Overstimulation

John and I moved all the toys and all the girls' clothes into a large cabinet that we moved from the girls' room into the kitchen. I expected a war, but the kids seemed to think it was cool that Papa could move such a huge piece of furniture and just stood out of the way. Not a peep out of the girls, but once Adam noticed that his toys were out of his room, he wasn't the happiest camper we ever saw, but he didn't pitch that much of a fit. We just showed him where his toys were, and he seemed ok with it then.

We have to watch that boy... He's got the "gimmes" really bad as we've mentioned before. He finds things around the house that he decides to claim, and then squirrels them away in his room. Today I found my kitchen clock hung inside Adam's closet on a nail that neither John nor I remember putting there. He also put his lamp in his closet where he left it on for who knows how long. We've found other odds and ends too.

Adam seems to be having the most trouble the last few days. He has a super-strong sense of propriety and if something isn't "just right" he throws himself into a tizzy. He sulks, throws things, smarts off, etc. He was in such a mood for about two hours today just before lunch. At mealtime, he told us he didn't want to eat (he was still upset), so we made him sit there with us anyway. John and I were actually pretty happy that he didn't eat... It means he's finally starting to trust us with his food. Up 'til now, he's gobbled down every bite and then asked for more. He finally did start eating, but only when we started talking about the scotcheroos that everyone would get when they were all done with their plate. So, although it wasnt' good that he threw a fit, the fact that he was willing to not eat meant a lot to how he's doing in the Food Department emotionally.

Adam asked me for something or other in Russian today, and I told him I didn't understand. Then he said, "Pen, please, Mama" in English. I'm going to have to remember that if the kids think we *might* know what they're saying in Russian, they won't bother trying in English, even though they know how to say it. Very valuable insight right there...

My brother, his wife and two girls, and another brother came today. There were gifts galore all over the place for the kids. They loved them, but it was very over-stimulating for them. Actually, Adam is the one who is really affected by all the attention and excitement. He turns from "good boy" to "hyper boy" to "naughty boy" every five minutes. He gets very overwhelmed, and as my brother was talking to him, Adam started trying to take his watch off of him, etc. That's what Over-stimulated Adam will do... he'll take things off of the person talking to him, hang on them, and basically act "inappropriate." He'll also smart off with his face at people and mimic them. Makes for a mortified Mama, but I had definitely warned them beforehand that this could happen. Too much thrown at him all at once. I was *very* thankful that we had already moved their toys into the kitchen. The kids would have been miserable all day wanting everything all at once, etc. We let Adam have his clothes in his room. He seems the least affected by clothing.

The girls got baby dolls that cry and then say, "Mama, Papa." They are soooo cute, but they make them say it over and over and over and over and over.... ;O) I would have bought them too, though, had I seen them, so I was pretty tickled for the girls. They each had to sleep with them. It was funny to hear a "Mama, Papa" from a doll after I knew the girls were asleep. Maybe they aren't the best "to sleep with" dollies. :O)

They also got lots of nice new clothes. Apparently the girls are in 4T's, abd 3T's, but Aleksa's tummy is a 4T, so while 3T's are long enough, they sometimes aren't wide enough. The kids are all three putting on pounds, so who knows how long they'll be in those. I was just looking at some orphanage pics of the kids, and it warmed my heart to notice that the kids are filling out already. Adam and Liana especially. Aleksa, our Chunk, is our picky eater. She still hasn't eaten all that much. She loves her breakfast food (eggs), and that's about it. She'll only eat fruit and veggies and yogurt (and of course scotcheroo bars made by Grandma).

Speaking of clothes, Adam got some new jammies from his aunt and uncle... They are SUPERMAN jammies. He knew all about Superman, and was SOOOOOOO excited to notice that the emblem on the front of his pj top glowed in the dark.

Not sure what to do about Adam for school. I don't think he's ready emotionally to be plopped in to school. He's the one most scared about anyone leaving the house without him, and most affected by any extra stimulation, so probably for the first semester at least, I'll have to do my best to teach him at home. Making sure he knows we're a family is more important than anything right now. Poor little guy. If anyone has or knows of a good homeschool curriculum, please email us!

I have been completely exhausted in the evenings. I doze off on the couch at 7:30 or 8:00 sometimes. Of course, that means that I'm up by 4:30 or 5:00. Good time to blog though... Otherwise it would never happen. I hope these "post adoption" blog entries will help a future adoptive family. It always bugged me before that once a family had traveled, that their getting off the plane was the "End" of their story. It's really just the beginning!!! There is as much to learn hearing about peoples' first days home as there is reading their travel journal, but that's just my humble opinion.