Beck's Birthday

You may be asking yourself, who is Beck and why is the Sturgeon's post title about him? Well, Beck is another couple's son who are here adopting right now, too. We've "known" them, Emily and Jeremy, (via technology) for several months now, and it just so happens that yesterday was their new son's birthday! Other than going and applying for Ethan's Chinese passport, our big event was Beck's birthday party. We went down to the hotel's (very) small play area, had cake, and the boys played. They had a good time.

We even went onto the tennis court and they just RAN! So, when we got back to our room around 4:00, both boys were all done-in since we'd been up since about 5:00. Even though it was so late in the afternoon, there was no keeping them up, so they laid down for a little snooze. (Troy and I stayed up since Ethan, he and I may have "nodded off" for a couple hours in the a.m. while Aiden quietly played with the iPad.... Yes, once again, we're in the running for parents of the year!) Anyway, after the nap it was time to eat. We met Emily, Jeremy and Beck in the lobby around 6:00 and headed out for the Curry House. Jeremy knew right where it was! Again, Emily's "app for that" as well as her ability to order us large beers came in handy. We got the "what's good here" again, and again we were pretty clueless as to what it was. It was, once again, very good though! What we got to eat that is. Dealing with Aiden and Ethan was something of a challenge. ~~Please feel free to ask Troy about his bathroom experience with the boys there and about the one in Hong Kong. Hahahaha! They're priceless!~~ Anyway, I'm not so certain the locals were all that impressed with our manners or our visit in general, but we had a good time. :)

Yes, and the Sweetest Brother in the World Award goes to Aiden Sturgeon! That's him feeding Ethan Cheerios while we were out to eat. Ok. Now you can insert the "Awwwww...."

Today, as per usual, we were up at 5:00. I have to say, the kid has an amazing internal alarm. Ugh. I will also say he seems to be pretty bright and can make his needs be known and get them met without having any English. He does try to imitate some English, too. Then there are some of his quirks; some of his little habits are beyond cute. When he wants something, he will put is chubby little palms together (think praying), do a couple quick shallow bows, and smile. He will also do this if you give him something he likes / wants. Often times, this is followed by his hands going behind his back as he tilts his head and swivels his upper body. Boy is he going to be a manipulator. ;) Although he doesn't know any English, he does definitely has some Chinese. Today he was playing with Troy's shoes and kept repeating the same sound, so I typed in "shoe" into Google translate. Sure enough. He was saying shoe. I have to wonder what else he is saying that we don't understand. He is now calling me Mama and Troy Baba (although sometimes Troy is also Mama), but before you do the whole, "Awwwww" bit, please know that the cleaning lady came in yesterday and he called her Mama, too!

He is generally a pretty happy little guy. Our big concern is is that he's too content. He grieved that first day and had a couple VERY short-lived cries the second day, but other than that? Nothing. In this situation, it is better for bonding if he grieves the loss of his family. It would be hard to watch and deal with, but then we could really start the bonding process. If that doesn't happen, the concern is that he views us as just another set of caregivers; in which case, we have our work cut out for us. In fact, he doesn't even seem to be in shock like Aiden was. Ethan is very outgoing, playful, dare I say willful, and content. Please pray that the worst-case scenario is not the case, that bonding will not be an issue. He does play pretty well with Aiden and likes to imitate everything Aiden does -- and he can keep up with him -- UGH! Aiden is patient to a fault. He is also overprotective and has a tendency to spoil Ethan. :-/ And Ethan can be a little stinker sometimes!

Well, even though we've been up for 5 hours, I've gotten very little accomplished. The boys are dressed (I on the other hand am not) and the room semi-arranged. Troy is at WalMart, better him than me! Ethan is lying down with a bottle and Aiden is watching Scooby Doo on my phone. After lunch today, we're headed to Ethan's finding place. That's all that's on the agenda. Maybe we'll locate the hotel's swimming pool, but essentially, a quiet day. Except maybe more bathtub laundry. BLECH!