Gotta Listen to this!

[Updated to say: Not sure what happened to the formatting, but blogger isn't letting me fix it. Sorry!]

I heard this on the radio today while the big kids and Eric ran into the store. By the end of it I was laughing so hard I was crying. Plus, it's just so...creative and musical. Amazing how music can touch you places nothing else can. I'm embedding the original version, and an updated version. Both are awesome, and slightly different from the version I heard today! LOL!

Now don't you want to buy their CD?!?!?! You can do that HERE!

Today's update:

Headband: Found. In Taevy's accessory drawer. Where it should have been the entire time (and was). Heaven forbid we should look where the stupid thing actually goes!

Big Kids: Have made progress today with earning back mom and dad's trust and respect. They may just get to enjoy their Christmas presents after all--but we will see.

I Wuv Uu: There is NOTHING better right now than having Kendi walk up, give me a hug, and tell me "I wuv uu." without any prompting whatsoever. It's like a little gift from God, from the mouth of my babe!

Acne?: Our two dogs are having issues right now. Kiki (our Akita/Husky) has somehow put a spell on Jed (our husky) and made him terrified to be anywhere close to her. This is regardless of the fact that when they do get into a fight it is Jed that brings blood to Kilo and outweighs her by a good 15 pounds. Not only that, but this has also manifested in a great fear to cross the threshold of the back door to go outside. It is NOT fun in doggy land right now. Taevy said, "Mommy, I think Jed has acne." We quickly realized she meant ANXIETY! LOL! ROFL!!!! Yes Taevy, Jed has acne right now!

Anita

Just when you need it...

Last night and this morning were horrible, no good, and very bad. Eric and I have honestly been so discouraged. There have been a series of disappointments with the big kids. Dishonesty and irresponsibility. I won't go into too much detail because they are getting to the age where it might embarrass them. Eric and I haven't come to agreement on what punishment should be, but it could be very BIG. Like, "you can open your gifts but you will not be playing with them until you can show us responsibility for X days." That was all last night.

Then this morning another lie. And a broken nativity (Joseph is once again decapitated). A lost very special headband (spent more on the headband than I would normally spend on a shirt!). All little things that are piling up and feeling very BIG right now.

I finally blew. Just started bawling--about 15 minutes before we were supposed to leave for our Christmas gathering. I mean, I was boo-hooing. So much had built up. A lost headband should not be a big deal. I asked myself, "Anita, WHY does this mean so much to you? WHY do the children have to look perfect?" Well, it's because we take one of our few family pictures of the year at this gathering. I'm usually behind the camera. And I don't know when it's going to be our last family picture. How do I know Eric will be with us next year? So at the bottom of this melt down was the fear that I'm going to lose my husband, mixed with the fear that I'm doing a terrible job parenting my children.

This week we saw a news story that really touched us in a personal way. This is a family that lives here in Tulsa. They have adopted several children (9) domestically and internationally. And the dad? Well, in June he died do to complications with a kidney/pancreas transplant (which was needed because of Type I Diabetes). I wrote to the local newspaper to see if I connect to the family. The folks at the newspaper went out of their way to deliver a printed copy of my email to the family. Can you believe that? And a day later I received an email from the mom (who by all accounts appears to be an amazing person). We've made this really neat connection with a family very much like ours. But I think it brought up fears I don't like to think about much.

Anyway.... I stopped crying in time to get my makeup on and get to our gathering. And it was a wonderful gathering. A scab healed over those open wounds I was feeling. At the end of the evening my Aunt Margaret told me that we were raising 4 wonderful kids. It means *SO* much to me to hear her say that because I think she is the best wife and mother I've ever known (okay besides my own!). She has it all together. I told her I REALLY needed to hear that today. =-)

When I got home I checked email messages, and the Lord sent more encouragement. A reader of this blog wrote after reading about Samren learning to read (and more important, loving it). That person wants to send Samren a book, to encourage him. How awesome is that?! It never ceases to amaze me the connections that can be made through cyber space.

So I was down. Really, really down. But the Lord always seems to send encouragement exactly when I need it. He never fails me. Ever ever.

