Month Eight!

We have had our precious boy for eight months today!!! This month has been wonderful as we got to make some great memories and simply enjoy being a family. Jack continues to make great strides in many things and we are so proud of our little buddy. This month, we celebrated our one year anniversary of our referral of Jack!  It was so much better to have him in our arms this time though. We got some pictures of Jack with his referral picture. He did a great job! :)

We also got to celebrate Jack's birthday this month! Our little man is two years old! I can't believe it! Bryan and I made the decision that we wouldn't have a big birthday party on Jack's actual birthday. Being so close to Christmas, it makes it hard to come up with the extra money to buy more gifts and do a party. So, we decided he would have an actual birthday party on his half birthday in July (like last year). It would be warmer then, and it would be at a good time to get him stuff that he might be needing or wanting then instead of having to wait until Christmas. Right now it works for us, but we will let him decide when he gets older when he wants to celebrate it.  That being said, we still wanted to make his day special. So, that morning we both woke him up, sang "Happy Birthday," and then gave him a yummy breakfast...a donut with sprinkles!

Good morning birthday boy!

We don't usually give Jack much sugar, so we thought he would love it, but he was really more excited about the strawberries! ;)

Special Birthday Breakfast!

Yum!

He was so excited to see all his new presents that he was literally shaking while he ate! We eventually just let him get down, because he wasn't really eating much...just exclaiming with joy! :) I also brought down his favorite stuffed animals (that usually just stay in his crib) to join in on his party, so I think he liked that too. :)

Kitty, Scout, Cow and Poopies (yes, Poopies) joined in on the fun!

 Instead of giving him a card each year, I decided I would get him a book and write him a special message in it.

Looking for Maaaneeeeer (Mater). :)

All his birthday loot!

Trying out his pillow with Kitty. :)

Trying out his new crayons and coloring book too!

 We finished out the evening with a special Korean dinner (Bulgogi).

Bulgogi! Yum!

 Jack's grandparents, Ninna and Papa have a tradition of sending all their grandchildren Celebration Bear on their birthday every year. It makes them feel special!

Celebration Bear!

We started Jack's first savings account! :)

 We were working on how to say "two" with Jack when we asked him how old he was. He had a hard time holding up two fingers on one hand, so we taught him to do it this way...

Showing how old he is!

"Seriously, I'm two!" :)

Later, that day, I got an email from Korea. It was a picture of Jack when he was four months old! We were so happy to have a picture of him when he was that young, and it was kinda cool to get it on his birthday too!

Jack at four months!

I think he had a good day and he felt pretty special...so that made this mama very happy! :)

I feel like I have so much to catch up on with what's new with Jack. So, let me just get started...

Jack had his well check appointment the other day, and checked out great! He weighs 28lbs 5oz., and is 35 3/4 inches tall. I think they said he was still 50 percentile in weight and head circumference, and 70% in height. So, Jack is doing great and is healthy and happy!

I've been a little reluctant to get Jack out of the house much this month, because I have been so scared of how bad the flu is this year. So, we've been doing a lot inside. Jack got lots of new toys and books for Christmas, so he's been able to keep himself pretty entertained. He has been loving his flash cards and asks me to use them with him at least twice a day. The little guy is like a sponge and seems like he wants to learn all the time. He is always coming up to me with a letter, saying what he thinks it is, and then I either tell him he is right or correct him. He then goes and puts it back and gets another one to show me. He always seems to look up at us when he calls something a name just to make sure he is right. ;) He points to things quickly saying, "Wasat?" (what's that?) all the time. He exclaims, "Job!" or "Did it!" (meaning "Good job!" or "I did it!").

