6 Kids and Counting

Our 15 minutes of fame=)

2012-02-08T12:39:00.000-06:00

http://www.alabamapower.com/news/powergrams/PG_2_6.pdf

Our very busy weekend

2012-02-06T19:29:00.000-06:00

Big boy was home, so we put those muscles to work.

Two girls caught being sweet.

DH and Jake put up the main beam and legs for the swing, climbing wall, see-saw, and monkey bars to go on.....although we will be waiting on tax refund money to purchase them with.

I just knew it about killed me and DH to get the other big beam and legs up, and that we better get Jake to do it!

Monkey girl.

She "made" a flower by putting the camilia on a stick and attaching the leaf with a blade of monkey grass.

The one that keeps us in stitches.

My beautiful custom built mantel/fireplace that I have always hated.....because it's massive and takes up an 8' wall, and we never use it.

A couple of hours later. I have waited 2 years for this!! Busting up the hearth will certainly take more than 2 hours.........

I'll be buying a 2nd sofa, so we can all sit on furniture in our den...and not in the floor.

Pretty girls in China-bought dresses.

Then we cooked a big dinner, and fed one of Jake's friend who was driving back to school from NC.

They ate, and followed each other back to Pensacola.

FYI--fellow adopters....I sent ALL supporting documents in with our tax return this year. We'll see if it makes a difference.

Medical updates

2012-02-03T14:40:00.000-06:00

Ttotally unrelated photo, of random things you can buy in the back alleys of Beijing.

1st the oldies:

Avery will have 3 teeth extracted on the 16th, and her bone graft surgery will be a month later. This is one of the BIG ones for her. Hip bone will be used to bridge the gap in her jawbone, so that teeth or implants can be attached to it later in life.

Wes has not grown -at all, except his feet. He still wears the same clothes he did 2 years ago. He has hypothyroidism, which was diagnosed 2 years ago. He will now be tested by an endocrinologist to see why he is not growing.

Now the newbies:

Jenna has 20/2000 vision in her right eye (legally blind is 20/200), and no vision to speak of in her left eye. Her under developed eyeballs are a birth defect, and not a progressive disease like Waid's, so she is expected to keep this level of vision throughout life. Although her number is better than Waid's, it is interesting to see the differences of what they can actually see. Jenna cannot see to pick up crayons under the kitchen table, Waid can--just 1 example.

She also has nystagmus--the constant twitching- like Waid has.

She now has cute glasses to help the right eye out a bit, but mostly for protection.

The low-vision specialist believes she will be a large print reader, but since she already knows some braille, we will proceed with that also. Many people that can read large print, are much more efficient reading braille, and also use it when their eyes are fatiqued.

Other than her eyes, she appears to be healthy as a horse--and solid as one too. Oh--she is scheduled for a hearing test, just because her China paperwork said she had mild nerve damage.

AJ-----thankfully, does not have Optic Nerve Hypoplasia-- a syndrome associated with his brain condition, that would cause him to lose his sight. He actually sees great, and is the only one without glasses. But, he does have Fourth Nerve Palsy. Basically, his eyes are misaligned. He holds his head crooked to make the alignment better, but it will have to be corrected with eye surgery later this year.

AJ is being scheduled for a hearing test, a check from the heart Dr., to make sure everything is fine with his repaired heart defect, and a geneticist. A neurologist will see him in March, concerning his brain defect, we're not sure what all that might reveal.

We had been concerned about his large/swolen joints and bent fingers and toes, and ask our pediatrician about it. We were thinking rickets or arthritis. The Dr discovered his arms are "locked"--they do not have the full range of motion. Since he has so many other challenges, he will get genetics testing, then proceed to an orthapedic surgeon.

AJ will begin seeing our speech therapist next week, and we're guessing he may also need some occupational therapy.

We may also have to investigate concerning his weight, just 50 lbs, at 52" tall. His arms are the same size as Waid's. His knees are the largest part of his legs. Avery and Waid, at age 6 only weigh 36 and 34lbs., but are growing, and well proportioned, just have small frames. So we will be closely watching AJ's weight and muscle tone (which is extremely lacking right now).

The biggie is the neurologist appt in March. We are unsure what is caused by the missing corpus callosum, and what are developmental delays for other reasons. He worked addition problems today, with sums up to 20!, but cannot remember to bring his pajamas into the bathroom at bath time.

In some ways, the reason does not matter, but the more info we have, equips us to help him reach his full potential, and whatever God has planned for him.

Seriously?!?!?!

2012-02-01T14:44:00.000-06:00

2 unplanned things have happened this week.

I know I need to update ya'll on all the medical appointments of the last 2 weeks, but until then......

can someone bring me some chocolate?!?!?

"My big sister is the best!" by Emmi

2012-01-19T20:41:00.000-06:00

Kristen brough tiger tails and ears, and face paint.

Isn't she creative--she had the idea all by herself.

Today is my birthday, and I got to paint Kristen's face.

I am 8!

(Moma no longer has 7 year old "triplets".)

Kristen painted everyone else's face too.

Waid is a zebra.

Me and moma usually make my cake, but with all the Dr. appointments, Kristen saved the day!

My tiger cake.

Blowing out my candles.

I am so excited to get a "robot cat", I have been wanting it for months!

Her name is May, she can walk!

Lasst week...

2012-01-15T21:47:00.000-06:00

We allowed Jenna and AJ to discover the play kitchen in Jake's room.

Emmi lost a tooth.

Avery lost a tooth.

The girls wore the snowmen dresses that I smocked.

We tried to get a decent picture.........

discovered that Jenna knows her braille numbers,

discovered that AJ can add and subtract a little,

discovered that Jenna can play the piano---both hands and with chords!!!!

Just a few kiddy songs, but with CHORDS!!!!

Other than that, we have done school, and lots of it, morning school, night school, Saturday school.

Their pediatrician appt was cancelled due to a death, and is rescheduled for Friday.

We have 7 Dr appts this week, pray for me;)

Pray for Waid too, he is having a hard time adjusting.

The other kids have all been through this before, and are doing pretty well.

Have you seen this??

2012-01-15T21:30:00.000-06:00

Q: How does a home schooler change a light bulb?

A: First, mom checks out three books at the library on electricity, then the kids make models of light bulbs, read a biography of Thomas Edison and do a skit based on his life. Next, everyone studies the history of lighting methods, wrapping up with dipping their own candles. Next, everyone takes a trip to the store where they compare types of light bulbs as well as prices and figure out how much change they'll get if they buy two bulbs for $1.99 and pay with a five-dollar bill. On the way home, a discussion develops over the history of money and also Abraham Lincoln, as his picture is on the five-dollar bill. Finally, after building a homemade ladder out of branches dragged from the woods, the light bulb is installed. And there is light.
It was on a homeschool yahoo group, so I do not know who to give credit to.
Which reminds me, a couple of months ago I took Waid to the dentist, just the 2 of us....and he looks under school age. I discovered that a high school friend worked at the dentist office, we caught up a bit, and she said "you homeschool, don't you?" How did she know---I mean, I didn't even have a denim jumper on!!

School time

2012-01-08T14:33:00.000-06:00

Jenna had a slate and stylus in her backpack when we got her---I was shocked.

This is how blind people write short notes in braille, it's portable, unlike the 10lb. braille writer.

BUT, it is very hard to master. You have to reverse the braille letters as you punch, so when you take the paper out, you turn it over to read it.

Most young braille readers in the US don't use this, because now we have so much other technology. So I was excited to see exactly what Jenna knew. As it turns out, she only knows about 10 letters in braille. And because she was being taught to use a slate----she knows those letters----backwards!, not forwards. She is an excellent little hole puncher, though, just punching each space (cell) and counting to 6 as she goes, used as a skill building/finger strength practice I guess.

We've done school a few days, two on my own, as DH had to go to work.

(We got all our sleeping habbits back in line just in time for DH to get up at 3:30 for day shift--ug)

Both kids are good at puzzles, and seem to enjoy everything I have given them to do.

We're back to cooking our own food. Thanks to ALL who helped feed us that 1st week home!

and trying to stay on a daily chore schedule.

But did you know that adding 2 smallish children, means 14 more outfits a week to wash, + Pj's and undies---laundry may not be caught up for the next 10+ years.

We also went to the dentist this week. No cavities--unbelievable! AJ got lots of scraping, and his mouth was a bloody mess. He endured it, without a single complaint.

After the dentist, he got two pairs of shoes, he was very excited. His foot is bigger than I thought, so none of my stockpile fit him. And let me tell you, as much as I love Target, they are seriously lacking in the boys dept, and boys shoes.

We went to Academy and found a pair for $10--too big, but we got them for later.

Then to Rack Room. OH MY!! I cannot believe people pay $50+ for kids shoes!!!!

It actually reminded me how Jake used to wear cute Timberland boots, and how much money I wasted on such, when I only had 2 bio kids.

The store had a BOGO 1/2 sale, so we got 2 pair for $27, pretty good, I guess, for shopping at a "real" store.

Coming up this week, the pediatrician. Jenna's visit should be quick and easy. AJ's visit will get quite involved, and I hope to be leaving with a long list of specialists to see, aside from the neurologist and eye specialist already on the calendar. We are anxious to get moving on all the medical stuff, and get the help he needs.

Other than that, our days are spent with repitition of teaching how to do routine things. It can be frustrating and tiresome to walk them through every detail of every day, but the baby steps have little exciting moments too.

Like the other night when AJ remembered to get his PJ's, socks, and underwear BEFORE getting his shower--he was so proud. And when they remember to take their plates to the counter after a meal....little things can be a big deal=)

Beautiful day

2012-01-01T15:01:00.000-06:00

Sat was gorgeous, high 70!!--be jealous.

Do ya notice AJ had a haircut? DH sacrificed his birthday giftcard from his mom, to get new clippers. The old ones are about 15 years old. Turns out, the new ones were pathetic, and we went back to the old ones. We'll be returning the new ones, and try again---maybe at a beauty supply store next time.

Making a cat face on the big rock, with little rocks.

I could not position myself this way if I tried!

DH and I observed, we have 1/2 acre, and all 8 of us were here in 10 sq ft.

Jenna does so well, it's easy to forget she can't see. It became very evident, with her 1st time in the back yard. She was a bit down in the dumps about it too.

I thought all the sunlight would help us get back on track--nope, many of us were up again at 4am, luckily they stay in bed, but still aggravating. This morning we tried some schoolwork (still not in the schoolroom--it's a wreck anyway).

