Miracle

We brought Avery Grace home August 2011.  When we received our refrerral, it said she had no knee caps.  When we met her on August 8, we were told she would not be able to walk.  Her foster family of 4 months had taken her to a Doctor in Chongching, who x-rayed her legs and said she would not walk.
After 8 months of therapy, surgery, casting, and bracing, Avery is a WALKING miracle.  Literally!
God is still in the miracle business!  Thank you Lord for your work in her life. 

video coming soon!

Hip Hoppity Hop!

Happy Easter from the Carrington Family.  We stayed in town this year for Easter.  The kids were bummed about not seeing their cousins, but we had baseball and lacrosse until late Saturday and couldn't make it over to Atlanta!
We did enjoy going to our church's amazing Easter service, where God truly was at work!  It was a great time of worship and remembrance of God's amazing love for ME and that our Savior is alive.  I get so emotional each year I as think about what He endured on that cross to cover my sins.  What an amazing love He has for us...for me.
Here are some fun and funny pictures from a great family day celebrating the amazing and risen God we serve!

She is 2!

Tonight, on the eve of Avery's 2nd birthday, I remember how we celebrated her birth last year.  With just a picture and lots of love in our hearts, we sang and ate cake and thought of our precious daughter and sister across the world!

I can only imagine, 2 years ago tonight, her birth mom was probably experiencing early birth pains, contractions...knowing the time was near to give birth to her child.  I often wonder if she knew she was having a girl?  If she knew she would be giving her up?  If she knew what was to come?
I cannot even begin to comprehend the 5 days that Avery spent in her birth mothers arms before she was left on the orphanage steps...no note, no clothes, nothing but a blanket around her.  I wonder if Avery was held tightly, loved, nursed, rocked, cuddled, felt her mom's heartbeat on her skin?  I cannot even begin to understand what her birth mom must have went through leading up to the day she left.  I want to believe that she had faith that God would bring us to her.  I wonder if she could ever fathom that her daughter by birth lives in Birmingham, Alabama and is the youngest of 4 kids and loved dearly?
I pray that she feels the peace deep in her heart that Avery is loved and cared for.  I pray for her salvation, that one day Avery and I can both meet this brave woman who chose life for her child.
So, until the day we meet, may she experience peace, that can only come from the Lord that "God is good"  He cares for the orphans!  He cared enough to stir the hearts of an ordinary family in Alabama to step out of their comfort zone.  To be uncomfortable for a moment.  To have faith that God would provide.  God is in the details of an unborn child's life, and we are forever blessed!
Happy Birthday, sweet, strong, loving, playful, determined, feisty, loved daughter of mine! 
I loved YOU before I knew YOU!

SpringFlings

Can it really be April 1st?  Slow down time!  Please! 
It is going way too fast.  We are having a wonderful, warm and busy Spring, so I guess the weeks go by before I can even think about blogging.
Avery's 2nd Birthday is April 3, so we celebrated  with Meme and Pop this weekend.  The kids had so much fun singing to her and helping her with her presents, although she was pretty good at ripping them open.
My hopes were to have her walking by her 2nd birthday, but we are not there yet. Aside from walking on her own, she can pretty much do everything else, so she is a happy little camper. We continue to see HUGE strides in her everyday.

 

Gray had his first soccer game on Sunday.  I was so thankful that this day finally came because he has asked me for the past 2 months, "when he plays Soccer?" and has also worn his soccer cleats everywhere.  Needless to say, He has BEEN ready and was ready when Sunday at 3:30 rolled around.  I couldn't help but notice a little swagger in his step out there on the field.  No doubt he has older brothers!

 Uncle Steven and Aunt Bekah came to watch Gray's big soccer debut!

 Grandad giving Gray some tips!

 

Gray has also been busy with swim lessons.  Trying to get him swimming before the summer and he is a natural in the water.  I am so proud of him...He is growing up too fast.

 So what else have we been up to?  The beach for Spring Break was an amazing trip!

