I've been following your posts and have found myself in nearly the same situation a few years back. This news brought tears to my eyes this Christmas morning What a great Christmas gift for you and your family!
I'm enjoying DS19 who is home for 12 days on leave. While he isn't maturing as fast as I'd like the past 18 months have made a huge difference (or the fact that we are 2500 miles from each other might have something to do with it too).
Best of wishes for you and your son. I hope that he continues to move closer in your relationship. By all accounts, it sure seems that he is warming up