Lindsaykids7

Dante Needs a Pity Party

2012-01-30T20:47:00.000-05:00

Today Alexander came running out the door, up to the open van window and said, "Don't be leaving your crap behind!" as he handed me the stool sample (in its container) that I had forgotten to grab out of the fridge. Wow, a kid turns 18 and suddenly he can talk any way he wants to mom. Anyhow, he was only half right...it was actually Dante's stool sample I was leaving behind.

Poor Dante had three different appointments today.

First he had a fitting for some new orthotics. He will either be switching to ankle braces, or to articulated leg braces. He still needs support to help his feet keep the proper shape, but he also needs to be able to bend his ankles. Dante did not appreciate the stockings and plaster wrap, but hopefully in a few weeks he will appreciate the new SMO's.

Second he had a dental cleaning. No cavities! His gums look great! And his current nasty cold has not effected his vocal chords. The dentist is amazing, and spoke calmly to Dante throughout the whole cleaning despite the loud protests and writhing about on Dante's part.

Third, after a two hour lunch break at home, Dante was off to see a gastroenterologist. She would like to rule out a few possible causes of his bowel issues (hence the stool sample I almost forgot), and if nothing shows up we will go fully with the gluten free/casein free diet.

One exciting observation in all the tiresome activities today: when we were in the waiting room Dante was watching the Backyardigans on his iPad. Suddenly he started waving his arms back and forth and swaying. Dante was following the motions of the characters as they sang and danced! It was absolutely adorable and amazing.

In all, my nine kids had a total of 20 medical appointments this month! (Did I mention Amelia has strep for the third time in a row? And Dante has Alopecia to add to his list of diagnoses?)

I am hoping we have fewer appointments in February, but thankful for the good medical care we have available to us.

God is good!

8 of 9 Strikes Again

2012-01-24T10:30:00.000-05:00

I should have known better. If the kid giggles too much or is too quiet it is time to check on him. I was so pleased that Leif was playing quietly in my room while I rearranged bins and put away the bulk order of wheat in the kitchen.

Silly me. Leif wasn't running around chasing the cat. Leif wasn't trying on everyone's shoes and leaving them strewn about the living room.
My sweet little man was just playing quietly in my room. With the crisco.

I should have known better. After all, doesn't this look like a toddler who likes to sit and play quietly?

The Bear in the Yard

2012-01-22T13:26:00.000-05:00

This morning Amelia suddenly pointed out the window and began anxiously saying, "The Bear! Outside!"

I was not concerned, because we in the center of town, and our yard is completely surrounded by fencing.

She was clearly concerned and kept pointing and repeating, "The bear outside!!"

It was not until she said, "The bear is in the swing" that I had to look. A bear would be unusual in this area, but a bear enjoying our swing... well that could be you-tube worthy.

Or maybe not...

(I think ShanLin needs to take better care of her pets.)

One of Nine is Eighteen Today!

2012-01-19T05:28:00.000-05:00

My eldest is 18 now. WOW. He should be thankful I don't have any baby photos of him in the computer.

Happy Birthday Alexander, we all love you!!

"Look at that Hair!!"

2012-01-17T15:59:00.000-05:00

Such a good baby in the tub.

Doesn't cry, but just get through the rinsing!

Not what she meant when she asked me to comb her hair?

Much better. And we LOVE the eye contact!

And a random photo of our beautiful ShanLin being goofy.

Please Don't Feed the Dante

2012-01-14T12:21:00.001-05:00

This is Dante many years ago, I think right around when he was 1 1/2. He was the cutest baby ever. Dante struggled with hypotonia, severe constipation, and developed eczema on his wrists and along his jaw, but he was making progress. By the time Dante was 3 he was just about walking, fed himself with utensils, and had at least a dozen words and signs that he used consistently.

A few months after he turned 3, Dante had an autistic regression. He lost everything. We had to force feed him baby food, we had to wrap his bed railings with foam because of his headbanging, he stopped walking, talking, and signing. For several months he had a permanent bruise on his forehead from the headbanging.

In the last 3 years he has come a long way, but is still not talking except for some miscellaneous words, and he has about 3 signs you have to really watch for. He still has the same hat as in the above photo, but he screams and fights wearing it, due to his sensory issues now.

How does the cutest baby in the world go from that to this?

He still has his loving moments, with those of us in his inner circle. And as long as we leave him with his iPad or musical toys he is fine. When he comes to the table we are good as long as we provide him with food before he starts throwing everything he sees.

This is not good enough for me.

Am I trying to cure him, or help him live with the autism? I cannot decide which it is I am doing, but I will keep trying to bring him back into our world.

His dermatologist does not know why he has eczema, but says it is not food related. I know however that when I completely took him off dairy he almost completely cleared up. This also helped with his behaviors. I have now also taken him off citrus fruits, corn, and strawberries in my quest to completely eliminate his itchy outbreaks.

And now we have decided to try also taking Dante off gluten, which is going to be very hard. We are just testing some theories about the effect of wheat gluten on the gut, and therefore on behaviors. One thing I do know is that when Dante had his regression three years ago, he went from constipation so bad he need medication--- to the most disgusting smelly down the legs and up his back yuckiness daily. Three years and he is still like this. It seems only natural to assume the bowel movements and behaviors are related since they changed simultaneously.

But Dante loves bread and pasta, so I have begun experimenting with gluten free flours. Unfortunately the least expensive flour is almond flour, and Dante's school is a "nut free" school. His favorite beverage is almond milk and his favorite snack is bread with peanut butter. All of which he cannot have for lunch on school days.

This isn't an inexpensive endeavor, either. The flours in the jars below cost me $45! Once I know which ones work best for gluten free baking I'll find a way to buy them in larger amounts for less cost. We have also started him on probiotics and fish oil. Fresh fruit is also costly, but a healthier boy (and family) will be worth it.

ShanLin and Leif were my happy helpers, although for some reason they decided to rub baking soda on their bellies. My first experiment was pumpkin muffins, which Dante loved.

We also now have Dante going to private Occupational Therapy once a week for Sensory Therapy, and I am trying to get him to see a gastroenterologist that is also an autism specialist, to see about that link.

I think his treatment is slightly more complicated because Dante is not just a kid with Down Syndrome, or just a kid with Autism. He is a kid with both. But we'll keep loving him and doing what we think is best so our boy can reach his maximum potential.

God is good!

December Do-Over

2012-01-03T17:15:00.000-05:00

Although my husband might disagree, even if he would never admit to it, I try not to be a whiny person. But the last few days instead of appreciating the new year, all I want is December back--- I want to go straight back to the first and start over. I would make the chocolate covered cherries that I have made for at least ten years and didn't get done this year. I would make the toffee and peanut clusters. I would knit the hats for my little ones that I never even started. Didn't start a single one. I didn't even get to watch "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" and "Santa Clause is Coming to Town" with the kids when they were on TV. I'd be hyper-vigilant with Dante so his cold didn't become strep throat and then get into his skin and give him cellulitis so the poor child had to spend four days in the hospital....causing the whole family to not be together Christmas Eve when we watch "Muppets Christmas Carol" and then to not be together for the stockings and gifts Christmas morning. I wouldn't strain my back and spend most of what was left of Christmas break not being able to work or help do the household clean up I had so wanted to get done.

Who am I kidding? Getting a do over would just mean repeating the craziness, even if it was a slightly different craziness. And I'll admit, as long as Dante's pain meds were kept up we kinda enjoyed cuddling on his hospital bed for hours on end...me reading "War Horse" with one hand on the book and the other on his wrist so he wouldn't pull out the IV, and him leaning in to me watching the same 3 episodes of Kai Lan over and over while dozing now and then.

So now we are into another month of me feeling like I am always one step behind on laundry and household stuff. Already there are 12 appointments on the January calendar, not including Dante's new weekly Sensory Therapy. And Kimberly's weekly in home therapy-both of which are so important and helpful for them and me as I work with them daily. And there are NO appointments on the February calendar! (yet)

It's just life, and a good one, so there really is nothing to whine about. Especially when I can always just take a break to cuddle with Kimberly or play with the increasingly mischievous Leif. (Yes, he is wearing a Christmas beret that goes with one of Kimberly's outfits.)

Besides, who needs a December do-over when there are New Year's resolutions to keep?
My 2:
* Try harder
* Do better

I figure that covers everything.

God is good!

Dante's Christmas

2011-12-25T21:58:00.000-05:00

Dante has had a bad cold since last Monday, but when he woke up Friday morning with his right arm bright red I knew we were not dealing with just a cold anymore. After a brief stay in the Emergency Room, Dante was admitted to the hospital with cellulitis from a Strep infection, and is still there today. If all goes well, he will be able to return home tomorrow. As bad as it looks in the photo below, that is actually much better than Friday when it was at its worst.

Not only is today Kimberly's first Christmas, it is the first Christmas we have not all been together as a family. Jamie and I have been switching off staying with Dante in his hospital room. Jamie was here with the kids for opening gifts this morning, then he and several of the kids brought gifts into the hospital for Dante and I. Thankfully Dante's pain level has been going down as his IV antibiotics are taking effect, and we had a pleasant visit.

It had been decided this morning that Dante's swelling was not going down quickly enough, so his arm was wrapped in gauze and put into a sling holding his right hand up near his left shoulder, to try to reduce the swelling. Dante was not cooperative during the process, but once it was in place he seemed relieved to have it wrapped and immobile.

Despite having his right hand trapped and his left arm slowed down by an IV with two lines plus a fascinating new toy, Dante still managed to reach that nagging itch.

Dr. Leif is in the house! Whenever a doctor or nurse walked into his room Dante tensed up and showed resistance to whatever they intended to do. Sometimes he fought more than others, depending on how long it had been since his last dose of Motrin. So I was very surprised when he allowed Leif and Amelia to play doctor on him.

Today was not how we planned to spend Christmas, but Jamie and I did spend an hour together at the hospital between his morning at home with the kids and my afternoon/evening with them. We are blessed to have had that time together, and to try to keep it as normal as possible for the rest of the kids. I am thankful that this is only a skin infection, painful as it has been for Dante, and not a terminal illness or one of many hospital stays for treatments or surgeries.

Tomorrow I will go back to join Jamie at the hospital, hopefully to bring our Dante home.

God is good!

A Gift Horse

2011-12-20T13:14:00.002-05:00

A few years ago Nikita discovered that she loves horses. A lot. She began taking lessons, and for her 13th birthday Nana and I took her to a ranch in Tennessee for several days. Since then she has leased a horse at Camp Marshall, then bought her own horse, and recently sold her horse in the hopes of getting one better suited to her needs.

Nearly every day she tells me about one online that she has found, and her mentor at camp helps her decide if this one is good for her. Nearly every day. Ok, actually every day I hear about a horse for her.

So when we were recently offered a free horse, how could I say no? It is slightly smaller than she usually likes, but downsizing saves money on hay, grain, and stall rental since this sweet girl could fit in the paddock with our goats.

Well, I should have remembered that teenage daughters can be hard to please.

"Not this big, this big!"

I even tried to tell her that she should never look a gift horse in the mouth.

Maybe we can get some stilts for our new mini?

"Missy" has been used as a therapy horse, but she needed a new home. Nikita put me in contact with her owner, and things all fell into place. She is a sweetie, and will get so much attention here! Nik said Missy likes being groomed, which was Micah's favorite thing to do with our previous pony.

God is good!

Now to go see a photo of the next horse Nikita has found...praying she finds the perfect one soon!

Christmas Photo!

2011-12-11T15:31:00.000-05:00

Today we took some photos of all 9 kids- together! There is not a single perfect shot, but since I am incapable of giving perfection, I was not expecting it either.

We have to choose one for Christmas cards, and soon. Here are a few, plus 2 cute ones of Kimberly and some our tree going up:

Falling in Love

2011-12-06T19:49:00.000-05:00

Yesterday marked the 2 month anniversary of Kimberly joining our family. That day in Boston seems so far behind us now.

Jamie and I began our fifth adoption journey back in the Spring, initially thinking we would be going to Ghana, and then we thought our daughter was in Estonia. It is not uncommon in the adoption world for parents to switch countries, or for the child at the end of the adoption journey to not be the same one they envisioned at the beginning of the adoption journey. Therefore I should not have been surprised at the changes for us, but here I am, with a little 2 month old baby when I never considered we would be blessed with such a wee one.

My feelings for Kimberly were so conflicted the first few weeks of her joining us. This domestic adoption is so entirely different from any of our international adoptions. They were all so....anonymous. Each of our internationally adopted children was left at the hospital or orphanage by their birthparents because of being born with Down Syndrome. I was not required to spend time thinking about their emotions.

I did not have to look them in the eye and promise to love their child as much as they do, even as the tears in their eyes made it clear how great was their love for her. I did not have to promise to make sure that even though she is the youngest of 9 she will get just as much love and attention as if she were our only one.

With our anonymous adoptions I was able to be the Mommy that gives that an orphan a home, and secretly wonder how a woman could carry a child for 9 months and then give her away because her country's culture or society might make it difficult to raise a child with Down Syndrome. (Let's be honest, what adoptive parent has never once thought like this, even if it isn't our place to judge?)

This time was different. The first few weeks I felt like I was simply raising someone else's child for them. I loved her like I had promised, but she was not my baby, she was still theirs. We did not change Kimberly's name out of respect for them, but sometimes I thought we should have, that it would make her more mine if Jamie and I had chosen her name.

Slowly I stopped feeling like I was doing her birthparents some huge favor, and she became my daughter. I stopped feeling guilt for taking her when maybe I should have found a way to make it possible for them to raise her. After all, were their circumstances their fault? Who was I to agree to take a baby from loving parents and raise her as my own?

Kimberly's birthparents made a decision, probably their most difficult ever, based on sacrificial love. They are amazing people who truly loved their daughter, and wanting to be Kimberly's mother gave me a lot of guilt. The first few weeks were hard, but I no longer feel like I am raising someone else's baby. She is my daughter, I am her mother, and we are blessed.

