What we know....Eli

We've had Eli 4 days and we are learning more everyday that clues us into who Eli is....the communication barrier is so hard because he loves to talk and is so desperate to communicate but that will come in time. Xialong or Eli has given us glimpses into his heart....he is compliant (good to have one of those)...incredibly sweet and tender hearted, eager to please, and a very loving brother. He has taken Zoe on as if she has been his little sister forever and they have sweet bond. We gave him some of his own spending money and he bought a remote control helicopter....the first thing he has ever purchased on his own. After only a couple of tries to fly it...Zoe wanted a turn. It is very fragile but instead of telling her no, he took Zoe into his arms and helped her to fly the helicopter....it was a tender moment! Zoe also got a light up wand yesterday that we didn't have batteries for and as we want out today, the first thing Eli picked up was batteries for her wand.

Eli is also very mechanical...he can put Legos together in record time and he loves to fix things....it will be cool to see how God uses his tender heart and his mechanical ability in the future.

Eli will be 14 in January but probably is closer to a 12 year old maturity wise...being institutionalized for 13 years certainly takes its toll! Bailey was a bit frustrated that Eli wasn't as mature as he'd hoped but we know that will come in time...since I missed the first 13 years of his life...I'm ok with it taking him a little longer to grow up and I love that he still wants to be a boy...not a teenager! Bailey is also extremely mature for 14 so it's tough to gage how he should act....regardless...we are loving Eli and excited to get to know him more and more as the days unfold!

He was all smiles on gotcha day and has adapted extremely well to family life...he calls us all by name..Tracey and I are mother and father and he calls Zoe Mei Mei which means little sister....that could be a bit confusing for Mei when we get home:)

More to come later....


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