Mei Tai

One of my must haves for H&G was a Mei-Tai. Thankfully I have a very talented and willing mother who "whipped" one up for me. It was a bigger project than she thought but when all was said and done, it looked and worked great!!!

And H&G and I both LOVE it!

She snuggles right in, starts singing, and usually falls right to sleep.


And if she happens to not be too tired then she just sits and sings and claps as I go about the day.


It's been so great for bonding with her and I can tell that she loves being tucked in close as much as I love having her tucked in close too.

And it must look fun to HomeAudio and WeeklyAd because both of them have copied in their own way.

Just Perfect

Perfect Little Hands~


Perfect Ear~


Perfect Smile~


With A Perfect Dimple~


Perfect Eye~


Perfect Day!

A Few Favorites

These are a few of H&G's favorite things ~

Blog Issues

Not sure if it's blog issues or computer issues but please bear with me (is that the right "bear"? It can't be "bare" can it?).

I know it's kind of annoying how often backgrounds and photos and everything else is changing. I'm trying to figure out what in the world is slowing down my browser.

I don't do well with SLOWNESS. (Is that a word?)

Apparently I don't do well with grammar either.

It's a Girl

It was a little more than 8 years ago when I called my sister to tell her my good news. I was having a GIRL! After having HomeAudio, and knowing that it was very very likely that the child I was carrying would be my last, I was way way way beyond thrilled to be having a girl! I could never explain what an answer to prayer she was and how I had a very keen sense that the Lord answered this particular prayer as a gift for just me. Sure, she is a gift to so many, but I just know that the Lord gave me the desire of my heart as a special gift between He and I. It was a very significant time in my personal relationship with Him.

But back to my sister -

So I told her, "It's a girl!!!!" and she replied, "now you have the perfect family."

And here we are, eight years later....perfect, no! But we are a family! And each of us is hand-picked by God to experience life together. And we try to take that very seriously.

And we are each dearly loved.


(even obnoxious big brother!)

Happy Birthday to WeeklyAd!

Unfortunately

~I have no idea how I did it but somehow I hurt my right arm bicep. It's so sore and unfortunately this has not been the week to rest it with hopes of it healing.

~It's been a long, exhausting week and unfortunately I don't see an end to the chaos until after school starts.

~We are headed to a concert tonight to see Go Fish. I LOVE the Go Fish guys and am very excited to take the kids but unfortunately, HomeAudio has informed me that I am absolutely not allowed to dance within 20 feet of him.

~Our first home visit is tomorrow. Unfortunately, I'm not exactly what it will consist of so we have been working hard to clean out every nook and cranny we can. Of course we had a home study done 2 years ago and the social worker basically never left the table but this is for foster care and I don't know if it's different or not. Oh well, it's always nice to have closets and cupboards cleaned out.

~Gotta run! WeeklyAd is playing happily with Polly Pockets and just filled The Day Spa which left water all over my wood dining room table. Unfortunately!

Strange Obsessions

What do...

Snuggies
Topsy Turvy
Ab Roller
Bender Ball
Aqua Globe
Smooth Away
Chia Pet
Total Pillow

all have in common?

Well, first of all, they are As Seen On TV products. I'm sure some of those, Topsy Turvy and the infamous Snuggie, stand out more than others. But, yes, they are from TV.

They also are contacts in my 14 year old niece's cell phone. Seriously! As we were going through her friends and contacts list, looking for people to invite to her birthday party, we were amused and simultaneously startled to find infomercial after infomercial product's phone number.

What in the world does she do? Watch TV, decide, "oh I really want a Smooth Away", grab her cell phone, and add it to her contacts list? I can see doing that for one stand out product, or maybe two, but seriously friends, she had more than a dozen! She is such a weirdo character!

But hey, if I decide I need a Chia Pet this Christmas, forget Google, I know where to find the number! Her hidden obsession may come in handy some day.

In fact, I wonder if she has the number for the Shake Weight?

A Must See....

The Zoo

Answering the Call

Being a young, cool Aunt definitely has it's downsides.

Like when you get your kids all tucked in bed.

Slip into your comfy pajamas.

Pour a steaming cup of coffee

with long awaited coconut creamer.

Sit down on the couch with your husband

hoping to visit for a couple minutes

before you head to bed early for some

quiet reading and good sleep.

