Our eggcellent day

Thursday June 28, 2012

Today was all about eggs. We learned that Keagan (Nick didn't want to do it) could stand on eggs that were NOT hard boiled. Keagan thought this was the coolest thing ever. He also liked that he was the only one that wanted to try the experiment.

Our next experiment was to see if we could really cook an egg on the patio.  I put it aluminum foil to cut down on the mess. We cracked our egss and we waited. We had to go inside because it was so hot outside. Our temp was 106 degrees today. If it had not been for the breeze it would have been unbearable out there.

The boys checked on their eggs throughout the afternoon and we took pictures.

                                                                our first picture

                                                             after about an hour

                                                                     2 hours later

                                                    5 hours from when we started

                                                               our final picture


And.............it worked. It doesn't look like a regular fried egg but the yolk got very hard and the egg white turned white around the edges. The boys love to do science experiments and tomorrow we are doing some more. We are even going to make our own flubber and bouncy balls!!


Aaron had a much better day today. He was more like himself. He crawled around a lot today and was full of smiles and giggles. He even enjoyed some of his therapy time. We are working on isolating his index finger and using that finger to play with his toys.

Searching for aliens

The boys are having so much fun with their "alien" guns from the space museum. They have been flying after them all afternoon!!

Caves vs Caverns

Wednesday June 27, 2012

Nick is home and he had a wonderful time. He went to the Ohio Caverns, Neil Armstrong Museum and the Toledo Zoo with his grandma and grandpa over the last few days. He loves spending time with them and they love having him. He knew a lot before he went to the caverns because we read lots books about caves. He could not wait to see the stalagmites and stalactites, columns and the soda straws. He asked the tour guides lots of questions and enjoyed learning even more. He is now able to tell us the difference between caves and caverns.

After the Caverns they took him to the Neil Armstrong Space Museum. He LOVES space and knows so much about the solar system. He was very excited to go and see everything. His favorite part of the museum was the movie about the first man on the moon.

Nick went to the Toledo Zoo and my mom said he took a picture of EVERY animal!! He is so cute! The polar bear was his favorite animal.

He is so smart and loves to learn. He can't wait for school to start again. I sure can because I love spending the days with my boys!

Flight Time

Tuesday June 26, 2012

Thw weather has been a lot cooler the last few days. It has only been in the 80'2 instead of the 90-'s!! The boys have enjoyed the nicer weather. My boys love to be outside and Keagan would sleep otside if I would let him. Tonight he finally got to fly his airplane!!

Aaron loves his swing. He giggles and squeals the whole time.  He is still not feeling so well and he almost fell asleep in the swing tonight.

Tomorrow we are having a water day. The boys are so excited to play with their pirate water table tomorrow!! I love summer vacation and being able to stay home with my little angels.

Precious Gifts

Just waiting...

Once again I am anticipating the arrival of another miracle and I am so excited. I can't wait for Taevon to be in my arms. People look at me like I am crazy when they know we are adopting a 4th little boy, our 3rd with special needs.  Some of the things people say just amaze me. I wonder if they think at all before they speak. I have had people ask me "Why special needs"? I have had people tell me to wait until they don't take naps anymore, or to wait until they are all teenagers. I have had many people ask "When do you find the time to clean"? I have even had someone say "well, someone has to love them" That comment made me so angry. Do they not think that these special boys are worthy of love?? or was it just ignorance??People have asked "can you do it?  People have even talked about their birth mom's and the fact that they should not have had kids. Most of the time I just ignore what people say but sometimes it gets to me and makes me sad. Then I just look at my boys and all I can do is smile!

Why?
Because these are the most amazing kids! Once you get to know them they will change your life.

No naps? Messy house?
So what if they won't lay down for a nap..is there anything better than a little one snuggled up next to you with a book? Spending time with a sleepy little boy in the rocking chair is pure heaven. So what if my house is a mess..the laundry will always be there but they will not always want to sit on my lap..they will not always ask for me to play with them. I want to treasure and enjoy every moment with them.


I love them more than words can say. These are amazing little boys and they are all my miracles. If people choose not to really get to know them then it is their loss. Each of them has their own personality and brings so much joy to our family. They are my whole world!

And Yes I can do it. These kids need lots of attention but I am able to give each of them everything they need. If I didn't know I could help each of them reach their full potential then I wouldn't do it, because it wouldn't be fair to them. For some reason my days don't feel rushed, I seem to have just enough time to get everything done. Its once I get them all to bed that I feel like my time goes so fast. I enjoy every minute I spend with them. Seeing them accomplish what some might feel is small brings tears to my eyes. These boys work hard everyday!

As far as their families are concerned nobody should judge anyone else. Not everyone has the full support of a loving family. Everyone makes poor choices. There are plenty of people that should not have kids that have the support of a family. The kids are what are important.  Please don't judge anyone else or their circumstances. If you see a parent struggle offer help instead of criticism.

