Fall Festivities

Yesterday we had our "Lil Pumpkin Party" at preschool. Micah was so excited! He could not wait to go to school. He dressed up like Mickey Mouse aka "Ra Ra." Noah was Blues Clues. The preschoolers got to play games and win prizes. They also got to eat tons of yummy food! I have posted the best pictures that I have of the two of them. It is almost impossible to get a good picture of two children together.

This week, we start Judgment House at our church. It starts tonight and goes to Saturday. Charlie and I are both involved. He is a counselor and I am an actor. I am a teenage girl in a gymnastics scene, so I get to show off all my stuff to girls that are at least 10 years younger than me. :) We have to be there at 5:00 every night and won't get done until 10 or 11, so the boys will be going to bed at the church. Micah is excited about it, because he gets to take his sleeping bag, pillow, blanket, etc. I just hope that the boys do okay. It is going to be a long week for them. They are usually in bed by 7:00, so I am going to have some tired little boys by the end of the week.

Not Sure What to Title This Post....

Well, this will come as a shock to many readers. This post will officially let everyone know about a huge decision that Charlie and I have been praying about for months. Sunday, we attended an International Adoption Seminar in Atlanta. I have probably only shared my interest in adoption with just a handful of people. Charlie and I have been thinking about adoption since shortly after Micah was born. We have both done lots of research with different agencies and countries. We have chosen Christian World Adoption Agency and feel that the Lord is leading us to adopt a child in Kyrgyzstan. A predominantly Muslim country located next to China. We are currently on the waiting list, so the process will more than likely start in a few months. It is all in God's timing, because that is going to give us more time to pray and really seek the Lord's guidance in this MAJOR decision. I am nervous, yet excited. I have never taken such a huge step of faith in all my life. It is going to be a financial burden, but we both know that if the Lord leads us to adopt, then he will provide the means needed.

There is so much that I could mention on this post, because much thought, research and prayer has gone into all of this. I will keep this short and post more on the subject later. I will say that we are looking to adopt an infant girl. Charlie and I both want a girl, but realize that it is just not good on my body to go through another pregnancy. We also know that there are millions of children in orphanages that need a loving, Christian home. Please pray for us as we continue to seek the Lord in this important decision.

The Things They Say....

I just have to post this cute moment before I forget. I am sitting here at the computer in our bedroom as Micah is talking to himself in the full length mirror. He is doing different things in the mirror for about 5 minutes and then turns to me with a very concerned look on his face saying, "Mama, I want out." At first I was not sure what he was talking about, but then I realized that he either thought that he was really in the mirro or a friend that looks just like him. He then stepped away from the mirror and said, "Where'd it go?" He has been entertaining himself with the mirror now for about 15 minutes.

TFC Homecoming

Saturday, was Toccoa Falls College's 100th Birthday/Homecoming. TFC is where Charlie and I met, so the school has played a big role in our lives. We took the boys there to watch a parade and visit the falls. The last time that Charlie and I had our picture taken together at the falls was for our engagement. Six years later, we are taking pictures with our two precious boys...WOW! We only thought life was good then. The Lord has blessed us with more than we could have ever imagined!

Myrtle Beach

Over Charlie's Fall Break, we went with our friends Matt and Debbie to Myrtle Beach. They have three boys, so there was never a dull moment. Micah can now say he has seen both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. He went with us to SanFrancisco when he was 9 months old. While at Myrtle Beach, we spent our time swimming, resting and playing WII. Micah's favorite part was the lazy river.

The Only Thing Missing is the Rubber Ducky

It has been several weeks since I have posted. There has not been too much to talk about and I know that some may get tired of me showing off pictures, but I am posting these per request of family members that do not get to see my boys often. Noah is going to be 6 months old on Friday. I can't believe he has been a part of our family for half of a year. Time flies, especially when you have children to measure it by.
To update you on Micah, his speech therapy has been increased. He is now having speech therapy 6 times a month. We have had his hearing tested and it seems to be normal, so we are mainly focusing on the therapy at this point. He has come a long way since we started speech a year ago, but is still lagging about 9-12 months behind with his language. He understands what we are saying, but is having trouble putting his thoughts into words. I am seeing him get frustrated more often lately. He knows what he wants to say, but doesn't know how. The speech therapist has given me some great tools to use to help Micah. Having speech services is a true blessing, but it is something that has to be followed up with at home 24/7 to be a complete success.

