Building Fund

Our team just reached the goal for building projects that need to be completed for Trees of Glory! I'm amazed at the generosity of people--a $4,000 goal met! Incredible!

Hopefully, after 4 guys spend 4 days working, these buildings will be transformed into a church, dormitory, and classroom.

If you were hoping to donate funds for this trip, you still can! Visit Hopechest online to donate, specifying ET101101T-PROJECTS in the notes. There will be plenty of opportunities to bless these children and their caregivers beyond the building project. We are planning a full meal at each care point and also plan to bring fresh fruit with us. It's nice to have a little cushion in case of an unexpected emergency. Karen posted recently about a young boy suffering from an abscessed tooth. The team who happened to be visiting Kind Hearts that day funded a trip to Addis to visit the dentist.

4 weeks!

My Mom and Dad were here this weekend to help with some home repairs. Actually, we had a door behind our fridge that needed to be closed in. I take full responsibility for deciding to put the fridge there. I do things without thinking about the reprocussions. Like the hole in the kitchen wall that is also waiting to be closed up. But I won't go on down that rabbit trail, it will only end badly.

A day of madness and chaos and lots of dust...the project is nearly completed. As my parents were leaving my Mom hugged me and said, "See you in D.C."

Shivers.

Whoa, we are really that close to leaving for Ethiopia. The next time I'll see my mom we'll be boarding Ethiopian Airlines together.

School Uniform

I never thought we would become that homeschool family.

When Eli got up Monday morning and announced that he would be 'Wolverine' for...ever, I thought, "We are going to be that family."

I wondered how brave Eli would be in this Wolverine suit. It's one thing to wear it around the house and write "Wolverine" across the top of his math papers. It's a completely different ball game when it's time to step outside of our little world.

The boy proved himself a very courageous soul. He wears his school uniform to the doctor's office, flower shop, plate painting event...Yesterday, I had become so accustomed to seeing him in yellow and blue polyester that I forgot he was in his uniform until someone asked if he was a power ranger.

Today is our school picture day at our co-0p. I asked him this morning if he was going as Wolverine and he looked at me as if I had three eyes. "No, that would be too much. I really like wearing my jammies underneath and getting away with it."

And all along I thought it was a middle child trying to assert his independence and show himself different. He's just seven year old who wants to stay in his jammies all day.

Josiah's Birthday!

Terrible Twos, Goodbye! Could the pithy saying be Terrific Threes? Dare I beg for this year to be a bit easier than the past?

Too smart for his own good, too cute to get in real trouble, and too rotten to care about any of it...here's hoping for obedience and maturity in the coming year. We are off to a grand start!
Yes, he did spit on half of the cake. Happy Birthday, dear sweet (salivating) boy!

Mission Trip Giveaway

Crazy Kari Gibson had a wonderful dream. When she woke up she decided to trust God and just go ahead with this wild business.

She's giving away a mission trip. An entire trip. To Ethiopia.

I've seen some great giveaways on blogs. This one takes the cake. For the next month each shirt purchased will grant you one entry, the purchases will funnel into a scholarship covering the cost of the trip in February with Visiting Orphans.

You can buy an awesome shirt, wear a shirt that will spark many conversations, and know that the purchase of that shirt sent someone on a lifechanging trip that they otherwise wouldn't have been able to take. A great concept. Check out the details on Kari's Crazy Adoption Blog.

I'm Going Back

I have butterflies in my stomach just typing that title.

I sort of invisioned myself standing on an empty stage tapping a crackling microphone as I whisper, "I have an announcement to make. I'm going back to Ethiopia." I've kind of been waiting to mention it. Not really believing that it would all come together. But, it did. I mean, it really did, the money came, the time off for Seth came, and the airplane tickets came a few weeks ago so there is absolutely no turning back.

I'm going back. And my mom will be joining me.

We aren't going to be bringing back any new family members. Though I think Seth fears this will ignite the adoption fires again.

We are going to meet Jirgna and all of his friends at Kind Hearts. I'll get to introduce my mom to the mother who cared for Sally and Josiah before they became ours. We'll get to hand a care package to the darling little girl that my in laws support at Trees of Glory. It will be an amazing trip. I was beyond excited when the confirmation came that I would be joining the team. When my dad asked if it was too late for my mom to join us...disbelief! I get to share this awesome thing with my mom (and she gets to hold my hand when I get sick because that's just inevitable).

I've been slow in writing this post because I just didn't know what to say. Astounding, since I am rarely at a loss for words. After giving it thought I realized that I was letting busy things get in the way of writing this post.

We are going to leave November 13 with a group of over a dozen people. Karen has organized the trip and is doing a wonderful job. We will spend a few days at the two care points that she coordinates, Kind Hearts and Trees of Glory. A group will be doing a construction project at Trees of Glory, donations are needed to purchased materials once we arrive in Ethiopia. The rest of us will be spending time with the 152 children there. My mom and I are purchasing canvas bags for the kids to decorate with fabric pens, ribbon, and gems. We are also collecting donations of school supplies and clothing. I have personally gone bonkers at back to school sales and probably have filled both suitcases to the limit. I can't turn down a box of crayons for under a quarter!

If you are interested in getting involved, Karen has detailed the trip with beautiful pictures of the children she met when she traveled last year. Samantha is an incredible 11 year old who has made a difference by making bottle cap necklaces (incidentally, they are so cute!). Between now and November 13, all of the proceeds will go towards the construction fund for our trip.