Both did better than I expected, I'm thinking of starting them in Abeka K.

I think if I put Jenna's work on the CCTV (magnifies it) she will do fine.

My living room still has piles of stuff everywhere. Life will kick back into gear, whether we are ready or not, next week. Appointments begin, groceries to be bought, Jake goes back to school Monday, and DH will go back to work next Sat., sheets to wash, toilets to scrub---what happened to my housekeeper???--oh, yeh, I left that back in China, along with the breakfast bar!

The rest of week 1

2012-01-01T14:39:00.000-06:00

Thank you NS for the cool car for me and daddy to put together!!

Lots of Lego action around here.

Thank you NS for my baby!! Yes, that's Wiad's head in the box, he pretended all night that he was on TV.--crazy boy=)

Proof we brought Wes back from China.

Just checking to see if she knew what to do.......YES!!, and she does it just the way I do!!!

He knows too!!! YAY!!!

Lots of hanging out in PJ's. One friend who brought supper thought the kids were already bathed and in PJ's for the night-----um, no-----we never got dressed that morning.

Jenna is the 1st kids we got that "came with" anything. She had a change of clothes, PJ's, and a few little gifts from voluteers at Bethel. Her clothes are all marked with red yarn. Many blind people do something like this to identify the back from front, in items that do not have tags.

I asked the staff-- it was done to know what clothes belonged to which child; but she does use it to find the back of the untagged pj bottoms.

They're everywhere, they're everywhere!!

day 3 and Happy Birthday DH

2011-12-29T08:05:00.000-06:00

Everyone was in bed til the sun came up!! I think they actually woke up early, but gave up on me coming to get them, so they went back to sleep eventually. I woke up about 4, laid there over an hour, then went back to sleep for a while. Poor DH is ALL messed up, which is surprising, since he is used to working night shift every 6 weeks.

Big brother Lego bonding.

The sweatsuit on the 34lb kid, used to belong to the giant holding him.
Of course Jake was 3 when he wore it, Waid is 6.

Meeting big sister Kristen, who brought coloring books.

All 8, with Waid about to cry--he's having a hard time with adjustment, and sleep deprivation.

Happy Birthday DH--who just went to bed at 6am, ya'll pray for him please.

Day 2

2011-12-27T20:10:00.000-06:00

A friend commented that they were angels, or so it seemed....no.

Overall they have done well. But the truth is, it is hard, it is our mission field, and we can only make it through with the Lord's help.

With Waid's adoption, I was alone, no one to talk to, was being treated badly (woman with Chinese child--it was assumed I had married in, which is greatly frowned upon), and I became very negative.

Although I was just being honest, I am not proud of my behavior or some of my whining.

SOOOOO, for now, I choose to share mostly just the good stuff.

It is also a challenge to figure out which negative behaviors are due to brain damage, being institutionalized, the child simply not wanting to cooperate, just plain old bad habbits, etc.

So I do not want to "complain" about something a child truly cannot help, until we figure out the difference.

Actually both new kids did extremely well today, it was Emmi who had a sleep deprived meltdown, then slep from about 10-12.

Waid and Jenna both were hard to wake after a nap from 1-3, and we had to fight to keep them awake for the following couple of hours.

More skill testing.

AJ enjoyed this, but took it very seriously, and was very meticulous with his scissors.

We have noticed he is coloring with right hand, cutting and using fork with left hand!?

If he's left handed, he will be our 3rd lefty (Avery and Jake).

We don't know how much Jenna could see, but she evidently has not had much experience with scissors, she worked hard and stuck with it though.

Waid rounds out the group in
"preschool" activities.

Both were very proud of their creations, and their faces lit up when I taped them to the french door.

The 1st grader's did spelling today. Only because we bought the spelling books late, and are only on unit 9. And because after today's worksheet, they can go to the basement alone and do their spelling activities without me, they also do their tests on the I pad--without me.

Now the new 2 know there is another room downstairs. DH has them watching a movie to give me a break, and to color my Cruela DeVille streak---priorities ya know.
Jake is home until Monday, and DH home until the 7th. We have lots of appointments next week. So thankful for DH's unique job, and 6 weeks off work!

1st day home--part 2

2011-12-26T21:23:00.000-06:00

Skills evaluation disquised as fun.

They both did better than expected!

fake sleepers

Lego's keeps them in one place.

AJ and Jenna have only seen a few rooms of the house.

They do not know we have a basement, school room, playrooms or Jake's room yet.

We have enough sensory overload for now, and they want to touch and pull everything out.

We are very thankful to out church family for providing tonight's dinner, and a few more this week!

We are so glad God led us to such a great group of caring people.

1st day home

2011-12-26T21:09:00.000-06:00

It was 36 hours from bed to bed. Avery and Jenna slept about 6 hours, the others slept about 4 .....even after nyquil (on the long flight). Flght form Atlanta--they all konked out, and we had trouble waking them up.

When our wonderful driver-Jared-got us home, Jake had supper on the table----and SWEET TEA!!, thanks guys.

AJ loves his bed, the picture doesn't capture it, but we saw the biggest smile we have seen yet, and his eyes were glowing=)

I was worried about his ability to get in and our safely, and his balance, but DH practiced with him several times and he was fine.

We had the kids in bed at 8, and they all woke up between 4 & 5, I guess 8 hours is pretty good for the 1st night.

Merry Christmas

2011-12-26T20:51:00.000-06:00

Tomorrow, tomorrow...

2011-12-23T06:59:00.001-06:00

We're leaving tomorrow!, for Hong Kong--that is.

We leave at 11am, for a 3+ hour van drive. We were told it took 2 hours to get through customs on Christmas Eve last year =0

Once in the hotel, we do not plan on leaving, until time to fly. Hence the food pictured below. Lunch in the van, supper in hotel room, breakfast in hotel room. Christmas day we fly to Tokyo (4.5 hours), Atlanta(12.5 hours), then home!!

Emmi thinks it is funny that we will get Christmas before all of you;)

1st thing I want when I get home-----a big glass of sweet iced tea.

2011-12-23T06:51:00.000-06:00

finally releasing some energy

2011-12-23T06:48:00.000-06:00

None of us have been away from home 3 weeks before---arrrggghhhh

2011-12-23T06:43:00.001-06:00

we're going stir crazy, but also tired of walking

2011-12-23T06:38:00.000-06:00

making the best of these looonnggg days

2011-12-23T06:34:00.001-06:00

Special booths at shopping are for upcoming new year

2011-12-23T06:30:00.000-06:00

For all the power co guys--scaaarrrry!

2011-12-23T06:27:00.001-06:00

Officially Official

2011-12-22T01:32:00.001-06:00

Everything is "legal" after today's consulate appointment, and our guide will pick up all paperwork tomorrow. While there we saw an adoptive mom spank her new 4yo daughter---we could not even see that she did anything wrong. Very unrealistic expectations for a "new" kid, who doesn't even understand your language! Case in point--why adoption/bonding education is so important.

We had to mmet our guide to go to the consulate at 7:45, which meant 630 in the breakfast bar. Yes, it takes us an hour--then everyone has to potty of course. Ont thing I have learned this trip--do not try to serve individual plates. When we go in, I steal a tray from the "worker station" (they don't like it), and fill it up with juices. Then me or DH gets a plate full of watermellon, yogurt, pastry, plate full of sausage (if you can call it that) and eggs, or whatever the main US food of the day is. Then we go to the table and divvy it all up on the bread-n-butter plates. We aslo get several bowls of steamed rice and some Chinese fare for those who will eat it. Then DH and I can get our plates, and there's plenty of food on the table to pass around to the kids.

Nikki--Haha, you know I did NOT eat the squid!!!!!!!!!!!! And I only had a few bites of that hotpot in Mongolia--nasty. As always, I have lost weight in China (but don't worry, I have plenty of reserves).

SInce we got up before the sun, we made everyon take a nap after our banana lunch today. Ahhhh, it was wonderful!!!! DH and I are trying to get to bed by 10, but are waking up by 5. And I am spoiled to getting a full 8-9 hours ---don't judge.

We are soooo ready to be home!!!!!!!!!!

The kid who won't eat anything

2011-12-21T04:48:00.000-06:00

eating fried squid (Pizza Hut appetizer), and begging for more tomorrow.

2011-12-20T07:05:00.001-06:00

Mon-Tues

2011-12-20T03:40:00.001-06:00

I was trying to post some pictures, but they are not working right now. 2 were of a church on Shamian Island. Not the one we went too (forgot the camera that day).

On Monday when we went back to the island for TB check, I was going back to the church we attended to take pics. We never made it that far though. We got side tracked at Jenny's , and the bus left at a certain time. In Feb 2010, we discovered Jenny sold some really nice Chinese/English Bibles for about $20. She has NIV and ESV, but did not know what KJV was. We brought her a KJV and were showing her some differences. SO I didn't get the church pics, but got to fellowship with a fellow believer.

We checked out a few store, so many less than there were 7 years ago when we 1st came. Got Kristen what she ordered, got Angie what she ordered, and I splurged on a $30 figurine for myself, that I had been eye-ing the last 2 trips. (obviously not very authentic, since the store still has it in stock)

Tues--we went to the walking street. There are several places there that I always go to, and stock up on girls shoes, for about $7 a pair, and cute shirts for about $4. I guess my kids have finally outgrown "cute" by CHina's standards. I only got 3 pairs of shoes, 3 boys shirts, and each kid a set of pajamas. This is the least I've ever bought here. Everything in their sizes looked like teenager stuff--yuck. The kids were glad to get McDonalds for lunch. Funny thing, a cheeseburger was 15rmb, but from 11:00-2:00, you could get a double cheeseburger, large fries, and med drink for 15 rmb--about $2.25. The worker verified my order several times, she could not believe I needed 8 of the meals.

Tonight we eat PBJ and apples=) in the room

Sunday

2011-12-19T04:52:00.001-06:00

We made it to church! Quite an experience. The small building was packed, people standing in back and pew lined the side walls too. Plain, wooden, strait backed benches, imagine that in the US! Two worship songs were sung in Chinese, they were very moving. We sang Angels we have heard on High in English, and another praise song in English. Preaching was on Jesus's birth in Mark. The preacher spoke in Chinese, and paused for an interpreter to speak. It was very hard to follow. The stone/stucco building was British looking and over 150 years old, so the accoustics of such a building made it even harder to hear/follow the message. Everything we heard was accurate, but didn't go too deep.