And still, I cannot stop thinking about all the babes left in the orphanages. I do not know the emotions of their birthparents, but having seen the photos and read the stories of some of those places, I cannot help but think that there is nothing sacrificial about leaving a wee one there. I know that there have to be some amazing parents in those countries who are doing what they can to erase the stigma of having a special needs child.

If you would like to consider adopting a child with Down Syndrome, or supporting a family who is in process, please visit Reece's Rainbow to learn more. You can also help raise grants on individual children so they are more likely to be chosen for adoption-- because it is very expensive.

Two Months and Growing

2011-11-22T20:26:00.000-05:00

Kimberly had her 2 month appointment today! When we met her October 5th she weighed 7 pounds 5 ounces, today (7 weeks later) she weighed 8 pounds 14 ounces, and has grown 1 1/2 inches!! In the above photo she is wearing the same outfit as when we first laid eyes on our daughter. She was swimming in it then, and it fits her perfectly now.

Our baby girl is healthy and growing well, even starting to coo.
God is good!

Time Passes

2011-11-20T14:35:00.004-05:00

Tomorrow Kimberly will be 2 months old. I cannot believe it has been this long; she joined our family when she was just 2 weeks old. She is an easy baby, but even so with 9 kids in the house now we are extremely busy. I feel like I am always one step behind what needs to be done-- and at least two loads behind the laundry! I am having the hardest time lately not coveting a laundry room. And a 9 passenger SUV. But God is good, and we do have everything we need.

Amelia: Ame is doing so well. She has glasses now! Her eyes have been watery, so I will be making an appointment to check that the prescription is right where it should be. She is such an incredible help around the house.

Sunny: Our beautiful Sunny is thriving at school; she is very eager to please her teacher. She is my only girly-girl, and loves dolls. She does not try to hold Kimberly or feed her, but since Kimberly joined our family Sunny has spent a lot more time playing with and caring for her baby doll. She does keep an eye on Kimberly for me though! (Kimberly is asleep in the bassinet in the photo below.)

Micah: Micah is the scholar of the little ones, excelling at reading in school. He has a hearing aid now, his second one actually. His first one "disappeared" after a week, but this new one has a little leash and clips to his collar. I was mortified that I couldn't even keep track of a hearing aid for a week! Micah is profoundly deaf in his right ear, and has moderate hearing loss in his left.

Dante: Our super special Dante is doing so well. I think it is a combination of several factors: his open heart surgery, being dairy free (and therefore eczema free) for many months now, and the routine and therapies of school. He also loves his iPad. The iPad is definitely the single smartest investment we have made. He can pull up videos and games like a pro.

Leif: Dante might be super-special, but Leif is on the road to being super-spoiled! He is the happiest little guy who just throws himself into the center of everything. These days he is starting to show some temper when he is reminded that he isn't always allowed front and center. He absolutely LOVES Kimberly, and gives her kisses galore. The other day when she was on the floor for tummy time, he sat down near her head and watched out for her. I cannot wait to see how he watches out for her when they are older.

Leif also loves to spend time outside, and will often bring up a shoe to put on. It does not matter whose it is, or that it is just one, but if he has a shoe on he will try to go outside. He especially loves to feed the goats, and knows exactly where the hay is kept. Leif also recently enjoyed a visit from Uncle Zach and Aunt Anna. We went to Higgins Armory, where they created a foam arch together.

Kimberly: Our baby girl is so wonderful. She is spending a lot more time awake and alert, is eating more at her feedings, and turns toward the sound of our voices. She is working on head control, although she does not always appreciate tummy time. Her Early Intervention has started, so a therapist will be visiting us weekly to help us know how to help her.

We are a busy household, and the days are just flying by. During this season of gratitude with Thanksgiving approaching, I am aware every day of what a blessing each of my children are. Jamie and I are truly thankful for the family we have, even when it seems like time is passing too quickly and we aren't quite keeping up. Some day the house will be completely organized and clean, the yard will be neat and pretty, but for now all we wish for is a little more sleep!

Four Years Ago

2011-11-10T09:43:00.000-05:00

It is never a good thing to hear your phone ring at 4:18am. Ours rang at that time four years ago today, and I learned that Dad had died. Not only did my siblings and I have to cope with that thoroughly unexpected event, it started us on an odyssey of coping with a mother who simply could not handle the death of her husband. Mom ended up living with us from December 2007-March 2008. Because of her bad decisions in dealing with grief, she missed Thanksgiving, Dad's funeral, and Christmas that year, instead spending those events in a hospital. It was not until she moved out that I was able to simply miss my Dad. His death had caused the 4 worst months of my life.

Four years ago today. He has been at complete peace and sitting with Jesus for 4years, and that is a wonderful thing. The grief and resentment have long since passed, now I simply miss him.

God is good.

Just can't stay awake

2011-11-04T14:32:00.000-04:00

Cold season is taking its first swipe at the kids. And Jamie? He's just tired, poor daddy. Kimberly is exactly in her favorite place to sleep, though.

Leif Discovers his Belly Button!

2011-10-14T16:15:00.000-04:00

And he loves his baby sister too!

Enough of the photos already!

Our Beautiful Baby

2011-10-10T08:50:00.000-04:00

Introducing Kimberly Marie...

2011-10-07T13:20:00.000-04:00

Kimberly Marie was born September 21st.
We first heard about her on September 30th.
She joined our family on October 5th.

Kimbie is our fifth adopted child, but this is so different. Having birthdad hand me his child just seems to add so much to the responsibility. He and her birthmom were personally choosing to entrust us with the care of raising their daughter, and asking us to promise to love her as much as they do. Don't judge them, ever.

Honestly, I can't remember now. Did I take her from him, or did he hand her over to me? It was over so quickly there at the end, and suddenly we were walking away with a new daughter.

Nine kids?!

2011-10-06T14:10:00.000-04:00

We now have nine children!

And sadly, we will not be going to Estonia.

I will tell the sad, beautiful, miraculous story of the past few days, after I get some sleep!

Ridiculously Cute

2011-09-20T10:56:00.001-04:00

Leif is ridiculously cute. Off the charts adorable. And he knows it!

Leif loves life. He loves to wear other people's shoes. He loves to copy everything his siblings do.

Leif loves to watch me roll the oats in the morning, and hops from foot to foot while waiting for his bowl.

Leif especially loves the camera.

While Leif is enjoying his oatmeal, he is unaware that far away there are little guys who don't get all the oatmeal they want every morning, with cream and maple syrup.

This little fellow is 4 years old. He weighs 11 pounds. I don't think he gets oatmeal every morning. I do think Leif would share with him if he could.

More than anyone else, Leif loves his Daddy. Daddy helps him with everything, including holding up his pumpkin.

This little guy has no idea what a Daddy is. I think Leif would share with him if he could.

Almost as much as he loves Daddy, Leif loves his brothers and sisters. They make music for him, and he tries to keep up with them.

This little guy will probably spend his life in a crib, and may never walk.

While Leif is busy being ridiculously cute here, he is unaware that there are millions of little boys and girls who do not have what he has. A family. They don't have a Mom to whisper "Jesus loves you" or a Daddy who likes to wrestle.

But we know. And we know that the Lord expects us to do something about it. It is not for us to ask God why He allows children to be orphaned, neglected, and abused. Instead we must ask what he wants me to do about it.

At Cracker Barrel, teamwork is expected. "If you are not helping a guest, you should be helping someone who is." How can that translate for Christians and orphans? If you are not adopting a child, you should be helping someone who is. I know that the truth is most people cannot adopt. But it is also true that everyone can somehow be supporting orphans.

Pray for the families who are adopting.

Financially support those who are adopting. (It does add up...every table I wait on leaves me a tip, and by the end of the night it adds up...it works the same for families trying to raise money for adoption!)

Pray for the orphans.

Donate money to the organizations that support the orphans who will never be adopted.

Pray.

Please also pray for us as we are trying to adopt Elsa in Estonia; pray for the process, and the finances.

Moving Forward!

2011-09-17T13:02:00.000-04:00

Wednesday we received our home study!! I spent Thursday making sure the 9 page immigration application form was just right. Friday morning Jamie and I signed it, he prayed over it, then later Leif and I went to the bank for a money order, then to the post office to mail our home study, the I800a, a copy of our marriage license, copies of our passports, and the money order for $890! Now we wait for a notice in the mail telling us to go into Boston for our fingerprints. After that, we wait approximately 2 months for the approval, Lord willing.

Once we receive approval I can plan the first visit to visit Elsa!! This first trip will be less than a week, and should cost around $2000, so that is my current fundraising/saving goal. We really want Nikita to go with me, which will add approximately $1200 for her plane ticket.

In the meantime, life goes on. The weather is a bit chilly but beautiful today, so Jamie and I took Leif and the triplets to Old Sturbridge Village to see a display of vintage automobiles, all pre-1920.

Can you see the horn on this red car, just to the right of Jamie? And the kerosene lanterns on the sides are so cool.

Leif and I posed under an apple tree.

The flowers are beautiful. We are so thankful that we have membership there (from Christmas gifts last year). There is always something new to see, as well as always fresh chocolate chip cookies in the store.

School!

2011-09-12T17:18:00.001-04:00

The triplets have been in school for 2 weeks now, and we are still tweaking our morning routine.

Amelia likes to help with the backpacks. I would get them ready the night before, except I am supposed to write in their communication books every morning.

Leif tends to put himself into the middle of the morning preparations.

We put their clothes into a bin in the hallway, each with their name, so the kids can get dressed as soon as they wake up. This is supposed to prevent mismatched or dirty clothing. So far I have had to send Amelia up each morning to change. She has a favorite pair of jeans she thinks she can wear every day.

Once they are all dressed it is time for some oatmeal and orange juice.

Sometimes they are ready and waiting for the bus 30 minutes early. And sometimes the bus is ready and waiting for them! Do you see the fourth musketeer, thinking he is going to school too? He wants to be everywhere they are.

Now that I suddenly am bored all day, I have been trying some new recipes. The croissants were delicious!

Of course, Leif does his best to alleviate any boredom I might encounter.

Leif enjoyed the carrot cake, even though I had not frosted or cut it yet.

I also have been knitting hats to sell as a fundraiser for our adoption of Elsa. I have 9 done so far!

Jamie is not teaching at the college this Fall (no one signed up for the class) and had no classes over the Summer, so we are quite behind on the amount we need for our adoption.

Dante returned to school today!

He was so tired when I brought him home. I am driving him to and from school for a few weeks, since we have to be careful how we lift him in and out of the carseat until his sternum is completely healed. He was so happy to be there today, and was standing at the door at 7:15 this morning. We left early and I drove him around a little bit to kill time, since he was so determined to get there! I am glad he was able to go back already, because he had become quite the couch potato, watching Kai Lan on his iPad.

My days are really far from boring, although I do find myself with more time to clean and find quiet time. The teens are so independent with their work that I have time for Leif and he is such a joy. I do plan to spend some time this year taking them to some museums that would have been difficult to go to with the triplets. They are all high schoolers now; Alexander is a senior. I really want to make the most of this time with them before they start graduating and going off to college.

This is "The Year I Will Stay Organized"!

2011-09-02T09:43:00.000-04:00

Oops, this is gonna have to be my April 1st post, who am I fooling??
:)

Back to Abnormal

2011-08-30T20:46:00.000-04:00

Last Thursday Dante had his ASD repaired via open heart surgery. Jamie and I traded off the time in the hospital with him, and we all were ready to get home yesterday. Everyone at Children's Hospital Boston is so amazing, and Dante recovered very quickly. I tried to use my time there well, knitting 2 dishcloths, 2 pot-holders, and 1 1/2 hats. I am hoping to sell some knit hats as an adoption fundraiser, I have about six made so far.

Dante was in an out of it for a while, just sitting on his hospital bed tugging at all the wires and IV's while watching Kai Lan on the iPad, but on Sunday he came out of his fog and started doing the interactive games and eating like crazy. He was ready to go. We do have to go back to Boston in a few weeks for a sedated echo to make sure all is well. They tried one on Sunday with just an oral sedative, but my little fighter needs to be out completely if they want to see anything.

Now we are home again, Leif has mostly forgiven me for leaving him so much and life is getting back to normal. Which is anything but normal. I am not really sure what normal is, unless I look at it from a typical American perspective. 2.5 kids, sports practice, the latest fashions, eating out once a week. That is certainly not us. I prefer my abnormal life.

For far too many people, normal is not a good thing. Countries where it is normal to put a less than perfect newborn in an orphanage. Orphanages where it is normal for those imperfect newborns become children so neglected they are emaciated and withdrawn. Doctors in our own country whose normal standard procedure is to encourage scheduling an abortion while giving a prenatal diagnosis of down syndrome. And an estimated 90% of those parents follow that advice because they don't know what else to do.

Being hopeless has become normal.

I think we as Christians should be rebelling against the world's version of normal. Why should we expect our lives to be calm, controlled, and predictable?

If you think about it, why do we put on the Full Armor of God, if we are not expecting a battle?

Dad's Cereal is Leif's Cereal

2011-08-19T09:39:00.000-04:00

It has been a busy week here, one of the last two weeks before school starts.

I bought 5 packs of socks and dyed them so each of the youngest five can easily tell which pair to wear. It drives me nuts that you cannot buy colored socks in large sets, they are always a mix. When I buy all white it is hard to keep them matched because we need 4 different sizes for the 5 kids.

Amelia helped me make tomato sauce. We also made 12 quarts of salsa- 6 medium and 6 hot. We have spanish rice once week for dinner, and chips with cheese and salsa are a favorite lunch, so we go through a lot of salsa. I will make at least one more batch before Dante's surgery next week.

Tuesday Jamie and I took Sunny to court and "re-adopted" her. She has been finalized for two years as far as Taiwan is concerned, but Massachusetts in one of the states that requires re-adoption in order to change the birth certificate. We took just her to make it special, and went out to breakfast afterwards. The judge gave her a stuffed panda and was super nice.

