underestimating Wesley

This morning Wesley and I took Katie to the vet to have her teeth cleaned and a fatty tumor removed from above her hip. I was a little worried about how Wes would behave at the vet - I knew he would love the dogs, but I thought he might be tough to handle with Katie. When we arrived at the vet, the office was not open, so we just stood in the waiting room until the nurse came out to get Katie. When she came out, I let Wes kiss Katie and tell her good-bye. I took his hand and tried to steer him toward the door, but he stood there watching Katie walk down the hall toward the back of the building. I held onto his hand a little tighter because I was worried he would run after her. He didn't do that, but he started pointing down the hall and saying "Katie, Katie, KAY-TEE!" I told him that we would be back to get her after he woke up from his nap. I picked him up and carried him to the car. My heart was breaking because Wes just kept saying her name again and again. I didn't think that Wes would "get" leaving Katie, but apparently he did!

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I called the vet during Wesley's nap today, and they said I could pick her up after 3:00p. The one day that I want Wesley to wake up early from his nap - he decides to sleep an extra hour! That gave me extra time to work from home, but I was SO ready to pick up Katie. As soon as Wes woke up, I told him that we were going to get him ready and go to pick up Katie. He was instantly awake and ready to go. The whole ride to the vet, he just kept saying her name and also calling her "Key" (our nickname for Katie). I've never heard him use the nickname until today.

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Katie is doing well - she's lying next to me asleep, snoring loudly. The trouble is going to be keeping her from playing rough with Duke until her stitches come out...

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The point of my story is - don't underestimate the intelligence of an almost two year-old and his love for a dog!

Katie with her Elizabethan collar (aka "lampshade")

Katie's stitches (can you believe they shaved so much of her hair?!)

social security office, new phrases, and pictures

We have been doing well - staying busy as always. I finally went to the Social Security office and applied for Wesley's social security number. I made an appointment because I thought that would be faster than just showing up at the office. I went to the office in person so I wouldn't have to mail away all my original documents. Turns out that the appointment was not any faster because I was still at the office for over an hour and a half! The woman at the office hardly looked at any other documents beside the Certificate of Citizenship and Wesley's Ukrainian passport. We received his number in less than 10 days. Most people have to apply for the number as soon as they return to the US for medical insurance, but our insurance did not require his social to cover him, so I just hadn't gotten around to it yet. I did want to get it though before we did our taxes - I am looking forward to seeing how low our tax bill is this year :) I'll update as soon as we do our taxes.

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Wesley is picking up new words and phrases every day. His favorite this week is "no, no, no." He has gotten the phrase from me, and he uses it whenever he hears me say it (which is quite often) or when he starts to do something he shouldn't. It does make it easy for me to know when he is doing something he shouldn't and he is out of my sight.

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Damon and I haven't made any decisions regarding our second adoption except that we would like to get a girl this time. I am not sure why, but the country for our second adoption is proving to be a much tougher decision than the choice of Ukraine for our adoption of Wesley. I think the reason has something to do with the fact that we have a better idea how "things work" in the adoption process. We aren't as naive as we were the first time. I am asking a lot more questions, where I took people at their word the first time. We know about dishonesty, bribery, and the amazing amount of uncertainty involved. I don't want to let my questioning though get in the way of doing what God has for us.

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Wesley has his post-op visit with urology on Monday. Then on Wednesday we have an appointment with the surgeon who will repair Wesley's esophagus. Damon and I are hoping that the doctor schedules the surgery at that appointment, but I am trying not to get my hopes up. I am SO READY to get rid of the spit fistula on Wesley's neck!! He is constantly wet and it is just a lot to manage. I can handle the idea that it will take a while for Wesley to eat enough food to sustain him without feeding through the g-tube, but to not have him soaking wet all the time...it makes me smile thinking about it :)

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Tomorrow is the inauguration of President Obama. Please pray for him and the decisions he will make that will affect our lives and the lives of our children.

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Have a great week!! I've posted lots of pictures for your enjoyment! The many faces of Wesley...

practicing eating baby food

we've been working on eating a lot more (can you see the excitement in his face? I also like the dogs watching in the background)


Wes has figured out how to drink out of a straw, and he doesn't want to stop!

