Meeting Bartek (B.J.)

We had such a busy and emotional day yesterday! We waited two years to meet our son and it is so hard to explain how we felt when they brought him out. We had to keep in mind that he has been in an orphanage and that we cannot expect him to look 100%. With that being said, we completely fell in love with him! He did look quite a bit different than his picture, but that could be because his picture was 4 months ago. We did find out that he hadn't gained any weight, still only 17 pounds, but has grown taller. His limbs are pretty long, but he is only in a 12 month size clothing and those are even a little large! He is still being fed a bottle and only has a few cans of soup/baby food a day. We think that once his diet changes, he's going to grow like a weed!

We were briefed by the orphanage director, doctor, and pshychologist and were very impressed with all the information they had for us. We even learned all about his biological parents, including names! Wow! His mom was 5'9'' and his dad was 6'4" We think that B.J. will grow to be very tall once he starts growing! The orphanage is very clean and has about 30 babies under two years old. Most of the babies are under 6 months and quite a few are newborns! It is very clean, but very understaffed. When we play with B.J. there are about 6 other babies in there with us! It breaks our heart that everytime we pick him up the others just cry and reach for you! I really would love to take two home! Bless their hearts! I spent some time crying yesterday for those sweet beautiful children! I asked how long they would be there before they were adopted out and was told that they would not be because the mom was still trying to get them back. In other words, the children stay in the orphanage until their mommies get their lives back together. It is so sad, but at least the child is safe!

We have had a great time with B.J. and he seems to be taking to us well. He was a bit shy at first not wanting much to do with us, but that didn't last long. He loves to hug and be held and loves to laugh and giggle. He has a very healthy curiosity and climbs all over us! He also loves to play, with everything! I will be posting video once we have custody (Friday) and you will see what I mean! He just started crawling correctly about a week ago and we have been working on his walking the last two days because he appeared so stable on his feet. Today he stood up in the middle of the room and took 3 steps towards me before he fell into my arms. We were so proud of him and are sure he'll be walking in a week! We did have a few medical concerncs, but will discuss those with the doctor on Friday. Either way, he is our son and we will do what needs to be done! Thanks for your prayers and we will post more later! God Bless You!