Friday

Ready, set, goal!

brotherly love

Bundled up for a walk on a chilly day.

(Laura, thanks for loaning us the stroller!)

The big kid.

We love celebrating! 

Pearl, I hope you recognize the candle.  It's officially made the rounds. 

Before picture of Seth at the dentist before getting one of his front teeth pulled.  He had an on again/off again infection in his tooth root that we finally felt ready to tackle.  It was a really quick and smooth process, hardly any fuss at all.  In typical Seth fashion though, he wouldn't let me take an after picture. :)  I'll catch him unawares soon.... 

Playing night night, one of Nevaeh and Ollie's favorite games. 

More of happy Jack.  I need to get a picture of his teeth, since they are on the bottom and you can't see them much when he's smiling. 

Three big kids around are the best rolling over motivators. 

 

Smiley boy!

 

3.5!

"Mama, mama, how old I am?  Yeah!  Fwee and a half!"

Real Life, People. Real Life.

 

 

 

Some snapshots of life. 

 

People keep asking how we are adjusting, or how our new kids are doing and the short simple answer is:  well. 

 

I will say though, that a certain five year old in the house is struggling.  I always find it difficult to write about Seth because I mostly blog so Jon and I (and our children if they want) can look back some day and see what life was like.  I know for a fact that no baby books or scrapbooks are being compiled around these parts, and I want to remember when I'm old and gray the funny things they said and how their personalities and interests evolved.  And I love them.  And love to talk about them.

 

However, I do not wish to mis-lead or present a picture of our family that is simply not true. 

We have one child who struggles mightily with control issues and anger issues, and really anything that goes along with emotional regulation.  He tells me weekly (daily?) that he wishes he were a grown up.  Translation:  I want to be the boss.  I want to make my own rules.  I want to control the events in my life.  Yesterday when he told me that, he also said that he would live in a house next to mine and we would be neighbors and see each other every day and he could come over for dinner and we would eat hot dogs and pizza.  So sometimes it's just plain 'ol sweet. 

 

But here's the kicker.  He would likely be struggling without any extra bodies in our house.  We have been home for about 2.5 years and we have seasons were we see tremendous growth and seasons where daily meltdowns are common and even expected.  In many ways, having littles in the house has helped Seth and has given him avenues to pitch in useful, real ways.  (Because he wants to be a grown up, remember?) 

 

I will say that with more kids in the house, it is a challenge to have your oldest be your firecracker.  (Is there ever a good birth order to be the wild child, you ask?  Who knows.)  Ollie sees Seth's reactions and it seems he is beginning to think that is the normal way to respond to disappointments.  It's kind of strange watching Ollie work himself up, because it lacks all the heat.  It seems like he is just acting in a way that he thinks is the norm.  Conversely, Ollie is also beginning to take on the roll of peace-maker.  I think this is a great life skill, but it also makes me so sad for him in a way that I can't really explain.  I guess I hope he doesn't ever feel a burden to keep everyone happy, that's not your job, kid.  People can look to Jesus for contentment.  Nevaeh and Seth play together some, but usually she keeps her distance and is honestly kind of afraid of him.  Seth never hurts anyone intentionally, but I think his frequent volume keeps her at bay.     

 

So I guess what I'm saying is, it's not all sunshine and rainbows over here, but yes, thanks for asking. The two new ones are adjusting fantastically.   

 

 

Ababa's Home!!

Catching Up

Lots of cheesy smiles for the camera!

Lots more tv watching.  Also, lots of half-made beds. 

 

 

 A month or two ago, Seth started earning allowance by doing chores.  Ollie has been pretty interested in seeing Seth drop in his two dimes every Sunday in the basket, but his interest piqued when Seth brought home books he bought himself from the book fair with his hard earned money.  Ollie asked if he could start doing chores and get an allowance and we agreed, although he may be a little young.  We will see if his interest continues.

 

And they are good help, if you don't mind the fact that all dish towels get folded on a floor that may or may not be clean.  ;)

 

Jack has had his first few bites of food in the last few days! 

Overall, he is not a fan.  :)

But, we try hard to make him laugh, so then we can just shove in a bite.  

Fort building!

 

 



Quote of the week

Seth: I'm going to draw my name on my hand in case it falls off. 

Fifty-Five and Point Five

A very happy birthday to Momo!  We all got in on the action of making the cake, complete with Nevaeh grabbing a fist full from the middle.  I remembered to take some pictures (a rarity these days) of the cake making, but forgot while the actual birthday boy was here! 

Finished product, you know you want a bite!  Happy Birthday, Momo!  We were happy to celebrate and spend time with you!

And a very happy six months to our youngest!  

