Three Weeks Time!

Well we have officially had Stasik home for three weeks and he is really starting to come into his own. I have not been able to really sit down and write a new blog post because the two boys have kept us very busy. Since the last post we have worked very hard to get Stasik settled and in a routine. As one might imagine, it has been very hectic for our family trying to get both boys to daycare and school while also getting ourselves to work on time. We have had a friend of ours keeping Stasik the last few weeks while we get the remainder of his health checks done. Starting next week, though, he will go to school with Carter. Carter attends a school for children with DS, children with autism, and normally developing children. It is a great mix of kids and very good for his social, motor, and intellectual development. Carter enrolled in the school right before our trip to the Ukraine and he just loves it. Since Stasik came home, school has kind of been Carter's get away. It is his old normal and a place where he has not had to share time with his brother. It will be interesting to see how the two do being together all day in a setting other than home.
Since he got home, Stasik has slept in a little bassinette next to our bed. We wanted to monitor him and make sure he is adjusting well before we moved him into his room. We always know when he is up. It used to be because he would stem and rock the bassinette, but now it is because he will start talking and will gradually get louder until somebody picks him up. Stasik is a good sleeper, but he is always the first one up. We hope it is because it is like Christmas morning for him every day....where he is happy and he just can not wait to get up and open his daily gift of a new life. After we pick him up, he normally lays in bed with us for a little while and then it is up and off to start our day. When Carter wakes up he always looks for Stasik, but we are not sure what his reasoning is yet. We would like to think that like any brother he just wants to start playing with him and say, "What's up brother", but we think a little of it may be just to see if the new guy is still in the house. Carter may have thought that this was just going to be a short little slumber party and now is thinking somehow it has gone on a little too long. We are not sure which it is, but the more they are together, the more used to one another they get and the less we even remember about how it was before Stasik's homecoming. Carter is helping out a lot more and is beginning to spend time with him independently and with me and momma.
We have Stasik's daily feedings down to a science now and we have just about figured a way to get enough calories in him. His vomitting is very sporadic; we have to find the right foods and be very creative in how we mix in liquids and formula. Liquids seem to be the main issue, but are a necessity to keep him hydrated. Formula is still the best way to get him the nutrients he needs and try any way we can to get it to him. We have an appointment on Wednesday with a GI specialist and hopefully we can get it all under control.
On monday of this week we went and got his first round of shots to try to get him up to date. Poor guy had to get six shots in one sitting. It is so different to watch Stasik's reaction to things like this. Carter never cried about anything....Stasik is just the opposite. Food in sight...cry, food out of sight...cry, take too long to give food...cry, shots...cry...take temperature...cry, change diaper...cry; I just feel for him and what he has been through. I know that time will ease all of this, but I just want so badly to make all of the pain go away, physical and/or emotional...it just breaks my heart every time. Crying is definitely his mechanism for communication and when he begins to speak more or use sign language I believe it will subside quite a bit. He learned the words momma and dada very soon after we met him, but in the last three weeks he has also learned to say Carter and Bubba. It is so neat to watch Carter try to help him talk and use sign language. When I try to get Stasik to say and/or sign "more" or to clap his hands, Carter will show him how to do it and then if he does not mimic it, Carter will grab his hands, tell him what to say, and then just show him how to do it. He is going to learn a lot from Carter and it is neat to watch Carter take an active role in his development.
Stasik has officially gained 4 pounds and is weighing over 16 pounds now. He has grown half of an inch and is wearing 12 month clothing. He just looks and acts so different now. He can almost sit up on his own and can now stand (assisted) for very long periods of time. He just smiles at us all day and it makes us feel so good about where he is right now. We thank God everyday for this opportunity. Hopefully we will get good information on wednesday and we can start giving him the stuff he needs to really put on some more weight.

God Bless!