New Information Can Heal the Heart

Stand-Up Dad and I are working on our re-adopt of our two new kiddos. When we were going through the adoption process, the Ethiopian courts declared them legally ours before we had met them. It sounds weird, but that is how they did it. Because of this, the US would not consider them US citizens upon entering the United States. We need to complete more paperwork in order for them to become US citizens.

While in the process we have had copies of all of their important adoption papers out where Sunshine and Little Buddy could see them. It has been very interesting to get their reaction as we show them all of the papers with their pictures on them.

Tonight while the other kids were busy I spent a couple of hours with Sunshine talking about Ethiopia. I asked her to describe in detail the house where she lived. We even drew a picture of the rooms and beds, etc. As we talked and she shared her world in Ethiopia with me it occurred to me that she did not understand how she came to live at our house. We looked at the precious picture of her house and talked about how there were not enough beds for everyone and not enough food. I shared with her that her oldest sisters knew that it would be better for her and Little Buddy to go and live at the orphanage where they would have food and clothes and a bed to sleep on. Her siblings were very sad, because they loved her, but they knew it was best for her and Little Buddy. This was new information for Sunshine.

I went on to tell her that while she was at the orphanage, her sisters decided that it would be even better for a family from America to adopt them and care for them always. It was so hard for them to let go of their little siblings, but they knew it was best.

I got the papers and showed Sunshine where her sister had signed her name giving us permission to be her new Mommy and Daddy. She was amazed! I asked her, "Did you think that Mommy and Daddy could just come and take you away?" She said, "Yes, I thought that was what you did."

I promised her that there was no way that Daddy and I could just come and take her away without her sister's permission. Her sister wanted us to be her new Mommy and Daddy. You could see the relief on her face.

How does a five year old carry such a burden in her heart? She seems so happy each day, and at the same time is thinking that we have taken her away from her family without permission.

She jumped into my arms and told me how happy she is to live here with us. I told her that I know how she must miss her family and that I know that they miss her too. She shared how she wants to be there and here. She knows that this is a wonderful place to live, but the land and the family of her birth will always be first.

I am thankful for all her memories. I will do my best to keep them fresh as she continues to fill her head with new memories. Please pray for her and Little Buddy as they continue to process all this very deep stuff.

Before bed I asked her if she felt better knowing that her family wanted her to live with us...YES, was the resounding reply, followed by a huge hug.

Thank you God for beginning to heal a little bit of the hurt in her heart tonight.

Sweet Momma

Some Favorite Sayings...

I hope it is not poking fun at language acquisition to share some of my favorite sayings.

It's lidicous (delicious)! - Sunshine

I have to go very HARD! (I need to go to the bathroom. Sorry if you find this inappropriate.=)

Little Buddy

Picksa (pizza) - both kids, I never realized how hard this is to pronounce. We have tried repeatedly and this is still what comes out.

I need to go to the restaurant! (restroom) - Sunshine

We have watched our little ones go from very little english to almost fluent in english in just six months. We found our list of Tigrynia phrases that we used in Ethiopia and when we got home. Things like: stop, wait, are you hungry, share, enough. We quizzed both of them to see what they still remember. Little Buddy has forgotten everything. I was completely amazed. I can only assume that a three year old is in the throws of language acquisition and can only hang on to what they are using daily. Sunshine remembers a little bit. I can tell that it bothers her a little bit that she can't remember.

Little Buddy doesn't seem to mind. He says, "I am all english now!" There is still much to learn, but at least we are communicating very well.

Sweet Momma

The fun and excitement of 5 siblings!!

Hello everyone. M&M here.

At my house, Life is never boring, especially in the evenings. After dinner, everyone (including me) has a lot of energy and is ready for fun. Tonight was no exception. Elsie and I were moving the kitchen chairs from the floor to the carpet in order to mop when Pumpkin had the brilliant idea to make a blanket fort. Us kids love to make forts, tents, and hideouts using blankets, rubber bands, and chairs or bed rails. While Elsie was sweeping the floor before I mopped, Pumpkin, Sunshine, Little Buddy, and I were making the fort by securing blankets to the tops of kitchen chairs with rubber bands. I must say (in all modesty, mind you) that I am an expert when it comes to blanket forts. Give me rubber bands and blankets, and I will go crazy. Anyway, after the fort was finished, we all had bunches of fun climbing through it, (the fort doubled as a maze with the chairs) playing, and Pumpkin even read where there was light. When we had to take it down , even our dog joined in the fun.

