Five Months

September 8, 2016

Five months ago today, Tai William CheolHo Bowler was carried off of an airplane by his Appa in Dallas, Texas, and became an official citizen of the United States of America.

Welcome to America, little man!

Waiting to hand over our important manila envelope to the immigration officer

Five months. Sometimes it feels as though he has always been with us. Other times, I am blindsided by circumstances that illustrate just how little time we have spent with him. This past month has rivaled only the first as the most difficult thus far. For the most part, this has very little to do with Tai and a lot to do with everyone going back to school. Attempting to precisely time a nap to coincide with getting big kids to their respective activities can get stressful. Holding a tired, screaming toddler while trying to help a seventh grader with Algebra I homework and follow up on the fifth grader who is supposed to be taking out the trash all before I shove kids in the car to take Anna to dance at 4:00 each day is rough.

We are making progress in regard to attachment, but it is SLOW...

Anna remarked last night, "He hasn't gotten upset the last few times that Dad has taken him to bed instead of you." Yesssss!!! We celebrate small victories around here. This is one of them.

Despite meandering our way through the day in a fairly sleep-deprived state, life with this little guy is awesome. Getting to know him brings us joy on a daily basis. He is funny and silly, and usually in a good mood. Unless it is time to sleep through the night or take a nap... but I digress.

Tai surprises us with his constantly growing English vocabulary. Every day he adds new words. He often points to items and wants us to repeat their names to him, but he will not attempt to say the words himself. Suddenly, a few days later, he blurts out the word in his cute, toddler English. He talks constantly... and sometimes we understand him. :)

His speech is like binoculars. At first, everything is blurry. He loves to pretend with his Thomas the Tank Engine and friends or his rescue and construction vehicles. He crashes them together and excitedly exclaims, "Oh, no!" or "Uh oh!" He follows this announcement with a fast and furious flurry of other words, mostly incomprehensible. A mix of English and Korean... Konglish. Recently, those words are starting to pop out at us... like the distant figures on the other side of binoculars as you slowly draw them into focus. Or a camera lens as you peer through the viewfinder and make adjustments to bring your subject into focus.

Currently, my favorite Tai saying is "Tai mmmm," or "Mmmm Tai," or "Ommma, mmmm Tai." This is Tai-speak for "Hold me and snuggle me." As Matt pointed out, I usually say, "Mmmmmm," as I close my eyes and snuggle him close. He wraps his little arms around me and pulls me in as he nestles his head into my shoulder or chest. I will never tire of "Tai mmms."

Tai has grown in his love of Thomas and all things train, but he still loves Tayo and Robocar Poli. He is trying to learn all of the names of the various trains. This entails a lot of Tai taking my finger in his hand, using it to point to each train, and then waiting for me to tell him the name. Guess what? I, too, now know Thomas, Percy, Henry, James, Gordon, Toby, Emily...

Our little guy still loves "his" Ipad and the MANY versions of the Finger Family Song. Who knew that you could sing about Mommy, Daddy, Brother, Sister, and Baby finger in so many languages? Also, there is a Finger Family Song for almost every cartoon character. Thomas, Tayo, Robocar Poli, Mickey Mouse. You name them. They are in the song. If you are not familiar with this delightful little tune, try googling it. Be forewarned, you will be singing it in your sleep and might be cursing me a tiny bit.

Tai also adores this crazy YouTube video of a man with a foreign accent opening lollipops. He unwraps each one, sings about its color, tries it, and then announces, "Yummy, yummy!" Tai now professes his delight and love of food by proclaiming it, "Ummy, ummy!" Poop and anything dirty or stuck to his hands is declared, "Ucky!"

Our old miniature John Deere gator is also getting some love from the little guy. He is a horrible driver, and makes a much better passenger. You will find a huge grin plastered across his face as he looks one way while crashing into the bushes. He still enjoys riding in the car, as well. He jabbers away in his car seat about everything he sees along the way, always with his pudgy little feet criss-crossed and tucked up to him (just like his big brother, he yanks off his shoes as soon as he is seated).

A few weeks ago, Tai took a leap into the lake off of the dock. As he surfaced, he exclaimed, "Happy!" Though he is not a member of the Duck Dynasty Robertson crew, he often declares that he is, "Happy, happy, happy!" This is one of his favorite words now. He is prone to look into my eyes while sitting in a grocery cart with a huge grin on his face and say "Happy!" He then follows up his declaration with a hug and "Tai, mmmm." It melts me every time.

Water is this guy's happy place

Eating his favorite...watermelon!

This past month has been physically and emotionally exhausting, but looking into those smiling chocolate eyes makes it worth every sleepless night.

Then Esau looked up and saw the women and children. "Who are these with you?" he asked. Jacob answered, "They are the children God has graciously given your servant."

~ Genesis 33:5