Happy 4th Birthday to Cainan

Today Cainan turns 4. 4! I really can't believe it. When he came home to our family in August 2007, he was just a mere 15 pounds. Scrawny, and unsteady. He couldn't crawl. He couldn't even stand very well.

But it wasn't long before he was moving. He learned to scoot on his butt. He would crawl "normally" on the carpet, but on the tile, he was not sure, so he would scoot. It took FOREVER to break that habit. Then we would creep and then finally learned to walk.

This process didn't take long. I would say by 18 months he was up and walking. (I would have to look back to make sure). And that is right around the time he started talking. He had just had his palate repaired and he was starting to talk.

He would only grunt when he came home. Now - he is hardly ever quiet. I say hardly ever, because his sister do talk more. But when we are alone, he is very chatty. It is nice to see.

Cainan had so many first experiences later than most kids. He had never been in grass, or sand, or a bathtub. All experiences made him very upset. Until he realized that he wouldn't die if he tried them. And now - sand is his absolutely favorite. He spends hours in the sand box. He loves to take bubble baths. He loves to lay in the grass and pick weeds.

For those of you who have known him since day one in our family, know how far he has come. If the orphanage could see him now, they would not even recognize him. He is happy. And fun. And ALL boy.

He still has his struggles. I fear that he may always. But they are manageable. We are learning how he learns. We are so proud of all of his accomplishments, and can't wait to see what he is like when he goes to school.

He loves Batman. And Iron Man. And Spider Man. And Superman. He loves cars, and trucks, and planes, and trains. He loves to watch machinery dig holes. He loves to jump off the couch and the bed (so safe, I know).
He loves to eat. Oh - how he eats! And yet he weighs less than Finley. He eats twice as much as any kid in our family. His favorites are chicken and french fries, pizza, oatmeal, milk, fruit. He loves spicy foods. And chips. I could go on forever.

He is still not a lover of sweets. He will eat some things, but will pass on most. He would rather have something salty.

He loves to be silly. He loves to play with his sisters. Well, most of the time. He loves to dress up as Batman.
He is getting more curious. He is asking more questions. He isn't just "taking it in" all the time any more. He is exploring more. He is questioning authority more. He is getting a great personality.

Today he woke up at 6am - "it's my birthday!" he shouted. The girls got up too - they were excited to share in his special day.

So he opened some of his presents this morning. Then this afternoon we took him to the toy store to pick something else out.

We asked him where he wanted to go for dinner. He picked.......McDonald's. (groan). He loves that place. When he first came home - a friend of ours nicknamed him "Nugget Man" because all he wanted was chicken and french fries from McDonalds. That was his favorite. Still is.

I hope he always know how much we love him. How much he was wanted. How blessed we are to have him in our family.

I hope he knows that our family is complete with him. That I still get an excited feeling knowing that I am going to get to take care of him for the rest of my life. Watch him grow, get married, have children.

That God set in motion for us to be a family, and we took it from there. That God felt that he was ours. I look at him and still can't believe how lucky we are.

Happy Birthday sweet boy. We look forward to many more years of fun and growing with you.