Make that eleven...

Returning home from vacation to find seven more eggs.

Tonight we hear squeaks coming from the nest box. Two baby birds have hatched!

My house sounds like a rainforest with juveniles chattering across the room to their father who sits atop the cage guarding the new eggs. Daddy squawks and gets his kids roused and squealing. Soon it's too loud to even think.

Just like a father.

I'm certain Momma is sitting on that nest thinking, "Doesn't he know it's bedtime?"

Our last little girl is leaving Friday morning. Then the search for families for the new babies will begin. Hopefully, it will be the last time!

"Where have you been lately?"

To California...if I would have been driving due west. Instead I went in a triangular shape and spent 42 hours driving, but ended up back at home.

It seems far easier to just post pictures. I'll have to set it up for you first so you can fully comprehend why I would temporarily lose my mind and take part in such traveling shenanigans.

My dear hubby spent two months responding to the oil spill in the Gulf.

The week after he left, I packed up the dog, the kids, and a new dvd player and visited friends on the East Coast. We came home, started school, learnt a phew thangs and then packed up again. This time we visited relatives in the Ozark Mountains, went to the Gulf for a week, and then grabbed that guy we've been missing and hit the road for home.

Along the way we picked up the dog from my parents, and the birds from a friend (who, incidentally, laid 7 more eggs once they got rid of their last clutch). It was a baptism by fire re-introduction to the family life for Seth. That last leg of the trip, five wild kids, one stinky ear infected dog, and 4 birds plus a nest of 7 eggs.

We lived to tell the wild tales though. My neighbor had the audacity to ask, "Did you school those kids any while you were gone?" I smiled and said, "We crossed the Mississippi River three times in that many states, saw Civil War battlefields, and saw that New Orleans still hasn't fully recovered from hurricane Katrina. We may have learned a few things."

Tide Pools in Rhode Island

Tubing for the first time

Marine Mammals in Connecticut (with a fabulous personal tour guide)

Hay Bale Jumping on Grandma's Farm (Mom had to leave the premises)


Admiring the Beautiful Beaches on the Gulf

The Van, The Van, The Van...

(notice the dog crate in the fourth row--he traveled to New England with us)

Yeah, we are crazy.

Six Parakeets and Counting

To hear Eli tell the story it all began back in January. He had birthday and Christmas money burning a hole in his pocket. And he wanted a pet. We already have a dog and cat. Evidently it's all about 'personal pet' vs. 'family pet'. I vetoed rats, mice, gerbils, hamsters, and anything else small and furry that might escape and reproduce in the walls. I also vetoed snakes. Without any explanation. Lizards might have been okay but they are pricey. The maintenance on fish is a no-go and the boys both agreed that I have proven myself unworthy in the test of keeping fish alive. So we visited the pet store just to look around.

And we met the nearly perfect pet called a parakeet.

Then we left the pet store and looked for a little guy on craigslist. Including a cage and already friendly. Then Eli started wondering if his little guy (who is actually a girl) was lonely. So he read up on parakeets and decided to get his little lady and male friend. Stage 1 in parenting decisions gone wrong.

Stage 2 would be when I encouraged Seth to help Eli build a nest box. He had read so much about the birds he decided to try and 'get some eggs'. But I figured that was really unlikely. I mean, come on, really? So they spent an afternoon putting this wooden box together. We stuck it on the front of the cage and Petey (the girl) immediately began making herself at home. Then the week of VBS the birds began...ahem...'getting married' during breakfast every morning. It was rather shameful. The squawking and fluttering amidst cries of, "Look at them!! Will it work, are they married if he can't balance?!"

Though I tried to explain that there may not be eggs, though I hoped there wouldn't be eggs. One afternoon, an egg showed up. Then four little siblings followed all one day apart. So our summer plans quickly changed and shuffled around because the eggs would begin hatching and we certainly couldn't miss the big event.

I also tried to explain that the eggs might not hatch. But they did. Mom and Dad are so proud of their babies that they are trying to have more. This time they are working on it during lunch. Right before they sit at the side of the cage and beg us for more food. It's scandalous.

First Day of School

I have sweaty palms...

butterflies in my belly...

and a dry mouth.

Sitting here waiting...

for the first day of school to begin.

I'm a nervous wreck.

Even when you teach your own children. Even when they are eager to start learning. Even when you have been doing it for years.




They look so eager and innocent, don't they? Give me about two weeks.

Obsession

Ella is constantly capturing small
animalscreatures in the backyard and turning them into pets. Pill bugs, caterpillars (that were eating my roses), and most recently slugs. At Christmas, I bought a butterfly habitat. Incidentally, that was kind of funny. Seth and I were shopping at the Toys-U-Don't Need. I had a list of things the kids thought they might need. I also had a list of things I thought they might need, ie. educational stuff. Like a super cool butterfly habitat. Surprisingly there weren't any on the shelf. Disbelief--but figured I'd order it online for a higher price. Later, Seth saw a man holding one and approached him just as the guy said to his buddy, "Butterfly Habitat, who would want something dumb like that?" Thankfully he put it down and my brave hubby snagged it.

So...we've been eagerly waiting for the right time to order caterpillars. We ordered. They came. Not so thrilling. Little black caterpillars. In a plastic container. Sort of like what Ella does in the backyard everyday. Except I paid for this tub. They ate the gooey food in their container. We waited. Then one day we looked in and they were all suspended from the top. Soon we got to see our first chrysalis.Little more waiting and one butterfly emerged. It was truly very neat. Even for the not-nerdy bunch. This butterfly in the house thing was a dream come true for Ella. Oddly, she's terrified if they fly near her, but in the mesh cage. Heavenly.

