Birthday!

   Evan celebrated his 8th birthday on the 8th of this month.  In China he would be 9 as they consider babies to be 1 when born.  He was very excited all week waiting for the day.  His 2 sisters had their birthdays earlier so he knew what to expect from the day.  His Wai Po (maternal grandma) came to visit for the occasion and Zach and Rosie came home from college.  It was a beautiful day and I felt blessed to share this occasion with him.  I originally thought he looked much younger than 8 and sort of wanted him to be so I could baby him more.  However, the more he catches up in his abilities, I can see him as an 8 year old boy.  I now have twins. lol
  
   We have been schooling for about 6 weeks now and are making progress.  He knows most of his letters and some of the sounds.  He is beginning to recognize some whole words like cat and dog.  He is now adding and subtracting and I expect him to progress rapidly now that he understands what he needs to be doing.  He is adding many words to his vocabulary.  My favorite is when he says "I know, I know...
His understanding of science/history is difficult because of the language but he observes experiments and colors maps, planets etc. 

   On the medical front, he is off all medication (hurrah).  He had dental surgery to take care of many years of bad oral hygiene.  He eats well and is gaining weight.  His muscles continue to get stronger as he plays soccer and helps with farm chores: rake, shovel, hauling hay and water. 

    He continues to have a wonderful disposition and is happy and helpful.