Family

My children have something very special. Something few children have
these days. Each has two siblings very close to them in age with whom
they spend 99% of every waking hour.  They have two built in BFFs...
not just this year in school, or for most of their childhood, but, God
willing, for the next 80+ years. Yes, sometimes it is hard having three
young children with only 29 months difference in age from eldest to
youngest. Yes, it would be easier to send them all away to preschool
rather then to keep them with me (but I don't believe for a minute that
that would be in their best interest). And yes, they do fight and tease
each other, but far more often they love each other deeply, watch out
for each other, and play together well. Yes, they really do have
something wonderful and special, and I am so blessed to be their mother!

 

 

 

 

 

 

We just got back from a week at the farm visiting Mimmi. The kids had a wonderful time.

Plenty of water play...

Lots of swinging...

Plenty of playing with Taffy, the dog...

Lots of popsicles gave their lives....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Some people took mud bathes...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There was lots of running free in open spaces...

And Katie got lots of wagon rides...

There was playing at a couple of parks...

There was bike and trike riding...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cuteness abounded...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There was a zoo trip with giraffe feeding...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

and train riding and playing on the toy train...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

and goat petting and brushing...

and water pumping...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

and play exploring....

and carousel riding...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

and some people came out of their shell!

There were other adventures as well, like an airshow and a festival
with carnival rides plus 4th of July fireworks. Might have been too
much fun actually. :)

Well, fall is almost over... at least the actual falling part! We have been blessed with some really beautiful weather so I've been busy trying to clear the yard of leaves.  For some reason every time I rake up a pile of leaves it just sort of falls apart. What do you think is happening? :)

 

In October, we made a week long trip up to the farm to see Mimi and Grandma Katie. The kids had fun even though it was COLD! They played with the dog and rode bikes. Mimi got out some of my old toys for the kids to play with. Miriam has beeb introduced to the original Strawberry Shortcake!

 

So we finally got around to doing a family picture a few weeks ago. It was taken by a great friend. She does a great job, even when just quickly snapping a few pictures like she did form us! If you're local, check her out. 

 

We had Miriam and Evan's birthday party on June 20th. They had a really good time!  Aunt Kristin and Uncle Dave were in town and got to be here. The kids were so excited by that! They got some cool presents including 3 large floor puzzles that get put together almost everyday. Evan's cake was "Old McDonald's Farm" and Miriam had an ice cream cone theme. Here are some pictures.

 

 

 

 

 

While in IN we went to two different zoos. The kids loved both. Evan's favorite thing was the water hands down (see the picture evidence) He also liked the farm/ petting zoo area at both places. Little man is really into farms these days. If you ask him about it, he will tell you that "I be a farmer! Ride tractor! Ride horse!" He can spot cattle and horses a mile off and will exclaim about them every time!
Miriam just liked the animals in general. Especially the chicken.
Katie liked the carousel a lot. The picture dosn't show it because the ride hadn't started yet. Once it did, her little mouth was open the whole time. She even waved to people! LOL

We spent last week up in Indiana on the family farm where I grew up (hence no internet!) The kids had a great time. Lots of outside play. Up WAY to late. Eat way too much ice cream. Two trips to zoos (two different ones) involving lots of water.  Spent lots of time with Mimmi (hence the ice cream!) Got to ride on the lawn tractor with Mimmi. Got to see Aunt Kristin, Uncle Dave, and Grandma W one day as well. Fun trip!

Here are some pictures from the farm. I'll postzoo pictures tomorrow.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Was the start of our family. The day that Brian and I were married. On one hand it seems like such a short time, for Time has certainly not dragged her heals, yet on the other hand I can't really remember life before being married and being a mother. Funny how that is.  And, yes, I would very happily marry Brian again. :)

I have a funny story from Mother's day (yes, I know. I'm running behind!). On Mother's day the whole family drove to Atlanta to see Grandpa George who was here briefly for a visit.  We were all thrilled to see him even though it was only a day.
For lunch we went in to a chicken place to get some chicken for a picnic lunch since we were trying to avoid the crowds. It worked because we were the only family there when we walked in. The manager and one of the other workers were talking at the front counter and greeted us as we walked up. After the a moment the manager looked at me holding Katie with Miriam and Evan at my side and the following conversation ensued.

Manager: "Happy Mother's Day!"
Me: "Thank you"
Manager: "I always wanted three, but after one I could never push another one out!"
Me: laugh "Well, it's not like I had to push them out."
Manager: "Oh, did they cut them out?"
Me: "Uh.... no."
Manager: confused look
Me: "They were all adopted."
Manager: "Oh."