Here's a comparison picture from two days ago (on the left) and the first full day home (on the right). You can see that Wes has grown at least three inches (look at the diamonds on the glass)!!

talking to Grandma on the phone

apparently unhappy about something... probably the girly hat his mom was making him wear

playing in a plastic tub

riding up to northern Ohio for a late Christmas celebration

This is the face Wes gives me when he wants me to stop taking his picture.

opening a gift

talking to a stuffed moose

Wes giving his Aunt Donna a kiss (I love this picture!!)

Wes is still doing well

Wesley is absolutely back to his normal self! He is climbing all over everything and apparently he isn't hurting at all! He still has stitches and those don't come out for about two more weeks, so I'm still working on keeping him down (or at least contained). Not exactly very easy...

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Wesley was 27 pounds the morning of his surgery and over 32" tall. That means that he has gained over 10 pounds and almost 3" in four months. I can only imagine how big he'll be after a year home!

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I scheduled the follow-up appointment with the surgeon that will repair Wesley's esophagus for January 28th. I am hoping that we will get the surgery scheduled. But then again it makes me scared to think that the surgery would be scheduled (if that makes any sense). The esophagus surgery is so much more serious than the man surgery. I know that Wes will be in God's hands though and He already knows the outcome.

I love the look of intense concentration. Wes has been mad because he hasn't been allowed to sit in the bath since surgery. Wesley and Duke watching the birds outside.

Katie just resting on my legs.

post-surgery update (all went well)

First I would like to say that I am sorry I wasn't able to post yesterday! When we got home and he was resting, I was going to post, but our internet didn't work. Then we found out that our home phone didn't work. It was just repaired, so here I am. Apparently a neighbor had their phone line worked on, and when the worker shut the box, it cut our phone line.

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The surgery yesterday started at about 7:40a, and we were called back to talk to the doctor at about 10:15a. He said that all went well and we would be able to see Wes pretty soon after. We were taken to see him right after the doctor consultation, and boy was he mad!! The nurse was trying to hold him and he kept arching his back and straightening his arms and legs. When he does that, he is nearly impossible to hold. She handed him to me and I spent the next three hours trying to keep him on my lap. He wanted down, he wanted the tubes disconnected, he wanted the hospital clothes off. The reason we were in recovery so long is because Wesley's oxygen level wouldn't stay up on its own, so he was on oxygen. As soon as we gave him some Pedialyte, he was at his before-surgery level, so we could go home. He was probably dehydrated.

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Wes slept most of the day yesterday and he slept all night last night. We had to feed him and give him pain medicine, but he hardly even stirred for that. He did get mad and scream when we had to put Vaseline on the incisions. I underestimated how tough that would be!! I am not one who likes touching stitches and wounds, and then to have to touch your son's as he SCREAMS in pain!! Yikes!! I can't tell him that it hurts me as much as it hurts him because I am sure it doesn't, but it does hurt me a little.

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We have a better idea what to expect after the next surgery (the BIG one), but the esophagus surgery is so much more difficult. Once Wes is recovered from this surgery, the second surgery will be scheduled. This will be at least three months, probably longer with scheduling difficulties.

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Thank you so much for your prayers and support!!! Here's a picture of Wes on the car ride home. He would not let me take the water bottle away, even when he fell asleep!!

post-Christmas update and adoption #2

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas full of family, friends, and togetherness. We had a great Christmas - hard to believe that it is already over!! Wesley was too young to really "get" Christmas, Santa, and presents. I am sure by next year he'll be excited. My parents got us a Flip video recorder, so I'll be able to post more videos in 2009!! (I am having trouble right now though because the computer is working too slow, so I'll upload later)

