Everything is going great;)

I am not blogging much, but just wanted to let everyone know things are going so good! We are enjoying our family and love watching the girls grow and change befoe our eyes. We're looking forward to taking Sarah to NY this month for her eye surgery with the hope of her getting a great deal of sight from it! She is doing great in every way, just still dealing with the affects of scabies...evidently it is deep in her system and she has biweekly outbreaks on her hands and feet. She has gone to the dermatologist several times and at thsi point is on a stron steroid cream that seems to make her comfortable as soon as it is put on her. there is a medication she could go on but there are many side afects that we are not comfortable with including invovlement of the red blood cells! Scary stuff! so please pray that God will touch her and heal her of this.

Selah continues to just grow and her understanding level just amazes us! although she really isn't talking, she seems to understand much of what we say! Pretty amamzing since she has never been exposed to English before us!

The boys are doing great, everyone is enjoying summer and just being together.

My heart is filled with thankfulness to God for all my children, what great gifts I have been given!!!

Last night I was sitting on the floor of the little ones's room,holding Sarah. listening to a Praise Baby DVD about the wonders of God...and knowing I had one of his little wonders safe in my arms! During the adoption process, so many times I was afraid I would never get to hold her...but now I do:) On the floor, toys were all around, including a ball that has the globe on it, I looked and found Chengdu China ( where Shad is from) and Doneskt Ukraine (near where the girls were) and then looked at Florida and thought of how my kids came from all over the world to us....how blessed we are!!!!!

Change

We didn't share our reservation about adopting Selah publicly but I want to share it now in hopes it will be an encouragement to you!

If you've been following my blog, you know that Selah was a surprise to us in this adoption. When the little guy we were going ot adopt, became unavailable, we found out about her and made plans to adopt her. What you do not know is what happened when we met her...

Before we left for Ukraine I had a disturbing dream about Selah. We did not believe she was blind or that she had CP as was reported to us. She didn't look blind in the photos and she was obviously walking ( I know you can walk with CP but we didn't think she had it) In my dream she was just out of control! I didn't freak too much about it, I knew it was probably just my own fears coming out but..... We were concerned knowing she had mental delays, but could get around. Sam & Sarah being blind/low vision are very vulnerable to being hurt, pushed down etc.. and we knew Sam isn't really verbal and assumed Sarah was even more delayed than Sam.

The day we met Selah & Sarah....Sarah was just like we expected, we have a son who is delayed and born blind so we knew exactly what to expect from Sarah and were drawn to her. With Selah, we were drawn to her & felt love & compassion for her. But she scared us. I don't know if I can do justice to how she was acting but I will try. Her eyes darted around like she was on speed. She was jittery, NO focus whatsoever...she fell all over Sarah which of course worried us. She acted like Sarah wasn't even there at all. She didn't want to be held but for a second at the most. She was nervously pulling strings off her clothes & making noises. No connection whatsoever. We do not feel she was on drugs although we asked!!!! We really feel it was all emotional. I could easily tell Jon was very disturbed and I let him answer the question "will you take both of them?" He answered yes without hesitation, thank God, Jon is a committed type of guy!

We couldn't talk freely till we got back ot our apartment. Then we started talking. We talked about her need, our family and the fact God had provided the money for her adoption and so many assurances that we were on the right road. We had some major fears but we had no one to talk to, no doctor to take her to, nothing...But we committed.

We met them on a Wednesday to be quite honest we only saw them a little bit that day, and the next two then it was the weekend! Thank God that we had it free, we really didn't want to see them right then. We needed to kinda regroup with Selah and needed some space. As far as me, I was just having to die to myself, in my mind over and over...I kept it inside, didn't even talk about it too much to Jon. Sometimes we've found if we talk about something TOO much as we are going thru it, it makes it worse. So I was dealing with it...And he was dealing with it alo. But we are the type that f we set out ot do something, we're going to do it come hell or high water!

We kept seeing them, kept going forward in the paperwork, kept trusting, seeing NO change in Selah. We also had to deal with different people coming through the area we would see the girls in and distracting her even more so. I finally had to be almost rude to some of the older ladies (residents) in order to get them to leave as we knew we needed one on one time with Selah. I want to clarified we had a love for her but we couldn't know if that love would be returned.

We would play with Sarah and Sarah would laugh, and Selah would watch and sometimes, scoot over on her bottom. You could tell she wanted to join in but didn't know how. She'd get upset fast if we tickled her like we did Sarah but she seemed to enjoy watching us play with Sarah. How sad is that?