Dad fixed himself a bowl of granola this morning, and Leif was kind enough to let Dad have a bite.

Jamie finally decided it was a 2 spoon bowl, but then walked away for a moment to help someone else.

This is Leif's victory grin.

I still have a lot to do before next Wednesday. The girls need some school shopping done, and I have to sort through all their clothes first to see what we need. I have mixed emotions about Amelia, Sunny, and Micah going to public school for the first time. We have not even gotten a date for their IEP meetings yet, and I fight the urge to call and say never mind. It is likely that I won't even be here their first day, if Dante is still in the hospital. I know they will like school, but it has been a hard decision. It is not easy to find curricula that is at their developmental level without being too childish, but ever since we officially made our decision I have come across so much stuff that would have been great for them.

Jamie has taken the lead with the teens schooling this year, in that he has laid out what they will be doing. I cannot believe they are a sophomore, junior, and senior!

Right now everything in my mind is divided to before and after Dante's surgery. I have picked up a bunch of extra hours at Cracker Barrel this week, trying to get ahead for the week I will not be working while I stay with Dante. There is so much to get done before Wednesday, since when Dante is discharged we will be jumping right into the school year in addition to his recovery time at home.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We are still waiting on a final piece of paperwork for Elsa's home study. Please continue to pray for her and for our adoption process. Satan is fighting adoption on so many levels around the world right now, and God's children need your prayers.

Adoption and Dante Updates

2011-08-12T14:50:00.000-04:00

I have not done a post on our adoption in a while, so it is time for a reminder that we and our daughter-to-be are a family in need of your support!

Our home study was completed last week, but needed some revisions. Jamie and I had not done the required training for a Hague country. We had to go online and take 5 adoption courses to meet that requirement. Even though most of it was review for us, it is a very impressive set of courses that would benefit any family adopting a child.

And here she is!!:

Once we have our revised home study we will send it to Immigration in our government for approval. We will be given fingerprint appointments also. With that approval we will be able to officially have Elsa put on hold and travel to her country for the Preview Trip.

So much of this process is "hurry up and wait" on our part. I will be so thankful when we get this hurdle done. The wait for approval should be about two months. Hopefully less.

In the last 2 weeks we have had to pay $200 for the home study review, plus $149 for the adoption courses. When we file the immigration paperwork (next week?!) we will have to send along a cashiers check for $890 to pay for the filing of the forms.

Please continue to pray for Elsa, and for our finances.

Don't forget, Christmas is coming and one way you can support us is through the purchase of adoption awareness t-shirts! There is a link on the sidebar.

And Dante. Here is a photo of him being told his surgery is in 2 weeks. Actually, that is an older photo, but he is scheduled for open heart surgery on Thursday August 25th. We have been told that the hole in his heart is in such a way that the catheter approach will not work. I have every confidence in the surgeon and team who will be working on him, it is his time in the hospital that has me worried. Dante is not going to appreciate the IV and various wires that will likely be attached to him for the duration of his hospital recovery. Jamie and I are going to alternate staying in the hospital with him, although if Dante's recovery goes longer than 5 days it will run into school starting.

Please pray for a calm, quick recovery for our boy!

Vacation!

2011-08-11T22:53:00.000-04:00

Every Summer we spend a week at the cottage Jamie's parents have at Rumney Bible Conference. Here are just a few of the photos we took:

Micah in the pool is a riot- he thrashes around until he realizes he can easily touch. It's all fun after that.

Sunny enjoys splashing Micah and Amelia. She does not like being splashed by them, though!

Amelia climbed to the top of the slide, inched her way down, then slid off the end. We were so proud!!

Dante LOVES swimming. It was wonderful to see him laughing with Daddy.

Nikita threatening Dad. I have chosen not to post the photo of him giving her a dunking a few seconds after this shot.

Leif likes how we used the stroller as a double decker.

Amelia with pony tails!

6 of our 8 kids with Dad. This was our fist family vacation without Alexander, and he was missed. We are so proud of him being a junior counselor all Summer!

Time to head home after reflecting on another great vacation at Rumney Bible Conference.

Tilling the Land

2011-07-30T12:10:00.000-04:00

"He who tills his land will be satisfied with bread, But he who follows frivolity is devoid of understanding."

Proverbs 12:11

The Last Time

2011-07-29T12:37:00.000-04:00

January 15th was the first time Leif crawled. July 20th is the last time I remember him crawling. And that was only because I was chasing him and it apparently took too much concentration to giggle and walk fast.

I really want to try to remember his lasts. I don't want to one day realize it had been weeks since he held his hands up to me to be picked up and cuddled. He seems to be having so many "firsts" these days that I realize there are some baby things he just does not do anymore.

Right now he is trying to wedge a piece of green bean between his toes. How many of us remember the first time we did that??

We are not Crazy, We are Christians

2011-07-25T18:47:00.001-04:00

Some might argue that being a Christian is crazy. I suppose then I should not mind when people say Jamie and I are crazy for adopting a fifth child, bringing our total to 9. What bugs me though? The only people who have called us crazy are fellow Christians; not our coworkers, not our social worker.

How will we handle that many children? Excuse me?? Parents have been handling large broods for thousands of years. How many brothers did Joseph have? I'd guess there were a few sisters in there too. Just because a few of ours have Down Syndrome does not suddenly make life some incredible challenge. Quite frankly, it is one of my teenagers that wears me out the most these days!

Please, stop thinking like a spoiled American and think like a child of God. We can handle it because He is our strength and our Redeemer.

We do not need to eat out once a week or have steaks for dinner. We do not need to buy everything ready made for us. I am not the only person who saves money by baking my own bread, making my own laundry soap, growing a large garden, and cooking from scratch. Bean soup is nutritious and delicious. Beef stew goes a long way. No one in my family has ever complained about hand me downs. That does not mean I never buy new clothes for anyone, there can be some very good sales out there. Learning to live with less is a good thing.

Okay, I am done venting. Check out the link below to one of Mary Hunt's Everyday Cheapskate columns, which coincidentally was in my emails today:

We’ve Become a Nation of Softies

Online Party!

2011-07-20T19:00:00.000-04:00

I began reading a new book today, Fields of the Fatherless by Tom Davis.

Wow. I am still only in the first chapter (VBS every morning), but I think everyone should read it.

On page 37 he says. "God gave us the responsibility to care for the defenseless. It's through our hands the Father's love touches, it is through our voices His voice is heard, it is through our efforts and those of the church that His care is revealed to the ones the rest of the world has forgotten." He really nails it.

There are far too many orphans that the world, and the church, has forgotten.

And yes, this is another plea to help us show an orphan that she is not forgotten. Help us show her the love of Jesus. Help us show her orphanage that she does matter, that all children matter to our God and to us.

Elsa is no longer forgotten.

Our child needs your help to come home.

A friend of a friend has arranged an online 31 Products fundraiser for us. 100% of her commissions will go towards our adoption of Elsa. Through her efforts His care will be revealed to Elsa. Please visit the website here. There are some really neat products; I had never heard of "31 Products" before but am glad I know about it now! There is also a neat 31% off for every $10 spent sale. This fundraiser ends Saturday, so please take a look at it soon. Or now!

Dante's Heart

2011-07-18T14:18:00.000-04:00

We have been trying to keep an eye on Dante's Atrial Septal Defect (ASD) and last March he had an echocardiogram to try to determine the size of the hole. We were able to come to a few conclusions that day:

1. Dante's vocal chords and lungs are healthy.
2. Dante is able to physically express irritation and annoyance.
3. We needed a sedated echocardiogram if we wanted to know the size of that hole.

Today we went to the UMass Medical University Campus for the procedure. It took some time getting him sedated, first with a liquid and then an IV to administer the rest. Thankfully we bought him an iPad some time ago and he absolutely loves Starfall. I am used to having to hold him during blood draws, so it was harder for me to see him suddenly go limp then it is to hold him kicking and screaming.

Dr. S is wonderful, and was able to do everything he needed, including an EKG. Dante does indeed have a hole large enough to recommend repair. I carry a notebook with me to all of his appointments, and when Dr. S started his explanation I was about to start taking notes. Dr. S instead took the notebook and drew me two diagrams and wrote notes for me as he explained it!! Here is the same explanation he gave me. The hole is having no detrimental effects on him now, although his right ventricle is enlarged. However it is the possibility of some very bad long term problems that cause us to want to have this fixed now. Later would very likely be too late.

It was recommended that we take Dante to Children's Hospital Boston to have the catheter procedure done. The US News rated Children's Hospital Boston as number one in the nation for cardiology. It is only a little over an hour away, and Dante has even been there to the Down Syndrome clinic so I know where to go. I was told to expect a phone call within two weeks to discuss the timing and plans. We expect to be in the hospital for only one night. That is much better than up to a week if it was surgery being recommended.

I am very thankful for the wonderful doctors and nurse that took care of Dante this morning, and thankful that we have the nation's top experts so close by to continue to help him.

Common Objections to Adoption

2011-07-17T14:33:00.001-04:00

Apple Trees for Leif

2011-07-16T15:58:00.000-04:00

Today Jamie and I bought Leif 2 semi-dwarf apple trees with money he had saved from Nana and Poppy.
It has been a beautiful day, and Leif played in the sprinkler with Nikita while Dad dug some holes for the trees.

Leif was so funny, getting his hands wet and then rubbing them all over his hair. He thought he was taking a bath! I was surprised he took right to the spray and had such a blast with no crying.

Afterwards he went over to his apple trees for some pictures. He loved holding the shovel and playing in the loose dirt.

Leif even consulted with Dad on the soil quality, but I drew the line at the taste test.

We look forward to watching Leif and his trees grow in the coming years. He already likes to pick and eat the blackberries and blueberries, and I am sure he will learn to tend to his trees.

Troubled?

2011-07-15T08:33:00.000-04:00

"I have heard there are troubles of more than one kind.

Some come from ahead and some come from behind.

But I've bought a big bat.

I'm all ready you see.

Now my troubles are going to have troubles with me."

Dr. Seuss

Chocolate Cake and Superhero Dad

2011-07-13T10:17:00.000-04:00

I worked last night, and brought home with me a slice of Cracker Barrel Chocolate Coca Cola Cake. I decided to save it for breakfast. This morning Jamie was feeding Dante breakfast when Amelia noticed the cake on the table, still in its take home box. I immediately knew I should have hid it in my sock drawer.

She got three forks out, naming off Dante, Amelia, Mom as she took them out of the drawer. I told her it is MY cake. Amelia responded "Good Grief" (I hear that a lot from her) and put one of the forks back. She set the other two on the table and said "Mom and Amelia". I knew I had lost that battle, and apparently Dante lost too!

It turns out my biggest mistake was giving Leif a bite too. The best way to lose weight is to have Amelia and Leif share your food.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I am working again tonight. Since the boys are off working for the summer and Nikita has youth group and a sleepover tonight, Jamie will be home with the five youngest: Amelia, Sunny, Micah, Dante, and Leif.

Jamie is an amazing Dad, and he will have no problem taking care of it all. I did make scalloped potatoes and ham in the crockpot so he does not have to do a lot of cooking. He always puts the kids in bed, even the nights I am home, so they have a solid routine down.

Jamie is Superhero Dad. Even Dante, though trapped in the world of Autism, clearly thinks his Dad is tops.

We are blessed, the kids and I, to have him as our man.

Frustrated!!!

2011-07-11T15:33:00.000-04:00

We can afford to have 9 children. We can feed them, clothe them, see to their medical needs.
The problem is paying for the adoption of our 9th child.

It is not by any means affordable. We are looking at approximately $18,000 in total costs. Home study, agency fees, medical fees, immigration fees, translation fees, orphanage donation, visa and passport, airfare, travel in country, hotel and food in country, post-placement fees. It adds up. QUICKLY. And this is with some of the fees being reduced for special needs adoption.

We have had 2 tag sales that raised $329
We have had private donations totalling $320
We have $455.50 in our chip-in

This leaves a long ways to go. Today I began grant searching in earnest and it is driving me nuts.

Some background information for anyone reading who has never adopted: Having a home study done is VERY invasive. Jamie and I each had to write a biography. Our kids were questioned. Our home was inspected. We had CORI checks and background checks done. We will be fingerprinted. We have submitted tax returns and a complete breakdown of our finances. We have given references, and proven we have jobs and will continue to have jobs. We had physicals to show we are not about to die. We even proved our cat and dogs are up to date on their rabies vaccinations.
And in the end, our agency decided we are worthy.

So WHY does every grant organization out there expect us to prove all of this to them again??? All they need to know is we are Christians, we are adopting, and we need help. They get a home study as proof that we are adopting-- just read it and they will see everything they need to know. Why does a Christian adoption grant organization need to know my home equity, my retirement funds balance, how many bills I pay a month and how much is leftover afterwards?? Our annual income is right in the home study.

What has happened to Christian charity? To the body of believers helping one another?
If and when we get our tax return, we can pay for a large portion of this adoption ourselves. But not all. And not at the expense of having zero savings and three teens zooming towards college.

We need help, and apparently we have to bare ourselves to strangers (the grant organizations) who will decide if we are worthy and hopefully give it to us. Not to us, but to a little girl in Estonia who desperately needs a Dad and a Mom.

We are not the only family adopting. You can see others here , here , here , here and here . That is a lot of families seeking help for their international adoptions.

Now, I know the organizations need a way to decide who gets their limited funds-- again I say the home study shows income, faith, number of children in the home, and type of child being adopted. All the family needs to add is what their adoption will be costing. Applying for grants is just being told to prove ourselves worthy over and over again. (Not even going into how many times we have to give our Christian testimony-- as if some of us are more saved than others.)

I had better stop now. I should be spending my time filling in all these forms I printed out...