Years ago, I never would have believed I would be sitting in church in China, let alone with 6 Chinese kids, I am glad God put me here. Thankfully, the business-resturaunt part of the White Swan is still open, so we were able to get a taxi back "home" and didn't have to brave the subway.

Today we had medical follow up--praise God--no TB like Waid. (no he doesn't actually have it- after further testing in the US) And Jenna's passport came from Shenyang, our guide was a bit worried that it had not come last week. The next 2 days are free, then the consulate on Thursday.

Everyone is doing well. Thank you for your prayers.

Jenna continues to surprise us by understanding so much English. The founders of her "home" are French. The only English AJ knows is "no" ;), actually he has learned: shoes, brush teeth, backpack,

Thank you Lord, she knows many English words already

2011-12-19T01:22:00.000-06:00

6 China kids, looking at fish

2011-12-19T01:19:00.000-06:00

Yay Jenna, flight to Guangzhou

2011-12-19T01:15:00.000-06:00

Last week, in Hohhot

2011-12-19T01:12:00.001-06:00

Laminated die cut letters=hours of entertainment

2011-12-19T01:08:00.001-06:00

Hot pot in Hohhot

2011-12-18T07:08:00.000-06:00

Not so hot, I'm afraid. Waid loved the bean curd though--dipped in peanut paste and the 2 new kids liked it.The really skinny woman in beige flag sweater is me.....BAHAHAHA, I was probably bigger than her when I was 10 years old.

Tradition Mongolian dress, coal for heating

2011-12-18T06:59:00.001-06:00

painting wool scarf, bin of camel hair

2011-12-17T05:41:00.000-06:00

Waid escaping it all, AJ "signing" paperwork with handprint

2011-12-17T05:37:00.000-06:00

AJ arriving and his clay creation

2011-12-17T05:31:00.000-06:00

Flying into Inner Mongolia

2011-12-17T03:56:00.001-06:00

Enormous statue in Shenyang

2011-12-17T03:51:00.001-06:00

3 coats Jenna came in

2011-12-17T03:47:00.000-06:00

Last day in Inner Mongolia, now in Guangzhou

2011-12-17T03:20:00.001-06:00

We went to a The Inner Mongolia museum. It was just great to get out of the hotel room where we could let go of the kids and walk freely. They had a really great dinosaur exhibit, and many historical exhibits. I lost count, but at least 10 people asked to have their pictures taken with us. We are the largest family our guide has ever seen, even with the other families she has helped. I am sad that it is winter and we were not able to get out and see/learn more. BUT we were glad to leave for GZ---on a morning when it was 12 BELOW zero!!!!!!!!!!!

The flight was late--as usual--but uneventful. They fed us and then I made all the kids take a nap=).

Now we are in lovely 69 degree Guangzhou. The kids had medicals today. All was well, sort of. Two Dr's went on and on about AJ's delays, and asked me repeatedly if we were aware of his problems. Basically, they do not see value in such individuals, and have a tough time understanding why anyone would want them, much less climb such mountains to get them. They cannot see thru Jesus's eyes, as we do.

Tomorrow we will attempt to go to church, and take the subway back to the hotel.

officially ours

2011-12-12T20:39:00.001-06:00

Aj nis officially ours. Things were a little different here in Hohhot. Everything was done at the hotel, getting him yesterday and some paperwork in the lobby. Today, in a conference room, with the orphanage director, Inner Mongolia Orphanage head, 2 from notary office, and another important lady. The IM director was all business, and interviewed us thru the translator. This is the only interview we've had except fot Emmi's. He just asked the basic stuff that is on all the paperwork: reason for adopting, how long married, income, # of children, are we satisfied with the child.......Now we wait in the room for all signed and stamped paperwork to be brought to us.

Then we will go for a walk on a main street we can see from the hotel, and a main square, there is also a shopping area we are told. I'm sure we won't last long, with the temps in the teens.

Things are quite different here. Last night, walking back from supper, we saw a Cadillac, Lexus, several Audi's Lambraghini, Bentley, Mercedes MD, many very expensive cars, and a van like mine=) (I think it was a hotel shuttle).

THe resturaunt had a water fall, grand piano player, and violinist. At home, if we walked in and saw the atmosphere, we would turn and walk out....knowing we could not afford to eat there. We had dinner there for 130rmb, about $21!! We are glad to find cheap meals here, as we did not find them in Shenyang or Beijing, other than KFC--yuck.

Colds are better, thank you for your prayers.

12/6 #2

2011-12-12T02:42:00.001-06:00

Trying again to attach pix

Will try to catch up soon. These are pics at AJ's home last week. We actually get him tomorrow 12-12. The nannie's were excited to see Wes again.

This was the day we flew from Tokyo to Beijing.

Avery, Waid, and I have bad colds and congestion. Pray for us please.

12/6

2011-12-12T02:38:00.001-06:00

Will try to catch up soon. These were going to be pics at AJ's home last week, but they won't attach. We actually get him tomorrow 12-12. The nannie's were excited to see Wes again.

This was the day we flew from Tokyo to Beijing.

Avery, Waid, and I have bad colds and congestion. Pray for us please.

:-) Janet
DH David
DD Kristen 19 flew the coop

DS Jake 18 Sophomore at PCC

DS AJ 8 waiting in Neimengu, China
DD Emmi 7 home from YuanLing, Hunan, China 3-4-05

DS Wes 7 home from ZhengZhou, Henan, China 3-5-10

DD Jenna 7 waiting in Liaoning, China

DD Avery 6 home from DongGuan City, Guangdong, China 8-25-07

DS Waid 5 home from Tianjin, China 8-27-10

pictures hard to load

2011-12-12T02:10:00.001-06:00

so there will not be many until we get to Guangzhou. I've given up on backtracking and telling the funny little stories...to far behind.....maybe I'll throw them in later.

We got AJ a while ago in the hotel lobby. He is in Lego heaven, and likes hit hot chocolate. He is very excited and hyper, like he had alot of Mountain Dew--hope this isn't a permanant personality trait;)

The sick ones are better, praying the others stay well. We are running out of medicine, not sure what is available here--Thank the Lord we have never been sick on the other 4 trips.

We got a nap today, and everyone actually feels decent. Also got caught up on laundry today, it's hanging all over the room to dry.

There are only 2 little resturaunts close to the hotel. The guide showed them to us, and we have not ventured further, since we just got here yesterday. Tomorrow we have to go do paperwork, and hope to find a store then. We need cup-o-noodles for cheap meals in the room. So far we have made it by stuffing ourselves at the breakfast bar, eating peanut butter crackers, oatmeal, etc. in the room for 1 meal, and eating out 1 meal.

12/07/11

2011-12-11T23:33:00.001-06:00

Silk cacoons, a machine that unwinds them. The kids thought this was very interesting, I thought it would have been a little more "show" and tell.

After the silk factory, our guide took us through a back way to KFC (can't believe I ate it). As you probably know, I'd rather walk the back streets all day, than do "touristy" stuff, so this was right up my alley--no pun intended.

Our guide also wanted to take us to Forbidden temple the same morning. We asked to be back at the hotel at 12, to pack up and leave by 2. She said we had plenty of time. We knew better. She took us on the subway instead of paying for a pricey van. I think we walked as far as we rode. Beijing subway system is ginormous. There were many older sections with stairs-no escalators....with the crowds shoving, we just picked Waid up at the stairs. I think our guide did not realize how much Waid would slow us down, and just having 4 kids in general.

We got back to the hotel at 1:40, the shuttle left at 2. I had not packed up anything, because we'd asked to be back at 2, and were told "no problem".

After a mad dash, we made it, got to out gate about 30 minutes to spare----the flight was delayed 2 hours. AAARRRGGHH!! Dependability is not real big with the airlines here.

But we made it to Shenyang later in the evening.

Sorry for the lack of pictures, problem with netbook.

Unbelievable......

2011-12-05T15:05:00.001-06:00

We now have a visa stamp in our passports for Tokyo!! Adventure woman did not want to come on this trip--but did.
We had a medical emergency on board too (not us personally), thought we would have to land in Alaska.
And after only 1.5 hour asleep, a flight attendant woke up Waid to see if he was buckled--that was the end of sleep on the plane.
I had a Christian t-shirt on, so I couldn't slap her;)
Our flight to Beijing was cancelled due to weather. Delta got us a hotel (our expense), and rescheduled us with another airline.
They had to re-open immigration for us (only Americans), and we did get 2 great personal assistants to walk us thru everything.
After 5 hours sleep, now we will try again.
5th time to China, I guess we will never get to see the great wall.=(--that's what we were supposed to be doing this morning.
Please pray the rest of our trip is VERY uneventful.

Safe travel to Tokyo

2011-12-05T04:27:00.000-06:00

But our flight was canceled to Beijing due to bad weather.

Last day

2011-12-03T16:51:00.000-06:00

We leave in the morning...

what does that have to do with snowmen dresses?

Nothing really, although we are sure to see some snow where we are going.

In Jenna's province the low is 7 degrees, high, 19.

Please pray for us, the weather alone is enough to make us crazy.

I just wanted to share the dresses, though. I am so thankful for my friend Suzanne, who taught me how to smock the year we got Emmi.

Today I sewed on 30 buttons, and hemmed all 3 dresses.

I was thrilled to be through with all the travel stuff, so that I could get these finished today, and have a low key (haha) day.

I'm sick of snowmen.

I don't think the girls will be getting matching dresses but about once a year, it gets a bit monotnous.

We'll probably just shoot for coordinating colors.

Thank you for your prayers as we travel tomorrow.

Test post from email

2011-12-02T11:23:00.003-06:00

This is my "Y".
He has just informed me that he can deadlift 405lbs.
Legpress 1400lbs., yes, that's two 0's, and bench press 360lbs.
I would not want to be the bad guy this Criminal Justice Major is after.

And about yesterday's post--I AM joking when I say I'm a genius or super-mom.
If I really was, it wouldn't have taken me 20 years to use that recipe!

This week in our SPARE time...

2011-12-01T19:10:00.000-06:00

made my 1st cheesecake. I bought the ingredients a few weeks ago, and never got around to actually making it.

I bought the pan about 10 years ago, and never got around to using it.

I got the recipe about 20 years ago, when a friend made one for my birthday.....and I've finally made it!

Yes, it was wonderful. I don't know why people pay an arm and a leg for them at the stores,

it was easy.

