Week Two in Bulgaria!

Yesterday we went to the grocery store with Daniel. It was cold, but dry and I needed to try some carriers and practice finding out what does and doesn’t work with Daniel in terms of him tolerating being carried around. The moby wrap is a no go, since the only holds I know with it require shorter legs or legs that bend. I tried the carrier (forget what it’s called) that my friend loaned me (thanks, Kelly!) and a normal ergo carrier hold was the most comfortable. Yay! Daniel was content if I kept walking with a regular pace. If I paused or stood still, he quickly began to be unhappy and cry. So I did more walking than shopping at the grocery store, but still managed to spend 70 leva. 🙂

Today (Monday) is our last down day and tomorrow we will take Daniel to a medical exam, including a TB test. The better TB test to do is a blood test, which will not have the risk of a false negative and further testing. But… a blood test is more traumatic and Daniel is small and dehydrated. I’m anxious about tomorrow and wish I could prepare Daniel somehow. I am used to having a nonverbal child, but it doesn’t make this kind of thing any easier.

We are beginning to talk about our flight home… that will be a difficult process, I’m sure, but at the other end is HOME and my HUSBAND and ALL my children in one place. I am looking forward to it so much. Brian has been getting our home ready for Daniel – putting in outlet covers and rearranging the bedroom/schoolroom/office so that the cords are out of reach and Daniel has a bed next to ours. Brian has been working hard – rearranging, playing with the kids, putting in work hours, homeschooling, and trying to keep warm at night without a wife. The last is probably the most difficult. hehe

Last night Daniel cried more than a little bit for the first time after I put him to bed. I couldn’t figure out what was wrong… I think probably he was tired, restless, and wanted the bed and people he is familiar with. It is hard for such a young person to be somewhere new and with strange people. I am looking forward to a month from now when we are no longer strange to him and when he will understand some of our words. Please pray for him as it’s hard work for him!

I discovered that he does not like to eat immediately after waking up. I will try again mid-morning. Yesterday he ate best then and in the midafternoon… snack times for Maggie and me.

I think of Daniel’s first mother often and pray for her as the wound of losing her son is new again. Please pray for her also. Also pray that we find a good way to communicate. I have been sending a few emails and I don’t think google translate works well, but I don’t want to ask for translation help from a person so frequently. I’ll figure it out, but so far, I don’t really know what I’m doing.

Okay, friends, that’s all for now. I need to shower and figure out what we’re doing today.

Leaving our apartment to walk to the grocery

Peek a boo!

Sure is good to be with my son.

Yes, he’s unhappy here. He was done with the grocery. He’s still cute.

It was nice to find a big, fully-stocked grocery.

He’d kinda “had it” by the time we walked home. He wanted to lean way over, so I gave his head extra support and he seemed to like that. I’ll adjust the carrier some and see if I can get it just right. Might try a toddler sized Kinderpack, but his bum is so little, I worry he’d be lost in the pocket. Hmm.

His favorite cord is the laptop charger.

This is the “you’re going to get into trouble if you play with my camera, Maggie” look.

We pulled out some playdoh yesterday. Daniel was averse to touching it at first. Then he figured out he could “plug in” his charger into the dough. Then he learned he could touch it with a knife. Then he touched it long enough to throw it. It was a pleasure to watch him discover!

Maggie made lots of cool things! She is a wonderful big sister. I’m so glad she’s with us.

Even though he doesn’t eat much, I’m pretty sure his tummy looks fuller than when we picked him up. He eats slowly, but I have all the time… slowly by slowly, I hope to see him grow strong!

Pleased to be given a cord when he wakes up.

Morning time!

I know that Daniel was paid attention to in the orphanage. Where Jordan was passive and didn’t react or respond to people, Daniel cries when he wants something, cries when he wants out of bed, lifts his arms to be taken somewhere and even knows to throw a tantrum if he is told “no.” I’m thrilled with his ability to communicate. He is nonverbal (he may understand some Bulgarian, but does not speak it) but I think he will be speaking soon, because he imitates sounds and has specific things he wants. I’m going to enjoy watching him discover the power of speech! (He imitates words, but doesn’t seem to assign meaning to them yet)

Playing with playdoh