Six Months with Six Kids!!!

Wow! I can't believe that today marks six months with our two newest. In the early weeks, when they were home, I prayed for this day. I just knew that "things" would get better with time. I knew that June would bring summer, the end of another home schooling year and a more time to slow down.

My summer schedule is already filling up, so I will call it a different kind of busy than the school year.=)

So, how is everyone doing after six months? Each time a person is added to a family the roles change. We have all adjusted to these little ones. The process for Stand-Up Dad and I has been interesting. Just as no one can prepare you for being a parent of a baby, no one can prepare you for the adoption of two older children. I believe that our two have made an amazing adjustment to life in our home, but that does not mean that it has been easy.

As the Mom I found myself beyond overwhelmed. I was working to make these new ones feel safe and loved and wanted. At the same time my older children were going through some serious adjustments as well and needed reassurance and attention. These needs often worked against each other. These were the times that God showed me how useless I was on my own and reminded me that He alone is the healer of hurts. He is the one who can fix the broken places and weave families together.

There were quite a few days that I did not want to get out of bed. But I did . . . and I kept getting out of bed and every day God worked through my children and Stand-Up Dad and I. Here we are after six months claiming God's faithfulness through it all. We know that there is more adjusting to come, but we are well on our way.

Elsie and M&M love having Little Buddy and Sunshine in our home. They have been an extraordinary help to me as they clean and cook and generally fill-in when Mom is being the Mommy. It takes so much time to train little ones who have not been in our home for the first five years of life.

Sweet Pea loves having a little sister. She now shares a room with Sunshine and is learning how to love and show empathy to Sunshine. This new sister has pushed Sweet Pea beyond her comfort zone in a good way. She is very happy that her sister is very neat and enjoys a tidy room just as much as she does.

Pumpkin also is sharing a room for the first time with Little Buddy. Words cannot describe how happy he is to have a little brother. I know he wishes that Little Buddy was seven like he is and can get frustrated at three-year-old behaviors, but it has been good for him. He is finally learning how to be a big brother after seven years as the littlest in our home. Each day he is working on what it looks like to be a big brother. I am very proud of the strides he has made.

Sunshine is such an amazing little girl. She is so smart and is constantly quizzing us in the car as she tries to learn her math facts. She has a constant drive and is very diligent and purposeful at work and play. She has learned that things work best when we work together to complete a task rather than trying to do it all by herself. She is learning that letting Mom and Dad be in charge is a good thing. She has a wonderful sense of humor. She understands when you are joking and can quickly throw one right back at you. She is amazed by God's love for her and has a burden for her family back in Ethiopia. She knows that they do not know about Jesus and is anxious for them to know of His love for them. Please pray with us that someone would share the good news of Jesus Christ with them.

Little Buddy is the most wonderful three year old I have ever met. He has energy that never quits, yet he is able to sit quietly through church. I have enjoyed watching him transition from a little boy who is overtly silly (to get attention), to a little boy who has appropriate silly moments. He should actually have silly as his middle name. He is a riot. He is not afraid of anything. That is to say that he will try anything. We recently let him play in a pool for the first time and he learned a respect for water and breathing air instead of water.=) He is very affectionate and has completely blossomed having a Mommy and a Daddy. He has grieved hard for his family in Ethiopia. He still struggles with this. Just tonight, he had me in tears as he prayed for them and shared how sad he was over the loss of one of his family members. Easter was hard for him. He thought that if Jesus could raise from the dead, so could that person that he lost. Oh, that was a difficult conversation. Yes, I have been stretched in many ways. I feel so thankful that he feels safe enough with us to let us help him grieve.

It is true that I cannot imagine my life without these two in it. They have made our home complete and been living reminders of what is really important in life. I can't wait to see how God will use our family for His good purpose in the future.

Please continue to pray for us. This process takes a long time. There is so much to teach them and our family continues to grow through the process.

