So, how are the kids?

Energetic, curious, and always ready to laugh, Caleb is having the time of his life exploring his new world and making new friends. During the first couple of weeks, he had some uncertainty, frustration over the language barrier, and sadness over the loss of his family and familiarity, but lately he is really enjoying our new home--he's back to his singing, jumping, cheerful little self. In addition to the many Asian children in our apartment complex, our coworkers also have small children, so our little extrovert is enjoying his plethora of relational opportunities. His favorite activities, among playing with friends, include having pillow fights, making “caves” and going on bear hunts, going “fishing” with willow branches in the lilypond, dancing, reading, riding his scooter, and splashing in puddles with his rain boots, to name a few.

Little “Suzanie” is 5 months old now, and is growing, changing, and sweet as ever. She loves to squeal and coo, giggle and smile (Yes, she’s already a heartbreaker!). She learned how to roll over the Sunday after we moved here and is loving her newfound ability. She’s been spending a lot of time on her belly as of late, and will soon be scooting all over the place (though I’m in no hurry for her to be mobile!) But when she is on her back, she practices her latest talent—grabbing her feet and of course trying to eat them. (Somehow anything is cute when a baby is doing it!) She’s also really good at impersonations—Kramer and the rhino horn are two of her best. And she loves reaching for and grabbing anything within arms’ reach—especially noses. She's been hard at work getting her first tooth, and lately she’s expanded her palatal horizons to include cheese and rice crispies, thanks to her big brother… =)

So overall, the kids are doing great—growing, happy and enjoying the world and each other. Still the very proud and protective big brother, Caleb can hardly wait until his “little cutie” is awake each morning, and she reserves some of her biggest grins and squeals for him. They’ve been interacting more lately as Susanna gets older, and it’s been fun to see their sibling camaraderie grow. They’ve seen quite a bit from the seats of their little luxury sedan and are finally beginning to get used to all of the staring, photos, chattering, and interest from perfect strangers. In fact, I think they’re rather fond of it! When people approach Caleb, he greets them with a hearty “Good-bye!” in their language (At least he’s trying!). And Susanna puts on her own little performance of grins and coos, sometimes even falling asleep in the arms of her admirers. Hopefully our kids won’t grow up to be narcissistic from all the attention!