A Slight Change of Plans or Miracles Happen or No I'm Not Crazy or Baby Makes 8

A very wise friend of mine once told me that she had stopped trying to make long term plans with her life because they never happened.  This was many years ago when Brian and I were a "child free", dual income family with lots of big plans.  We were going to live somewhere decidedly more glamorous than anywhere we have landed so far (probably on a mountain top or by a beach), design and build our own home, and spend our free time traveling and writing.

Well, I've stopped planning and just started living from one miracle to the next!  Forget long term plans, even the short term ones have just flown out the window. 

• We hadn't planned to have any kids at all--and then we got Grace instead.
• We asked for twins when we started Grace's adoption--but we only got one girl (which was clearly all we could handle) instead.
• We didn't want Grace to be an only child so we went in search of a sister for her--and we got  her brother Haven instead.
• We thought we had enough love and enough room for 2 more so we asked for another boy and girl--and we got 2 perfect baby boys instead.
• We felt we had room for just one more, so we decided to finally bring home that sister for Grace, sometime in the future, maybe in a year or so, when we had more time/money/energy--but before we had even taken a breath we immediately got a referral for a beautiful baby girl instead.

Unfortunately, that referral fell through as things sometimes do in the world of adoption and now we are bringing home, drum roll please......TWIN baby girls instead!!!

Yes, you read that right.  We have been blessed with TWO more miracles.  We will have a total of SIX amazing children in our home.

Our newest change of plans are twin girls just under one year old.  They are not identical but very close.  They look a bit like Manny, with eyes the size of saucers, like Haven, and some crazy hair, like JoJo.  But I have a feeling they will be all princess just like Grace.  We can't share a lot of details about our babies or the adoption process until they are safely home in our arms.  For now we will just call them Baby K and Baby L and as much as I would like to share their beautiful pictures with the whole world, we have to keep those close to our hearts as well.  So how about these cutie pies as a substitute.

If all goes according to "plan" the twins will be home sometime in early spring.  Be sure to check out the Fundraising tab at the top of this page.  We will be having a huge garage sale, raffling some goodies, selling super cool t-shirts and handmade items, and lots lots lots more. It will definitely take the whole village to get these girls home.  But it will be worth it!

And NO, we're not CRAZY.  OK, maybe a little crazy.........crazy in love with all these miracles.

Bar the Door, Here They Come!!!

Yep, I imagine that's what the receptionist at our doctor's office says when they see us approaching the lobby.  Wouldn't you?!?

Today we slogged the whole clan to the doctor.  JoJo and Manny had their one year well baby visits, while Grace, Haven and I had our flu shots.  Brian was there for moral support (and to hold down screaming children). 

Things are OK when we are in the lobby.  There are toys and books and it is a generally less breakable room.  But then they squeeze all 6 of us into the examining room.  And all hell breaks loose.

There are mini-blinds on the windows that JoJo is determined to tear down.  No childproof locks on the cupboards that Manny wants to inspect.  And the ever popular spinning doctors stool that Grace and Haven are fighting to the death to ride on first.

I take my medicine first and get a flu shot in my left arm while holding a squirmy JoJo with my right.  The nurse keeps saying "Relax your arm, I can't get the needle in" but I am unable to relax one are but still grip JoJo with the other, so she just pushes that needle harder.  Grace immediately goes into hysterics knowing that her turn is next.  She is struggling so hard that Brian (who is holding her down) gets stabbed with her needle as the nurse is taking it out.  As always, Haven does everything that Grace does so he screams like someone is removing his arm, not just giving it a shot.

Then I take the Bigs and Manny to the lobby so the babies can have their individual exams and get their FIVE shots.  Those poor little legs are gonna be aching tomorrow!

So this must have been the busiest day our doctor has ever had and my pack of puppies just turned that lobby into a carnival side show.  Every seat was taken and I was sitting on the floor with my kids.  Then a set of 2 year old monsters twin boys moved in on our territory.  One of them tried to bite Haven in the face.  It was all very bizarre. 

Probably the strangest thing about the visit was the comment a woman made to me as she was leaving the office.  "Are all these kids yours?" she asked (and only 3 of them were with me at that moment).  I said yes they are all mine and she said "Your elevator must not go all the way to the top!" and then she walked out the door.  Well, can you beat that!

Adoption--only for the mentally ill.

From a health point of view it was a pretty good visit.  JoJo, our tiny little potato, is in about the 30th percentile in all areas.  But King Kong Manny is in the 97th percentile for height, 90th for weight, and 95th for head size.  We knew he was heavy, now we know just how heavy!

Everyone seems to be doing pretty well considering all the pin pricks.  The boys are throwing laundry, the Bigs are watching Veggie Tales.  In 30 minutes it will be time for bed.  Whooo, thank goodness we only have to do this once a year!

P.S. I know that some of you are waiting for some more news on our next adoption.  We've had some strange things come up, but we should be able to share a little bit more about it in the next few days.  Just please keep on praying. God is working some big plans and we are just along for the ride!

