My man

Another noteworthy date that recently passed was my husband's birthday. He hit a pretty significant mark age wise this year. And in light of the fact that it was his birthday (earlier this month), I thought I should reflect on this man whom God has blessed me with.

I'm not really sure what I ever did to deserve a man like my husband. He'd probably tell me I'm crazy, but really it's true. Sure he might not be that man who showers me with gifts (for the money is much better spent elsewhere...we both know that!) and most of you who know him, know he's definitely got some lovely little quirks (ex. socks needing to be folded a certain way (which is perfectly normal in his family....kind of a laughable trait in mine...)) however, the stuff that really counts, he excels at.

A phrase that I've heard many times now, especially throughout this past year is "Theresa, your desires are my desires." What he is saying is that my passions become his passions. And he throws his whole self into those desires and just like that there is no his or hers but a big OURS...and it's even better than what little bit I had come up with. He runs with it and makes it better. He does it so completely.  Sure I dream about things, think things, ponder things...but none of those thoughts, dreams, passions would ever amount to anything without my Albert backing me up and throwing himself wholeheartedly into the middle of it. I could never imagine someone that would ever be more supportive of me. He truly makes me a better person. Instead of just thoughts, words etc., he lets me live it out and enables me to do that, because he wants to do it too! I cannot fathom someone wanting to do the things I come up with...but he truly does! I only hope that I can do the same to his passions, dreams and desires as well.

Sometimes when one is a mother, the husband is very much wanting wife to be home always, cleaning, cooking, washing his underwear, teaching the children to behave and clean up after themselves...which is always what I aspire to do, however, it doesn't always happen quite like that. Albert has been known to have an empty underwear drawer...yes very much demonstrating my lack of ability as a housewife...as much as I try hard, I always seem to fail at this...case and point...I should be folding laundry right now. eek. However, my point in all this is, that despite the fact that Albert does very much appreciate always having laundry in his drawer, he still allows me to be me and extends me grace when I fail. He knows I tend to stretch myself thin...and unfortunately in doing that, my house chores are generally the things that suffer....and although I know it drives him crazy....he is still so supportive and understanding. I'm so thankful that he doesn't expect a gourmet chef every night and is thankful for an edible meal :)

He is my helper, my best friend, my supporter, my encourager, my realist, my reliever, my break-giver...He is thoughtful, humble, loyal and hardworking
I love him dearly - we've been married for 6 years, and we've know each other since second term of my first year of university. God has placed Albert in my life for a reason. I couldn't imagine life without him. God clearly knew what He was doing when He caused our paths to cross. I need to remember to thank Him every day for my Albert and all he is to me, and how we continue to grow together more and more through every day. We've been through a lot in our 6 years of marriage. They certainly haven't been easy ones. But through it all, there was never a question in my mind that my Albert would be there for me. He wasn't leaving, he wasn't going anywhere. He is in it for the long haul, through thick and thin...no matter what the circumstance. And he has made that abundantly clear - it isn't just me - he has made it very clear that he won't leave, and he has proved that over and over (I may have had a slight complex about that, coming into marriage (my past, nothing to do with Albert), but Albert has worked very hard to alleviate that fear).
I could go on and on about my Albert, but I'll leave it there for now, but end with the fact that I am so thankful for the day my husband was born. When God created him and gave him life. I'm thankful for the experiences that he has had growing up and for his family who has helped shape him into the man he is. I'm thankful for him and the choices he has made for his life and I'm so grateful that he chose me to share his life with and to commit himself to. And I'm incredibly grateful for his love for God first.

So happy belated birthday Albert. I love you.

That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.
~Genesis 2:24~

 

Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken.
~Ecclesiastes 4:12~

"For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord. "Plans to prosper you and not to harm you. Plans to give you hope and a future."
~Jeremiah 29:11~

Little A is two!

So our little A turned two this past week. Can't believe it! It seems so crazy that she is already two and we've only known her for about 3 and a half months of her two year old life. That just blows my mind away.  20 and a half months of her 24 months have been spent living else where. I definitely look forward to the day that she will have lived longer with us than she has in other places. We are almost at the half way mark of our probationary period as well. When a child is adopted, they are placed with a 6 month probation period before the paperwork goes before a judge. If all goes well, hopefully our paperwork will go before a judge early January.

We had A's birthday party over the weekend. It went really well. We just had some close extended family over to celebrate. I think both A and Micah had a great time. A was a little shy after her nap, but then warmed up to everyone who came. It was great. She opened presents, with a little help from Micah, but enjoyed each present that she got. It was great to see how everyone has gotten to know her enough to get her gifts that peeked her interest and that I know she will enjoy.

