Seems Like Forever

One year ago, we received these pictures. Avery had just received our care package. I wrote this.

Now, it feels as though I have known her all her life. Praise God!

Basement Reno (week 17)

We thought we were going to hire someone to do the steps b/c I was feeling burnt out. But then the quotes (which took forever) came back and we just couldn't justify the price. Back to the paint brush, I go. EJ sanded and I am staining. A friend suggested 4 coats of polyurethane on top. That should be a lot of fun. Ugh!

First coat almost done

 

The risers will be painted white, ignore the stain drips ;)

 

The staining goes pretty quickly. This part was not so fun.

Good thing I have a fine arts degree ;)

Oh, how will I spend my nap times once this is all over? I can't wait!

Another Year Older

 I had a wonderful birthday. I feel very loved and celebrated (Sat, Sun and Today).

 

EJ and I enjoyed a fancy (thanks to a special gift card) delicious dinner on Sat night. Mom and Dad watched the kids over night. Then we all had lunch together including my sister's family. Tonight EJ and I shared cheese cake after the kids went to bed. 3 birthdays in 1 week (my sister's was this week too) is very bad for the waistline ;) plus 2 more birthdays in April.

I don't think I "feel" older today, but I do know the past year has aged me :) I saw a blog writer's tagline that said something like "I am a girl earning my wrinkles" (as a good thing). True, for me, the wrinkles and the grays are totally worth it! I love where God has me.

Celebrating Owen

 

Despite feeling sick on his actual day, he recovered very quickly and we carried on with family plans the next day. He is loved! He also took one friend to the same trampoline arena as last year. I didn't get any pictures of Owen :( I was too busy keeping an eye on Ryan and Avery (she LOVED the trampolines)

More Strides

I know these pictures are not award winners (not that mine ever are). And it took a lot of self-control not to crop them. But that would defeat my point in taking these. Avery is finally running around outside on her own, and not right next to me. She is normally right with me, holding my hand. That doesn't come in handy with 3 older brothers especially when I am supposed to be playing a sport with one of them.

She is more sturdy, confident and secure. Look at her go! Just in time to hunt for easter eggs. Hooray!

I almost enjoyed myself outside ;) 

If only I could follow the "rules" for Ryan's games, the kind that change every other second.

10th Birthday

My first baby is TEN today.

And just for posterity sake - his outfit, hair and height ;) I am still taller, but not for long.

 

He spend a majority of his birthday sitting in the chair behind us, sick. 

Missed school and sharing donuts with his class. Sad! 

Seems the worst is over and nothing compared to EJ. So thankful! 

Brownie sundaes have been postponed (just in case) we will be having Jell-o instead :(

Some days I can't believe how old (mature) he seems, but there are still plenty of other days too ;) He is still nuts about sports. He decided not to play baseball this spring which is huge after having played it spring, summer and fall last year. He will not be on any team and I am pretty nervous for all of us. Perhaps he will find a new love?

The age gap from 10 to 2 is difficult, but I am grateful for his independence and assistance. He is still so sweet with his new sister and the relationship he has with Ryan is fun to watch. He and Mason are a little too competitive (for my liking) but I know they'd be lost without each other.

Happy Birthday Owen! We love you!

Merry Christmas to Me

My Christmas presents are finally installed. 

You know you are getting old when you ask for sconces and wallpaper for Christmas :)

My mom came over to help with the wallpaper b/c I've never ever hung wallpaper. Quite frankly, I was nervous b/c I've read of people giving up and hiring a professional mid project. Mom has hung her fair share (back in the day) and we just kept reminding ourselves it's only ONE wall.

 We did the entire wall during 1 nap time. It really wasn't that bad. 

Trimming at the corners was the worst part. I LOVE the results. 

The jury is still out as to whether I'll do it again.

The vanity arrived today and as soon as EJ recovers from a nasty stomach bug (pray no one else gets it) I will be bugging him to get it in place!

Indoor Water Table

It seems the 4th rarely sees the creative momma I was for my 1st. Shocking, right ;) My girl loves water and bubbles. She can now open the bathroom door (sigh), climb the stool and help herself to the sink.

One day, while everyone else was at school, I set her up with a makeshift water table. Call me crazy or dumb or a gluten for punishment, but she enjoyed herself.

Like most activities, this did not last long. Maybe 5-10 minutes. 

She stood up and started pouring, things went down hill from there ;)

 

Off went the shirt, so she could water her belly.

Let the splashing begin. And we are done! 

I am consider another bean bin, but I don't think she is quite ready to handle the responsibility.

Big Dreams

No school today, AGAIN. That's all I will say about that ;)

Our lunch talk landed on basketball. Surprise, Surprise! It was decided (by Owen, of course) that he and Joshua and Mason were going to play college ball for JMU. AND they were going to win the Final Four.

After lunch, they quickly headed upstairs to Owen's room to play on his door hoop. I suppose they are in training.

I am still chuckling in my head. Oh, how I love these boys :)

Peacefully Resting

I couldn't help but snap this picture. With our busy weekend and the time change, Avery was sleeping more than normal at the beginning of the week. This was taken after 4 p.m. A record for her ;)
She looks so peaceful and relaxed, doesn't she? Does this momma's heart good!

