Trick or Treat!

We had a fun Halloween! Joel picked out his costume, and of course he chose Lightning McQueen, his favorite character. Eli was a little monkey.

We carved our pumpkins,

 did some trick-or-treating,

and enjoyed some cupcakes.

Happy Halloween!

Learning

Since Eli Taeho joined our family, we have been busy learning all about him! He's really a sweet little guy, and it's been fun to get to know him and his personality. Here are just a few of the things we've discovered about him.

He loves music! We play children's music (mostly Korean) almost all day and I'll frequently catch him "dancing", which consists of smiling and swaying from side to side.

He is a dainty little eater. When a little piece of food doesn't make it in his mouth, he uses his fist to push it in.

Speaking of food--he loves it and has a huge appetite. A normal breakfast for him is two scrambled eggs, a piece of fruit, and a container of yogurt. I made him some seaweed soup and he inhaled that. He pretty much loves anything with rice and seaweed, although he also loved his Cu!ver's chicken fingers and fries. :)

 
When we pick him up, he pats us on the back. LOVE this!

He loves dogs and won't leave our golden retriever alone. We're working very hard on teaching him how to be gentle.

He loves water, just like big brother. The two of them could splash and play in the tub all day! He also loves the sink faucets and tries to climb on the sink to turn them on. I have happy visions of the pool next summer with these two!

He really enjoys putting things away (not always where they belong!) and putting lids on things like water bottles. He also likes to fill containers up and then dump them out. 

Along with learning about him, we are also learning how to live as a family of four. We've had our ups and downs and the past week has certainly brought challenges for all of us. We're trying to focus on the positive and do our best. Thankfully, we've got some very supportive family and friends that are helping us through.  His foster family has been in our thoughts frequently, and we are praying that they find peace and know that Taeho is doing well.

Home with Eli

We are home and doing well! I have a lot to blog about from our trip, but I really wanted to get some photos of Eli Taeho at home. The change we've seen in him since we met last week is amazing. He was very shy around us, very quiet, and very subdued. We were lucky to get a smile here and there or hear him make a noise. He wasn't too interested in Joel, either. Now it's a completely different story! We are seeing more of what I believe is the real Eli--which is smart, bright, funny, cute, and happy. He adores Joel and constantly seeks him out to play or just be silly. He runs around our house with a big smile, laughing and playing peek-a-boo. He loves all the toys, has a great time outside, and enjoys bath time. He still gets fussy and misses his foster family, but he's slowly adjusting to our family. Here a few photos of our first days at home.

 

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

We are feeling so blessed to have these two perfect little boys at home!

Travel Call!

We were thrilled (and surprised!) to get our travel call late Friday afternoon! We'll be leaving this Friday the 12th and returning a week later. We cannot wait to become a family of four!