When I went private, I knew it was going to be temporary. I knew it was what I had to do if I didn't want to quit blogging altogether for 8+ months. How in the world would I blog about only 2 of my children?
What I didn't realize was how much it would teach me about myself.
I learned that I like an audience. I now knew exactly who was reading and there weren't very many. With almost no comments and no feedback, it was hard to write and share my excitement over our family. I wanted to share our special children with others!
I also learned that I love having a digital scrapbook/journal of our lives. I did a lot of reading through old posts during the last few months. And I loved seeing, feeling, and reading the emotions throughout the years. I cried and I laughed and I smiled as I remembered things I would have otherwise forgotten. There are pictures and stories and emotion laced through everything. I could feel the pain of infertility and the excitement of the adoption possibilities. I could feel the excitement and nervousness through our adoptions. I could remember those sweet precious moments when we first became parents in such an exciting and crazy way. I'm so glad I have this blog to remember all of those things for me.
It's amazing how much we can learn from our past selves. You forget about mistakes you've made or successes you've had. Reading through my blog has reminded me of the importance of reflecting on our past. So that we can more carefully enjoy our future.
I've grown so much in the last few years. My heart has changed abundantly. My home, my family, and my life are vastly different. And another 5 years from now and I'm sure things will have continued to change faster than I ever thought possible.
So thanks for enjoying this journey of ours. Thanks for reading and sharing in my excitement as my family has grown and flourished. I love this little space of mine where I can put my heart on a screen and share it with whoever cares to read.
Sunday, June 29, 2014
Friday, June 27, 2014
Quick Takes (65)
--- 1 ---
I worked on hair this week. We did a 4th of July style for each girl. The girls called it "boom boom hair" since they're crazy excited to see fireworks!
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| Anna |
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| Anna |
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| Mya |
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| Mya |
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| Agnes |
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| Agnes |
--- 2 ---
My kids go through what I call my "stroller training program". With four young kids, they HAVE to know how to hold on to the stroller/cart. It works! They're all safe in the parking lot and I don't have to chase anyone at the grocery store!
--- 3 ---
Today was our local Relay For Life. Agnes' preschool teacher (who will be Agnes and Anna's prechool teacher in the fall) is a cancer survivor. Since her own kids couldn't be with her this year, we surprised her with her past, present, and future preschool "kids". They walked a few laps with her and enjoyed hanging out with their beloved Mrs. G.
One thing I dislike about having four kids under four.
Clipping nails.
They grow like crazy. And if I clip one, I have to clip 80. Fingers and toes. It's summer, which means hours and hours outside. There's dirt and food and gross nastiness all in those nails of theirs.
And just when I've gotten all 80 clipped? Someone scratches me and I start all over again!
We visited our local "Safety Town" today. It's a little "road" set up for kids to bike around complete with road signs and lanes. It's super cute and very fun. And it happens to be by a fire station. Anthony was in heaven.
We have a zoo pass to our local zoo. We've certainly made the most of it! The kid have a blast!
My parents took Mya to get her 2 year picture taken, as they've done for Anna and Anthony. They turned out beautiful! She's such a beautiful little girl! They also got her the Belle dress. She loves it and is excited to dress up like her sisters always do!
For more Quick Takes, visit Conversion Diary!
Wednesday, June 25, 2014
Crazy
When people find out that we have adopted four kids in three years, their first comment is, "Are you crazy?
Then they hear we have two 3 year olds and two 2 year olds and they know we are.
Maybe we're a little crazy.
But the truth is, I wouldn't have it any other way.
When we got married, we intended to have many kids close in age. We wanted a big family and we wanted it quickly. When that didn't happen, we were devastated. I was upset that my hope and dreams for a big family with kids close in age were dashed. I grew up with three sisters and we were all close in age. Jeremy's family was similar. We loved it growing up and wanted that for our family.
I couldn't be happier now with four kids with 21 months.
Are we crazy?
Yes.
But...
The kids always have a playmate. Who is interested in the same things as them. It's like having two sets of twins. They're all best friends. When one is gone, they don't know how to act.
They share clothes, shoes, toys, blankets, dress-up outfits and basically everything.
They play great together. Sure, they fight like all siblings do. But mostly, they are just happy to play together.
They'll grow up in the same class, always having each other's backs. Always going through challenging moments together. Always having a sister or brother to lean on.
The list could go on.
We often get asked, "why did you decide to adopt so soon after Anna (or Anthony)?" Let me tell you, three years of childlessness, when that's all you desire in the whole world, feels like an eternity. Adoption waits are often long and are always hard. We knew after Anna that we wanted to get going as quickly as possible in case our wait was long. God decided it wouldn't be.
After Anthony, we had a very strong desire to help children through foster care. It just so happened that God's plan was for us to adopt pretty quickly again. And even then, those 6 months of waiting felt torturous.
When people ask why we did it that way and so quickly and so many, I simply say, "God has blessed us abundantly."
Because really, if there's anything infertility taught me, it's that I'm not in control. He's got this. And His plan has proven to be far greater than mine ever was.
So maybe we're not the crazy ones after all...
Maybe we need to remember that children are a precious gift from God and we are so very blessed to have received them so abundantly.
Then they hear we have two 3 year olds and two 2 year olds and they know we are.
Maybe we're a little crazy.
But the truth is, I wouldn't have it any other way.
When we got married, we intended to have many kids close in age. We wanted a big family and we wanted it quickly. When that didn't happen, we were devastated. I was upset that my hope and dreams for a big family with kids close in age were dashed. I grew up with three sisters and we were all close in age. Jeremy's family was similar. We loved it growing up and wanted that for our family.
