The Wrap.

I had an epiphany before we left to be with Miss E when she was born.  The epiphany went something like this:  I want to be able to hold this sweet little baby all of the time.  When we get home I walk children to school every day and we have random things going on that were not going on when the other two were wee ones.  I need to be prepared for this.  Enter: the wrap.  

Carla laughed that Miss E was in this thing almost all of the time for the first two months of her life.  She was.  She loved it and so did I.  I could hold the little babe and be available to walk the others to school, read books, play legos.  She stayed comfy and cozy and warm in there.

So, I am preserving those memories with these two photos.  Me and my babe in the wrap.

Look at the precious little face and her fun hair!

The Partay.

The birthday boy had a party.  We had talked about having him invite a few friends this year.  When we started to have the conversation, though, he told me that he only wanted two or three friends.  And, when we talked about who he would invite, he told me he couldn't choose and that he just wanted Grampie, Grammie, Grandpa Maynard, Grandma Judy, Jake and Josh and Miss Shelley.  And that is what we did.

The beloved Miss Shelley and her husband, Curt 

 Grandpa Maynard braved the obstacle course and may have tweeked his 70 year old knee in the process.  Grammie did it, too, but the photo of that is not to be found.

That is all for this boy's birthday.  Sadly, that was two months ago and now I have another boy's birthday to write about to be up to speed.  More on that soon (I hope).

Seven.

He is seven.  And he seems big.  Yet he still seems a little bit little.

This year has seen so many changes for our family and for this amazing boy.  He is in first grade, and he is thriving there.  His teacher is brilliant and he has learned volumes and volumes about geography, science, reading and math.  I cannot tell you how much fun it is to hear the conversations between the two boys as Jonathan "teaches" Caleb about things he has learned, and Caleb tells him about his days.

He is still a big brother but now he is a big brother to a little sister, too.  He has taken such responsibility to help with little things and be a caring and protective big brother.

Things I just love about J-man at seven:

 - Our car conversations.  The hard questions, the amazing insights, the funny stories.  I have all but stopped listening to anything in the car because I wouldn't want to miss these tidbits of life according to him.

 - He eats.  And eats.  He is now willing to try so many things.  He still has fairly mild tastes, but he will try almost anything.

 - Listening to him read to me.  To his brother.  To his sister.

 - His crafts.  This is something I love about both little men here.  They do crafts/construction.  Just about anything can be configured into a crafting/constructing project.  I do love it, but the mess is quite messy.  Thankful for the Dyson handheld to clean up the piles of paper and cardboard.

 - His questions about faith.  They are honest.  And we are straight shooters around here.  So I love the honest questions.

 - That he knows himself quite well.  He told me at one point, "Mom, I like my friends better one or two at a time and not all together at the same time."

 - The long standing sense of style.  It morphs over time but still has a unique flair to it.  You may remember the shirt below.  Last year it was the taped turban that he wore to meet his Kindergarten teacher.  He still loves it.

I actually could go on and on and on about all of the things I love about my sweet guy.  Reality is - I love him because God gave me the gift of being his momma.  I love him just because he is my J-man.  Happy Seven!

The Patch

Pumpkin Patch, that is.  We had only been home for about two weeks, but we headed to our beloved pumpkin patch on a nice day when J-man was out of school.  Eliana spent the whole time sleeping in the wrap.  The boys loved the pumpkin launcher and the giant jumping pillow.  We came home with an excessive number of pumpkins that we just finally put in the trash this weekend.  The squirrels were most appreciative of the easy meal.

Field Trips

It isn't often that I get to attend a school event for just one of the kids without the others in tow.  Eliana's first stay with the beloved Aunt Carla was the morning of Caleb's field trip to the farmstead.  I got to enjoy a sweet time with just Big C.  Talking, playing and having a good ol' time.   Eliana charmed Aunt Carla and the two boys at her house so a good time was had by all :+)

Dating

Big C and I had a date a couple of weeks after we returned home with Eliana.  Jonathan and Jamie had their date, too, but Jamie forgot to take photos.  Big C had a great time because we ate outside at the table right beside the fountain.  This seemed to be a big highlight for him.  After all of the crazy changes of travels and a new sister, it was fun to spend the night with just him.

