Survival of Mom

If your husband has the glamorous job of traveling a good bit, I think you will agree that if you or someone in your family is going to get sick it will be most conveniently when your significant other is MIA.
I haven't blogged in a while because, honestly, not much is going on in our household.  We have been just going along our merry way, enjoying the Spring like weather, when WHAM!  Mommy wakes us in the middle of the night running for the toilet because I have the Stomach Bug.  I will not call it the the throw up bug because that  is not all it entails, if you get what I am saying!
So, I spent most of the night sprawled out on the bathroom floor in what I felt were my last days on Earth.  I can't help it but I am a wimp when I get the stomach bug.  I just cry and cry and cry and feel so sorry for myself.  I guess when your husband isn't holding back your hair (only kidding), that is what you do.  Somehow I managed to pull myself up off the floor when I heard my alarm go off at 6:15.  I crawled my way upstairs actually crying to my boys to be nice to me.  Especially after Owen screamed, "Mom, you ALWAYS wake me up".  Clearly, he doesn't remember all the sleepless nights when he was a baby or every Saturday and Sunday morning when he comes in my room to announce to me, in his loudest voice, that "He is up and STARRRRRVVVINNNG!!" 
Anyway.....
I manage to sit on the floor of the kitchen while the boys ate who knows what for breakfast.   Next I hear Gray and I just CANNOT pull myself up off the floor, so I send my poor 7 year old to get Gray out of the crib, dress him, and bring him downstairs.   Kate is yelling for me from her room, and I think I might have yelled, "Go back to bed".  I get the boys on the bus and now it is time to handle my 2 neediest children.  Luckily I have Little Bites for breakfast and throw them each a pack.  I muster up the strength to load them up and contemplate for a few seconds on NOT strapping Gray in his car seat because I don't have the energy.  I buckled him anyway and drove to the preschool, which is thankfully only 3 minutes down the road.  I am dressed in nothing that any human being should ever been seen out wearing, and I am pretty sure I frightened a few little kids on the way in.  I walked Gray to his class and practically threw him in the room because I had to run to throw up in one of the smallest potties I have ever seen.   
I gathered my coolness and said goodbye to Gray and Kate and somehow got home and crawled back into bed only to wake up at 1:30 to go get the kiddos.
I am feeling surprisingly better right now. I am pretty weak and have a massive headache, but we all took it pretty easy once everyone was home.  We escaped a tornado by seconds....at least that's what I told my kids, and I ordered pizza for dinner, which made my stomach turn upside down again just smelling it.  I just could not cook tonight.
So, this is for all you moms out there that just have to go about doing what they normally do day in and day out, regardless of the fact that they are underpaid and under appreciated and on their deathbed.   I applaud you and I think we should all take a moment and pray for our husbands to not catch what we just endured because there is NO WAY IN H-E-double hockey sticks they could survive it.

Loving the Change

Let me just start by saying that the weather we have seen here over the past few weeks in Alabama has been AMAZING!!!  It feels like Spring is here.  I have seen daffodils blooming already.  I can wear shorts and not be cold.  I have a slight tan line from being outside! 

On top of that...the kids can play outside until dusk...barefoot!  We can eat snack outside! 

Everyone has a little skip in their step around here and I welcome it!

Here are 3 of mine hanging outside! (C, in front, is our neighbor, who I joke is my 5th child)....I think Owen might be in the tree (his new fave spot)

I have also been enjoying my training in this weather.  I am competing in the Seaside Half-Marathon this year.  It is March 6th and I have loved that I have been able to do my last few long runs in perfect running weather!

 

I also just got my bike back from the bike shop, and I will be ready to get back on it in a few weeks.

I DO NOT bike in cold weather.  It has not be ridden since early November. 

I am looking forward to some nice long rides come Spring!

 And lastly, I am so excited for Kate to be one step closer to her baby sister.  Things are moving right along with the adoption, and this little girl has been trying to be patient...after all, she did tell me that she has been waiting her WHOLE life to get a sister!

Next Up!

And now we are on to Soccer.   Spring Soccer!  This year, the boys decided they wanted a break from baseball and wanted to try Soccer again.  I was all for it, as Soccer is a great fast paced sport and I am excited for them to try it again now that they are a little older.

They are also on the same team, which is a bonus for ME!

Here are my Soccer Studs!

 Wills was so excited to find out that a friend from his class is on his team. 

Don't worry...I haven't forgotten about these two! 

