Easter 2008

I've been excited about Easter for weeks. But then it got here and I wasn't too sure why. So I thought long and hard about why I was looking forward to it. And there was the obvious, it was Easter, it was a holiday, and that is almost always a wonderful thing. Plus it has always been a time that I have been able to spend with family. But then there were other things, it was the first time I had little ones to dress up on Easter. That seemed pretty important. And I will never forget having Easter when my nephews and nieces were itty bitty - we have a great photo of three of them in the front yard on Easter day. So I was looking forward to having a cute Easter photo of the children. And of course, there are easter egg hunts.

The problem was that Easter came without any preparations and without any plans. I had bought two outfits (minus the shoes), and had planned to finish shopping for easter baskets, bathing suits, sunglasses, and shoes on Saturday. I had also planned to dye easter eggs on Saturday with S. That all changed. Saturday morning came with a vengeance ... or the stomach flu to be exact. So none of it got done. And no other plans were made. And no family came down this year. By Saturday afternoon Thomas was also sick. So on Sunday, what I had was two cute outfits for Easter. While, it wasn't the best prepared day, and we were too sick to go to church. I will say that I was thrilled to be feeling better, I was absolutely ecstatic that I felt well enough to dress the children, and it was even more exciting that I was well enough to try to take some pictures of them in the yard.

I did throw some plastic eggs in the yard, each filled with two jelly beans. It was not the usual sport like the past few years where we tried our hardest to find difficult places to hide eggs - like we had with Josh - but more of a throw them all in one place so that the little one doesn't have to toddle all over the yard game. Of course, he didn't hunt the eggs, he hunted the candy. Every time he picked up an egg he had to stop, sit down, and eat the candy. Then he would throw the egg back down and start over.

Thomas and I have actually been amazed at how much S. is learning. His behavior has definitely changed. He is copying us more and signing all the time. At the store I told a stranger "thank you," and I looked down and he was signing "thank you." At home, its the same thing. He is constantly signing "daddy" these days. (I'd like to add a personal note that tonight Silas was crying and chasing Thomas around rather than myself, it was wonderful relief). And he will sign just about anything that he knows regardless of whether we show him first. In addition, if we show him a sign, he will copy it, or at least try to. Now if only we could get him saying more. Thomas did have him repeating: "blah, blah, blah" earlier this week. But words are definitely more of a struggle ... the experts tell us to encourage any sound or repetition. So I feel comfortable that it will come in time. I think I heard him tell the dog to "stop" this weekend, but I couldn't be sure about it. It was so muddled.



It was also really cute this weekend when he realized how good he was at walking backwards. He was quite impressed with himself. He is moving well these days but he is also getting in more trouble. I'm worried his new habit of hitting comes from day care. He has been hitting much more frequently if he doesn't get his way. This has resulted in time out quite a bit for him lately. I was a little worried he was enjoying time out too much, or not understanding it, but by the end of the weekend when I told him to stop or he would have to sit in time out, he stopped. So I think he probably comprehended it enough.

K went in for her 4 month old shots on Friday. She weighed 13.5 lbs and grew about 1 inch in the last month. She was pretty groggy Saturday from the shots. So, we've been thinking for a week or two that she might be showing a little more spunk or attitude lately. Well, I would say that is confirmed. She is hollering something fierce when she gets mad at one of us. Usually that means we put her down and she is not happy at all about it. She can have quite a fit and throw out some pretty large tears very quickly.

But overall, the children are very happy and very easy. Bedtime is not at all a chore. We can usually lay K down while she is still awake and turn on her mobile. Within a few minutes we can lay S down and close the door. It is very quick and simple. And its great to know that by 7:30 or 8pm at the latest they are both in bed, and the house is quiet.

The Children are GROWING

Well, I often think about posting ... and think about these fantastic and wonderful things I'd like to share. I just don't have the time. Things are too busy to post very frequently. I have been trying to squeeze in more quilting time. I'll post a photo of a baby quilt I just finished in the next couple days.

I was asked for photos - so there are lots in this post.

The children are absolutely a joy to have in our home. We couldn't have asked for a more. And we are so very thankful that God has led us to this point. We could not imagine living life without experiencing life as foster parents. There are so many wonderful and loving children that need a home and care. We are very thankful to be part of it and feel confident this is what God wanted for us.

S. is doing wonderful. Thomas, S. and K. all had the flu about 2 weeks ago. That was pretty hard. I never got it - thank God for the flu shot. But we figured out during that time that maybe S. was allergic to milk. He was having about 6 "dirty" diapers a day since he's been with us. We cut out the milk and he's having about 3 a day that aren't nearly as bad. Plus he's gained another pound and had grown about 1/2 inch. He is learning and doing more each day. He's nearly running around, climbing, tonight he was spinning in circles getting himself dizzy. He's also following directions much better. He is still sleeping through the night, and is just generally fun loving. Tomorrow we visit the geneticist.




K. is growing fast! We haven't weighed her lately, but she is probably right around 14 lbs. She is moving, wriggly, cooing, etc. She is also shaking a rattle. She hasn't turned over yet, but she will turn to her side and get really close to turning over. She is very sweet still, and is quick to smile at you.


I'm attaching lots of photos from the past month. One is of S. dancing. Another of K playing peek-a-boo with Thomas. We also had ice cream recently together at Brusters - S's first time!