I give all the praise and glory to God that a year and a half ago we said yes to God and began this amazing adventure.

Sweet Momma

Surprise! Surprise!!

This past Monday was our last day of our home school co-op for the year. It was a great day and the kids were very excited to be done. What they didn't know was that they would be spending the next 24 hours playing in the water at Great Wolf Lodge.

Our dear friends, the Stuarts, told us about a special at this water park for home schooling families. It happened to fall on the evening of the last day of co-op. The Stuarts also booked a room and that added to the fun for our kids.

I am generally not one for surprises. I like to have time to anticipate the upcoming event. But it was a lot of fun to spring this on the kids and see their reaction. Elsie took a full 10 minutes before she believed that we were serious.

We all had a wonderful time. I think that Sunshine and Little Buddy assume that we go places like this all the time. I had to explain that we had never been there before, ever, and it is "special" that we got to go this time. They had a blast! I am so amazed by these two little ones and how they take on their new world.

Here is Pumpkin with his buddy Peter. They are showing off their teeth or lack of teeth.

This was Little Buddy's first time in the water. It took him a few hours to learn how to balance in the water and that when the water hits your face you shouldn't breath in or you will come up coughing and sputtering. By the second day he was so proud to show how he could jump in the water and come up with this adorable smile.

This water park has some amazing water slides and a wave pool. Our four big kids were very busy climbing stairs and sliding down these crazy tubes.

Sweet Momma

Mariner Baseball Fun!

A couple of weeks ago we went to a Mariner game with the whole family. That day they were celebrating Adopted and Foster kids and their families. We all received a hat with a "We are Family" logo on the side.

Before we went to the game, we had a lot of fun trying to explain what it would be like to our little ones. Pumpkin had just begun baseball season with the YMCA. They kept thinking that Pumpkin would be playing in the baseball game.

Our seats were quite high up. Actually we were one row from the very top of the stadium. Little Buddy was terrified that he would fall down and would not let go of me. I think healthy fear is good. He is usually so crazy and carefree. Prior to the game I was concerned that he might do something silly and fall.

After about an hour he adjusted to the height and really enjoyed the game.

The Mariners lost the game. But we all had a great time!

Sweet Momma

Five Months In!!!

This month marks five months that our newest additions have been home. I have been so busy that I haven't taken the time to blog about our life. I continue to cherish your prayers as we venture through life as a family of eight!

Here are a few things that our two youngest have learned over the last month:

1. Not every person that has brown skin is from Ethiopia.

2. When Mommy says "No," she really means it and my whining will not change her mind. =)

3. It is safe to be sad about my life in Ethiopia. My Mom and Dad care about me and will hold me while I cry and pray for me.

4. The world is a big place with countries other than America and Ethiopia.

5. Automatic sprinklers are a lot of fun to run through.

6. It is very good that Mommy and Daddy brought us to America.

Here are a few pictures to show you what we have been up to.

Mother's Day

We took a drive to Kopachuck State Park and hiked through the woods to the Puget Sound on Mother's Day! We ate a picnic lunch and let the kids toss rocks into the water to their hearts content. We hiked down the beach, climbing over fallen trees and driftwood. It was a beautiful day and we all enjoyed ourselves thoroughly.

Sunshine has lost a total of four teeth. Two of them, just last week.

Her smile still lights up the room. I have asked her to stop wiggling for a while as she is having some difficulty eating. =)

Pumpkin has begun baseball season and here are his biggest fans at the first game. They were so excited that it was raining as it gave them all an opportunity to use their umbrellas. After all, their favorite movie is "Singing In The Rain!"

Here is Pumpkin, ready to hit it out of the park!

Elsie attended her first formal with a dear friend named Taylor, who used to be our family babysitter. The formal is for high school home schoolers in our area. She had a great time! Taylor and Elsie went out to dinner with their dads and then went on to the dance. I laughed when I saw a video from the dance that showed 250 high schoolers dancing to the "YMCA."

I guess 'everything that is old is new again' or 'things never change.'

Whatever the phrase is, I am very thankful for this opportunity for Elsie and am so glad that she and Taylor had such a fun time.

There is so much more to share. I hope to do that soon.

Happy Late Mother's Day to you all!

Sweet Momma