Merry Christmas! I wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and

Happy Hanukah! Praying for all of the foster kids during this time of year. We have decided to start volunteering at the local children's home in a few weeks.

5 months ago today

We were approved to adopt. It seems like ages ago that we were taking classes and preparing for you to come into our lives. The crib has been set up and ready for you for almost a year now. We are so ready for you. As much as I don't want you to have to lose your birth parents I want you to find us and for us to find you. I hope you come to us soon baby girl.

Four Months Ago Today

we were approved to foster to adopt a little baby. I am hoping four is the magic number. I've read many blogs and have met a few people where at four months they received their first call. I am praying that our first call is the only call we will need to get. I don't think I would be able to say no, just like I didn't say no to our birth children when we were called to parent them. I cannot wait to hold you little one, to look into your eyes and know that you were meant to be a part of our family. Praying for you everyday.

Three months ago today...

we were approved to foster to adopt a little one. We are still waiting. Most days I am so busy that I barely stop to think about anything other than what I am doing and what I have to do. It is usually at night when I lie in bed that I think about the phone call. What will they say, what will I say, what will she look like, what will we do...the list goes on. I can't wait till the day we get the call, I know that our lives will change forever and so will hers.
Tomorrow I am going camping with my oldest son at the beach. It should be a lot of fun. It will be the first time I am away overnight without my littlest one. Hopefully everyone will have fun.
Homeschooling is going well for the kids. It's a bit stressful on my end, but I am trying to work out the issues. Hopefully we are almost there...
It is so much fun to see the kids grow and hard to believe we may have another little one soon. It's a lot like being pregnant again - wanting to know what she looks like, what personality she will have, how the boys will react to her, wanting to hold her and snuggle with her. But it's also a bit harder because I don't know when the end date is for her arrival. It's somewhere between now and two years. I also don't know if she has been born yet. I think the hardest part is knowing that she is going through or will go through a traumatic time and she is just a little baby.
We saved some little baby mice over the weekend. A lady unearthed their nest and threw them out into the sun because she didn't want them to destroy her vegetables. Of course she didn't think about them as baby mice, she thought of them as vermin. It was really hard to watch them struggle. It didn't take me long before I picked them up and took them home. I didn't know how I was going to care for them, only that I needed to. Thankfully we got some formula and were able to feed them and warm them until I found a really generous person to take them from me. Because they are wild mice, legally I couldn't keep them and release them. But hopefully she will be able to. It's really hard for me to think of babies of going through any trauma.

Two Months Ago Today

we were approved to foster to adopt a little one. There isn't a day that goes by that I am thinking about the phone call. I know that it will be bitter-sweet because it will be the day that a baby is taken from its' birth parents and given to us. It will be such a hard adjustment for the baby and the parents and I am sure for us but mostly for them. I keep wondering when it will happen but for now I focus on the children I am raising and teaching each day. Hopefully soon we will be able to add another little one to our family.

One month ago...

It's been one month today since our home study has been approved! I hope all of the months fly by like this one did. Still so hard to imagine that we could have a baby placed in our home at any time now.

August 13- We had two parties to go to. One was a special Indian 6 month celebration and the other was a party for our friend's 5 year old.

August 14 - Today we took the kids fishing up in the mountains. They had so much fun and each caught a fish. Our oldest took it upon himself and caught two more.

August 15- The kids had dance today.

August 16- My sister was going to come today but her baby wasn't feeling up to par. Little one had dance and then hubby and I went out. We went to dinner and then headed over to the bookstore. There weren't any good movies out....

August 17- Took Little one in for his K shots. He hated them and his arms were sore for a few days afterward. Then we had dance. I had the treat of going out with my friends tonight.

August 18- Went to a pool party for our friends 3 year old. The older two had their well checks and the oldest got a tetanus booster. I worked in the evening and almost fell asleep.

August 19- We went to movie night at our community park. Then we slept in a tent there over night. We took the boys best friend with us. Had a great time. Probably one of the best camp outs ever.

August 20- Relaxed....worked in the evening.

August 21- Just cleaned most of the day.

August 22- Oldest is sick with a sore throat...AGAIN.....We had dance.

Summer is ending soon. Wondering how the new school year is going to go......

Having a new baby in my arms

It's hard for me to imagine having a baby again in my arms. Today we were at a celebration for our friend's baby. There were a lot of babies there. I can't wait for when ours arrives. We also had a birthday party today for a little girl who turned five. Can't believe my youngest will be five in a few months. Just in time for having another little one in our house, I hope!!

August 7th - My oldest son went to a trampoline birthday party today. He had a lot of fun. I didn't even have to worry about him going. I know he can handle himself with a group of kids. It's such a relief to know he has grown so much.

August 8th- Our best friend and neighbor's baby turned six months old. We went over there to celebrate.

