Lucky 13

 Allan and I celebrated our 13th wedding anniversary! 13 has always been my favorite number. Allan got us matching "Lucky 13" t-shirts to celebrate. Heehee! We spent some time working with family for our anniversary this year, cuz we're cool like that. 😂

We also celebrated Mother's Day. Allan got me flowers and he and the kids always trace their hands on top of each others for a card. It's my favorite gift all year. I love seeing how the kids hands grow. I always think Stafford is going to catch up to Elsha, but it hasn't happened quite yet.

We've been working more in our backyard. We finished planting our garden, and have some sunflowers coming up. The kids were excited to see them! We also planted a bunch of lylac bushes along our fence line, and a few more flowers in our school flower box.

It warmed up enough to bring out all the water toys. Stafford and Ava had a blast splashing in the water all day on Saturday. Elsha enjoyed it for about an hour, then got too cold, then got too hot and finally gave up and went inside. She's pretty sensitive to temperature. While she was inside she made us all ice cream in her little kitchen that we all thoroughly enjoyed. They've also really enjoyed playing with bubbles, and building in the sandbox.

Allan and I enjoyed listening to the United for Adoption Conference. We're always glad to learn more about the nuances of adoption and are grateful for all of the people who share their experience and knowledge. We hope it will help us as we raise our children, and help us strengthen our relationships with their birth families.

Yay for Spring!

We all love Spring so much! It's always a relief when the weather starts to warm up and we can spend more of our day outside again. 

We started getting our garden in. Allan built a couple of garden boxes, and his brother and kids came down to help fill them. We have some restrictions on what we can plant due to L's aspiration risk, but the kids are excited to watch things grow. We made a spot in our outdoor school area for them to plant flowers (and really anything that is hard to kill), so they can learn how to garden. They are VERY excited about that!

We went to visit Grandad and Grandma H, and the Aunts, Uncles, and cousins that live near them. We had so much fun! First we stopped in at Great Gram's house to visit with her for a bit. The next day we went to the zoo with Grandad and Grandma H. The kids loved sharing that experience with their grandparents. They loved the giraffe slide, hearing the leopards and Eagles call, and seeing the Gibbon swinging from branch to branch across his exhibit. We also took them on the Carousel, and got a snack. That night I went on an emergency shopping trip with K4 because I managed to forget to bring myself any pants, and Elsha peed on me. Gah! 

The following day we went on a hike with K4 and cousin J. The hike started on a sand hill. The kids LOVED that and played for a while there. Then it rambled through the hill and ended scaling to the top with a beautiful view of the park. The kids ran/slide down the hill and into the park as fast as they could. It really was an awesome park. They had a blast! Then we headed to K4's house to do some gardening in her yard. It's always fun to work together! We ended that evening with a family dinner at K1's house. They've been remodeling for the last 7 years, and finally got the last big thing (their bathroom) finished. Their home is so beautiful! 

L had her dance recital this weekend. She did a great job of entering the stage and staying right on her spot. She did some of the movement during the rehearsal, but was too overwhelmed during the performance. However, she did do a little solo when the stage manager came to escort her off of the stage after her second number! Haha! She was so proud of herself, and watched the rest of the dance numbers intently. We're so proud of her for being brave enough to dance on that big stage.

During the dance rehearsal one of the Moms told me that her little girl tells her that her best friend in dance class is L! I can't even express how happy that makes my heart! All of the kids in her class are sweet to her and watch over her. I'm so grateful! 

A Happy Home

This weekend we had a Dr. appointment near Grandma and Grandpa's house, and two of the kids needed some new clothes/shoes, and Uncle A1 and his family were moving. So, we made an overnight trip of it. Before we moved we were at Grandma and Grandpa's at least once a month, sometimes more. But we haven't stayed overnight much since. The kids were SOOOO excited to stay with Grandma and Grandpa again, it's their home away from home. 

They enjoyed picking out their new clothes, but the entire day L was grumpy that we weren't at Grandma and Grandpa's yet. If we asked her something she'd say "No! Grandma Grandpa!" When we finally got there she kept shouting their names over and over and giggling. She ran inside, said hi, and then asked to go down stairs to get toys, ha! They all enjoyed playing that evening. Then next day Aunt SG and her son T came to play. 

On the way home we stopped for ice cream, and everyone had a little nap. Next came my favorite part of the trip. We drove up to our house and the kids shouted "Hurray! We're home! They ran into the house and I hear little exclamations "I'm so glad we're home!" "I love our house" "Yay! Yay!" "I'm so happy!"

I'm so grateful that Allan and I have been able to create a safe and happy place for our children. A place that they want to be over anything else. There are days they're bored and crave an adventure, but home is their favorite place to be. A place they can relax and just be themselves without judgement. 

