Would you believe that this handsome young man turned 18 today?! This past December marked 9 years since Lewis joined our family as a tiny little 8-year-old guy. He jumped right into life here with both feet and felt as though he’d always been here. He has learned and grown so much since then, and we are so proud of him.

This has been a challenging year for Lewis in a lot of ways. He has outgrown some of the things that he enjoyed when he was younger but has struggled a bit to find new things to do with his time. I suppose this happens to a lot of us as we grow up! We are beginning to explore more adult activities and ways for him to engage with the community. He spent a day volunteering at my mom’s thrift store over the summer and was very helpful there, so we may be doing more of that once we finish our school year. Although Lewis is 18, we will continue to officially homeschool him for two more years, in keeping with his grade at public school when he came home during the pandemic, before we graduate him.

(Baby Lewey. In China about 3 years before we met him.)

He has made steady progress in reading and math, but spoken language continues to be a bit of a mystery to him. He has gotten great at using his communication device (fondly known as his talker!) to bridge that gap, and he continues to sparkle and meet new goals at his weekly speech therapy sessions. As always, he loves to connect with others, and he finds ways to make himself understood and make friends everywhere he goes. He especially loves to use his talker and his mad art skills to make cards and drawings for those he cares about.

And speaking of mad art skills… look at this beautiful work of art from a paint day with my sister Chelsea a few weeks ago!

Lewis had lost interest in crocheting for a little while but has recently picked it up again. He whipped up this light saber for Milo in less than an hour a couple weeks ago, so he’s definitely still got it!

Lewis loves being outdoors, and he is up for anything. When Trevor plans a long hike on a rainy day and only a handful of kids are crazy enough to join him, Lewis is always among them! He loves playing games and sports of all kinds and has dance moves that he definitely did not get from me.

Lewis Christian, you are a treasure! I am thankful for your smile and your helpful spirit and your joie de vivre. Happy birthday, and wǒ ài nǐ!