Either she didn't notice that I am mother to a Black child, a Hispanic child, and an Asian child (in which case I commend her) or she thought I'm one "busy" woman!! LOL

 

I've been MIA on this blog the last two weeks because, well, I've been running the Westhaven Infirmary! Today was the first day in two weeks that everyone has been mostly well! Miriam and Evan had the flu (I think) and a bad head cold... both of which cause high fevers.  Katie had a cold.  I had stomach stuff, a cold, and either a *very* mild version of the flu or a seasonal allergy flare up. Brian had a *very* mild version of the flu and pink eye/blepharitis. UGGGGGG!!

Here are my poor sick patients. BTW, I'm smiling because I'm trying to get Katie to walk. Oh, and I'll spare you the pics of Brian's eye! :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well, here we are home for one week and three days. We've had Katie for three weeks today. Brian is back at work full time today as well.

Wow, time flies! It does NOT seem like we have had Katie three weeks. It DOES feel like we have been home a week. We're still working on a routine or at least expanding the one we have. I feel pretty comfortable with the basics... how to get everyone up, dressed, feed, down for nap, down for bed, etc. I *think* I'm getting the hang of keeping up with the basic house stuff... laundry and dishes. But I'm not sure about the rest of the house upkeep, to say nothing of the yard!  I also have to figure out how to do preschool with Miriam since Katie doesn't want me to pay too much attention to her siblings.

Sleep is going better. Katie is sleeping from 9 to around 1:30-2 AM. Then she needs help getting back to sleep... mainly she wants to sleep with me! Some nights I get her back in the crib and some nights I can't. She will then sleep until 7-8 AM. She also takes a 2-2.5 hour nap each afternoon.

On the health front, things are better. My stomach is finally better. I have fought off a sinus infection/ear ache. Katie has a mild cold, but it isn't too bad. She is also cutting teeth. We are no longer having blow out diaper issues since I took her off lactose formula and put her on lactose-free milk! Now we have nice formed stools. :) We went to the pediatrician on Friday. Poor Katie got two shots, two pokes for lab work (and we need to go back for more), plus a poke for the PPD. She was NOT a happy camper.  On the good side, Dr. Meg thought everything looked great. We will be referred to see the cleft specialist, but Dr. Meg did of course take a look at her mouth. She thought that the tiny cleft might still be technically considered a cleft palate, but agreed that it didn't go beyond the gum area. We do have reason to believe that it is open into the nose as the other day Katie managed to blow milk out of her nose on that side. Guess will wait for the experts verdict. :)

Katie is doing well. She is now crawling quickly and cruising along anything solid. She will also walk holding onto one hand. She can stand for about 30 seconds on her own. I think we're getting close to walking in the next few weeks. I can tell her language skills are growing even though all we can understand is "Mama", "dada/baba", "hi", and "bye".  If I ask her if she wants a drink, she looks at her cup so receptive language is coming along. She can sign "more" and "drink"... we're working on a few others. This morning I was trying to see if she would mimic sounds (she will "la") and say "go". I got her to say "g". She is also good at using pointing and facial expressions to communicate. Although she is small after being around her a bit it is obvious that she is a 16 month old intellectually. She's still a ham when in a good mood.

Speaking of good moods. Those have been a bit fewer over the last few days. The child who has had the hardest time adjusting to the new addition has actually been the new addition! I think she feels like she got a bait and switch. In China, she was the center of everything. Here, I have a house to take care of and two other children who think that my world revolves around them. Poor Katie has a hard time sharing Momma. Sunday morning while I did Miriam's hair for church and got both older children ready, Katie screamed the whole time. It didn't matter if Daddy held her. It didn't matter if she was standing right beside me holding onto my knee. If I was not holding her on my lap using at least one hand, she was screaming. It was a long 45 minutes while I did Miriam's hair! She was actually mad at me by the time it was over. The good thing about that is it made Daddy seem a little less like chopped liver! :)

The other good thing is that the children are starting to gel as a sibling pack. More and more the two amigos are becoming the three musketeers. It's fun to watch that happen. And I tell you, the day is coming when I pity the fool that picks on one of them! This is going to be a fun ride I think! More pictures coming soon!

That's the question of the week it seems! Well, it's a bit of a complicated answer as you might expect. The short answer is it could be better, but it could be a LOT worse!

