Two things happened tonight that REALLY stuck out to me as far as how Liam is picking up on things. He has been referring to any drink as "Juice" and will say that word when he wants a drink of some sort. But other than that, every single thing is "Muh," "Dis" or "Dat." He points a lot, and he definitely knows his name. Sometimes I do say things in Korean to make things a little easier, but 99% we're speaking in full English to him. He definitely understands the word "No" and he gets MAD if you say that word to him. However, we've seen that he understands what we mean by "No" and he's really doing better with it. He has also learned to shake his head "No" and even say "Uh uh" if he doesn't want something that's offered. So all that to say, we've seen good signs of communication.
But tonight was a different ballgame. Every night, Kurt, Evy and I put Liam to bed. I sit in the rocking chair with him, and Kurt sits on the stool nearby. Evy is usually dancing - ha! We sing "Jesus Loves Me" and sometimes one other song, and then Kurt prays. Then Kurt will take Evy to her room to brush her teeth while I rock Liam a little longer and then put him to bed. Tonight, Evy and Kurt left the room and I started singing a song to Liam. He sat up and looked straight at me for a minute and then said "Rah! Rah!" And I knew exactly what he meant. I started singing our "Rocking, Rocking" song about being in a rocking chair that he LOVES. He instantly smiled this HUGE grin and then happily laid his head back down! It was a huge moment for me, because it was our first real exchange where we both clearly understood each other.
Sometimes it's hard to remember that Liam's only been home two months. Isn't that crazy? Kurt and I were talking about how we feel it's going, and we reminisced about when Evy was a baby. It's hard to compare, but in a lot of ways I didn't feel like I could take a deep breath until Evy was about 6 months old. That's when I think we really hit our stride with her and from then on it's been smooth sailing. I have a very strong feeling that it will be similar with Liam. I think we'll reach a point where it's extremely comfortable and we'll settle into an enjoyable system of doing things. Right now we're still learning each other, and we're figuring out how to be a family of four. In some ways it's come easy to us, and in other ways it's been the hardest thing I've ever adjusted to. But then there are nights like tonight where something clicks and you realize that all of the hard work hasn't been in vain, and that what you've prayed for is happening.
Evy is still the sweetest little helper, and it's so obvious that she and Liam love each other more each day. You should see them in the mornings - it's like they've missed each other all night! It's hilarious to me, because 5 minutes into the morning they're usually already having a tiff, but it's so sweet first thing when they wake up. :) I know as the months go on, we will continue to hit our stride and Liam will absorb more and more. Thank you for praying for us as we adjust, and I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas!
