Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Has it really been over a year now since we first met Alek (Vladik back then) in Ramenskoe last November?! Alan and I were looking at pictures, actually we are always looking at photos and video from all our trips to Russia with Alek- he loves them! It seems a lifetime ago and yet we still have a lifetime to go...

There have been many new developments with Alek that have kept me busy and unfortunately without time to blog! He started with the PLACE program here in South Florida for developmentally delayed kiddos back in October but had a very rough adjustment there. They also informed us that they had placed him in the wrong district so we had an option to move him to another school, north of us in Lighthouse Point, called Norcrest. We knew the change would also be difficult for him, but he was behaving so poorly that we felt the move may be the best for him because the class size at Norcrest was smaller (only 8 kids). His teachers there, Mr Navoy and Ms Cody were very caring and understanding, and we felt it was a good fit. He was doing better at home, but we were really surprised at how how much he had regressed when we moved him from Children's Castle. He started hitting more and biting again. He also regressed with his potty training- they kept him in pull-ups at Norcrest, which I wasn't pleased about, but I knew it was a big adjustment for him so maybe he just needed some more time to be comfortable there like he was at the Castle.

Unfortunately, they still weren't able to offer an aftercare program so I've still needed to leave work around 1pm to pick him up. I think the afternoon time together has been good for our bonding, but difficult of course to still only be able to work half-days. He has still been having issues with impulsivity and hyperactivity, and it became a problem at Norcrest so they have recommended a different program, which is where we are trying to decide right now. It has been a bumpy road, but we are hoping 2010 will bring more success and progress for Alek. He is still doing well with his language development, and we have agreement from all that he is a smart kid, picks things up quickly, has a good memory, but we need to find a solution to the other issues so we can all live a little more peacefully.

I am posting some photos from the past months. Of course there was dressing up as a fireman for Halloween, and even a party to go to, which was LOADS of fun. We had a great time up in PA for Thanksgiving, even though Daddy couldn't join us because of work. It was so nice to enjoy the cold fall weather, and fun in the park with Uncle B. We even had a suceessful trip to the mall on Black Friday to meet Santa! Alek did great and it presented ideal Kodak moments of which Nana Gaye and Aunt Valerie and Aunt Danielle took full advantage!

We were also able to welcome Nana B to Florida for a week this month. It was so nice to see her and great to have family around in preparation for Christmas. It even gave Mommy and Daddy a chance to go out (twice!) one weekend to a Christmas party at Aunt Elektra's on Friday and then a long overdue dinner out with friends here, Michele, Greg, Briggitte and Greg J on Saturday.

So Christmas has come and gone. We did make it to (most of) mass on Christmas Eve at St. Martin's Episcopal. They had a family service with lots of music and even costumes for a family production. We had been explaining to Alek about Santa bringing toys on Christmas Eve, but we'll probably never know how much he understood of the whole event! He seemed MUCH more comfortable opening presents on Christmas than he was for his birthday last September, and I am posting also some photos of the fun toys he received from all, including Santa of course!

This New Years Eve into 2010 is a long way from ringing in 2009 from Vegas last year with Dante and Paulina, as we will likely be toasting champagne with Ryan Seacrest tonight from our living room! We are both looking forward to a year of more firsts and fun times with Alek, as well as hopefully a little more opportunity to continue (and introduce Alek to) our love of travel...! Happy New Year to all, with love from the Dunn's.