 

Owen showed off his mad acting skillz.....not really.  I am pretty sure he sang maybe a few words during the program, but he loved wearing that hat at school!

 

 

Questions and honest answers

I always get asked questions of friends (and complete strangers for that matter) of how I do it with 5 kids.  By "do it", they usually mean specific things about how I run the house. 
So, for your enjoyment and/or curiosity, here are some common questions I hear most often and some honest answers.  AND no comments, unless they are in agreement, because this is just me and my household.
WARNING:  this may or may not be found in any child rearing book and I am by no means, saying my way is right.
#1 How do you keep up with all the laundry?
people always ask me this.  We have 1 washer and 1 dryer.  I do laundry all day long...really!   Usually 2 loads a day and we use the same towels a few times, along with wear our pajamas more than once!
This is the only way to stay above water.  I do not separate lights and darks.  I throw it all in together.  I wash in cold on quick cyle.  I dry EVERYTHING!  I do not iron (maybe, just maybe for Easter)! 
I usually wait to fold 2 or 3 loads at a time.  So this means a pile of laundry sits on my laundry room floor.
If there are a lot of towels, I fold right away--quick and easy folding right there.
I have a basket for socks.  A big basket for all the kids socks.   If I can't make a match quick, I leave it on the floor and the kids can find their own match.
I do not mind the folding....it is the putting away!  ugh.  I put the clothes away.  You want to know why?  Because my kids would never do it the right way.  I spend a lot of time folding and darn it, I want it to be folded in their  drawers. (alteast for 10 minutes! :))

#2 How do you keep up with all the schedules?
This is a full time job.  I just recently succumbed to using my I-phone calendar.  This way, I can send my calendar to Matt to sync with his.  It is great.  I put everything in my calendar and add it as soon as I can. 
Basically, I look at my week at a glance on Sunday night, but I also am obsessively checking my daily calendar making sure I do not forget anything. 
I love routine and my family runs much smoother with it.  We usually begin to start getting things together 30 minutes before we need to leave to go somewhere.  I hate being rushed and do not like being late.  I know that SOMETHING is usually going to happen about the time we are leaving...be it a dirty diaper, an accident, etc...so this gives me enough leeway in time to cover it. 
I also have been known to get everyone in the car, strapped in and I go back inside to straighten up and finish packing up stuff.  If you have never tried this...it works!


#3 How do you do Homework? 
I try to have the kids do homework pretty much right away when they get home.  I meet them up at the bus and they play some as we walk down to our house and then they get their snack.  They are dying to go play with their friends outside, so it usually works to say that they need to get their homework done first.
We sit at the kitchen table and all do it at the same time.  This way, I can help everyone.  Avery and Gray are usually eating a snack too, so it works for us!


#4  How do you keep your house semi clean?
I am a pretty neat person.  I like order and I do not like clutter.  Clutter and a messy house actually gives me anxiety.  I make the kids take responsibility for keeping their rooms clean and for cleaning up what they play with.  It is not hard to throw your toys back into whatever basket you got it out of.  I have baskets everywhere, which helps.  as long as things are in there baskets when they are done playing, then that is good enough for me.   So my baskets are overflowing with toys and "stuff" but it is contained.
I have a wonderful cleaning lady who comes to help me out once, sometimes twice a month and she is a life saver!  I love her!  She deep cleans for me....think bathrooms and kitchen
So I will surface clean in between and she deep cleans for me.  I LOVE my vacuum, so I vacuum quite a bit and I sweep my kitchen daily.  Basically, like the laundry...I stay on top of it. 
My house is not perfect, but this is one area that I expect my kids to help.  Put your trash in the trash can and take responsibility for your stuff. 
It helps that my husband is pretty neat too!


#5  Do you cook and prepare meals?
I do not like to cook, but I do it.  Are the meals gourmet?  NO!  I usually have a rotation of meals each week.  Spaghetti one night, Taco night, Chicken  in the crock pot, eggs,  and maybe another pasta dish.  We eat out one night a week, usually the weekend.  The other nights, we might just have cereal or pancakes.  When Matt travels, we always pick up a pizza or just eat whatever we can find.
Maybe if I enjoyed cooking, I would put more effort in it, but I cook to save money and keep my kids alive.


