Our week with Logan

Wow, look at this!

Kai enjoying the paper more then the pressies

Wheels! My favorite!

Presents for Kai!

Presents for Caden !

Wow this is cool Mom!

Loren and Kai, Elriza and Caden

just chillin in the flowers

Caden chilling

My smiley boy and i playing ' you snooze you loose!' Check his top teeth!

Logs and i!

Gorgeous Deqlan

1, 2, 3...

waterbabies

Keaton Beaton

what does this do?

Oupa Chris and Logan

Logs getting her Christmas gift from Ouma Cheryl

Some of the lights around the estate, pity my camera doesnt really pick up the details, its truly stunning how much effort people have gone to!

Logan and Deqlan love walking around at night looking at the lights

The tree at Sandton city

Nanna and Deqlan under Noddys rainbow

Hooray for Noddy!

Logan enjoyed the Noddy train ride on the second floor- twice!

The sweetest Father Christmas i have ever met!

Hooray for Noddy!

The waterbabies with a very proud Grandpa and Nanna

What blessings...

Cant believe the time flew past so quickly ....Logan left with Granny Rene on Friday to go to the Vaal for a few days - we miss her terribly , you get so used to having her around the house and doing the certain Logan things she does...

It was a wonderful week and Deqlan and Logan really started getting used to each other and enjoyed watching Noddy together as well as swimming - Logan goes underwater and blows bubbles and Deqlan gurgles with laughter when she suddenly appears from under the water.

Logan had a fantastic time visiting Bev on Monday night and even got to go to her favorite restaurant , Spur! She also had a few French lessons and is loving the new words Bev has taught her! Tuesday was Meggie and Conrads turn and Logs was as good as gold and again had a fantastic time!

We took the kids to see Noddy at Sandton on Wednesday - Deqlan didnt have his full two hour nap so he was not happy to begin with - the additional noise and colours and amount of people just didnt agree with him and we left the area and decided to take Deqlan home. I tried to get Deqlan to pose with Father Christmas as we missed that last year as Deqlan had just had surgery to remove the residual tumor. But Deqlan was not having it - Father Christmas actually approached me to say he had no eye contact with him, he was looking everywhere else except at him? I then had to explain that our soldier is on the Autism spectrum and finds eye contact extremely difficult, especially with strangers, its just to intense for him. I told Father Christmas that he was very observant as most people dont pick up on these things - he really tried to go out of his way to get the photo with Deqlan, he was even willing to walk to where ever we were in the shop and just pop his head in the photo - but Deqlan was already in overload and it just didnt happen this day - i could say Father Christmas was so saddened by this, as he knew i would have loved a pic with him, and Nanna had filled him in on the details of Deqlans journey so far. If its meant to be ill find another Father Christmas on a quieter day when Deqlan is up to it - otherwise , i am not going to stress about it, the real meaning of Christmas is about the birth of Baby Jesus!

We had great fun shopping and spending time in the jacuzzi - Marks Dad and step mom also came over to visit the kids and wish the Merry Christmas before leaving to New Zealand tommorow to go and visit Marks sister Sandi, and her husband Mike. Shame,Marks Oupa, who is in a frail care home in Durban is not doing well, please say a special prayer for him, that he is not in any pain and that he knows how many love and admire him.

We had our first Christmas party yesterday with our little buddies Malakai and Caden at a lovely country venue in Muldersdrift - the boys where spoilt rotten ! Deqlan was not his happy self as he did not have his full sleep again....from now on, i am not going to put our soldier through an exciting event unless he has slept his full two hours, otherwise he doesnt enjoy it anyway! But at least there where moments of enjoyment, touching flowers and opening gifts. Thank you so much Darry, Loren and Kai for the stunning shape truck - Deqlan LOVES it and is playing with it again this morning, its really stunning thank you so much! Elriza, Wes and Caden, thank you for Deqlans awesome truck - you know cars are his favorite things - and for the stunning puzzle - as i said to you Elriza, i had it in my hands on Friday and something made me put it back?? Thanks so much for spoiling our soldier rotten - but most of all thank you for being wonderful friends , thank you for your support, understanding, love, patience and above all prayers - we are blessed to have you in our lives and we wish you all the most wonderful and magical first Christmas with your boys!

We miss you Logan and cant wait to see you in a few days time!

Hope you all had a great weekend , sending you lots of love and hugs and the spirit of Christmas to warm you

Mark Samm Deqlan and Logan

REJOICE IN THE LORD ALWAYS, AND AGAIN I SAY REJOICE