Anita

Christmas #1

Today we enjoyed our first family Christmas gathering of the year--my extended family on my mom's side. My Aunt Margaret and Uncle Jim are two of the people I respect most in the world, so I always love seeing them. I also secretly hope for their approval of my life and my family--want to make them proud. =-)

Except for my double chin, I thought this pic was pretty good. We got Kendi smiling (thanks to a little tickle from mommy)!

This one of my parents cracks me up. My step-dad is 6'4", and my mom is about 5 feet. This is what you get when Dennis is standing on the UPPER stairs in the shot. We had to change this around.

My uncle and aunt's stairs were made for this particular kid picture, don't you think?The boys looked uber cute in their matching sweater vests. So handsome!Bright and Kendi decided to dress up as gifts. I suppose they are...The kids were blessed with some wonderful gifts. My mom had new eating/craft trays custom painted with their names on them. My aunt and uncle gifted them with "If You Give a ______ and ______" books and matching stuffed animal (moose/muffin, pig/pancake, cat/cupcake, mouse/cookie). What a perfect gift! Finally, all of the children received a reindeer from my mom. She gets them one every year. They have quite a collection now!My children are so blessed to have the grandparents they have (on both sides). They adore all of their grandmas and grandpas. You can tell that Kendi and Bright love their Grandma B. just a *tiny* bit.And just because I love his eyebrows...

Big Brudder

Samren came into big brotherhood rather reluctant. In fact, it took him a good six months to say with his mouth that Bright was his brother. Bright is not what he signed up for. He was a baby that couldn't play, plus he was a hitting bully. And at the bottom of it was that Samren was mourning the (older) brother he has in Vietman but will never know. We had a breakthrough around 6 months after Bright came home, and since then Samren has claimed Bright as his very own brother (although still doesn't always LIKE Bright).

Samren is our struggler. But he also overcomes. He struggled to eat as a baby. He beat it. He struggles because of his very small stature--but doesn't let it get him down (ha! no pun intended!). Samren can't quite say his "r" sounds yet, but by golly he sure works hard at it. I will be happy for him the day he can say "world" but it will also be sad that I'll never hear "Wooold" ever again! Sammy struggles with writing well. Something left over from when he was sick. He just doesn't have good finger strength. But he has improved a TON this year. [At homeschool the teacher has time to make him do it again if it isn't good enough.]

One of Samren's greatest struggles has been learning to read. He's SO motivated! But he missed something at a crucial time during his time at public school. I kick myself, because I taught Taevy phonics basics before she went to public school and she soared right through reading (but doesn't like to read yet, oddly enough). Samren missed out on the basics of phonics. And now he knows enough to read by site memory, a lot of words. All this to say, going back and teaching him phonics has been a lesson in frustration.

The thing is, Sammy LOVES to read. He has books on his Christmas list. He saved up the most he ever saved up ($15) and ended up buying a $10 book. It just makes my heart soar to see this little guy missing lots of words but NOT GIVING UP! I don't worry that Samren will eventually be a good reader because it's something that he loves to do.

Being the good "brudder" (as Kendi would say), Samren regularly reads to the little ones. Do I really care if he's sitting in front of a Nativity and Christmas lights reading a Thanksgiving book? Nope! Read on, my boy!! You will conquer the challenge of reading just like you conquer all of your other challenges!

Anita

P.S. Did you see the cutie-patootie family ornament for 2009? We had it made at a local craft show. I made it the blog banner picture. =-)

Ghana Sweep

It never ceases to amaze me how much "Ghana" is in my 2 year old Kendi. I LOVE it. I hope that Ghana never leaves her.

We've had a few sprigs of fake flowers left over that didn't quite make it back into the Christmas boxes when we put them away. Kendi found a very practical use for them. To her, they are the perfect shape and size to use as a broom.

This is the "broom" she knows from Ghana.

And this is her modifying what she has in America to get the job done! If you've ever been to Ghana and slept in a room without A/C you probably remember the sound of folks sweeping their porches and yards at 4:30 am. It's one of my favorite sounds in the world.

In case you're wondering, she was actually standing in a pile I had just swept, "helping" me!

Anita

P.S. Jen...notice the shoes? They are so great!