Kate will be taking swimming lessons in March and

Gray...well, he thinks he gets to do it all and we don't tell him otherwise!

Hip Hip Hooray!

WE GOT IT!  Let me just say that with much persistence on my part, which I really don't think made a difference (but did make me feel better), we received our I-800A Approval today!  I am so happy!  This means we are D-O-N-E with Immigration and on to China.  We will be sending our "Dossier" (a fancy word for a TON of paperwork) to China very soon.  My social worker will be authenticating my information in the Dossier and we will fed ex it to China and it will be in the hands of the Chinese government.
Once it arrives in China, we will be logged into the system and can get referrals.  I am hopeful to get a referral as early as March, but would be happy with April too!  Basically with a Special Needs adoption, the list is available once a month and I will be matched with a child that fits the characteristics we stated on our desired child form.    Lots of things going through my mind today, which I am sure to blog about later, after I wrap my hands around the fact that we are in the home stretch to knowing our little girl!
Thank you God for your faithfulness.  

A Perfect V-Day Gift

Matt and I never get each other gifts for any occasion.  If we are going to purchase something, it is usually together, and with the adoption costs racking up, we have just nixed the gift giving for the next, oh....25 years! 
There are lots of things I can think that I would love to have, but we always joke that we are having yet another kid, and we are already a little overwhelmed by the thought of what college will cost in 12 years times 5.
The other night at dinner, I was asking the kids questions to try to get some "normal" dinner conversation that didn't revolve around poo poo, making farting noises in your armpit, or the ever hilarious bathroom jokes that we usually put up with.
I asked various questions such as:  Where would you want to go if there was an airplane waiting for you in the driveway? or
What do you want to name your baby sister---btw...I need some help in this area, but Misty and Dawn (Wills' top picks)WILL NOT be it...no offense.  I just can't name our Chinese baby, Misty Dawn Carrington.
Anyway, the final question was what do you want to be when you grow up? Here are the answers
Wills (7)--A Pokemon Trainer (no college needed there)
Owen (6)--A firefighter  (I think you can do that with a GED)
Kate (4)---A missionary (no college needed)
Gray (2)---Garbage Man  (no college required)
This leaves our family possibly only putting 1 child through college.
Of course, we were joking, but not really at the same time!
Anyway, back to my point....I couldn't have possibly asked for a better Valentine's Day gift...
A BEAUTIFUL AMAZING 60 something degree day!  Matt did a great job this year. 
So, here is a picture of Matt and I .  This was 12 years ago on a trip to San Fransisco. 

Young Love...

we had no idea what God had in store in the kid department back then....bless us!

 I snapped a photo today because that is my daughter Kate in her BATHING SUIT....she was loving the nice weather too...not sure I would wear a bathing suit, but I did show a little forearm today!



The End

We ended a fun basketball season with one final win and a team party ...CiCi's style.

I must say that I LOVED coaching.  My team was actually really good and such a sweet group of boys.

I think my own kids actually liked that I was their coach too!

At CiCi's, I was able to pass out the medals to each of the players.  They were so proud to wear them and I was proud of such a great group of young boys!

Timberwolves

2 Boys and their Boxes

Can you guess which child is more excited about taking his Valentine box to school?

I think the kid on the left is in a daze that yes, it is Friday and yes, we go to school on Fridays!

Mom in Waiting

I have been hoping for some adoption news for 2 weeks now.  I still call U.S Immigration Adoption helpline daily, only to find that my file has still "not been assigned an officer".  To say it is frustrating is to put it lightly.  Today when I called, I made the lady reassure me twice that she knew for a fact, 100%, that my file was there.  It is!  This gives me hope!   She said I am on day 65 of waiting, and she thought my file would be handled soon!  That gave me some hope too.  I pray it is not false hope.
The good thing about waiting is that I am quite busy around here.  My plate is pretty full and I am actually enjoying having a few hours a day, a few times a week to myself.  That is something I have not had since my first was born.  I felt so guilty about having free time at the beginning of the year, but I am over that now.  I can justify it because I realize my job never really ends.  I might have a few hours during the day a few times a week, but I am doing laundry, dishes, putting toys away, and packing lunches among others things, long after the kids are in bed.
The hard thing about waiting in the adoption process, is that I know my little girl is somewhere all the way across the world and doesn't have her Mommy to hold her when she cries, to kiss her cute little mouth, to rock her, to hold her close to me, to comfort her when she needs it!  THAT is what breaks my heart.  She has a family...US.  We are waiting for God to bring us to her.  We know the author of her life is in control.  We can only trust that every obstacle, every week we are still waiting,  is only because God is orchestrating it to get us to our little one. 
Please pray with us as we pray for protection over our daughter.  We pray that she will be the comfort of the Father, His presence, surrounding her as she lay in her crib.  We pray for her caregivers.  The women who work in her orphanage.   We pray that these women will have a bent heart towards our little girl. 
Until we can get to this precious child whom God has called us to, we will pray.  We will trust.  We will have faith.  We will have hope. 
Evey night, Gray wants me to sing "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands", and we always sing....
"He's got your little baby sister, in His hands". 
What better place could she be until we can hold her with our own?

