Ethan continues to make great strides forward managing to amaze us.

Sunday, April 20 was our first Sunday back to our churches. Randy left a little after 8:00. I dropped Ethan off at Dick and Joann’s at 8:30 and went on to my first service at 9:00. Joann and Dick took Ethan to Faith at 10:00 for Sunday School and worship at 11:00, where I was reunited with him following the service.

Ethan handled the morning so well! I was nervous going into the 11:00 service, but he was fine. Dick and Joann are doing a terrific job with him. They were so kind to give their time in advance to get acquainted with Ethan.

Other updates …

Getting teeth. Ethan now has a total of six teeth. He had his lower two front teeth when we brought him home. His two upper outer front teeth came in after we got him. Now his upper middle front teeth are poking through!

Preparing to walk. Ethan is still preparing to walk. His balance has improved so that he can stand and dance with no hands. He also occasionally does what Randy calls “squats” to strengthen his leg muscles. He loves for us to take his two hands so he can strut his stuff from one end of the house to the other! It won’t be long until he’s walking on his own.

Learning to chew. We have been trying to teach Ethan to chew. He sometimes makes big chewing motions while he’s eating his baby food (usually with his mouth open). Gerber Graduates Finger Foods were recommended because they easily melt in the mouth. In fact, the Banana Puffs were part of the success in our travels to Asbury last week (he started chewing two days before the trip!). Ethan was so excited to pick up a Puff from my hand and get it into his mouth and chew! This kept him quite occupied while we traveled. (He is a bit confused, though, when we read one of his books that has a “choo choo” in it. )

Mom and Dad are making strides too. Ever since we’ve been home from Korea we have been keeping a running journal on what and how much Ethan eats and when and how much Ethan sleeps. We stopped keeping track of his eating a couple of weeks ago, thinking we pretty much have that down now. We are now ready to stop recording his sleep. His night sleep is pretty standard (10-11.5 hours). His naps are more sporadic. He takes a late morning nap regularly. We are considering letting go of the afternoon nap — he doesn’t always go to sleep and it just makes mom and dad more tired trying to get him to sleep.

Here are a few photos related to what I’ve written in this post …

Today, Mom came to our house to spend the afternoon with Ethan while Randy and I went to State College to run some errands.

Round 1 involved a lot of separation anxiety, but in Round 2, Ethan had a wonderful visit with “Grandma!” They played together. Ethan had one of his favorite snacks — yogurt. And NO crying this time!

Ethan just continues to amaze us as he moves forward in his adjustment. What an encouragement on our last day of parental leave!

My cousin, Kevin, had twins twelve days before Ethan was born. Ethan got to meet Steven and Evin (corrected spelling!) and the family on Friday.

The twins have each other to play with (or steal toys from), but this was the first time Ethan was around any babies his age.

The 10-month-olds were cute together. They would reach out and touch each other. Evin was in a laughing mood (corrected with the name of the right twin!). The three just hung out together. After awhile Ethan ventured from Mommy’s lap to check out the wide array of toys.

Hopefully we can do this again soon!

Last Wednesday, Randy and I had our first time apart from Ethan. Mom volunteered to babysit while we went to Altoona to pick up our pictures at JCPenney Portraits. We had a few other things to pick up, as well (formula was at the top of the list!). And, Randy and I planned to have a date.

Just as we arrived in Altoona, we got a call and could hear Ethan’s frantic cries in the background. He wouldn’t eat lunch and he wouldn’t be consoled. Randy and I hit the fast forward button, got the essentials, and called Mom to see how he was doing.

Ethan was okay at the time, so we opted for lunch at Tijuana Flats Burrito Co. (our first time there), which we thought would be quicker than Marzoni’s where we had originally planned to go.

After the initial crying spell, Ethan was back and forth between cries and being okay. His grandma soothed him with an early bottle, found a new toy for him to play with, and entertained him with the speaker phone.

After being away for about two hours fifteen minutes, we arrived at Mom’s. As soon as Ethan saw us, he came scampering across the floor toward us, panting heavily! Needless to say, he was very happy to see us (and us, him ) How wonderful to be loved and missed so much!

Ethan remained somewhat clingy that night and into the beginning of the next day. This all makes us a bit apprehensive about our first Sunday back on April 20. But it’s all part of the ongoing process!

Sometime ago, a local dairy farmer/parishioner was in our home and noticed the gallon of milk in our refrigerator–something that is the norm in our house, so I didn’t think a thing about its presence, and was surprised that she had noticed! (Probably it’s like me, a pastor, going into someone’s home and noticing their Bible on the coffee table!)

Well, the latest dairy news is that we now not only have one gallon of skim milk, but a half gallon of whole milk–Ethan is now drinking milk! At Ethan’s doctor appointment last Wednesday, Dr. Ettenger suggested Ethan begin drinking an ounce of whole milk 3-4 times/day (4 ounces/day). In a month, he can go to 8 ounces/day.

I have been anticipating this day, so I can begin to indulge and have whole milk in my coffee if I want!

Ethan with his “Happy 1st St. Patrick’s Day” bib.

Today marks one month since our return from Korea. How time is flying by. And Ethan continues to make great strides!

