haircuts

Wednesday October 30, 2013

Aaron got a haircut tonight. He looks like such a big boy now. I had to cut off most of his curls. It was SO hard! I am hoping that his hair will grow back and look healthier. Because he sleeps for most of the day and he rubs his head back and forth the back of his hair was breaking off and looked awful. No amount of conditioner could make it look better. I miss his curls!!

LOVE this sweet boy!!

Fall

Sunday October 27, 2013

The boys went to Hilgers today and had a great time. Aaron wasn't able to go because he is unable to  control his body temp and it has been very low the last few days. Nick and Keagan went on a hay ride, walked through the corn maze, picked out pumpkins and ran around and played.

Once the boys got home we decided to take some pictures. We took all the boys outside for a few minutes and took lots of pics.

 

I love Fall and am looking forward to the holidays.

Adoption

I have been asked about our adoption journey a lot lately. So here is the short version.

We have been blessed to grow our family through adoption.  After many years of infertility and loss I am the mommy to 4 amazing little boys. My oldest Nicholas was adopted at birth through a private adoption. We have an open adoption with his birth mother and her entire family. She is a wonderful person and we are so lucky to have her as part of our family. After feeling so incredibly blessed and thankful for having a healthy and happy baby we decided to pursue adopting a child with special needs. We found an agency and finished all of the required paperwork and training. We found this sweet little boy in Washington state. Aaron had some significant delays and medical needs but I knew he was meant to be ours. We applied for him and seemed to wait forever. It came down to us and another family. I knew we were going to be picked. I just knew he was meant to be a part of our family. While we were waiting for the final decision we were called about a 2 year old little boy. We went and met with the caseworkers and were told they were also going to be talking to 9 other families. We left the meeting feeling they would most likely chose another family. The very next day we got a call to come and pick him up. They chose us!! We picked Keagan up at the end of September 2009 and Aaron finally came home from Washington Nov 2009. We thought our family was complete but God had other plans for us. We were contacted about another special little boy inn the state of Washington. We flew out to meet him and immediately fell in love with him. Taevon came home In July 2012.

Nicholas is a happy and healthy 2nd grader. He loves basketball and playing golf. He has the best sense of humor.

Keagan is a sweet and rambunctious 6 year old. He has Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and suffered a stroke. We have recently found out that he also has some hearing loss. He loves Lego and anything Scooby Doo. I love his laugh.

Aaron is a cuddly and spunky 5 year old. He is blind has Septo Optic Dysplasia, Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia, Diabetes Insipidus, Lennox Gastaut Syndrome, Hypothyroidism, missing his pituitary gland, developmentally delayed, non verbal  and recently got a feeding tube. He is always smiling and has the biggest personality. I love the sparkle in his eyes.

Taevon is a sweet and loveable 6 year old. He was abused at the age of 7 weeks old. He has a history of Shaken Baby Syndrome, and had numerous broken bones. As a result of this abuse he has severe developmental delays, Spastic Quadriplegic Cerebral Palsy, high blood pressure, is non verbal and has a feeding tube. He has recently began having seizures and is taking Keppra. His smile melts my heart.

I am so thankful for each of these boys. They are each a blessing and I am looking forward to seeing what God has planned for our family.

Report cards and conferences

Friday October 17, 2013

Nicholas got his report card and I had my conference this morning. His report was great (as usual). He got all +'s and great comments. His teacher was very pleased with his work and behavior in class, although he does talk a lot :) His NWEA test scores were  high with his Language Usage at 93%, Reading 90% and Math 95%. His teacher also talked about PEAK for gifted students. He has been chosen to do Topic in a Box for 10 weeks. He will be pulled out of class on Fridays to participate in this program. She wants his to work on his handwriting and being able to put all his thoughts down on paper. Ms. L also said he is such a great friend, that all the kids like him and he does not like to see other students upset. He has lots of friends and is very nice to everyone. I am so proud of Nicholas. He is such a great kid. I am so thankful of the young man he is becoming. He is such a blessing and a answer to so many prayers.

