Mongolian Spots

Mongolian spots are bluish colored birthmarks that are found on 90-95% of Central Asian infants. Jonas has them in all the normal spots (lower back, butt, shoulders). They usually disappear before a child starts school, and they are caused by melatonin-containing cells getting trapped in a lower skin layer during embryonic development. They are flat, painless, and don't cause any problems.

I first noticed the spots when I was visiting Jonas at the orphanage on my second trip. We were playing outside, and when he bent over, I noticed these bluish marks on his lower back. Having no idea about Mongolian spots at all, I kind of freaked out internally, thinking he was bruised! I tried to take a picture for documentation, pressed the area gently to see if it hurt him, and wondered if he had had a bad fall or if I should be worried about abuse. The next day, I showed the translator, and she said something about that being normal for Asian skin. When I got back to the hotel and Googled something like "bruise marks Asian toddler back," I knew right away that he had Mongolian spots and that I could stop worrying.

I wish I had known to expect them, and as recommended, I've told his pediatrician to document them (so we never get accused of abuse), but now that I know what they are and that they will eventually go away, I think they're kind of cool. I thought I'd include this blog post in case someone else has never seen Mongolian spots, especially prospective adoptive parents of Asian children, so they don't have to freak out like I did at first!

Rain Dance

We've had some unusually cloudy and rainy days here in Denver lately. But Molly still needs to be walked, and we were getting cabin fever, so Jonas and I went for a walk in the rain the other day.

The fun started when Jonas decided to try splashing. He walked through a little puddle first. That got his shoes wet, along with the bottom of his pants.

The rain started coming down harder, and at that point, I had given up on trying to keep either one of us dry. So I let Jonas go hog wild in the puddles. He found the widest and deepest ones and ran through them over and over and had a blast. His pants were soaking wet above the knee. I had fun just watching his joy.

I honestly don't think Jonas has ever felt rain before. There's no way the caretakers brought the kids outside in the rain at the orphanage. When we got back home after our splash session, I stood under the patio roof, but Jonas just stood out in the rain holding his hands up to the sky and feeling the drops.

After bringing his bike out in the rain, playing with the gushing gutters, and eating a snack on the patio, Jonas could finally be convinced to come back inside to take a warm bath and put on dry clothes. I'm so glad I didn't try to stifle his desire to jump in the puddles, because we both had an awesome afternoon in the rain.

More Music

Jonas continues to love music. He asks to go in the music room and bang around on the full-size keyboard almost every morning. His toy piano just won't do!

Jonas also loves to sit on Zack's guitar stool and admire (and try to touch) his guitars and pedals and music.

Jonas still likes his toy instruments too. At least once a day he has to play his trumpet. And he's figured out how to be silly with his see-through drum top too!

If the video below actually works, you can get a taste of our boy's personality and musical skills. Enjoy!

More Life Lately

Yup, another blog entry where I post some random pictures and talk about what we've been up to lately...

Jonas and I went to the Furry Scurry (a huge dog walk/event) at Wash Park on Saturday. Molly got lots of treats and took second place in the "Best Trick Contest" with her ability to "count." In this picture, Jonas is watching the dog racing demonstrations.

Zack took Jonas on a Daddy-son coffee outing and then to the park to play on Sunday morning so Mommy could have some time to herself to relax (or do laundry).

We had Jonas's mattress on the ground next to our bed, but he was always playing games with kicking his legs over the edge and such when we were trying to get him to go to sleep. He also moves around a lot, so he often ended up on the ground. Now we've got his entire toddler bed downstairs next to us, and things seem to be going more smoothly. He often ends up upside down, but he's only been found on the ground once. And we don't care if he kicks his legs all over the place, as long as he doesn't get out of bed.

Jonas has really been getting along with Molly well lately. He puts hats on her, tries to play doctor with her, gives her spontaneous hugs, and sits on her sometimes. She's a great sport through it all, and I think they'll have lots of fun together in the future.

I've been taking Jonas to some library story times and craft sessions. We also tried out a free Kindermusik class, but to be honest, the library programs have been better (and they are always free!). The kids sing songs, move around, play some music, listen to a book, watch a puppet show, and make a craft to take home. Jonas made a lion puppet yesterday, and today he painted with Q-tips. Yesterday, Jonas was a little too quiet in his room while I was preparing dinner. I peeked in, prepared to see something disastrous, but instead saw my little guy had crawled into the rocking chair and was reading a book all by himself! Melted my heart. This is a big deal for a kid who I don't think had ever had a book read to him before. Guess those library visits are paying off!

Lots of people have asked about Jonas's helmet. He only has to wear it when he's up and running around (so not when he's sleeping or in the stroller or being held and stuff). He'll only have to wear it for about six weeks total, just so he doesn't bang his head during the initial healing process. It's not the kind that shapes his head; it's just protective foam. Unfortunately, it makes his head kind of sweaty, but he doesn't mind wearing it, and we feel a lot safer when he has it on. It's been funny to see what kinds of reactions he gets when we're out and about. Most people just smile. One lady asked if he had febrile seizures. Kids at the library story times we've been attending just think he forgot to take his bike helmet off!


So that's what we've been up to lately, along with playing music and playing in the rain, but those will be other posts.

Before and After

Jonas is still healing from his surgery. His stitches are still falling out and his hair is patchy in spots, he has lumps and bumps that are still working themselves out, who knows if all of the swelling is gone (it can sometimes take more than a month), and it'll be over a year before the plates dissolve and bone grows across the gaps, but I thought it'd be interesting to compare some before and after shots.