Let the obsession begin. Day after day of butterfly viewing. Special chair pulled up to the habitat. Oh, the antics of those butterflies. Endless entertainment!

All good things must come to an end. In butterfly habitat world that would be Release Day.
One by one, all of the butterflies flitted away except one little guy. To Ella's delight we kept him, named him "Flyey" and gave him some more time in the miracle butterfly habitat. A few days later, after having the nectar buffet all to himself, Flyey made his way out into the wild, dangerous world known as Our Backyard.

Call me the firegirl (Ella did)

Today, I tried to set the house on fire.

Until today, I've never actually put out a fire. Ironically, late last night I was typing up our homeschool curriculum for the superintendent and wondered 'what will we do for fire safety this year?'

Well, we got that one checked off. According to the discussion I had with the children after the blaze was out:
1-Never turn on the stove and walk away.
2-Never fill a pot with oil to make popcorn, turn on the stove and walk away.
3-Making a phone call from the backyard while stove is on and oil is heating is always a bad idea.
4-Having a serious discussion with husband during heating of oil is a terrible idea.
5-Ignoring the blaring smoke alarms coming from the house, thinking that it is the microwave beeping will only make matters worse.

6-If ever, you are engrossed in a new library book and you hear smoke alarms while breathing in smoke in a smoke filled room. You SHOULD ALWAYS interrupt the book reading to save yourself. You most certainly can bring the book with you. (That one was for Everett who was reading in the living room and managed to ignore the circumstances until he heard mother screaming).

I did all of the above. My kids will probably never let me live it down.

I finally realized that smoke was filling the dining room and saw the blaze on the stove. Yelling into the phone, "There's a fire in the kitchen!" I chucked the phone and ran inside. Can't imagine what Seth was thinking. Probably something along the lines of, "Can't believe I'm married to such a nut case." Or "She's SO overdramatic."

I can't recall what happened next, I probably broke many more fire safety rules. Like yelling and losing your cool. Using the garden hose to douse flames is probably not up there on the "to do" list. But I did it.

Right now five children are sleeping on the floor of Josiah's bedroom because it was the only room smoke-free. We were all rather worked up. I was ready to head to a hotel. They were ready to sleep on the grass in the backyard, since obviously the house is far too dangerous to enter. Ever. Then the sensible husband chastened me (via phone) and told me to "Calm down, it's just a little smoke." Only because he wasn't here to see the leaping flames. And because once he caught the neighbor's trees on fire. That's way worse.

These are a few of my favorite (homeschool) things

We are (sort of) coming to the beginning of the school year. It's the right time to think about what worked well this year and what needs to change. Recently, a friend emailed me with some questions about homeschooling and that got me thinking. I always enjoy hearing from others who school at home, because their experiences help me to determine what curriculum might work for us. What worked when I had one first grader and two toddlers won't necessarily work with a fourth grader, two second graders, barely kindergarten, and a toddler. Life changes over time! We have used Sonlight, Story of the World, and Tapestry of Grace. I've used exclusively Sonlight and then became crazy brave enough to build my own curriculum. By no means do I have it all figured out, but here are a few things I thought I might share.

Since my list of favorite things has grown I'm going to do a few installments.

Websites and Blogs:
Homeschool Share this is a neat resource for lapbooking--all free.
Dianne Craft I'm always looking for a new way to teach Ella. We haven't been able to discern what happens when she's learning, but traditional methods aren't that great. I bought Right Start Math for everyone a few years ago thinking that was the solution, but it wasn't. Dianne Craft's website has lists of ideas and tips that have helped me understand what I'm doing wrong (ie. Saxon just won't work for her) and how to fix that.
Nature Study I *wish* I could be this habitual about being outdoors.
Art Projects I am far from an artist. I wouldn't hesitate to say that I'm pretty far from creative. When I stumbled onto this website--an art teacher and her projects--I was delighted. It encouraged me to take on several projects that I wouldn't otherwise (paper mache and pastels to begin?).
Practical Pages I *wish* I could be this focused and organized! She uses Charlotte Mason's methods and has all sorts of wonderful downloads that are...well, wonderful. Studies of artists, projects, templates, timelines...all of those things you would like to put together if you were talented and had time. She does!
Homeschool Freebie of the Day Sign up, it's just what it says. FREEBIES. They send out an email at the beginning of the week listing freebies for each day. Audiobooks, e-books, cool websites...the freebies never end!
Spelling City Spelling is so. Boring. I use Spelling Power, but it's nice to have something else for practice. Free, easy to use, my kids think they are playing since they are using the computer...
Vegsource It doesn't make sense, perhaps it's a well hidden homeschool secret. This is a vegetarian website that has a homeschool forum for selling stuff. Used stuff that you buy right from that lady a few states over that used it and liked it but doesn't need it anymore so she's willing to sell it for CHEAP.
Curriculum Sites that I continue to visit (though we are using Tapestry, doesn't mean I stick strictly to their stuff, I *love* Sonlight's book lists...)
Tapestry of Grace
Sonlight
Well Trained Mind
Vision Forum
Veritas Press
Ambleside Online (this is a very cool group, free--seems to be a returning theme--curriculum based on Charlotte Mason's methods).


When the catalogs for these guys come, my boys sit down and circle everything they want.