Jamie and Jonathan had a great time eating BBQ because that's what Caleb did with Daddy.  Jonathan was thrilled because they got to eat outside, too.  Every time we drive by that restaurant, he reminds us that he and Daddy ate on that patio.

On another date related note... our social worker was at our house for a post placement visit before Eliana's adoption is finalized.  She asks questions about our family and such.  She was asking how Jamie and I were doing with three children.  The next question, "have you had a chance to go on any dates?" was excitedly answered, "yes" by Jonathan and Caleb.  They proceeded to tell her all about both of their dates with each of us.  Certainly wasn't exactly what she was meaning by "date" when she asked about our marriage, but a sweet glimpse into our little people's world.

Some Other Celebrations

It is official.  Fall is our season.  Eliana in September, Anniversary and Jonathan in October, Jamie in November, Caleb and me in December.  All that to say, things have been a little nutso around here.  I have fun photos from Jman's birthday and some fun things about him at SEVEN (gasp!), Halloween photos and some other random fun.

For now, I'll leave you with our family of five...

Visitors from the North

I didn't know if they would be able to come.  But I asked and they came.  So very thankful they could meet her when she was still just a peanut.

The older four were playing in the basement when they came up and Caleb was wearing this get-up.  He was wearing oxygen (made out of string), "just like Grampie".

Home.

After being gone for nine days and living in a hotel, this was a blissfully welcome sight.  So, so many folks were so kind to bring food, mow the lawn while we were gone and help out with the boys.  Jamie and the boys left a day and a half before Eliana and I were given clearance to travel, but when she and I arrived home these sweet signs and decorations for Eliana's room were waiting for us, thanks to Carla and her littles.  They are still up.  I did think the other day that likely we need to take them down so we can decorate for Christmas. :+)

Grandpa Maynard and Grandma Judy

These two made the trip with our whole family a possibility.  We are all most grateful!

Hotel Living

After we were given placement of Eliana and discharged from the hospital with her, we were required to remain in her birth state until something called ICPC cleared.  It is a requirement for a lot of paperwork reviews by both her birth state and our home state.  Just due to timing and how the medical records were released at her hospital, it took nine days.  Nine days of hotel living with three children and one being a newborn requires a little creativity, some patience and a pool.

 There was quite a bit of goofy.

 Grandpa reading the "funnies" with Caleb.

 Eliana's preferred sleeping place... on my belly.

 Daddy love.

 Lego construction.

More lego construction.

 And more legos.  Nine days, people.

Grandpa and Grandma.  They were so flexible to be willing to stay until whenever, but when we got word that we were free to go - they were just as thrilled as we were!

Brotherly Love

These big brothers have waited a long time for their little sister to arrive.  We talked with them about the adoption and what adoption meant during the home study process.  They knew we were waiting for a child to come and be a brother or sister.  They didn't know the ins and outs, as we really tried to be wise in guarding their hearts from things that are just too much for a four and six year old to process.  Some of their questions during the past year and as we were preparing to leave for our trip sent me reeling as it revealed how much they did understand and how deeply their minds think about these things.

Here is a funny that I will share:
Last April: 
Caleb: "I can't wait till we get a little sister."
Jonathan: "It might be a brother, Caleb."
Caleb: "But we want a sister."
Jonathan: "Caleb, if it's a boy, we're just going to have to deal."

The first days

The hospital where Eliana was born was so helpful and accommodating, and provided the use of a private room near the nursery where we could spend time alone with Eliana.  Holding, feeding, cuddling and loving on her.  We were there with her as much as they allowed (we had to leave for five hours in the middle of the night) until she was discharged.

There were two very excited big brothers waiting in the lobby to meet their little sister when we were ready to leave.  Caleb was a little more hesitant to touch and hold her initially but after he warmed up to the idea: she got lots and lots of love from that boy, too.

Jamie's mom flew with Jamie and the boys and she hung out with the boys when Jamie and I were both at the hospital.  We are so thankful as it allowed us to have the boys there with us, but also gave Jamie and I the freedom to be at the hospital with just Eliana a good bit.