First Doctor Visit

Joel had his first doctor's appointment on Monday, and he did really well! He was his usual easy-going self, and the doctor said he was beautiful about four times. (We definitely agree with him there!) He is 28 inches long, which puts him in the 50th percentile for height, and he weighs 21 pounds, which puts him in the 75th percentile for weight. We knew he was a big boy! My sore arm muscles can attest to that...

Joel also had to have a TB test and two shots. He screamed and cried (which made his mom tear up) for a couple minutes, but then he was fine. We are waiting for blood test results and another test, but so far he seems to be very healthy--these tests are just formalities that our agency likes to have done. We were pretty worried about how he would take having blood drawn, in fact, I was dreading it. We sat down in the chair and I got out one of Joel's toys that kept him occupied on the plane for probably an hour total--it's a "smart key" with a flashing light and songs. He was again mesmerized by it, and paid no attention to the nurse sticking a needle in his arm and moving it around because she couldn't find his vein. He didn't make a sound the whole time! We couldn't believe it. I guess it didn't really hurt that badly, either that or his toy really is that fascinating! (We so owe our friend for buying it for him!)

Joel continues to be a great baby. His sleeping is getting better and more on the same schedule that he was on with his foster family. Last night was the best, though--he slept from around 10 pm to 8 am without waking up! What a nice treat for Mama! He is so close to crawling and almost did it today. He scoots on his stomach really well, but today he was almost up on his hands and knees. Travis says he can't wait, I told him to wait until he's into everything to see if he still feels the same way!

He's still working on a few teeth and drooling constantly and chewing on everything...including his toes! He and Nyla are still friends, and he often looks at Nyla and just starts laughing. He's getting braver and has started pulling her fur and tail. So far Nyla doesn't mind! He's also getting very vocal--lots of babbling and making noises. (According to my mom he's singing.) He has said dada, which thrills Travis, even though we both know Joel doesn't really know what it means. :)

We hope that he is attaching to us. We've had people say that he seems to be, including our social worker. It's still a concern, though, and I keep wondering if he knows we're mom and dad yet. I can't wait for the day when he reaches for me or actually calls us mama and dada, and knows what he's saying!

He has brought us so much joy in the two weeks we've had him, and we can't help but still think of his foster family who must be missing him terribly. Our thoughts have been with them and his birth parents and we can't believe how blessed we are to be the ones raising this child!