I just love her interests right now, they are quite funny...coming in at number one....Tractors...yep that's right, we've got a farm girl on our hands! How perfect.....hehehehe. So needless to say her cake was purple and green with a John deer tractor on it. I know, but it was super cute and I think she loved it....she loves playing with the tractor on top anyways. :)

So here we go....with a 2 year old little A. And her first week of being two is full of appointments for her....physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy and a visit from the adoption worker. We saw the physical and occupational therapists 2 months ago and they were blown away by her progress from the first time they saw her. My guess is that we will be finished with them after this visit, because I think she is mostly where she should be in her gross motor and fine motor movements. She was a little behind in her fine motor skills 2 months ago, but those have improved. Probably still a bit delayed, but it's coming for sure. I'm looking forward to her speech therapy though. I'm hoping for more strategies to help her with her speech. I think she is quite delayed there, but probably because she put so much focus into her gross motor and fine motor skills. I think she is slowly making the switch to communication now. Even in the past week her vocabulary has grown, so it's coming! So looking forward to communicating better with her. Although, with communication means she can tell us exactly what she wants...even if it isn't something she can have....but at least we'll know. And it would be good if she could tell us if she was in pain or hurting or having issues breathing...now that would be very helpful!

But for now we keep plugging along, still learning things about her everyday. Everyday being a new experience and sometimes it's a great day where we communicate well and anticipate her needs...and other days we seem to fall back 10 steps and it feels like we'll never get it right. On the plus side, only one more tooth to come in. So good.

Well we look forward to knowing our little A more and more and to see her through the rest of her birthdays!

Here's a verse I found this past week and I think it pertains very well. :)

May the Lord direct your hearts into God’s love and Christ’s perseverance.
~2 Thessalonians 3:5~
Keep persevering my friends, may God be your strength.

The Ups and Downs

Well, it's been awhile since I've posted anything, mostly because it's been busy. Being a mom of two on earth is definitely not an easy thing. I'm discovering that toddlerhood isn't my favourite stage in life. That being said...everyone goes through the toddler stage, it's just the way it is. It's just a patience trying stage.....there are definitely some super cute moments...moments that melt your heart and make you smile big...but it's also very trying...

I guess it's been about a month since I've written...well since then we spent two days in the hospital with A for her asthma...definitely did not know quite how serious asthma is. Now I have become much more educated about it, and much more aware of it. I'm always trying to listen to A's breathing, trying to figure out if she is ok, or if it's getting worse. She is pretty subtle. But I don't want to end up in the ER again due to asthma! Definitely not something on my list to do again!
However, it's pretty easy to tell that Micah and A adore each other. When A came out of the hospital, we went to my mom's house where Micah was and it was like a scene from a movie. Micah came running out of the front door and A came running up from the road when the van was and they ran to to each other. I think we were all worried they would crash...but they stopped just in time and laughed together. So cute!

Lets see what else, well A is starting to say a few words now, which is great! She is loving B words...anything that starts with a B she will repeat! It's quite funny. The best thing is that Micah loves to be her teacher. He will say "A, can you say Bus? " and then she'll say "Bus". She will try most anything Micah asks her to try. It's very cute.

We also had our Adventure Bible Camp at the end of August. Albert was superbly wonderful as he took off the week and hung out in the nursery/toddler room every morning with the kids and other kids as well. I got a break and got to teach the Imagination Station! So much fun...exhausting, but so fun! Sharing Jesus with kids in practical ways that they could understand was great! Micah and A would come and listen to the music at the beginning of camp and at the end. They loved the music...as a result we have the cd and the kids dance to it all the time. We have dance parties or musical meals....hehehe :)

Lets see what else, we had a trip to a small zoo, which was pretty fun. We went with friends and enjoyed our time. It was busy....incredibly busy....but I think the kids had fun! There was a splash pad and trampolines...so A was very happy about that...probably would have spent the entire time there...though she also thoroughly enjoyed the giant sand box as well! We got some great pictures too and now are proudly displaying pictures of A and Micah on our living room wall! That makes me very happy.
We have also just reached our 3 month mark having A in our family. As I look over our 3 months...it's definitely been a very challenging three months...they have stretched me in many ways I didn't think possible, but I know I've grown as a person and hopefully as a parent. But A has definitely come a long way too. The angry little girl that first came has mostly been replaced by a fun, mischievous, adventurous and curious little girl. She still has her temper, but it's more I'M MAD.........I'm ok again...usually. Guess that comes with the fact that she has red hair in her genes...hehehe...

Oh and I also got the "are the twins?" question just the other day! So funny! But 15 months doesn't look like a whole lot when A is getting close to Micah's height. She is seriously growing so fast! I think she is growing out of size 2 clothing already!

