Enock

I can hardly believe that I have only truly known this little boy for about 3 months now.
Even though I so vividly remember the phone call where I learned his name, and the first time I held him and told him I was his mommy, so much of that seems so long ago.

Enock is such a different kid than he was 3 months ago.
When we first met him he was unsure of us, seemed distant and then overly clingy and would melt down over seemingly nothing.
All of that I expected, but what I didn't expect was to see so much change in such little time.

I just spoke with our adoption agency today and they were asking questions about how Enock is adjusting and bonding.
It caused me to look back and remember what it was like with him in Uganda, and what it was like those first few weeks home.
There was distance,
there were temperaments,
he was unsure of his role in our family,
he was frustrated with the language barrier,
and he saw every adult we came in contact with, as a caretaker.

I remember my heart dropping each time he would run over to a random mom at the playground and want to sit in her lap.
I knew to expect that.
It made sense to me.
But it hurt.
I wondered when the day would come that he would look for me....
see me as his safe place....
a day that he would always choose me out of a crowd of moms.

That was then...

Now, Enock seems so happy.
Not the kind of happy that kids are when they are temporarily entertained,
but the kind of happy that runs deeper.
The kind that speaks to security and belonging.

He speaks English all of the time now.
I rarely hear him speaking Lugandan anymore.
It is very broken and sometimes his accent makes him difficult to fully understand,
but he is soaking up everything he hears.

He LOVES his brother and copies everything that he does.
I really believe that his relationship with Camp has made every other transition more smooth.

He is SO busy.
He talks all day long and hardly stands still.
He loves to dance and listen to music.
His favorite song right now is Bob Schneider Honeypot.
He goes around the house singing " la la la la, la la la la la, everybody sing!" (That's how the end of the song goes.)

He loves hugs, gives the sweetest kisses and wants to be funny like his brother. : )

As a family we do some things differently now...
- we refer to cars as motorcars
- we pray with our hands in the air (like they do in Uganda)
- and we sing "Baby Jesus" every night (a song they sang at the orphanage)
(I guess I could also add to that list that we are busier than ever with 2 toddlers and sleep better than we have in years as a result!)


Enock has the best giggle, the brightest smile and the sweetest voice.
He has a very sweet nature about him but quite the independent streak.
He loves babies. He was always good with them in the orphanage so it doesn't surprise me, but he is so sweet and gentle around them.
He is so proud of himself when he obeys or learns something new and constantly wants to know that he has been heard.

His favorite food is chicken by far.
Seriously, I think he would choose it over icecream.

He is super sharp.
He picks up on things so quickly and seems to have the mind of an engineer.
But he tends to lack common sense. : )
He has been known to throw sand in his face, try to eat paint and just today he fell off the swing because he let go with one hand to put the hood from his jacket on.
Jake and I have decided that he will be one of those geniuses who are a little flaky.

He ADORES his dad and would spend every last second of the day with him if he could.
(I can't say that I blame him... I would too!)

We are so in love with this kid.
I am so thankful that God in His graciousness has allowed E's transition to be so smooth.
We are working through discipline issues, bonding, attachment and social situations still, but he is adapting so quickly.

I love that he walks past all of the random mom's at the park now to come show me the new rock he found.
I love that when he is hurt he looks for me and has a sense of security once he finds me.
I love that I can kiss his boo boo and it makes it all better.
I love that he spontaneously tells me he loves me or wants to hold my hand.

Enock is doing so great.
I can't wait to see how much he grows in the next few months.
His birthday is coming up in a few weeks and he will turn 3!
He keeps telling me he wants a "big Buzz like brother".
I can't wait to celebrate him on that day.

E, you are my precious, precious son. I am so thankful that I get to be your mom. I may not know when you took your first step or how you got that small scar on your leg, but I know the ways that your heart is like mine and your personality is like your dads. I look forward to making fun family memories together in the coming years. I love you sweet boy.