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Traditionally, age 7 isn’t exactly a blow-out kind of birthday year.
(Superhero 4’s birthday breakfast last year)
Unless, that is, it marks a significant step in an unraveling life story.
Like the year that tips the scales and moves the dial from more time spent as an orphan in this life to NOW, at age 7, the same amount of time spent as a proclaimed SON … one passionately and madly loved by TWO mamas in this big, wide world.
Superhero 4 made his grand entrance into our hearts and lives three and a half years ago at age 3.5. Although his file described him as “timid,” “quiet” and “shy,” that boy who was singing in hotel lobbies and dancing with his arms inside Ergos on Day 2 immediately proved himself to be anything BUT.
From the day we met him, this absolute sweetheart stole all five of our hearts with his charm, charisma and wit, and his contagious smile and vivacious personality, along with his tongue that has exactly zero filter, have kept our team laughing (and blushing) ever since.
Super-Spouse and I have always had a policy that, no matter how uncomfortable the question, we would always answer the queries of our superheroes honestly to the fullest of our ability at an age appropriate level, always using correct anatomical terms. (Super-Spouse, however, was conveniently not on the continent for most of the last 14 parenting years that have required this girl who grew up saying the word “booty” and “stinker” to explain to Superhero 4 which people in our house had a penis and which people in our house had a “gina,” which, over the years with two ESL superheroes in the house, has sometimes been confused with the word “China” and caused an entirely NEW set of awkward and confusing questions about sex and origins AND inappropriate questions to adults about whether THEY also have “ginas,” even if they were born in America.🤦♀️)
As Superhero 4, the most loquacious and curious of the bunch, began asking about babies, he wondered how they ate.
“Well, buddy, they can drink from a bottle or from a mommy,” I tried to, in the most simple terms, explain to him.
“But how they drink from a mommy?” he asked with furrowed brows since this was something he, as both the youngest and as a boy who came into our family at age 3, never saw up close.
“It’s called nursing,” I told him. “Babies can drink a mama’s milk.”
This was clearly not a good enough explanation for the boy who could not picture milk coming from a human being.
“But HOW?” he asked.
After a series of approximately 5.2 million more questions which required me to name nearly every aspect of female anatomy, Superhero 4 glanced to the side, thinking, and then stared very seriously straight at me.
“So you feed big brothers with THOSE,” he said, pointing in no subtle way with one finger wagging side to side to my chest. “But what about Superman and me?”
As I took a deep breath to begin to explain, Superhero interrupted my Lord-let-me-handle-this-delicately prayers with two impatient hands thrown in the air.
“So, what, you just build a secret nipple tunnel to China or something?” 🤷♂️
Yes. Welcome. The woman you just call “mama” is essentially the El Chapo of lactation. ⛏💪🥛
Although Superhero 4’s language is still catching up to his sharp and witty mind (he still attends speech both at school and privately to help him pronounce those English letters that are still so tricky for him in this life), he has just soared this year as a kindergartner in a half-in-person classroom.
After a little practice over winter break, he now knows all his kindergarten sight words, can read all his sight word books, is growing more comfortable sounding out words he doesn’t know and can count (with about 90 percent accuracy) to 70 and sometimes 100. Thanks to the help of some incredible therapists and teachers, he can now write all his capital and lowercase letters and his numbers 1 to 10, and his short-term memory (which we discovered from his pediatric neurologist this year is a huge struggle for him), with some exercise and practice, is growing stronger every day.
Just like his little body.
The observers who wrote Superhero 4’s medical file in China pointed out that, with his strength and with his diagnosis of cerebral palsy, they didn’t know if he would ever be able to independently walk.
It’s a good thing this little warrior is used to listening to NO ONE when it comes to limits in this life. Because this month, after three years of physical therapy and one orthopedic surgery, this unwavering little warrior did THIS.
Thanks to a big God and some incredible therapists, that boy uses canes in the classroom and a walker at recess and now spends most of his time inside our home attempting to walk at least partway through the halls. Last month, we met with the head of the cerebral palsy clinic at one of our favorite nearby children’s hospitals. He told us his goal would be for this strong superhero (who also learned this summer how to SWIM!) to walk exclusively with his hand crutches by the end of next year.
We have no doubt in our minds that, with this boy’s determination, that’s exactly what he will do.
In the meantime, Quarantine 2020 has been the biggest gift for this little boy who loves family and being the center of attention almost more than he loves dressing in matching outfits. With unlimited time with big brothers who normally abandon him for school, this guy has just THRIVED in our yard and our home this year.
As a lover of Legos and a board game fanatic, he’s spent much of his year sprawled out on our family room floor, begging any warm body available to play one more game of Monopoly or Uno or Exploding Kittens or Risk.
He’s developed a new love for cooking in the kitchen, and his present from me this year (a quesadilla maker) has been used independently by him exactly almost every day.
He loves school, his teachers and life, and this sweet and spicy superhero carpes the heck out of every diem God gives him on this earth.
It’s so appropriate that one of the sweetest, spiciest, sparkliest personalities we know would be born on New Year’s Eve.
Today, as we celebrate his 7th birthday and more days now in a HOME than an orphanage or institution, we just thank God for both this incredible gift … and for the mama we toast today who gave LIFE to this boy our family simply gets the privilege to love.
Happy birthday, Superhero 4! We adore you.
