Ben Fact Sheet

I want to record some fun (and a few not so fun) facts about Ben right now.  I'm hoping this will be a way to track his progress over the next several months of him being home, and being part of a family vs. orphanage life.

Come on, let's find out all about me!

Fact 1:  Ben was born on July 19th 2008 in Goris, Armenia, he is 2 years and 3 months old.  He weighs about 20 lbs, and is wearing size 18 month on bottom and 18-24 month on top.  His feet are tiny.

Fact 2:  He is stinkin' cute.

Fact 3: He says "Momma," "Dadda," and "eat" very clearly.

Fact 4:  He knows the signs for "eat", and "more."   He already knew the sign for "eat," we have been working on "more" with him, it didn't take long.  He is a great student.

Fact 5:  He doesn't have too many orphanage behaviors, but teeth grinding, and growling at us when he is not happy with something are two we hope will go away quickly.  Oh, he also sucks on his fingers a lot, and likes to pull hair.  :)

Fact 6:  I think he is having some dysphagia (swallowing) issues, he coughs often with thin liquids, and has difficulty swallowing anything other than baby food consistency.  Definitely will get that evaluated when we get home.

Fact 7:  Reflux is a huge issue.  He spits up often, and has a hoarse voice.  We put him back on Zantac and this seems to be helping a bit.  He keeps sticking his fingers down his throat and making himself spit up, we're not sure if he is doing this because his throat hurts, it's a self stim thing, habit, or attention seeking. 

Fact 8:  He loves bath time.  It's a good thing, because, boy does he need one by the end of the day (see fact 7).

Fact 9:  He is a super sleeper.  He has been consistently sleeping for 12-13 hours straight every night, and naps for 2 hours after lunch.

Fact 10:  He is happy, playful, and engaging.  His favorite toys right now are soft activity books and his soft photo albums.  He loves to talk about who everyone is, and kisses them each in turn.  Also, every time he sees himself in a mirror, he blows himself a kiss.  No self esteem issues here!

Fact 11:  He is walking more and more, taking 5-6 steps independently, and walks quite a ways while hanging on to one of our fingers.

Fact 12:  He loves music, especially playing the piano, I see lessons in his future.

Fact 13:  He is a flirt!  He waves and smiles at all the pretty girls.  Jen, he and Leah will make quite the successful greeting duo.

Fact 14:  We think, he is a healthy, smart, high functioning child with a very bright future. 

Fact 15:  He certainly has a way of keeping us very, very busy!  Thank goodness for fact 9.

Signed, 

Ben's Management Team