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We've been home for three and a half months now, and attachment is going well. One thing that we were told before traveling had to do with us attaching to the child. So much time and effort is spent on the child attaching to the parents, but you also have to think about yourself attaching to the child. Now before our adoption classes at Cincinnati Children's, I figured that I would just meet this child and fall in love and we'd live happily ever after (you know the fairy tale). Now I knew that is not what the books all said would happen, but I thought it would for me. But at the class, therapist Deborah Joy told us to think about how we make close friends. Do we get close to friends as soon as we meet them, or does it take time to form close friendships? Personally, it takes me quite a while to become close with someone and to share personal information. So I realized that when we met our son, I may not fall in love instantly. It was sad to think that, but I had to be honest with myself. (Note to adopting families: do not beat yourself up if it's not love at first sight! I don't even think love at first sight is even love - unless it's a cute pair of shoes or a great purse because that can be love!! But seriously, a child is something entirely different)

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I am so happy to have been prepared for my attachment to Wesley taking a while. Now when we were visiting him at the orphanage, I knew he was meant to be our child, but I didn't get a rush of love for him or anything. I loved him because he was a sweet, innocent child, but I hadn't fallen in love with him. Now I don't mean for this to sound cruel or mean, but it was tough to like a child who didn't want anything to do with me! When we picked him up in late August, I began to like him more each day. And now that we're home, I love him. I feel that we are now securely attached. He looks to me (or Damon) for comfort when he's upset, and he calms down when I hold his hand or hold him.

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Wesley seemed pretty attached to us when we picked him up form the orphanage, but I can tell that he is even more attached to us now. He is more spontaneous with his affection, sometimes I cannot get him to stop hugging and kissing me. (I know - what a tough problem to have :) He is even starting to say "love you" when we tell him we love him.

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We are currently also looking into countries for our second adoption. I know people will say it is too soon after the first adoption and with Wesley's medical condition we should wait, but I really just feel like we are being called to start right now. The process will take at least a year, so Wesley will have had his esophagus repair surgery long before we add another child into our family. We are not sure at this point what country from which we will adopt, but several countries are being considered. A couple that are forefront in my mind right now are Nepal and India.

Prayer requests

- Wesley as he has his "man surgery" on Monday. It is outpatient, but the doctor said it could last four to six hours...I'll update as soon as I can once it is over

- Damon and I as we try to narrow down our choices for our second adoption (I forgot how overwhelming the process can be at the start)

- we are hoping to stay "illness free" this winter, especially with the upcoming surgery

Have a Happy New Year!!!

smiling in the bathtub (I can hardly get him out of the bath now! It's a big change from the first bath we gave him where he screamed like we were trying to murder him)

Duke was thinking about joining Wesley in the bath (thankfully he didn't)

Wes was unsure about his new horse on Christmas morning. He now pets it every time he walks by it in the house.

tearing open a gift from Uncle Scott and Emily (I love the tongue sticking out)

This is Wesley taunting my brother's dog Marlow with a plastic string from a toy. Finally Marlow gets tired of it and pulls Wesley down by the arm of his sweater - too funny!!

Merry Christmas

We are looking forward to our first Christmas as a family. It's hard to believe that we've been home from Ukraine for over three months! In some ways I feel like I was just there, and in others, it feels like years ago. Wesley has gained 8 pounds (almost 50% of his body weight) and had grown about 2"! From what I can figure, he's in about the 15th percentile now - much more than the 2nd percentile a few months ago. He is talking almost constantly, and I am starting to understand words here and there in the babble so I know what he is talking about. He is much more affectionate with us than when we first brought him home. He also loves to give our friend's children hugs as well. That is fine, but I am sure the other kids get annoyed because he wants to hug them a lot!

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I cannot get over how much his personality has changed. When we visited Wesley in the orphanage, he was a quiet boy who played most by himself in one spot. I can assure you - he is no longer that child!! He is definitely a boy who loves to be loud and run around. Sometimes he just yells out to hear himself. We're working on that, but I think it's just the age. I am so happy to see that he is a typical tw0 year-old!!

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Please pray that we can all stay well through this Christmas and New Year's as Wesley has "man surgery" on January 5th, and this has been scheduled for months. Once that surgery is over, we can schedule the bigger surgery for his esophagus repair (YAY!!). I don't have the words to tell you how ready I am for that surgery. I can handle the tube feedings just fine, it's the neck fistula that is wearing on me. The poor child is constantly wet because all his saliva and drainage comes out the hole in his neck. And this may be TMI (too much information), but Wesley has sinus issues, so it is not exactly a pleasant odor. We change the wrap on his neck often, but as soon as you change it, he is wet again. But anyway...

