Six Months & Counting

It's hard to believe that it's been six months since Anita and I first held our precious son. It's hard to believe that when we first met little Nan Yunchun, he would so quickly change from the frightened, unhappy little boy to the smiling, fearless, happy little boy that we now call our son, Colin. Thinking back on those first few days, I'm still amazed at how perfectly God worked all of this out for us, though I was certainly questioning it at the time.

In just a short 6 months, Colin has grown so much and changed so much...I'm constantly amazed at all that he's learned and overcome already in his short life. Just in his time with us, he's traveled halfway across the globe, to a home he's never known to live with a family he'd never met. He's had to adapt and learn how to let us take care of him as his parents, not just his caregivers. He's had his cleft lip and palate repaired. He's learned how to climb and descend steps on his own. He's even sleeping through the night on a regular basis now. Not every night, but it's happening more and more nights every week. His motor skills are truly amazing for a nearly 2-year old. He can feed himself using a spoon and fork. He can latch his own high-chair strap and his own car seat strap. Fortunately he can't yet un-latch these straps or we'd be in real trouble. :o)

And while he isn't yet speaking, he's understanding so much and observing so much. All he needs to do is see Anita and I do something one time, and he can mimic it almost exactly. I am equally thrilled and scared to death about that ability of his.

As I look back on his first 6 months with us, I can't help but wonder what the next 6 months...and more...have in store for us. I can't wait until he start talking so we can better communicate with him and he with us. Of course, knowing Colin's personality, he's going to start speaking in full sentences rather than simple words. And he will be curious about everything. I have no doubt that many of our conversations will consist of Colin asking "What is that?" or "How does that work?" or, most likely "Why?" I suspect we'll hear that little word quite a bit when he starts talking.

I can't wait until he begins taking interest in books so that we can have some wonderful times reading together and telling stories. I can't wait to help feed his imagination with the childhood stories that I grew up on and the new ones in the books that we've accumulated so far. I'm especially anxious to share of the children's stories from his homeland, to be able to share with him glimpses of heritage. I also can't wait to share with him the Bible Stories that will help him understand who God is and how He loves Colin so much.

But most of all, I can't wait to watch my son...My Son...grow up little by little every day.