5 Months Home

Wow, 5 months! Danil has come so far.

Remember that little boy I blogged about this time 5 months ago?

The boy who screamed at me in Russian.

The boy who said he didn't love me over and over.

The boy who was un-trusting and scared.

The boy who wanted to badly to have a family but didn't know if this was real.

Today, That boy is no longer.

 (I know he's a goofball, I can't get one "normal" smile from him)

 This boy is thriving with his English and people are amazed at how developed his language is already. He no longer screams at me. Does he get mad at me? Of course, but there is no longer that out-of-control screaming that makes you want to run the other way. Much of this due to his language development and much is due to his learning respectful communication.

This boy gives his Mommy kisses over and over. The other day while shopping, Danil asked that I carry him. My response was "Yes." He's almost 6 and he could be made to walk but this was my chance to "baby" him. He's still very light, only 43 lbs., so I wanted to take advantage of this. I'm so glad I did. As I was carrying him, he gave me kiss after kiss. On my cheek, on the lips, then back on my cheek. Oh . . .It was lovely.

A week ago, Danil had his first Holiday program at school. He sang "Jingle Bells" and a few other songs with his class on the stage. My parents, Kevin's parents and Kevin's sister all came to watch the boys perform. While waiting to sing, Danil kept looking into the audience at us. He just smiled and waved at us over and over. This was his family. He knows now where he belongs, with us.

Does he miss his homeland? Absolutely. He cherishes his photo album and looks at it often. Always making sure it is in a safe place. He still recalls memories, people and places. Some of his memories are happy, some of them are sad. But they are cherished memories to him.

This weekend we were lucky enough to run across a small Russian deli in Indianapolis. Danil walked away with his beloved Salo (salted pig fat that is eaten on bread), Heba (a sort of marshmallow fruity snack), Havla (ground sunflower and honey mixture) and several kinds of candies. The shop owner spoke to Danil in Russian. He just looked at her. I explained that he has been home 5 months and I'm not sure how much Russian he understands. She tried several times and Danil could not understand her. I have to tell you the truth, this made me a little sad. I had wanted to honor those who loved Danil dearly, I wanted him to still be able to communicate with them. Sadly, now he can not. We will again pursue Russian School this January to see if Danil has any interest again.

So, at 5 months Danil is doing very well. We are still doing some adjusting. Still working on building a relationship between Grant and Danil. Still working on attachment and Danil's need to push away when he starts loving too much and gets scared. Last night I asked Danil if I could maybe rock him to sleep one night. I thought his answer would me "No mom, I'm not a baby" but with a big smile he exclaimed "Yes." I'm been reading some on attachment lately in order to help Danil with his feelings when he pulls away (and usually involves hurtful words). This is one thing that is suggested . . .you start with things that you would do for your infants to build a connections and work from there. So we are going to try it.

And I am very pleased to say that we are on Green Card #11 in a row! Yay Danil! Right now, 5 months feels great!

Comments

[Aislinn]

What a beautiful post to read! Praise God!
Much Love~
Aislinn