Sarah is much more obviously disabled, but emotionally, she was right with us from day one! Where Selah looks more normal, nothing obvious much with her but her emotions were so damaged!

We began bringing in treats and that seemed to help some. We began seeing little break through, she'd hold a glance for a minute, or maybe reach out to hold our fingers. THEN it got warm enough to go outside. For the first few days, it was just us and the girls on the veranda. Finally we started seeing some smiles and laughs even.

It happened so gradually with Selah, but by the last week or so, she'd cry when it was time for us to leave, even tho she still didn't want alot of touch and didn't look us in the eye much. We were happy for her cries! At least it showed she preferred us! YOu have NO idea how happy we were that she cried! We'd get in the van and be laughing and talking about how she wanted us to stay!


On "Gotch day" we had NO idea how she would do...first we went back to our apartment and finished packing and gave both girls a bath. Then a 1.5 drive to the bus station. Then the overnight train ride...she did fine. On the train she was the happiest I'd ever seen her, she couldn't' sleep and she did rock her head back and to some but she was happy.

Things just got better and better...the time in Kiev, the trip home...


And now a month later, I can tell you this little girl relates to her family, interacts with her brothers and sister, smiles, looks us in the eyes...emotionally she is healing. Selah is delayed and probably has a chromonsal disorder and will never be "normal" but she learning LOVE!!! And learning trust!

Selah's story is uniquely sad...she and her biological siblings were taken from the home (all I can say is it is a poor country and if they were taken form the home because it was "unhygienic" it must have been bad!) She was two at he time. She first went to a hospital for 6 months! Then a shelter, another shelter, a baby orphanage for a few months and then to the institution at 4 years old. So at 4 this little girl went ot a mental instiuion....it might have been the most stable thing in her world to be honest. In the past year, she was given an individual caregiver through Life 2 Orphans. That caregiver taught the now SEVEN year old Selah how to walk! She walks funny but she walks! Selah would give little smiles to her caregiver & that gave us hope in the beginning too. There was an older girl in Selah's room, a girl too old to be adopted, with twisted legs, but that girl would play with Selah like she was her own baby...thank God! I think of both of those ladies as the only thing that kept Selah from losing her little mind! As emotionally handicapped as she is, I believe she would have been far worse if it weren't for those two ladies in her life!!!

We stepped out in faith, not knowing what the outcome would be, just knowing she was placed in our lives for us to care for her. We're not saints, there were days, when I jsut wanted to run away from her and the situation. Days when I thought "what the heck do we think we are dong???" I was afraid of the future, afraid of how she would react in our home. I've seen enough reality tv to know some kids are like wild animals. But I said yes to God, although I had fears, lots of fears... And we feel in love with her and her funny little ways, often we compared her to my funny grandmother who certainly had her own ways & was quite grumpy in a funny way. We started looking forward to seeing her, we celebrated each new thing, even if it was just her standing by Jon's leg during a little program. Or her taking one of our fingers to hold ...whatever..we thanked God for it and told each other we'd help her to have a better life. We didn't try to make some type of goal, for that life, just that it would be better than it was then!

And now a month later, she follows me around the house, laughs, looks us in the eye, reaches for us, cuddles on our laps for an hour at a time..you have no idea what a miracle this is. WE are so thankful! And FYI, we don't think we are "super parents", in fact we've done little but love on her, include her in everything and give her a sense of family. We are NOT saints. Actually I've used all my years of working with stray animals to help me with both girls. I don't' push them emotionally, if I feel them tense up, I back off and give them their space. And of course we learned alot from Sam who was so tactical defensive from birth! He was a great teacher LOL and of course from Shad's adoption also. She still has a long way to go, and may never heal completely but we are committed to her for the rest of our lives & we are honored that God gave us this special little girl!!!!

I'm sharing this with you to give you HOPE! HOPE that anything in your life can change, in the broad sense and hope for adoptive families... Sometimes people only hear the glowing stories, they don't' hear the truth. I feel once a situation is under control, it is good to share with others. I didn't share this except with a few friend as it was unfolding...it was too tender & I really didn't want a lot of input, no one else was living the situation like we were, no one could even meet her so it did no good to put it all out there. It was something we had to settle in our hearts & minds that we were committed WHATEVER the outcome! I thank God for the peace and love He gave to us as we walked through this. Now we look at her and think "we couldn't have missed this..." Thank God we didn't let fear keep us from LOVE!!!!!