Emmi and I made these cute luggage tags with cardstock and the laminator.

And we made charts, one for AJ, one for Jenna.

Since the concept of time is so hard for kids, they can put a sticker on each day that passes, to show when we will get home.

Yes, I AM a genius;).

As of yesterday we still did not have a cost sheet, so I had to cancel our dentist appointments, and Avery's specialist appointment, in anticipation of the cost sheet coming today.

We got it this morning, reviewed it, and DH wired fees.

I am thankful we were able to wire all the fees, and not have to worry about getting new bills, and carrying alot of cash around.

All of the essentials are done, I feel such relief.

This is the 1st night this week we have not been on the phone/computers for hours getting everything squared away.

Our agency only takes care of the adoption part, and travel, hotels during those days.]

We had to book our stay in Beijing, a guide there, the flights to Shenyang, and the Hong Kong hotel.

SOOOOOO thankful it's all done.

AHHHH the craziness

2011-11-29T14:36:00.000-06:00

It began Friday, since DH was home, I could work without much interuption.

You may remember, on the 4 previous trips, we wore 1 outfit, take 3, and carry-on everything.

NOT the case this time.

Our challenges include:

1. Packing for 8 people.

2. The temps will range from 10 degrees in provinces, to 85 degrees in Guangzhou.

3. The 1st three nights, we will be in 3 different places.

4...which means we can't do laundry until Thursday, so we must have 6 outfits.

5. Not enough big people to carry bags--so we must check them.

6. We do not own really heavy coats (except the girls--bought on clearance before the trip for Wes.)

So many layers are needed.

7. Those coats/layers are being packed, and we will pull them out when we reach Beijing. I am not lugging 6 six coats around multiple airports. And it will be 65 degrees here when we leave.

8. The kids have not worn many of their cold clothes yet, so they had to be tried on and some taken up.

So, the above pic is the girls stuff.

Boys stuff. I am thankful to have the extra bed in each room, to stack and organize on.

It all came downstairs on Monday.

Sorted out and stacked by day, DH and my clothes added.

The kids have been forbidden to step foot in the living room for the last week.

On a side note--today we had to run the heat; I am thankful we have only had to run it at night so far.

(Actually, we had to run the a/c at night last week.)

Waid discovered the vent.

He had loads of fun, for about 20 minutes.

So here is what I have ended up with.

I tell myself it is really not as bad as I think--4 of the 6 bags are smaller--carry-on sized.

I was really afraid when I packed the 1st 19" bag--only 1 day of clothes fit.

(And there is your free packing tip...do not ever put all of 1 person's clothes in 1 bag...if it's lost; they're naked! Put everyone's "day 1" in the same bag, etc.)

These 6 will go under the plane.

Our 6 backpacks and 1 rolling case will go on with us. Plus 2 strollers.

The kids backpacks have shoes, and a change of clothes, snacks, crayons, legos, paper, cars, stickers and a few other craft items.

Our backpacks have the shoes, clothes, snacks, electronics and paperwork.

DONE!

DH will be home tomorrow, we will make and laminate more luggage tags, and print iteneraries to go in each bag. Except we do not HAVE one yet. We have never been 5 days from travel and not had an itenerary OR cost sheet!!! Not happy about that fact.

After TA last Tues, we could not even finalize our flights until Friday, because of difficulty at the provincial level, and possible change of consulate date. OK--enough griping.

Thursday we have dentist appointments.

Friday and Saturday I will clean house and make lists for Jake.

We will miss him by a couple of days.

While we are gone, he can do things with his friends, wash my van;), and be ready to help us survive the 1st week home.

Our Thanksgiving

2011-11-25T14:42:00.000-06:00

Morning activity.

Above--our turkies

below-our ham

Emmi thought of this, and asked if she could do it.

Making good use of leftover mini-marshmallows from the sweet potatoes.

And finally.....the best part of this meal.....DH did it ALL!

(I know you girls are all jealous)

It's all from scratch too, except the cranberries and rolls.

TA

2011-11-23T17:19:00.000-06:00

                                               Guess where we will be Christmas day????

                            Hong Kong, Tokyo, Atlanta, and home....with 2 more children.
                                     Still working out the details, but out CA is the 22nd.

Blessed and troubled

2011-11-14T14:11:00.000-06:00

Waid wears this little back-pack just about 24/7, since I pulled it out in pre-packing-planning mode.

Now he has a gift bag also to tote around all day=)

BLESSED:

In so many ways; but specifically--

We went to Athens AL for a special Sunday evening church service.

The church has an adoption grant ministry, that we were blessed to recieve a grant from.

They have a service once a year for families they have helped.

Obviously, the financial support was a blessing, but so much more....

To see the heart of this small church was so encouraging. It is a SMALL church, I am guessing 15-20 families--at most! Yet they have given $13,000 worth of grants, to help bring orphans into families, over the past 3 years!!

TROUBLED:

As we drove north out of Birmingham, we saw a "megachurch" with building that has been completed in the last year or so.

Out front they have a ginormous cross.

DH works with one of the church members, and is told that the cross stands over 125 feet tall.

The cross is not boasting the church name or denomination, and appears to be made of plain cement. It's not really even pretty, just huge.

AND EXPENSIVE.

We are told that the cross cost more than $250,000!!!

So here's where I am troubled.

This megachurch may be doing great things in their various ministries; but how much

MORE could they be doing, with that $250,000??

It struck me in sharp contrast to the simple small church we went to, where most of the walls were painted cement block. The chairs were fine, there was heating/a/c, and the necessary comforts, but it was not extravegant by any means.

I understand people want to be comfortable in church (although most around the world are not), and I understand that large churches need large buildings.

But we don't go to church to enjoy the lush surroundings--do we?

I just do not understand the NEED for the giant, expensive, not even pretty cross.

I have to ponder: were there objections to the huge expenditure?

Where were the men who should have stood up and said

"this is rediculous, we can save lives with that money"

Surely, surely, there were some, were they outvoted by the majority.?.......what does that say about the "majority" of Christians today????

That $250,000 could have changed the lives of roughly 10 international orphans.

(feed hundreds, house many, etc)

Think about those brought into Christian homes, and saved, who grow up to be workers for Jesus Christ, and reach many more...

that money had the possibility to change an exponential number of lives.

How many lives is the big chunk of cement going to change?

More Birthday fun

2011-11-12T19:13:00.001-06:00

Kristen came over today, her birthday is next week.

She cannot possibly be 20, because I am only 20---right?!?!

Kristen brought Waid this cool stick that makes a noise when you turn it over,
plus it has bb's running through it. She was amazed at what fun the $1 toy provided!

She also got him a hot potato toy. An oldie but a goodie, now with built in music!

It was very thoughtful that she looked for things he could see/do.

And to top it off, a singing card.

My kids love these, and keep them in their "treasure" box.......

we have some from over a year ago.

Once the boys got the hang of the game, they thought it was hilarious.

And Waid has a giggle that is hilarious!

He gets going an just can't stop.

Poor Kristen, all she got was a wheel for her car.

Not much fun, but how it is when you're out on your own....

you ask for necessities as gifts.

A wheel on her car broke a while back, and she has been using the spare tire.

And this evening we called TIngTing in Beijing.

When we went to get Wes, she was the guide from our other agency that took us to meet Waid.

Then when I went to get Waid, she got me from Beijing to Tianjin.

We are hoping she can help us again in Beijing.......because we found out the hard way.......

vans at the Beijing airport are hard to come by for Americans who don't plan in advance=)

Slow week got busy

2011-11-11T14:14:00.000-06:00

Our second slow week waiting on Article 5, filled up pretty fast.

Monday we patched holes and painted the wall in the boys room that had their names hung on it.

Tuesday was cleaning and laundry.

Wed. Avery got ear tubes, for about the 10th time....not exagerating, but I have lost count.

As well as David getting a temporary crown, and all the fun drilling involved. I got my permanant crown--from where I broke a tooth a few weeks ago.

Thursday we had errands, speech x3, and Waid's Birthday.

He knew exactly what to do.

Doesn't fully get it though--sung Happy Birthday to YOU, instead of ME.

Although we do not know many Disney characters, He knows it's a car and Lego's....
who cares what character it is.

Happy Birthday Waid!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The rest of the slooooowwww week

2011-11-04T16:25:00.001-05:00

We nature walked on Sunday.

And collected leaves for leaf rubbings.

Thankful for DH's friend at work who gave us 34lb ground deer meat, plus a bunch of cube steak.

Thankful no one has been sick--we made achoo faces in school, and discussed germs,
and covering our mouths.

Thankful for my sweet friend CC,
who wanted to make sure the new kids have socks and underwear=)

Thankful that Avery has discovered how to play with Waid. It was like a light bulb moment.

The have played the same thing--like being in the same room building with Lego's,

but have not really played together, enjoying each other.

He is the Dr., Avery is the patient.

BTW, Avery had an appt at the cleft clinic yesterday =( we were there 4 hours=(.

She has to have new tubes, no big surprise. We've lost count, but she has had at least 10 sets.

She also got an appt with the oral surgeon who will be doing her bone graft when she gets big enough, removing misplaced teeth, doing implants.....lots of fun.

But we probably will have to reschedule- due to adoptions.

After speech, Emmi joined in. I guess she needed to see a specialist, because they moved upstairs.Wes was still doing schoolwork.

Our article 5 is scheduled to be picked up next Thursday, so it will be another ssslllllooooowww week.

slooooooowwww week

2011-11-02T14:47:00.000-05:00

The weather has been beautiful here this last week, frost in the mornings, but great just as we finish up school time, and into the afternoon.

Waid has invented his own vacuum cleaner.

Knowing that frosty mornings would soon be the norm, we cleaned out the garage on Saturday.

We've been putting it off since about April--yeh, that bad.

But since DH refuses to scrape a windshield at 3:30am (wimp), the job had to be tackled.

Please observe the most wonderful thing in "my" side of the garage.

Yes, it's a disc swing!

I am so excited to have this inside, along with the mini-trampoline, to get some energy out of the kids in cold weather.

And, it's right outside the schoolroom door, I can send them out 1 at a time during school=).

I am hoping this little bit of action will work well for our ADHD kids.

My camera battery died as I was downloading pictures.

I know you will be in agony as you wait for a post about the rest of the week;)

Cabled!!!!!

2011-10-27T12:41:00.000-05:00

We were cabled yesterday!!!!!!

SO--two weeks to Article 5, then travel approval. We are praying for TA Thanksgiving week, so we can leave the next week, and be home when Jake gets home from college.

