Crazy Trains & Time Wasters Part 2
February of last year I wrote a blog to remind my friends that despite how ‘together’ I may appear, appearances can be deceiving, and comparing yourself to another mom is a waste of time. Thanks to social media, I fear the myth that I’m a supermom has begun again. I appreciate the sentiment, but figure I should go ahead and set the record straight. We’re all in this motherhood thing together and we each have our own lists of successes and failures, no good can be found in guilt tripping ourselves that someone else does it better. So please don’t put me on a pedestal. If you do, I’ll just…
Sunshine & Rainbows
Life is sunshine and rainbows. Stick with me here. No, our life isn’t easy living all the time. In fact, it’s often hard, most days are exhausting, and some days are even brutal. Some days we just survive. 5 months with a beautiful baby whose only vocalizations have been crying or fussing is extremely trying. Parenting an independent and stubborn toddler is trying. Teaching and molding a boundary learning [pushing] preschooler is trying. It’s the season of life we are in. There are days that end with John and I flopped on the couch, mindlessly doing anything on our phones to try and decompress from the day. There are also…
New Year, New Me
It’s amazing how much changes in a year: seasons, Superbowl Champions, the menu at your favorite restaurant, whether jumpsuits are fashionable or not, a few more lines on your face. January of 2016 God set me on a path of putting Him first, of learning how to trust in Him, and showing that faith in action. Part of that was because 12 months later He would bring Wonder Woman into our lives. I don’t say the culmination of that, because I know God has a heck of a lot more to do in my life (He started a long time ago), but this is a huge mile marker in that…
The In Between
You may have noticed it’s been a while since my last post. I’ve written and rewritten this blog multiple times and have yet to publish it. Mainly because one day I write and feel one way and the next day I write and feel another. Some days it feels too whiny, other days too depressing, and other days too fake. I’ve promised honesty here, and to come and pretend that everything is sunshine and rainbows would be disingenuous. But to be morose and talk only about the depression I’m facing or the grief I’m trying to process wouldn’t be entirely honest either. I’m in the in-between. I have a newborn,…
Things I Didn’t Expect
An extreme outpouring of love: I’m sorry, dear friends, that I underestimated you. I truly expected people to ask why we were doing this. Or worse, people who were afraid to love our baby girl because of the inevitable loss (that we’re praying is years and years away). But that’s not what we found. We found hundreds of people who are excited for our little one. Tons of people who love her and want to shower her, and us, with that love for as long as possible. Thank you for blowing me away with your beautiful hearts. Hormones: I thought if I didn’t birth a baby I wouldn’t be an…
Welcome to the World Little One
Welcome the newest edition to our family! In keeping with our theme here, let’s call her Wonder Woman. And she certainly is our little wonder. She came to us in a whirlwind of surprise and activity and we are thrilled to have her. The day before Thanksgiving we were told about two different special needs babies, one in Arkansas and another in a different state, and asked if we would like to be adoptive families for either of them. We were under the impression that there wasn’t much of a hurry to make a decision, but we knew we would make one before the offices were open on Monday. At…
The Dog Days of Summer are Over
I have a story to tell you about my youngest son. If you’re having a rough day, I think this will put it in perspective…. This morning I was attempting to get ready before I realized that all of the exciting things I was looking forward to today would be cancelled. Thanks rain. The oldest is watching TV in my bed and the youngest is running around upstairs being a handful. He wants to feed the dogs, so he opens up the container and does so, it’s very messy. I don’t complain because it’s entertaining him, but then notice that he’s not just feeding the dogs he’s also eating their…
Home Study and Happy Birthday
Superman is 3. That’s right folks, we’ve got a full fledged 3 year old on our hands. Which blows my mind because I can’t believe this crazy kid has been bringing joy into our lives for a full 3 years. Over the past year my son has become a very talkative and imaginative child able to be understood (mostly) by anyone without the aide of his parental interpreters. He has perfected the art of pushing my buttons and is now asking ‘why’ about everything. For a few weeks my answers were thought out and logical. Now they are ‘because I said so’. He has learned to count, sing the ABC’s…
Crazy Trains and Time Wasters
There are a lot of mothers in my group of friends and many of them are first time moms. For some reason I’ve been getting comments lately implying these mothers think I’ve got it all together. I attribute that to their sleep deprived minds being unable to see reality clearly. But as I think about it, maybe there are some factors that are contributing to this misinterpretation of life in our household. My two kids typically appear clean, well fed, and clothed, they seem to like each other and myself, many days I can be seen in public without yelling at my children, and we are intentionally attempting to add a…
Snow Days and Slight Delays
Fundraising Update: We had our first fundraiser! The amazing Stacey of Cute E’s Photography hosted mini sessions and asked her clients to donate their session fees to us. The pictures are beautiful and the financial blessing is incredible and encouraging! The sessions were $75 and 6 people took advantage of it. Because Stacey is such a kind person, she’s continuing to offer the discounted sessions for us and will continue to donate the session fee to our adoption. I am so thankful for Stacey and to God for putting her in our lives. Not only have we gotten amazing pictures but we’ve also gotten to know a wonderful and encouraging…