Basketball and Tears

Here is my sweet basketball team...The Timberwolves!  I have 9 of the cutest little boys on my team.

Of course, I am extremely biased to 2 of them and that is why I am so proud to say that

They BOTH scored their first baskets on Saturday!

Of course, this didn't happen without some drama!  You see, Wills scored first.  He caught a nice long pass, turned around, took a shot and scored.  His face was so cute.  He had the biggest smile on his face and was so proud.  He knew that he had just earned $10 for his first basket ever.

Well, this brought poor Owen to tears.  He knew that if he didn't score, his brother would be spending his money and he would not!  I must say, my $10 incentive plan backfired on me.  Owen is out on the court crying that Wills scored.  Ugh....I was so frustrated.  I took Owen out of the game and calmly (not really) told him that he will not get  a chance to get in the game until he stops crying.  It actually took him quite a long time to dry his tears, but I was not going to send him out there crying like a baby.

2 minutes left in the game and he is finally ready to go in.  I am praying for a miracle because that is what it was going to take.  Owen  has only 2 minutes and the kid has not even come close to making a basket yet. 

The Lord smiled down on us on Saturday.  Only God could have made this happen because someone passed Owen the ball and he scored with less than a minute of the game left.  Thank you Jesus is all I can say!

Our Saturday went from, what could have been unpleasant, to 2 happy giddy boys with $10 in their pockets.

On the way to the store to spend their money, I told them about what I got when I scored my first basket....a banana split (that I ended up spilling everywhere).  I also made sure they knew that from now on, when you score a basket, you get to enjoy the thrill of the basket for free!

This is so Wrong!

While digging through old photos, I also happened upon a picture of me on the first day of 4th grade.

Please check out this horrible outfit.  This will be a shout out to my mom because I did not buy my own clothes in the 4th grade!  But, no doubt I had a say so on this...I am sure I really really like really HAD TO HAVE IT.  I mean it was my first day of school outfit, so it had to be my favorite.  I was rocking the first day of 4th grade with a BRIGHT polka dot shirt and plaid pants.  Trapper Keeper in hand with my school box on top.  Hair feathered back just so, and a cool swatch with a swatch guard (you know to protect it).  You can't see my shoes, but I remember so clearly that they had bright pink and black laces.  The plain white ones would be way too boring!  I actually look somewhat normal here....wait until I post some pictures from my middle and high school years!

Look a likes: Part 2

Here I am.  Age 3

Kate Age 3

Me and My 2 older sisters.
The younger 2 are yet to be born!
ages: 7, 5, 3

It's the Chinese New Year Ya'll!!

Happy Chinese New Year!

Next year we will be celebrating this day with our little girl.

 Don't rabbits usually have lots of babies?  This is fitting for our family!

2011 is the year of the Rabbit.  The year of the Rabbit is traditionally associated with home and family, artistic pursuits,, diplomacy, and keeping the peace. 
The Chinese New Year begins on February 3, 2011 and ends on January 22, 2012.  So, in honor of this special year,  our family will be eating an authentic Chinese meal every evening for dinner. 
O.k.  I am totally kidding, but I did get take out Chinese food the other night and it was delicious!

Look a likes

My mother in law found this picture of Matt when he was about 2. 

I always thought Gray favored me a little, but now I know that he REALLY favors his Daddy!

Dad

 Gray

A Baby Story

Today I was blessed to be part of a baby shower at the Dream Center, which is located in downtown Birmingham.  A few years ago, our church took an old fire station, in one of the poorest, most crime ridden area of Birmingham, and turned it into a beautiful building to serve the people in that area, and to share the love of Christ with them.  It has given  our church a place to offer people of all ages a place to go to receive the help they need, but most importantly to bring the hope that can only come through knowing Jesus!