He is almost holding his bottle

Big Brother is a Camera Hog!

Nothing Sweeter Than a Sleeping Baby!

Some Pictures Worth Sharing.

Which one looks like their mama?
As always, Snickers must be a part of what is going on.
Two handsome young boys.

When Dad is Left to Babysit.....

Yesterday, I took Micah to a speech evaluation. When we got home, this is what I saw.

Mommy's Little Artist

We spent the weekend with Charlie's parents. The weekend was fun and I had the opportunity to get some rest. It is always nice to have extra hands around to help with the boys. We do not get that very often, since both sets of grandparents live out of town. Micah still sleeps in a pack-n-play when we stay at someone's house. He switches well from that to a toddler bed. When we went in to get him this morning, we discovered that he had a Sharpie marker hidden in his bed and had him a good time. He colored all over his pack-n-play, comforter, sheet, Mickey Mouse as well as his body. He had a mustache and whiskers painted on his face. He also had it on his legs, knees, hands, arms and toes. He looked at my like, "What, what did I do????" I did not know whether to laugh or to cry. He ruined his pack-n-play, so for that reason I wanted to cry. But it was one of those tender toddler moments that will be remembered for years to come. The above picture is what it looked like after the first attempt to clean him up. He still has marker everywhere. They will be fun to explain to his teacher at preschool tomorrow.

A Few Pictures of the Week...

5 months old

Playing in mama and dada's bed

2 Year Olds!

You never know what 2 year olds are going to think of next. They make life interesting. When I went in Micah's room to get him up from his nap, this is what I saw....

#1 Babysitter!

The other night, Charlie was suppose to be watching Micah while I got things ready for the consignment sale. I walked in the living room and this is what I saw. I wish I was able to sleep that good. Since having children, I wake up at every little sound.

No More Tubes

Tuesday morning, Micah was playing as normal and then came up to me complaining about his ear. I thought that was weird. I looked in his ear and saw his tube just hanging there. I pulled it out and looked in his ear. His ear looked waxy and dark on the inside. After that, he kept complaining and crying about his ear hurting him. This was not usual for him. He had double ear infections for almost 4 straight months over a ear ago and never complained about the pain. I called the doctor and made an appointment to have him seen.

The doctor reported that his ear was irritated, probably from an ongoing sinus infection that he has had for over a week. He also looked in the other ear and said that the tube was just hanging in the ear canal and would fall out any day now. He gave Micah an antibiotic to clear up the sinus infection, which in return would help the ear.

My first question was, "Do you think the ear infections will return?" He believes that Micah has a 1 in 4 chance of having ear infections again. He said if he has three within a 6 month period, then he will get tubes again. I was hoping that we would keep the tubes through one more Winter season. My gut feeling is that we will be going back in for tubes, since Micah will probably be getting sick a good bit this season, but hopefully I am wrong.

On another note, today starts a baby and children consignment sale in our community. This happens once a year and it is one of my favorite times. I love to shop and this is the great opportunity to get everything the boys need for Fall and Winter at a bargain. I am also consigning a good bit of stuff this time and hope to make a couple hundred dollars. I am working the sale this afternoon. Since I am working and consigning, I get to shop the early sale this evening. I will get first dips on all the cheap bargains!!!

MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) starts at our church tomorrow and is an outreach to all moms in the community with young children. It is going to be a wonderful program for the moms and children. I don't have a whole lot of responsibility in the program, but I am going to be a Discussion Group Leader. My friend Meridith is leading up the program and has done a wonderful job to see to it that this ministry is superb! We will meet every other Friday. I am excited about having a special time just for moms that is designed to meet our needs.

Let Me Take A Moment To Brag

I need to brag on my first born. He is know going poop and pee pee on the potty. I stressed about this for a little while this summer, because I wanted him to be potty trained before preschool started back. I worked with him some, but soon gave up when I realized that he was just not ready and that it was a battle of the wills. I decided that I was not going to worry about it anymore. People have always told me, they will go when they are ready. I thought, "yeah right, then I will be waiting forever." I was willing to wait though and just keep doing diapers (especially since I get them for little of nothing using my coupons!!!)