Yesterday, Ethan met my Uncle Dan and Aunt Judy. At their home, we noticed that he was slobbering more than usual. After we left, we discovered that a top front tooth broke through (in addition to his two bottom teeth)!

Today, we made our annual trek to H&R Block in Roaring Spring where Susie has been preparing our taxes for the last several years. We wondered how Ethan would handle it. It turns out that our concerns were unnecessary.

At H&R Block, Ethan made himself right at home. After being cautious at Dan and Judy’s yesterday, not venturing too far away, today he roamed around taking in the sights and meeting new people. All the employees (and a few of their clients) made over him, and he loved every minute of it!

Carol, the owner of the Roaring Spring H&R Block (a fellow United Methodist) has been following our journey to get Ethan and was anxious to meet the little guy. In fact, she posted a comment on behalf of the H&R Block employees last September when we announced our referral. She came in and scooped him up and carried him off to meet some other people. And Ethan was fine!

This week we have been taking note that Ethan is standing for a second or two without holding on to anything. Today, at H&R Block, he stood for what seemed like an eternity! It was probably more like 15-20 seconds. I’ve been saying we need to get a picture. We better get it quick, before he moves on and takes his first step!

Today, Ethan enjoyed posing for some pictures in one of his neat outfits that he got at the baby shower at Faith.

The first time we met Ethan at the foster family’s home we noticed how he liked to pose for the camera. And we took a lot of shots that day! But following The Takeaway he seemed a little camera shy (e.g. see the photo we posted earlier today, which was taken a couple weeks ago).

In some cases, Ethan would see the camera and start to cry. In fact, we wanted to take photos during our long trip home, but we didn’t want to do anything to push him over the edge.

Today, it seems the camera-ready little guy is back! We sat him down on the chair and he was ready to be on the move and crawl off, until he saw the camera. Then he sat still and posed. We didn’t even have to coax him to smile!

We are grateful for every stride that Ethan is making!

Yesterday, we had our first of three post-adoption home visits with Cindy, our case worker from Adoption Horizons. Today’s visit consisted of two topics: (1) the process that remains and, (2) Ethan’s progress.

The remaining process
Last month, Randy wrote a little about the rest of the adoption process, but today, we learned there is a bit more work (in terms of paperwork) remaining than we anticipated. There are basically three steps:

1. File the intent to adopt.
2. File the petition for adoption.
3. Finalize the adoption in court session.

We talked more about the court hearing today, which we expect to take place sometime this fall. At the court session, three things will happen:

1. The adoption will become legal and we will receive a certificate of adoption.
2. Ethan’s name will be officially changed from his Korean name to Ethan Quinn.
3. Ethan will become a US citizen.

Following the court hearing we will be able to get Ethan a Social Security number.

The odd thing in all of this is that we won’t receive any formal document stating that Ethan is a US citizen. So, his Social Security card will identify him as a resident alien.

However, after the court hearing, Cindy will help us complete more paperwork to get an actual Certificate of Citizenship for Ethan (which can take up to a year to receive). Once we obtain this document, we take it to the Social Security Office and they will change Ethan’s status to US citizen (with the same Social Security number). What a process!

For now, all we have to do is contact the lawyer’s office to file an intent to adopt. We will work with the lawyer that handles most of the adoption cases through Adoption Horizons (they have the process down pat and and will lead us through the process).

Adoption Horizons uses the Cumberland County Court and knows all the judges. Cindy described the court appearance as a photo op. The judges are happy to pose with adoptive families (it’s the only time there’s no opposing party and everyone walks out happy!). Family may attend with us. It’s like a celebration of sorts.

Ethan’s progress report
We went over any medical updates (immunizations, weight, length, etc.) and what formula Ethan’s on, what he’s eating, how much he’s eating, etc. A groggy Ethan finally appeared on the scene after a rare two-hour nap. He soon transformed into a well-rested, smiling, pleasant little guy!

Ethan charmed Cindy with his cute smile and demeanor. She made developmental notes as he cruised and babbled. Ethan warmed up to Cindy by the end and went over to her.

One interesting question that Cindy asked us was, “What has been the biggest adjustment?” I was upstairs for a diaper change when Randy answered. So I got hit with the question when I returned. I paused — it was hard to think of anything immediately, because life is just so full of wonderful moments with Ethan! Finally I responded, “The 24-hours of it all.” Cindy looked at Randy and smiled. Randy had answered with a similar answer.

A closing thanks
We are grateful for Cindy, our case worker. We always enjoy our conversations with her. She responds promptly to our questions and her return phone calls are never rushed. Her demeanor puts us at ease. She is on top of all the paperwork and requirements and walks us through what we need to do, step-by-step.

Cindy repeatedly expressed reassurance regarding the purpose of these post-placement visits, saying, there is no reason a child would be removed at this point in the process, except for the same reasons that one’s birth child would be removed from his or her home. So, even though there is more to the process, Ethan is our son. We are a “forever family.”

We have been intentional about getting Ethan to know his Grandma and Pappy Flaugh (Joleen’s mom and step-dad) who live within 30 minutes of us. We have been back and forth for a couple of visits. Yesterday, we spent part of the afternoon at their home and had dinner with them. Ethan is warming up to them. He let both of them hold him some today.

Here’s proof …