A friend of mine started a ministry at Woodlawn High School, which is right across from the Dream Center, that ministers to young high school girls who are pregnant.  Unfortunately, there are many girls who fall pregnant each year, and this ministry offers life classes that promote abstinence, as well as parenting classes to prepare these young moms for "motherhood".   With abortion so prevalent in the world, I am so thankful that these young women bravely chose life for their babies, it just saddens me to see "babies" having babies. 

I had a hard time with my first baby and I got pregnant on purpose!  I read books, took classes, talked my mom into spending a week with me, and I was still overwhelmed with the newness of being a first time mom!

I cannot imagine how this young girl feels.  In fact, I am pretty sure she has no clue as to what lies ahead in the weeks and years to come. 

This brings me to the shower that she was given today.  I am so thankful to all the many friends that so graciously gave gifts and money to help make this shower unbelievably wonderful.  We had a HUGE pile of gifts to bless her with, and although she didn't crack a smile, I know she was overcome with gratitude. 

So, a big thank you to everyone who helped to make this possible.  She now has everything she needs, and then some, to bring her little boy home. 

Look at this pile of gifts!!

 Setting up for the shower

 Gray and his new friend!

 Candace opening up her presents!

BIG shout out to Sarah for keeping the gifts coming!

 Every mom (and baby) needs a bouncy seat!

 Mom and Grandma to be!

 Candace and her Friends!

 And of course, Kate found herself a friend too!

Hebrews 13:16
Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.

John 15:12
“This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.



Co-Sleeping

Wills has such a sweet heart.  The throw up bug hit Owen yesterday, so I asked Wills to sleep in Kate's room so he wouldn't be kept awake by Owen hacking in the toilet (they share a room).

To say Kate was excited is an understatement!  She was over the moon happy!  She has this big room all to herself and gets a little scared at night.  She has also been hounding me to please let her new baby sister and her sleep in bunk beds!  Not sure that will work right away. 

So....Last night, while Owen dry heaved all night long, Kate slept happily and peacefully, protected by her older brother. 

Wills was not near as excited as Kate, but after much encouragement from his parents, he obliged.

We ARE the Circus!

One of the many great things about being part of the "Ebsco" corporation, is every year we get great circus tickets, along with the chance to attend a really fun pre-circus party benefiting Magic Moments.

Magic Moments is an organization that grants wishes (or magic moments) to sick and terminally ill children. 

Ebsco, Matt's company, does so much for our community, and this is one of the many organizations it supports.  Every year, Matt and I are much more excited to attend the pre-circus party  than to see the actual circus!  We had a ball and so did the kids.  We got to the party at 5:30 on the dot and helped open the doors.  The kids had a chance to get their faces painted, eat a ton of junk food (joy), meet some of the stars of the circus, and be a part of the dance party...hilarious!  From the party, we headed to the actual circus, which consisted of sticky fingers and faces and a tired Mommy with 2 little kids climbing all over her.  Matt was sandwiched in between the older boys, so he actually got to enjoy the show, while I was suffocated by a 2 and 4 year old. 

 I think the circus was good, the 2 or 3 times I looked up!

Face Painting

Not sure what Wills was going for....but I told the lady to make it kid friendly...ummmm????

And Gray is suppose to be a pirate, but he only wanted the patch over his mouth, not over his eye.

Kate and the Snow White cast from Samford

(oh....Gray is in there too)

This is cool...the RINGMASTER!!

We had to stop Owen from assaulting him....O was rubbing his hands all up and down the guys sequined pants!

This is the dance party!  Leave it to Owen to find someone to dance with.

The boys who got to see the show!

I looked up once and saw an elephant!

Ring Ring Ring

CIS Person:   United States Immigration Adoption Department
Me:  Hi, I am calling to check on my adoption form I-800A status
CIS:  Your receipt number
Me:  SIMxxxxxxxxxxx
CIS:  Let me check (long pause).  It has not been assigned an officer to review it yet.
Me:  (very solemn) Oh.....How long from when you received my document is the average wait time?
CIS:  Our website says 90 days
Me:  (again very sad, but really nice)  O.k.  Is there anything I can do to expedite this process? 
CIS:  No
Me:  Alright, thank you.  I will call again tomorrow!