I think Jonas looks much older with his new look. I kind of miss my cute little baby with the pointy head and eyebrows, but he's pretty handsome now. How many two-year-olds can say they have already had "work done"?! The bottom set of before and after pictures really shows you the big change in his head shape. Now we just need his hair to grow out!

Simple Pleasures-A Special Post

When you've lived your whole two years of existence in orphanages, there are some things you don't get to experience very often that the rest of us take for granted. I thought I'd use this post (one I've been working on for awhile) to describe some of the "simple pleasures" that we've noticed Jonas enjoys. I think we all have something to learn from him about appreciating the little things.

1. Wind in your Face

We're not sure if this is because Tokmok is not a very windy place, he didn't get outside all that much, or it's just stronger in Colorado, but Jonas definitely noticed and felt the wind when we walked to our car at the Denver Airport. He kept touching his face and hair when it blew, and he even started pursing his own lips and blowing. It was pretty cute. He's since blown seeds off dandelions and blown a pinwheel with a look of wonder on his face. We can't wait to see what he thinks of flying a kite!





2. Plush Carpet

Jonas's face when his feet felt the shag carpet in our front room at our house was priceless. He lifted his feet up and down and kind of giggled. He liked the carpet near his bed in his room as well. At the orphanage, they had flat carpets and paneled floors. I understand those were probably easier for cleaning, but can you imagine never having felt soft carpet beneath your feet?

3. Cars

Jonas probably didn't see many cars before leaving the orphanage. There were occasional ones that drove into the grounds to drop off donations, the toy ones he loved playing with, and I'm sure he saw them on the cartoons they showed, but his exposure to automobiles in real life was pretty limited. Our little boy makes the cutest "ooooooo" sound when he sees a car he likes. He especially likes the ones that are big, flashy, or noisy. We're in trouble when this kid turns 16!





4. Baths for Pleasure

Getting clean in the orphanage was a task, not an activity. From what I understand, the caretakers washed several kids at once in showers. So imagine getting to take a sudsy bath for the first time with toys and one-on-one attention and nobody rushing to get you out. Pure bliss!


5. Possessions

Jonas has never owned ANYTHING of his own. Every item of clothing, toy, blanket, etc. that he's ever seen has always been shared. I don't think our son quite understands yet that some of the things in our house are his, and only his. What an amazing thing it would be to have your own room, your own closet full of clothes, and your own toys for the first time in your life!

6. Balloons

Now, I think most kids love balloons. But I feel like Jonas has a special love for them. Maybe they were only used for decorations (instead of toys) at the orphanage, and he was never allowed to touch them? I'm not sure, but he's crazy about them, especially the punch balloons.

7. Eating

Whatever was served for breakfast, lunch, and dinner was what Jonas ate. It was usually bland, colorless, mushy, and he had to finish it all. There was strict enforcement of using full-sized silverware with the right hand only. Now he gets to decide what he eats, how much of it he eats, and how he eats it. He's exploring new textures, tastes, colors, and flavors every day. How strange and fun it must be to try a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for the first time, to squish mashed potatoes between your fingers, or have fresh vegetables and fruit made into a special juice just for you right before your eyes?

8. Choices

Jonas had a strict routine at the orphanage. He did what all the other kids did at the time it was supposed to be done. That included going to the bathroom, play time, getting dressed, eating snacks and meals, etc. Now his life is full of choices. He can run around in his diaper for awhile if he wants. He can choose to not eat all of the sandwich if he's not hungry. He can pick which book he wants read to him at night. He can choose to color or play with blocks or go down his slide or climb in a hole and get dirty. How amazing to be able to do what you want to do when you want to do it!


9. Birthdays

I'm so happy that we only missed one of Jonas's birthdays. If we hadn't been in Kyrgyzstan for his second birthday, I'm sure that the day would have passed by like any other day in the orphanage. Nobody would have said anything special to Jonas, made him a cake, given him a present, or celebrated his life in any way. Now, I know he's only two, and he won't remember it anyway, but I'm glad we'll be able to some day show him pictures of the fun time he had on his second birthday. It's sad when I think of the orphans, especially the older ones, who never have a day each year where their being born is acknowledged and celebrated.

10. Parents

As far as I know, nobody greeted Jonas by name when he woke up each day in the orphanage. When he cried, nobody necessarily comforted him. When he was sick, nobody held him. Nobody cooked him his favorite food, took him to the park, read him a story, or kissed him goodnight. Nobody ever even told him that they loved him! A lot of people say that Jonas is lucky to have us as parents. That's very kind, but we feel like we are the lucky ones to be parents to such a special, sweet little boy. We love you, Jonas. Thanks for teaching us to appreciate the simple pleasures in life!

Garden and Grandpa

The other night, Zack worked on the landscaping for our parkway strip. Jonas "helped" by throwing some of the weeds into the wheelbarrow. He got bored with that after about one minute and played with his chalk instead. So I put him in the wheelbarrow for a picture.

Here's Jonas answering the question, "How big is Jonas?" Answer: "So big!" This was before we got him a protective helmet that fits a lot better.

My dad was in California for work, so on his way back to Michigan yesterday, he scheduled a long layover in Denver so he could come visit us.






He's recently learned how to make balloon animals, so he made Jonas all sorts of fun creations. He's even working on perfecting the shamrock!

The weather was gorgeous, so we all went to the zoo for a few hours. Jonas enjoyed it more this time. He especially liked the elephants!

So, some good times lately with Grandpa and the garden. Zack starts his new job Monday, so it's our last weekend before "real life" starts for us all!