My little baby is only 18 and about to be a Junior in college, I would hate to leave him alone during his break...... we have not seen him since August.

Today is our annual car-seat cover washing day.

Yes, the fun at our house never ends.

Of course, ~~if you give a mouse a cookie~~
if you removoe the carseats, you must clean out the car.

The kids are enjoying a beautiful day, as I clean out the car.
Avery lost another tooth last night--she is showing you.

                                                            Doesn't this look marvelous.
             I am so thankful for God's provisions of this van, and the witness of how he made it ours.
                                                                  Testimony here
                                          I DO vacuum/clean out the car more than 1x a year.

And since it is so lovely today, we are having popsicles for lunch, and staying outside as long as possible.....a cold front is predicted for tonight.

(Of course I will feed them some real food in a bit.)

Sweet punkin lost a tooth, and other

2011-10-25T20:03:00.000-05:00

Avery is 6.5yo, and lost her 1st tooth Sunday night.

She was pretty excited.

As you can see the hole is not in the right place because of her cleft. She has 2 permanent teeth coming in behind the others, and one in the roof of her mouth.

She is in for a year of surgeries and dental work next year......we won't tell her that now=)

Waid is such a clown. I said smile, and he did not, I said show me your teeth, and he did this.

Here Waid is helping DH put the back on a bookcase. I've had the bookcase, but didn't put the back on when it was against the wall--but now I have rearranged.

He loves to help.

He kept sticking his face right up to the nail/hammer, and DH having to push him back.

He does this when I am typing on the computer too, or sewing, he wants to see how things work.

Ling hasn't been out lately--but today was her day.

She got to ride in the buggy.......

Go for a walk.....

Take a nap with teddy, compete with good nite kiss, and "be still" pep talk.

Waid is pretending to nap too. He can be so sweet.

Unlike his father;)............

For some reason I was thinking out loud at how old we would be when Waid is 18. And that we will have had kids at home for 34 years at that time. I said "wow, you'll still have a few more years to work. Doesn't it seem like you'll work forever........my luck I'll croak the day after I retire"

He said " you have to WORK to retire!'

I AM BLESSED to be home 20 years now!

One small step closer.....

2011-10-18T14:24:00.000-05:00

Our I-800 was approved on the 12th!!!! Best I can fugure, our article 5 will be picked up the 1st week in Nov., and we should have travel approval around Thanksgiving! Please pray with us that we are able to bring AJ and Jenna home in Dec, and not January. With all of the holidays, there could be delays, or trouble booking travel. We appreciate your prayers!

We had fun at the park this morning. Waid loved these girls!

I turned around and he had already done this once!

Look at little miss A go!

These three got on top of the monkey bars, I think they are part monkey.

We had all of our fun just in the nick of time, it is now raining, and the temp is supposed to drop
25 degrees, tomorrow's high is 57, it was 87 yesterday--only in Alabama.

Want to help?

2011-10-15T18:39:00.000-05:00

God has been amazing in providing for these adoptions through fundraisers, donations, and some of you!! We are still a little short on funds. We have been approved for a Lifesong account. For those of you who would like to help with Jenna and AJ's adoption expenses, here's how it works: Click on the link, you will see their address if you want to send a check, or click on the one time gift part of their page to pay by paypal. You MUST put Hurley #2358 on your check or donation note. All donations are tax deductable, Lifesong will send you a tax receipt. I do not believe Lifesong sends us a list of Donors, as Kingdom Kids did with Wes's adoption. That being said, please know that we are grateful for all contributions, but will not be able to thank you personally.

But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth:
			That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly. Matthew 6:3-4 KJV

Anticipation and nesting?

2011-10-15T15:27:00.001-05:00

This lovely plastic box is "the China box".

And has been sitting in my bedroom floor for the better part of our 6 years in this house.

I do move it to the closet if I'm having a Christmas party or something.

It contains all the accumulated necessities of China travel.

I keep it handy, so that I can add a coloring book here, a beachball there, and also so I do not have to roundup plug converters, money pouches, etc., for every adoption.....because they would get lost.
It's good to have been to China 4 times, because I do not need a thing for travel! I will purchase a few cold meds, but I would get them to have on hand even if we were not travelling.

   And the kids will get a few dollar store items for their backpacks...to keep them happy in flight.
           But I've looked at my packing lists, and am thankfull that we have all the important stuff,
                                                          that can add up so quickly.
                                         We will NOT be able to go carry-on-only this time =(,
                                      people under the age of 10 do not make good pack mules.
                    We will have 1 large rolling duffle to check, I will still pack like I'm going COO.

                                      So there was my travel anticipation, here's my nesting.
                                           I have already tackled all the big stuff like closets.
                                   It is my lazy day, so I am just going to tackle the recipe box.

Now it is only 1/2 the original size.

Of course some of the recipes go back generations (the good ones.)

But there were others that were not so good, that dated back to 1980 home ec class.

I cleaned out anything that involved a double boiler, pressure cooker, or candy thermometer

--really, I need things simple.

And how many brownie recipes does one need--none really when there is Betty C. and the Dough boy!

Going on this week...

2011-10-13T22:14:00.000-05:00

Wes built his name with Legos.

This photo arrangement--dating back to 2006, when we only had 3 kids.........
became this................

These are pics from DH's business trip back in March.....all it took was $3 at Sam's,

yet it took me 6 months to do, and will be outdated by the addition of

two more children soon.

For another $1.50 at Sam's, I made this. Again, showing my procrastination in the photo area....

I bought this frame on clearance at Michaels, back when there were only 3 children.

Then, with the addition of Avery, I thought I would put her on one side, Emmi on one side, and the big kids in the middle.

Then, with the addition of Wes, I couldn't figure out how to make it work.

Then, with the addition of Waid, I thought I would put Chinese boys on one side, Chinese girls on the other side, and big kids in the middle...of course this gets rather complicated when 1 big kid lives an hour away, and the other 4.5 hours away.

SO I decided on images from China. Each was taken a different trip.

BTW, this is in my bedroom.

What are they all looking at???

(yes- that's a pool float around Waid's neck)

Daddy at work, getting rid of the holly tree that drops
stickery leaves in the yard.

This is amazing.................

TIMBER

This girl loves her bishops!!

Uneventful (Thank goodness) rest of the week

2011-10-08T20:25:00.000-05:00

DH's trip was uneventful, and I was able to give the whole house a good, thorough, well needed cleaning.

DH saw something like this on the internet, and thought it was great, not standing up on the table is a drawback he had complained about. Wes thinks he helped build this creation.

I, personally, do not use this form of technology, although I am very thankful for it,
and it's many innexpensive ap's that DH uses with the kids.

I love this dress, and these shoes.
Seeing the girls wear dresses that I made, makes me smile.

Did you do this as a kid?
I remember doing it at a friends new house, and we rolled over a newly planted baby tree=(.

I am surprised it has taken them this long to discover the joy of rolling down the hill.

And I am glad that I only let them go outside in play clothes.

On the adoption front--Jenna's birthday is Monday. Her foster home will not tell her that she has a family, or give her the package we sent, until they get official word from CCAA.

As many times as we have done this, you would think I would know exactly when that official paperwork gets to the home/orphanage, but I do not. We are praying that the home will tell her on Monday--what a birthday that would be!

God knows when we are at the end of our rope...

2011-10-06T19:36:00.002-05:00

Stick with me here while I whine a bit; it is essential for you see the whole picture.

On Sunday evening, I baked 9 pizza's at 9pm....because our freezer was dying. I checked the internet, and learned that most of the other food would be fine to re-freeze, and larger items were still solid.

So, Monday morning started with our deciding that buying a new freezer would be more cost effective tha paying a repairman $100 just to take a look.

I called around and found a scratch and dent model in Gadsden. We have no truck or trailer, so the hour long procedure of removing seats from the van began.

Did I mention that DH has to go out of town, I have to wash, iron, and pack his clothes; among other things to get done today. So DH heads off to Gadsden before lunch.

The freezer that died is not just an extra, it is THE freezer. We thought we would put the new one in the laundry room, and leave the old one in place, and hope it can be repaired next year.

Of course it would not fit in the back door.

After the freezer was in place and had cooled a bit, we swapped things over.

We are returning to the dark ages of ice trays.

At least new freezer fit in the old space--sort of. The handle is on the wrong side, and it is too tall to put the vent/trim kit back on across the top. Since the old one was discontinued, it kind of ruined the look of my custom kitchen--that I waited 20 years for.

The devil loves to mess with us during this point in adoption. I wonder why we are even surprised by it. Satan hates that God is using us. I calculated our adoption costs wrong at last count--I forgot the last agency payment of over $2k

My big baby will not be able to come home from college this semester, due to projects and events he must attend.

Many things I have not shared, things have just been tough the past few weeks. It's easy to second guess things, and have doubts about what we are doing.

God knows when we are at the end of our ropes, for us it was Monday.

Then I got a call. A call that could have come any day last week, but it didn't, it came on Monday.

A sweet friend called to let me know, her family is giving us the funds that were raised for their adoption that did not work out.

Although the family was heartbroken because their adoption did not work out, they want to help us.

What a heart for orphans! We are so thankful!

a little progress

2011-09-30T14:06:00.001-05:00

Our check cleared immigration yesterday! Progress towards AJ and Jenna!

DH watched the kids last night while I went to a consignment sale. Those in charge of the sale were kind enough to let me shop early with the new mothers; since I am expecting 2 additions shortly.

He is on day shift--which means he has to get up at 3:30AM!

So I had supper ready to serve, kids bathed and in PJ's, etc., trying to make things easy for his tired old bones.

This morning, I found this.

Wasn't he sweet to load the dishwasher =0

He claims he was delirious from lack of sleep, but that fork on top of the pan says "I am funny-aren't I", instead of "I am delirious".

I got a some deals, and stuck pretty closely to my list at the sale.

AJ was the only one really lacking, unfortunately, he still is.

I wasn't about to pay "full" price for beige pants, and striped shirts. I am afraid he is too old for the really cute stuff.

So, I will go back on Saturday, which is 1/2 price day, and get those boring big boy clothes for $1 or $2 each.

Last zoo trip....

2011-09-28T22:17:00.000-05:00

at least until next year--our passes expire Friday. That is, unless they put us in a cage, have you ever seen such goofy faces? At least Avery got it right. Click http://5hurleykids.blogspot.com/2010/09/zoo-fun.html

to see the zoo pic from 1 year ago.