The Adoption Option

2011-07-09T16:22:00.000-04:00

When parents are adopting, they are put in the unique position of being able to choose their child. I realize this is not always the case, for example when waiting for the referral of a healthy baby. Parents give the agency a list of acceptable attributes-- gender, age range, correctible special needs --and then they wait for a referral. The wait can range from months to years depending on the country. In the end though, the parents have the option of refusing the referral.

Special needs adoptions are only slightly different. There are photolistings of children, and on some websites it is as simple as typing in the disabilities, ages, and gender the parents are willing to accept.

As Christians, when we believe that God loves all children and we feel compelled to adopt His orphaned children, is it right for us to pick and choose our children? After all, when pregnant we do not morally have that option. Many that give themselves that option-- selective abortion -- are condemned by us. Often the disabled children in orphanages are there because their birth parents were not able to handle the diagnosis, and the orphanage becomes their only option.

I struggle with this, and yet I am thankful for the choices I have as an adoptive parent. It is heartbreaking to see hundreds of photos of children who desperately need homes, and to admit that for some of them I would have to say "no". Honestly, it is nice to be able to say "the Lord is leading me this way, and He will lead the right parent to that child".

This is exactly what has happened to Jamie and I recently. We are no longer pursuing the adoption of a child in West Africa. It was not feeling right anymore, for a variety of reasons. I receive emails from RainbowKids.com about waiting children who "match" my criteria, and recently I found Elsa.

Jamie and I have felt so much peace in the last week as we have switched our plans. We are now pursuing the adoption of Elsa in Estonia. We are excited about her becoming our daughter, and we look forward to visiting her and her birth country in the next few months.

We need to file our I-800a to start the immigration process. The fee for that is $890. Once we have that approval she will be officially on hold for us. (Right now she is "unofficially" on hold for us) When the approval is in hand Nikita and I will travel to Estonia to meet her and accept her as our daughter/sister. Then the court process will begin, and 4-10 months later Jamie and I will travel to Estonia to make it official and bring her home.

Please pray that our home study is indeed done next week, since it has to go with the forms!
Please pray for Elsa, that she would be prepared in her heart for becoming a part of our family.
Please donate towards the cost of this adoption, by using the chipin in the sidebar. Every.little.bit.helps.

Frugal, healthy, or just cheap?

2011-07-08T13:20:00.000-04:00

I make my own baby wipes and laundry soap. It saves us money (LOTS of money), and I know what every single indredient is.

I make my own bread, cookies, yogurt and occasionally pasta. I would make pasta more if I had a Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer with the pasta maker attachment, but that would mean spending a boatload of money just to save money. (??) I like knowing what is in my food. We buy our beef at a local farm, and I have a garden every summer. I am not sure if I went a little overboard this summer -- 42 tomato plants -- but the canned sauces and salsa will hopefully last me well into the winter.

Sometimes I am just cheap though. I really wanted some pizza for lunch. We are trying so hard to save for our adoption that I could not justify ordering pizza. Nik does not feel well, Jamie is working, and the boys are at camp-- and I was not going to load my 5 little ones into the van and do a grocery store run for the mozzarella I needed! So I got the pizza dough rising, turned the gallon of milk in the fridge into mozzarella cheese, and used the leftover pasta sauce as pizza sauce.

Sunny loved it! We all did, actually.

Leif and Eleanor

2011-07-05T22:41:00.000-04:00

Zachary has a new hen, an adorable little chick he named Eleanor. Leif thinks she is his peep. Eleanor is super friendly and walks right up to us. She also shared her food with Leif, who decided chick food is not for him. (thankfully!)

Leif is not quite walking yet, but he is getting close! A few steps at a time, a little more each day!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
We will have exciting news soon about our adoption, including a huge change...in the meantime we have an immediate need to raise the funds for our immigration fees! Please pray for the little girl we hope to adopt, the funds, and the process.

Summer Jobs

2011-07-04T10:46:00.000-04:00

Last Wednesday Alexander went up to Camp Good News to begin his summer as a Junior Counselor. I will not see him again until August 12th! Yesterday Zachary went up to volunteer for Teen Service. He will be home on weekends, but it is still new to us all to have both teen boys gone for such long stretches. Amelia has been "calling" them on her pretend cell phone to see how they are doing.

In Zachary's absence, it was like a dream come true this morning for Amelia when she was asked to fill in doing the barn chores that he normally does three times a week. Mrs. G up at Rocky Ridge Beef Farm is wonderful and so patient with Amelia.

Amelia helped dole out the grain to the hungry bovines.

Here she is filling a bucket with silage, being watched by the cows.

The buckets have been handed out, and below Amelia takes the time to pose for a picture on a tractor.

Amelia needed clear instructions and obviously cannot completely fill Zachary's shoes, but she worked hard!

Afterwards she picked some blueberries, which were meant for trying out a new recipe but Leif ate half of them as soon as we arrived home!

I am glad the boys are spending the Summer doing works of service, Alexander for 7 weeks and Zachary for 3. We do miss them but I know that not only is this a time of them serving others, it will be a time of spiritual growth for them. It is also nice to have someone else having expectations of them, to help them to continue to be hard workers. Nikita has not left us, but she has been spending hours each day helping out at the stable where she keeps her horse. She plans to help with the camp weeks when they start.

Tomorrow Jamie starts his summer teaching job. We are so blessed to have him working as a teacher and being home each summer, so I am really going to miss him the next few weeks as he goes off every morning to work. Thankfully they are not full days. The money will be going into our adoption fund, which is good because we really need $890 to file the immigration paperwork. Once that clearance comes back our little girl will officially be put on hold.

Adding Leif to the chore chart

2011-06-24T14:10:00.000-04:00

Leif is not quite a year old yet, but he had decided that he is Daddy's little helper. It is a good thing, too, because on Wednesday Alexander is heading off to be a Junior Counselor at Camp Good News in New Hampshire. Leif is ready to step into big brother's spot on the chore chart.

He even helped put the groceries away.

In Proverbs it says to "Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it." I know that verse is not technically referring to the chores, but forming the habit of being helpful now will go a long way in the future.

Leif Eats! And Feeds...

2011-06-21T19:30:00.000-04:00

Tonight at dinner I suggested to Jamie that he hand Leif his bowl and spoon, instead of feeding him. Leif took the spoon, scooped up some rice, and ate it! He just takes in everything and had figured it out from watching us eat.