Let's see, anything else to share? Hmmm mostly just the daily ups and downs. Some days we're clicking and running smoothly, other days we're melting down and just barely holding it together. That's just life with toddlers as I have come to learn.
All that being said, I wouldn't change it for anything. Is our life more difficult...definitely. But life wasn't meant to be easy...not when you are living for a purpose greater than yourself. We are extended and stretched in ways we probably didn't think possible, but I believe that God gave us A for a reason and a purpose and we need her as much as she may need us. I hope that we can be a good example to her and Micah of what followers of Jesus look like and what it means to follow Him wholeheartedly no matter what. My prayer is that both of my children will come to know Jesus at a young age and seek to follow Him all the days of their lives, no matter what. It's not easy....but life would be even more unbearable and awful without our Saviour guiding our steps and giving us strength for each and every moment of each and every day. I want as many people to know this....that you need Jesus to live in this world, to survive and to thrive. Without Him, there is no hope. Life without hope is simply awful. So if you don't yet know Jesus...please talk to someone who does, or myself..or check out the Bible...it's truly a great thing. He really wants to be there for you...to see you through...and you know what, He is already there for you, throwing people and circumstances in your life to point you to Him...He's there pulling you towards Him already....He's waiting for you to acknowledge that He loves you so you can see Him pouring His love, truth, strength into your life!
Here's my verse for the day:
But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it. ~James 1:25 NLT~Really liked this verse today...it spoke volumes to me.

Well, thanks for reading, sorry it's been awhile! Hope you enjoy the update! :)

In "awe"

Well, it's been almost two months now since we've had A with us as apart of our forever family! For the most part, it's really starting to feel like she's always been with us! I think she is definitely growing more attached to us as well. It really seems like her anger is disapating and her smiles are more abundant now. I think we have more good days/moments than we do bad now too! Albert was off this past week and we had a lovely time. We visited a little zoo, a children's museum, the family farm and had some quality time at home. It was really great. We enjoyed Albert's week off immensely.
A new thing that little A has started to do that is super sweet is she has this blanket that she will put up to the side of her head and say "awwwww". Just recently she has started coming up to me and saying "awww" with her head against my leg. Hehehehe...so super cute! I think we are building a bond....although the downside slight downside that is...is that it seems that she freaks out everytime I leave a room....unless well distracted. But I've definitely noticed that it's a control thing...we were watching some info videos regarding making connections with adopted children and it was talking about how these children haven't had control, so control is important to them. When I leave a room it causes her stress, but if she leaves the room, she's in control....she's leaving me so that's ok, but if I leave, she's not in control, so she reacts. So I'll try to minimize the stress....but oh it's hard when I can't have a couple minutes alone in the bathroom without her reacting....but Albert is getting good at distracting :)

The other "awe" moment I had was just contemplating and re-reading some blog entries...it's really quite amazing to read over and see how God has been working in our lives over the past year. I'm totally in awe of Him. He is truly an amazing God and I'm in awe of the way He works. This beautiful little girl is the one we prayed for. The one we were in love with before she even came. We longed for her from the very beginning of this journey. God works in many ways that we don't understand. He answers prayers in many ways that we don't understand. But one thing we do understand is that God works are for His glory in furthering His Kingdom and I pray that lives might be changed by our story.

Lord, I have heard of your fame; I stand in awe of your deeds, Lord. Repeat them in our day, in our time make them known; in wrath remember mercy.
~Habakkuk 3:2~

Challenges

Most people who have adopted/fostered will tell you that it's definitely not without it's challenges.
Generally, as with most things, you can't understand the challenges until you are in the middle of it. I am blessed to know a wonderful woman who let me into her life and shared with me some of the challenges she's had with her adopted child. I think that it definitely helped to have some knowledge of trials and struggles that come with adoption before we adopted. I am very thankful for that, especially as we now deal with many struggles of our own. I know though, that parenting itself, any child really, has it's definite challenges. Being a parent is definitely not an easy task. You definitely grow to appreciate your parents way more than you ever did before once you become a parent - and I might add a parent of more than one!

