March 5, 2019- The first 24 hours

We have been amazed by how well Bin is doing.  He has not cried at all since he has been with us.  He is fiercely independent, wanting to do things for himself without help if he can manage it.  As a last resort he will come to us to help with something if he needs it.  One thing he lets us help him with a lot is rolling his shirt sleeves up.  He’ll walk up to us and point to his sleeves while holding his arms out.  As I have mentioned before, Bin was considered special focus in the orphanage because of his hands and feet.  He has apparently had surgery on both hands and both feet while he was an infant.  The orphanage wasn’t able to provide much insight into exactly what they did but we may be able to find out more when we have a US orthopedist examine him back home.  His right hand has one digit and his left hand has two fingers.  Each of his feet has two toes; one laterally and one medially.  We were told that there was pretty much nothing he couldn’t do in terms of limitations.  We have seen it first-hand since we’ve had him.   It has been fascinating to watch him go through his day and see the ways he uses his hands to do things.  One thing I was really curious about was how he writes and eats.  When he colors and writes he holds the pencil in his right hand (he’s right handed) and then steadies the top with his left hand.  He loves coloring and he is absolutely meticulous and focused when he colors.  He stays in the lines perfectly and pauses for thoughtful contemplation when changing colors.  At meals we give him chopsticks, forks, spoons, etc and just watch to see what he chooses.  He actually is perfectly proficient with everything and uses whichever utensil works best for the job at the time. 

When he smiles I think the room actually brightens.  We are constantly trying to read his mind and his thoughts, wondering what’s going through his head.  His expressions usually give very little away as to what’s going on in his little head.  But when breaks out in that sweet smile or adorable laugh, it’s the cutest thing you’ve ever seen.  His joy and enthusiasm shine like a star and it is immediately contagious.  

He is also 100% pure little boy mischief.  He is into everything and loves to run off whenever he pleases.  We have gotten plenty of exercise chasing after him and taking things away from him that he shouldn’t have.  He is also a professional prankster. His favorite prank is to pretend that he either lost something or can’t reach something when in fact its in his pocket or he’s already grabbed it and he’s hiding it while getting someone to help him look for it.  He’s officially been put in charge of the hotel room key and he takes his responsibility seriously.  Before leaving the room he goes around and turns off all the lights, picks up the key, shows us that he has it, and then carefully places it in his pocket for safe keeping.  He’s also in charge of all elevator operation as well.  So far his favorite game is hide and seek.  Its amazing how many places he and his sister have managed to find to hide in our hotel room.  He is innovative as well.  We ordered take out and back and the room realized we had no silverware.  Abigail was eating spaghetti while the rest of us had burgers or soup. Bin decided that the ice bucket tongs were the perfect utensil for spaghetti and came to Abigail’s rescue with them by feeding her with them.  They were cracking each other up the whole time.  He already looks up to his sister.  He won’t wear his jacket unless he sees her put hers on first.  He constantly looks to her example for when its time to play, act crazy, get ready for bed, or get into mischief.  We are so thankful for him and for how well things have gone with him so far.  It’s the beginning of a beautiful life for our new family.