Adoption Analogy

Everyday the waiting game gets harder for me. I try to be patient, I really do. But, some days my heart just aches for a baby and today is that day. I know that we will have the baby that is meant for our family and knowing that helps me on days like these. One of the adoption blogs that I follow posted this analogy about adoption and I think it is great!


Deciding to have a baby is like planning a trip to Australia. You've heard it's a wonderful place, you've read many guide-books and feel certain you're ready to go. Everyone you know has traveled there by plane. They say it can be a turbulent flight with occasional rough landings, but you can look forward to being pampered on the trip. So you go to the airport and ask the ticket agent for a ticket to Australia. All around you, excited people are boarding planes for Australia. It seems there is no seat for you; you'll have to wait for the next flight. Impatient, but anticipating a wonderful trip, you wait --- and wait --- and wait.


Flights to Australia continue to come and go. People say silly things like, "Relax. You'll get on a flight soon." Other people actually get on a plane and then cancel their trip, to which you cry, "It's no fair!" After a long time the ticket agent tells you, "I'm sorry, we're not going to be able to get you on a plane to Australia. Perhaps you should think about going by boat." "By BOAT!" you say. "Going by boat will take a very long time and it costs a great deal of money. I really had my heart set on going by plane."

So you go home and think about not going to Australia at all. You wonder if Australia will be as beautiful if you approach it by sea rather than air. But you have long dreamed of this wonderful place, and finally you decide to travel by boat. It is a long trip, many months over many rough seas. No one pampers you. You wonder if you will ever see Australia. Meanwhile, your friends have flown back and forth to Australia two or three more times, marveling about each trip.

Then one glorious day, the boat docks in Australia. It is more exquisite than you ever imagined, and the beauty is magnified by your long days at sea. You have made many wonderful friends during your voyage, and you find yourself comparing stories with others who also traveled by sea rather than by air. People continue to fly to Australia as often as they like, but you are able to travel only once, perhaps twice.

Some say things like, "Oh, be glad you didn't fly. My flight was horrible; traveling by sea is so easy." You will always wonder what it would have been like to fly to Australia. Still, you know God blessed you with a special appreciation of Australia, and the beauty of Australia is not in the way you get there, but in the place itself.

Too short!

Ahhh! Why do I do this to myself! It all started this morning when I suggested we go get the girls a haircut. We talked about what style of cut we'd like for the girls. I mentioned that I thought a "slight" a-line cut would be cute on London because she has the most adorable sweepy bangs. Jeff said no way and that he didn't want a "trendy" cut for the girls hair. I agreed, but I really wanted to cut most of London's hair off in the back because it gets so ratty. I asked him why he wasn't like most husbands and not care what I do with the kids hair. He then told me I could do what I wanted. At first I was like "no, it's okay, you are probably right."


London was up first and I went with her to talk with the lady cutting her hair and I mentioned the slight a-line cut. She told me it wouldn't work because the sides of her hair are way shorter than the back and if we did the a-line cut that it would be super short all over. I quickly changed my mind and London ended up getting an inch or so chopped off with layers all over. It hardly looks like her hair was cut. She still has her adorable sweepy bangs too!


While I was with London, Jeff took Kam to get her hair cut. They picked out a hair cut from a magazine that looked like a bob at shoulder length. He showed the picture to the lady cutting her hair and went and sat down. After London was done, we went and sat down by Jeff. Jeff whispered in my ear "this is the lady that cuts my hair too short." I started getting nervous.


I took London to the bathroom so that I could peek at Kam and hopefully intervene if needed. HOLY COW...it was to late. She had shaved the back part of Kamryn's hair already. I don't know what she was thinking. It wasn't even a slight a-line, it was an extreme a-line and I didn't want K to have an a-line in the first place. Kind of funny how it was switched like that.


I was upset, but didn't want Kam to feel self-conscious, so I went on and on about how cute she looks. Of course she looks cute in any hair cut, but this is way too short for our taste. But, as the day has gone on, the haircut has grown on us. It's short, but will be easy to work with and will be comfortable in the summer.


At least her hair grows super fast! Next time, I am taking the girls to you, Lauren!

I don't profess to be good at this digital scrapbooking stuff, but I thought I'd post these layouts anyway. I am trying to catch up, so please excuse my pumpkin patch pictures. More layouts later, I hope.

And the week isn't even over yet...

We stayed the weekend with Jeff's family and helped his younger brother move into a new house. While the men were moving, the women entertained the kids with sugar and more sugar.

You'd look like this too if you ate as much sugar as she did!

For spring break, Jeff was on a business trip to South Dakota, so the girls and I packed up and went to my parent's house. Kamryn and London had a lot of fun with cousins. (Pictured: cousin Halle and Emree)

Easter kind of snuck up on us this year. I definitely wasn't as prepared for it as I have been in the years past. We did have a great Easter egg hunt and both girls found equal amount of eggs, so their was no crying...yay. (We are working on Kamryn's cheesy smile, something that always happens when I use my camera on her.)

It is always hard to get action shots ( I cut the top of her head off...oops). Yes, she did dress herself this morning.

We still have to dye Easter eggs and do our traditional resurrection cookies, which will more than likely happen tonight.

