Real Life and LIFE

Hello and "Happy New Year!" - um, a bit late, huh? Well, I assure you there is a reason (several, actually) I haven't posted since Christmas! Not meaning this to be complaining post - but it has been a rough patch lately. It's normally pretty busy around here (not like we have 4 kids or anything, right?) to start with. Toss in the fact that our washing machine broke and we have had the repair men out 10 times in the past couple weeks, ordered 3 different parts for 2 different problems... it "should" be fixed now (they came today, again) - we'll see - I haven't had the guts to try a laundry load! Praying it actually works this time! There is laundry piled up all over the place from over 6 weeks of laundry.

The great news is that, because I'm not doing any laundry, I've kept up pretty good on the dishes! Except, um, our garbage disposal broke. So did my blender.
We were all still trying to get over this weird cough/cold thing from Christmas time when the flu hit our family last week. Not...fun...at...all. Arielle and Zeph were spared from the "epidemic" but Nathanael had a light case and Scott, myself and baby Evie got it the worst. Nothing worse than seeing your baby miserably sick and weak. We're all better from the flu now... back to recovering from the other thing we had before and apparently still have. Oh, how I miss church and friends!

Scott and I have been trying each night to get some time alone just to watch a movie or something but by the time we get the kids in bed and walk around in a daze like zombies around the house wondering where we were going and what we got up to do... we end up saying, "it's too late to start a movie. Let's go to bed" (yes, we are now officially "old people" because we actually like to sleep! And by "old people" I mean it to also = "parents of several children"). So I begged my busy mama to come around 9pm and just stay here while the kids (except for our night owl baby) sleep so we can go get dessert or something - anything - just OUT.... together! And she said YES! So I am super-duper excited that we are going to actually have time together! And if we're not too tired we may actually do more than sit and eat and stare at each other 'til we giggle. Yes..believe it or not,

people... we may actually have a conversation that does not involve boogers, therapy, homeschooling, cloth diapers, broken appliances or bills and we might have more to say than, "so what you wanna do?"... "I don't know - what you wanna do?"

Through all of this - and so much more I won't bore you with - God is Faithful and Good! We are frail, sick, sinful, ugly, broken. He is our Strength, Healer, Perfect Lamb of God, giving Beauty for ashes and making all things new, the potter who can take broken clay, add living water and make a new pot! Just when things seem so gloomy He gives hope because He is the Hope of the world!

I'll give a little update on the kids and then I'm getting ready to get outta here!

Photo: Zeph after playing with markers, glue (art projects with teacher), and playing in the dirt like a real boy!

Zephaniah had a meeting a couple weeks ago (likely where we got our flu from) with a physical therapist. It didn't go so great. Okay it was an absolute nightmare. He was fussing in the waiting room and once we got into the therapy room he was fighting tooth and nail, screaming, crying, banging his head, hitting his face... did I mention screaming? She did a quick assessment of his spasticity (tightness) on his right side, which he was terrified about. He was NOT letting her touch him...period. She couldn't do anything else with him. He wouldn't calm down. She did give me some suggestions, thou

gh. She said wherever his crib was in the orphanage it was in such a place that he had to look to his left to see anything he wanted to see. Thus the tightness on his right side and misshapen head. At her suggestion we are now: moving his car seat to the other side so he has to look to his right to see Arielle or anything else. We moved his crib so he has to look to the right to see out of the crib (covered the other part with blanket). I'm feeding him so he has to turn his head to the right to get his bite. I'm also feeding him by hand now - only. For finger foods I only give him one bite. One little piece at a time. Over time he'll get used to not having so much at a time in his mouth (we hope). This is at the suggestion of other adoptive parents. Zeph is able to take steps now when supported! He hates it. Really. If he sees his prosthetic coming he fusses and whines like we are killing him to put it on. He just doesn't want to deal with it. It's a cumbersome thing that "slows him down" in his eyes, you know? I'm so excited for the day he realizes what a good thing it is! He has also added one very special favorite word to his English (and only) vocabulary: "No!" "Hey, Mr. Zeph - wanna do some walking?"... "no, no, no, no, no, no!" He's learning. He's adapting. Slowly, slowly. But it is happening :) You see all these cute pictures, his sweet little face. Well, bonding is coming slower than I expected. You would think with how cute he is that I would bond to him like glue! Nope. I'm just not sticky! It's going to be a process and though it's an emotional roller-coaster of sorts I believe it will happen one day at a time.

Nathanael: Just a few days after turning 6 he got a lose tooth and I am happy to report that he did eventually lose it! Not a wiggling tooth type of kid. He just let it happen on it's own. He's started school again, something else that's keeping me on my toes (homeschooling).

Arielle and Evie: Are up to the same stuff: dollies, dresses, and let's just call this "learning how to get along with each other and Zeph" ;)

Now - you all enjoy your day/night/whatever. I'm going on a hot date!