The New Normal



My two sweet peas in a pod

 I heard this expression "the new normal" while listening to NPR the other day and it really stuck in my head.  We all go through changes, seasons, but our family is really experiencing a new normal in a big way.  For almost 20 years of marriage it was just me and Brian and that was just fine.  We loved our life together and for 20 years it was our normal.  And we had a long time to get used to it.

Even when Grace came home things didn't change that much.  She was just one kid.  We still outnumbered her.  We could throw her in a pouch and take her anywhere. 

But now there are four.  Four is our new normal.  Four is a big change.  Below are some of the new normals that I have noticed lately in our world.

Old--We were a family of 2 living in a 3 bedroom house
New--We are a family of 6 living in a 3 bedroom house

Old--We had all the peace and quiet we ever wanted
New--There is always someone touching you and usually someone crying or screaming

Old--Our house was always tidy
New--Our house is only tidy for social worker visits

Old--We loved our jobs and spent many hours each week working overtime
New--Brian stays home with the kids and I rush home from work the minute I can

Old--We used to eat out several times a week at any restaurant we wanted
New--We only eat at restaurants with playgrounds

Old--I used to read at least a book a week
New--I only have time to read while sitting on the toilet (and even then I might not be alone) or I only get to read books with lots of pictures

Old--My husband and I could be "romantic" anytime and anywhere
New--What's my husband's name again?

Old--My name was Carrie and I think my husband's name might have been Brian
New--We are just Mommy and Daddy

Old--I drove a cute yellow convertible
New--I drive an old gold minivan (and soon even that will be too small)

Old--I only watched sophisticated comedies and news shows on TV
New--I rarely watch TV, but when I do its usually Calliou or Word World

Old--I loved going to the movies to see romantic comedies
New--My favorite romantic comedy is Tangled

Old--Other people's kids were a little annoying
New--My kids are the most amazing, extraordinary, spectacular gift from God, that I never could have begun to dream of

Old--I wouldn't have traded my life with anyone
New--I can't believe all that I was missing and I would never want to trade my life with anyone!

In a few months we'll have to adjust our normal once again.  Wonder what that will look like?




Someone is always touching you and it is so hard to type with a pack of boys on your lap!



The House is Too Messy to Blog

Tomorrow is our social worker visit for the homestudy to bring home Baby K so we have been doing a fast and furious week of home improvement.  One nice thing about having important company coming to your house is it forces your husband to help you with things he would normally avoid, like hanging the new family pictures or sweeping the cobwebs out of the corners (this is a highly avoided task because we have high ceilings and we both are rather short).

It certainly has not been an easy week of cleaning.  For every pile I make, JoJo knocks it down.  Each time we get the playroom clean, Manny comes and rips the tub of books off the shelf.  And by golly if those two would just stop pooping for a couple of days we could get caught up on the cloth diapers!

So here are a few pics to tide you over.  I've got to get back to the cleaning.  I'll update again if we survive the big visit!!!


Blogging instead of cleaning



Our lovely mess



Grace's feet--she was the photographer on most of these shots!



Manny Boo on his new birthday horse from Grandma Ione



Haven giving horseback riding advice and providing Manny with a sword



More Grace anatomy--its always interesting to download pics and see what she's been shooting!

Happy Birthday Manny Boo!

He's 25 pounds of sweet smiles.

He loves to eat and he loves to kiss.

He has the deepest voice of any baby I've ever met.

He is our most sensitive boy--easy to cry, but also easy to laugh.

It took him awhile to want to be held and loved, but now he just melts in my arms.

Happy First Birthday, Immanuel Jefte!  I can't imagine our family without you, my sweet Manny Boo!!!



Our very first picture of Immanuel

 

What Every Child Needs

Every child needs:

• a family to love
• a safe place to live
• a warm bed of their own
• enough food to keep them healthy
• enough room to play
• plenty of books to read
• warm clothes in winter and cool clothes in summer
• all the hugs, and cuddles, and kisses they could ever ask for

But not every child gets their needs fulfilled. That just breaks my heart.

Every child does not need:

• a bedroom to themselves
• clothes with designer labels
• so many toys that they can't decide which to play with
• ballet lessons, piano lessons, gymnastics lessons, soccer league, baseball teams, summer camp
• a playstation, an x-box, a wii
• their own phone, their own TV, their own computer, their own car
• their own credit card
• a huge college fund

Our children will have what they need and a few things that they don't. 

Grace said she needed a sister.  She needed a sister to share her room. She needed a sister to wear her dresses when they get too small for her.  She needed a sister that was brown like Haven.

We agreed.  Grace needed a sister and we had plenty of room and plenty of food and plenty of clothes.
And plenty of love.

So Grace is getting what she needs. 

We got our referral for Baby K just a few days ago.  She is about 3 months old and she already has a big mop of curls.  She looks more like Manny than Haven, but she is brown and she is beautiful.

Sometime in the spring she will join our family and she will finally and forever have everything she needs.