I have learned so much from each of these precious little boys.
Nicholas has taught me to love more deeply, forgive faster and laugh more often
Keagan has taught me to never stop trying and to be even more patient
Aaron has taught me not to take anything for granted, to cherish each and every minute with my boys
I can't wait to find out what I will learn from Taevon. He is a fighter and has overcome insurmountable odds (that's a post for another time)

I feel extremely honored to be able to raise these precious gifts. They are amazing and I am a better person because of them. If everyone would take the time to get to really know them they would understand. I hear people complain about their kids...to many dr appts, too much therapy, I don't have time to work with my kid....
Maybe it is different since I chose to adopt children with special needs but I can't imagine not doing everything possible for my children. Children change your life, they are my whole world. It is sad to me that some parents have kids but their lives don't really change...they are missing out on some great memories and wonderful opportunies. I wouldn't change a thing about my crazy life. I LOVE it!!

I can't wait until I can love on T!!

I hope people will take the time to get to know these precious gifts. They have so much to offer and are true gifts from God.

Taevon

Thursday June 21, 2012

Today is Taevon's 5th birthday. I so wish he was here, but it should be in the next 2 weeks. I can't believe that it has been almost a year since I have hugged and kissed him. This adoption has been very hard. We have not had a lot of contact with his foster family, well at least not like with Aaron's foster family. I miss him and think about him all the time, especially when I know he has to go to Respite Care. I am so excited to be planning his birthday party that we will have once he is home. We are going to do a Sesame Street party and I have lots of ideas! Since he does have some vision it will be very colorful with lots of bright colored balloons. I can't wait to hold him in my arms and see his cute smile. I sure hope these next few weeks go quickly and I am trying to be patient for the call telling us his exact date of arrival!!

LOVE this adorable little boy

Seizures

Thursday June 14, 2012

My poor little boy is now having seizures. I guess it should have been expected with the abnormalities in his brain but he already has so much to deal with.
1. prolapsed valve and enlarged heart (heart rate is low has been as low as 19 and currently is in  the 60's
2. lack of pituitary gland and thyroid gland (panhypopituitarism)
3. missing corpus pellucidum and very thin corpus callosum
4. only has 1/4 of his frontal lobe
5. Hypoglycemia
6. Diabetes  Insipidus  (which has to do with his sodium level)
7. Blind (Septo Optic Dysplasia)
8. Global Developmental Delays
9. trouble controlling his body temperature
10. trouble chewing and swallowing (still eats baby food)
11. high risk for sudden death (has suffered cardiac arrest 4 times and long hypoxic event)
12. and now seizures...

But through it all he is the happiest little boy and is full of smiles and giggles! I have learned more from my boys than I ever could have imagined. I feel extremely lucky to have been chosen to be their mommy.

Tests and more tests

Wednesday June 13, 2012

We got to the hospital and Aaron was in a great mood. He was laughing and making all kinds of cute noises. They finally called him back and he was getting tired. It seemed to take forever for the tech to hook up all of the leads to Aaron. He fell asleep and they were able to do the tests quickly without any problems. I knew the tests showed something when the tech said "good luck" as we were leaving. His cardiologist said his heart has not changed much since his last Echo so that is very good news, now we are just waiting on the report from the neurologist. He will have a follow up with the cardiologist in a few weeks.

Report cards and assessments

Nicholas got his report card today. He did great!! His teacher Mrs. L commented that he is a great reader, loves to share his thoughts and does well in math. He is so excited to be in the First Grade! He wants to go back to school now. He says he misses all of the learning and especially the centers. He is so funny and not your typical little 6 year old. He would rather do science projects or learn more about the solar system and the human body than play poutside. He has decided that he wants to be a research dr, but with his spiderman suit in the closet in case some one needs help! LOVE him!!

My sweet little Aaron

Monday June 10, 2012

My sweet sweet boy it never seems to end for you. You have not been yourself for a few weeks now. We have been to the Dr and you have endured many blood tests. On a visit to Dr C it was suggested that maybe you are having seizures and he ordered a EEG and some more blood tests. They scheduled your tests for this Wednesday. While we are there they are also going to check out your little heart and see if there have been any changes. You are such a sweet boy and love to be held and loved on. You almost always have a smile and I can't get enough of your giggle. Hopefully these tests will give the drs some answers so they can get you back to feeling better. I miss seeing you "chase" the boys around the house.

Star Wars

Friday June 1, 2012

My boys LOVE Star Wars. They were so excited to be able to see them at the Tin Caps game. They were able to get their pictures taken with most of the characters. The only one they missed was Chewbacca. Keagan's new best friend is "Uncle Yogurt" because he shared his popcorn with him. Keagan LOVES LOVES LOVES popcorn!! The boys also ate pretzels which are one of Nick's favorites. They didn't stay for the whole game because it was getting so late and cold, but they still had a really good time.