The biggest issue right now is sleep--or lack thereof.  Katie is still not on our time zone. I don't like to give kids benadryl for sleep but we are getting desperate. So last night a dose of benadryl got us sleep from 9- 12:30ish. Then she was up screaming in her crib wanting to play. Second dose of benadryl followed but she really fought the sleep. Holding her, rocking her, nothing worked, so we tried melatonin again... 10 mgs finally put her out at 3AM! She was up at 6 AM for the day! UGGGGGGG!!!

The second biggest issue is that I am not feeling well. I have some stomach thing going on. I get stomach cramps every time I eat... nothing else, just cramping. It's been going on for 48 hours now and my abdomen is actually sore to the touch! I'm really wanting to feel better! Uggggg!!

Things that are going well.... that would be just about everything else!

Katie is eating well. I found things she loves... oatmeal, scrambled eggs, Mimmi's egg noodles in chicken broth, yogurt, cheerios.

Things I can't get in her... fruit or veggies of any kind! That's what happens what you get a child at the age when they are least open to trying new foods.

Katie continues to have a happy personalty despite not sleeping. She loves Momma, but if not too tired will play with Daddy while I'm not of the room. She is always happy to see Momma! :) She likes her siblings. Loves to follow Evan and was SO excited to see Miriam this AM.

Miriam is handling having a sister well. She mostly seems nonchalant about it. But has been excited about having three "hers" in the house now. I think that already being a big sister has made this easy for her. She is a little protective of Evan, and at one point when Katie took Evan's toy, Miriam took it back for him!  LOL

Evan's adjustment... Wow. I am so proud of this little guy! He really has taken to his new role as big brother like a fish to water. He has such a big heart, and it really shows in his interactions with Katie. He loves on her with hugs, sniffs (don't ask!!), and pats. He shares his toys... even ones he really wants... with her. He likes to show her things and is even getting down and crawling with her. See pictures at end of post! :) Really he is being very gentle with her, but I still keep reminding him! More later.

 

 

 

 

 

We're back safe and sound at Westhaven!! Yay!! It's so good to be home! We were traveling a total of 33 hours, during which time Katie showed what a trouper she is and Momma got about 2.5 hours of sleep (not together).  We arrived at the airport 2.5 hours late due to a delay in Atlanta (imagine that!), so the kids didn't see me or meet Katie until this AM. They have done so well and I am so proud of all of them! I'm jet-lagged and out of it right now so I think a nap is in order! More later.

Today is a sad day at Westhaven. We said good-bye to Grandpa George this morning. He is on his way to Atlanta today to spend a little time with his son and then he will be flying out of the country Monday the 9th. It may be as long as 2 years before we see him again... or at least before the kids see him again.  The kids love him so much. Even though we have have tried to prepare them, I know that it's going to be rough tomorrow morning when I have to tell them that Grandpa isn't downstairs in his room anymore.

God speed Grandpa George! We love you and miss you already! Remember there will always be a room here at Westhaven for you... your coat's in the closet and your work shoes are in the mudroom... and they will be there whenever you come back our way again!

It snowed today!! It snowed today!! Yay!! Yay!!
Appropriately enough we are reading/using "The Snowy Day" for preschool this week. SO today we read two books about snowy days and talked about them. THEN we put on all our snow stuff and out we went!! Aunt Jen was over, and we built a cute little snowwoman. Miriam had a BLAST running around kicking snow and throwing snow "piles" (they weren't really snowballs!) Evan had fun for awhile, but then he was at the wrong end of a snowball, and it was over. Poor guy would take one look at snow in someone's hand and run to Momma. He wanted "Up!! DONE!!! Hooouuuseee!" Hot coco cheered him right up, thought!! :)

Wednesday evening we sat down to our evening meal as a family. As with almost every Wednesday evening, Grandpa George and Aunt Jen were also there.  As Brian thanked God for our food, he paused to also thank Him for bring our whole family together. In that moment, it hit both of us that not one person of the six sitting at that table was biologically related to another. Yet, we ARE a family. We are a family by choice. But then really, when you think about it, love is aways a choice.

Brian has been told yet again, "We'll have a job offerby next Friday!"  Seriously, I'm over it.

Now we have been told that Brian will have a job offer by next Friday.  Haven't heard that one before. *La Sigh*

Brian is still waiting on the job offer.... maybe next week. So we wait..... some more.

Today is Brian's birthday.  He isn't admitting how old he is and prefers to keep it low key... so we did.  Just his favorite cake and dinner at his favorite restaurant.

I've been meaning to write this since we got back from vacation at Mimmi's.  As I mentioned in the Adventures of Daddy, Snoopy had his own little adventure while we were gone!  It all started the first Saturday.  Brian was feeling sorry for Snoopy who had been home all alone the day before (his first mistake... never feel sorry for that dog!). 