#6 How and when do you go to the grocery store and what is your bill?
I average 2 trips to the store a week.  On Mondays, I do my big trip and I have Avery with me. 
By the time Friday rolls around, we need basics for the weekend.  Milk, OJ, bread, fruit.
My first trip is usually $200.00 and my second trip anywhere from $50-80.00
This includes paper items, diapers, etc..


#7  How do you not get overwhelmed?
I do.  I get overwhelmed a lot.  People think that I am this laid back person and I am....if things are going smoothly and going my way.  I get  overwhelmed when "my plan" is not working.
My kids do not overwhelm me as much as situations.   


#8  do you ever get to have alone time?
I have always used my exercise time for my alone time.  I love to run and listen to praise music and just forget about everything.  I am a morning person, so I enjoy being up before everyone else and enjoying the peaceful quiet house or going for a jog in the early morning when there are only a few other people out doing the same thing!
I need alone time and I love the way exercise makes me feel.  
If I really need to get away, I have no problem hopping in the car the minute Matt walks through the door....some days there is no other option.


#9 How do you survive when Matt travels?
Well, we survive!  That is it.  No pressure to cook...we can eat cereal.  If we don't get a bath that night, I don't sweat it.  Structure helps me to get through the longs days and nights!


#10 When do you shop for clothes, shoes, necessities?  I love Target.  I can literally get everything there. 
I also shop on line for the kids clothes quite a bit.  I never pay shipping! 
I also LOVE amazon.com.  It is my best friend at Christmas!

#11  Are you going to have any more kids?
Right now, we feel complete.  I am not sure we ever imagined we would have 5, but now can't imagine it any other way.  We will not have any more biological children---that is pretty much 99.9% sure!
Will we adopt?  Only if God speaks  to us to do it.  We have loved the act of adoption.  We feel so honored and blessed to have experienced it.  We feel that Avery has completed our family, but it is not about how WE feel.  There are so many fatherless in this world, and if we are not called to adopt again, I hope we can be an advocate for the orphan and bring others to step out in faith and do it.
So, the answer is ???????????  I feel we are complete, but the Lord has never ceased to surprise and amaze me with His grace, love and perfect plan. 

So.............any other questions?  I am game!

Where Do I Start?

Lots has happened over the past few weeks.  Our life is pretty crazy around here.  Seems to be moving at lightning speed.  before I know it Friday is here and another week has gone by.

I joke with Matt that it is a full time job keeping up with our schedules.

Avery is making BIG strides everyday.  She is hiding her face less and less and just really doing great at home.  She is also doing better when we go places, but it can still overwhelm her being at really busy events.

She is still learning such much needed social skills with strangers.  She doesn't warm up to people very easily and can be quite rude.  Most people understand.  I am hoping that preschool will help her next year with her social skills.  She is not trusting and feels very threatened by strangers and other kids her age.

I have continued to teach my boot camp classes which I love and teach at the YMCA and a local country club here.  I love being able to work!  I am meeting great people, making a little money, and doing something that I enjoy.  It is such a perfect fit for me with having little ones too.  I feel very blessed.

So, I am getting the swing of this 5 kid thing and am amazed and overwhelmed with gratefulness that the Lord has entrusted Matt and I with 5 healthy children.  Many days, Matt I feel like we are ships in the night, passing one another so consumed with all the happenings of our life, but at the end of the day, we look at our kids and cannot imagine life any other way.  Not perfect by any means, not without chaos and stress, but it is good.  It is what we know and we go with it!

Here are some pictures from the last few weeks. Enjoy!

Wills had all 10 boys on his baseball team over one Friday night for "Team Building" 

We should have called it "Team Wrestling, Team running through the house and Team Rough Housing.  They had so much fun.  We ended the night by watching The Sandlot.