I have noticed her anxiety seems a bit higher lately. I am always analyzing her, poor thing ;) I have come to several conclusions but these are the top two :)
1. I know her better now, so I can read her body language/facial expressions even more.
OR
2. She is so less focused on physically moving that her brain's attention has more energy to focus on her surroundings which are still so new and constantly changing (when we are out).

I am by no means a brain development expert, but I think it's the later. It's truly like the scales are falling from her eyes. It happened a few weeks after we first came home and it's happening again now.

Thankfully there is usually a quick fix. Picking her up, holding her hand or just an "it's ok" normally does the trick. If it's involving food, it's much harder (a common theme among adopted children)

It's a blessing to see her in this picture, so comfortable!

Basement Reno (Week 15)

I had to go back and do the math. 15 weeks is a long time. Most of the painting progress is not exciting so I haven't bothered posting pics. We do however, have a working toilet and shower now. The shower door and vanity will go in soon. We've had a hard time nailing down a painter for the stairs so we've been in a bit of a stand still. I am almost done with the painting. Hooray! Fingers crossed we'll be able to use the space in less than 3 weeks.

The subway tiles and walls are both white. The grout is gray. I was nervous how it would look in real life, but I am so happy with it. The shower niche has a piece of floor tile in it. These pictures are not great color representations but you get the point. The ceiling has to be repainted :(

Hitting the Slopes

My parents hosted my family and my sister's family this weekend at their mountain house. My dad would love if we made it up there more often, but between everyone's schedules it's difficult. We had a wonderful time and are very grateful for their generosity and patience (with my 4). 

My sister and I grew up on skis. We both became snow boarders in high school and never really went back to skis. EJ was also a snow boarder and we had many great adventures together :) I haven't gone since I became a momma. Pregnancies and motherhood and struggles with chronic pain have made me quite gun shy about getting back on a board.

I thought this was the weekend. I was nervous but willing to give it a shot. Then Mason woke up on Sat morning throwing up. I was not about to leave him behind (he was disappointed) and leave my mom with 4 kids, one with a stomach bug.

Owen had a blast.

 He is already trying to convince us to go again, this upcoming weekend

I played taxi driver back and forth to the slopes (5 times). One of the trips, I took the younger two so we could have a peek on Owen's progress. He had a 1 hr lesson which really helped. EJ skied in order to help Owen more.

On Sunday, we decided to go snow tubing. Mason was feeling better and we could include Ryan too. The weather was perfect (I do not like being cold). We had a great time being together.

Avery stayed with my mom. She didn't meant the height requirements. It was fun hanging out just the 5 of us, but it definitely felt incomplete. It's amazing how natural/normal 4 kids feels now.

Each run down was a "race" of course. Always so competitive ;)

A Girl and Her Shoes

If Avery suddenly disappears, she is likely here. 

 

The girl has quite a shoe collection (hand-me-downs) and she visits it frequently. Her tiny (size 4.5) foot only fits in about 3 of the pairs, but she doesn't let that stop her. I am constantly picking up or tripping over scattered shoes.

Ironically she flings her shoes off the second we get in the car or when arrive someplace. She much prefers being barefoot yet she is constantly putting on shoes when we are home.

It's going to be so much fun when it's clothing too ;)

A Sweet Start

My mom works at the boys' school 2 days a week. It's quite a commute for her, but I am so glad she does. She usually pops over 1 of the afternoons, just long enough to say hi and witness the craziness of our homework sessions ;)
Yesterday, the 2 hr delay helped ease us back into the school routine. These snow days have been hard on Mason. He is my home body and would prefer to stay home and play. Two extra days at home causes some sadness. Owen on the other hand, doesn't necessarily love school, but he doesn't like being stuck at home either.
A special treat from Grandma made the morning brought smiles. She has been waiting for a good excuse to stop at the new KK on her route to school :) The delayed opening helped. Her teacher friends and our lucked out!

Before our 5th Snow

After early service on Sunday, I packed a quick picnic and loaded everyone back into the van. EJ was not due back until late afternoon from our church's men's retreat, so I decided to get us out of the house until nap time. The weather was gorgeous 70ish and ice and snow was heading our way.
We threw a Frisbee and kicked a ball, walked and looked at some farm animals, although most were missing and Ryan was very disappointed. Everyone was happy, that's hard to do these days with our age span. Yay!
Despite my efforts to ignore the forecast, hoping that would keep the snow away, we still got 3-4" and the kids missed both Mon and Tues. Tomorrow is a delayed opening. What a winter this has been!

Championship Game

The Ducks may not have won on Friday night, but they didn't go down without a fight. It was such a fun game. The crowd was more enthusiastic than normal with posters and noisemakers, etc. One mom even had a special shirt printed with her son's picture on the front!

We wore lots of green and yellow. One mom provided a duck whistle for each family. Ryan quickly took charge of that. Even Aunt Lissa came with her green sweater and beautiful yellow earrings ;)
I could not take pictures during the game. Too much cheering to do. Afterwards, both teams received trophies. See Avery in the center? She is not intimidated by the crowds. 

Their trophies are quite large. EJ received one too. So now we have 2 large trophies :p Ryan has claimed EJ's as his own and carries it around the house with him. I should have planned a trophy shelf in the basement. Hmm...
Mason's team finished up this weekend too. We officially have no sports going on (for now). Wow!