I hope our home is always like that for them. And for anyone else who enters it.

I Like to Look for Rainbows

 A is 8 years old! (Insert all the crying.) I seriously can't believe she is so big! She asked for a Super Wings themed birthday this year. Aunt K5 and Nana helped me put it together for her and it turned out so cute! She was absolutely thrilled!

Everyone in the family either came, or sent her kind messages that just made her day! She was so, so excited that AG and her family got to come! She loved showing them the house, her school work, all her toys, etc. She had such a wonderful time, and loves all the wonderful gifts she was given.

A also got baptized! She has been waiting and waiting for this day since she was 4 or 5 years old. We've been extremely nervous about this for two reasons. One, with her dyspraxia and epilepsy she hasn't been to swimming lessons and doesn't know how to hold her breath under water. Or really hold her breath at all. With her SPD she's never actually put her head under water. It terrifies her. Two, she ahs extreme social anxiety. She can't stand any attention (we had to open birthday presents with just one person at a time), and won't really talk in front of people let alone go down the steps of a font and let people watch her be baptized.

Covid restrictions were actually a huge blessing for us. Most of the family were able to view via zoom, and she only had us, Grandma and Grandpa H, her birth family, and Uncle A1 and his son H who she asked to be a witness. It was also a huge blessing that the church changed the witness requirements to anyone who is a baptized member of the church. That way I could be a witness, and then she could choose another child which is less intimidating.

We saw HUGE miracles that day. She was the only child in our ward being baptized that day so we could take all the time we needed. We arrived early to walk her through it a few times. Then when it was time Allan took her in with him. She immediately froze up (which we'd anticipated) so Allan took her aside and told her that if she could just hug him then she wouldn't have to let go, or look at anybody. She said ok, and he carried her down the steps, said the prayer, and then he went down in the water with her. All the way under. He is such a wonderful dad. She held her breath! For literally the first time ever! She also kept her mouth closed and didn't choke on any water! I can't tell you what a HUGE miracle this is! When they came up out of the water she looked at Allan with huge eyes. She was so proud! Later one of her cousins asked her how it felt and she said softly, with reverence in her voice "so, so, good."

Then she sat in the chair BY HERSELF for her confirmation! This was the first time that she hasn't sat on my lap for something like this. She covered her eyes for the whole thing, but she did it on her own. We were completely floored, and so proud!

After her baptism we headed back to our house where some family had watched via zoom, and had a luncheon and devotional. Cousin G and Cousin M gave talks on baptism and the Holy Ghost. They did such a great job! Their talks were perfect for A, and she paid attention to every word. We're so grateful for our family who support and love our children, and participate so much in their lives.

Now about her dress. Traditionally she would have worn a new white dress after she was baptized. I had her try on my baptism dress that was made by my Gram, but she didn't like it. So, we did some online shopping. We looked for probably 30 min and she just wasn't finding anything she liked. So, I told her to close her eyes and think what would be her perfect baptism dress. Almost immediately she shouted "Pink unicorns!" We found the perfect dress, pink velvet with a poofy skirt that has gold unicorns on it. However, it wouldn't arrive in time. So we looked a little more and found this pink unicorn dress. It's adorable and she looks and feels beautiful in it! She had some friends over the other day and showed them her dress, they all squealed over it together for a few minutes, haha! 

Happy New Year

I'd worked on Christmas early this year because I was worried things would shut down again. It was really nice to have all the gifts finished up before December. I definitely thing I'll be doing that again! We added a ball pit to our sensory gym for Christmas this year. It's been a HUGE hit! We couldn't get L our of it for the first few days, lol! A loves to lay in it to calm herself down. S loves to climb the hanging ladder and then jump off into it. It's actually super comfortable, Allan and I enjoy laying in it as well! Allan says he wants to take a nap in it one day, lol!

The kids loved all of their gifts from Santa and from family. Santa got them all some cutting and activity books for their school and they have really loved those. They've already finished up the sticker books and have asked for more. They also got some Legos. The kids have loved playing with these. They play with them almost daily. L still has a difficult time getting them together on her own, but that doesn't seem to deter her. She keeps trying and occasionally she gets it!

We started the new year by potty training L and S. The first few days were TERRIBLE!!!!! However, after that they've done so well! They love having big kid undies. When we gave L hers she gathered them all up in her arms and danced around the room shouting "Undies! Undies!" L is time trained, and S is totally independent! He needs the occasional reminder, but otherwise does it on his own! We're so relieved to have conquered this milestone, especially before a new addition arrives! And a huge thank you to Grandma H and Aunt SG who came and helped! It was such a huge blessing to have them there!

