Batman Socks and Bug Spray

If you stop by the Henderson house any given morning at seven you will find this little guy searching high and low for his Batman socks. I should have known the first week between the broken arm and a pulled tooth that this little man was going to be something else. You see while we were in Ethiopia David and I gave him a pair of Batman socks that were fine for him to wear with jeans (they come up to almost his knees and have a huge Batman on them) but maybe not so appropriate to wear everyday to school with shorts. He has wanted to wear them every and I mean every day since our return. I did let him wear them several days with jeans to school but I have drawn the line on allowing him to wear them with shorts. So each day we search......and each day we seem to not be able to find these prized Batman socks. I have a feeling in a few short weeks when the weather is cooler and jeans are a must everyday that not only will that one pair of Batman socks be found but many new pairs of Batman socks will be in Garrett's sock drawer.

Garrett seems to keep our family laughing from the time we get up to the time we go to bed at night. It starts each day with these silly socks and usually ends with him hiding from me when it is time for him to be tucked in. In the past few weeks he has really made all seven of us laugh. Here are a few of the funny things that Garrett has done in the past few days:

He loves popcorn and he was in our basement kitchen area when David went downstairs and he had a coffee filter in the microwave. He was trying to push the buttons on the microwave and David ask what he was doing. He quickly said, "Popcorn!" You see he watches us put some paper in the microwave and then all of a sudden popcorn appears. He was just making his own snack. David quickly told him that the paper that we put in the microwave is a certain bag that makes popcorn.

The next day for after school snack I made popcorn for the kids and after they had finished the popcorn I saw Garrett up on the counter playing with the microwave. I went over to get him down and noticed the empty popcorn bag was back in the microwave. I ask him what he was doing and he said, "More popcorn, Daddy said this paper." David had just explained that only a certain kind of paper bag would make popcorn and he knew that a few minutes earlier I had used that to make popcorn and so he thought it would work again.

Bath time is a hoot with this little guy. He fills our garden tub almost to the top and he swims and I mean swims....... After Garrett takes a bath the entire bathroom is wet yet I just can't stop him because up until a few weeks ago he had never had a bath. You should see him as he puts his head under and kicks his feet and moves his arms just as if he is in an olympic size pool.

Garrett loves hot tea from his days in Ethiopia and so daily he has several cups of tea. He now knows how to make his own tea and so the other day I went into the kitchen to find him pouring salt into his tea. I tried to explain that what he was using was salt not sugar and he could not understand what I was talking about. Only then did I realize that he couldn't reach the sugar. He kept saying, "Same as sugar, seriously." When I let him taste the difference he still grinned at me and said, "Yes, the same!" However he quickly poured our his salty tea and made some with sugar.

Seriously is his new favorite word and we know that he picked that up from his sister Megan. Megan loves to say, "Seriously? " after everything we say and so now Garrett uses it. It cracks us up that he will be brushing his teeth and drop a little toothpaste, he drops a toy, he is playing a video game, or we call him in for dinner.......all we hear is "Seriously!" very loud and with the cutest Ethiopian accent.

Night before last I was dusting the family room and took a break to help Lindsay with something. When I returned I saw Garrett with the Pledge furniture polish spraying his body. He said, "No bugs!" as I got closer to him. No bugs alright but our family room floor and Garrett's entire body was slick!

He is such a precious little guy! Last night as I cuddled with him he was crying because his stomach was not feeling well due to some medication he is taking. It was bedtime and I took him in my room and just held him as he cried. He wrapped his little arms around my neck and as he cried, I cried. I remembered back to the sleepless nights in that same spot where I begged God to bring him home. Nights that I wondered if he was lonely, scared or being mistreated. Nights where I just longed to hold him tight and tell him that even in the hard times in life that I will always be his mommy and that I loved him deeply. I remember one particular night where I cried thinking of Garrett not feeling well, I had talked to Muluken our social worker that day and he had shared with me that Garrett was having tooth pain and was on some medication. I remember crying out to God to put his hands around Garrett and comfort his pain in my absence. Last night it was such a sweet time as my tears turned into a huge smile- This little guy brings his mom such sweet joy and all I can do is say- Thank you Father for hearing my prayers and allowing me to be the one to get to hold him as he cries and for me being allowed the joy of laughing at the funny things he does each day. In the good times and painful times this journey is simply amazing and my heart is so thankful!