So don't let fear rule your life....step out do something for God. You only have ONE life in which to live & make a difference! When I get o the end of my life, I don't' want any regrets of things I should have done, or things I'd thought about doing...JUST DO IT! If it is something that God commands us to do, and it's on your heart, don't let fears keep you from it! You may have battles along the way, battles with fear, yourself...but trust God! And do it for Him, you'll find the sweetest peace & joy, I can assure you of that!

What's LOVE got to do with it?

Last night we got everyone to bed but Sarah. We have to put salve all over her for her rash (doctors really don't know what it is and we're working on finding the right cure) But after I got that done and her teeth brushed I just held her and sang made up songs to her for an hour. She listened & I could feel her tight little defensive body relax. I sang to her all about her story, how we saw her picture and went and got her....we love her so much, maybe even the more for all her disabilities.

From the moment I saw her picture, there was such a drawing to her. I couldn't get her out of my mind. Couldn't' sleep, had trouble eating, wondering if she had enough food to eat...it was a very strong emotion.

I'm pretty realistic, I really wondered if I'd feel the same when we actually got to the real child...and I did and even more so. She had a rash on her, smelled awful, kinda a garlic smell, burp so bad (probably from the garlic), had on the same outfit for weeks but I adored her...

Now I love Shad very very much but our love and bond grew with time. And Selah is just the dearest little girl to me, she was like the icing on the cake to be able to get her also. They are both loved and cherished completely. But this bond with Sarah is unreal. I'd often heard adoptive moms say they felt the same for their adoptive child as if they'd actually birthed the child. Honestly, in some ways I felt that about Shad and now Selah but in a few ways I didn't. I loved them, with all my heart but that instinctive way a mother "knows" her child wasn't there from the get go or even before we met them like it was with Sarah. With Sarah it is an overwhelming feeling, and it was there before I even met her. With Shad, there was LOVE from the second we saw his picture, and at the moment I met him...but it continued to grow with him. I'd compare it to "falling in love" Selah too, we loved her, but loved her more with each day...

Selah we only knew about for about a month before we left and we didn't know alot about her. There was alot of unknowns about her that were scary for us. Our hearts were a little sad because we had lost Seth and we just were not 100% sure about her and our ability to raise her. When we met her, she was like a child on crack. She could not focus at all. We had never seen anything like it, her eyes would dart all over, she didn't want to be touched in any way and seemed very unhappy. We felt a love & compassion for her & REALLY stepped out in faith and accepted her referral! To be quite honest, we went back to our apartment and said "oh my GOD what did we commit to?????" But there was a love there & we began to just love on her. In some ways we had learned from Sam how to love a child who had problems dealing with touch or affection so we just used the skills we had and didn't try to overwhelm her. She would sit and watch us love on Sarah, roll on the floor, tickle her and Selah would edge closer. It's like she wanted to be a part of the fun but didn't know how ot join in. It was sad to watch her. We just were constant day after day and we began to see some changes... Then it got warmer and we were able to take them out on the veranda and swing her. MIRACLE, she began focusing on us & her eyes didn't dart around so much. She was able to look at us and actually smile. She still is distant to some degree emotionally but she has come so far since we met her on April 2nd. We see her trusting us and coming to one of us for comfort! That is huge and we love our funny little girl and know she was meant for our family! but we started with her IN FAITH that she was meant for us! I didn't' really share about it on here or on FB, but Jon and I had to really commit to her, knowing she might never really respond emotionally. We had NO idea and still don't have a diagnosis on her. We know she went thru alot of drama in her life and that she has mental delays that are probably chromnosal due to several physical factors we know but we don't really know what her diagnosis is. There were some fears in the process for us. I can write about it now because those fears have gone. We committed to Selah EVEN IF we never saw a change in her! We knew she needed a family, god had provided for us to adopt two and we were taking her! And then the miracles started happening. Now we look back, just a mere two months from the day we met her and it's hard to think she is the same girl! She has come so far emotionally, she stayes with me all day long, no matter what I'm doing, I have to watch out for her, because she will be right up under me. She craves our attention now! And she responds back, maybe not as uninhibited as Sarah but it's ok, we love Selah right where she is:)

Sarah just seems like a part of me/us that somehow ended up in Ukraine...maybe because of her eye problem being so like Sam and how much the two of them look alike, maybe that's why I feel the way I do about her...I don't know...all I know is I regret that we didn't know about her sooner. We are trying to give her all the love and she just soaks it up like a sponge. She is extremely delayed, maybe on a 9 month level but emotionally she is so open to love. She responds and coos and smiles and laughs. She melts us...last night all I could think was "I'm holding a little princess, my little process" I don't care if she has rashes, one eye, an overbite, whatever she is the most dearest child to me. I can't imagine how her family could leave her in a hospital...that boggles my mind!