We started L on "So Happy to Learn" for her school this year. The book she's working on is her "I See Book", where she names all of her family members. She can name them all! When she was first learning how to say her birth fathers name, (it's a more difficult name) her tongue got confused and just kind of flopped around, haha! The look on her face was so funny, like "what just happend!" and her eyes got all big. The second time we got to it she just shook her head and said "no." very matter of factly, lol! The third time she thought about it really hard and then said the last part of it! She was, and still is, so proud of herself! She loves to "read" her book, and look through other family picture books to name all of her family. Often when she sees her birth dad's picture she says "A Daddy! A Daddy!" 

S has figured out how to build with the magnatiles and spends a lot of the day building trains and houses with them. He also loves to sing songs, and learns them really quickly!

HOPING TO ADOPT

 We're officially hoping to adopt again! You can find our profile here:

 https://www.foreverboundadoption.org/families/#/profile/5f0af5b6fc253d0be20324ef

S turned 2 years old! He's such a big boy that I've been thinking he's 2 for almost 6 months. Haha! He was super excited about his birthday.

He really loved his "coe" cake. He did a great job helping me make it, and especially liked using his "coe's" to dig in the frosting!

We also really enjoyed going to the fair this summer. It was the first one in our new town. It's probably a lot different when covid isn't happening, but we enjoyed it just the same. The kids always love to see the animals. They also really enjoyed riding the little train.

We've really been enjoying our homeschool community here. (And we're mad at covid for making it shut down again. Boo.) This summer we did a Homeschool Olympics. The kids loved running in the races and doing some rhythmic gymnastics. 

We also really loved doing Forrest School this summer. The kids love to be outside exploring the mountain, and I'm extremely grateful for the help all of the other moms give me. I couldn't do it without them as L is much slower than the other two, A needs help with tricky landscapes, and S doesn't have any concept of danger and tends to want to jump off of cliffs. 😱 We've explored some pretty great areas and love to bring Daddy back to them on the weekends.

Little A (who is not really so little anymore 😢) went to her first girls night. The painted nails, looked a friends rock collection, and played together. They really had a lot of fun!

We've been loving living close to Aunt SG and her family. The kids love her son, T. She and A had a blast doing nails together!

L has watched me get foot zoned several times and has seen how much it helps my pain decrease. The last few months every time I sit down to read to them she tells me to take off my shoes and proceeds to give me her version of a foot zone. It's so darling! She's just so happy to be helping mama!

We also really enjoyed visiting with S's birth family over the summer. His birth mom, birth dad, and birth grandma all came for a visit. It was so nice to catch up with them a little and see the kids light up!

We visited A's birth family as well and got to celebrate with them in blessing AG and her husbands first child together. A had such a wonderful time with them! 

We've really enjoyed the beautiful fall weather, and took advantage of it by going on several hikes. One hike the ranchers were bringing the cows down. We got to stop and watch as the cows went by. The kids were SO excited to see all the cows. The REALLY love cows!

We've been able to start parent/child dates again, which has been SO nice! The kids have been having a blast getting some good one on one time with Mom and Dad again.

For S's date with me I took him to the park. We were having a blast and then a dad and his daughter arrived. When S and the girl crossed paths he stepped on her hand and pulled her hair. 😲 I made him apologize and then asked him why he did it. He says, "She pretty". Hahaha!!!! I gave him some better options for next time. 

We also got to go to the zoo! They were all completely tired out by the end, but they loved seeing the animals. A was pretty bummed to see that the play area was all closed off. The loved the carousel and the train as usual!

Half of our yard is a HUGE garden area. We didn't have the time to plant this year and it quickly was overcome by weeds. Allan's family came down to help us clear it out. It was a lot of fun, and we're so grateful to have so much awesome family to help us!

L had her first dance concert with her new studio. She was still getting used to it and was so shy. She just stood there and watched. But she loved the attention of being up on the stage.

A is too shy to perform, but she's in dance as well. She is loving ballet. She loves to go to the concerts and cheer on L and then cheer on her class. We always make a sign for her to hold up. It's our way of making sure she's still involved.

L's favorite doll is a baby Ariel doll. She found it at a thrift store one day while we were looking at books and hasn't let go of it since. This doll has been through a lot. Recently L put it in the potty. Ug. I'm so grateful it can be washed, lol!

When we were visiting Grandma and Grandpa A and I went out to look at Grandpa's garden. She was carrying the doll that she always plays with there. When we got to some pokies in the grass she asked me to pick her up and spread her arms out wide. The doll flew up and hit me right in the eye. Got a nice shiner, and a scar on the corner of my eye.

Happy Mother's Day!

Well, I've gotten behind again (as usual). We've been really enjoying our time together in quarantine. Allan has been able to work from home about two days a week. We've loved that. It's so nice to have meals together every day. The kids love to go downstairs and play by him. Miraculously they rarely disturb him. They just like being near him. This gives me a little break, which has been amazing! We all agree that Daddy needs to find a job where he can work from home full time, lol!