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I wish everyone a very Merry Christmas! We are spending this year as the thankful parents of two year-old!!

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I'll leave you with a few recent pictures

Ukrainian birth family search complete

We received a letter and pictures today from our searcher Gene Sagin. Before I tell you some of what we found out, let me just put a little plug in for Gene. He did a great job and completed the search in just days!! His price was reasonable (our search in Kharkiv cost $400). If you would like to contact Gene, his email address is kadetsa@rambler.ru You can also contact me if you have questions for me that I don't answer in this blog (my email address is stacianddamon@gmail.com)

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And what you have been waiting for...When Gene called Wesley's birth mother, so was surprised (obviously), but sounded interesting in meeting him. They met and he read the letter I wrote to her and showed her the pictures of us and Wesley. She cried tears of joy and said that she was so happy that her son had found a family because she didn't know if he would live after he was born. Obviously this touched me because I can only imagine how she feels about the whole "situation," for lack of a better word. I can also see that she cried because her eyes are a little red in the pictures Gene sent of her.

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We found out that she gave Wesley the name Kirill, so I am really glad that we kept that as his middle name. I was afraid that a hospital worker had given him that name, but the fact that his birth mother gave him that name will mean something to him. (As a side note, Kirill means "Lord.") She also said that she feels that God directed Wesley to be in our family, and I cannot agree more!!

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I gave her our blog address so she could see pictures of Wesley, even if she couldn't read English. She told Gene that she wanted to send us a letter, and I was looking forward to that. I checked my gmail account this afternoon, and she had already written me an email!! I was so excited!! It was mostly in Russian, so I had to use an online translation website. It was only a few lines, but the gist of it was that she wanted us to let Wesley know that she loved him. That alone is worth the cost of the search!! How amazing to know that his birth mother thinks of him and cares for him!

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Wesley's birth mother also told Gene that she stopped smoking as soon as she found out she was pregnant, and she did not use any drugs or alcohol (I didn't figure that she did, but I wanted to know what she would say). Gene said that he felt she was telling the truth, and I think he's probably done enough searches to know when people might be lying.

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Right now I just feel so blessed! We have a wonderful son from a relatively smooth adoption, a productive birth family search, healthy attachment with him, he is healthy (except for that no esophagus thing), and right now things are going well for us. I am trying to focus on all that we have been given by God because so many times when things are going well, we start to think that we have done something to deserve favor or that we are "owed" something. I can assure you - I have done nothing to earn favor and I do not deserve anything that I have been given (Damon, Wesley, my parents, family, friends, dogs, job, house, clothes, groceries, etc.). I am not trying to sound preach-y, but please take a minute and think about the blessings in your life and give thanks.

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I am posting another video of Wes dancing at his Grandparent's house (per my mother's request). It's a cute video of him, and you can see how much he likes to dance! He also loves to whistle like his Grandpa!! This one's for you, Mom :)

first video posting

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. It was a great time for us to reflect on all the blessings we have been given in this last year - Wesley, a new home, health, happiness.

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I sent the pictures and letter to Wesley's birthmother through our searcher Gene. He is going tomorrow, so we will probably have answers this week!! It took me a while to complete the letter, but I am confident with the final product. I'll update as soon as we find out something!

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If you notice that I have not been posting as many pictures of Wesley, there is a reason...Wesley will hardly sit still to have his picture taken!! Most of the pictures I take are blurry because Wesley moves at between the time I press the button and when the camera actually takes the picture. I don't even use the red-eye reduction, so I have no idea how to take faster pictures.

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I have posted our first video as well. I took it on the way to our Thanksgiving with my Mom's side of the family. Wesley is showing his mastery of various animal sounds. His favorite sound to make is the lion's roar. I was shopping for our Thanksgiving dinner at the grocery, and Wes was growling at other shoppers!!