The ONLY reason I took the elephant picture, is because DH was with us, and he made me.
Good grief, that Elephant can't even stand up straight.

Why are these guys always strutting around the zoo, but you can never catch them with their pretty tailfeathers spread out?

Upclose of baby lions. DH hates it when I zoom; we fight over the camera.

There were 5 in all.

Waid had an appointment with his glaucome Dr. yesterday morning, so we packed a lunch and has this last oo trip afterwards. Waid will have to have an exam under anesthesia on the 12th. It has to be done a couple of times a year to check the shunts in his eyes, and measure the pressure. Since he has nysatagmus (constant twitching of eyes), putting him under is the only way to get an accurate pressure reading, and see the back of his eyes.

Emmi got done with her schoolwork first, and was playing around with one of Waid's cool school things. She mad a cat--see the ears, the eyes are blue, nose and mouth red, and red whiskers sticking out all over=).
After an hour and a half--I am 1/2 way thru with the ironing. 72 pieces in all! I had been ironing work clothes for DH as needed, and ironed my denim skirt a few times, other than that, I have been a huge ironing slacker! There is a month's worth of church clothes; I am supposed to be ironing every week--or at least that's what my chore schedule says. We won't go into how many other things on the chore schedule have been neglected lately......

Busy and Blessed

2011-09-24T22:25:00.000-05:00

Besides getting LOA this week, we were blessed to receive two grants, totalling $1400. They are both from small town churches here in AL. This impresses me, because they did not say "No, God, we can't help orphans, we are such a small church." So even if they saved all year, and this is the only grant they have given; they have helped change 2 lives!

No amount is ever too small to help a need that God lays on your heart.

We made these fun pizza's; you add the ingredients in reverse, then dump it upside down after baking.

The pizza's weren't especially pretty, but very yummy.

Emmi helped Waid color on this box, and pushed him around in his new "car."

            "Friends of the Library" had a sale. There was a whole box of books from a former teacher.
              When I got home, a paper fell out of one, and I discovered these books had all belonged to
                                      a girl I went to school with. I got this box full for $16!

               And an answer to prayer came home from work with DH the other day (at 6am).
                  A co-worker had 3 boys, who are now all grown. He gave us thier furniture!
                                     It is solid pine, and the heaviest stuff in our whole house!

The transformation begins, but we were only given 1 mattress.

We were able to sell the 2 queen beds and headboards,
and have enough money to buy the other 2 mattresses today.

One side rail was missing from the set, DH has to build that next week,
so Waid's mattress is on the floor.

The finished product will take a while. Unfortunately, the old headboards hung on the wall, and there are 12 large screwholes in the wall to prove it. Also, the letters will be moved, leaving more holes. Luckily I have almost a whole gallon of the paint leftover. Patching and re-painting the 1 wall is not something I look forward to....at least it is not the whole room. I probably will not hang the letters back up until we return from China, and we are sure where everyone is sleeping. We plan to put AJ on top--but you never know.

                We have also had a playdate with 2 China friends, and had a nature walk with daddy.
                                Since we have had such a busy week, my house is a wreck,
                              and all these clothes have to be ironed....want to come help???

LOA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2011-09-21T10:06:00.000-05:00

Can you hear me shouting?! Our agency says it will still be close--getting the kids by the end of the year. With many Chinese and American holidays, and a international trade fair to work around.......offices will be closed many days. Please pray with us, that we get AJ and Jenna before the end of the year!

Alexander's terrible, horrible, no good, very bad week

2011-09-19T16:58:00.000-05:00

Did I say Alexander--I meant Janet's. Last week I had a headache that lasted for days. After the power came back on our icemaker did not work, and the air conditioning in DH's car went out. We crunched numbers and discovered we're about $4k short of adoption funds, and we got a letter of rejection from a grant. In addition, I still have to buy matresses, matress pads, sheets, blankets, and more towels before our new kids come home. AND we did not get LOA.

SO- I wanted to stay like this all week, but limited it to 1 day.

I am having to remind myself ~~daily, no hourly,~~ moment by moment, that this life is not about what I want, when I want it, and how easy I would like it to be. But I am in the refiner's fire, and should be happy to be there.

SO- no pitty party, let's get on with things.

Can someone tell me how this happens in a house with 2 adults, and no children of peanut butter dipping age??

I must tell you that the other adult is the one who consumes the majority of peanut butter in this house.

                                                  Remember my kitchen window dilema?
                                       I found a tension rod for $7 at BB&B, and had a coupon.

I was going to make the tabs out of a coordinating green fabric that I also used on the bay window.

BUT, I discovered I had a bunch of cream colored ribbon in my sewing room,
so I wasn't about to sew each tab individually.

              I also found the jute rick-rack in my sewing room, left from a shower curtain project.
                         It took only about an hour in the sewing room to solve my delima.
~~My next sewing project will be a custom made straight jacket for myself--if we do not get LOA soon.~~
                                     God is in control, he loves me and knows what is best!!

WOW- check this out

2011-09-09T10:56:00.000-05:00

This is a fantastic post about the 1st few months of life after adoption, from a mom's point of view.
Disclaimer: I know nothing about this family other than what is said in this post.
She babbles a little at the beginning about back to school, keep reading, it's so true and honest.
http://www.jenhatmaker.com/blog/2011/09/06/after-the-airport
The point: no matter how much we love our kids, and love working for His kingdom, it is hard. I'm not whining, not looking for a pat on the back--just acknowledge that it is not an easy road. And that no matter how well meaning families are that have no connection with adoption....they really do not have a clue what we go through. I guess it's kind of like a fraternity. We need all the prayers and support we can get!, and greatly appreciate it!

Our week in pictures

2011-09-08T20:45:00.000-05:00

Pool overflowing, as tropical storm Lee dumps record rain on us.

Lovely tub, showing you some of the 10" of rain that fell in less than 24 hours.

Temps dropped 20 degrees, a new record low on that day, since the early 1900's.

Over 200,000 without power. We got to experience that for 46 hours.

And no, we do not get preferential treatment because DH ~~was held hostage~~ works for the power co.

This is the longest we have been without power since 1993 (5 days in the blizzard).

I put the fridge stuff on ice, and did not open the freezer until DH got home to hook up the generator.

Our commercial size fridge and freezer had not been pulled out, since it was installed in 2008......we narrowly escaped the dust bunnies and crud that was hiding underneath.

Have you ever tried to sleep with one of these right outside your window?....not fun, but I am very thankful we had it, and were able to save all the food in the fridge and freezer.

Of course Kristen had power. She stopped by to see us after a job interview.

She has a 2nd interview on Monday. Please pray that she gets the job.

And the rest of the week, up to this point, has been spent in recovery mode, washing tons of laundry, cleaning, and put things back in place.

We hope the week ends with a bang tomorrow--with LOA=).

Much Hilarity (is that a word?)

2011-09-04T21:55:00.000-05:00

Last night as I was getting church clothes ready, Emmi and Cleo were talking to me. Cleo was scratching my back at one point. Then Cleo ended up in my shirt--but I pretended not to notice.

Emmi was giggling like crazy. She went and got each child and brought them to see Cleo, with lots of whispers and giggles.....like I couldn't hear them. This went on for over 10 minutes......
The simple pleasures of a child=).

We did not have church tonite; that's OK, Waid preached to us. We were actually watching TV, while he was playing. I got to listening to him, he was telling everyone to sing page 335, then he sang his best version of Standing on the Promises. Next he preached from 1John 3, although his "Bible" was a Braille book about ducks. All of this was cute as could be.....but then he told his congregation to turn over to James.......James P. Sullivan (from the Monsters movie). He was hilarious, and so dramatic!

Let me preface this next funny, by making you aware that it takes alot of confidence for a blind person to jump. Imagine only being able to see 12" in front of your face, and having both feet leave the ground. The other kids all jump out of the van. Waid wants to jump too, so he scoots out of the van on his bottom, then takes a single baby hop, and giggles. After, bathtime the other night, I told him to "hop out of the tub", not thinking about my choice of words. He climbed out of the tub, then did a single baby hop, and laughed histerically. He is Mr. Personality, and it is really starting to show. And I love the fact that he actually was able to recognize the humor.
Happy Labor Day--no BBQ for us, DH is working. (but they are feeding HIM BBQ at work).

Last Hoorah?

2011-09-03T14:51:00.001-05:00

I don't think so, but we have changed our daily swim time from late afternoon, to the middle of the day.....it IS getting cooler.

Emmi has learned to swim underwater, all the way at the bottom.

I know I should teach my kids proper technique, and I will later on. But for now--Wes doing our version of the back stroke; both arms woring together.

Wes is the kid who screemed bloody murder during "lesson time" just 2 months ago.

Now look at him=)

Avery has really surprised us, because she is so cautious about everything new. At 2 years old, she did not have the strength to walk across a room, and had never had solid food.

She was the 1st one to figure out how to swim under water without holding her nose.

Waid is still wearing a life vest. We take it off for lessons. He is having a hard time coordinating his legs and arms to all go at the same time. He swims all around in his vest, and has no fear. Amazing, just last July, he was still being carried everywhere, and fed by his foster mother, who evidently thought blind people can't do anything.

Emmi's backstroke.

Mermaid Avery.

                                Before we moved here, we had 4 different houses with inground pools.
                                                         We swam from April into October.
                         After 5 years, I am still amazed at how much difference there is in the climate;
            we were just 116 miles south. I'd move back in a heartbeat, just for the swim season.

And just in case you are wondering if it is worth the money and hassle of putting one of these eyesores in your yard (unless you can afford an inground)

IT IS WORTH EVERY DIME!!

New dilema

2011-08-30T16:09:00.000-05:00

Since I have no LOA --waaaaah!--I'll have to bore you with my latest decorating delima. We got new neighbors a few weeks ago. Let me preface by saying our old neighbor was elderly, never had cars in the driveway, whipped her garage door down before even turning her car off-----so I never had to look at a sight like pictured above.

While our new neighbors may be sweet as pie, they have had a whole slew of plumbers, painters, carpet layers, pest control, and visitors vehicles in their driveway. I know that things will settle down, but because of the property line, steep driveway, etc., I know that it is doubtful that the neighbors will be able to park both of their vehicles in the garage all the time.

I do not want to block the whole window. And my DH worked so hard on the travertine molding around the window a few years ago when the kitchen wasw re-done.