So having three adopted children, I can tell you the LOVE is there from the beginning, but grows. It can be different for each child. I never expected the overwhelming feeling like I've had with Sarah but it's there...I have seen my love for Shad increase from the day we got him, and I've seen love replace fear of the unknown with Selah. They are all mine, just like I gave birth to them, each os special, with their own special unique story...I wouldn't trade any of them for a million dollars:)

Honestly I'm a person that finds it hard to love others. I'm pretty selfish in my love and I know it. I'm not a "natural adopter" meaning I'm not a person who finds it easy to love someone just out of the blue. Not to say I hate people, I am not a touchy feeling, hugger sort of person. I generally like most folks but that don't' mean I want to get to know you or spend time with you or bring you into my family LOL So the love that is in my heart for these kids amazes me. I am NOT a kid person...at all. My nightmare job would be to be a teacher or a work at a nursery school...LOLOL BUT with my kids I can't get enough of them! go figure:)

I think when we announced we were adopting Shad, alot of folks were like "no way". Actually I think when we announced I was pregnant with Steve alot of people were like "no way" LOLOLOL I really was NOT a kid person years ago! When i was pregnant with Steve, I had alot of misgivings about the pregnancy and the responsibility of raising a child. Then when we found out he was a boy! I was scared to death. I remember walking down into Times Square from the hospital telling Jon I knew nothing about boys & what were we going to do???? LOLOL!!!! BUT when they handed me that bloody little boy after almost 3 days of labor and all kinds of problems...it was like someone sprinkled pixie dust...there was an immediate overwhelming LOVE!

With Sam and such a difficult preganncy, I tried to keep my heart out of it, we really didn't think he'd live with all the problems we had so I tried not to love him & stay as emotionaly distant as I could...but i felt a love for him the whole time. When he was born, premature and blind, I just loved him so much. I was going to fight for him with everything within me from the first moment. Loving Sam was full of so many risks, almost losing him, going thru so many surgeries....he just broke my heart in two...but it was healing, loving even with so many risks...


So today my heart is full, I have five great kids to love and raise. What a blessing from God. They each are different and unique but I love them all with everyting within me. never in a million years did I ever think I would have five kids! LOL But it is wonderful, nothing could be better....

So let me encourage you if you are thinking about adopting...but worry about your abliity to love, or you've adopted a child and the love isn't there like you thought it would be, just keep loving them, keep taking care of them...relaz and enjoy them, let yourself "fall in love" with your child, let the love grow, each situation is different but love does grow...

A Thankful Heart is a Happy Heart

Remember that song from Veggie Tales? "A thankful heart is a happy heart" Well that's how I feel this morning...

Posted on FB and just have to share on here too....



Yvonne Mock Clanton

Woke up thinking how very blessed I am! Five great kids, all who have their own unique story (including Steve who we were blessed with after years of trying & he had quite the traumatic birth story himself) My husband pastors a sweet church where the folks are REAL:) He loves his job at the prison where the folks are really REAL LOL. We live in a cute house out in the country, God has provided for all our needs & many of our wants over the years. I get to stay home with my little ones and be there for the older ones after school. We may shop mostly at thrift shops & I may coupon alot but it's a good life:) Wouldn't trade it for anything in the world
And it's been TWO full years since Sam has been in the hospital...we used to have the frequent flyer's pass at Lakeland Regional!!!! god is good And I forgot to add we have great friends who love us and our family! How Blessed we are!!!

Just really thankful for the life God has given me. I'm content with it and just wanted to share with you a reminder to be content where you are at....

I have not always been content in my life, I've strived for things in the past...wanted to change somethings instead of accepting...then I learned to accept things and guess what? Things changed and I changed....

I am NOT saying passively let life roll over you...NO! Work hard do what you need to do BUT have a thankful heart about your life! No matter where you are at...maybe you think your situation is so bad, there is nothing to be thankful for...