August 9th - Saw Kung Fu Panda 2 at the theaters. Seems like every movie we see these days is about adoption.....or maybe it's just because it's what I am thinking about everyday.

August 10th - Went to see my sister and her baby. My oldest son was able to hold her and we took a picture of all four of them outside. It was really sweet. The baby finally takes a pacifier.

August 11th- We celebrated hubby's birthday by going out to dinner. I worked that night so I didn't get to see him in the evening but we are going out next week without the kiddos.

August 12th - Saw our best friends. We walked/biked from my friend's house to a restaurant and slid down a grass hill and then walked/biked back to her house.
I worked that night as well.

We just picked up my husband from the airport. So glad he is home. The kids and I tried to go blackberry picking today but we couldn't find any. So we made brownies instead. My eye is twitching and it won't stop. It is getting slightly more than irritating. I hope it goes away soon!!

July 27th - We took my mom down to see my sister and her baby. She is so cute. So happy to see my mom with the new little one.

July 28th - We celebrated the boys 8th and 10th birthdays at a show. My husband drove a van with 6 boys in it. He said it was very loud! I got to drive the car with my mom and the one little girl who came with us.

July 29th - Hung out with my sister at her place.

July 30th - Happy birthday to my 8 year old boy!! Celebrated with an ice cream cake. They are so so good.

July 31st - Hung out with my sister again.

August 1st - Left my sister's house to come home in time for dance classes. My sister isn't feeling well. Turns out she has the flu.

August 2nd - Drive back to my sister's house to pick up my mom. Bring her back to my house. She gets to see my little one in dance class.

August 3rd - My 8 year old has dance and they show my mom how well they can swim now.

August 4th- My husband is out of town. I work and have a babysitter watch the kids. She makes more than I do!

August 5th- Hubby still out of town. Babysitter watches kids again while I go to work.

August 6th - Will pick up hubby at 9pm from the airport. Not sure what we will do tomorrow......

We are approved!!

Today I got the official letter that we are approved for a baby!! We were officially on the wait list on July 22, 2011. So excited! I wonder how long now till we get the call......

Today my mom came into town to see us and my sister's baby.

Yesterday we cleaned the house and the older two went to dance. The teacher let me know that my oldest was a natural tap dancer and she wanted to talk to us about more advanced classes. Exciting but I know it means more money.......

Yesterday my son received his black belt in Tae Kwon Do. He's worked so hard over the last two years. It was so exciting to see him test and then receive it from the Grandmaster.

We went to dinner to celebrate and then out for ice cream. What a great day.

My sister found out that her oldest dog has congestive heart failure. UGH. I hate it when animals are sick. I don't know which is better, the way my dog had to die or the diagnosis of hers. The hardest part for me, other than losing her, was not saying goodbye. I wish I would have known that she was going to die before I left for my mom's house. She too had a diagnosis two years ago and we treated her. Since then I knew life with her was precious and we spent those two years well. Still I wish I had more time and time to say goodbye.

I keep thinking about baby "B". Still not sure if I should call the social worker on Monday to ask her advice. Or should I just wait and see what happens.

The kids got their teeth cleaned today. No cavities for anyone!

Then we ran a ton of errands.

I had to work. It went by quickly .

Now I am going to watch Drop Dead Diva on Netflix.

Tonight was the busiest night I have worked so far. Can't say it was the most fun, but time did fly.

Didn't get a chance to call the social worker. Thought I might wait and see if we are approved by next week. I sure hope so. I hate waiting. I hope it is over soon and the answer to what I should do about Baby "B" is clearer.

Tomorrow all three boys go to the dentist for cleanings.

So while I wait to find out if we are approved for our homestudy, I can't help but think the child that may be waiting for us is doing just that....waiting for us and growing and we are missing time with her. She will turn two next month and I just don't want to miss another birthday of hers. Yet at the same time, she is not ours. All I can do right now is pray that she is being taken care of and she is getting the care she needs to take care of her medical issues.

Today my oldest is not feeling well. We stayed home all day. My second son went to dance, but other than that we are hanging low. I cleaned the house a little since my mom is coming down soon. Can't wait to see her.

Today I called to inquire again about the baby. They found her in the system and said that she is available for adoption. We have a few major hurdles in the way now. The first is that she turns two next month and we are only approved for children 0-2 years. Second of all, our home study is not yet approved and they need that as soon as possible. Third, the baby is in a different county then we are in and it might be harder for us to be approved for her. The fact that she is on this website means that everyone in her county has either said no to her or they weren't a match for her. It's hard enough for me to think of her being in a foster home let alone never being adopted.
We haven't even head her presentation yet so maybe we are not a match for her either. I am just not sure which route to take. Should I call my social worker and ask her if she is almost done with our home study because I am interested in a child in another county and we need to hurry because she is turning two next month or do I just sit back and pray and wait and whatever happens, happens. Not sure what to do.