In My Own Backyard

She makes the quiet statement about a boy who has been spending his days in our yard. "I don't like him."

It's obvious she's been thinking about what she just said. She's visibly upset, her eyes fill with tears as she finishes her thought, "He said he didn't want to play with me. I have this skin. Brown skin. He doesn't like brown skin."

She's pointing to her arm with disgust. The emotion I see is so strong and terrifying that I hug her tightly and start sobbing with her. I have no words that can undo the hurt she feels.

On the kitchen floor.

Cradling our six year old in my lap.

Both of us crying.

I can't believe our daughter met prejudice for the first time swinging on her swing set.

Happy Birthday Sally!

A far cry from the little girl who, two years ago, was not interested in opening presents or eating cake. "Looks nice, but tastes so...unfamiliar." We have ruined our Ethiopian beauty! She turned six and had a list of friends, party activities, and desired presents. I think she hoped for a more 'Strawberry Shortcake' cake than the big strawberrish shaped cake I produced. It even tasted weird.

Squirt guns, water slides, presents, and cake...overall the birthday diva had a blast.

On God and Panties

Sometimes Sally dips into Ella's drawers and borrows her clothes. Ella isn't much of a diva and doesn't mind. She would probably prefer wearing the same outfit day in and day out while allowing Sally to forage through all the rest of her wardrobe. Except in the case of panties. Sally has always snatched a pair here or there. It doesn't matter that I've labeled undergarments with "S" and "E". It doesn't matter that we've discussed panties not really being something you borrow from your sister. There is a difference between a t-shirt and a pair of panties.

Really, are we even having this discussion?

The girls and I put away their clothes before bath time and Sally's 'unders' drawer was busting full. As I finished tidying the girls took their things into the bathroom. I could hear the ensuing discussion, "Sal, you have lots of panties. You don't have to borrow mine. You know, God sees you all of the time."

A pause for effect.

"Sally, God knows about the panties."

Sally responds with absolute pity as if Ella is has no clue what she's saying, "Ellaaaaa, God does NOT wear panties." Deep sigh.

Spring has Sprung

It began with an empty blue egg on the grass. Shortly after, we began to notice the robins in our yard with renewed frequency. I found their nest one afternoon during a reading lesson. We stood under the oak tree squinting into the bright sun. The nest was hardly visible, so far in the uppermost branches.

Last week we heard a commotion outside. Robins were diving and squawking in a frenzy. I knew what had happened before we saw him. Manny was towering over a hardly feathered robin. We shooed the dog indoors (unbelievable that he didn't gulp the little guy down) and talked about what we could do. The nest was at least 20 feet up and inaccessible. I knew we couldn't leave him on the ground with the dog, neighbor's cat, and wildlife around. So we did what we've done before--named him, took pictures of him, and put him into a coconut liner as a makeshift nest. Then I pulled out the 7 year old homemade wooden ladder. The boys held the ladder as I climbed into the tree, not quite reaching the branch I was aiming for I abandoned the ladder for a hold on the tree, all the while balancing the 'nest' with baby bird inside in one hand. Finally reaching my destination, but still far from the bird's original home, I made a big mistake and looked down. My palms started sweating as I realized I was trusting the boys with my life and risking broken bones to place this bird in the tree.

We watched and waited hoping that the robins would feed their babe. We didn't see them coming to the new 'nest', but I hoped that we had just missed it. The next morning we decided that, if the baby had lived through the night, we would take turns feeding it until it could make it on its own.Not having learned my lesson, I climbed back onto the ladder--this time placing it in an even more precarious position and climbed up. I found the baby bird on it's side in the coconut liner, not moving. How hard that news was to break to the kids. It was a sad and sullen group of children who returned to the house after our discovery.

Sister-2, Brother-1

Who knew that losing teeth would be such a contest? With a mix of kids all squished in that 'losing teeth' phase it seems like someone is always requesting a tooth wiggle. Grosses me out to insanity. The tough part is that little sister is losing teeth faster than big brother. Excuses are made, wiggling techniques are perfected, but in the end those buggers come out when they are good and ready. Unfortunately, Everett and Eli have been blessed with late blooming.

We did the tooth thing two years ago with Everett and Ella. Ella lost her first tooth before Everett. That caused much angst. After that first one the competition seemed to cool. It helped that Ella's teeth always fell out in the oddest ways. She ate two of them (by accident), lost one in the pool while snorkeling, and lost another while sleeping. Everett was much more careful about yanking them out--as to avoid losing his enamel trophy.

Now we are going through the same thing with Elijah and Sally. He's about to even the score, but not fast enough for his tastes.

It's nasty, nasty, nasty if you ask me. But I still give them money and take their picture. Even when they are smeared with pizza or dripping blood. Yuck.

Trees of Glory

Karen has posted on her blog details on the new CarePoint through Children's Hopechest in Ethiopia. Please take a minute to read about these children and their dire situation. We can hardly imagine $34 making a difference. In my world, $34 is wasted on one meal out. I can pretend to understand that $34 can make the difference between living and surviving...but I don't really understand.

That got me thinking about what we do with thirty bucks in America. Most of the things that came to mind aren't worthwhile ventures. Things that seem so important at the time, but will be stuffed into the closet; forgotten until Easter Seals calls you for donations. We live in a crazy culture.

By sponsoring a child you are providing food, medical care, education, clothing, and hope to a child whose life we cannot begin to imagine.