Well I've been in some bad situations, life & death situations and there is always something to thank God about! I'm not a Pollyanna...but I can thank God even for the bad times (looking back of course LOL)

But this morning I just have to say thank you Lord! Thank you for working in my heart, not letting life make me bitter...I've had plenty of chances to become bitter and at times did! But when Sam was born & I grasped the significance of the situation, I prayed & called out to God in the hospital and asked him to hold my heart and not let me become bitter because my child was so handicapped and sick. He did his part and I did mine. Everytime I'd start to find bitterness welling up, I'd fall back on Him. And now I can say God blessed my obedience. I didn't know back then that He would lead us to adopt THREE kids, each with a special need! Believe me that was NOT on my radar!!!!!!!!!!!

But God kept our hearts tender & open and now we look at things so differently! God allowed this situation to happen and He still brought glory for it! I don't believe for a minute that God caused Sam's disabilities BUT we live in a fallen world, stuff happens.... He used our love for Sam to grow and we were able to love three more children and bring them into our family! Wow the way God works, I would have never imagined those dark LONELY days in the hospital...But out of the sorrow, He has brought so much more joy than we could have ever imagined!!!!!!!

My heart is full....

So let God into your dark times, He alone can bring light & restoration. Don't let yourself become a victim of your circumstances! Trust God no matter what you are going thru and I KNOW He can bring you joy! I KNOW because I have "been there done that'. My heart was broken and I wept for Sam. for us, for all the dreams we had...now our dreams are different but they are GOOD! And more than anything we have an eternal HOPE that one day, our little guy along with our other three children will be whole! And the pain is gone as we trust in Him!!!!!!

Going out on a limb.....so what's new?

This blog is going to be different than my last 6 months or so. I blogged for years before our adoption & adoption is just a part of our life, it doesn't define our family...although we love it! but now back to controversy LOL!

We unconsciously have become a part of a movement...it happened out of necessity for us...

Our kids sit in church with us! GASP! NO children's Church...they actually sit & behave themselves thru Sunday services! GASP!

It started because we didn't have anyone ot do children's church...since pastoring here 6 yrs we've had people come & go. We were never happy with anyone except a young girl from the college nearby. However she became a missionary right after graduation and was gone....We've seen children's church be just a baby sitting service, a place where women could hang out, miss church & gossip. I tried to teach some but it just didn't feel right for me. I'm not a "kid" person except for my kids who I adore.

Jon & I both grew up going to church and sitting thru service. He was Methodist so at times it was extremely boring for him. I, on the other hand, was crazy Pentecostal, so it NEVER was boring to me...I've got some crazy stories!!!! But the bottom line is we learned to sit thru church & somehow we absorbed "something" that got us through as we got older & had to make decisions about our faith on our own. Jon only had to go an hour a week. I went Sunday morning, Sunday night, Wednesday night , revival services ( at least 2x a year- and they were really interesting LOLOL) During the summer, I had to go to women's' ministry prayer meeting on Thursday morning...but wonder of wonders, I behaved myself and sat thru.... And for the most part WITHOUT any distractions ( like coloring, books toys etc)

So as we were "evolving" to this new place, we'd talk about how we were raised. Nowadays you hear parents gasp with horror if every service is not covered by a separate place for children to go & leave them alone! But is that really how it was for thousands of years in Christianity? Or Judaism? Of course NOT! It's a new phenomena that has swept our nation since the 70's. when I was a teen, our church started having children's church on Sunday morning.

But you will say, my kids WON"T sit thru church, they'll be a distraction....well I have 5 children now, three of them handicapped & delayed far below their years. they sit thru church! Sam our 8 yr old bio son, has been sitting thru church for almost a year now. He actually will come into church, climb up in his chair and sit, the whole time. How did we accomplish that? We just kept bringing him and sitting him down. We didn't discipline him the times we had to take him out, because we didn't feel he would have understood why he was being disciplined. But we stuck with it and now we have a child, who is probably not even 2 yrs old mentally who will sit thru service. Our new girls both made it thru service last week and the two weeks prior both made it almost to the end of service, one leaving one week and one leaving the other lol. Shad & Steve have sat thru services for years. One of them did get disciplined a few times, but it only took a few times for him to understand what the expectations were!

