Who Dat?

IT'S ME!!!
I am back, although I will only commit to 1 (maybe 2, if I am feeling it) posts a week.  Why you ask? 
Well, between juggling 5 kids (one new to our family) a very needy, old dog ---who is like a 6th child lately, a husband who works way to hard and trying to fit in teaching boot camp, spin, and other classes at the gym, I am just trying to keep my head above water.
No pity party for me....I love staying busy.  I fall asleep the minute my head hits the pillow and I have sweet dreams of folding laundry, loading the dishwasher and cleaning toilets!  Ahhhh.....the life of a mommy!
So, lately we have been recovering from a wonderful Christmas.  Avery's first with our family.  I wish I could say it was amazing, but she was not a fan!  Way too overwhelming and just too much to handle.  She has only been home a little over 5 months now, and although life seems somewhat normal and we don't remember life without Avery, I still see the baggage of spending the first year of her life in an institution.  It is heartbreaking when I think about it...how much babies need love and touch and a family and that she didn't get it.

 Kate asked me tonight whose tummy Avery was in because she wasn't in mine (praise the Lord for that---first off, if I birthed a Chinese child I would get some fame for sure and
second...been there done that..this shop is closed!)
I simply told her another mommy had her in her tummy and couldn't care for her, so God thought we would be a  perfect family for her .  Thankful for His plan for her life and the honor to be her Mom!
The rest of the gang is doing just fine....
Gray still thinks he is a super hero and is still layering his clothes.  He wore 5 shirts to school this week!
Kate is as girly as they get...thank you Lord!  She is the best big sister, and babysitter!  Really, she helps me with Avery so much!
My sweet Owen continues to make me laugh (and cry).  Oh, how I love that child and pray that God uses Him to do great things one day!  The other day he fell out of the tree and I literally did not flinch!  He got right back up and climbed again!  He also pulled out a tooth that was not even loose to start with.  He worked on getting that tooth out for 2 days straight.  I must admit, it was impressive in a weird way!
Wills is loving school and his friends.  He is super sensitive, which is complete opposite of his 13 month younger brother, but we are working on solving problems without crying!  He loves to sneak downstairs after everyone falls asleep and hang out with Mom and Dad at night.  We get some special time with just him and he loves it.
The boys are playing basketball and they are still young enough to not care that their coach is their MOM! 
It is so fun.  Really!  I have way more fun than they do!
Avery is still not walking.  She has gotten so much stronger with therapy, but she will need to have surgery on her knees this month.  I will go into more detail in a later post.

I am teaching quite a bit at both the gym and for Extreme Fit Boot camps (owned by a friend of mine).
I love to teach and I love fitness , so it is a great fit for me.  Doing something outside of  Mommy-hood (although that is most important) has been good for me!.  It is nice to meet so many new people and help people reach goals and get healthy. 

I am actually taking all my earnings and saving for a Disney World trip for our family next Spring Break. 

Do you know how much it costs for a family of 7 to go to the most magical place (most expensive place) on Earth?  Ughh...

When you have 5 kids , vacations aren't really in the budget, so I am saving a % of my hard earned cash for

our trip. Matt thinks I should just open up another account, but I like the old school jar idea!

I also have another jar for heaven on Earth....Costa Rica!  Just Matt and I---maybe one day.

So, there you have it!  A summary of life lately! I know I have most of you on the edge of your seat with ALL the excitement and happenings of our family. 

No really, I love all my blogger friends. 

Please let me know you are still with me and haven't given up on me!