He also figured out that we take care of each other. We know this because he began feeding Dante when he saw him looking at the rice in the bowl. Dante let his baby brother take care of him. It was one of the sweetest moments ever.

~~~~~~~~~~

If you would like to help us as we try to adopt a little girl in West Africa, please see the chip-in on the side bar. Every day I see Leif loving his brothers and sisters, and I cannot wait to see him with a new little sister. Leif loves so unconditionally, and we can all learn from him.

Special Olympics 2011

2011-06-20T15:02:00.000-04:00

Sunny is so proud of her landing!

Amelia doing her balance beam routine.

Sunny finishing her floor routine.

Leif is their biggest fan!

Amelia and her medals.

Those girls had a blast!!

Loving the bus ride!

Micah is incredibly strong for his age and weight.

Micah was AWESOME!!!!

2 Gold

3 Silver

All Around Silver

Time to Redefine?

2011-06-17T19:09:00.000-04:00

I told Jamie today that maybe we should not raise money for our adoption of an orphan in West Africa. After all, it does not really seem to be working. Yes, we have had $240 gifted to us for the adoption expenses...5 donors in 12 days. And we are thankful!!

And we still need a lot more. There are lots of adoptive families who also need a lot more. I see blogs of fellow adoptive families pursuing the "ransom" for an orphan, and struggling to raise the money. Struggling to find the support of their fellow Christians in the pursuit of obeying God's command to "look after the widows and orphans in their distress". We are just one of many families trying to find the resources and the help to bring an orphan into our lives so that we can be blessed by his/her presence and be a part of God's purpose for that child.

Very few churches have an orphan ministry, a plan to help families in their congregation with the costs of adoption. Yet most churches have a missions budget. Most Christians are very aware of the need to support missionaries.

So maybe we should call our journey a short-term missions trip to West Africa. After all, we do need to take donations over with us. And we will be a witness to those who see our love for the orphans there and our desire to share God's love with a little girl. Our agency uses a portion of the adoption costs to have programs that help families stay intact...more mission work. The fact that our "missions trip" will have the incredible bonus of bringing home a child? Maybe we should not mention that too loudly, because it seems that adoption is looked on more as a personal decision, as opposed to a command from God...

There is an African proverb made very well known by a former First Lady. "It takes a village." I thought most villages have a church? A body of Believers?

Please, support our mission. Even $5 or $10 when given by everyone who visits will soon become the amount we need.

The Fruits of Their Labor

2011-06-15T19:16:00.000-04:00

Sunshine and Strawberries

2011-06-15T17:53:00.001-04:00

Today was beautiful, so six of the kids and I headed out for some strawberry picking.

Amelia was a hard worker, and was able to pick only the red ones.

Micah was also a hard worker, and even chastised his big brother when he saw a strawberry not quite up to his standards. He then threw the strawberry to the ground, to make his displeasure crystal clear.

Sunny and Nikita filled their container twice as fast as the rest of us.

Leif decided he was inspector #8. You cannot see it, but there is strawberry juice on his chin.

The hardest part was the long walk back to the van. Micah was dragging and begging Zachary to carry him. When we said "no" he stopped and decided not to move. Without saying a word, I signed "french fries" to him, and suddenly he was jogging past us to the van. (Nikita did end up carrying him partway.)

We went to Howard's Drive-In for some of their awesome fries, and a few cokes.

Dante was at school while we were picking, but wow did he spy the strawberries on the table and start munching when he got home. I'll be making some strawberry shortcake, and freezing most of the berries.

It was a wonderful day, and we are thankful!!

Happy Birthday Nikita!

2011-06-14T07:32:00.000-04:00

Nikita took the above photo of Leif gazing adoringly at her.

She is 15 today!!

Nik with her peeps.

Leif thinks she is so comfy for sleeping.

Um, despite the face, Micah adores big sister too!

Getting Away

2011-06-09T12:02:00.000-04:00

Tonight Jamie, Nikita, Leif and I are driving out to Edmeston, NY. Tomorrow Jamie and I will be attending a conference at Pathfinder Village. Dr. George Capone of the Kennedy Krieger Institute will be speaking on Medical and Behavioral Issues in Down Syndrome. Given Dante's dual diagnosis I am particularly interested in the behavioral issues aspect.

We are actually staying tonight at the Inn at Pathfinder Village, which is pretty neat. Tomorrow Nikita will babysit Leif while Jamie and I are at the conference. It will be nice to get away for an overnight, even if we are taking two of the kids along. You can visit their website at www.pathfindervillage.org and see why I am so excited to be going on this trip!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I received an email yesterday that our home study should be done early next week. This is great news, and I am grateful....BUT....we cannot do anything with our home study until we have the $3000 to pay the placing agency, and also the $3000 for our paperwork to be sent to West Africa for the referral. Then we will get a photo of our daughter-to-be! While we are extremely grateful for the donation chip-ins so far, it is going slowly.

Don't forget when you give it benefits more than just one orphan and one family-- the goat that will be donated through Heifer Project will have a positive impact on a family and their entire village!

Lessons from the Baseball Field

2011-06-06T16:40:00.000-04:00

The triplets had a baseball game yesterday. I was unable to go, but Jamie and Alexander report that a good time was had by all:

~~ Micah professionally stepped up to the pitcher's mound and used his foot to wipe the dirt off "the rubber". Once the game started though the seriousness was done and it was time to have fun.

~~"Fun" as defined by Sunny means throwing your hat around while in the infield. If it stays on too long she might get hat hair, and no self-respecting female wants that.

~~The outfield has no use since no ball is hit that far, but the grass is amazingly soft to sit upon. Occasionally a ball does roll that way, and then it is fun to chase.

~~Even though the best way to get a triple is to run straight to third base after hitting the ball, the kids did eventually agree to run to first, first.

~~It did take a while, though, for Amelia to leave her bat behind when running to first. Jamie reports she took her bat all the way to second yesterday.

~~Every game should be only 3 innings. That is when the triplet's sit down strike begins. It ends when hot dogs, chips, and soda are offered. "They suddenly got a spring in their step."

They did have a wonderful time yesterday, and the people at the Millbury Little League field were wonderful, even providing play by play announcing. Now that must have taken a lot of filling in and imagination!

I left the stool out...

2011-06-04T22:26:00.001-04:00

...And Leif found it.
He likes to play with the plastic lids and containers in the kitchen, and I can often hear him but not see him. So it was a little shocking to look over and see him at eye level looking back at me! He can climb lickety split, and has great balance. He was not happy when I put the stool away.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Our tag sale raised $115 today. I was also given 3 huge bags of beautiful baby girl's clothing sized 6 months- 3T to be either taken to West Africa or donated to a pregnancy center/mom in need here. Nikita sorted them all out and it was a very generous donation. I am not planning to do another tag sale fundraiser, but we are doing the chip-in for a Heifer Project goat and our adoption.

Whom Shall I Send?

2011-06-02T15:04:00.001-04:00

"We see the people going to market for provisions, eating by day, sleeping by night, talking their silly nonsense, getting married, growing old, serenely escorting their dead to the cemetery; but we do not see and we do not hear those who suffer, and what is terrible in life goes on somewhere behind the scenes."

-Anton Chekhov

"Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble and to keep oneself unspotted from the world." - James 1:27

The Bible states in many places the need to help those who cannot help themselves. If this is true, why is it that the church as a whole seems unwilling to consider the plight of orphans all across this globe? We have our Sunday services, Bible studies, and self help Christian literature. We live and go on our way, and meanwhile just over the horizon, there are children who have no hope. What does the Church do about it? Are there widespread adoption related ministries to help those who seek to take on this need? Generally speaking, the answer seems to be no. Why is this need neglected? I wish I knew. There is a clear need and a clear command to fill that need, yet it is neglected. In Isaiah 6:8, the prophet Isaiah hears the Lord call, "Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?" This is the question that the Lord asks all Christians. We all have a task from God. One of those tasks is surely the orphans of the world. We all should answer with the prophet: "Here am I! Send me."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The above portion of this post was written by Jamie. This is my part. I'm not nearly so eloquent.

I want to say "Here am I, send me." I am simply at a loss as to how we can say that to the Lord, when we simply do not have the money for this adoption. Grants take a long time and there are hundreds of applicants for each one, because there are so few to go around. Fundraising is difficult and time consuming, and I find it difficult to ask people for help. I am not a charismatic outgoing person, I am not an extrovert, and I do not have a lot of connections.

Where does that leave us? I don't know. Where does that leave a little girl who has Down Syndrome and is living in an orphanage in West Africa? I don't know.

What is she doing?

2011-06-01T13:16:00.001-04:00

This morning the five youngest kids and I had oatmeal for breakfast, like we do every weekday.
I wonder what my daughter in West Africa had for breakfast, and was it enough?

Later I was rolling around on the floor with Leif, listening to his giggles. Alexander recently taught him the joy of rough housing, and he loves a good romp.
I wonder if anyone tickles my daughter in West Africa while she waits for Jamie and I to get her?

Tonight Jamie will help the kids brush their teeth and tuck them into bed with a prayer and a kiss.
I wonder....

When will we have the money to bring her home?
We need help.
Please pray for my daughter in West Africa, as she wonders what is beyond her orphanage walls.

Micah the Scout is 9 now!

2011-05-30T14:01:00.000-04:00

Last Wednesday Micah turned 9! He is just about the cutest guy God ever created. One night last week when I arrived home from work, he said "Momma's home!", gave me a huge hug, then turned to Jamie and said, "Look Dad, my friend Mom!"

This morning Micah took part in the town's Memorial Day observances by marching in the parade with the Scouts to the ceremonies at the cemetery and town square.

Micah opted not to actually march with the scouts.

He preferred to march with the ladies.

I guess he is a little ladie's man.

As in he is short, and he fancies the ladies.

Jamie tells me that he was waving at everyone, and if someone neglected to wave back to him he would point at them until they did. Apparently rudeness is not to be tolerated.

In a few weeks Micah will be attending Cub Scout Day Camp up at Treasure Valley. That should be a good time; for everyone involved!!

Roxanne

2011-05-23T20:45:00.000-04:00

Roxanne grazing with the kids

Roxanne relaxing in her paddock.

Last week was a very long week; although we have been so busy it also seems like the week was here and gone in a flash.

Monday Amelia went for a blood draw, which is never pleasant. Since was taken of Levoxyl six months ago she has been growing more emotional and prone to meltdowns.

Tuesday we found out our beloved shetland pony, Roxanne, had to be euthanized. She was only our pony for 7 months, but Nikita and Micah had grown especially fond of her. She became completely blind over the winter, and was scared of every noise. We also found out at the end she had Cushings Disease, which would explain why she had trouble keeping weight on. She was taken away Tuesday night, and Nikita was able to say good-bye to her Wednesday.

Wednesday we also found out we have to switch gears in our adoption. We have found out, though, that an orphanage in our country of adoption does possibly have some girls with Down Syndrome. We are excited to see what the Lord has in store for us.

Thursday Amelia had her annual physical. She received two vaccinations. On Thursday I also called our school district to sign the triplets up for school next Fall. Jamie and I have been discussing it for a number of weeks now, and we decided to put them in public school next year. It was a very hard decision for me, although I know we have a great elementary school and they will enjoy themselves.

Friday Amelia saw her endocrinologist, and even though her blood levels were in a decent range, he did agree to put her back on Levoxyl. We will continue to check her blood every three months, and see if her temperament improves in the meantime.

Saturday was our tag sale!! We made $215, thanks to the generous donations of many items to sell. I am trying to remain positive, because that is a good amount. BUT, we need $6000 before our adoption can go anywhere. We have paid $250 and $300 to the two agencies involved for start up; we will be paying the $1500 for the home study this Wednesday when the social worker is here. We even have the $890 filing fee for the immigration paperwork and fingerprints. But we need the placing agency fee of $3000 and then almost immediately the first part of the country fee, another $3000.

That would be 26 more weeks of $215 tag sales, which is way too long to wait!!! Anyone know of a good loan shark? Or is that an oxymoron??

This week I am busy cleaning and getting us all ready for the Social Worker visit Wednesday at 3pm. Soon after that we should have our completed home study, and then...we wait on the funds. I trust God has a plan to help a little girl in West Africa become our daughter.

Already?

2011-05-16T16:38:00.001-04:00

Amelia was our first experience with adoption, and it could not have gone more smoothly. It was 8 months from meeting the social worker for the first time to meeting our daughter for the first time. The funding fell into place and the timing was perfect.

Our next three adoptions had their ups and downs, times of not knowing how we would pay for it, and times of having to really push some people to get their part done in the process.

And now it has begun again. It is so hard to know if delays and roadblocks are of the Devil, since there is no way he wants an orphan to be placed into a loving Christian home...or are these just the normal trials of an adoption? I Peter 5:8 " Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour."

In our particular situation, the baby girl has special needs and because of this she needs a family as soon as possible. That means whoever has a home study and the fees in hand becomes her family. We are not done with the home study, and we certainly do not have the fees in hand. We will have the home study in a few weeks, but we really have no idea about the funds. This is so frustrating...we cannot apply for grants or adoption loans without a home study, but need a large portion of the funds as soon as it is ready.

So perhaps the little baby girl I have already named is not my daughter. There are other little girls in that country who need a mom and dad...but I was so sure the Lord told us to pursue this little baby. Not that it still is not possible, but I just don't like feeling like I am racing other potential families to get it all together first. Who will our daughter be?

So we keep pulling together the home study paperwork, keep planning a tag sale fundraiser for this weekend, keep praying for the funds to come NOW, and wait to see what the Lord has in store for the Lindsay family.

Loving their big sister

2011-05-14T07:31:00.000-04:00

Leif wanted to cuddle with Amelia on the couch when she wasn't feeling well this week.

Yesterday she was on floor and Dante came scooting over to climb on her back.

He was giggling like crazy!

How can those two guys not adore a big sister like Amelia??

There are some things in life money can't buy...

2011-05-08T16:00:00.000-04:00

$1750 Home Study fees
$3000 Placing Agency fees
$8000 Country fees
$ 820 Immigration fees
$5000 travel fees

Knowing that we have obeyed God's will and in turn have a new daughter:
PRICELESS

Yes, we are adopting for a fifth time. However, since we refuse to have a credit card baby, we will have to do fundraising and apply for grants.

Please pray for us throughout this process.

Bunnies, Baseball, and Balance Beams

2011-05-04T22:04:00.000-04:00

"Look Ma, no penny!!"

We had a wonderful Easter, and Leif enjoyed the egg hunt at Nana and Poppy's house.

Spring has sprung, and so have the activities. I am sure we are not the only busy family!

Amelia, Micah, and Sunny started their second year playing in the Challenger Division of little league baseball. I forgot the camera for opening day but caught Amelia at home afterwards.

I also forgot to remind Jamie to take them to team photo night yesterday. I suppose that is not necessarily a bad thing since we are already missing two of the baseball caps. I do have all three shirts stashed in my dresser though! Their first game is this Saturday.

Last Saturday that had the baseball opener at noon, and the assessment rounds for Special Olympics that evening. I did know where all three of their leotards were.

Unfortunately, I am not sure they all got put away afterwards.

Sunny was in a bit of a goofy noncompliant mood. On her balance beam routine she kept collapsing and laughing into her volunteers arms and would not cooperate.

It was all for show, and she did love it when she was given her participation medal. The games in Boston are coming up Father's Day weekend.

Leif and the Penny

2011-04-21T09:47:00.001-04:00

Our family went through the usual round of colds from February into March, including little Leif. By the first week of April I was concerned that Leif still had an awful cough, even though his nose was perfectly clear and he was having no fever. He certainly was just as bouncy as Tigger, just always coughing a loose yucky cough.