 

 

 

Jack, your current milestones include:

• sitting independently for the first time today!! 
• two teeth, and more a'coming
• rolling from your tummy to your back in either direction
• rolling from your back to your side in either direction.  You haven't quite mastered getting to your tummy yet.
• bouncing up a storm in your bouncer
• you give sweet, sweet smiles and love it when anyone sings

 

 

And here's some prayer requests for you since I'm thinking it will be a few days before I blog again:

• Jack got his first cold while at our house.  His breathing sounds so miserable and he has a cough. 
• We've got well checks tomorrow for Jack and Nevaeh, which I'm sure will mean shots. 
• The honeymoon is over for Seth and Ollie.  Neither one's behavior has totally gone off the deep end, but you can tell they are getting tired of all this new.  I took Ollie out for breakfast on Saturday morning for a little one-on-one time and asked him what he thought about our new friends.  Basically he told me that it was just feeling like too much, but that he still really liked Jack and Nevaeh. 
• We are all still pretty tired, emotionally and physically.  We have put our three big kids to bed at 6:30 since we started foster care and everyone is still sleeping late and is drained by the afternoon.  Okay, that being said, I'm off to bed myself!! 

 

 

 



 

A little help

Pros and Cons of a Family of Six

People, we are making it.  We are officially at the two week point, and we are all alive and well.  We are wiped out and the days seem super busy, but we are alive and well. 

For the most part, our days have been fun and full of love.

Except last Tuesday.  Last Tuesday was our first really bad day when everyone seemed to miss the window for a nap and we were all just way too tired.  Oh, and today.  I about killed Seth earlier when he told me, "someone needs a nap" after explaining (none too patiently) about the appropriate use of Elmer's.  I was like a cartoon character with smoke coming out of my ears, and could hardly believe he just said that.  When I texted Jon ten minutes later, it did make me smile, so I suppose we can view that as evidence that I'm learning to let things roll off my back.  Jon texted back an image of Homer strangling Bart, and it got a full chuckle. 

But there have been so many pros, too!  It seems like Seth and Ollie have never played better together or enjoyed each other more.  Ollie and Nevaeh have become quite the inseparable duo, and I can't even get over how sweet they are to one another.  And baby Jack.  Who would have known that bringing a baby into our house would send everybody right to peak of cute sweetness?  Nevaeh came loving that little guy and still squeals and runs right up to greet him all the time.  Ollie quickly became enamored as well, clamoring to hold him or help with his bottle, but I don't think anyone is as smitten with Jack as Seth.  Seth loves to sneak in quick kisses and can be heard singing or trying to get Jack to smile while I'm cooking dinner or out of the room. 

Another Pro?  More to laugh about. 

Jon:  "Good job, Jacky boy!"
Ollie:  "Is he a boy?"
Jon: "Yeah"
Ollie: "I fot so."

Pros:  More hugs and love to go around. 

Cons:  There are not enough massages and chiropractic appointments in the world to help us now. 

 

Pros:  We are utilizing all seats in the van.

Cons:  We are full!

Pros: It's hard to get out around nap schedules, so we are having lots of family bonding time at home.

Cons:  Can I say the same thing? 

Pros:  She is cute, sweet, a big helper, and obedient.  She's also the absolute best to come home to, as she drops whatever she is doing, screams, and runs to greet you at the door with hugs a'plenty. 

Cons: She's been a terrible napper the last few days and has been so grumpy in the afternoons.  My best guess is that she hears the boys play and doesn't want to miss out. 

 

Can I also tell you about our first girl experiences?  Maybe it's just her, but she is so into fine motor, self help skills.  She can put on her socks and cover herself up with a blanket.  (People, Ollie can't even do that yet.)  She loves lotion, brushing her teeth, blowing her nose, and wiping her face with a wash cloth.  Can you guess what boys I know that hate all of those things?  She would also be totally potty trained within a week if we didn't have so much going on.  I think another thing that has made the transition of sharing all our toys easier for the boys is that for the most part she is into very different toys.  She carries her fake lipstick around and applies it to all the dinosaurs laying in her path.    

 

Pros:  We've got great help and daddy's in training!  Despite me almost strangling Seth earlier today, I can't believe how well he's done with this big change.  One of Seth's biggest strengths is that he loves helping people and now he finally has people who are eager to receive his help. No cons for this one!

 

No cons for this one either!  He's a charmer!  Our days of gummy smiles were short lived though, as Jack cut his first two teeth within the first week of living here.  This is the happiest, most non-fussy baby ever.  He has continued sleeping through the night, although likes his first bottle early, around 5:00 or 5:30 and then goes back to sleep for an hour or two.  

Pros:  Our kids are worn out and are sleeping hard. 
Cons:  I think we are all pretty tired. 

These two. 

Their friendship has really blossomed.  They had a little bit of a slow start because Ollie was all set to be friendly and lovely on day one, and Nevaeh didn't want anything to do with anyone whose name wasn't mommy.  Since then, she has warmed up considerably, and they play together all day.  She was sad the other day at naptime and Ollie said, "Don't worry!  I'll take a nap too!"  She literally clapped her hands and yelled "Yay!!" and then they both took a nap together. 

Cons:  They are the only ones who have been possessive of me.  If they are both tired at the same time, one can really get grumpy because I'm spending time with the other or holding the other. 

 

 

 

I'd say the pros out weight the cons. 

 

 

 

Snow!

Life Lately