It’s been one week since we’ve been a family of 5!  We’ve had lots of adjustments as we all figure out how to get along.  Gavin is ok with his big siblings, unless he’s mad or they are getting my attention, in which case he may try to hit or bite them.  Ethan loves to tickle and hug him, though he has times where he will act like a baby or obvious wants more attention.  Noelle has been much more excited about him than I expected, but she does not like him in her personal space.  Both big kids think they need to sit on my lap, right next to me or for me to hold them all the time.  Everyone is slowly getting use to the new normal.

Sleeping – Gavin got over jet lag quickly and has been sleeping through the night for the past few days.  He takes a big 3ish hour nap each day.  Most days we have to wake him up from his nap.  Some times he wakes up happy, sometimes screaming.  When we were in China he would point to his crib when he wanted to go to sleep.  Now he lets us rock him for a while instead of just pointing to his crib to be put down.  He will fall asleep on his own.  We are so thankful he’s sleeping well in his crib in his own room!

Eating – this kid is a bottomless pit!  He could sit at the table and eat all day long.  He likes most cooked meals – pasta, mashed potatoes, lasagna, casseroles, hamburger.  He’s not a fan of fresh fruits and vegetables (except bananas) but is eating lots of baby food.  Though he has showed us on multiple occasions he is fully capable of drinking from a sippy cup, he mostly refuses to do it.  We have to syringe feed him water several times a day or he does not make enough wet diapers.  Hopefully we will get this figured out soon.

Development – Gavin is still mostly content sitting in one place and not moving much.  He will frequently want me to pick him up, then immediately point and whine for me to take him somewhere.  I told him if mommy picks him up he does not get to decide where we go!  There are times he will start crawling and make it quite far.  He will also only stand when we make him, and sometimes won’t when we try to make him.  He is quickly getting labeled as “the most stubborn kid the whole world” with his refusal to do things he is capable of!  Gavin loves being outside and does crawl towards the door when we open it.  He is picking up on sign language quickly, and we are working on teaching him more.

This week starts lots of appointments – we have at least one every day but Friday.  We’re excited to get some answers and help his progress, but it’s going to be very busy.  We’re so thankful for everyone who has brought us dinner and offered to help with the big kids.