But you say you don't want a child to associate church with discipline....HOGWASH! You take a child to the store, to a restaurte, to a movie, to school and they are expected to behave and know that there are consequences if they do not...so why should they be allowed to get by with that excuse about church? If they get in trouble at Walmart, does that mean they never want to go there again? Of course not! They just learned a valuable lesson on LIFE and how to act right in public!


I read one mom who wrote "the only way to teach a child to sit thru church, is to have them sit thru church" pretty true huh?

And this extends to teens!!!! I know of churches that keep families divided during all their services, I really do not think that is a good idea at all! And I hate to say it but I think research will show me to be true, when we start looking at the rates of church kids leaving the church when they turn 18 yrs old. wonder why that is such a high number? My opinion is it is because they have not been taught to be a part of the church as a whole, instead of a sub group.

I'm not against Sunday school, the old fashion kind before church service. Jon & I both grew up going to Sunday School, but then we were in the main service with our families. What memories for me now...my family is gone so all I have are memories and I do cherish the times in church. We had "our" pew and spent many years sitting there , hard wooden pew by the way LOL!

I'm not against the youth having a service on another night of the week and doing funny teenage stuff together. Just be sure of the person who is working with the youth that he/she has a vision to build the kingdom of God and not just numbers.
But some of my most intense spiritual experiences happened as a teen in church service...not sure if it would have happened if I'd been in a frivolous teen service, playing some silly game.... In teen youth groups, I have seen a lot of disrespect towards adults. Alot of times, it's been in humor BUT looking back ( now that I have kids) I don't think it's so good to segregate a young impressionable group from their families. Personally I don't want my kids looking to a youth pastor as their shepherd. I think that all teens should learn to look at their pastor as their shepherd.

So there is actually a movement that believes families should all be in church together...I was talking to a friend about how we felt and she told me. Maybe God is restoring the hearts of children to their fathers. Then another friend shared with me that she actually felt some of her older children fell away from God because of being in a youth group. That really got my attention, she is a serious person & if she felt that....maybe it was true.

So if you are reading this and somethinhg just clicks inside your spirit that what I'm saying is true, then start practicing it! The older boys often discuss the service with us after church and ask questions of things they didn't understand, sometimes quite probing questions! So it makes them think beyond a silly little "Veggie Tale" type of service.

Now as a disclaimer, my husband is the pastor so when I say "we" I really mean me LOL and also my kids sit on the FRONT row so if they misbehave everyone sees it!!! for some years Steve our oldest & I would trade off with Sam but that just didn't work so we decided to try and work with him to stay during the service ( he loved the music but when it was done, he was done) and it just started happening.

I believe kids, even handicapped ones, will rise to YOUR level of expectations. I have alot of expectations of my kids to behave themselves and not act like fools! Believe me, nothing bothers me more than a kid who can't behave especially when there is "nothing" wrong with them! We've been out places and seen kids act like complete idiots and the parents do nothing! I can promise you I don't allow ANY of my kids to act like idiots and I guess if I can say that "ANYONE can! And now with FIVE kids , no one can say we just "got lucky" with our kids. We've been told that before, that our kids behave because we just got lucky....hogwash! We have 3 handicapped, 3 kids from different sets of bio parents...and we can go out, we can eat out and not have complete disorder. I don't mean that everything is perfect, and we make allowances for the kids but I can promise you if you see my crew out, you'll see kids who will sit, eat and are happy without having fits ( most of the time) Kids are kids, but parents need to "man up" and be the parents, the leaders of the family without letting the child lead the family!

So I'm interested in hearing from you guys. Write some comments...if you are in our area, and this speaks to you, visit our church ( of course our kids will probably be acting crazy that day LOL) But think about this!

Remember we have ONE chance to raise our kids! and we will stand before God one day. We've not been perfect parents, I've not been a perfect mom & I'll tell my kids that, but I can say with complete confidence that if my kids leave God, go out in the world, they will have to go through Jon & me to get there! We won't make it easy for them! It's not the easiest way to parent, but I do it knowing we will stand before God one day and give an account. Our parenting approach is 'old fashioned" (not exactly Duggar style ok) but very conservative in our approach to everything and we've kept our kid grounded in OUR family. They go to friends' homes but not alot as we invest our lives into them. Even in the simple ways of hanging together and going to the store together. Just being with your kids, builds memories...

We've been careful with the things they watch and never have allowed anything but Christan music in our home. Now we all like some christian rap/hip hop :) But the words are what I'm concerned about NOT the beat. The other day, our oldest son turned to me in the car, put his arm on my shoulder, looked me in the eye and thanked me for us never allowing him to even know non christian music (much less have it in our home!!!) We were waiting for a pizza, listening to the new FLAME CD, to set the mood. I got tears in my eyes....and it meant alot to me!