lessons learned

I am so thankful that God did not bless me with what I thought I needed. He blessed me with far more than I deserve. I am so lucky to be the mom of 4 amazing little boys. I have learned more about life and myself from my sweet boys. They have all taught me about patience. Nicholas taught me to laugh at myself, to laugh more often and to love deeper. He is the answer to so many prayers. Keagan has taught me to keep trying and never give up. He tries so hard everyday to do what most people take for granted. His dimples melt my heart. I have learned even more from Aaron and Taevon. These 2 special little boys have taught me so much. I take nothing for granted and find pure joy in the small things. A smile is one of the best things in the world. A giggle can make everything better. These 2 amazing kids have every reason to whine and complain. But they don't. They are the happiest little boys. They find joy in sounds and smells. They make the most of every day. Aaron struggles everyday. His body works so hard to function.  He is so funny and has such a big personality. Taevon is the sweetest little boy. All of his needs are a result of abuse he suffered at just 7 weeks old. He has the best smile and I love his giggle. Neither Aaron or Taevon can talk although they can communicate in their own ways. Things that I or others could complain about are so insignificant. If I have a ache or pain I can take meds, and do something about it. If our lives are not going the way we want them to we have the option to change it. My boys can't tell me if they are in pain or uncomfortable. Sometimes it is a guessing game to find out what they need. They depend on me for their every need. They experience many blood tests, hospitalizations and take lots of meds daily. Yet these 2 are almost always smiling. I am reminded daily that nothing matters. There is  nothing worth complaining about. It is our choice in what makes us happy. If Aaron and Taevon who can't do much on their own and who have every reason to complain can find and express joy and happiness then we all can. I choose to find pure joy and happiness in my life. I am the luckiest mom ever. I thank God every day for my miracles.  He in his own time gave me exactly what I needed. He blessed me with Nicholas, Aaron., Keagan and Taevon when the time was right.  His plan is far better than anything I could have ever imagined.

what??

Tuesday October 16, 2013

WHAT?? Keagan says this all the time. I  have been going back and forth between thinking he has a hearing problem to its more behavioral. Over the past few weeks I knew it wasn't related to behavior. I talked with Dr C and we decided he needed his hearing checked once his ear infection was gone. Today Keag went to see Dr C. He checked his ears and everything looked great and all of the fluid was gone. He had a hearing test and didn't do so well. His left side wasn't very good at all. Dr C  referred us to the ear dr. Hopefully once we get this taken care of his language will improve too. He has such a hard time with some words and letter sounds. I hope they can get him in soon.

LOVE this boy!!!

bounce mania

Saturday October 12, 2013

Keagan had his birthday party at Bounce Mania today. He had so much fun. The slides were his favorite.

It was so much fun watching all the kids run around and play. They all had a great time. They ate lots of pizza and had cake and oreos. Keagan is already looking forward to his next birthday!

basketball

Tuesday October 8, 2013

Nicholas is playing basketball again this year. He LOVES playing with his friends.

Tonight was the Mad Ants clinic for the kids. He starts practices next week. This year they are playing against another school. The kids are very excited about "playing on the road." His first game is "on the road." I can't wait to see him play his first game this season. He is looking forward to meeting new kids at the other school and playing a game against his friends.

Party

Sunday October 6, 2013

Keagan had his family birthday party today. He loved all of the decorations and was very excited to see his balloons. He was so hyper all day and couldn't wait for everyone to get there. He had a good time and is looking forward to his party at the bounce house next weekend.

 

 

 

 

 

LOVE these boys!!!

snips and snails and puppy dog tails...

Saturday October 5, 2013

Nick and Keagan LOVE bugs!! They are always wanting to look at them with their magnifying glasses. They were so excited this morning to go outside after it rained and look at the worms all over the driveway. They looked so cute down on the ground examining the worms. The best part of their morning was finding a slug!!  I LOVE these boys!!!

Taevon's EEG

Friday October 4, 2013

They scheduled Taevon for the first available EEG, which was today. He was so good and did so well following directions. The strobe light made him cry and it was so hard not to scoop him up to hug and kiss him. Dr O will read it on Tuesday when he is back in the office. Hopefully he will be seizure free this weekend. He has been having a few everyday some big, but most of them fairly short. I am praying that they will find a drug combination quickly for my sweet boy.