Eli was outside barefoot all day yesterday. At the end of the afternoon I sat him on the edge of the tub with a nailbrush to clean his feet. As I scrubbed, he said, "Jirgna's feet are probably a lot dirtier than mine."

Everett popped his head in and added, "Except he's walking around on soil from volcanic ash."

My children have a friend on the other side of the world who doesn't live the way they do. We write to him, pray for him, and talk about him. Our family has been blessed by a young boy in Ethiopia.

Please consider taking advantage of this amazing opportunity. Email Karen for sponsorship information at kwinstrom@yahoo.com

Potty Talk

We are raising a future attorney. Everything needs arguing, explaining, and coercing. From him, not us. Upon visiting the potty recently Josiah waved his hands and explained, "It's just not workin'. My weewee needs new batteries."

How did that happen?

I am admittedly a pretty bad cook. As an obvious sign of love, Seth bought me cooking lessons early in our marriage. To his dismay, I didn't fulfill them and we moved. I remain a lovingly, regrettably bad cook. I have 30+ cookbooks on display. I adore looking through them. I have grand visions of becoming a gourmet chef merely by osmosis. Nevertheless, I remain a bad cook.

Unless, I'm following a tried and true easy recipe. Most of these don't come from my vast cookbook collection. They come from my friends. I have my 'granola' friend who was 'tortellini soup' until we became so close that I was actually at her house early in the morning and got to sample her homemade granola. That beat the tortellini soup. There's my 'banana jam bread' friend. She didn't have jam so the bread has double the bananas and is undoubtably the best banana bread I've ever had. My spinach quiche friend doesn't even know that is what she is known for in my kitchen. She's a good cook--she throws things together and never uses a recipe. The quiche she made one morning for my family was delectable. That was first time I ever ate fresh spinach and liked it. My kids probably wish that morning hadn't happened! I've got an applesauce friend and one of my sisters is most definitely baked ziti.

I was having a baking frenzy and realized that each time I make a recipe that someone else shared with me I think of them as I prepare and then eat it.

Reminiscing in the kitchen is a dangerous game. Add five 'helpers' to the chaos of granola, banana bread, and lasagna at various stages of baking...crazy things happen. Like tossing butter into the microwave to 'soften' and not realizing that you hit "2:00".

Adoption Angst

When I'm done tucking the girls in, Sally stalls. I think she's stalling. She usually starts asking me hard questions. If she didn't wait until I was standing at the door of the bedroom, I would think she was actually interested in my answers. Rather, I think she is grasping at straws hoping to baffle me long enough to get a few more minutes with the light on.

She finally struck "stalling gold." Her line of questioning wound itself around to, "Whose belly did I come from?"

Sigh.

Seems like we have talked about this before. Seems like I've been having this talk for the past five years. Rather, Ella follows up with, "Well, I grew in your belly."

Ahem.

I remind the girls gently that they grew in another belly far, far away. And I began to tell them their amazing stories. It seems, to me, that I've been telling Ella her story since we brought her home. Until now, nearly six years later, she hasn't been too interested. Her face was betraying her feelings and it dawned on her that she spent years without us. It seems impossible.

Though Sally was older, she hardly remembers the way things really unfolded. She can't believe that she and Josiah didn't come 'from the same belly' in Ethiopia. I tell her about the long line of mommies who have babies that didn't grow in their bellies. Starting with their own Daddy and moving down their family tree.

To me, that makes it easier, knowing that so many of your family have been adopted. They have been loved and they have become mommies and daddies too. To my five year old that made no difference. After my sweet words and good intentions her only comment was, "But I wish that I was from your belly just like the boys."

Oh, how my heart breaks.

That was only the beginning. At any random moment during the day Sally will approach me asking 'Whose belly did ____ (insert friend or relative) come from?' Of course, none of them would happen to be adopted. I feel ill equipped to deal with the onslaught of questions. My (adopted) husband is no help either. Simply stated by him, "She loves you and wants to have as much of you as possible." But he can give no great response to ease all of her insecurities and worries. If he can't, who can?

We tread very lightly around our house. In a family comprised of children who have come into our family by birth and adoption, we can easily make someone feel alienated by making the other feel too special. In an effort to keep everyone feeling loved, perhaps we've been too cautious.

I've used the "grew in my heart" line to no avail. I've told them that their stories are amazing and God brought them right into our family. It seems that they are stuck on the unknown. I have no names, stories, or pictures. Honestly, the bits and pieces we know are too much for either of the girls to handle. I have to be relatively creative in censoring their stories.

Any words of wisdom?

Girl Trip

The girls and I made a trip to Yale last weekend. We drove so that Sally could come along and stayed overnight along the way with friends that we have missed. Everyone was thrilled and it had the makings of a great girl trip.

Then we actually left the house.

I was about ready to turn around and drop someone off 20 minutes into the trip for all of the questions and pleading she was doing. But, I think Yale might have been upset had we shown up without Ella. So we decided she could stay but she had to stop asking when we would get there and whether we would eat while there and could we please have a snack?

We ate breakfast in the car, snacked for 2 hours, and then had lunch in the car at 9:30 because I was sick of hearing about it. I think that stuffed them to the point of silence.

I honestly feel bad that Yale paid for the whole thing as we had a blast visiting with our special, missed friends. Ella reaped the rewards of two days having scans by picking things from their upgraded treasure chest. I wouldn't endure 45 minutes in an enclosed space for a million dollars, so she gets all sorts of kudos from me for doing it just to get a mechanical dinosaur.

