Friday, December 17, 2010

musings after 24 hours of parenthood...

choi boy is napping and i'm not sure how much time i have before he wakes up, so i'm just going to jot down some thoughts in a list -- no meaty, meaningful, thoughtful paragraphs today, okay? you understand, right? i know you do, that's why we're all friends. ;)

okay, so.

*last night was a bit rough, but still not nearly as bad as we had anticipated. choi boy finally fell asleep after a good 30 minutes of crying and grieving. so heartbreaking to hear him cry out for his "umma"...he woke up 3 times in the middle of the night. he cried a lot, but the good thing was, for the most part, he let us comfort and soothe him.

*the boy sleeps like a maniac. we were kicked, slapped, shoved and rolled on in the middle night. we all slept on the floor together and i'm pretty sure that if you took an aerial shot of us, we would have looked like an H or an N. the lil' dude also snores like a chainsaw. but, as the hubs said, it was the best worst night of sleep ever. :)

*choi boy is a lot smaller than we expected. he is wearing 12-18 month clothing and those are still a bit baggy. we brought mostly 18-24 month clothing (and that's all we have at home!), and he's swimming in those. you know what that means, right? shopping!!! i kid, i kid.
maybe. :)

*choi boy is quite a little piggy. but, we're loving bonding over food and watching his sheer delight when he's eating! seriously, he smiles every time he takes a bite!

*our boy is also quite speedy. we knew he was walking (the FM told us he'd started at 10 months), but the boy is actually running/flying! he's quite steady on his feet, which are really very large compared to the rest of him.

*choi boy's got a few words under his belt, but my favorite by far is "oh-wa!" which is korean for "wow!". SO cute. seriously.

*our son (our SON!!!) is so sweet and has a very playful personality. he's been laughing up a storm with us and is so curious about everything. he's still loving the pups and has told the loud one to shush several times. love it!

*we are more in love with choi boy than we thought was possible. and we've only known him for a day! he is beautiful and amazing and more than we dreamed of...God is good indeed.

and, now, what you've all been waiting for...pictures! don't worry, i'm not insecure, i fully understand that from here on out, most of you will be stopping by only to see pictures of choi boy.

i am only happy to oblige. :)

this one's for my mom:
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apparently, choi boy loves to clean. so far, he's hijacked the swiffer from my aunt, taken a baby wipe and washed the floor, and has tried to figure out the vaccuum cleaner. perhaps he'll actually motivate me to clean when we're home. :)

snuggling with daddy for a nap:
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checking out the ergo with momma and cracking up over something:
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and, finally, guess who loves bath time??
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this is "mahn-seh!" which is kind of like, "hooray!"

is there anything cuter than a naked baby in the bath?

i think not.

34 comments:

  1. oh i love him! LOVE him!! the picture of daddy and son snuggling is so precious! love his little smile! when he's done helping you clean..send him my way..i love to clean house. we'd be two peas in a pod!! hehe. oh and i'm soooo glad you posted his clothes size!! yay!! i've been wondering and so glad i didn't do something i was planning..new plans! xoxo!!

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  2. sheesh, you guys make this parenting thing look EASY!!!!!!!! it looks like he's been with you for months, not 24 hours!

    and, those bottom eyelashes of his? wowzers, the kiddo has some amazing ones! what a beautiful, beautiful boy!!

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  3. oh, i love that he loves to clean! so fun! and baths with kiddos are so much fun - and little wet haired babes are so cute!

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  4. So wonderful! I love that he is bonding so well with you guys! I love seeing him cuddling with daddy and you carrying him in the Ergo!

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  5. you look like you've been together forever! i love seeing you with your son. can't wait to see you in person! :)

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  6. OMG. SO CUTE. AHHHHHHHHHHH!!! HE'S FOR REAL IN OUR LIVES NOW!!!!!!!! YAAAAAAAAAY!!! Congrats, unnie, and I wish you SO much luck and send you so much love during the hard parts.

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  7. I can't get enough of the pics...especially with Peter holding him. I can already tell that this kid will make me laugh and will be so much for Liv & Nats to play with. Can't wait to see you guys on Monday. Continually praying & thinking of you guys.

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  8. He's so cute!! Exploring already! :)

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  9. I loved reading this post...hearing & seeing details of Choi boy's personality. SO CUTE! I love hearing about the words he says. LOVE the shot of him in the Ergo with you (brings back memories). I showed the photos to Little D...he said, "MAMA! backpack!" (which is what he calls his Ergo) when he saw you holding Choi boy in the Ergo. CUTE!

