Six months ago (tomorrow) I picked up Henry

Six months ago today I was excitedly getting ready to get up the next day and finally pick up my new son at the orphanage. I was exhausted and not feeling well after traveling to Danang to attend Loc and Hoi's wedding. Luckily they had decided to honeymooon in Saigon and were anxious to travel with my mother and me to pick him up.

After a long van ride from Saigon to the orphanage in Binh Duong we sat in a meeting room with a large portrait of Ho Chi Minh. I was given a copy of my long awaited "third letter" from the DIA granting me final approval. Then we were ushered to the second floor and around a corner and there I saw Henry whipping around in a baby walker like a little spider. It was so incredible to see him in real life after having looked for months at photo updates of him.

Now almost six months later I can't imagine my life without him. He understands what I say to him now, even though he doesn't completely verbalize himself. I can tell him "Say Daddy" and he will say "Da-da". Lately he seems to really want me to read books to him. He will grab book after book with one hand and grab my hand with his other hand and put the book into my hand and then crawl up into my lap. Then before I've even finished the book (which tend to be fairly short board books) he is up and racing for another one. Then instead of waiting for me to read he will point at the pictures and babble himself as if he is telling me the story.

I have the six month report delivered to me by our social worker Susan. It is very positive--she took notes on lots of things that happened while she was at the house last Saturday and wrote them down. That report and some photos will be sent off to Vietnam for my first update.
And we do watch a little television--here he is in his couch potato recliner enjoying a drink while he watches our favorite show--Beverly Hillbillies. I guess soon he will develop his own favorite shows and that will be what we watch.