Well, we have been in school for two weeks now and all but one of the children in Micah's class is potty trained. I have not said much about it, but I guess Micah was feeling a bit of pressure from his toddler peers. That peer pressure starts early and it can be a good or bad thing. In this case, it has been a very good thing. Last night, he came up to me and said, "poop mama." I said, Micah do you want to go poop on the potty...thinking he would refuse as usual. To my surpise, he gladly walked back there pooped and peed on the potty. WOW! I was in shock and made a huge deal about it! He got to get a car of his choosing out of the Potty Training Treat Bag, a sticker to put on his chart and a small piece of chocolate (this in itself is a huge deal for Micah). But some occasions call for chocolate!

He woke up this morning and went straight to the potty. He takes Mickey Mouse ("Ra Ra") with him. "Ra Ra" sits on one potty and he sits on the other. He can't wait to get to pick something from the treat bag when he is done. Last night he slept with his new car and showed it to me first thing this morning. He is so proud of himself!

Today he is in BIG BOY UNDERWEAR! We will see how it goes. I am not a big fan of the Pull Ups, because they feel too much like diapers. Maybe he can wear his big boy underwear to school tomorrow.

The Lord Protects

Last night, I was thinking about my blog. I knew that I needed to post something, but did not know what to post. Life has been pretty busy, but uneventful lately. I could not think about what to post on. Well, an outpouring of the Lord's protection took place early this morning and I feel as if I need to praise him publicly.

We never realize when an emergency is going to rise and test our abilities to remain calm and help as needed. This morning, Noah awoke as happy as ever and ready to eat. We went through our same routine of feed, change and play. He was lying on the couch cooing and then all of a sudden burst out in a pain cry. I knew that was not like him, so I rushed to pick him up. The minute I picked him up, he shut his eyes tight and refused to open them. He laid his head on my shoulder and did not move without being prompted. I tried to get him to respond for about two minutes, but was not successful...his eyes remained shut. At that point, I decided it was time to wake Charlie. He jumped up out of bed, took him and laid him on the bed. At that point, he began to flail, but would still not open his eyes. I knew that it was not a life or death emergency, because he was breathing and had a pulse. My first thought was that he was having a seizure. We pried his eyes open and realized that his left eye was watering. We were relieved, realizing that he probably just scratched his eye and was acting the way that he was due to the shock his body probably experienced from the pain. He then started to develop what looked like a rash on the left side of his face. I contacted the doctor on call and he said that he probably got something in his eye and to watch him over the next hour. If he was not better, then he would meet us at the office. Thankfully everything turned out just fine. Noah's eye finally stopped watering and the blotches around his eye disappeared.

That is probably the first time that I have ever felt sudden fear and panic for one of my children. After I knew that Noah was fine, I couldn't help but think that it could have been a lot worse. It could have been a life threatening situation. We never know when we will be faced with such a situation. Our health and safety is not guaranteed, but we will always have assurance that the Lord protects and blesses in every situation that we face. It is only by His grace that some situations do not turn out a lot worse.

First Day of Preschool!

I started back to preschool on Monday. Micah missed his first day, because he was sick. Yesterday was his first day and he was excited! He got to pick-out his backpack. A friend from church who has a boy named Micah gave him a nap mat with his name on it. He also wore his preschool t-shirt. He was ready to go. This is his first year in a more structured preschool setting. He did great. The biggest issue he faced was only getting two servings of cookies at snack and not wanting to stay on his mat during rest time.

Another Reason Why God Created Women...

This is the outfit that Noah was wearing Sunday morning after having spent the entire weekend with dada. He had on Micah's Spiderman top and Micah's bug pajama bottoms, which were both 2T. When Charlie got up, I asked him about the outfit and he said, "I could not find Noah's pajamas." What???? Noah has been with us for 4 months now and Charlie does not know where his pajamas are!!!

It gave me a good laugh though and a picture to help me remember that God created moms, because he knew that daddys would need a little help.