Now I know that I tend to gloss over a lot of things and look more to the positive. I try to stay positive always, and know that God is providing strength for the day to day. But to keep being honest, there is definitely one challenge that I struggle with immensely. We have many challenges...as do all parents with their children, but there is this one thing that I just can't figure out. There are times when our adopted daughter will cry for seemingly no reason. It's a sudden onset of crocodile tears and inconsolableness. It's different from the normal, I fell down and I'm hurt cry. Or the I'm hungry cry, or the I'm annoyed cry, or I'm mad at you cry....we've learned all these cries. But then there is this one cry that just seems to be persistent for a good 10-15 minutes, and then as suddenly as it starts, it stops. I try milk (she loves her milk), I try food, I hold her with her blanket and bounce her, we sing, we try desperately to find a way to comfort her...and it just doesn't seem to work. It's super frustrating....we check her temperature, it's normal. She's not pulling on an ear, she's not holding her stomach, she's not doing anything except crying. We have come to the conclusion that maybe it's teething....I think she is getting her two year molars...but I don't really know. I have nothing to compare it to. Once it stops she's as happy as can be again. She runs around, eats, drinks, is affectionate...I don't know. It's hard not knowing what she was like from infancy to know what this could be. It doesn't happen very often. Hardly ever. But when it does, it's really hard because it's really hard to watch your child cry and have no idea why....Anyways, as time goes on I'm sure will figure out more of what it could be. And if it's teething, those teeth better show up really soon!!
But I'll leave you with a verse of strength, to keep seeing the Lord's face even when times get difficult or busy...it's definitely easy to leave out the seeking the Lord part of our busy days...but that is how we find strength to continue on with our busy days. I know it's hard to do my reading and praying during the day now because it is rare that I have a moment of peace to do that...so it gets pushed to naptime or after the kids are in bed, when I feel that there are a million other things to do...but despite the million of other things that need doing....seeking the Lord should be at the top of my list to do first. Seeking the Lord - to be renewed by Him and strengthened by Him for the minutes, hours, days that lie ahead. As it's only in His strength will I accomplish what He wants me to do and with the attitude that He wants me to accomplish it with.

Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always.
~Psalm 105:4~

Two!

It's kind of fun having these moments now...it's cheesy I know, but I'm going to share it anyways...

Today, we walked to the park. It's just down our street...Micah rode his tricycle there and A held my hand and walked all the way there...(major accomplishment here...A holding my hand and walking all the way there with no issues! Amazing!! Loved that so much! I'm thinking walking is in now and stroller is out...)
Anyways...so we are playing at the park. It's just a little park, not too much to do, but there is a teeter totter/seesaw, whatever you want to call it. As I put A on one side and Micah took the other...I flashed back to all the times I put Micah on this teeter totter and had to push the other side myself. Up and down, up and down...Micah going by himself...and me making noises so it feels fun...now Micah has someone to sit with on the teeter totter and look at and laugh with as it goes up and down...I still have to help push them...but there are two of them on it...it made my heart really happy that there isn't an empty seat on the teeter totter anymore...  :)
Thanks for letting me share :)

Also a cute moment from the day...Micah giving A a kiss on the cheek and A actually blowing him a kiss back....oh goodness melt my heart! :) They definitely have some cute moments together...a lot of crazy moments and melt down moments.....but the cute moments sure make up for the other moments.

Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor:

If either of them falls down, one can help the other up.

 ~Ecclesiastes 4:9-10a~

 

(this in no way applies that everyone should have more than one child...one child is great for sure...I had this verse in my head as the kids were playing just cause I enjoyed that there were two of them - and seeing how they can be together, and will hopefully be there for each other through life.)

A Moment of Peace

Today was one of those days where for a moment time stood still and I was able to breath and truly thank God for His love and faithfulness.
After a terrible day yesterday - one of those days that just wouldn't ever end and then when it did it ended with a goose egg, (I was right in front of her and she tripped over her feet ---one of those moments you wish you could have seen in advance and prevented...and then feel horrible for not being able too...ugh. Just a wretched day.)
So I decided today we were going to be out of the house.
We spent a lovely morning at church - I enjoyed teaching the Sunday School kids - we had a great morning learning about encouragement! :)
After church we headed out to the farm. I was hoping the kids would nap on the way there, which they did a bit, but when they did wake up, they did a fairly good job of being content the rest of the way...A still is definitely not a great traveler...but hopefully that will come with time!
We really had a wonderful time at the farm. It was on and off rainy, but walking around the barn, walking around outside and playing inside - we had a great time. We found out A loves tractors! Who knew! She pointed at them, and kept wanting to climb into them. Of course Poppers loved that and indulged! I think A had a ride in every tractor on the farm! She and Micah both had like a twenty minute ride around the farm. It was great! :)
But the biggest blessing of the day came when Micah was inside reading stories with Grannie and A was riding on the tractor with Poppers and I happened to find myself alone looking up at a crazy sky. The sky was changing between crazy rain clouds and blue sky with white clouds and sun. I stopped for a minute and had an interesting realization. Over the past year, every time we were at the farm and I was alone, I was depressed. I felt as though I was very unneeded. When there are 6 adults and one child....the person the child is with most, is the one that he doesn't need when there are other people around...I always felt very depressed and that I should be enjoying this time or looking after my daughter...still being busy. But today, when I was standing outside gazing at the constantly changing crazy sky, I didn't feel depressed because I was alone. I felt joy. I felt contentment. I felt peace. I felt full. I enjoyed the few moments of peace. I was thankful for the few moments of peace. It was such a different feeling than I've had before. I couldn't do anything but praise God for this new feeling...and thank Him for all He has done and for strength to continue.
I am thankful for a wonderful day, and I am thankful that God is changing my heart. He is working miracles everyday.

For great is your love, higher than the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the skies.

~Psalm 108:4~