Update of our first week home

First let me say that we should have some pictures on here soon! Sorry for the delay but our camera cord isn't working. I was able to get shots at the airport and Sean's first week here with my parent's camera so we have to figure out how to use load them. Stay tuned :)

We have been doing well here in MD, enjoying being together though longing to get to our home. John and Haylee are still feeling some effects of jet lag and no doubt Sean as well. Sean has been adjusting well to our busy family...he seems to love being around our other 5 children. He is generally very sweet and inquisitive with them, though excitable. We were warned by other adopting families that children from orphanages often exhibit certain behaviors, which we also witnessed firsthand at the orphanage...like agression or biting. Sean did bite some during the 2 week wait which John worked hard on teaching him not to and we've talked to our other children about this. So far there has been some occasional pushing and we're watching him carefully with the younger kids, but he has done pretty well so far, especially considering at times he has a few siblings trying to get his attention at once :)

He has been getting used to his carseat while we've run errands (not his favorite place to get into but once there he does fine) as well as his temporary bed of a pack-n-play which he doesn't especially like. He takes a little while to get to sleep --his sister Naomi loves to sing him "Jesus loves me" to settle him down to go to sleep. We were wondering what it must be like for him having been all his life in the same orphanage with the same routine, and then to stay in different apartments, now in my parents house, and soon to our home (not to mention a brief stay at the beach this week)! Considering all the change he has undergone, it is amazing how well he is doing. He went out to eat with us twice this past week...Taco Bell and for a sit down restaurant here, Don Pablos! He really liked chips and salsa!

Sean came home just in time for Annabelle's 5th birthday--so he was at probably his first birthday party and really liked the cake and icecream! He is quite a good eater-- sometimes spitting something out, but usually eating alot, which we figured from how sturdy he is and how he ate snacks we brought him at the orphanage. He is really enjoying his baths with gusto-- I've never seen a child so excited about playing with the water as Sean. We are getting used to having another toddler in our family...suddenly we have 2 in diapers. Elsie and Sean are a year apart but the same size :) Elsie talks alot, Sean says the word "hi!" (with much excitement) and "mam"a (otherwise makes excited noises and facial expressions) but understands alot more, and is learning some English commands (like come here, sit, etc.) and some basic signs (like more). Sean seems to like to be where the action is (the hardest thing so far is making sure we know where he is and what he's doing) and won't sit long like for a movie. I can tell I will have a big helper at home as he loves "sweeping" thee floor. His absolute favorite thing to do so far is to listen to music rings on a cell phone-- this will entertain him for quite a while. For the birthday, Sean also got to go on a train ride, a carousel, and see some animals which he really liked....I guess that was quite a lot of new experiences for his first week.

The children really adore him...it is very sweet. Naomi loves to put him in his car seat, Elsie calls him "her Sean", Annabelle is another little mother to him, and Jonah I think has found a future wrestling partner :) Today Haylee said, "before we went to the Ukraine, I couldn't imagine what it would be like to have a child with Down syndome, but now that he's here its like he's really my brother and an Adamson." :)

We are planning to stay at the beach for a few days this week...my mother's close friend has offered us to stay in her beach home. The children are very much looking forward to it, especially since we live so far away from the ocean now. It will be neat to see Sean's reaction to the water and the sand...we expect he will love it and that we will be busy! Our youngest daughters have just come down with the chicken pox :( but they are tolerating it well so far, and we've decided to still go and maybe play on the beach during off peak times when others are not around and the sun is not hot (if they are up to it) It may make the time go faster for them, we hope. We pray that they will recover quickly as our flight home is next Sunday, the 31st...we will have to see if they are recovered by then. We appreciate your continued prayers.