This could have been our Christmas card picture if I had been able to keep my eyes open!!

what a handsome man

sitting in his carseat (check out the static cling in his hair from rubbing it on the carseat)

check out the face he makes when he says "meow" - so funny!

thoughts from an adoptive mom

Now lately I haven't posted much about some of the deeper things that I think about and struggle with on a daily basis. As you can tell by my title, it about Wesley's adoption...Damon and I have started a birth family search for Wes. Everything good to go (sent money, sent pictures) except that I have not written a letter to the family. I know this is not something that is required, but it is something I want to do. The trouble is - how do you do it? I know how to write and type (obviously), but how do you express so much emotion in a short letter? How do I tell his birth family that we love and care for him as though he has been with us since birth and that we are doing the best to give him a happy and healthy life? I will probably never meet his birth mother in person, but this letter (and pictures we are sending) are something she will have to think of him for the rest of her life.
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Maybe I am putting too much thought and pressure into this letter...it is just that I can imagine the guilt she must feel about giving her child up for adoption and assuming that no one would adopt him due to the seriousness of his medical condition. Now at this point we do not know for sure why Wesley was available for adoption, but we have been told that it was because of his medical needs. If that is true, it seems wrong that we are able to raise him because we have more money and good medical insurance. No matter the reason, she has to wonder where he is, what he looks like, is he happy, has he been adopted, is he healthy, will he get the needed surgery, etc., and I want to convey to her that he is being well taken care of.
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One thing that I don't think is talked about much regarding adoption is the fact that someone experiences pain and guilt so another can experience joy, with the child experiencing both emotions. I don't claim to understand why the process has to work like that, and I will probably never find out in my time on earth. It's just something I think about...

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Now I don't want anyone to think that I am guilt-ridden because I adopted a little boy from Ukraine because I am not. I feel a pang of guilt now and then for his birth mother and all she is missing, but there is not a chance that I would ever give him back to her or anyone else!!! I believe that Wesley was meant to be mine and Damon's son from the beginning of time. I don't understand why things happen like they do, but I am glad they have happened like this for us.
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Sorry for the rambling post, it's just a few thoughts I wanted to get off my chest. Thanks for reading!!!

Staci

Thanksgiving background

Isn't this the most adorable background?? I am in the Thanksgiving spirit, so I thought the blog should reflect that. I went to the grocery this morning to buy groceries for Thursday. Talk about the WRONG time to go!! Not only is everyone shopping for Thanksgiving, but the Ohio State-Michigan game is today at noon. So everyone was decked out in their OSU gear. One guy did have on a Michigan hat, and some people "boo-ed" him. I felt bad for the guy, but he just laughed it off. Maybe that is the difference between men and women...

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GO BUCKS!!

not much to write about

I don't really have much to post about, but I thought I would just say hello. The Bengals game was chilly on Sunday, but at least it didn't snow!! The game against the Eagles ended in a tie, so at least it's not a loss!! They are tied with the Steelers right now, so I'm hoping for a win!

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It's been snowing here in Ohio. Driving home from work I had trouble seeing the road. I don't know that I am ready for winter just yet - I feel like I didn't get to enjoy the summer because we spent it in Ukraine! I have usually started my Christmas shopping by this point in the year, and I have only purchased three gifts (two of the gifts are for Wesley).

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I took Wesley to my Mom's book club yesterday. They followed our adoption journey through this blog and my Mom, and I was excited for them to meet Wes in person as I know they have seen tons of pictures and heard lots of stories. I know that Wesley had a good time - he likes flirting with ladies :) He was pretty well behaved, but he did end up trying to climb the wall (literally)!

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Wes is his Bengal pajamas for the game tonight

(he was actually in bed before it started)

Damon and I at the game (as you can see, I do not just post nice photos of myself!! I am happy to report that I have gotten my hair cut since this picture)

the Eagles #58 Trent Cole played football in high school with my brother, so I enjoy watching him play

Do you think Katie is spoiled or what?

I think Wesley is tired of me taking his picture...

I finally found a television show that Wes is interested in. It is called "Super Why" and is a cartoon about books. I think it is too advanced for him, but he only watches for a few minutes.