I am thinking: move the stained glass up to the top half, and put a cafe type curtain on the bottom half, on a spring loaded rod. I have fabric left over from the windows on the other side of the kitchen.

What do you think?

If we do not get LOA this week, I might show you the view out of the bay window, and brainstorm how to improve it also.........unfortunately, I already know the answer to that one.....pulling lots of weeds.

Going Crazy???

2011-08-28T22:17:00.001-05:00

Remember Ken doll from this post?

DH found Ken doll laying around....decided he needed some relaxation....then left for work.
I went into the bathroom to get ready for church to discover Ken doll lounging in my sink.
Apparently, working 80 hours of overtime this month, and waiting on LOA, has taken it's toll on DH.

We had cooler temps yesterday and a wonderful breeze. I think the high was 90.
When we swam, about 5:00, we actually got cold *gasp* quite unbelievable for August in Alabama.

After 2 months of having this truck, Waid figured out he could ride it down the hill; and he loved it!
Don't laugh at the pink crocs; and the backwards shorts--he's blind, give him a break.

Hopefully we will get LOA on this kiddo in the coming week (and Jenna too).

He loves Lego's--he will fit in nicely around here!

He's showing us some of his school workbook. Pretty amazing considering his special need.
God made him perfectly, just the way HE wanted AJ to be.

And, if any of our local friends are needing to buy a good- like new- queen bed (or 2), let me know. We've got to get rid of the 2 queens to make room for 3 twins.....or poor AJ will be on a mattress on the floor. (Actually we would probably put Waid on it---so AJ ; being the new one, would not feel less important than the other boys).

Nothing

2011-08-20T10:15:00.000-05:00

No LOA, nada, nothing.

Really nothing else going on either. Just trying to hold it together as DH finishes up his weeks of 12 hour shifts.

My kids have watched too much TV, and I have needed naps, but haven't gotten them.

Waid has been home 1 year this week, and Avery 3 years.
They were adopted 3 years and 3 days apart.

Lest you think I've been busy smocking....let me tell you, I took this smocking insert with me to China last August. I just finished the dress this week. Since it is a simple design, I thought I would smock on the plane, since I never sleep very much in flight. What I discovered was, that without 3 or 4 children in tow, I COULD actually sleep on a plane. Then the dress took a backseat to other things. I am not crazy about it. A whole bolt of the fabric was given to me. I am thankful for that, but just couldn't find anything that went well with it, other than the fairly boring farm. Where you see the white plaid, there are gold, orange and red threads along the edge of the white.
Anywhoooooo, hoping life gets back to normal this next week,,,,,and that we get LOA!!

Outside Fun

2011-08-12T22:07:00.000-05:00

It's still HOT!!

We stayed cool with pellet ice to crunch on.
DH brings it home from work sometimes. We get so excited over little treats=).

The kids washed every available outside toy.
Emmi told me "thank you moma, this is the best day ever!"

I washed the van....which, I am sad to say, only happens a few times a year.
I usually bribe the college boy into washing the cars when he is home.

I even washed DH's car.

After everything was clean, we swam. Then checked out the garden.

Pretty pathetic-huh? Each child got 1 bite of carrot. That is a 12" tile. Who knows, maybe the seeds were for a small breed of carrots. Anyway we had plenty of squash (which we do not eat much), and a fair amount of cherry tomatoes. We had tons of watermelon, but they all split, now we have 1 nice one that survived, hopefully we will eat it next week. Looks like we need to rethink our garden stategies for next year.

Zoo

2011-08-11T22:01:00.000-05:00

It has been so hot, we haven't taken advantage of our passes like we should. I'm voting for McWain Center (science exploration center) for next year's passes.

Does his chiropractor know he does this??

The zoo is fun, but bittersweet too. The giraffe was one of the animals Waid could actually see.

Kristen met us there...I can't believe I have an -almost- 20 year old daughter.......aren't I still 20?

Blurred--but this tiger walked right across the glass front of the enclosure--Waid saw it=).

The petting zoo is great, but has my kids a bit confused. Yesterday, I asked them to draw/write in their journal, something fun about the zoo......all 3 drew red barns and farm animals.

We had to cut the zoo visit short, because rain was moving in. We ate our picnic lunch in the van. Since DH was sleeping off the night shift, we did not want to go home. SO we went to thrift store=)

Brand new Croc mary-jane's for $4.99. Kristen asked what sizes to look for in the clothes. When I said 4-8, she asked who was what size. I said, it doesn't matter, with 6 kids to buy for, it will fit someone eventually.

Kelly's Kids $45 dress, brand new, for a few dollars.....it will coordinate with the purple toile dress I made for Jenna a few weeks ago.

Boy's Bass shoes, $4. I also got Kristen a pair of shoes, 3 Abeka reading books, a Laura Ashley dress, and some Children's Place skirts.
DH is through with the night shifts for a while----wooohooo! Life can return to normal next week.

Odds and ends

2011-08-09T21:00:00.000-05:00

Despite Avery's many mental and developmental labels, she has always been amazing at puzzles.

She has such patience.

This one had 100 pretty small pieces, and they all look so much the same.

It's pretty awesome to watch her, when so many professionals are telling us what she CAN'T do.

In other news:

Praise God we got our tax refund!! Finally!!

Now we can breathe a sigh of relief and know that Jenna and AJ's adoption is almost funded.

We haven't crunched numbers yet, but it looks like we are within a few thousand dollars of the total--God will provide, we have seen it over and over.

OH---and today I got a letter from the IRS, stating that our case had been released and we would get our refund in 6-8 weeks......the letter was printed on Monday....we got the refund last Wed.

Boy are they on top of things!, and I will refrain from going on and on about all the other mis-information we have recieved over the past 6 months.

DH has to work 14 straight 12 hour shifts, half of them nightshifts.

I am very thankful that DH has a wonderful job that he enjoys, however, it is hard when

the work hits all at once.

Waid and Avery had check-ups....Waid weighs 34 pounds, and Avery is 36.

Waid is 43.5" tall, Avery is 44" tall.

Our Dr. is not concerned over Avery's small size, as she is growing slowly, but steadily.

She was, however, anemic, so now she's on vitamins.

We are hoping to get LOA soon.

I have the immigration paperwork ready and waiting, all 972 pages of it--maybe I am exaggerating.

AND finally.....I was asked this week (about the kids)........

"do they have a special diet--I mean don't they have to eat alot of rice?"

The person who said this was dead serious!

Have a happy week=)

Our hot and boring summer

2011-08-08T19:03:00.000-05:00

With all of the heat, we've been cooped up inside, trying to do some schoolwork, and plan for the new school year.

We try to swim everyday. Emmi has graduated from wearing her float vest. Avery is doing very well, but since I only have 2 eyes, and 4 ids in the pool, she still needs to keep her vest. Waid is in the same category, but doesn't even want to get rid of his vest. Waid was using a vest and a do-nut, He is down to just the vest, he goes all around--but only uses his legs and feet.

Many Lego creations have been built lately.

And, if you know anything about me, you now I'm organized.
So I have gathered our spelling supplies for the new year.....

and made a chart. We will go over the workbook on day 1, each day's work will include writing the words, but on days 2, 3, and 4, the kids will spell their words on the magnet board, spell them with foam sticker letters, and use rubber stamps to spell them. Then on day 5, they will be tested.

                                      Each kiddo has a laminated chart on their cubicle wall.
                                      They will put a stcker on the appropriate box each day.
                                         Our spelling books should be here in a few days.   =)

Much excitement...not

2011-08-03T10:32:00.001-05:00

No LOA, No tax refund, so I thought I'd tell my huge fan base about last week's deal.

This rice is the best I have found, most like Chinese rice, with no special appliances. The 5lb bag is $6, the 20lb bag is $11---a definate no brainer. Here is how I store 20lbs of rice. The big ones go in the laundry room, the little one, in the pantry, with recipe attached. FYI--I use the recipe from the 5lb bag (before I discovered the 20lb bag), for some reason they are different.

I always get burger meat at Sam's. But last week they were out, except for the huge tubes. I almost did not even look at it, figuring it would be the 80/20. But to my surprise, it was the 90/10, which is what we buy. Even better, I checked the sign where the styrofoam trays of meat usually are, and the tubes are actually 24 cents cheaper per pound....a savings of $2.40 for the 10lbs.

DH has some special diet needs, and all these Asian kids do not tolerate cow's milk well, so we drink Silk. It is a bit pricey, though. So when I spotted these coupons on the coupon clippers site, I calculated the expiration date, that we use about 8 per week, and took into consideration that the exp dates on Silk are about a month out on average......so I ordered 80 coupons.

I knew Publix runs a 2/$5 special every few weeks....so I waited. The special appeared in the paper last week! We now have 51 half gallons of Silk in the house! AND rainchecks good til the end of August, so I will be able to use the other coupons. I figure I will have Silk through October.....for less than the price of cow's milk

And I am very thankful for the overtime DH got, which enabled me to stock up.

This may not thrill you, but it did thrill me.....I SAVED more than I spent. This was for....
4 silks (got rainchecks that day)
4 pkg gogurts
2 pkg ziploc bags
4 pkg granola bars
18 boxes of cereal
18 boxes pop tarts

I'd say we're set for breakfasts for a while, and the week before they had Eggo waffles on special, we got those too=).

If your interested to know...I do not hoard items, like a years worth of deodorant, or 20 bottles of pepto, like you see on those coupon shows. The fartherest ahead I buy, is about 3-4 months. After all, there WILL be more sales, and I do not have the storage space to hoard. And just my opinion, but those shows are ridiculous....in that they buy tons of stuff....but what are they going to have for dinner???? 20 bottles of pepto and 50 bottles of mustard?? Sure, they are saving alot of money, but not really buying "real" groceries.

Super Saturday--new pics

2011-07-23T16:39:00.001-05:00

AJ is on the left, he will be 9 next week--gulp--he was 7 when we met him.
He is in an excellent group home, but all of the big kids have been adopted, and everyone else is 3yo or younger. Not only will he be thrilled to get a family soon, but to get around peeps closer to his age.

These are his KungFu moves, I think one of the male volunteers at the home is actually teaching him some real KungFu, he's not just playing.

His school class (I think the for 11 months, all but August), went to the beach! He was very excited about clams and the waves, so it must have been a real beach, not a man-made one like we have at some of our state parks on lakes or rivers. The only thing I can figure--is they went to Tianjin (where Waid is from). It is a port city, and is a 30 minute ride on the fast train. Does anyone else know where he would have gone??-he's in Beijing.

