Lest you think Maxim has no bad moments in the middle of adjusting to family and recovering from his surgery, I must say there have been ups and downs. I'm not sure how much is related specifically to adoption, or if any of it is. The last 5 1/2 months have simply inevitably included Maxim testing his limits at times and finding out where the boundaries are. DOWNS: shoveling food fast and furious into his mouth at meals. this habit has virtually disappeared. in fact, many times he would not come to the table if we didn't pick him up and set him there. he is curiously exploring other things and doesn't want to stop. refusing to speak when he is mad about something. it is tempting to stay there and try to coax words out of him but I have realized this is counter-productive and it's better to set him in a safe place and walk away. pretty soon, I hear him muttering to himself, then playing again, and the day goes on. being loud and responding in disrespectful ways. Maxim is getting better at simply saying "no thank you" when he does not want something that is being offered to him or wants someone to stop a particular thing they're doing with him. Being loudly bossy is also not accepted and I get right in his face and quietly but firmly insist he say please, mind his own business, or whatever is needed. on rare occasions, Maxim loses his temper completely when a certain practice or standard is insisted on with him and he has to be disciplined. when this has happened, I get in his face so he pretty much has to look me in the eye (this is a must; kids need eye contact when they're being corrected), tell him that what he is doing is not acceptable and when he stops throwing the fit, I will be glad to listen to him. then I leave him on his own in a safe spot and walk away. I do not feel any obligation to sit around while someone persists in a fit, adult or child, trying to somehow negotiate with them while they "spew". Life is too short. Anyway, Maxim is finding out that we love him bunches but he is not the center of the world. UPS: Maxim loves to copy what he hears. Yes, this is a positive as long as we are careful what we say, which we should be anyway. He echoes everything and is continually using longer strings of English words. So far, very few have been completely grammatically correct phrases, but he gets his gist across. For example, he says "Mama, doing?", meaning "Mama, what are you doing?" He loves to help. Yesterday the kids and I were at Walmart grocery shopping and Maxim was in his wheelchair. The wheelchair is nothing new to him since he had one in Ukraine and was very independent with it. Anyway, inspite of his somewhat reclined position in the body cast, he can still propel himself, and at the store he went back and forth in the produce section, taking the things I had selected and putting them in the cart Cyan was pushing for me. He enjoys praying and looking at the Bible. He is full of questions about what God made. He loves to make things and while he does often want things hung on the fridge for display, he regularly gives things away to others as well. Tonight is a piano recital for Cyan, Brina and Joel, as well as several other students. Another marker at the end of the school year. Summer is coming. It will be nice to hear what everyone has worked on and celebrate together. Daniel is off to Kentucky on business for the next few days. I love it when he's home but I'm not taking lightly that he has a job and I have no room to complain. We are just blessed that he is employed at all. Our area of Michigan has a 13% unemployment rate. Our little raised beds garden is showing signs of life. Lots of lettuce and spinach up, little tomatoes forming, healthy potato plants, etc. Cut worms have picked off some of my new bean plants but I got some great input off the internet for putting a stop to that. As soon as bean shoots appear above the ground, shimmy an empty toilet paper tube into the ground a couple of inches as a shield around the plant. Hopefully, this will do the trick. I love this time of year when so much is in bloom, everything is so fragrant and fresh outside, and there are great harvests to look forward to in the coming months.
No comments:
Post a Comment