Nur - 18 Months

Today Nur is 18 months old!  Hard to believe that I'm a parent of an 18 month old, and hard to believe that little baby I brought home from Ethiopia is losing all baby about him, and becoming a little boy!

Nur is doing great!  A couple weeks ago, he tested out of Early Intervention!  This is something we set up for him right after getting home.  We knew he was delayed in some areas due to his circumstances and thought Early Intervention would help him get caught up quickly.  Well, two weeks ago, they set him loose! They said he just isn't far enough behind in anything any more.  I'm really going to miss his therapist, who was wonderful, but I'm so happy that after 7 months of being home, Nur has made great strides!

I'm sure absolutely everyone feels like this about their child, especially those who adopted and had an agency or governing body hand select their child, but Nur WAS MEANT TO BE MY SON. I have absolutely no doubt about that.  I still believe in maintaining families, and obviously my greatest wish is that circumstances would have allowed Nur to stay with his birth parents.
Nur is a laid back little boy.  He loves playing with trucks and things with wheels, and can often be found rolling things across the floor and making "boy" noises.  Nur loves going for walks in the double stroller, and gets excited when he sees the park, and really excited when I stop and let him play at the park.  He can go down slides all by himself now, and he gets the cutest grin on his face as he sits at the top of the slide, waiting to come down. 

Nur loves playing with his sister and the two of them can often be found stealing toys from each other.  Nur has also really started to assert himself.  When he first came home, he let anyone just steal his toys.  He would get a real sad look on his face, and then crawl to me and cry.  But now, if someone (usually his sister) steals a toy, he screams and grabs it right back.  I could really do without the screaming, but I'm so proud that he is confident enough to take back what is his.  His confidence has really improved so much since October!

Nur is a great sleeper.  He goes to bed around 7pm every evening, and wakes up around 6am.  He takes one nap a day for anywhere from 2-3.5 hours.  He is becoming such a better walker, and I hardly ever see him crawl anymore.  He loves being outside.  He loves exploring too.  He's such a thinker and studier.  Nur hasn't had his 18 month appointment yet, but I can tell he's gaining weight.  These arms of mine are sore!

On Monday, Nur visits an ENT doctor, and I'm really looking forward to this appointment.  I know I've mentioned it on here before, but Nur has had a really gross runny nose since coming home in October.  But it's more than that.  I really don't think he can breathe through his nose. . . ever.  He snores loudly at night, and even wakes up gasping, which is making me think he is also dealing with sleep apnea.  He is definitely dealing with an upper respiratory "thing" and I just hope ENT is where the answers are.  I want some relief for my little boy!

There is so much more I could say about Nur  He's got a great sense of humor, he loves to snuggle, he's easy going, easy to please, and I'd have to say a really well adjusted little boy.

Happy 18 months Nur!!!