Do the results actually benefit us? I really, honestly have no idea, but having more information must be better. If it isn't a benefit to us, it certainly will benefit someone else in the future.

Bon Voyage

Dear Diapers,

We've known each other for ten long years. I never thought the day would come that we would bid you farewell. Your ability to control leaks though you are sagging below the knees has always amazed me. I apologize for all of the times I complained about the price we pay for you, as I recently paid $10 for a mere 6 pack of undies. Josiah didn't want you to leave, and neither did I. We both confess that it wasn't your leakage control or stretchy tabs that kept you around. It was laziness.

My laziness is also the reason I'm saying goodbye. Josiah loves you so much that each diaper change requires wrestling him to the floor. He has an attachment to you that has been hard to break, but Bob the Builder undies finally won him over. I'm sorry I stooped to such behavior.

It worked. But, oh, how I missed you the first day that he hid in the yard and 'took care of business' in the grass. I lamented our decision while I cleaned his legs and the dog rolled in 'it'. I also lamented that I had given him nearly a quart of grape juice to aid in our potty efforts. I yearned to have you back in our lives.

We have stayed strong and I think we can finally say 'goodbye'.

Sincerely,
Mom to five and avid underwear tosser

The Importance of a Good Walking Stick

The art of choosing a good walking stick was lost on me until a recent trip to the trails near our house. Once we got into the woods, the most important feat was to get 'the right' walking stick. The search was so consuming that no one could be bothered by anything else until a rather grand piece of wood was proven to be sufficient. I was unable to decipher what the criteria might be. Something about size, girth, and strength seemed important.

I have never pillaged the forest floor looking for a piece of wood to drag around with me.

Everett began testing the strength of a stick he deemed 'perfect' for Josiah. Josiah is evidently not old enough to appreciate a good stick as he thanked Everett and then chucked it off the nearest cliff.


After walking a while, we sat on the stone enbankment of a stream to draw. Walking sticks never far from reach, a few of them can be seen in this peaceful picture. Sally stood up and her shoe dropped five feet into the water. As it was being carried downstream, shrieks and screams of delight and angst ensued.


I jumped up and quickly weighed my options. Jumping into the water would be ridiculous, letting it float away would mean carrying Sally through the woods to the car, but if I had a nice big stick I could probably hoist it up. I turned frantically to find one when Everett shouted, "Mom, aren't you glad I got the right one?"

Kind Hearts Video

Karen has mentioned that more children will be enrolling at Kind Hearts in the future. That means if you missed out on the first 68 children, there will be another opportunity for you to sponsor a child in Ethiopia. Visit Karen's blog to read about recent trips and projects. I'm ashamed to admit that I'm not creative enough to figure out how we can go above and beyond our monthly sponsorship. I'm praying that God will show us how our family can do more. There are currently projects for a fresh water well, new textbooks, and school uniforms. After watching the video I'm sure you'll be excited about the opportunity to get involved with this wonderful group of children.

One Day Without Shoes

We are barefoot again this year. Yesterday, I reminded the kids of our shoeless day last year. They remembered and were eager to make some plans for today. I went to bed wondering what we could possibly do. Evidently, I was more troubled by this lack of plan than I realized because I was plagued with shoeless nightmares.

I despise pointless endeavors. There are some things that, even when we plan and have the best intentions are absolutely pointless. If we were completely honest with ourselves I think we could just skip the whole painful thing. I guess I'm teetering on the edge of "what does walking around my house without shoes do for the little guy in Ethiopia who can't get a pair of shoes to save his life?"

I don't want to be an advertisement for Toms shoes. No, I think we can do better than that. Do we need another pair of shoes--is the company a success because of the feel good-trendy shoe they sell? Though the company is doing far more than most shoe companies...I suppose my ad would be "If you have to buy another pair of shoes, buy from TOMS."

Should we take part in a TOMS event? Except the local event is organized by a guy who's picture resembles The Joker on a bad day. His brief explanation of the event includes a few words that are NOT allowed around our house. Do I honestly think taking our children to the outdoor mall barefoot to play hacky sack will benefit anyone?

I guess I'm feeling rather cynical.

After tossing and turning all night I bring up the youtube video I watched last year. The kids gather around and we see what can happen to people in Ethiopia when they cannot get good shoes. What now? We are barefoot, have no plans, and it's 55 and rainy here.

We make the obvious decision, of course. We should take a walk! We put on jackets and cuff our pants. Josiah's exceptionally happy about "walking outside on our toes." We got from the door to the driveway and he had to be picked up. It was cold. It was wet. It wasn't delightful like the pictures of Venice on the sponsor website. Ella stubbed her toe before we left our yard. So far, the lesson we are learning is that walking around barefoot on a nasty day is unpleasant. Then, we see the long stretch of sidewalk ahead and nary a soul wants to actually walk to the corner. But we challenge ourselves and remind each other that we really don't have to walk without shoes. We drive most places and only go barefoot when it's fun. We press on and make the block. I glimpse a woman peering from her picture window at our unsightly parade. Wet, cold, barefoot children are an oddity in any middle class neighborhood.

Meanwhile, at home something very special was waiting for us. It gave purpose to the walk down the street. It was directly from God via a little boy in Ethiopia. An hour earlier or later and the impact would have been lost. The Lord's timing is impeccable. We all stumble into the house with numb feet from the cold. After rubbing them dry, I pull out an envelope from the mail.

