a piccy. I don't know how you do that, if you leave an e-mail address in comments or some other way, so if anyone knows how, please let me know.

Life in the day of JJ

Jeremiah is 16 1/2 months old now, he is 73cm tall and weighs 8.3kg (he's slowly gaining weight).
He has the smallest little bottom, it's so little that we have him in infant nappies and the tabs still cross over....so cute!
He's a smart little guy, the carers ( called Aunties and Uncles ) in the orphanage spoke to him in Cebuano, but he is picking up English really quickly and knows what I'm on about most of the time. I just repeat the English and then the Cebuano word for those I know to help him out. Still there are times he keeps repeating a word over and over and I have no idea what he's saying, and I can't find it in my translation book ( it is 16month old Cebuano after all ).

Food wise, he loves any mushy fruit, over cooked mushy rice, and sultanas. We are still working on finger foods and vegetables. I carry sultanas around all the time so he knows that food is always available to him but he still gets into the bin now and then and stuffs food into his nappy for later, Sometimes it's not even eatable, a banana skin or a tea bag.
I need to clarify that JJ's orphanage was one of the best I have seen or heard of, they really loved and cared for him and we will forever be thankful to God and the workers for doing their very best for JJ. They all have an enormous faith in God and treat the children wonderfully. In fact, the day we left, JJ was so distraught to leave, I even wondered if we were doing what was best for him. They loved him, he loved them and this was his home since he was 6hours old. He seemed very settled in his life there and had all his friends around him.
Now I can see that no matter how well an orphanage is run, how much the children are loved, it never replaces a family that can provide that individual attention when they need it, with 75-100 children at any given time, it is impossible to comfort every hurt, cater to hunger outside of set meal times, and so much more that instills security, love and peace into a child that enables them to grow to their full potential. So although JJ is doing fantastically because of how well he was treated, there are still so many hurdles to overcome.

Sleeping is probably one of our toughest issues, but we are making progress. He was sleeping with his eyes wide open, poor little guy, so much insecurity and learnt protection skills shouldn't be there in anyone, especially a 16month old. He closes his eyes now but still wants to sleep on me, koala bear style (which is not the most comfortable position for a side sleeper). He can sometimes take hours to go to sleep and when I can safely put him down without waking, he sleeps for 15mins and then that's it for the day. He wakes restlessly through the night, his little arms and legs don't stop moving, searching for comfort and he needs to tuck his hand up my sleeves. What amazes me is that although he gets so little sleep, he doesn't sit still, he's always on the go, to the point where I have to massage his legs and hold him because he doesn't seem to know what to do with himself, he seems a bit lost and can't get himself to stop.
During the day, he is much more settled, is fine to visit new people and places and is happy to explore and walk off from me as long as I am sitting down. So he can walk away from me but not me walk away from him, which means housework is on a definite back burner at the moment.

He's learning to respond more to pain now. He use to knock his head really hard, slam his finger in the drawer and not bat an eyelid. JJ is still a tough little guy but he'll come to us and cry a little now. We don't want him to become a sook when he has the slightest bump but he needs to know that we are always there to comfort him. He has never had any tears since birth so it's also important for him to audibly cry or to indicate when he has been hurt, especially when he goes to kindy or is with someone else.

Have to go, I have been typing one handed with him asleep on my chest an he is just waking up, i will try to get some pictures up tonight.

Hello again, I'm back!

Ok, here we go... I have made a few attempts to blog but never got to complete them.
There has been sooo much happening since I last blogged that it's hard to get everything down, so I will have to just pick up from here.
The trip to bring home our little boy was one we will never forget and a piece of our hearts will forever be with the orphanage. The children there were just beautiful, we had lots of play time with them all and the only one that didn't want anything to do with us was our son, Jeremiah.
It was so hard when we first saw him not to just hold him and kiss him, but we sat back and took it as slow as he needed. He was very attached to a few of his carers and clung to them as much as he could, whilst watching us, trying to work us out.
The day we finally took him from the orphanage was heart breaking. The other children and carers sung us a farewell song, said a prayer and gave us hugs goodbye. The whole time this was going on, JJ was screaming, the carers were all crying.... it was so emotional. JJ was so upset that I had to keep telling myself that this was a good sign. If he has attached to someone then he can attach again. Some children have never learnt to bond with anyone and have a hard time ever fully bonding.
What's changed since then?
He is adjusting really well. Absolutely loves his brothers and sister, and gives us huge giggles, hugs and kisses. He calls us Mummy and Daddy and is always on the go discovering this new world. He is just beautiful.
Although we were not there for his first tooth, word, and steps, we have been able to share so many firsts with him. We take for granted the things around us, and it was so special watching JJ see a whole new world...his first bath, carpet (which he licked), cupboards, drawers, television..and so much more.
We are still having to work on a few areas, but he is doing far better than we thought he would, and we will tackle things one day at a time. One thing is certain though....I would've waited 20years for this little blessing that is asleep beside me and I again am amazed at God's awesome love and blessings.