Today we went swimming and the little one went to dance. My oldest had tae kwon do and will be testing for his black belt this weekend. Should be exciting.

Today we went swimming with friends. The little one is getting really good at swimming. Then we had dance and dinner. So glad they are liking the dances they picked.

I was searching the fostering photo listings and came across a little girl back in February or so that I thought I may be interested in adopting. I remember mentioning it to a few people and everyone just told me to be patient and wait. That I would get a baby. One person even said that someone else would adopt her, that I shouldn't be the one to take on all of her issues. She was around 1 year at the time. Well I saw her again in a different photo listing with a different picture and a new name. Before they just referred to her by initials. I've been checking in on her picture since May and now it is July and I feel like I just can't sit back any longer and wait for her to be adopted by someone else. Maybe there is someone else out there. But anyhow I made a call today to the number listed and was told that they couldn't find her information. She said that she would give me more info. about her but then couldn't find it. I don't understand how this happens, but I guess it does. Maybe she was adopted. That would be great. She was supposed to call be back at the end of today to let me know what she found out but she didn't. So I guess I will wait till tomorrow afternoon and call again. I don't know what to pray for. I guess the most important thing is that the child is safe and is hopefully either still waiting or adopted.

Today my husband gets to meet his new niece. Can't wait. The boys are excited to see her again. Right now they are seeing the new Harry Potter movie. Hope it is not too scary, but my oldest finished the last book last week. Hope they have fun!

Today I did a ton of laundry.

My sister's baby has reflux. Poor baby. She is miserable. Hopefully the medication will help.

Worked in the evening.

Cleaned out Hammy's cage. My son would like to get another hamster. I am not so sure.

Happy 10th birthday to my son!! Hard to believe you were born a decade ago! We love you so much.

Last night we had to put our little hamster to sleep. He wasn't breathing well. The vet said that he had a large mass. Surgery wasn't really an option. We just lost our dog in January. It brought back a lot of memories. We sure do miss our little Hammy.

It was cold today but the kids wanted to go swimming anyways. Yesterday we had our last swim lessons and went to dance class.

Little one had dance class today. He loves it. It looked like they had a good time.

We also saw Megamind in the theater today for a dollar. Not bad considering movies are quite expensive now. We went to get smoothies afterwards. Went with a friend who has two boys.

Can't wait for my mom to come down here to see my sister's new baby.

Got home this morning from our mini vacation. Went to dance and then tae kwon do. Tired but fulfilled day. Talked to another prospective foster mom today who was a little down since she had not been placed with a child yet. Hopefully I can talk to her more soon.

So today we drove 2 hours to see our friends who were driving back to their home in another state. They were going to stop at a hotel 2 hours away from us. They live 14 hours away from us so 2 hours was a much shorter drive. We are having so much fun. The kids are swimming at the hotel and we ate dinner. She has four kids, two girls and two boys. It feels like we have a lot more when we are walking around outside.

Got my hair done today and am now going to work.

The kids are spending time with daddy.

Nice day here today about 73.

We went swimming today for 2 1/2 hours. It was so much fun now that everyone can swim!

We have baby praying mantis'. We had to buy small crickets and I gave them tuna. My husband thinks I am crazy....

Big Cousins Meet Little Cousin

Today my kids get to meet their 4 day old baby cousin. I can't wait to see how they will react.

Finally an Email

This had to be its own post because today I finally got an email from our social worker letting us know that she is starting on the approval process for our homestudy. I am really hoping it will only take another three weeks and we will FINALLY be on the wait list for a child. I would be thrilled if we were placed with a child by the end of the year but have a feeling it might not be until next year (probably March sometime). It's been 14 months since we've begun this process. I am hoping we are more than halfway there!

Yesterday we ran errands, had breakfast made for us by our out of town friends and went to bed early. Oh, and my youngest had his first jazz class. He loved it. It was the first time I left him with someone I didn't know since he was three. I was a little nervous since he starts Kinder in the fall but he did great!

Today we have swim lessons and dance for the older two boys. Should be fun. It's extremely hot over here though and humid. UGH.

The boys did really well in their swim lessons. K is really good at the breast stroke and butterfly and D is really good at free style and back stroke. B is completely swimming now!

The older two had their first hip hop classes for the season and loved it. Can't wait to see them in the concert next year.

Happy Fourth of July!!

My sister had her baby on the 2nd. I got to spend eight hours with her yesterday. It was so nice. The baby is very beautiful (of course I am biased).

Today we have friends from out of town visiting. We are going to watch fireworks at the top of the hill.

Should be fun!!

Officially in Labor

My sister is officially admitted. She has been contracting since yesterday but wasn't really making any progress. She went in at 2am and they sent her home at 3am saying she was only 1 1/2 cm dilated. Now she is 2 cm. but they can feel the head so they admitted her. Didn't know you could be 2cm dilated and feel the head!! So excited. Can't wait to see the baby girl.

