25 August 2004 - 37 Days and Counting...

We've been home more than a month now, and things are going pretty well.

The boys have appointments with the dentist, opthamologist, and other specialists this month. We need to get pretty much everything checked out by specialists, one body part at a time, because the medical records are so scanty and we don't know if there have been problems with anything in the past.

The big news is that Nicky's going to start school soon. I met with a team from the school yesterday for a planning meeting, and today the boys and I visited the school. (Yes, there are pictures on my website.) The principal and others are extremely nice, and are going out of their way to make sure Nicky gets the special help he needs while learning English.

Nicky will be starting kindergarten. He's very excited about the whole idea, and absolutely loved the people and paraphernalia he saw today. I got everything set up so I'm an official volunteer helper, and therefore will be allowed to be in the classroom for a little bit as he gets accustomed to everything. The plan is to start him off with an hour one day, then two hours the next, and eventually work up to a full-day status. We'll take it at his pace. The main thing is to make sure he knows that school isn't another orphanage, and that I'm not giving him away. (This is a very common fear among newly-adoped kids.) Once he's comfortable with knowing that I'll be there for him after school, I think he'll do fantastic. He's thirsty for knowledge, and is ready for the increased stimulation and interaction with his age-peers.

Zack isn't quite ready for kindergarten, and is officially too old for preschool. However, the principal is working on getting a waiver to allow him to enter the preschool anyway. His size and mental/emotional development is exactly suited to preschool, and I'm sure he'll be ready for the real thing by this time next year.

There's not much else to report. We continue with our daily routine, learning new words, new tasks, and being exposed to new things every day. Zack is sick again today (doesn't want to eat, wants to sleep, but no fever), but if he follows his usual pattern will be bouncing and ready to go again by 5:00 a.m. tomorrow morning.