Awesome

My kids are awesome.  All six of them are just awesome.  I know everyone thinks their kids are awesome, but mine actually are. 

Today went pretty well overall.  John is getting a little better with me.  By the end of the day when I tried to meet his eyes, he actually made eye contact and would smile a little.  This is much better than when he would close his eyes or turn his head and say, "No, no, no, no."  I attempted to play peek-a-boo several times while Ken was holding him and allowed him to feel like I wasn't going to push him too far.  We did have a difficult time while Ken had to go run some errands with Patrice.  But again, I read to him with him sitting on my lap and he fell asleep.  This time I had planned it better so instead of having to hold him in an really awkward position that really hurt my back until he woke up, I was able to gradually slide out from underneath him and left him laying on the bed.  It worked well.  Papa got home before he woke up and it was a good thing too.  The instant his eyes popped open, before he even sat up, he yelled, "Papa."  Ken said, "Aquí."  John wasn't even sitting up yet so he couldn't see Ken so again he yelled, "Papa!"  Ken stepped over where John could see him and waved at him and said, "Aquí."  John just grinned.  It was really cute.  He's doing well, considering.  He walked a little today instead of Ken carrying him all the time.  He started playing a little and babbling some.  He's eating.  He even took a piece of bread from me.  HUGE step.  He wouldn't take anything from me at all to this point.  I had to fix it and leave it lay where he would find it and then not watch him find it. 

Yuli seems very attached to me.  She had some issues when I went with Patrice to run errands and left her with Ken.  She is just so stinking cute.  We think she is having some digestive issues.  The came from a coastal area and their previous diet was mostly fish and veggies.  Here we're eating Itallian every night.  It wasn't really my choice to come all the way to Colombia to sleep in a French hotel run by a French man who serves American breakfast every morning and Itallian dinner every evening.  But Patrice is so great and it's so nice to only have to worry about lunch.  The food is all really good and there are fruits here that I've never seen before.  Anyway, it seems as if Yuli is having difficulties.  She was very gaseous (a friend told me TMI was ok) and asking to go the bathroom a lot.  She would get there and not do anything.  About 5pm it finally dawned on me to put some Digestzen on her stomach and feet.  We went to the park to play and she didn't play at all.  She actually fell asleep in my arms.  When we got back it was dinner time and she ate some but she wasn't doing all that well.  By the time bedtime rolled around, though, she was doing much, MUCH better.  I put some more Digestzen on her before bed and we are hoping that she will be her happy self tomorrow.  The most amazing thing is, she has really intense eye contact.  When you read about adoption, you read that most kids who've come from bad backgrounds have problems with eye contact... it's a matter of trust.  They've never been able to trust anyone before, therefore, they don't make eye contact.  However, when I was in the bathroom with her about a bazillion times today, she would just look into my eyes with such trust and it was like she was saying to me, "Why don't you fix this, Mama?"  I am amazed at just how intense it can be. 

Diana is really amazing.  She's really smart and has been reading to us in Spanish.  She has such patience with us when our Spanish comes up lacking.  She even helps us to look up the word she's saying in the dictionary.  She runs and plays with the boys like she's grown up with big brothers all her life.  She is one tough cookie.  She's a whole lot of fun.  She has been testing the limits a lot.  It's really not unexpected from a seven year old, who is in so many ways, much much older.  We are trying to figure out just how much we need to deal with now and how much we can fix after we all adjust to each other.  We taught her how to play 'Blink' today and as it turns out she's a card shark.  She also really loves video games.  She could have been born into this family.  She kept asking all morning to have the Leapster Explorer and I kept telling her after lunch.  It was funny, she's as persistant as Connor, Rylan, and Cody when it comes to that.  It's amazing to me, just how comfortable she feels with us already.  In adoption, they talk about the honeymoon phase and how when you first get your kids they behave really well for a period of time... sometimes weeks, sometimes months.  Then when they actually start to feel a little more comfortable, they start testing... seeing how far they can go before you send them back.  Well, with Diana, I don't think it's that.  I think she just really feels comfortable with us so she behaves like she's always been with us... not to make her sound bad it's just the usual kid stuff that you get with your own kids or friends of your kids that you've known forever.  It's the persistence in trying to get a yes to something they want, it's the not listening the first time, it's the picking at your brothers, and the typical behavior stuff that makes them be your kids when they behave so well for everyone else.  One thing is for sure, the honeymoon is over.

As far as Connor, Rylan, and Cody go... I am in awe and super proud of how well they are handling everything.  They are just so very amazing.  They are helpful, caring, and generally tolerant of all things that they aren't used to having to deal with.  They are just super awesome.  And I have to say, their Spanish is coming along awesomely and all the kids are getting along like they've been together for years not days... sometimes that's a good thing, sometimes not so much.

I'm sorry but I didn't get any faceless pictures today.  They were just being too cute to not include faces.