Tradition

Last year it was all about the "firsts."

The first bike rides. First swims. First Christmas. First Thanksgiving.

But tomorrow is our second Thanksgiving. I relished hearing my kids all talk about last year as we made our pumpkin pies together, each child taking turns adding ingredients and stirring. The girls were talking about how they didn't really like pumpkin pie last year, but they like it now. They were talking about the relatives that would come and the foods we would eat. Jonah and Luke would guide them through things they forgot in a sweet, caring way. It was just lovely...

I am enjoying our family so much. I love the "seconds" better than I did the "firsts." The firsts were great, don't get me wrong, but the "seconds" are creating a real sense of tradition with our family. That tradition has been a part of my life always and it is meaningful. As all of our children experience these traditions and become a part of them, we just feel closer. It is like we are being crocheted together as time passes and with each shared experience, another layer is added. It really is something.

Happy Thanksgiving to all of you and I hope very much that you feel a sense of closeness with those you love.

How to keep your home toy-clutter free...

Are you tired of finding toys strewn about your house?  Do you wish your kids would keep their toys where they belong? Would you like to have your home clean AND make money?

Look no further! Toy-no-More is here!  

What is Toy-no-More and how does it work?  Though it looks like an ordinary cardboard box, Toy-no-More is much, much more than that.  It is a revolutionary toy holding vessel.  Any toy left where it doesn't belong is placed in the box by a parent.  At first, the box will fill up quickly.  That is how you know Toy-no-More is working.

Kids must then bail out their toys from the box by paying YOU money.  Any toy not worth paying for will find it's way into a donation box.  It costs your child just a fraction of his or her hard-earned cash to bail out a toy the first time, but should that toy find it's way into Toy-no-More again, then the price to free it is doubled.  That's where the real cash is made.

What could be better than Toy-no-more?  Your home is kept clean and you make money.  If you faithfully use Toy-no-More you might find you don't even need to rely on it anymore and your children will learn to keep their toys where they belong!!!

Locing?

Update: Here is a great YouTube Video to show you how it is done, if you are interested. :)

We are looking into putting our girls' hair in small locs. I've been doing lots of research and feel like it might be a good choice for them. The girls have seen lots of pictures and they really like the look, as long as the locs aren't too big. We've entertained the thought of micro-locs, but realistically, tightening 400 plus locs on EACH head every 6-8 weeks? Yeah. Sounds a like a little much for a busy family!

But with the small size, and training Chester and both girls on how to do it so we should have 3 people working on tightening one head at a time, it sounds pretty doable. After looking at all the options, we've decided to order the Nappylocs "The Business in a Box" with an additional small nappylocs needle (we'll order a third possibly later). It has instructions on how to do it (a dvd and book) and use the tool, which has you pretty much crocheting the hair in a 3 point pattern, plus some shampoos and such designed for locs.

We're planning on putting them in over the Christmas break. I am excited for the girls, as I think this will give them a lot of styling versatility as the locs grown out, but using their natural hair and without adding lots of product to it. I'll be sure to post lots of pics of the process and how they turn out. I am going to do some careful planning to make sure I do this right because once it is done, undoing it isn't a great option! Wish us LOCS of luck! ;)

Attachment Progress

Attachment in adoption is a wide spectrum.  I've long felt we had a solid foundation in our home, but I haven't ever thought that we were "there" with completely secure attachments with all of the children.  But we are moving every closer toward it.  There has been such growth for our family in this positive direction over the past few months.  I have so enjoyed the peace we are settling in to... I have particularly noticed a change in one member of our family lately.

One of our girls has been such a pleaser.  Always wanting to be perfect- an impossible task which would eventually frustrate her and lead to awful tantrums.  It has been quite a while since we've had a significant tantrum and slowly I have been seeing signs that she is allowing herself to simply BE.  She isn't needing to be the good girl every moment (or at least when she thinks we're looking).  She can make a mistake and instead of a sense of dread on her face with the fear that she may have damaged how we see her, she just is saying a simple sorry and moving on.  She isn't letting a mistake, even an intentional one, make her feel awful anymore. Hallelujah!  It is as if she went from wanting to believe we would always love her to actually believing it.  I can't explain how overwhelmed with emotion I am in seeing this transformation in her.  It is beautiful.  Truly a gift to be witness to.

I am thanking God for continuing to help us grow.  It is a miracle to me to know how far we have come in the past year.  I truly cannot believe it and I can honestly say with my whole heart and with no more "faking it until we make it" that we all truly love each other.  It is all real and it is so right.  I love my husband and children so much and I sit here with tears in my eyes in amazement at how blessed I am to be the mother and wife in this incredible family.

Amazing Autumn

After school we came home to a crisp, cool afternoon and a yard full of leaves.  There was no discussion, I simply let the kids out and pulled the van into the garage and everybody just ended up out in the yard.  The boys got the rakes and began raking the golden leaves into a glorious pile that begged to be jumped in.  We ran through them, chased each other, tossed leaves in the air.  It was just spontaneous and joyous and perfect.

I have been reveling in the glory of fall and the simple peace that has become our lives.  Oh we're busy, busy, busy, but there is such a comfort to our family now.  I sit here very grateful and in awe...