On April 7th I took Leif and Amelia to the doctor, where she was diagnosed with a sinus infection and Leif was given antibiotics for his cough.

It did not get better, and grew worse. Three times he had coughing fits while eating and threw up. (All over me twice, but who's counting?) I took him back to the doctor on Tuesday, where he was prescribed a stronger antibiotic. The doctor then asked me if Leif ever puts anything in his mouth.

Really?!?! He is a nine month old baby boy. Everything gets the mouth test. We were sent to a hospital for an x-ray, just as a precaution to rule out the possibility of him having aspirated on something.

"Rule Out" became "did you know he has a coin stuck in his throat?"

We had gone to a hospital that is not quite as busy at the larger one with a pediatric emergency department, since it was to be a quick trip. Unfortunately it meant we were at the wrong hospital if we wanted the best treatment for him. They decided to send us to the other one, but since he was now in their care it meant they were responsible for him if something happened on the three mile drive between hospitals.

They insisted on transporting Leif via ambulance.

And then we began the hurry up and wait. Amelia had come with us, but she was great. She does still have some fear of people in scrubs and white jackets, so anytime she was given a friendly greeting she said, "L-E-I-F" and pointed at Leif. Just making sure they know who the victim is here.

Leif in his johnny waiting to be sent to the OR.

By 5pm we were all ready for Leif to have an emergency endoscopy to remove the coin. I was quite nervous; our simple trip for an x-ray was not supposed to end in my son being given anesthesia and a surgical procedure with a long list of could-go-wrongs.

Sleeping off the side effects of the anesthesia

Amelia was pretty upset that we let the doctors wheel Leif away while we just watched. When they were done and they called is in-- 7pm now-- the nurse tried to tell us Amelia could not go into the recovery room. I said she was not leaving the hospital without seeing her baby brother.

He was fine, it was a penny lodged in his esophagus. It had been there at least 4 weeks, so he was getting pretty raw and had some coughing fits while waking up. He was admitted and kept overnight for observation.

And now we are home again. He still has the cough; it should be gone within a week. You might think that after this experience our bouncy little guy would be "...a Humble Tigger...a Sad Tigger, a Melancholy Tigger, a Small and Sorry Tigger."

Nope. He is still "Tigger, a Friendly Tigger, a Grand Tigger, a Large and Helpful Tigger, a Tigger who bounced, if he bounced at all, in just the beautiful way a Tigger ought to bounce."

And Jamie and I are praising God that He has been watching over our little guy through it all.

Doing it All

2011-03-28T20:03:00.000-04:00

Today for the one millionth time someone said to me, "I don't know how you do it all". I never really know what is meant by that phrase. What exactly do they think I accomplish in a day?

The kids dress themselves in the morning. They get their chores (mostly) done and beds (mostly) made.
So I have decided my definition of it all is really quite simple.
There are 2 things I must get done every day:

1. Pray
2. Feed the kids (preferably 3 times)

Everything else is a bonus. A "yay me" moment.
Dante made it to school-- yay me!
I got a load of laundry done-- yay me!
Most of the bills were paid this month-- yay me!
and so on...

That is how I get it all done.
God is in control; I feed the kids.

Dante and Leif

2011-03-22T16:15:00.000-04:00

Leif is not sure what to think of Dante. Everyone else in the house adores Leif, but Dante is just indifferent. And if you ask Leif, that is just plain wrong. Everyone exists to smile at him, feed him, keep him content, and will be rewarded with his smiles and laughter.

Leif often reaches out to Dante in an attempt to get attention from him. He does this at dinner when Dante's plate is just close enough to reach over and grab some pasta. It is much more fun to irritate big brother by grabbing pasta then wait for Dad to spoon feed him the nightly mush.

Today Leif discovered how Dante can entertain him:

The Walker.

Dante was heading across the floor right when Leif was reaching out to snag his sleeve. Leif ended up grabbing the walker and walking along behind Dante.

It was fun!

When Dante abandoned the walker Leif started pushing it across the floor.

He walked back and forth, getting frustrated and then rescued, whenever he ran into something...

which was often.

Here we have the Leif equivalent of wrapping his car around a tree. Thankfully he was going only 55 steps per hour.

Leif was not a happy camper when we took his keys and put the walker away.

Dante's Appointment

2011-03-19T16:37:00.000-04:00

Yesterday Dante was supposed to have his 6 month check with the Pediatric Endocrinologist. I even remembered to take him on Wednesday for the blood draw to check his hormone levels (hypothryroidism). Thankfully, I decided to call and verify his appt, since I had not received the typical automated phone reminder. The appointment had been cancelled, and I did not receive notification.

Since I had intended to pick up Dante at school, he had been sent without a lunch. I quickly made one and took it in. While in the classroom, he heard me talking and came scrambling over. It was really sweet because he kept kissing me. It was also sad because he started crying when I told him good-bye. I could hear him as I left and walked down the hallway. In his book after school the teacher said he had screamed and thrown things for 30 minutes after I left. I guess he loves me? He really does like school, I am not sure why he was so determined to leave with me this morning.

In another frustrating turn of events for Dante-- we now have a gate separating the living room from the dining area/kitchen. Dant can no longer climb onto the table and throw everything off it, or clear the counter too. Leif does not appreciate the gate either!

Leif did enjoy fingerpainting with his lunch yesterday, though. I pureed a banana with blueberries and a touch of homemade goat's milk yogurt. He really wanted to feel it, so I let him have some fun.

This post is suddenly done, Dante and Leif are fighting over the drum...

Old Sturbridge Village

2011-03-17T19:45:00.000-04:00

Today was absolutely beautiful! After lunch six of the kids and I headed into Sturbridge to visit "The Village". We are blessed to live near this 1830's living history museum and purchased membership so we can visit often. Today was Leif's first trip!

Amelia, Sunny, and Micah particularly like carrying the map that is given to all visitors. They try to keep track of where we are on the grounds.

At the Freeman farm we found a very friendly calf. Micah did not want to leave it, although he was

eventually persuaded.

Amelia and Sunny posed in the Freeman Barn, in front of the hen's corner. Off to the right across the road is the Cooper Shop. In there we were shown how buckets are made. Amelia enjoys interacting with the "interpreters" that work in the various buildings.

Alexander, Micah, Sunny, Amelia, and Zachary beside the Grist Mill.

Leif enjoyed the visit. He loves to be outside and watch everything around him.

This was so funny! Inside the main entrance were the cut out photo boards. This one looks so real!!

Of course we also stopped in at the Village's General Store for lemonade and chocolate chip cookies.
A perfect almost-Spring day!!

Dante's Heart

2011-03-07T09:04:00.000-05:00

It is not unusual for a baby born with Down Syndrome to have a heart problem. Micah had a large hole which was repaired with open heart surgery at 10 months. Amelia had a small hole which closed on its own. Sunny had no problems at all.

Dante has a small hole in the upper chambers of his heart (ASD), and it has not closed by now and likely will not. Jamie and I took him to a cardiologist appointment last Thursday where an echocardiogram was done, and then we discussed our options. Dante was extemely uncooperative during the echo, but one glimpse did show the hole is still present.

We were told it will not bother him any time soon, but in 10+ years it could cause serious problems. There is a 20% chance of heart failure or lung problems in his adulthood. If we choose to repair the hole, it needs to be done before he turns 8 for maximum success, and there is a 1-3% risk of serious problems. It would be a minimally invasive procedure, not surgery.

This seems like a pretty clear case to us...1-3% risk now or 20% risk later. However, our first decision was to have a sedated echocardiogram done to be sure about the size of the hole. After that we will likely schedule the procedure. He is 5 now, and I would rather just get it done than wait a few years.

One good bit of information did come out of his appointment. When he was screaming and writhing about on Thursday while Jamie and I held him, an intern tried to entertain him, and the expert attempted the echocardiogram-- one of the receptionists heard him and brought in her iPhone for him to play with a musical pop up shapes and colors app. It immediately distracted him and allowed the one glimpse we had of his heart. I have been telling Jamie I think we should try to get Dante an iPad, and for me this confirmed that he would benefit from one. Jamie did not disagree, but they are expensive. There are so many different "apps" that are benefiting children with autism, and I think the larger iPad would be easier for him than the iPhone. It was so nice of the woman to leave it with him for the duration of the testing.

Now we are waiting for a call to schedule the sedated echocardiogram, and we will proceed from there.

God is good!

Random Thoughts and Photos

2011-02-28T13:18:00.000-05:00

February became a very busy month. We had five baby goats born the first week, and Nikita began milking the does twice daily. We have already sold four of the babies, and Nik is keeping Annabelle.

Here is Sunny holding Annabelle. The kid (caprine, not human) thinks she is a puppy, and naps with the dogs in the kitchen. When it gets warmer she will join the herd.

Leif enjoyed playing with the babies. They were just his size and only occasionally a bit overly friendly. This little guy is Murdock, he and his sister were sold to a pony farm and petting zoo.

I do not normally take photos of the children in distress, but this was too sweet to pass on. I did not get to Leif quickly enough, so Amelia picked him up and began rocking her baby brother.

Amelia will be turning 10 this Friday!! She recently began attending Sunday School. I am really thankful for her teacher there; it is not often someone will simply take one of the kids without expecting Jamie, me, or one of the teens to stay.

This is definitely a random photo. It was taken on my cell phone. I had found a pair of swim goggles and put them on Leif. He was giggling!! I think he wanted me to find a motorcycle with a side car and take him for a jaunt.

Our beautiful Sunny.

Dante was roaming the house with his walker when he discovered the humidifier. He found it quite amusing to stick his face in the vapor.

Dante does have his bed tent now. I thought I had a photo but it must still be in the camera. He absolutely loves it, and even puts himself to bed sometimes. He climbs in and pulls the flap down for to zip. It is so nice to know he is safe in there all night. Amelia's Sunday School teacher bought it for him, and we are very thankful!!!

We have taken Dante off dairy. It seems to be making a difference; his eczema has been clearing dramatically, and he is suddenly using more words. We have not seen a difference in his bowel movements, but it has only been two weeks. After a bit we might decide to also remove wheat products from his diet.

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Also this month Micah participated in the Cub Scouts Pinewood Derby. Zachary helped him design and paint his car. He did not win, but definitely had a lot of fun at the race. Amelia raced a car in the family race.

Jamie and I celebrated our 19th Anniversary on the 22nd. We took Leif and Amelia to Longhorn's for lunch, then went to Barnes and Noble for some book shopping. I have been reading The Imitation of Christ by Thomas a Kempis, and Jamie bought me my own copy. Every Christian should read this book. The translation I have is by Ronald Knox, and is very readable.

Zachary added a rooster to his flock, we went yesterday to pick up "Sgt Pepper". He is a polish bantam, although Zachary thinks he looks more like a sultan. He is a handsome bird either way.

Now we are heading into March, such a dreary month. I intend to start planning my garden and possibly starting some seeds to help hurry the month along. I think the triplets will enjoy doing this with me.

And Leif!! He climbed up a step today!?!?! He is 8 months old today, and thinks he so much older. I have learned to truly enjoy the moments when he slows down to cuddle, because the kids really do grow so fast.

That's my update!

God is good!!

Triplets Join the Family!

2011-02-03T16:48:00.000-05:00

When we bred our goats back in September, we did not know that this particular February would start out so snowy and cold. When Daisy gave birth to triplets late last night, we were a bit concerned. This is our first time with goats and their newborns, so we did the best we could to warm them up, then made the decision to bring mama and kids into the house for the night. (We do not consider heat lamp in our lean-to an option considering the dangers of fire.)

The kids rallied quite well after we got them into Nikita's bedroom. Jamie and I made it to bed by 1am, but Nikita did not fare so well, considering how crowded her room had become.

Leif crawled over, stood up, and enjoyed looking at the babies as we were preparing to move them back out to the lean to. We do intend to bring just the kids in for the night, since it will be in the single digits again.

Two girls and a boy! Nikita is holding Mattie Bea, Murdock, and Annabelle. Murdock came out hind feet first, but besides that the delivery went like clockwork. Jamie even cut the cords.

As of now, Gidget is in the lean to also about to "freshen", so Nikita might have a different set of kids in her room tonight! Our third doe that was bred is not due until April, and by then Nikita will be an old hand at assisting and milking.

The Words of My Mouth

2011-01-30T10:19:00.001-05:00

"Let the words of my mouth

and the meditation of my heart

Be acceptable in Your sight,

O Lord, my strength and my

Redeemer."

Psalm 19:14 NKJV

I have this verse printed on blue construction paper and hanging above one of our doorframes. I actually have a number of verses hung throughout the house, but lately this is the one I have found quoting to myself far too often.

Usually it is not the words of my mouth that are a problem. After all, it really is not that hard to keep my mouth shut. Usually. Last night at work I sort of lost it. Well not sort of, I did lose it. I waitress four nights a week at a Cracker Barrel, and my coworkers are good people. Most of them do not know Jesus, however they are quite familiar with Mary Jane. Their vocabulary is quite colorful, to put it mildly. But I like my coworkers and I usually do not give too much thought to their adjectives.

Many times in a night I will hear the word "retard" casually tossed out as a teasing insult. I do not like it, but I am not out to change the world one coworker's language at a time so I ignore. Unfortunately last night I had enough when three of the cooks were having too much fun in the "teasing insult" category. I really was not paying attention to the conversation, but kept hearing "you're so retarded that...." and "well, you are so retarded that..." I snapped, and I yelled at them. Yes, yelled at them that they had better lay off and so on. So much for the words of my mouth being acceptable in the Lord's sight. No seasoning with grace there!

To their credit, they do not know anything about my family. One gave a totally bogus apology that they were discussing the retard pedal on their cars. One just avoided me for the rest of the shift. And one gave a very sincere apology.

How much better am I then they, though? No I don't call people retards, but I have been known to call the driver that cuts me off an idiot. Or a moron. Both of those words used to be the medical diagnoses that preceded "mentally retarded". They were getting used as insults though, so in 1965 the term was switched from "idiot" to "mentally retarded". I do need to take more care in what I say.

Even when I manage to keep my mouth closed, it does not mean that the meditations of my heart are acceptable. That is the hard part. Not even thinking less than pleasing thoughts? I have a lot to work on. If the meditations of my heart are pleasing to the Lord, then I know that the words of my mouth will be too. I am thankful He is my strength and my Redeemer.

Spring is in my house

2011-01-29T10:42:00.000-05:00

Outside the snowbanks along our driveway are level with the top of my head. Micah struggles through waist deep snow to go check on "his" pony. Yet walking into the house is leaving winter behind and embracing spring.

Thirty-six baby chicks arrived yesterday, and their constant cheeping is what has transformed the inside of my house into a reminder that Spring will come. Zachary is raising the chicks for a local organic farm.

Sunny is seen here holding one of the chicks that was struggling a bit after the long journey here. Unfortunately a few did not survive the trip.

When the box was opened and Amelia realized what had arrived, she immediately took over the situation. While Zachary transferred the chicks to the box with a heat lamp, Amelia put on her boots, scarf, and gloves (no coat), grabbed the feeder and headed out to the coop to get the babies some food. She meant well, but these chicks needed their organic chick starter, not the big hen's egg layer crumbles!

Micah likes to sit and watch the chicks, and checks on them frequently. Unfortunately, Dante took advantage of our distraction and took off up the stairs. I found him in the tub fully clothed, shoes too, tapping on the spout trying to figure out to get the water running.

Leif was unfazed by it all, and was busy trying to forget that he is only six months old and figure out how to get the toy boat to float. Maybe he and Dante should have worked together on this one--Dante had the tub and Leif had the ark...

So, until the real Spring gets here, we will enjoy having the sounds of spring inside and the joy of snow outside!

Happy Birthday Alexander!

2011-01-19T20:46:00.000-05:00

Alexander is 17 today. Amelia and Micah helped make him a cake.

Sunny magically appeared when it was time to lick the beaters. I had to dip an extra one in the batter so there would be three for licking.

Leif had his first taste of chocolate.

And tried to get Alexander to give him his second taste of chocolate.