So hang in there parents, guard you children's hearts in everyway possible. They are never too old to start changing things either....Remember YOU are the parent!!!!!

HOME!

Yes we have been home for almost 3 weeks! It's been wonderful. The girls have fit in like they've always lived here. We have had no major issues, they've stayed healthy & seem really happy:) Life has been easy:) but we're still getting used to the logistics of going out with 5 kids, 3 of them handicapped! Other than figuring out the best way to do stuff, it's been great.

I sure have enjoyed buying little girl clothes too! LOL someone hide the debit card, checkbook & cash! I love dressing them in new outfits and keeping them looking good!

Our time in Kiev went good & fast. The plane trip home was uneventful except for the plane skidding on the runway in Frankfurt! The kids did great on the flight!

We got home at 10pm and was at the doctor's at 9am the next morning. All their tests were good, except they are very low on Vit D. But hey we don't live in the SUNSHINE state for nothing LOL

Our ped is sure that Sarah has Peter's Anomaly just like Sam. She reaches for light up toys. She has gained FIVE pounds since she's been home. We just adore her. She is a snuggle bug & will just giggle with happiness. She certainly lives up to her middle name JOY:) She has lots of joy now and we do too. So thankful to have my little girl home. Sometimes I get so sad that we didn't know of her for so many years. I hate that she had to live in an orphanage for over 5 yrs. I wish with all my heart, that we had found out about her years ago. She was so meant to be our child...Her little body that she used to have clenched up so tight, is relaxing. She will lay against me and sigh with contentment...and I do too! I love holding her & she loves being held!

We began thinking that Selah has Downs Syndrome. She was tested for DS but not sure if they tested her for all the different kinds of DS or just the main kind. We will be seeing a genetist. She has been a wonderful surprise for our family! We have no diagnosis for sure but know we are looking at something chromnosal. We adore her too! It doesn't matter to us what she has but it would be great to have a diagnosis so we can better help her learn and adapt

The boys have adjusted well to having two new sisters. Sam thinks it is the greatest thing ever! Thank God we were afraid of how he'd relate to them but there has been no trouble whatsoever. He seems to think that they are his personal toys, he just cracks up listening to them bable or make noises. Its so sweet.

Steve had a great time in Ukraine and it was an eye opening expirence for him..He loves America!!!!!

Shad did good with our friends. We misssed him so much, there seemed to be a part of us missing. It's so good to be home with him.

So life is wonderful, we are blessed. Thank you again to all who gave to their adoption. You have NO idea how much we appreciate your gift! It gave us two wonderful daughters & gave them a family! We are blessed!!!!!!!

ps. tried to post some pics but the weather is messing it up...we are on satillite

Gotcha!!!!!

Saturday was "gotcha day" and it was sweet!!!! I just bawled as I was dressing Sarah! It was so sweet!

Then the director of the orphange, who has become our dear friend, drove us to catch the night train to Kiev. I don't like the train but it had a/c! Selah was so happy and excited she couldn't sleep at all, but she was quiet.

Today we did our embassy appointment and medical, it all went quick. Tomorrow we get their visas and Wednesday morning 5:35 am we leave for the US!!!!! Please pray that travel will be smooth with THREE handicapped kids:) Pray for our safety! I HATE to fly!!!!!!!!!

We love the girls, they seem like they've been with us forever. We;ve had no issues, they are happy and eating and calm despite being taken all over the place:) We are in love with these precious girls! Can't wait to get them home and show them how life is really going to be for them:) Can't wait to be reunited with Shad:) We miss him so much. Can't wait till we are all under one roof and everyone is tucked into bed! SWEET~~~

Sarah has been doing fine with her eating, neither have any unusal tummy issues going on, thank God. Not even a runny nose:) Sarah ate 3 jars of baby food today without gagging!!!! I was afraid she'd need to be taken to the hospital but if she keeps doing good, we'll just see the doctor on Thursday morning.

What a wonderful expirence this has been, long but great! We LOVE Ukraine and Torez (I don't like the food...but hey I need to lose weight anyhow lOL)
Everything has gone smooth for us, we have had a wonderful facilator George and just really couldn't have asked for a better expirence! Thank you Lord!!!!!!