3 Weeks Ago...

3 weeks ago, Eli was making his trip home...it feels like an eternity ago. Randy & I were talking about it yesterday and we both said, "What did we do with our time before he was here?!?!??"

Each day is filled with new adventures! He is still working on establishing a routine...he will eat just about anything we give him with no complaints. (Have you smelled baby food peas lately? YUCK!) I found some organic teething cookies and he went to town...(middle photo). His biggest adjustment so far is the car seat. Once he is in the car seat and the car is moving he settles down. He will turn to his name and the giggles come out more and more each passing day. He pulls himself up to the coffee table and will walk completely around it. He sure is strong for a 10 month old!

This week, we have our one month home visit. Our social worker will come out, meet Eli and watch us interact with him. She will then type a formal report to send to Holt and then onto Korea. We will also need to provide 6 to 12 photos of Eli with his family to include in the report. We have another visit near month 3 and again at month 6- all before the adoption is finalized! Crazy, right???

Little Moments

Not only is this a precious moment captured of Eli, but my breathe was taken away by Randy. It is an overwhelming wave of emotions to see him as a Dad. It's like falling in love with him all over again.

As of this evening, Eli has been home for two weeks, man does time fly! Every day Randy gives me a countdown and it only occured to me yesterday that the countdown is how many days are left until my leave is over and his 8 weeks begins! That rascal!!!

Love bug :)

First of all, notice the heart shaped snack on Eli's bum!! Too cute! We had a special 1st Valentine's Day with our little love bug. It was also Daddy's first day back at work and we missed him tons :(

His feet say it all!!!

A few of my favorites

Here are some of our favorite photos from the past few days. He is the most mellow, calm baby. Randy & I find this quite hilarious since I am a bit hmmmm.....HIGH STRUNG! Eli is teaching me to RELAX :) He had some time with his Great Grandma James, his Momo and his Uncle Paul & Aunt Marissa. We can't get enough of the snuggles! We are still working away at the time change and a schedule....The first Doc. appointment went extremely and we only needed one shot! Eli cried for about 4 seconds and then all was well. His doctor said that he had hit all of his 9 month milestones (except language....I wonder why?!?!?) and that he was very well cared for while in Korea. We feel SO blessed!

Worth the Wait!

How sweet it is...ok, but last night between 12-4:30 a.m. wasn't so sweet :) Odd though, even though Eli was fussing & crying, I still loved every minute. He is such a joy and blessing to us.
We ventured out to Walmart for some essentials yesterday afternoon and Eli was a champ! He did great with the carseat (one of our fears as they do not use them in Korea) and then the entire time we were in Walmart, he just vegged out watching and looking around.
Today is his first US doctors visit and being first time parents, we have many questions to ask. We are guessing that last nights upset had to do with change in diet and time change. Poor little guy :( I wonder what adventures lie ahead for us today....ahh, joy!

and We're Off!!!!

We know the video is sideways, but still adorable :) He is such a good baby!!! Yesterday was just pure fun and wonderment. He took two "mini" naps and managed to stay up until 8:30. We even had a little bath...He woke up a few times in the night and is now still asleep at 8:15 a.m. Not bad for some first time parents with a son on a 14 hour time difference! Have we mentioned how WONDERFUL it is to be parents???

Oh, and if you want more Eli :), check out http://ppetretta.smugmug.com/ go under the Events section. Our close friend, Pete is a professional photographer and did an amazing job on Eli's homecoming. (Thanks Pete!!!) We can't wait to schedule a portrait session with him & Eli!

Eli's HOME!!!

Last night was the most fabulous, glorius night....everything was FANTASTIC! We were able to get passes to go to the gate and meet Eli right when he got off the plane. Then, as a family we traveled to arrivals to "meet the gang"!!! He did great with the carseat, slept part of the drive home and then played until around 11pm...slept until 3:15 a.m., had a diaper change, drank a bottle of water AND a bottle of formula, went back to bed until 4 something, got up had a diaper change and some cuddle time and went right back to bed. He is still fast asleep :) Randy & I camped out in the nursery and I barely slept :( I AM TOO EXCITED ABOUT OUR LITTLE BOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!

T Minus 9 hours and counting :)

9 hours to go....In about 50 minutes, Eli will land in San Francisco. According to United.com the flight is coming in a half hour early. He will have a 3 hour layover to go through customs & immigration and then board the flight to DC. The final flight leaves San Francisco at 11:00 (CA time) and is a 6 hour flight....oh boy!!!! That boy is going to be all turned around with time & place.
Got a suprise last night- Carolynn, Jarad & the kids are driving down today to come to the airport. HOLY CANNOLI!!!! is that great or what? (For those of you that don't know, Carolynn, Jarad & I were all in Kindergarten together- so it's like brother & sister to me :)
We put up It's A Boy signs in our front lawn!
It's good to be at school today. I am keeping busy and even have a concert with my 5th grade this afternoon....busy means distracted :) Off to class....

Last medical update :)

Eli's last medical update arrived in the mail yesterday. (Funny side note: We have spent the last 2 years running to the mailbox everyday as soon as we get home in hopes that there is something from Holt....yesterday we didn't even check it until 9:00 p.m.!!!!!)

As of Jan 22nd (his 9 month B-day), Eli is weighing in at 16.3 pounds! The report also says that he is walking while grasping onto furniture!!!!! (SUPRISE!) We are guessing that this medical check was for his exit process. It also mentions that he is saying "Omma" which is Mom in Korean. We are sure that his attachment to his Foster Mother is very strong. It will be hard to watch him grieve for the lose of her when he is here :(

I find myself calculating the time difference between here & Korea and wondering how the Foster Family is coping and what they are doing. Their countdown is sad and our is the complete opposite. It is a very upsetting ordeal for them and Eli....not the best thing to focus on right now.

I have attached some photos of the finished nursery. There is one important piece still missing :)

Oh, and thanks to Momo, we will be riding to the airport in style- a stretched limo!!!! What a way to relax, celebrate and take in every moment of this miracle.

Going...Going...Gone!

I've been growing my hair for Locks of Love/Pantene Great Lengths Campaign since before we began our adoption. I've been saying for the last 4 months that when we got the call it would be time to cut it all off! The time is here!!!!!

Eli is arriving to Dulles Airport Tuesday evening at 7:03 p.m! He will be traveling with his escort (Mr. Im) from Seoul to San Fransisco, CA, then San Fran to Dulles. We are trying to get gate passes so that we can meet him when he gets off the plane vs. the baggage claim area. We are also trying to line up a limo to take us so that we do not even have to think about driving. We know exactly where all our attention will be :) We are SO excited and filled with energy...more to come!