Bringing Home Bryant: June 2012

A half a year our baby has been home. It seems that 6 months have flown by. I honestly don't know where the time went. Today I went through the pictures and videos of the first day we met Bryant. I rarely do this because I always end up in tears. It took a few months after we were home to look at the videos and we have not shared these with many people as they are so personal. The frail and pale tiny baby that I held in my arms our first day in Moscow has turned in to a bright and loving 19 month old that I don't know what we would do without. As I write, he is running around my living room saying "my momma" and it is so perfect and so natural. Just as with the girls, he is ours always and forever. We have never considered him otherwise nor will we ever. Amelia and he were playing earlier today and she was hugging him around the neck a little too tight. I told her to let go of him and her 3 year old response was "I can't, I love him so much." Well, the feeling is mutual. We all love him so much.

I really can't describe in words the amazing difference 6 months and a whole lot of love has made for Bryant. He is such a happy child who smiles all the time. He is funny, athletic and incredibly smart. He has started communicating very well with us and understanding the majority of what we say. He loves playing ball. He has a great arm and foot, as he is trying to play soccer like his sister Macie. Jeff already has him working on his golf swing and he can actually hit the ball sometimes better than his Daddy. He has also learned to do a forward roll like his gymast sister Sara Kathryn. We are drawing the line on the splits though. He continues to love music and has been perfecting some interesting dance moves. He is 100% boy. He is super active and always filthy at the end of the day. Since home, Bryant has done better than we could have ever expected. I know I have said this before in my posts but watching the videos of our first weeks home and seeing him now is nothing short of a little miracle. As of now he is age appropriate developmentally and we are so thankful. That in itself is incredible as he was premature and in an orphanage for 13 months. Our little determined man never ceases to amaze us. We know there may be hurdles in the future but we will address them if and when they arise. We pray daily that he will continue to make progress.

Three weeks ago we took a family vacation to Disney World to visit the big mouse. We had an awesome time. This was Amelia and her cousin Hutson's first trip. My parents, brother, sister, and brother-in-law took the trip to Florida. Amelia loved the princesses and the castle. She did not like the seeing Mickey and friends. She has developed a character phobia. Little Bryant was less scared of the characters than she was. Bryant was a trooper on the trip. He pointed out every pup-pup (Pluto) and cho cho train at Disney. He was overwhelmed and over stimulated as were all the kids (and adults). We knew this was bound to happen but overall he enjoyed it. This trip was for the girls and they had so much fun.

Last week we began a series of tests to rule out medical factors for Bryant's poor eating and slow weight gain. He is getting taller and a little bigger but his weight gain is still slow. We had a ton more blood work and are awaiting the results. This Tuesday we have a swallow test and an upper GI series. We also have an evaluation in July with the endocrinologist. Last week, we had an Occupational Therapist come evaluate him for sensory and feeding issues. So far she does not see sensory issues or issues with textures of food etc. We all believe we have a problem with the amount of food he eats and the fact that he goes non-stop and does not slow down until his head hits the pillow. Since being home there are only a few days that he has eaten the amount of calories he needs to have significant growth. We want to rule out any medical reasons for him being small and his lack of appetite.

Today we celebrated 6 months with a special visit from Nonnie & Pop and a trip to old fashioned McDonalds. Surprisingly Bryant ate some ice cream with M&M's and enjoyed it.

Since December our lives have been filled with lots of joy and also frustration. It has not been easy but all worth it. Tonight I rocked my baby, as I do every night, but held him a little tighter thankful for the 6 months he has been in my arms.