Nana and Pops gave A this crystal growing unicorn for her birthday. We finally got around to making it. It was so fun! She did such a great job!

S and A walking backwards "following Daddy"

A "Our house is so pretty, like our new neighbors!"

S and L enjoyed painting some pictures while A worked on her unicorn.

I asked Allan to put up some hooks for dress up clothes underneath the play gym. The kiddos love helping him. He is extremely patient with them, always trying to teach them to do it.  I love how S looks like he's "supervising" in this picture! Hahahaha!

They were all pretty excited to get their dress up clothes back out of storage.

Then A helped Allan hang up some shelves in her and Elsha's room. She's such a good helper!

More dress-up play. Putting out fires. I cut out some orange paper for the "fire". They ran around the house putting the fire in different places, and then "putting it out".

While those two ran around L helped take care of the house. She's very into house and baby pretend play, and really always has been. Nothing makes her more happy then if someone will play baby's and kitchen with her.

Since the weather has been so nice we've been doing school on the back porch. I brought the sensory bins outside for the littles, hoping that would keep them busy while I worked with A. It worked pretty well, but all of the beans and sand ended up under the porch by the end.

Since people have begun to water their lawns there's been some great puddles to jump in on our morning walks and bike rides. We've had a lot of fun exploring our neighborhood/town. The other day A really wanted to ride her bike to the post office to pick up the mail. We made a plan to leave right after breakfast so we could get there and back before it got too hot. Unfortunately that morning we had a poop problem. By the time I got everything and everyone cleaned up it was ten o'clock. We went out anyway. A did an amazing job getting there. Then we got the mail, and she told me, "No mom. I don't want to go back. It's hot. Let's just stay here." After some reasoning we headed back in the heat (it was in the 90's. None of us girls do well above 75). On the way back a kind woman gave A a poppy from her flower garden. A was so delighted! She tried so hard to take care of it all the way home, but when we were about two blocks away the flowers head came off. She was so, so sad. Every time we pass by that house she tells me this story.

We've also been exploring the mountains in our area. Going on little hikes and picnics. This day we went to a place our Forest school told us about. We hiked around a little fishing pond and down into this valley to the river. We saw baby bunny playing in the grass and threw rocks in the water. Poor Stafford stumbled and fell into the only cactus for miles around. He was so brave while we pulled all the stickers out.

L has learned to write her name! She missed some of the letters, but she did pretty good for a 3 year old!

The kids have been enjoying our little wading pool. We have great shade in our front yard, but none in our backyard yet. The pool has been a nice way to keep cool.

The kids love to go to the church and ride their bikes in the big empty parking lot. However, lately they've enjoyed more so exploring the landscaping around the church. It's just around the corner which is so nice. I carry S in the baby carrier, and strap his bike to it, while I push L on her bike, lol! Gratefully A is big enough to get there on her own.

I introduced caramel popcorn to the kids. They are huge fans! Since we don't watch TV or movies during the week we have a movie and caramel popcorn on the weekend. They usually just prefer to watch their favorite cartoons, Daniel Tiger and Superwings.

While I was getting dressed one day I came out to find that A had set up a picnic for them in the playroom. Tortillas and all. She even remembered that L has to have corn instead of flour.

He got really excited about his painting.

What a stud.

Since COVID we can't all go into therapy together anymore. And they don't have Speech therapy anymore. They're trying to find someone new. So, they kids take turns waiting for each other. At first I tried reading books and playing in the car (it's a very commercial area and all the parks nearby are closed, so they can't be out of the car). That did not work at all. So now I've been letting them watch their cartoons. L and S watch Daniel Tiger while they wait for A, and then A and S watch Superwings while they wait for L. And really, S goes through the van tearing it apart. We're making do, but can't wait for things to change.

S is obsessed with "coes" as he calls all construction equipment. If you tell him the correct name he'll say, "no, it's a coe."

Family bike ride/puddle splashing. Can't get enough of that view.

There's a little flower garden right of the front porch of our house that is really pretty, but also too much maintenance for me. I can't keep up with it.  The weeds were out of control. So, we took everything out, laid down some mulch, and collected all of the pots that were laying around our property. The kids had a fun time "helping" with the project. When we were done A says, "Wow! Our house is so pretty like our new neighbors houses!" Haha! We tried to by a swing to sit in the area too, but weren't quick enough. Now we're waiting for one to come back in stock so we can finish our project.

I asked A to help pull our the weeds, so she got the scissors from her tool kit and started cutting them. Haha!

Popcorn and stories on the trampoline.

We're loving bbq season, and eating corn on the cob!

Fire pit in our backyard.  Needs some work, but we sure are enjoying it!