Dad served the cake.

A bit dark, but here is the birthday boy!

And his gift? I signed him up for the SAT test! He'll thank me later. Maybe.

Please Slow Down

2011-01-17T18:53:00.001-05:00

Today I heard Leif crying in his crib and knew his nap was over. When I went to pluck him up, he was STANDING at the railing. It was most definitely unexpected, and honestly not a welcome sight.

It has been so long since Jamie and I had a NT baby that I am not sure if Leif is simply a genius, or we are so used to every developmental milestone dragging out for a year that Leif merely appears to be a genius. (Notice how kids aren't normal or average now, they are Neuro-Typical, or NT-- everyone gets a label!)

Of course I know that Leif is not a genius, but did he really need to start crawling this past weekend? And pulling himself to standing in the crib? He just turned 6 months two weeks ago!

Already Leif and Dante are having Tug of War over their toys. Due to the dual diagnosis of Down Syndrome and Autism, Dante is waaaaay behind developmentally, but I thought I had more time than this before he and Leif had the same interests.

In an effort to find a way to help Dante, this past week I attended the first of a series of seminars on DIR Floortime, offered by the Autism Resource Center of Central Massachusetts. I am hopeful that this will teach me to help Dante. It is described as follows:" Floortime, a systematic way of working with a child to help him climb the developmental ladder, is the heart of what we call the developmental approach to therapy. It takes the child back to the very first milestone he may have missed and begins the developmental process anew." The Special Needs Child, by Stanley I Greenspan, M.D. and Serena Wieder, PhD. It uses a play environment to climb through the child's developmental levels.

Here is my special guy asleep in my arms. I cherish moments like this, and they help me to enjoy him now instead of worrying about his future.

SNOW!!!

2011-01-12T10:01:00.000-05:00

Micah is thrilled to have a worthy amount of snow to go shovel!

This is Sunny's second winter in Massachusetts, and she is loving the snow. She's not in Taiwan anymore!!

Amelia was the first one out, at 8AM. There is already over a foot of snow.

What would a blog entry be without an adorable baby picture?

And proof, Micah does have a charming smile that gets him whatever he wants.

The Spectacles

2011-01-06T15:48:00.002-05:00

They stay on only as long as there is ice cream in the bowl. Not kidding!

Micah's Meanderings

2011-01-05T18:11:00.003-05:00

Saying he "meanders" describes eight year old Micah in every way. His attention span can be a tad short. One day A told Micah five times to get his shoes on because we were going somewhere. I had to remind A that each time was in fact the first time he had told Micah to get his shoes on...or at least it was as far as Micah was concerned! Apparently there are just too many distractions on the way to the shoe rack.

Micah is a boy that always has a smile for everyone. His quirkiness and happiness is what makes him so lovable. He likes to strip to his skivvies and strike a muscle man pose (not sure where he learned that from, maybe Dad when I am at work?). He also likes to sing and dance while standing in front of the television-- so he can see himself in the reflection. Every now and then out of the blue Micah will run over, grab the freezer door handle and say, "Can't...hold...on...much...longer..." (Between the Lions, PBS)

Micah is a Wolf Cub Scout, and recently he went to one of the AHL Worcester Sharks games with Dad and Zachary. He had a great time!

These photos do not do Micah justice; he does not like the camera. I am not sure why, but it is actually hard to get this happy go lucky lad to smile for the camera.

One thing about Micah: He is absolutely the most stubborn little guy you will ever meet. I have learned to have a stare down contest with him when he is being defiant. It takes a willingness to outwait him without smirking or resorting to the "I am bigger therefore you will obey" mentality. I will tell Micah to take his plate to the sink and he will look at me, say "No", and cross his arms defiantly. Then the staring commences. He'll look at me. He'll look to the side. He'll look back at me. I'll point to the sink. He'll look away again. Then, "Sorry Mom, sorry" and off he goes to the sink and on to his playing. Sometimes it becomes his idea. "Micah go potty". "No mom, no". After 30 seconds of staring at each other, "Mom, potty!!" and off he goes. If I make the mistake of smiling during our staredown he knows I'm had and puts on the full charm.

Micah loved our recent snow storm. He would get everything on and announce "snowman!", then go outside and spend an hour with a shovel moving snow around. When he is done he walks in, drops all his snow clothing where he is and announces "cocoa Mom, cocoa!".

There is never a dull moment with Micah!

Dante's Doin's

2011-01-01T16:50:00.006-05:00

We are past due on updates, so I have decided to start with Dante. I really cannot say if he is doing well, because I honestly have no idea how he ought to be doing.

It recently occured to me that sometimes I think of him not as my son who has down syndrome and autism, but rather as my autistic son. It bothers me that this happened;no one should be defined by his label. I am still trying to figure out just what I should be doing to help my son; some days I honestly have no idea what exactly I should be doing with him. When Dante gets home from school he likes to lay on the floor in a sunbeam, setting his toy drum to continuous music and swaying his head back and forth. He is happy in his little world doing this, but should I be dragging him into our world? Sometimes I am so torn about it. In the end I know it is in his best interest to be drawn as much as possible into our "world".

Dante has discovered television! He stands right up next to it and watches. His particular favorite is hockey games. He will crawl away during commercials, but races back when he hears the game back on. It is amusing to watch him watching TV. Unfortunately he will sometimes hit the screen with whatever toy he is currently holding for stimming.

Dante has become quite the expert with his walker, zooming about the house now. I have had to pick him up early from school a few times, and he fairly races down the hallway when we are leaving.

Dante absolutely loves going to school. I am very happy he goes, but I really need to start stepping up my advocacy for him when it comes to his IEP and services. I have been given written recommendations by a few specialists and doctors, and passing them along to his teacher and therapists does not mean they get implemented, much to may dismay. I was a bit naive I suppose.

One of Dante's biggest hurdles is communication. He has very few words, very few signs, and much that he needs to say. We know he is hungry when he climbs up on the table and throws everything off it. He recently discovered the bench at the end of our table is up against the counter. So now he also clears the counter until he finds food. Often when he done eating he will throw his plate. It took me at least 4 broken plates to decide that he only gets plastic. The other day he was drinking milk on his own, spilled a little on his shirt, so threw the rest across the room. I want to buy him a communication push button device, but have to save up for it first.

And his glasses are here! He could really use some prayer in this area. If he would let them near his face without screaming and writhing about, he might realize he can see with them on!!

He was standing at the counter eating noodles as I made lasagna, but when I held his glasses out to him Dante took his bowl of pasta, turned his back to me and sat down to eat.

We do love our little Dante, and though it grieves me that he has so much against him, I know that the Lord is with him. He loves to sit on the couch with James and I, even insisting on sitting between us. Dante will often intently look one of us full in the face, and I know he is thinking "I love you" when he does that.

This little update went on for quite a bit! Next time I will tackle Micah's recent activities!

Spoiled Good

2010-12-13T13:03:00.004-05:00

Leif is not spoiled rotten, I prefer to think of it as spoiled good.

With seven older siblings, plus a Mom and a Dad who simply cannot resist His Adorableness, the babe has got it made. And yet he is able to maintain the sweetest disposition...none of the attention goes to his head.

Amelia is his phone secretary.

Micah makes sure his stuffed bear is always handy.

Dante supervises his jumparoo time.

Sunny is way more comfy than the couch.

Wait!! Why is Dante climbing on Daddy's back, leaving poor Leif to watch??

We do love our little Leif Kristian!!

The Blessings Grow!

2010-12-07T16:58:00.002-05:00

The Blessings being our 8 children, of course! Leif is pictured here (with Nikita) wearing the very outfit that Dante 4 years ago when we flew home with him. I had saved it for sentimental reasons, not knowing we would have our Little Leif to wear it.

Just this morning I went through a box of clothes for Leif, pulling out the next size larger since he is growing. Leif has plenty of outfits to wear. My picking for Dante have been pretty slim, though; I have only had a rotation of 3-4 shirts for him.

What a blessing we received this afternoon though!! His bus driver asked me if he could use some clothes, if I do not mind used. I told her we love hand me downs! She stopped by a few minutes later with two boxes of clothing from one of her fellow drivers. Dante now has 8 new long sleeve shirts in beautiful condition. There were also about 8 pairs of pants, which will go to Micah since Dante might be a size 4-5 on top but still wears only size 2-3 in pants.

God is good!

Getting ready for His birthday

2010-12-06T16:51:00.004-05:00

My grandmother made this Nativity scene a very long time ago. The kneeling Mary is about 12 inches high, so this is a large set that I absolutely love.

This is a hanging countdown to Christmas quilt. This year we filled each pocket with candy and are using it as our Advent Calendar.

Alexander is helping Sunny get out today's candy.

Amelia and her big brother are making some stars to hang for Christmas decorations.

My Laundry Solution

2010-11-18T11:59:00.003-05:00

I enjoy washing my laundry. In the Summer especially, when I can hang it out and fold each piece later as it comes of the line. Right about now though, I get really bad at laundry. I have no problem washing, but then it comes out of the dryer in a pile and sits in the laundry basket.

Yesterday I realized I had three loads piled up in the basket sitting in our dining area. It being Fall and piles of leaves in every yard, I thought of the perfect solution! I will set aside a room for clean laundry, and just throw it in until a huge pile forms. Then, instead of diving into a pile of leaves, the kids can dive into the pile of laundry and fish around until they come out dressed. Hopefully in their own clothes.

Unfortunately I do not have a spare room!

What I have done is taken index cards and written each name on one, plus one for "pajamas" and one for "closet". These are folded in half like name cards at the table. I line them up along the table, then Amelia and I start folding and stacking. Micah and Sunny help in spurts, but Amelia really enjoys it. Afterwards, we each carry a pile upstairs where they are unceremoniously dumped into a drawer. It works, if you do not mind a few wrinkles!

The Speech

2010-11-14T19:44:00.003-05:00

Amelia, Micah, and Dante all have hypothyroidism, which is not unusual in people with down syndrome. (Sunny has no medical issues.) This means that every 6 months they each have to have blood drawn and we go into Worcester for an appointment with the Endocrinologist. Each visit, and they are not seen together, costs me a $10 copay, $10 in gas, and $3 in parking...plus at least 3 hours interupting everyone's homeschool day.

For the seven years that Amelia has been our daughter, she has never had a problem with her hormone levels. So I decided to convince the doctor that she does not need to be seen by him every 6 months, once a year will do. In my speech I was even going to say that I do not mind doing the blood draw and seeing her Primary Care physician in the middle 6 months. I had it all planned out in my mind.

However, my plans were not His plans. The doctor beat me to my speech with one of his own. He decided that since Amelia has never needed a med change, that we should take her off the medication and see how she does. This means in 3 months we have to do a blood draw and I have to consult with him on the phone, than do another blood draw three months later and we have her regular 6 month appointment. I guess I'll have to save the speech for Micah and Dante's appointments coming up in February!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In other news: Leif has his first tooth! It is barely there, but has definitely broken through. He was mildly cranky this week, but nothing big. Yesterday we also switched him to a crib. My baby has outgrown the bassinet! Jamie decided we should keep the bassinet, "just in case".

Look at this boy! Can you believe he is only 4 months old?!

Leif Loves...

2010-11-10T13:06:00.003-05:00

...sucking on two fingers, because two is better than one.

...people watching at the airport while waiting for Nana and Poppy, because babies are cute when they stare at people.

...holding onto his left foot, because he can.

...blowing razzberries, because it makes Mommy and Daddy laugh.

...rolling over and sticking his fist in the air when he wakes up, because he is the victor.

...eating mashed banana, because it is yummy.

...dancing in his jumparoo, because merely bouncing in it is for beginners.

Leif Loves Life!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Missing dad, called home three years ago today.

Wolf Cub Micah

2010-11-02T19:27:00.003-04:00

Micah absolutely loves being a Cub Scout! He went bowling tonight with his den, and is just one of the boys there. He does tend to take his kerchief off, but he did put it back on. His fellow scouts were great about helping him and making sure he knew when it was his turn. I am very thankful Micah has this group to take part in, since he is so happy to put on his uniform, grab his "wolf book" and head off to a den meeting!

This photo is not the best since I had to use my cell phone, which is from the dark ages of technology. Trust me, he is the most adorable scout ever!

Angel Tree

2010-11-01T10:14:00.003-04:00

Today Reece's Rainbow begins their Angel Tree campaign! The goal is to raise at least $1000 for every orhpan waiting for a home. It is an undeniable fact that adoption is expensive, and raising grants specifically for each child will help a family be able to adopt them. Due to various restrictions Jamie and I can not adopt from China, but we want to help a child there have a home, and little Zachary is definitely in need of a loving family. Please visit www.reecesrainbow.org/sponsorship/angeltree2010 to learn more about the program-- such as how the donations are used and how you can receive an ornament for your sponsorship. Please visit the chipin gadget on the sidebar to help us raise money for Zachary!

An Amazing Woman

2010-10-29T21:21:00.002-04:00

Tonight at work I had the opportunity to wait on a woman and her two adult sons. Her sons both have down syndrome. I often see families dining out with a child who is clearly adopted, or a child with down syndrome. I do not usually initiate conversations with them, because they are simply looking to have dinner out, not necessarily to get into a conversation with me.

I could not resist, though, since I really could not tell if this woman was their caretaker, or mother. So at the end of their meal begged her pardon but told her I was curious. I am so glad to have spoken with her! Her sons were both adopted, the elder being 51 and the younger 31. She was a special education teacher and they both (years apart!) were in her classroom. Her elder son's birthmother died when he was born, and he was put into an institution out in Western New York where they live. He was 9 when she met him in her classroom and adopted him. The younger son was born in South Korea. His family was in the States on a professor exchange program, and they desired for him to be adopted while they were here so he could have a future.

To have adopted a child out of an institution 42 years ago is just mind boggling!! This woman--and her husband and biological children-- really put themselves out there to give those two boys (men now!) a home. I also shared briefly with her about our adoption experiences.

God crossed our paths only briefly tonight, they are from New York and are here visiting family, so I will never see them again and do not even know her name. What a blessing it was to have the brief conversation with her that I did, though!

No Teenagers!

2010-10-29T13:20:00.004-04:00

Nikita is off to California to spend two weeks with my cousin and her family. Alexander and Zachary are off to New York to spend the weekend with my brother and his wife. That leaves just me and Jamie! And Amelia, Sunny, Micah, Dante, and Leif. When did we get so many kids??

Some people do think we are nutty, especially since four of our blessings have down syndrome. We do rely on the teens to do their part in family life, yet that does not mean we fall apart while they are gone. Jamie probably has it toughest each night, since the manager at Cracker Barrel thought she was being nice by giving me lots of hours (I only wanted 2 nights a week, not 4), and Leif is still reluctant to take a bottle. Dante adds to the interest by taking off up the stairs, and he now can climb out of his crib. I found that out when I found him sitting in the tub...fully dressed and waiting for someone to turn the water on--- he loves his bath! Dante also lets us know he would like some food by going to the table and climbing into his chair. He lets us know he would like some food NOW by climbing onto the table and throwing everything off.

I kept Dante home from school today because of his yucky cold. While I was feeding Leif Dante decided to climb up into his chair. Thankfully Amelia noticed and served him a bowl of applesauce. She really can be very helpful, she just overdoes it every now and then.

We decided to have a "Little Bear"marathon today since Amelia and Micah also have yucky colds. They watched and learned about caterpillars, butterflies, and more while I made a batch of laundry soap, did two loads, put dinner in the crockpot, and made a chocolate chip pie.

The videos are done and Amelia is currently at the table directing Micah and Sunny in letter writing, she is having them write their names. I think I am the housekeeper and she is the schoolteacher! At least that means I was the one to lick the batter bowl while she was busy saying "ok, let me help" to Sunny!