 When we are not at baseball practice, we are at Lacrosse.  We got to experience our first Lacrosse tourney and it was so much fun and fast paced.  We are still learning the game , but have enjoyed watching Owen play.  Avery is a trooper at all the boys' events.

 As is Kate!

 And Gray!

 Daddy coaching Owen

 Owen in the orange shorts

 Sweaty and Tired!

 First game of the season for Wills.

8 yr old Cardinals 3/10/2012

 Getting ready to head to the fields

 First Bat....and a nice hit!  PTL

 2nd Bat...warming up!

 Down the third base line.

On another note, Avery is now out of her casts.  She wore her Spica cast for 3 weeks and her long leg casts for 3 weeks.  We went to the Doctor on Wednesday to have her casts removed.  I had envisioned this amazing day of taking off the casts and her so happy and everything to be wonderful AND it was complete opposite.  It was actually a very difficult day!  When the casts came off I, nor Avery were prepared for the huge scar and scab right down the center of her knees, as well as how stiff and "on fire" Avery's little legs would be.  She was in a lot of pain.  I mean screaming crying pain.  I was a nervous wreck staring at her little knees.  Oh, it was so sad and my heart hurt for Avery.  She has been through so much.

The Dr. put Knee immobilizers on her legs and she is to wear them all the time, except to bathe.  We start therapy in a week and go from there.  The idea is to get her walking in her braces and eventually on her own!

Here are some pictures of her poor knees and her new bracings.

 Finally, last Thursday I took Gray and Avery to the Zoo on a beautiful day.  We meet some good friends and the boys had a blase. 

I just love this picture.  It represents each child's personality so well.

Tid bits

Basketball over......team party at Yogurt Twist below!

onto baseball and lacrosse and gymnastics~

whew!

GONE with the BODY CAST

 Onto Long Leg casts!

Matt's second job, "Dad of a boy scout" is still going on!

 dads and their sons had to bring a cake to the banquet...we were not aware that it was a contest to see who could make the most amazing cake, but you know what they still won an award....

MOST COLORFUL!  We got a good laugh out of that one.

 If you have kept up with my posts, you know how much I L-O-V-E Birmingham Children's Theatre....

we went to see The Little Engine that Could .  Very cute and so fun!

Here is Kate with a few of the characters.

 Finally, Avery has come so far in the last 6 months.  Today I got this great picture of these two buddies/

This was taken right before Gray grabbed her head and pushed her! 

Sibling Rivalry!  Don't feel too bad for sweet little Avery.  Trust me, this girl can hold her own.

So, we have been enjoying our mild winter by spending lots of time playing outside.

Between Lacrosse 3 times a week and Baseball 2 times/week, and Gymnastics, we are in the car quite a bit.

I was able to compete in the Mercedes half Marathon this year.  This race is a lot of fun because it is local and it is so well out together.  Each year it grows!  This is my 3rd time to finish it and I was so glad I got to do it.  The kids were able to track my progress on-line, so that was fun for them.

My time was pretty good considering I really didn't train that hard for it.  I think I will take that approach more often!

This past week, we also had to put our beloved dog, Sampson to sleep.  Sampson drove me crazy a lot of the time, but he was a great, sweet dog that has been part of our family since Matt and I got engaged.  I feel like I have lost a family member.  It was hard to let him go.  The kids were all ok, he has been going down hill for a while now, but Kate really got upset.  Matt and I had to laugh over this because I am not sure she had ever even petted Sampson.  After Owen got attacked by a dog, she has not been a "dog person". 

Nonetheless, she bawled and bawled.  It was so sweet.  She just has a sweet compassionate heart.

I am not sure how life will be without a dog.  I am not ready to tackle a puppy quite yet...but am thinking my birthday (july) might be fun!  Any thoughts on a good breed....and please don't say any kind of "doodle" .  I do not like poodles. 

On the horizon, is a much needed girls trip for ME! hip hip hooray!

 and Spring Break with the family.

We are also counting down 3 more weeks until we can get this cast off.

Lots of laughs, lots of chaos, lots of screams, lots of fighting, lots of laundry, lots of messes....

but lots of love here!