Our sponsor child sent us a drawing. "Thank you family" colored in yellow. Big excitement broke out and we had to look at his picture again. What does he like to do? How old is he again? Does he always look so sad? Does he always have a runny nose? Does he play soccer? Then, inevitably...

"Does J have shoes?"

Silence.

He will soon, thanks to the hard work of many wonderful people. This brought it home for all of us. We walked barefoot in the rain because we wanted to. As an experiment. Many children like J go without much more than shoes as a way of life. This little envelope lead us to a discussion about what we are doing to help J and his friends. It's such a small thing, I wouldn't dare call it a sacrifice. But to them, it is making a huge difference.

Sally and Elijah immediately began coloring pictures to send to J. I think around here, the small thing we did today made a difference for them.

Holidays

Sometimes I wonder if family keeps inviting us to events just so they can: be relieved that they no longer have young children, be relieved that they are not planning on having children, be relieved that they are not raising our children, or have a good hearty laugh at the antics that seem to happen when we are around.

Huge holidays cause huge chaos. On Christmas we visited with extended family. We only see them once a year. We vowed not to do the Christmas dinner at their house once our family grew to it's substantial size. This year we all felt brave and ventured to their home for the dinner. It was going well until Eli used the bathroom. He ran out of toilet paper. Unknown to us he found the infamous flushable wipes and "decided to give them a try." Unknown to him you should only use one wipe per flush. After he exited the restroom, Sally went in. In her rushed state she didn't care that the toilet bowl was full and proceeded to...ahem...take care of business. She, too, decided to use the flushable wipes. In true five year old fashion she used as many as possible and then flushed the toilet. A few times.

Seth and I were enjoying adult company in the living room while all of the restroom activities were taking place. We, innocently, thought that the children were calmly doing puzzles in the dining room. A flurry of frantic activity by our host drew our attention to the restroom and we were sadly informed of what was going on.

The ensuing ride home was punctuated by discussions about proper toilet etiquette.
1-Avoid flushable wipes, paper towels, and napkins when using the bathroom.
2- Never flush the toilet more than once.
3- Immediately get an adult (preferably one of a close relation) if the water in the toilet beings to rise.
4- Do not avoid the rising water and pretend nothing is going on in the bathroom. The mess WILL EVENTUALLY be discovered.

I think that will be the last year we are invited over.

This weekend we enjoyed Easter dinner with my parents. The meal was fantastic. The company was enjoyable. Everyone behaved during lunch. It seemed too good to be true. Then, Ella took her new medicine. She held it in her mouth until she retched and spewed vomit across my parent's kitchen walls, bar stools, and floors. If my parents weren't forced to open their door to us, I think that might have been our last meal together.

I'm already dreading Thanksgiving.

Ella's Birthday

Ella's 8th birthday party was canceled due to no illness in the family.

Rather, Mom jumped the gun and called the whole thing off because Dad had a headache and the baby went to sleep sounding kind of funny.

Considering the birthday girl didn't have a party, all was still quite well. The party has been rescheduled and hopefully if anyone is going to be sick it will be the insane overly cautious mother. No other family member would think to call off a party because of germs.

As usual Ella requested a Princess Party. I refused. Again. We agreed on fairy-fairy tale-pets for party stuff. If that makes sense. Basically, there will be cake, presents, and a pinata. And, of course, the riddle laden treasure hunt. Try writing riddles that are fairy-fairy tale-pet themed. It is silly at best, involving powerful 'fairy wings' that lead the girls to the 'treasure filled family heirloom bull' aka pinata. It should be interesting. I think if the girls were any older I wouldn't be able to get away with this. Nevertheless, all Ella cares about is whacking that candy-filled bull to pieces.

Like any mother I'm nostalgic around celebrations. Most of the time I don't have the opportunity to act on the nostalgia. I happened to find a few minutes and pulled out Ella's gotcha video. I'll say what I heard more than a few times today, "I can't believe our little girl is eight."

Unexpected Hope

I'm curled up on a sofa in a hospital room. It's late and it feels oddly quiet for such a busy place. Ella lays in the hospital bed next to me. She's asleep though I can't imagine how she could be comfortable. Her head is covered in cords that run to a box next to her. Monitoring every little impulse coming from her brain. It seems that, despite our best efforts, we haven't been able to quiet those impulses.

Ella has epilepsy. Ella has seizures. We accept it.

This isn't something that we can conquer. This is something that we can manage. Or so I've been told. For the past year we have managed Ella's seizures. Ella's new neurologist was not pleased that she isn't completely seizure free. I guessed that she had about 10 a day. They are noticeable only if you are aware. A second or two and it's over. Her speech stops and eyes half close. It seems so minor until you imagine yourself doing that. Over and over again. Try learning to read. Or getting so close to understanding the math lesson and then...what did you say? Sorry, I blanked out for a second. Could you repeat that?

Maybe 3 times in 15 minutes. She's 'managing' them.

Until, this new neurologist gives us a glimmer of something better. So, we sat for 24 hours in a hospital room. I wondered many times if Ella really wasn't having many seizures. Next door a teenage girl wasn't allowed to be alone for fear she would fall to the floor without warning and injure herself. Our situation is so easy compared to that.

