It Feels Like Chaos

There is Still No 5 Year Plan!

2013-05-21T22:12:00.003-07:00

Our hearts go out to those affected by the tornado in Moore, Oklahoma. Our family is praying for you. May God's comfort be felt in tremendous ways for you today and in the coming weeks and months.

The following post was originally published in October 2010, but it is still true today (except now we've been married nearly 14 years!). We still do not have a 5 year plan, and in fact have found that life is better without one. Just desperately seeking God's plans!

Some time very early in our marriage (or perhaps even before we got married, I can't remember now, it's been over 11 years) we had a long-term plan.

Very long-term, stretching a good part of 25 years or so.

It was detailed, too, with things like exactly when we'd buy our first house, have our first child, have our second child. . .

There was no third child in that plan!

And certainly no fourth child!

There was probably a trip to Paris and Hawaii in there, but definitely not to Ethiopia.

And adopting a child from Ethiopia? Would have been unfathomable to us eleven years ago!

My husband had in the plan one of the two of our hypothetical children getting a full scholarship to college (wishful thinking!), which helped the finances look a little prettier.

Then as life happened, which it always does, I think the plan evolved into more of a 5 year plan.

And as we more and more let go of our plans and began to earnestly seek God's plans for our lives, even the 5 year plan melted away!

And now?

I don't think there is even a 1 year plan!

We pretty much have no idea!

When we went to get our travel shots a few weeks ago the doctor talked about a certain vaccine we wouldn't need just for the 2 one week long trips that were on the agenda, but we'd need if we planned to spend any large amounts of time in Ethiopia in the next 10 years. I looked to my husband questioningly and he nodded that absolutely we should get the extra shot, so that when it's time for us to go be missionaries in Africa we'll be all ready to go!

So now instead of intricately planning our our lives, we are praying to "live a life worthy of the calling we have received." Eph. 4:1

But, the amazing thing to me is that as God has changed our plans, He also changed our desires. Things we wanted for our life eleven years ago not only don't matter anymore, but are actually things we don't want now!

God changes hearts and replaces earthly desires with heavenly ones. That helps to explain lines like this one from the Steve Camp song, "Run to the Battle": "Some people want to live within the sounds of chapel bells, but I want to run a mission a yard from the gates of Hell."

Find more Works for Me Wednesday here.

Surviving My Kids' School Projects

2013-05-20T21:08:00.000-07:00

I don't enjoy school projects. Thankfully our elementary is not as heavy on them as some that my friends' kids attend, but still, there are some. And there have been times I've started to hyperventilate a bit as I wonder just how I'll survive the projects times 4 kids!

When my oldest was in 2nd grade I made the decision that I was not going to do school projects for my kids, even if other parents did and even if it meant my kid would have the ugliest poster/science fair presentation/cereal box/etc. in his grade. But, still, even just assisting in school projects (that should be "child-led" as the teacher instructions often say) is time-consuming and can be frustrating when your child has an idea in his or her mind of what the project should look like but neither of you can figure out how to actually create it!

Was I doomed into spending my Saturday and Sunday afternoons buried in a pile of craft supplies along with a frustrated elementary-aged child?

This weekend as my kindergartener worked on his project to create a shoebox diorama from his assigned book - Mike Mulligan and his Steam Shovel - I figured out the answer to how I'd survive mothering through school projects for 4 kids.

My 2nd grade daughter came over to the table where I was helping my kindergartener and she started helping because she wanted to. It wasn't long before I was able to mosey over into the nearby kitchen and start working on dinner while my 2nd grader helped my kindergartener with his project!

There it is folks. Tangible proof that having 4 kids is not always exponentially harder than having 1 or 2 kids!

Find more Wordful Wednesday here.

R.I.P. Sally the Ladybug

2013-05-16T22:37:00.002-07:00

Today my 7 year old daughter asked me if I wanted to come to the funeral for Sally the Ladybug. I agreed to come after I finished helping the 6 year old with his homework. But as I walked into the backyard my head was full of questions, "Did we have a ladybug named Sally?" "Did she die?" "Did you bury her?"

And the answer was "yes" to all those questions. Apparently I'd lost track of the bug pets my kids have been keeping and rotating in and out of our outside bug habitat and we did lose a ladybug.

I've never been to a ladybug funeral before so I have nothing to compare it to, but I have to say, the best part was when my 7 year old said we needed to "have a moment of silence while you think about Sally the ladybug."

Excuse the blurry picture, but the circle of brown leaves below shows the burial site:

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I chaperoned a field trip for second graders today all day and my brain is mush, right now I actually don't even remember the rest of our week, it's a blur.

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One thing I know, it would be all kinds of awesome to have this playhouse/slide in your backyard!

Source: theinspiredroom.net via It on Pinterest

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And this:

Source: thepinjunkie.com via It on Pinterest

I used to think my kids were the only ones who called hand sanitizer "hanitizer", but no, my 6 year old's entire kindergarten class calls it that!

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I'm going to bed! Happy Friday!

Find more Friday Fragments here.

15 More Days Left of School!

2013-05-15T20:34:00.000-07:00

There are 15 more school days left until summer break, but who's counting?

Me! That's who!

Each year I really don't know who is more excited about summer getting here, me or the kids! They really like school but for me the effort to maintain the logistics of it all can be pretty crazy.