And then....

the phone rings.

And it's your lovely, adventurous nieces

who need a chaperone*

for a movie that starts in 5 minutes

at a theater that is 15 minutes away.

And since I desperately want to be an Aunt

that they can call

and count on,

so I dump my coffee

get re-dressed

and leave my house

at 10:10 at night

to see a movie

that is just so-so.

But the bottom line is

they called.

And that's the relationship

I hope to have with them.


*so apparently the theater does not let anyone under 16 in to see movies after 9:00pm. Most of the group was 16 but one of my nieces and her friend are 14. And since you may be wondering, the movie we saw was Step Up 3D. The first one was better!

Drama with a capital D

It was a

VERY

long day!

Full of much outside drama.

Lots of e-mails.

Lots of phone calls.

A mouse stuck in a hole -

I refused to rescue him and made

a little boy (JJ's brother)

very sad.

5 kids plus me in a booth at McDonalds

eating ice cream.

A bi-polar/pschizophrenic
(is that how you spell it?)

at McDonalds who cried real tears

at the mention of Chrisopher Reeves death.

He mentioned it, not me.

Very very sweet man.

The kids were scared of him though.

But in the midst of all the drama

I was told that I was the best mom ever.

The baby (JJ's sister) laughed uncontrollably

as I swung her in the air.

JJ gave sweet hugs and made me laugh.

I baked cookies with WeeklyAd.

I made fun of Caillou (I HATE that show)

and made the sad mouse-lover laugh.

And my husband loves me.

Goodnight.

The Gift of Love

WeeklyAd has never been a cuddler. Since the moment she came home from the hospital, she has loved her own bed, her own things, and her own space. She deeply values alone time and after spending time interracting with others, she melts down completely until she can regroup quietly by herself.

Having such an introverted, sensitive child who may also have some mild sensory issues has been a learning and growing experience for Management and I. We have to walk the line of being sensitive to WeeklyAd's needs and desire while also expressing our love for her and building a sense of security for her in our family.

It's been such a gift to see WeeklyAd love H&G with such a force that she can hardly control herself. She says all of the common phrases "I just want to smother her with kisses" and "she's just so cute I could eat her" and "I just want to squeeze her head off" (well, maybe that one is not so common and should be grounds for therapy! ;) WeeklyAd is constantly squeezing, tickling, hugging, and carrying H&G along with rubbing her head and laughing at just about everything she does. It has been such a joy to watch!


And what a gift for WeeklyAd to experience such overwhelming love! And it is a gift for us too. Management and I have both tried to explain to WeeklyAd that the feelings she has for H&G are the same feelings that we have for her. We love squeezing, tickling, hugging, and carrying her and "want to squeeze her head off" too. It's been a great point of comparison for her and I do believe that WeeklyAd has opened up and tolerated our hugs and kisses just a teeny bit more than before.

I hope she gets more and more used to it because after 8 years we just continue to love her more and more!

I.....

I am.....ready to go for a walk
I want.....to clean out some cupboards
I have.....heartburn from Butter Pecan coffee creamer
I wish.....I had coconut creamer
I hate.....cancer!
I miss......H&G when she isn't here
I fear......scary images in horror movies
I feel.....a mixture of emotions
I hear......kids playing in the backyard
I smell....floor cleaner
I search.....for fun things to do with the kids
I wonder.....how things will work out
I regret......not speaking my mind to my neighbor
I love.......easily
I ache......for my friends
I care.........about my neighbors
I always.....have a book with me
I am not....ready for school to start
I believe......in miracles!
I dance......(not well) at weddings
I sing....to the Lord
I cry.....at baptisms
I don't always.....use my time wisely
I fight.....with those I think are wrong
I write...on a gazillion pieces of scrap paper
I never.......turn down Buffalo Wild Wings
I listen......for God to speak
I need......to listen more
I am happy.....yes, I am

Ignorance is Bliss

We had a really really really great time on our trip! We went along with two other families and Management's new boss. The men worked from 8:30-12:30 each day and then had the rest of the day free and since we were all together in little cabins right on the beach, we all spent most of our free time together looking over the bluff or playing down on the beach. What a great team to be a part of!