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  10. AMAZING. Just so special to see you all together. I think I'm gonna cry. And he is so freaking cute!!!!!

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  11. what a handsome guy he is!

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  12. He is precious!!! So glad to hear that things are going well! Enjoy your time in Seoul!

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  13. This is a great post! I was laughing about the H/N sleeping arrangement - sounds familiar! It's why co-sleeping can be so darn hard (in my opinion), but I love what your hubs said about it :) Choi Boy sounds delightful and funny and happy and easy-going and that is SUCH a blessing. He is adorable and I loved seeing these photos!!! More, please!!

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  14. Loving the updates. Sounds like you guys are getting alone amazingly well. Spencer shares Choi Boy's love of zipping around non-stop and clearning, so hopefully we can wind them both up and watch them go together someday.

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  15. What a precious little boy. I love your LOVE for him already. Isn't it amazing what God does for us. Many times I've worried that I won't have that bond or love right away, but.... that's really going to be hard to happen because these children are so sweet and special. Every single child I've seen come home are so unique and beautiful!!! Love for your child is truly amazing, isn't it?! p.s. i love the swiffer pic and I say go for it with the shopping!!

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  16. I was thinking that it will actually be pretty nice staying at your aunt's place. That way C will still hear some Korean while he hears English, and I think that might make the transition a bit easier.
    The best worst night sleep - perfect!

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  17. love love love. love the videos too. thanks for sharing. these first few days must be so crazy. you guys are doing awesome. praise God for all his goodness. love choiboy!

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  18. Unbelievably, wonderfully CUTE!!! I love how in love you are. Love it.
    My favorite pic is you holding him in the Ergo. Grace, you are just a natural mama, through and through. You and Peter just ooze love in every photo.
    So very happy for your new family!

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  19. so fun reading all of these little tidbits about your boy and seeing all of the wonderful photos of course too! you and peter look so darn happy....and have every reason to be! what a beautiful boy carson is!!!

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  20. Oh he is beautiful! What a sweet boy. Ben will now finally have a buddy to clean with. And ahh, yes, the co-sleeping. I remember that, not so fun.
    You guys seem to be doing really great for only having been parents for a day. You are naturals!
    I love the pictures and can't wait for more.

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  21. so ecstatic and proud of you guys!!! Praying for all good things to come to you three!!!!! Love, Esther & Jake

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  22. oh grace, I am in tears reading these posts. I am so happy for you and your husband. God is sooo good!!!

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  23. Oh my goodness! The pictures and thoughts are fantastic. Glad he's doing so well. Praying for him as he continues to transition and for you as you learn to adjust to those sleepless nights. :) I have lots of 12-18 month boy clothes - I can bring them to you once you get home (or shop with you...). :)

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  24. Oh, he is just so cute! I love that he says oh-wa. How adorable is that?? He looks like a happy, sweet, smiley boy and it's so amazing to see him in both of your arms! I hope things continue to go well for the three of you. :)

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  25. I love all the happy moments captured in your post - you will be so glad to have these early days documented here, they go by so quickly.

    24 hours into parenthood and its clear you are filling choi boy's life w/love.

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  26. beautiful pictures. i loved reading your post. choi boy is so cute!

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  27. Sounds like Choi boy is full of personality...and fun! Enjoy your time with him in Seoul and I look forward to more pictures and stories ahead!

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  28. Oh how precious is he!?! I know you cannot wait to get him home! Sounds like you have some shopping to do :-)

    Prayers for safe and peaceful travels for you and Choi boy!

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  29. Oh man, I LOVE this post!! LOVE it. And I love how much love is just gushing out of you two. So awesome. I seriously don't remember a lot of the first few days together. I guess that is what sleep deprivation does. You will be so glad to have this post down the road. Jotted thoughts and all.

    Oh, and as Doug said, Spencer would love to have a cleaning buddy...

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  30. SO SO CUTE! The first night sounds pretty good!!!

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  31. Oh he's so darn cute. And he obviously has such a cute personality. I can't wait to see him at home settling in.

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  32. I am wiping tears away as I read this post. I am so happy you are doing so well together so quickly. I love the photos of your little boy with both you and your husband.

    Our daughter is just now 9 months old and is in Korea. Reading your blog is giving me the strength to hope that everything will be okay in the end.

    I hope your travels home went well. All the best.

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  33. Time to remove the ticker at the top of the blog!!!! Hooray!! :)

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