I couldn't be happier now with four kids with 21 months.
Are we crazy?
Yes.
But...
The kids always have a playmate. Who is interested in the same things as them. It's like having two sets of twins. They're all best friends. When one is gone, they don't know how to act.
They share clothes, shoes, toys, blankets, dress-up outfits and basically everything.
They play great together. Sure, they fight like all siblings do. But mostly, they are just happy to play together.
They'll grow up in the same class, always having each other's backs. Always going through challenging moments together. Always having a sister or brother to lean on.
The list could go on.
We often get asked, "why did you decide to adopt so soon after Anna (or Anthony)?" Let me tell you, three years of childlessness, when that's all you desire in the whole world, feels like an eternity. Adoption waits are often long and are always hard. We knew after Anna that we wanted to get going as quickly as possible in case our wait was long. God decided it wouldn't be.
After Anthony, we had a very strong desire to help children through foster care. It just so happened that God's plan was for us to adopt pretty quickly again. And even then, those 6 months of waiting felt torturous.
When people ask why we did it that way and so quickly and so many, I simply say, "God has blessed us abundantly."
Because really, if there's anything infertility taught me, it's that I'm not in control. He's got this. And His plan has proven to be far greater than mine ever was.
So maybe we're not the crazy ones after all...
Maybe we need to remember that children are a precious gift from God and we are so very blessed to have received them so abundantly.
Monday, June 23, 2014
Ballet Recital
The girls had a ballet recital back in May. It was absolutely darling. Watching 3 year olds dance will always put a smile on your face. They LOVE dance class and it is definitely something we're signing them up for again the fall. Their teacher is absolutely wonderful!!!
Saturday, June 21, 2014
Finalization
We finalized the girls' adoptions on Monday, June 9. We absolutely couldn't wait for that day to get here. The girls have been a very good fit for our family and they have always felt like family. We were so happy to make it official.
The day was great. The adoption was at 2:00, so we had to work hard to squeeze in naps ahead of time. But in the end, all kids took a nap and were in good moods for the adoption. It was much louder in there this time than when we had Anna and Anthony's. The kids are noisy and all over the place. But everyone seemed glad to see them so happy.
The lawyers and judge asked a lot more questions this time. Particularly because this adoption happened very fast for foster care. It's super rare to have kids from foster care adopted as young as Agnes and Mya are. However, we were absolutely sure and we told them that. They could see how adjusted the girls were.
I'm glad the girls have permanency. I'm glad that they're my children. And I'm glad that the state will now recognize that and I don't have to explain, justify and relay each and every parenting decision I make. We are so thrilled to have such beautiful children to call our own!
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| Their adoption day brownie! |
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| I've made a cake or brownie for each adoption day now. They've all turned out cute and it's amazing to see how our stick figure family has grown in the last 3 years!! |
Friday, June 20, 2014
Quick Takes (64)
Hosted at Team Whitaker this week.
I've got lots of posts in the works, so hopefully they'll all get written, finished and published quickly! I plan on updating about the girls' finalization, how everyone has adjusted, what "going private" taught me about myself, organizing tools that have helped with so many young kids, hair, and more
Last Monday, I acquired a small tear in my rotator cuff. It happened late at night when my youngest spit fire was creating all kind of nonsense in the room she now shares with her two sisters. In an effort to keep her from waking the other girls up, I picked her up quickly (and wrongly...) to whisk her out of the room. Something popped and my shoulder had severe pain for many days after. I went to the doctor and orthopedist, had a steroid shot, and lot of pain meds and anti-inflammatory meds. Luckily, the ortopedist determined that it was just a very small tear and I pinched the nerves creating lot of swelling and pain. I'm feeling much better and after some physical therapy, I should be back to using it without pain or restriction in a week or two.
We've had two different bathrooms "remodeled" in the last two months. Mostly floors, vanities, and toilets. They've turned out beautiful and we are happy to have them done. And insurance paid for most of it after our toilet leakage problem.
My cousin got married last weekend. The kids had an absolute blast at the reception and were so good. It was a good warm up for my brother-in-law's wedding coming up in July!!
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| Agnes caught the bouquet! |
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| Agnes and Anna danced together all night. It was sooo sweet! |
We have spent many hours at the pool so far this summer. We are blessed to have a beautiful resort-like pool to use as a result of Jeremy's job.
Mya turned 2 last week! We had fun celebrating her birthday at our Parish carnival. She is going to be one SASSY 2 year old. I've got my running shoes on for this little lady!
I'm down more than 20 lbs officially. I was so disappointed last week when I hurt my shoulder and couldn't exercise. And then the steroid shot made me ravenously hungry (all steroids do that to me). I was afraid of what the scale would say this week after all of my hard work the last few months. But I kept losing this week, another pound off since my injury last week! I'm not totally concerned about how much weight I lose (although, I do have somewhat of a goal in mind) but mostly, I just want to keep staying in shape and keep my energy up. I want to stay healthy for my family and be able to enjoy all of their activities!
Tuesday, June 17, 2014
Family Pictures
To kick off my blog becoming public again, I thought I'd share the family pictures we received this week!
We did another Red Thread Session with our friend, Carissa. She once again did such a phenomenal job and I am overjoyed to have these precious pictures of our family! I don't know how to properly thank her for capturing our family so beautifully!!
We did another Red Thread Session with our friend, Carissa. She once again did such a phenomenal job and I am overjoyed to have these precious pictures of our family! I don't know how to properly thank her for capturing our family so beautifully!!
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