The next morning we read and do math. Anything that should trigger an 'episode' is encouraged. As Ella tries to sound out 'driver' from the book she's reading I see her eyes shudder and press the red alarm button. Alarms sound down the hall and two nurses run into the room. But, it's already over. I feel rather silly, hitting the emergency button when there isn't a real emergency. I feel like we've caused trouble and I've overestimated the number of seizures she's having. The nurses assure me that they want me to press the button so that the computer will mark the EEG. The video that has been recording since our arrival will be marked. I agree and find myself pressing that button 5 more times over the next few pages. I wonder how Ella can even follow the story with the activity in her brain being such a disruption.

Then the doctor arrives. He's seen seizures I didn't notice. All night while her brain is resting, electricity is bouncing around. It seems she's rarely without episodes. "And your last neurologist was okay with this?"

Maybe he was too busy when I told him at every appointment since her last EEG that she was still having seizures. Maybe I should have pressed him more when he said he was happy with her 'levels'. Maybe we should have researched other drugs more thoroughly.

Ella's started a new drug, something that's known specifically for her epileptic thumbprint.

We have high expectations for this new treatment, but for the next few weeks as drug levels build, we'll just manage. Now, I have hope that soon she will be able to read a book without a single interruption.

A Day at the Lake

We met my sister at the lake after dinner. That sounds so pleasant.

An evening out at the lake.

Until you remember that it's still winter up here.

It really was as cold as it looks. Why doesn't that boy have a hat on? And why isn't that little girl's coat zipped? Obviously their mother was too worried about them falling into the massive frozen-people drive cars onto that thing-lake to notice that they were potential frost bite victims.

But it's a nice picture anyway.

Snow Day

Snow days are a rare occurrence around here. Not that we don't get enough snow--the city wasn't voted 'worst winter city' without reason. When you don't need to leave the house it doesn't seem reasonable to cancel school because it's snowy outside. Nevertheless, today was the perfect snow day. Terrible outside. We actually had plans this morning but everything was closed. So, I cancelled school.

Except for finishing the covered wagons we started yesterday. The kids begged to work on those.

And also, "Can we work on the Germany project for next week? That doesn't count as school, it's a project."

And "Can we do some snack thingy?"

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I guess I can just cancel math and grammar. I try and give them the day off, but they beg for learning. Who knew?

I load up plates of raisins, peanut butter, banana slices, apples, and mini-marshmallows. A few minutes of 'not learning' while everyone assembles...creatures, rapiers, and Daddy's head. Then they eat them. Except for Daddy's head. Ella was too full to eat that.

Two Years

A few weeks ago I re-read the posts I had written right after our referrals. Strange. To remember having only three crazies running around. To remember waiting and waiting to see those precious faces. Then the excruciating wait for court and travel. Wondering about how these two would fit into the family. Praying that they were being loved in Ethiopia.

Two years later, five kids crowd around the laptop to look at the pictures I'm searching for.

"Our first pictures of you. We were so excited."

It is reminiscent of the first day we saw the pictures. We were crowded around the laptop, exclaiming and shouting. Today, little people trickle into the kitchen from around the house, sitting on my lap and squeezing next to me. Remembering the time before we were seven. When two of us were very far away and very unfamiliar. Reminiscing about the trip to Ethiopia and meeting for the first time. Laughter at the funny pictures from our first few days as seven. Big brothers accommodating a new little sister by drinking her muddy "buna" from a pink teacup. Tolerating pasta meal after meal because that was all that was familiar. The older siblings trying so hard to make Fetya and Yohannes love them.

Two years later...

Braids and Brothers

I have *finally* found THE 'do for Sally. It involves a day or two of braiding. Only because I can't seem to do anything for an extended period of time. My life is one interruption after another. Sometimes the interruptions are my fault...mostly they are the result of five little someones needing me to just not be doing what I'm doing at the particular time.

That said, your braiding time may be significantly less. This hairdo rates high with me for several reasons. First and foremost, it lasts. I'm not talking about a few days. It lasts for weeks and weeks. It's brilliant. I can't believe I ever spent so much time on Sally's hair before this! Secondly, it requires very little skill. I usually try things that don't suit Sal's thick locks. This has worked out great. Third, (and most important to our little diva) she looks great.

The simple directions? Part clean, conditioned hair into one inch squares. Rubber band them and braid your heart out. I bought cute clips here for the ends. You could just twist the ends and leave them naked. Or you could put bands there too. Whatever you and your kiddo want. We've done it both ways and clips are my favorite. Tidy, yet cute.

Daily, I moisturize Sally's hair. That's it. I mean, the hours of braiding pay off when I can squirt, squirt, squirt and be done for the day.

The big pain? Taking the little braids OUT. Dear me, I didn't know what we were in for. However long it takes to braid, double it for removal. A very important sidenote here: you will NOT be able to leave the house once you start the Removal Process. It goes from bad to worse. I've put a snow hat on Sally for those times we *have* to leave the house (aka doctor's appointment that I forgot about).

Eli watched me for a while one afternoon and finally admitted that he was willing to help. I don't know whether he loves me, loves his sister or loves the idea of pulling her hair with permission.

I almost took a picture of the pile of unmatched socks haunting me from my laundry room. I have been absent from all things internet related for weeks. I blame that pile. It represents the mundane tasks of life that keep me busy.

I hate matching socks. So, I ignore them kind of hoping that someone will come along and pair them all up. I have actually thrown a basket of socks away and bought bags of new ones just to avoid matching them.

I can't believe I admitted that.

I bought lingerie bags at the dollar store for the kids to tuck their socks into instead of chucking them into the hamper. This will allow me to leave the laundry room occasionally to blog. Or mop.