Going to our friend's house to celebrate her birthday. Getting cupcakes from Sprinkles. Yum!

My sister might be in labor!

My sister may be having her baby tomorrow! I am soo soo excited. Can't wait to see the new little one!

We went to the beach again today. The kids are getting really good at navigating the ocean waters.

Boogie boarding is so much fun. We went out as far as we could. The kids were very happy I went with them. My bathing suit only almost fell off about five times. Good times!

I didn't write yesterday.....we went swimming....little one is getting really good at swimming. Would love to go somewhere for the summer!

Today we went swimming again. It is our friend's b-day today. We are making cards and going out tonight. I have to work again...just a few hours.

First day at my new job today. Just trained for a few hours. I am so tired now. I feel like I worked all day. Strange how that is....

Ran errands all day.....got the kids their new dance shoes. They are all so excited to start dancing next week.

The kids had swim lessons today. They did so well.

We played t-ball in the front yard.

My oldest is practicing for his black belt next month.

Just read a great blog post at Mia Kareen's Journey that I LOVED.

So we moved out of the 80s today and into the 21st century by buying our first flat screen tv.

So exciting.

We went to our once a month foster/adopt luncheon. Lots of new babies there. Lots of food and fun.

Hoping to get approved soon. Met a family who were just matched with a baby a month ago. They waited 7 months after they were approved. He was six months old, now seven months.

Beach Day

Fun day today.

We all went to the beach.

It was my almost 8 year old's first time boogie boarding alone today!

My almost 10 year old joined in the fun.

And then my 4 1/2 year old had to try it too. Of course I had my hand on him the whole time until the end!

Today we went to see Rio in 3D at the theater. It was fabulous. I would highly recommend seeing it.

The boys want to go swimming but I have a migraine. I think I am going to lie down for a bit and then take them. It's quite warm here today...in the 70s.

Moving Day

So my neighbor (and best friend next door to us) moved today. It was so sad to see them go. We had a ton of fun with them. They had older kids and kids my kids age.

B is sick today. He is miserable. Not sure what he has. Hopefully no one else gets it.

Our other friends are leaving for Maui Saturday. Sure wish we were going!! One day we will, I hope!

Waiting for my sister to go into labor. She thought her dog had a fox tail in her ear today. When she took her to the vet to have it checked they accidentally punctured her ear drum. Poor baby...

Waiting for hubby to get home from work.

Kind of a boring day.....

Still Waiting

So while we wait for our home study to be approved (I didn't think it was going to take this long!) I decided I would begin to chronicle what the kids and I do each day since we never know when the sweet baby may come into this world. Plus it will keep me busy trying not to think of when we may receive her!

Today I took the kids bowling. It was kids bowl free and we went with one of our friends who let us know about it. So much fun! One of the kids got a strike and the two others got spares.

Our neighbors are moving....we spent yesterday with them. Tomorrow they will leave for New York. We will miss them...a lot!

Then we went swimming. The older kids are learning the four strokes. The little one is learning how to swim. I actually went in the water. It was pretty warm here today.

My sister is very close to her due date. She called to say that she is 1 cm. dilated. Then she called with other news....she may be in labor because of some symptoms she is having....I hope so!! Can't wait.

It's official! We got our license to foster! So excited. We have our home study on Monday with our adoptions worker. Hopefully it will go quickly and we will be on the waitlist to be matched with a child by mid-March. Amazing. We were a little scared after the last class on Saturday. I think they really try to make sure you know exactly what you are doing. However, it almost made us reconsider. Luckily, we've been attending a support group at a local church and I was able to talk with foster parents there. I thought one woman put it well when she said, "Don't you think that it's better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all?" Such a hard question to answer but I think its true of fostering to adopt or maybe for adoption in general. I do believe that there is a child out there for us and we just need to wait now and pray.

A Bunch Of Thoughts

In the midst of one of my best friend's moms having a stroke and her having a baby one the same day, my Grandma falling, my son having a really high fever and puking, I am having a hard time holding it together and finding the time and strength to do the "normal" day to day things. The good news is that my friend's mom is doing better, my friend and her baby are doing great, my Grandma didn't break anything and my son has quit puking.
We also got a call from our foster care licensing worker yesterday introducing herself and letting us know that we just need one more clearance. Then she will come out for the home study. Nerve wracking and exciting all at the same time.
I lost my dog of 11 years last month and I still have a hard time thinking of her without crying. I am hoping that life goes back to a state of what "normal" is soon.
Sitting with my friend on the night of her mom's stroke while her mom was in surgery and with her being due any day we talked about what really mattered in life. I am trying to keep everything in perspective while still moving forward. But I have to say it is really hard to slow down when everyone else isn't.