Holy TWO Years Home!!!!

Today marks two years home in the U.S. as a family.  Wow!

At 24 months home (in no particular order):

M is still a Daddy’s boy; B is still a Mommy’s girl, but, we have made significant progress over the last year. B looks to her Daddy for affection; M accepts some affection from his Mommy (especially when he is hurt or sick).

M is tortured by tickling; for B, it’s all about mind over matter.

B saves every penny; M is a wise spender

M likes white t-shirts, and long socks and is a little obsessed about not having any dirty laundry in his hamper; B is stull my little Punky Brewster….anything goes!

B is my sweet, messy girl. I know I am in big trouble when the teen years come around. She never puts anything away, and when I ask her too, I often get the eye roll in return. Meanwhile, M is a neat freak. Everything has its place.

Two years home, and they still don’t play with toys, so we don’t buy them anymore. If we ask them what they want for Christmas/Birthday, etc., they are hard pressed to come up with some ideas. And when they do, it’s only a couple of things. Actually, M is the one that can always come up with something; B never can.

But, if you give them a flashlight and a sled, they will play for hours after a good ol’ New England snowfall.

Although they don’t always admit it, they love each other. I can’t imagine life with one child and not the other.

B wants to always have M sleep in her bedroom. M is getting to the age where he isn’t too keen on it, but sometimes obliges after B does some of her little sister convincing/bribing.

M hated Disney. B loved Disney.

They adore their little sister, and I think they both love the fact that Little A looks up to them. They also love hanging out with their cousin/BFF. I still need to pinch myself that we are lucky enough to have their bio family living so close by!

M’s new favorite word, “awkward!” and is often used out of context. Speaking of vocabulary, he still pronounces most “v” sounds with a “b” and “w” sounds with a “v” – so a sentence may sound more like “ve vent on bacation” rather than “we went on vacation.” They both still have remnants of their cute Ethiopian accents, that hope that they can hold on to it for as long as possible.

B loves anything that moves fast, or makes her bounce up and down. M is our conservative boy – wants to know all of the facts before taking any risks.

They still take off their shoes before entering the house, and will still kindly remind guests to do the same.

And they have maintained their hygiene habit of always washing their hands before touching anything that will go into their mouths (part of that may be their germaphobe Mom, who makes them crazy about not touching public door handles, bathroom fixtures, etc and then eating).

They are both learning what is appropriate socially, about other people’s personal space, and general manners. But heck, it takes some people their whole life to figure it out, so how can I expect them to after only 2 short years? They have their “please, thank you and excuse me” down pat.

M is an amazing athlete. He already got “recruited” for the traveling baseball team, baseball all stars and was the leagues pitching leader in strike outs!

B is so motherly, nurturing, and kind. She melts my heart ever day. M has a stronger personality. Definitely continues to be all boy! However, he loves to hear praise from his Mom, and I love to give it to him.

They still hate bedtime, and fight us every step of the way. They are masters at stall tactics!

They are both learning to enjoy reading, and we love to see them sound out words to create a sentence.

There are no longer any meltdowns if I come home with something for one child and not the other (I recall a few instances from the first weeks home that I would have sworn the world was going to end because B got a play phone and I came home with some Disney figurines for M – and then I chose to go out in pursuit of a phone for him too….oh, and there was that jean jacket incident as well).

The same goes for food. Thank goodness the measuring of a glass of milk’s meniscus is over! We used to count every chicken nugget, every meatball and every kernel of corn to be sure it’s “fair”. Thank goodness that phase has passed.

It amazes my how much and what kinds of food my kids love! I grew up as a picky eater, yet, my two Ethiopian kids have pallets that extend far beyond anything that I would ever eat. Oysters, clams, lobster, SUSHI….they love salad…..they eat corn and broccoli, carrots, apples, blueberries, pineapple, watermelon, strawberries, chicken, turkey, etc. Neither care for bananas (I don’t know if they got “banana’d out” at one point in their life?). M drinks close to a gallon of milk every day! No wonder why he has grown like a weed over the last 2 years!``

They still have their own words for things, although that is fading too. Salad dressing is “salad sauce,” restaurants used to be called “food houses,” passing gas is still “fassa,” baseball caps are “helmets,”

Two years later and I am still in awe. At how much they have grown, physically, socially and developmentally. Two years later and I am still in awe that I am their Mom. Adoption truly is the most amazing gift.