By the end of yesterday we felt as if we had really gained some ground in regards to bonding, communication and, for now, managing Andrew's tantrums. Then at about 12:30 last night, he began his nightly routine of waking up and getting out of his bed. We repeated everything that had worked before, but with no success.
In one last attempt, we laid him in his bed, told him it was time to sleep and shut the door. We heard him scream, get out of bed, pound the floor and then quiet. Success?!? Before we had a chance to exhale there was another scream and a crack. We ran and opened the door to see Andrew standing in shock with tiny glass shards in his hair. We looked at the back of the double paned, frosted glass door to see the inside pane shattered. Apparently pounding his fist into the floor was not dramatic enough for him, so he decided to use his head on the back of the door.
Andrew was not hurt in any way. He immediately realized what he had done and jumped into bed and lay still. We did not have to say a word.
This morning we woke up with knots in our stomachs. How much would this cost? Would anyone call the authorities on us? Are we screwing up our son?
We contacted our agencies in Bulgaria and the States; everything has been handled and tomorrow we will find out the cost of the damage. Our agency here in Bulgaria, as well as the landlord have told us not to worry and have been very supportive. They were all just happy Andrew was not hurt.
When we woke up, it was obvious that Andrew still carried some guilt. We reassured him that we love him and continued on with the day. We've read enough not to be surprised by this behavior, so we are not disappointed in any way. We love him as our own because he is our own. He is an amazing little boy and we are so blessed to have found him! He really is a joy to us and we can't wait to see him thrive even more at home. We are so proud of him and how well he has handled all the change.
The thought occurred to Aaron, "the father bears the offense of the rebellious son". What a picture of who our heavenly Father is and what He has done!! Suddenly the cost of the door just seemed so small and we were at peace.
This morning we walked back over to the US Embassy and picked up Andrew's passport and visa. We are done!!!
On the way back through the park we decided to go a longer way home to the apartment. We turned left and walked towards a woman and her son. She looked right at us and suddenly said, "Hello" in English. We were surprised and said, "Hello" back. She then pointed to Andrew and said, "We know him."
We looked at her in shock as she proceeded to explain that her husband and she had adopted the boy with her from the same orphanage. She recognized Andrew because he was out in the hallway nearly every time they went to visit their son. Next thing you know the two boys were playing and laughing as we talked. It was cold today so she invited us to head to an indoor playground with the two of them.
We then talked for another hour about our boys, the orphanage, good and bad issues we were dealing with. It was so amazing to have met up with her and encouraging to the both of us. She's actually from Bulgaria and her husband is from the UK and they are living here. He was working when we met so we arranged to have dinner together at a restaurant nearby tomorrow night. We are really looking forward to it!
Tomorrow will consist of packing up everything and probably a trip to the park before dinner out.
What a small world!!
ReplyDelete