I've been trying to teach Wesley to smile when I take his picture. The smile is more of a grimace, but we're working on it. (He was trying to smile on command in the top picture as well)

34 days until Christmas

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As an animal lover (especially dogs), I ask you to pray for our friends Juan, Mandy, Marisa and Mateo who recently lost their pug Walter. Walter was a wonderful dog, and he will be greatly missed!!

weather now not so wonderful

Happy 33rd Birthday, Damon!!!

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Less than one week ago it was sunny and beautiful, now the days are cloudy, dreary, and cold! Damon and I are going to the Bengals game on Sunday and the forecast says a high temperature of 32 degrees!! WHAT?? Why didn't I go to the game two Sundays ago and let my Dad go with Damon to this Sunday's game?? I already told Damon that I wouldn't let him drop me off at the gate, so I am going to have to walk probably a mile with the "boot" on my foot. I'm not complaining as it is my choice, but it's going to be a long walk.

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I met with the cardiologist and the pulmonary doctor (a pulmonologist?) on Monday. The cardiologist did an EKG and said that it was normal and he saw no cause for concern. In Ukraine we were told that Wesley had a heart murmur, but no US doctor could hear anything, so we weren't too concerned. The pulmonologist didn't see anything abnormal in his x-rays or hear anything abnormal, but they want to do a scope sometime under anaesthesia. Obviously they don't want to put him under just for that, so it will likely be when he has his "man surgery" in January.

On Tuesday a new g-tube was put in. The doctors will go down one more size, then we will get the "button." The button only sticks up from the skin a small amount and doesn't have to have a huge tube sticking out of his stomach all the time.

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Wesley got his first professional haircut (and maybe his last) on Thursday afternoon. I have been trimming his hair since we got him in August (he had a mullet!), but I figured it was time to let someone who knew how to cut hair trim it up. I took him to a place called "Cookie Cutters" that specializes in children's haircuts. There were three women working and only one little girl getting her haircut, but for some reason (unknown to me), it took at least 20 minutes for Wesley to start getting his haircut. (The subsequent haircut took about 7 minutes total) The place had a huge slide which of course he wanted to go down at least 30 times. I swore my back was going to give out before he got his hair cut because I had to life him each time to a height around my shoulders. I just realized that is why my neck has been hurting today - I assumed that I slept on it funny last night!! Ok, so back to my story...the little girl in front of us is finished up and we are called to a small car to sit. I buckle him in and the hairstylist starts to put a cape on him. Wesley throws a fit!!! He starts screaming and crying and hitting his head (which he does sometimes when he gets upset, maybe its an orphanage thing?). He calmed down once I got his hands out and she started cutting his hair.

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Like I said it was over in no time and we go to the counter to pay. She asked if I had a Dorothy Lane Market card (a fancy grocery store in the same shopping center), and I said that I do. Apparently having a grocery card saved me $1.50 off the cut, but can you guess how much I still had to pay? Let me remind you that she didn't even wash or dry or use clippers on his hair and it took seven minutes...the total was $12.45!!! My haircuts cost $15.00 and that includes a wash and style!! I realize that is crazy-cheap for me so it might not be a good comparison, but isn't that an outrageous price for a 21 month-old's haircut?? She was being paid $2.00 per minute which equates to $119.57 per hour!! I know attorneys who hardly make more an hour than that!!

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When I told Damon how much it cost, he said "you're never taking him back there again, he can go to Mike's Barbershop and get his hair cut for less than $3.00." Now many of you don't know what Mike's Barbershop is, but in the town where we grew up, this used to be the barbershop to go to. If it tells you anything about the barbers in the shop, one of the men who used to cut hair there was at least 80 years old and on oxygen!! I have to laugh even thinking about Wesley going there, but it would be a lot cheaper...or I could just go back to cutting it. We'll decide when he needs it cut again, but I will not take him to get his hair cut at Mike's!!!