They say he is a sweetheart and is a big help with the younger kids. I do not know if we will get Birthday pics next week, but this is certainly good enough=).
And since I have kept you posted on all of our Birthdays this month--Jake's was this week.
My little tiny baby---haha--he was 10 lbs, 23 inches----and sunny side up thank you very much--, turned 18!!

Week in review and Frugal Friday

2011-07-22T19:25:00.000-05:00

What is the same?--no front teeth.                                             What is different? Emmi is 7, Waid is 5.
                      Believe it or not, Waid's bad teeth are due to his vision problems.
He was 4 when we met him last Feb., and had 1 tooth already missing.
                             We got him in Aug., and another one was missing.
Since he cannot see, and falls often, he had knocked some teeth out. And, his other front teeth are crooked from being knocked around. It certainly was not time to loose these 2 front ones, I guess they had week roots from him falling so much. I wonder if the permanent teeth will now come in early, or on time.....if that is the case, he has a looooong time to go without corn on the cob--one of his favorites.

Baby came over again, she loves Emmi, but pulling on the glasses will get her in trouble!
And since we actually did 3 days of school this week, Emmi needs those glasses. The principal has been fussing at me to get on the ball. And since we will have to keep records in the new school year .....I guess he is right.

Now for the Frugal Friday part. See the vintage circus print at the bottom of the jumper? I have admired it for years. A very wealthy friend of mine had that print in her baby boy's nursery, along with fully lined, floor to ceiling, SILK draperies......yep, very wealthy. Anywho....I spotted the fabric in the thrift store, on crib bumper pads, for $2.99. Last week DH and I sat and listened to a sermon on tape, while me and my seam ripper ripped apart those bumper pads. I ended up with enough of that designer fabric (plus some red that I had) to make all 3 girls a dress like this one! So let us review, that's 3 girls lined dresses, with scraps I had, and my thrift store find, for a grand total of $2.99!!!!!! Happy me, happy hubby, happy girls.

Creations this week

2011-07-14T22:14:00.000-05:00

Since temps reached 100 here this week, with a heat index of 110, there has been no outside play...other than in the water. So I've had more time to sew=).
The 1st 2 dresses should fit Jenna, but I'm waiting to monogram them until I'm sure.

I love Toile, this will be so cute with a green monogram.

OK--be honest, are these cute, or does it look like I made my kids clothes from scraps?

Because, truth be told....I did.
I've been trying to use up all of my fabric that is less than 2 yards.

Yes, I know the pink isn't the right shade, buy it's the lining, so I'm not too concerned.

AND- we've had fun with baby too! Emmi loves her, and is very helpful.
Waid likes her too. Baby was fussy, trying to go to sleep, and Waid came in the room and was patting her leg, saying "it's OK baby"--he is a sweet boy.

Speeking of Waid, he had an evaluation at AL Institute for the Deaf and Blind on Monday.
The Dr. will score the tests, and have a written report in about a week, but the jist of it is....
he is functioning at the level of a 2.5 or 3 year old. A little younger than we were thinking, but no huge surprise. He is learning though, just at a slower pace, slow and steady=).

MORE Birthdays

2011-07-08T19:32:00.001-05:00

Avery and I had a birthday this week, on the same day.
When we were looking for our daughter 4.5 years ago, the birthday was one of the reasons we knew she was ours. She has been home almost 4 years now, has blossomed and overcome so many obstacles.

After much testing, the public school would have her in special-ed class-- all day long, not integrated into a regular classroom. Yet, in our homeschool, she is finishing up her ABeka K5 books. Quite impressive, since Abeka is ahead of public school curriculum, by most standards, and since Avery is turning 6. So she would be among the youngest in her class at public school, with a birthday only weeks before the cutoff. Yet she is academically ahead of those public school kids. This isn't a post for homeschool and against public school; just a reference point to say how well she is doing.

Somehow making your own birthday cake has become a big deal in our family.
I'm not sure when it even started, but we like it=).

Avery is the smallest (not youngest), sweetest princess in our family. Too bad my computer battery is running low and I do not have time to tell you how old I am=).

As promised

2011-07-07T17:25:00.000-05:00

I told you I would show you the finished product this week!

I will go back and take in the sleeve opening, it's a bit large.

It's a bit large overall, but as much work as go into these dresses, I want it to fit as long as possible.
I haven't made a bishop in over a year, so I was glad this turned out well.

Here is my other creation. It will be monogrammed in a golden/yellow to match the buttons and ribbon trim.
This dress will just go in the closet for now. If if fits Jenna, I'll monogram her name on it, if not, Avery will get it.

And with all of this sewing, do you think any school work is getting done?

Does writing Chinese characters with your snack count?? Wes says this is the character for 8.....

6 kids and a Ken doll

2011-07-05T14:06:00.000-05:00

They were all 6 here at once, AND I got a decent picture--amazing!
Kristen did not get to stay long, had to go to work.

She didn't believe I would post these.

We had a group birthday celebration along with our 4th.

Jake's birthday is in a few weeks, but he will be in Pensacola.
                                                  He wanted a Kindle.
                 OOPS--we got confused, I thought he wanted a KEN DOLL!

Ken had lots of fun the rest of the afternoon.

Here's the real thing. It was several times more than the amount we usually spend,
BUT..... Jake can get some of his textbooks on it (saving money and his back- from carrying around a huge backpack), and research on it when the library is closed. SO, I think Kindle will pay for itself.
KEN doll, however, set me back 79 cents at the thrift store.

Jake home and thrift store info

2011-07-03T20:49:00.000-05:00

My big boy is home from school; you know what that means---yard work!!

Our little pool was sadly drooping and sinking on one side, so we drained it, re-leveled, and

put it back up--much better.

Here is some of the male bonding that took place after ward.

Jake's favorite treat is oreo balls, here is our lame attempt at making
them festive for the holiday.
Note to self: sprinkles would have worked better, I do not "drizzle" well.

Now for Amy (who will have 3 daughters in B'ham for school in the fall) and Cindy( who lives in the area): the thrift store info.
My favorite is America's Thrift store, at 1125 Huffman Rd. It is great for kids clothes and shoes. Amy--if you ever make it, you are only 15-20 min from my house!!-hint.

When we go to Children's or have other downtown business, we try to swing by the Salvation Army store at 76 Green Springs Hwy, just a few minutes from UAB. They do not have a ton of kids clothes, but I do always find something. It is great for adult clothes; when Kristen went to Bob Jones University, we got almost her whole wardrobe there.

Those are my main two, but I do like to check out the Lovelady Center in the old Circuit City bldg across from the old Eastwood mall (sorry I do not know the rd name).
When I go to Am's Thrift Store in Huffman, I often go on down to another one in Center Point, it's on the right. but I do not know the name--sorry. And then continue on down the Pkwy all the way to Pinson, and hit Mission Possible at 4496 Center Point Pkwy.
Last but not least, is the Salvation Army store in Hoover, down 145 from the Galleria. We used to hit it occasionally after physical therapy for Waid, but we dropped out of PT for the summer.
There are plenty more out there, I used to love the Alabaster one, years ago when we lived out that way. If you have a favorite, let me know!

Frugal Friday

2011-07-01T22:38:00.000-05:00

DH is on night shift every 6-8 weeks.
        We try to go to thrift stores on some of those days, just to get out of the house,
                                       so we don't have to be quiet.
      This week we went to one of my favorites and found the same shirt.....
                                      in 3 different sizes......score!!!!
              As I was thumbing through the racks, I thought "didn't we just see this?"
            Then we continued on to Waid's size, and there it was again!

Then we found these co-ordinating shirts=).
                 We also found a Children's Place denim skirt that we have in 2 other sizes,
             so all 3 girls will have one, and a khaki skirt that we already have matches to.         I love it when I find the same item, at different stores, it's like winning a prize.

        Also, while DH has been gone in the evenings, I have cut out 6 dresses to sew
                          and am 1/2 way through the smocking on this one.
I love this fabric, and bought many yards, a few years ago.
I have made several styles of dresses with it, but never a bishop.....I love it already.
                                I'll show you the finished product next week.

And just in case you ever think of running errands on a Friday before a holiday--don't.
                      We ran in 4 places, all were supposed to very quick things,
                                        like getting Waid's glasses adjusted.
                                          It usually takes about 5 minutes.
                    Then we went to Sam's ..............at lunchtime, yes, I am insane.
                                  We waited in line for pizza for 20 minutes!!
                                        It was like Christmas time; now I know.
                                         Our quick little trip lasted from 9-2:00!

Jenna pics

2011-06-30T08:49:00.001-05:00

Apparently she likes to have fun with food; the last pic we got was of french fries hanging out of her mouth=)

Love this face!! All of the pictures we have of her are posed for, so good to see a natural fun smile! I hope she can hang on to those baby teeth until we get her. Looks like they have a big blue pool similar to ours.

Jenna is always eating; which is fine by us. I am thankful she is well fed, and well cared for. She will be our 1st China kid who isn't skin and bones at adoption.

AJ pics

2011-06-29T10:36:00.000-05:00

                                            Look who was in a wedding!!
   I am assuming it is the wedding of a volunteer at the special home
                                     where AJ has spent the last 4+ years.
                                           Doesn't he look so proud!
   He also looks so old, changing into a big boy...he will be 9
                               later this month. (We have 5 birthdays in 4 weeks time.)

LID Birthday and Taxes

2011-06-27T17:02:00.000-05:00

Wes just had a birthday! He is 7.......all 38lbs of him! We got results from the bone scan. His growth is delayed, although that would seem bad, the Dr. said it is good, and meant that he still had time to do some catching up. Wes's growth hormone levels are within the normal range, so we will just keep watching for now.

They are watching as a very large dump truck rolls across the floor to deliver his presents--the truck is one of them.

That is a collander for sand play--not a wierd hat.

LID!!!! Our dossier is officially logged in to Chin*'s system. It took waaay too long, but we are especially grateful for this milestone now....As our agency was informed that we are the LAST family (with that agency) to be allowed to adopt 2 children on an re-used dossier. In plain English that means--God is good. The powers that be have decided not to do it this way anymore; they could have said NO, even though they did give us pre-approval.
And on to taxes...we have been assigned a person to review our documentation. She has a set amount of time to accomplish this. In 2-3 weeks, we will either get our refund, or a letter requesting more mountains of paperwork for the IRS to review....