REPEAT THIS EXACT CONVERSATION MONDAY - FRIDAY OF THIS WEEK AND LAST.
One thing I will tell you is that I am persistent and  I will call these people every day until that paper is in my hands.   I joked that pretty soon, they will answer the call I put through every day at 1:30, with "Hi, Mallory".
I know this is not the case, but I envision these "officers" sitting in their cubicles on facebook while I wait for a life changing form to be complete!  I know they are not really on facebook, but when you are anxiously awaiting a really important document, you start to imagine things like that!
I hold onto that fact that God is bigger than this.  God has continually had His hand on this whole process, and if we are waiting a little longer than I think we should be on a document, it is because God is up to bigger things!
BUT...just so you know Lord, I will be putting in my call once again on Monday!

Goals

So, I am starting to plan all the events and races I want to do this summer.  I need goals.  I am a goal person.  I need something for me, outside of being a mom, to work for.  I have always loved to exercise.  My goals have changed.  When I was younger I exercised   to be skinny.  Now I do it to be strong and compete.  I love that I am healthy and strong and I love to challenge myself physically.  I may not have the same body as I had before kids, but I have seen what my body can do (having kids) and I am thankful for that.  I love to be active and I want my kids to see that.  I am not saying it is easy to fit it in.  As moms, we all know how hard it is to accomplish our long to do list.  I am not going to beat myself up if I can't get a run in or get to the gym, but to be honest, I feel better if I do.  This winter has been hard because we have had a lot of sickness in our family, but once Spring comes, I am ready to get back in a routine.
So, for anyone who might be interested, this is my plan for the Summer.  Any of you out there who would like to do any of the following races with me, I would LOVE it.  I can get you a training schedule. 
Come on....it is fun!  I promise.  Anyone can do it---trust me!

March 2--SEASIDE half marathon
March-May--Triathlon training
May 15--Aflac Women's Tri (GA)
June 5th--  Acworth GA Tri
June 11---  Bham Buster Britton
June TBA---AL Sports Festval Tri
July ---BEACH  (break)
July  24 ---Lake Blue Ridge Tri
August 13th--- Guntersville, AL Tri
August 28th--- Hunstville Tri

100 years old

Tomorrow is the 100th day of school!  I remember as a teacher, that this was always a fun way to do some hands on math with the kids.  Wills and Owen both are bringing 100 pokemon cards to school. 

They also both need to bring 100 items to put into a 100 day snack mix.  Wills wanted to bring 100 pretzels and Owen is bringing 100 gummy bears to share with the class.

The Kindergartners are also allowed to dress up like they are 100 years old.

I went to The Dollar Tree and found a pair of glasses and a hat. 

Owen also recently got a walking stick from his Nana, so we are using that as a cane. 

Here are a few pictures of 2 very funny 100 year old men!

 This is Owen's get up...he looks like Charlie Chaplin on a hike!

I want my $10

We are staying busy and surviving these cold days.  The boys are having a blast with basketball (and so am I)!  I have loved coaching them.  I am not convinced it is their sport, but I have seen improvement, so I am happy about that.  My goal is to have every child on my team score, and so far, we have 4 that have not yet scored (half of those 4 are mine).  I told MY boys (not the whole team) that when they score their first basket I will give them $10.  I know this sounds like a lot, but trust me, if it happens, I will happily fork it over.  I just really want my own kids to score.
Wills is willing to work at it.  He is determined to do it, and I pray he does.  Owen.....not so much.  It is not that he doesn't WANT the reward, he just doesn't want to work at it.  In fact, my little negotiator told Wills to come ask me if he would get $20 if he scored 2 goals.  Of course, I said "no" and later I heard Wills report to Owen that "Mommy said No".  I guess Owen thought he could just make Wills do all the work and still get something. 
I am convinced Owen will one day be the greatest salesperson ever and Wills will play it safe and be an accountant. 
On another note, my kids were able to be models today!  ha!  A friend of mine needed some kids for her Spring/Summer catalog and asked if mine would be up for it.  Of course, I said "Yes".  Wills, Owen and Kate all got to go out on the farm and get their picture taken in a cute new shirt.  Gray didn't make it.  He was a little under the weather. 
I don't have the pictures yet, but check out her website.  She has some really cute things.  She actually did our Christmas card for us and I loved it.
www.shophollydays.com
Check her out.  She is so talented and also a very sweet person. 
I am excited to start a full week of school and hopefully I will have some exciting adoption news on the horizon!