It Finally Happened

When you adopt a child you do not always get a child that looks like you, but they feel the same in your heart, brain and very soul. Ahren was always our son, from the very first breath he breathed. I knew, Chris knew it, Ahren knew it and God knew it. The very first time I saw him, he was 8 months old and the first thing he did was hold his chubby little arms out to me. He wanted his mama. 

When you have children that don't look like you, even if they ARE your biological children, people ask questions. Stupid questions. Very, very stupid questions. Kaytee and Ashly are very different. Kaytee looks like a combo of me and her father. Ashley looks exactly (and acts exactly) like my mother. Both have the exact same genetic heritage and yet they are the sun and the moon. A woman once asked me if they had the same father. I told her No, but I wasn't sure about the mother. I walked away as she tried to figure that one out. Stupid question. 

This year at school, one little boy kept telling Ahren that I was not his Mommy. He has seen us at school, parties and the grocery store and he just couldn't wrap his little brain around it. He is 7 years old, so I don't mind it. He just doesn't understand. Ahren tried to explain, but he is also 7 and not the best articulator. This was really bothering him and it hurt his feelings. That did bother me.

Last week I saw this boy with his family (who happen to all look remarkably similar) at the store. I positioned myself and my boys in line behind them at the cash register. Then I called out to the boy and all the boys greeted each other. Once I had the attention, I loudly asked  him if he now believed that I was Ahren's Mommy. You see, Ahren is adopted from Guatemala and looks different but he is still my son and I am his Mommy. The boy said Yes, and the Mom's face turned bright red and she began stammering and sputtering. I smiled at her to let her know I wasn't upset, just helping him understand. She apologized and stammered on about her oldest child looking Indian (whatever that means) and then got out of there as fast as she could. 

Huuray for families with diversity and Hurray for spreading some i information, one 7 year old (and Mom) at a time!

Oh what a week!

  I knew when I decided to add grad school to my busy life that it would be a challenge.  This is not just school, it is accelerated higher learning and I am taking a course load that makes me more than half time. I am completing a full semester of classes every eight weeks. It's been hard but I am loving it.  This is not what made my week especially difficult.
  Oh no, not school or work or misbehaving kiddos. Nope, this was the week of pathogenic microbes. Monday morning Levi woke up with large swollen pussy tonsils. Nasty! Next Ahren woke up with an earache. Nice. I kept them both home and doctored them with my arsenal of meds. On Tuesday i had to work in the morning but made doctors appointments for them in the afternoon. Sure enough, two prescriptions for antibiotics and two referrals to an ENT. After the doctors office we picked up Seth/Jonathan (so hard to use his new name!) from school. He said his tummy was hurting and sure enough as I pulled out of the parking lot he began vomiting in my new van (we made it to 3,000 miles before the first major uh-oh in the new van). He threw up until the next morning and then I stayed home with him. He was full of energy and feeling better. I was exhausted.
  Then at 5 am Friday morning Levi runs into my room (Chris is already at work) and yelled Mom just before he began vomiting on the carpet. Just as he is finishing  up Ahren runs in behind him and said, "what is.........barf". Right on the carpet next to Levi. Maybe it was the lack of sleep or the irony of it all, but I began laughing. I cleaned them up, got them situated with ginger ale and puke buckets, then I cleaned up the carpeting. Poor carpet, it has seen better days. It has been scrubbed so many times it looks nappy. I told Chris we should just leave the floors all cement and put in a floor drain.
So another day home with sick kids. Ahren set the record with 6 episodes (he was so proud). I sanitized everything I could all week, but it still spread. Poor Chris began vomiting late Friday night. Me? I am too tough and ornery to get sick. Hah! I laugh in the face of dual vomiting!

  So what a week. Homework is a piece of cake compared to stomached bugs.

Beautiful Girl, Inside and Out

I blinked and she was not a baby anymore. How does that happen? 

My beautiful Ashley. 

She was the most beautiful baby,

She was the most beautiful toddler. 

She was the most beautiful child.

Now she is my beautiful grown daughter.

How did I get so lucky?

Introducing the Newest Member of our Family

I am surprised that a while back when I mentioned that the social worker was coming to do our home study that no one asked about it. Well, we spent the morning at the courthouse finalizing our latest adoption.

Introducing ...........drumroll please..............

Jonathan

 Snazzy suit for court

Little man looked like a million bucks!

County Court #3

Judge Patrice McDonald presiding

A snazzy suit needs snazzy footwear 

Such tiny little feet!

Jonathan looking at Daddy.....

but why is Daddy making that face?

Hugs from brother Ahren

High five from brother Levi

Seth, Levi and Ahren waiting in the hallway before court

And finally, the happy face of Jonathan

(formerly known as Seth)

So why Jonathan? We let him decide. He came up with Jonathan and has never wavered from it. It turns out it means 'Gift from God' and that is what I have always told him. He is truly a gift from God.
See those puffy eyes I am sporting? I bawled like a baby, my heart absolutely overflowing with love and joy.