Speaking of speaking, Jack has done very well and has quite the vocabulary list of someone who has only been in this country for eight months!  He's not really speaking in sentences much yet. I can tell he still isn't understanding everything we say. Especially when we ask him questions like, "What are you doing?" or if we tell him to do something, like "Let's play with your toys!" Most times when we ask him that last question, he just cries because he thinks we are asking him to pick up his toys! ;)  It must be so hard to hear a language for a year and half of your life and then have to learn a whole new language.  He still counts randomly, but amazingly recognizes his ABC's already! Here's a video of him and his flashcards...

http://youtu.be/pQ6-ZQXzKMo

Some of the other things he says is, "I got it!" "Made a mess." "Heeeeeeeeelp!" (in the most southern accent you can imagine!), and "Than tu...much!" when he is really thankful. He likes to say "watch! watch!" when he's playing with his toys and wants us to see what he is doing. He says, "Bless you." when someone passes gas (not that anyone does that in our home!) ;) He will say "cawful" (careful) sometimes when he goes up the steps. He will also say "cheers" and click our cups together when he is pretending to drink with Mama. When he bumps into me or something, he'll say "Oh, sowy (sorry)." Every so often he just stops what he is doing and say, "Dada?" and turn his hands inside out wondering where Dada is. :)   He also says, "hey mama, hey mama, hey mama...." until I say "hey" back. :) And yes, he finally calls us Mama and Dada and doesn't mix them up anymore! :)

Jack has been teething for months now, but he finally has his last molar poke through the other day! He has been really a tough guy with his teething, so I can't even say for my sake I'm glad it's over. But I know it was painful for him, so for his sake, I'm glad it's over. :)

Jack still loves his books. When I'm working around the house, I will go in and check on him every so often, and almost every time he is in his rocking chair reading. :)  He still likes to pretend a lot too. He is obsessed with his play food and likes to serve it to me now. He uses his knife to cut it and prepare it for me. Here's a cute video of him with his play food...

http://youtu.be/VpR7f5lAuOo

Jack can draw lines and circles and enjoys coloring.  He likes to watch cooking shows and still loves his music. He enjoys all kids of music, but he seems to like listening to classical music the most, like Piano Guys (thanks to Pop), ;) and slow Christian music. His favorite song he sings now is, "Oh my soul!" He really has the sweetest little voice!

Jack loves to organize things. He knows that things have a specific spot and when he picks up his toys, he puts them right back where he got them. Yes, I know, I'm lucky! ;) When I go throughout the house I will find his cars organized in separate piles; wooden cars, metal cars, and plastic cars. He also likes to organize by color sometimes. He is very purposeful when he plays and wants to know the correct way to do things.

Another funny thing that has changed these last few months is that he actually has an opinion now. Before if I needed to go upstairs, I would ask him, "you wanna go upstairs with Mama?" and he will just come and grab my hand and we would go. Now, when I ask him, he simply just says, "no." ;) So, now I rephrase my questions and say, "Let's go upstairs!" instead. :)
Jack is also starting to get a little more interested in sports, but would still prefer playing with his cars most of the time. Recently Jack has been able to catch a ball, so Dada has been excited about that...

I've also discovered this month, that my greatest joy is staying home with Jack. I was a nanny for many years and although I loved my kids I watched very much, I always thought how much greater it would be to do this with my own child. And for six years I would dream about the day I would get to do that.  I know I've been at home with Jack for a while now, but it really wasn't until recently that I realized I felt this way.  Before, all my thought and energy went into making sure that Jack was happy and felt loved.  Then all of the sudden, I realized we were, and I've really been able to enjoy my time with him! We just "feel" like a family now. Just the other day, I was reading to him, and it hit me, "I love this so much! I finally have what I always wanted!" He makes me laugh and brings me such happiness everyday. I am so glad I'm home to experience these moments with him, and see him grow and learn and develop into a sweet little boy! Don't get me wrong, there are some days I want to pull my hair out, and it's a HUGE sacrifice for us financially, but it's so worth it!  There really is no greater joy than to be home with him! He is my biggest blessing (other than his Dada!) :)

Enjoy some more photos from this month...

Making sure Sam is enjoying his food. ;)

Organized by color...

Using his tools.

Flash cards!

My two loves! :)

A hat photo shoot...

I think someone knows he's cute!