We also met privately, as a couple, with Management's new boss and had a great discussion regarding the new position, what that looks like for Management and also what it looks like for our family. B, the new boss, also said that while he didn't want to meddle, he wanted us to know that he was here for us and was willing to mentor/counsel or whatever else we needed if we ever felt like reaching out to him. Since he and his wife have pretty much lived the same life we have with lots and lots of travel and raising kids, I told him right away that we would love to be mentored by he and his wife. I'm very excited about that and hope that we can meet sooner rather than later. Travel really does have it's ups and downs and it will be nice to talk to someone who's been through it and has wisdom to share.

On the adoption front - we did f.i.n.a.l.l.y hear from our case worker! Woohoo! And, if you can believe it - which of course you can because we serve an awesome and amazing and living and working God - before I even asked, she said that SHE would like to have everything done in the next 30 days!! She works from home, has kids headed to school, and would like to have this finished before school starts. Music to my ears! As of right now, our first home visit is scheduled for Aug. 20th and then there needs to be one additional home visit and then I believe we are all set. Of course I really don't know what "all set" means though. It could mean everything then goes to the state capital for approval? It could mean that we are licensed through the agency? I don't know.

I never really was very good at researching things. While my friend Gracee will pour over books, scour the internet, and call a bazillion people in an attempt to find every single detail she can about a topic she is interested in, I tend to be the type of person that lives in utter ignorance and tends to just take one step at a time. It really annoys people! I guess it's just how I cope. I can't handle all of the facts and quite honestly, since I'm such a talker and feel the overwhelming need to share almost every ounce of knowledge I have with anyone who will ask, it's better for me not to know the details. It's much faster (and painless) to tell people "I don't know" or "I think...." then it is to spill out every detail I've learned through research. Seriously, I never know when to quit...so I try not to start.

But Gracee, you feel free to go ahead and do some research for me! :) What in the world happens after 30 days when both home visits are done?

She loves a challenge!

Update

Happy 40th Anniversary to my parents!

40 years! Amazing!

We are leaving in the morning for a work/vacation trip to the west side of the state. We will be joining 3 other families that work with Management and though the men will work from about 8:30-12:30, the rest of the time will be for recreating and interacting as families.

Before we go, I wanted to give a little adoption update~

Management and I finished all of our paperwork and 19 hrs. of training required for foster care licensing. I believe that the next step is for a case worker to contact us, review our paperwork with us, and come for a home visit. Depending on how quickly the case worker works on our case, they say it could take up to 90 days. We are praying for no more than 30. :)

I was able to take H&G to her 9 month check-up on Friday. As you know, a lot happens for babies in the first 9 months of life! It's been hard for me to think about all of the things that we have missed (first time rolling over, first time sitting up, first time pulling to stand, first word, first time eating cereal, first pictures, etc.). I know that we are still coming into her life very very early which is such a gift, but naturally we think about all that we wish we could have shared with her. It really hit me extra hard when I was trying to fill out the paperwork at the dr.'s office. There were so many things about H&G that I don't know!! But there is still so much ahead too! And I am thankful that the foster mom is including me in these new moments and milestones! She is great at sending pictures (first piece of toast :)) and keeping us updated and allowing us so much time with her!

HomeAudio and WeeklyAd continue to love on her like crazy! The novelty definitely has not worn off for those two! The other day WeeklyAd said "I'm just going to be the luckiest girl in the world to have the cutest little sister in the whole world." We remind them daily that she may not be able to join our family but WeeklyAd says she knows it will and they both pray nightly that God to let us keep her. It's so hard cuz we don't want to miss out on this time with her but we are also super attached and don't want to have to say good-bye. Please be praying for wisdom on how to parent our kids through this process.

I guess that brings me to prayer requests ~
~pray for H&G as she continues to go back and forth between our home and her current home.
~pray for wisdom for us and the foster parents as we continue to work together.
~pray that the case worker calls us this week.
~pray that we can get a home visit the following week on Monday or Friday.
~pray for the many people that have their hands in the pot to all work together for H&G's best interest - which of course I believe is living with us. :)
~pray for our trip this week.

But ultimately pray for God's perfect timing! We've already seen Him say No to one of our prayer requests only to find out that it truly was best that the answer was No. We have no idea what we are doing here!!! But God knows!!! And His timing is perfect!

Thanks friends!!!