The Light at the End of the Tunnel

Sometimes, it is easier to be silent. Because sometimes things are pretty uncomfortable, crummy, or just plain miserable.

That has been our past two weeks.

Now, to be completely fair, they were not all bad days. We had some pretty great days in the mix. But the bad days were absolutely heart and gut wrenching. For awhile, things seemed to only be getting worse. And the combination of the high-highs and low-lows make it difficult to have any certainty about where things stand. And they are just plain emotionally exhausting!

But something changed. All of a sudden, we had a new understanding of our sweet boy who has been through so much. And we are also beginnng to see more of the adventurous and fun-loving boy who we first met in Kunming. Praise the Lord!

Suddenly this disinterest in going anywhere has led to "Mom, when are you taking me out for noodles again?" He is feeling safe! This is HUGE progress! And he specifically asked to go to church with us this past Sunday. We toured the church and watched and played with little brothers to figure out what this huge place really was. And Kameron admitted he *gasp* "had fun." Something he assured me of just weeks ago was that "church is boring."

I took Kameron on his first mom and son date to a Vietnamese resturant in town with excellent noodles, Kameron's favorite. Which he loved! Then Flying M Coffee and a trip to the Asian Grocery Store. He liked it! And is currently trying to persuade me that this needs to happen on a daily occurence.

I see more instances of us giving one another patience and grace. If something happens where I am concerned he is being unkind, if I am patient and wait, I see him go out of his way to make it right. He loves to joke and tease. But we need to work on when it is funny and when it goes too far. It amazes me how much of that is very cultural. There are things in China one would tease another about, that is socially acceptable. But here in America, we consider it offensive. 

We still have some boundary testing. But we can see him relaxing more. Which means we are relaxing more. He has made huge strides since we have come home. He is starting to speak some sentences in English. And he can write some simple words in English. He is currently begging us to go to school with his brothers. Which we are excited about,  but also very nervous! We want to be sure this is best for him. Please pray for us for guidance as we navigate another change in our lives.

And ya'll.. It has been 7 weeks since we came home! We are continually learning so much from one another. Growth is HARD. And it sure HURTS sometimes. But for now, the clouds have parted a bit and we are starting to see some rays of sunshine!And we are continually praising God for his faithfulness and his goodness.

Science experiments with Daddy

Jesse, snuggling Jesse Jay and Toby

Kameron helping Dad mend a broken screen

Aunt Kimmie lightsabering Noah.

Thank you for your continued prayers and encouragement. And to our friends and family who we all know love us and care for us deeply--- thank you for hanging in there with us! We love and miss you all deeply! We know so many of you are excited and thrilled to meet Kameron. And we hope with some time, we can introduce you all to him soon.