My St. Patty's Cuties

Today

Last Year

Thankful for Elvis

London said the closing prayer in Primary today. She did it all by herself. Her usual prayer is "Heavenly Father, thank you for this day. Heavenly Father, help us." I understand London talk, though most people don't. We are working with a speech therapist and she has come a long way since last August, well at least I thought so until one of the teachers whispered to Jeff "Did she just say she is thankful for Elvis."

I had to laugh.

A post about Kamryn

We recently told Kamryn she was adopted. Yes, we waited till she was 5 1/2 years old and not because we thought she wouldn't understand, but more so that I wanted it to be "perfect." I've been planning this day for a few years. We were contacted by a birth mom about a month ago (don't get too excited because she didn't write us more than that one time) and I was sooo excited and happy that I started crying. Kamryn asked me why I was crying and I told her that we "might" be having a baby soon. She asked how will you know and I said "through an e-mail." I stopped myself knowing how confusing this must be to her. She has been praying for the longest time "for mommy to have a baby." I mentioned our conversation to Jeff and he immediately said it was time to tell her about her adoption. I agreed and instantly my plans for the perfect evening spent telling her of her adoption were mostly eliminated. Though, honestly, it didn't matter how we told her, it was special either way. I am not going to go into the details because it is all written down in my journal and is so special that I don't want the world to know. My whole point in telling this story is her reaction. I was worried that the first words out of her mouth would be "you mean, your not my real mommy and daddy." It was the furthest thing from her mind. She thought adoption was "way cool" and proceeded to name off her friends one by one and asked if they were adopted. She thinks it is pretty cool that she is the only one, but that her new baby brother or sister will be adopted as well. We looked through our scrapbooks at pictures of her adoption and she saw pictures of her birth mom. She was also very concerned about me and how pregnancy is dangerous for me. I assured her that I was fine and that I'd live a long time, especially since I won't be pregnant again. I love my little girl so much! It is actually really weird for me to write all of this because she doesn't feel "adopted"...she is our daughter.


Kamryn also has an obsession for "snackies" as we call them in our family. She is a breakfast eater and will eat everything I make and then some. When I make pancakes she can eat at least 4 of them. But, the other meals I have no such luck. She would rather eat a piece of cheese, a yogurt or something small (snacks) instead for lunch or dinner. She hates to sit down and eat, she'd rather eat on the go. I think I am just going to start calling dinner and lunch "snackie time."


She was invited to her first birthday boy party. She totally has her Dad beat. Jeff was invited to his first birthday girl party when he was in the 1st grade! Ha



She is also a little budding artist and loves to sit down with her Dad and draw. London's style is a little funkier than Kamryn's. Kamryn is a sketcher and she loves to draw people along with making crafty stuff.


Kamryn is a leader. She makes friends easily. She loves to play with London and is a great big sister. She is a sponge and can learn easily. I can go on and on, but time won't permit.

A post about London

London Ellie's personality is emerging. I just want to remember these quirky little personality traits before they are gone...so enjoy.Her two most favorite words of the moment are: Me and Way. When she is talking about herself she always starts it with Me. Me want a drink, Me hungry, Me love you etc.,. I correct her every time, but it is a habit now and it is hard for her break. I hope this problem is taken care of by kindergarten. The next word, Way, she has been using a lot recently. It all started with her jumping abilities. We have a fireplace with a ledge that she likes to jump "way high" from. Then it extended to her baby dolls "Her name is Baby Alive, she is WAY cute."

London will not allow me to get her dressed. She always picks out her own outfits and throws a major tantrum if I intervene. Her outfits always begin with skirts or dresses and then she layers. At least she color coordinates well!

When it comes to art, she is very intense and surreal/abstract. For example, she found some scotch tape and a blank canvas (the sliding glass door) and I let her work her wonders. She would not be disturbed, not even for a yummy snack. When Kamryn came home from school and saw what she was doing, Kamryn placed her own line of tape on the window, but London freaked out. After it was done, I disciplined Kamryn, but London (seriously) put her hand on my arm and said "it's okay, it's way beautiful." Either London liked what Kamryn had done, or London felt bad that Kamryn was being disciplined. Other art projects have been cutting paper into tiny pieces and then gluing them on construction paper, drawing her hand print and cutting them out and drawing squiggly lines, like sentences.

A few days later, I peeled the tape off the window and it hurt her feelings that I had done that. It made me feel terrible, so I snuggled with her and apologized. She still reminds me that I ruined her masterpiece.

Happy 1st Birthday Maryn! I would have sent you a card, but at this age you probably don't care.

First off, Melissa Bone of Spring Glen, Utah is a genius. I've been struggling to get my girls to clean up after themselves, especially in their bedroom. Her "Great Idea" ended up in Family Fun magazine and I implemented it today. She writes:

My 13-year old daughter hides a certain number of pennies under things than need to be put away, and my younger kids, ages 10, 6, and 3, make a game of finding the coins. The rule? Anything they pick up or look beneath, they have to put away. Their goal is to find all the pennies and have fun cleaning in the process. If all the pennies are found, the kids get a special treat.

Both London and Kamryn had so much fun with this. I hid the pennies under toys and they found them. They both ended up with about 15 pennies each (lots of small polly pocket toys). I didn't even make them a treat, because the pennies were reward enough. Good thing they don't know the value of a penny yet!

And finally, I was able to take a break and get away while Jeff took care of the girls. I canned refried beans, macaroni and pancake mix. I am hoping to start off the canning season with a bang and actually do a bunch of wheat next month.