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As you can see though, the haircut turned out pretty well

The Christmas presents are out in every store now!! Wes doesn't "get" Christmas yet, so we just show him the toys and let him play with them in the store. You can see that he is quite taken with the talking Elmo. I have a Tickle Me Elmo from back in the day, but the weird giggling just scares him. I just cannot bring myself to spend $50 on a red animal-thing that tells my son he loves him and then blows kisses. Just a little too strange for me...

We did purchase a sock monkey for him though!! I think sock monkeys are so stinkin' cute, so I had to get him one. That and when I showed it to him at Target he slobbered all over it as he gave him a kiss.

Here are just a few cute pictures of Wes from our everyday lives.

He was singing and dancing while standing in Damon's shoes.

When he sits in his car seat, Wes pulls his pants up to his knees every time. Haven't figured out why yet...

dinner at Steak N Shake

not exactly Mr. Sunshine in the mornings as I got him up earlier than he wanted to get up to go to a doctor's appointment

still wonderful weather in Ohio

The weather here in Ohio is still so wonderful. Today the temperature was over 70 degrees and sunny all day! Wesley and I went to the park before running errands, and of course I brought my camera :) I was hoping to get a good picture for adoption announcements, and the best I got was the second picture down. I don't know if it is what I am looking for...such a big decision (not that big though), and I'm having trouble making it.

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Working from home is going well so far. I usually work during Wesley's nap, a few evenings, and Sunday afternoons. I go to work three days a week, and I look forward to doing that. I always thought I would want to stay home full-time, but now I think that part-time out of the house is good for me. I enjoy the people I work with, and I also enjoy what I do. My mom watches Wesley two days and Damon watches him one day. I don't have to worry about him at all, so I am able to focus on work. I look forward to going home at the end of the day, but I do enjoy it while I am there. I think if I disliked my job I might feel differently about staying home, but it is a personal choice that works for now.

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Wesley goes to the pediatrician tomorrow for the first time. We didn't select one before leaving for Ukraine, and we've put off finding one after getting home. I figure that he probably needs a flu shot, so we're going to get one and just to have a general check-up. Each of the other doctors that we take Wesley to is very specialized, so the pediatrician is more for general health.

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On Monday Wesley goes to a cardiologist and a pulmonologist. The heart and lungs are the last two things to check before the doctors determine that esophageal atresia is Wesley's only health concern. We look forward to either ruling those out or determining a course of action to deal with heart and lung issues. Preliminary findings indicate that Wesley does not have heart or lung problems, but the doctors will determine that for sure. After these appointments, we won't have too many until the surgery - YAHOO!!

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We had an appointment with a speech therapist last week. When we first came home, it was determined that Wes was only at 9 months developmentally in the speech department. Personally I thought he was further along than that, but I figured we should have him checked out. As I suspected, the therapist said that he was right on track with his age. I was a little surprised that he has caught up to his age so quickly - I mean, we've only been home 7 weeks!!! He is picking up words right and left, but his favorite word by far is "Katie." Katie is our Boston Terrier who avoids Wesley because he is so rough with her. She is 8 years old and prefers not to have a 20 month-old falling on her or squeezing her (aka giving her a hug). He seems to think though that any animal is Katie, so we're working on that.

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I hope everyone got out and voted yesterday. I actually didn't have to wait at all and I went after work at 5:00p! Damon went earlier in the day and the wait was over an hour unless you voted out in the open instead of in a booth. I won't lie - the person I voted for did not win, but I am hopeful that Barack Obama can turn things around financially in the United States. I took Wesley with me to vote and the whole drive to the polling place, I explained to him how important it is to vote in every election. I told him about how people died to give us that freedom, how it is the only way to change things for the better, etc, etc, and he just stared at me from the backseat. I guess maybe he'll understand when he grows up!

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I hope everyone has a good week! And if you are having good weather still - get out and enjoy it while it lasts!! Christmas will be here before we know it...49 days!! Is that an excuse to go shopping? I think it might be :)

Staci

the tongue out means he is having fun (or being mischievous)

my mom got Wesley this shirt and when he wears it, he constantly points at the dog and says "Katie"

crying because I told him not to touch the trash can

Wesley was a horse for Halloween - thank you so much for the costume, Dianne!!!