If you are a yellow jacket and you decide to attack my husband be warned: I WILL get you!

So Tuesday night I went sneeking out of the house at 11:30 PM armed with a can of Raid Wasp & Hornet killer, a flashlight, and a pan of dirt.  I found the yellow jacket nest hole and emptied the can of Raid into it and dumped on the dirt. Very anticlimactic.... but effective!

So in our 10 days at Mimmi's house, I learned a few things.  A.) I need that set of eyes in the back of my head people are always talking about and B.) 88 year old women and toddler/preschoolers do not mix well.  I also learned that one must follow the 88 year old woman around and be sure she puts up medicines, etc and then one must follow the toddler and preschooler around and pray that they don't run opposite directions! If one does not do this, one will come very close to calling Poison Control for the second time in a single day.

Well, poor Brian had quite a time while we were away.  What was suppose to be a nice relaxing time by himself for Brian turned out to be quite the opposite!

Well, we're back home from visiting Mimmi! A great time was had by all.  I have a number of posts planned to get caught up, but it might take a bit since I've got a number of other things going on.  Watch for the gDiaper review... it's going to be a long one! I don't know when I will get new pictures uploaded since the mass import function is not working... but we'll try.

I am a nurse. I have been a labor & delivery nurse... I have seen hundreds (thousands?) of births. They are all different, all special, all moving on a certain level. But I find that I struggle to "get into" the births hidden inside the whirling medical world of elective c-sections, epidurals, and doctor-focused care. The births that move me, inspire me, fill me with awe are those where the woman knows she has wrestled with God and, walking on the very edge of the abyss, she has won another life to join the ranks of the human race.

Here's what we've been working on this weekend... the birthday present, and we're not done yet.  Boy am I sore!  I'll keep you all posted on how it goes.

We have a little tree/bush outside our breakfast nook window and for the last two springs a robin family has built their nest there.  I was so excited when they returned this year because this year at almost 3 Miriam notices and understands everything.  I knew she would LOVE watching the little birds grow.  The mother had been sitting on the nest for about two weeks and I think the babies hatched yesterday. 

We have just returned from a week long trip to see Mimmi and also saw Grandma W. for a few hours.  The kids had a great time, although Evan missed his Daddy as always.  Evan was actually a bit mad at Daddy when he first showed up again.  I'll post pictures later...

It's a little late but I thought I would share a picture from Christmas.  Funny how hard it is to get toddlers to sit still long enough for a decent shot under the tree.

Anyway, the kids had a great time this Christmas.  They LOVED opening gifts and by the end they were real pros! 

 

We have a new addition to the pack family. A sweet doggy named "Snoopy" who is half Lab and half Basset Hound. Seriously, he could not be any sweeter. He loves humans, likes the kids and is very patient with them, and ignores the cats. Perfect! He is laid back and gentle. He thinks he's a lap dog, but at 55 lbs I'm not so sure! LOL

I though that I would share an amazing story about Evan's adoption. Before we adopted Evan our family was in the process to adopt from China. We had completed our homestudy which is why we were even contacted about adopting him. Our families knew our plans to adopt from China and I had even talked with my mother, Mimmi, about coming and staying with Miriam when we traveled to get our child. The day after we learned about Evan, the same day we asked to be considered to adopt him, I called my mother to tell her about Evan and that we were being considered to adopt him.

Well, I survived my trip to IN. Actually the week spent with my mom (Mimmi) was great. She took a lot of time off to spend with Mira and me, and we had a good time. Mira just loves her Mimmi... in fact Mira has been grumpy since we've been home and wants me to hold her all the time. Someone got a little spoiled me thinks! The only down side of the trip was the plane ride up there!

We've had Miriam for just over three months now! We have settled into a routine of sorts and Miriam is doing very well. She has finally started to sleep through the night most nights except for waking once or maybe twice. Much better then before!
She is sitting very well these days and plays well with her toys. She still refuses to roll over. She looks at me like I'm nuts when I try to get her to do it.

Today is my last day of maternity leave. I have to return to work tomorrow. I really wish I didn't have to go back to work. I just want to stay home with Miriam, but until Brian gets a job with benefits this is what I have to do.
We are at least lucky enough not to have to hire a babysitter as Brian will be able to watch Miriam since I will only be working weekends.

Good morning everyone and HAPPY THANKSGIVING! It is a beautiful day here in east Tennessee... sun shining, baby sleeping :-)... what more can you ask for?