My computer has been acting a bit weird lately (perhaps its from a certain little one that clicks the on/off button a gazzillion times before Mommy catches him) so I wasn't able to update when I wanted to do so. A warning, this post will be filled with awesomeness, cuteness, birthday craziness and LOTS of pictures.
Eli's birthday fell the Tuesday after Easter, so naturally we celebrated with our family the Saturday before and had Easter Sunday. We just had grandparents, aunts and uncles there, my little nephew didn't make it which was a bit sad but we had a blast anyway! We kept the party small as Eli is just getting used to celebrating birthdays and holidays. With his Birthday and Easter back to back we knew it was going to be a lot for him, but we wanted to celebrate his life and what an awesome boy he is!
Eli loves, loves, loves him some puppy dogs and will excitedly point
them out whenever he sees one. He has multiple stuffed puppies and
loves to cuddle them and feed them and love on them. It's the cutest
ever! I had a few things made on Etsy and then got the rest at Party
City, all puppy themed of course. I wanted to get less cheezey items
for the table, but I plan on doing that for his big during the summer.
So Party City items it was and it turned out rather cute and Eli loved
it
He was definitely SPOILED (he has a couple of grandma's that just melt for this boy!) for his birthday and got A LOT of beautiful toys. He opened them all that day, but we slowly introduced them into his play over the course of the past two weeks so as not to overstimulate him and to give him time adjust! He was extremely excited to get a smokin new set of wheels and a play kitchen which he has been making Puppy breakfast every morning!
We ended the day with a Paleo birthday cake and coconut milk ice cream which Eli L-O-V-E-D! He doesn't really ever get desserts except fruit or an occassional paleo muffin. He was in HEAVEN! My mom did a fantastic job with the cake! The LORD blessed us mightily in every way, shape and form!
If you are all wondering if my child smiles, I guarantee you he is a VERY smiley, happy, silly boy. HOWEVER, when he is in a new situation or one with a lot of people or new things around, he gets very serious and observes everything. We know this is part of the process of him healing and trusting that nothing bad is going to happen. We know he thinks back to the day when he was taken out of everything he knew, traveled three hours in a vehicle he was never in, placed in a new room with a bunch of nannies and kids and bombarded by a bunch of Americans so excited to see his face and other children's faces in that room. VERY, VERY VERY scarey if you ask me, so little by little his is trusting more and more in new situations but he gets very quiet and keeps an eye on Mommy/Daddy. He is doing wonderfully, but we always have to keep in mind his point of view and what he might be experiencing.
The next day was Easter and we dressed in our finest and headed out the door for church. I cried thinking about every Easter that had past, praying to hold a child in my arms and this year the Lord showed Himself mighty!
We had another beautiful day filled with the peace and love of Jesus Christ and really reflected on what the day meant and the salvation that was given to us that day! We had a little egg hunt for Eli and then ended the day with a delicious meal! We are truly blessed to have a such an amazing family!
On Tuesday, we celebrated Eli's 2nd birthday! We prayed that morning for his China Mommy and Daddy who so lovingly gave him life so we could hold him in our arms forever. It's not anything AJ and I take for granted and we will always honor his birth parents in celebrations like this.
We wanted his first birthday with us to be filled with love and family time, just the three of us. AJ took the day off from work and we headed to a local zoo for the morning to celebrate! Eli loved all the animals, the train ride and most of all his first PONY RIDE! He was so brave and courageous-he had to go by himself with two strangers spotting him on the horse around a big track! He LOVED LOVED LOVED it! I asked AJ if we could get him a pony for Christmas and that was quickly shot down! We had a quick bite out to eat and then had some left over cake and ice cream for dessert that night! It was really a beautiful way to celebrate our first child, our first son, our first birthday with Eli and our first time celebrating a birthday as parents!
We have seen Eli just flourish in the past almost 5 months since being with us! The amount of change that has transpired since bringing him home Christmas day is incredible and a testimony of the Lord's power to heal. He went from a sad, shocked little baby to an incredibly vibrant, social, rambunctious, silly, joy-filled toddler! Eli is initiating hugs, kisses, and a few "I wa oo" (i love you) from time to time and showing more and more healthy attachment. All this excitement did create some regression in the beginning of last week. So we did A LOT of lap time, snuggling, holding and rocking to comfort him and reassure him. He is adjusted once again now and we are preparing for May which holds a few birthdays, Mother's day (MY FIRST!!) and a surgical procedure for Eli. So I am sure there will be a lot of snuggles, lap time and hugs in store for our lil man, but nothing that Jesus can't restore through His love and healing power!
Friends, we are so blessed that you all helped us in some way, shape or form to get to this point in our lives and to enjoy being the parents we so desired to be! Words will never express the gratitude we have for you all! Above all, we thank the Lord for all He has done, is doing and will do in our lives! God bless!
God is GOOD and we are BLESSED!
"This is the day the LORD has made;
let us rejoice and be glad in it."
Psalm 118:24
