Monday Blog--Meet JJ

So, I had a little brain freeze--I couldn't remember which kids I had written about in my Monday blogs. I had to go back through and look, but even then, I wasn't sure I caught them all. So, sorry if I RE-introduce a kid to you! You, know, there are quite a few to go around!

This week, I wanted to introduce you to JJ. JJ is John and Stacy's oldest biological son. His name is Johnbull Jr., hence the JJ.

JJ is an adorable kid. For a long time, he was missing his two front teeth. They got knocked out at the Freedom Center--I don't remember how--a football to the face or a bad fall. In any case, for a long time, he didn't have his top two teeth. Now, they are growing in and are these adorably large teeth!

JJ has some crazy hair. I guess he used to have curly hair like his brother Caleb, but after a haircut, his hair grew back straight and stiff and multi-colored. One of our visitors said he looked like he just came in from surfing. And I guess he does. . .his wild hair, darker skin, hawaiian shirt wardrobe.

JJ tends to be pretty shy until he knows you well. Sometimes, even if you look at him in a funny way, he'll try to hide. He doesn't really like being the center of attention for much of anything, except for dancing! Now, put that kid on a dance floor and he is a completely different child. His arms go this way and his body goes that way. He twirls, he points, he shrugs, he winks. . .it's just plain awesome. He has won his fair share of dance competitions here at the Freedom Center--mostly because his dancing is just so interestingly entertaining! Now, if we can just get his dancefloor confidence in the classroom, we'd be set.

JJ has a cry that will scare you! I've come running a couple of times when JJ has started to cry thinking that someone was severely injured or something terrible had happened. Usually, it had something to do with candy (he LOVES his candy).

While Caleb and Justice tend to be more touchy, JJ is definitely not a touch kid. He kind of avoids touch for the most part. He has to be coerced into hugging sometimes (Candy, JJ? Give me a hug first! :) ). But, there are times, when he'll enjoy a little lap sitting and snuggling.

JJ is an extremely bright boy, but even more extremely SLOW at completing his writing. Writing is just NOT HIS THING. It takes him FOREVER to copy something down into his notebook. He's improving, but it definitely takes a lot of work to get him motivated to write!

I LOVE LOVE LOVE when JJ runs. That boy tries so hard to keep up with the other kids when they run, but you know African kids--they can really haul! JJ is SO CUTE when he runs! His legs are spinning, but his upper body remains still. His arms just kinda stay straight at his side and he just moves his torso from side to side. It's just so cute!

Overall, JJ is a very sweet, happy little boy. He is loves to play, mostly with his buddies Miracle and Micheal. He enjoys time by himself as well, entertaining himself with puzzles, or any number of other things. It's a joy to work with such a sweet kid!

Here's a picture of JJ, Caleb, and Miracle playing together at school. JJ's the one with the hair like it was described above!