We are blessed!

Are we there yet?

2010-10-24T19:55:00.002-04:00

I am not sure where "there" is, but this last week has been sooo long I feel like I should have gotten somewhere by now.

I always pictured homeschooling as so calm and structured, with devotions every morning, lots of school work being accomplished, and the occasional fun and educational gathering or field trip with other families.

Not this year!

Mornings are nutty, but once Dante is off to school things are calmer here. Lately though there have been a lot of appointments and running around. Amelia needed blood drawn, Micah and Amelia each had a dental cleaning, Roxanne needed the vet, and Nikita has been going to do stable chores every morning to make up for her upcoming trip. Thankfully Nana and Poppy have been driving her there, but it is still a disruption to our mornings and is effecting her schoolwork.

Despite the lack of time sitting at the table practicing handwriting, we have gotten a lot of informal schooling done. The girls love setting the table and counting out place settings, Amelia helps with the pony and goat chores, and Signing Time is always available to teach them signs and increase vocabulary.

And Micah is a cub scout now! Monday I was so far behind that I paid Alexander to take Micah to his den meeting. Micah absolutely loves it. Zachary even walked him up to Nana and Poppy's to sell them some popcorn for the fundraiser. He is so cute in his uniform. (Still missing our camera so no photos!)

Sadly, I returned to work at Cracker Barrel yesterday, ending 5 months of leave. It was Leif's first time ever having to take a bottle, and he did not appreciate it. He is such a good baby though, Jamie reported that instead of crying too much he fell asleep after struggling through just one ounce of mommy milk from a bottle. He was hungry when he woke up at midnight though!

When I slow down to think about it, our busyness has not been bad, but a sign of how God has blessed us. We have good medical insurance for all the specialist appointments, we have a great dentist for the little ones nearby, we are able to go on fun field trips (Nana went with us to Westview Creamery on Wednesday), and the teens are willing to volunteer their time to help others. And I have an employer that let me come back after five months off! Unfortunately these days whenever I slow down enough to appreciate these things I usually fall asleep...until Leif decides it is time to nurse again.

Not the best birthday

2010-10-12T14:42:00.002-04:00

Today ends "Birthday Week-ish" in our house. Last Sunday the 3rd was Sunny's 9th birthday, Wednesday the 6th was Amelia's 7th Gotcha Day Anniversary, Friday the 8th was my ** birthday, Saturday the 9th was "Leif Ericson Day" (Baby Leif's namesake), and today is the birthday of my brother Jim, and of Dante.

Dante did not appreciate being dragged out of bed at 6am on his birthday. At 7am Zachary, Amelia, Dante, Leif and I left for our 1 hour and 13 minute drive to Dante's appointment in Watertown. At 9:15 we arrived there. Oh how I love the drive in the morning traffic towards Boston.

This morning was Dante's second evaluation at the Low Vision Clinic at Perkin's School for the Blind. Dante was pretty good, for a little while. He really does not like the eyedrops, and after awhile began to show some resistance to the exam. Thankfully I had my second son along (I am not supposed to mention Zachary's name on the blog), and he and I took turns holding Dante and Leif. Amelia was in charge of distracting Dante for the interns so he would look in the right direction.

Dante is nearsighted, and has astigmatism. When I asked Dr. Kran where he recommends we go for an optician he suggested Waltham Children's Hospital, while acknowledging it is only 15 minutes from the clinic but over an hour from our house. Well, in the Lord's impeccable timing it turns out Dante has an Augmentive Communications appt at that very place coming up on November 5th.

So the kids and I hopped in the van and drove over to order Dante some spectacles. This time he made it abundantly clear that he had no desire to try on frames. The optician and I were able to overrule his protests, and we will pick up his glasses (hopefully!) on November 5th.

Thankfully, all was forgiven when Amelia fed Dante a Happy Meal while I drove home! Maybe his 5th birthday is turning out pretty good after all....chicken nuggets, french fries, no school and therapies, plus a nice long nap when we arrived home.

Leif does not know...

2010-10-08T07:29:00.004-04:00

Leif does not know that his big sister Amelia has Down Syndrome. He does not know how many people think she is odd, or how many strange looks she gets from other children. Leif does not know that she is the girl with Down Syndrome the Lindsays adopted, instead of Jamie and Kelly's daughter.

Leif does know that when his big sister Amelia holds him on her lap he feels secure and loved. He knows that she sings beautiful songs to him. He hears Amelia say "Awww Leif honey honey" when he cries, and he calms when she pats his back. Leif knows she has a beautiful smile, and he gives her one in return. When he is hungry, his Amelia makes sure that I know he needs "Mommy milk". Leif knows that she will keep his musical toys playing for him, since at 3 months he has not quite yet figured out his hands.

Leif adores Amelia.

Another Blessing!

2010-10-04T10:31:00.003-04:00

Two years ago Dante participated in therapy riding. Unfortunately when he turned three we had to stop, since insurance no longer covered it when he turned three, and we could not afford the cost ourselves. I have wished many times the little ones could ride, for strength and for confidence.

Since that time Nikita has discovered her love of horses, and her many trips to the 4-H stables also caused Amelia and Micah to enjoy time with horses. I suggested to Nikita recently that we pray for someone to give us a shetland pony. I certainly could not afford therapy for 4 children if I could not afford it for 1! It seemed that owning a pony was the only way to provide riding time for the children.

In her web wanderings Nikita came upon a pony that was being given away. Roxanne is a 20 year old shetland pony who is partially blind and needed a new home. Her owners decided we would be a good home, and a friend helped us find transportation. And Roxanne moved in this past Saturday!!
This photo is the one Nikita first saw of her.

Roxanne is settling in well, and the goats welcomed her into their enclosure. Jamie and the teens spent Saturday doubling the size of it, giving them more than 2000 square feet to roam! The triplets are thrilled; they have enjoyed grooming her and learning safety awareness around her.

We couldn't have found a more gently pony for our family.
God is good!

It's 5AM, Do you know where Micah is?

2010-10-01T20:16:00.002-04:00

Jamie is up at 5AM every week day-- one morning this week he got up and was about to head up to the shower when he noticed Micah. Sitting at the table. Eating peanut butter. In the dark. At 5 in the morning!?!?

Maybe it is time for a motion detector in his bedroom doorway?

Our Wolf Cub

2010-09-27T18:34:00.004-04:00

Today Micah joined Cub Scouts! He is in a den with four other boys, and had his first meeting today. Micah followed along quite well. He was a little confused with the scout sign; he thought it should be three fingers in the air rather than two. His reasoning made perfect sense--- wolf starts with a "w" and three fingers is the alphabet sign for "w". He did ask a few times where the wolf was and when it would get there. There is the possibility that I overplayed the excitement of becoming a wolf cub.

Now that I know Micah is going to like scouts, we will go out and buy him a uniform and handbook. In the meantime we will start memorizing the Cub Scout promise.

This should be a fun new adventure!

Dante's Walk

2010-09-25T16:56:00.003-04:00

Dante has had his walker for a month now. He is reportedly getting quite good at walking with it at school. Here at home it has been more difficult, as our house has less open space than his class room. Today Jamie and I took him for a walk to the town library, about 50 yards down the street. He did really well, and even walked up and down the rows of books in the library. Dante did tend to swerve a bit on the sidewalk, and needed Jamie or me to be next to him as a bumper.

Even though it was not a long walk for Jamie or me, the poor little guy was tuckered out afterwards. He did not even get both shoes and socks off before being overtaken by sleep.

He is such a sweet boy!

Way Too Much Energy

2010-09-23T20:14:00.002-04:00

I woke up Micah at 5:10am this morning to let him know we were going to the hospital for his ear tube day surgery. At 5:15am he was standing next to the van in the driveway, hopping up and down chanting "doctor" excitedly.

I had been told to be there at 6am, and to be sure Micah had nothing to eat or drink before arriving. Thankfully that did not apply to me, because I needed my coffee for the drive in. Leif came along since I am his only food source, and Nikita tagged along to assist when necessary. The three of us were certainly not hopping in excitement!

Given the choice, I think Micah would have moved in to the hospital today. He was shown to a private room, settled into a bed and given the TV remote. Micah nearly worships the television. He asked to hold Leif, and it was pretty funny because Leif coughed, and Micah absentmindedly leaned him forward and patted his back after the cough, all without ever taking his eyes off the TV.

Micah even had a chance to be an example to another little boy who was there and a bit frightened. When he saw Micah enjoying his new blue hat, the little boy decided he had to have one too, despite his previous fear.

I am thankful today's trip went so well, and hopefully Micah's next hearing test will show an improvement as a result.

Goats in my Kitchen?!

2010-09-22T19:27:00.003-04:00

Over the course of the Summer, we went from owning a pair of goats to owning a herd of goats. We have had Gidget and Ambrose for a year now, and had decided that one little Nigerian Dwarf goat wouldn't really give us a lot of milk. (Obviously Ambrose wouldn't be giving us any!)

Pictured above are Ferdinand and Isabella, a brother/sister pair from the same farm as Gidget and Ambrose. They are absolutely adorable and full of life and joined us in July.

Then one day in August I was doing a dangerous thing--- browsing Craigslist. Daisy and Lilly joined us a few days later. They are sisters, and sweet as can be. I am not sure why Daisy's snout is crooked, but it is a bit endearing.

I have been asked a number of times why we have decided to keep goats. We are still working out the exact reasons...the milk will be used for trying out goat cheese, goatsmilk soap, and also just drinking it. Nikita is learning a lot more responsibility. Mostly though, it is for our youngest kids-- a therapy of sorts.

Amelia and Sunny will both learn to milk the does, and Amelia is already helping with the feeding every morning. A few times she has taken it upon herself in the middle of the day to refill their water bucket. Since Ambrose and Ferdinand do not really have much purpose, we have decided to try training them in an agility course and pulling a cart. Amelia has begun this training with Ambrose already by just handling and grooming him often. We are also teaching him good manners and walking on a leash. This is a good focus for her endess supply of energy. We are all waiting to see how this turns out!

And the goats in my kitchen? We let them out for a while every day to browse, and they love to nap on the deck. Isabella's favorite spot is curled up on a lawn chair. The other day I was sitting here at the computer and glanced over-- someone had not shut the deck door quite enough, and they let themselves in. Life is always an adventure here!

Already!?

2010-09-18T17:32:00.002-04:00

We have two weeks of school completed, and something has got to change. Sunny is too far behind Amelia for me to work with them together as much as I had hoped. Micah could do really well if he wanted too, but he has a hard time staying focused. Unfortunately so do I, because when I do break it up so they are not sitting for too long, sometimes I get busy doing something else and forget to get back to academics.
Thankfully I can call it life skills work when that happens!
It might end up being easier once I establish a new routine of working individually one handwriting, math, and reading with each of them. They do love morning excercises together on the floor, which Leif enjoys watching. History is not a subject I do with them yet, and science right now is just learning about weather, how things grow, what animals do-- just basic things.

And another "Already!?!"-- Poppy's pumpkins for the kids are here! Our digital camera is still missing (ask Sunny?), but I bought a disposable because photos of these beauties were necessary....

Is Dante eyeing Sunny's pumpkin to hit the floor next?

Found him!

2010-09-13T06:48:00.002-04:00

Micah is of the opinion that as long as he knows where he is, life is fine. After all if he knows where he is, he is not lost.

Unfortunately on Saturday, we did not know he was lost either. Most of us were outside working on goat stuff, Micah was happily swinging on the swingset while Amelia "helped" us with her (play) nail gun, when we received a phone call. "Your son is over here climbing on my truck, could you please come get him?" Here was around the corner two houses down. Here was not on the swingset, nor was here inside of the yard we paid $5000 to have fenced in to give him boundaries.

First, I thanked God for watching over Micah so closely. Then I went online and ordered him an ID bracelet. What he really needs is a GPS anklet that he cannot take off! Honestly, I was surprised that the majority of ID bracelets and tags available all attach by velcro. Even the child locator devices clip on to the kid. Considering one of Micah's favorie pasttimes is stripping, a velcro ID would not stay on him for long.

An hour after all this happened, Nikita had a riding lesson. I took Micah along, not because I thought Jamie couldn't keep track of him, but because I was still mentally reeling from what happened and needed him near me. He spent the entire time trying to let go of my hand and take off, since he wanted to go into the riding ring and take a turn on Nikita's horse.

Like I said, he has no fear--- which only increases mine. I wonder how bad it would look if I bought some handcuffs to use for keeping him near me?

On a lighter note, here is a photo of Leif that Nikita took with her phone. Is he not the cutest baby ever???

The Batter on the Beaters

2010-09-10T19:20:00.002-04:00

We are back to school here in our home, and trying to re-adjust to the schedule. It is even more challenging this year with Leif being only two months old. Thankfully he was born at the start of Summer vacation, so Jamie was home while I recouped and we all got used to our newest blessing.

Today I was once again attempting to do it all....keep a clean house, educate the kids, feed the baby. (I know I'll never get it all completely done in one day, but that does not mean I will stop trying!) After lunch I baked up a bunch of butternut squashes that Jamie's dad had given to me. I decided to bake them, mash them, and freeze it in ice cube trays for Leif when he is ready for solid food in a few months. After they are frozen I pop them out to put into a freezer bag.

Micah heard me using the mixer and came running to watch. Hearing the mixer means licking the beaters. With only two beaters on the mixer and 6 kids who know that sound, he knew he had better be fast. Since it was butternut squash I was mashing, I was a bit skeptical when he demanded his beater at the end. I handed one over, he licked it and walked away happily after saying, "Mmmmm good!"

It was really sweet, and I was thankful for the reminder to be grateful for even a beater of butternut squash.

Is it over yet?

2010-08-31T20:04:00.003-04:00

I love living in the Northeast and having four seasons every year. By the time one is ending, I am usually ready for the next. It has been wonderful having Jamie home for the Summer, especially since the birth of Leif, but we are all ready for some routine here with the coming of the new school year and the Fall.

Jamie went back to school yesterday, and while we had planned to start our kids too, we decided to start easy this week and work up to the routine I hope we can establish for the year.

I have learned that even without routine home schooling is "Learning 24/7", and the triplets are making sure Leif is learning! He loves to watch them play, and they love to entertain him. It is really cute how they have each become attached to him, and want to help out. He always rewards them with a sweet smile.

Summer vacation is over, and in a few months I will have to remind myself that I was wanting to get this school year going. All three teens are high schoolers now, and I am using a first grade curriculum for the triplets. Dante is in pre-school full days this year, with plenty of physical, occupational, speech, and ABA therapies. He even has a walker now, another thing to get used to and hopefully get him walking. Tomorrow is his first day, and Monday everyone else starts in earnest.

Micah is Mr. Smartypants

2010-08-24T14:17:00.002-04:00

School starts soon! I have been cleaning and organizing to get ready. Yesterday I came across a small 9 piece puzzle from a bag of prizes that we had never used. I was about to toss it, but instead gave it to Micah since he was at the table. Without ever seeing it before, Micah spread it out and pieced it together- without a picture of the complete one to go by.

I know it was just a simple small puzzle, but I'm proud of Micah for being able to take a stack of pieces and put them together. The poor guy is in for it now-- time for some more puzzles in the house!

Vacation!

2010-08-15T18:37:00.004-04:00

We just spent our annual week at Rumney Bible Conference on family vacation- our 11th year! It was wonderful and relaxing, except for the kayaks capsizing with Alexander, Zachary, and Micah. (Actually, that event did finally succeed in teaching Micah some safety awareness-- "no boats, all done boats" and he didn't take off for the pond without asking again.)

Amelia does love to kayak and is careful. She is able to go in her own when attached to someone in front of her. She and Micah also enjoyed hiking in the woods looking for pinecones, and everyone loved swimming. The teens were able to go tubing on the river with Jamie, while I convinced the 5 youngest they all needed a nice nap. Every day was a good day, and we are thankful for the time together as a family without the busyness there always seems to be at home.

We look forward already to vacation next year!!