I'm craving a freer schedule, time to just hang out with my kids, time to play, some lazy days, no lunches to pack, no school projects to stress about, no agendas to sign or feel guilty about forgetting to sign, no school drop-offs/school pick-ups, and wash that consists mostly of swimsuits and pajamas!

We are in the home stretch! Summer will be here soon! Only 45 more lunches to pack . . .

Green Smoothies My Kids Love!

2013-05-14T19:33:00.001-07:00

My kids are pretty good eaters, but I'm still always looking for ways to get extra veggies in them. Several months ago I figured out a green smoothie recipe that my kids love and have made them several times each week since! I even figured out a way to pack the smoothies in their lunchboxes using these little plastic BPA free bottles from The Container Store. They work great and are freezer and dishwasher safe!

My smoothie recipe is totally made up and the amounts of ingredients are pretty imprecise. My apologies, but play around varying amounts until you get the taste you prefer. Here is the rough recipe I use:

Chocolate Green Smoothies

24 oz. Vanilla Yogurt (I use soy vanilla yogurt)
2 or 3 large handfuls of raw, leafy spinach (washed first)
2 or 3 frozen bananas
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 tablespoon honey
2/3 cup milk (I use almond milk)

Combine all ingredients in the blender (I do not have a fancy, super expensive blender, you do not need one for this smoothie) and blend/puree/liquefy (whatever it is your blender does, I just hit the highest setting for 30 seconds or so). You can add more milk if you want it a thinner consistency or add more frozen bananas for a more ice cream shake type of texture. Add more honey or bananas if it is not sweet enough for you.

That's it! Pour into cups (or bottles for packing later) and enjoy!

Makes about 6 servings.

Find more Works for Me Wednesday here.

When An Orphan Becomes A Daughter

2013-05-13T20:12:00.000-07:00

I really just never get tired of talking about this, marveling at how BIG our God is! I see it so often in the life of our Little Girl. Seventeen months ago she lived in an orphanage in Ethiopia. This past Saturday she danced on a stage in front of a large audience in America at her ballet recital, with her mom, dad, sister and 2 brothers cheering from the 4th row! She did an amazing job, wasn't scared at all, performed her dance nearly exactly as her class had practiced (with a bit of her own adorable flair, or course), and had so much fun that she wants to do it again!

God did this. He is in the business of transforming lives.

There is just no way to go from this:

To this:

without a whole lot of God!

She was a female orphan over the age of infancy in a 3rd world country. A pretty low state of being by the world's standards with typically a terrible life prognosis. So, every time I see her achieve a regular-American-kid milestone, like performing in a dance recital, it leaves me in awe of our miracle-working God! She has come so far! Anyone who has spent time with her would tell you, this little girl can take on the world.

She has a future and a hope, not only with her Heavenly Father someday, but here on this very earth, this side of eternity! Without the chains of poverty or the stigma of the term "orphan" and with the security and love of a family, a whole new world was opened up to her.

He redeemed her life. Not us. Him!

Please hear me out on this. We fall short every single day. The only thing we did out of the ordinary was say "Yes" to an extraordinary God.

And now we get front row seats (sometimes it's 4th row, but we'll take it) to witness God's miracles!

Find more Gratituesday here and Wordful Wednesday here.

Motherhood: It's a Glamorous Life!

2013-05-09T22:53:00.000-07:00

It's Mother's Day weekend and I want to give a huge Thank you and pat on the back to all moms! In honor of the occasion, I'm celebrating the glamorous life of motherhood!

Have you ever been to Disney with kids? Well, if you have then you know all about the character dining. I mean, they are THE thing to schedule at least 6 months in advance of your visit. We did Disney once years ago and had 2 character meals, one dinner with princesses and a breakfast with Mickey, Pluto, Lilo and Stitch, etc.

But, I have a friend that goes regularly and is an expert on the character dining. I think they do each and every meal for an entire week with a character! Honestly with all the hype, the stress of scheduling the meals in advance and the cost, I can't help screaming inside my head -- FIRST WORLD PROBLEMS! Which is why we haven't been back to Disney.

I have a point to all this, I promise.

This week I got to have a private breakfast with Princess Belle right in my own dining room FOR FREE!

Then I got to take Princess Belle to swim lessons and to Target! She even went with me to the elementary school to pick up the big kids and was quite the hit! I know! I AM blessed, not everyone gets to spend their day with Princess Belle!

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As if that weren't cool enough, this week I had my driveway illustrated by 3 talented artists!

Not everyone gets to drive over original works of art!

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Then I had these happy guys popping up all over the house:

You can't help but smile with them around!

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Because we don't watch much TV/don't have cable, I haven't ridden the cooking show bandwagon. But, the one show I saw years ago, the cook had a challenge of creating gourmet box lunches for a bunch of construction workers.

Well, this week I got to create a grand total of 16 lunchbox lunches (5 each for my 3 oldest kids and 1 preschool lunch for Little Girl) from whole ingredients - no prepackaged fake food, yet still things my kids would eat! All while remembering who likes white cheese and who likes yellow and who is allergic to peanut butter and who is "so tired of sandwiches" and who doesn't like bananas and who doesn't like to eat any kind of pasta cold except "Cold Pasta"!

Iron Chef, I dare you to try tackling a typical day-in-the-life of a mom and the meal preparations that go on!

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Motherhood, it is a glamorous life! And I haven't even touched on the potty training phase!

Truly, it is the messiest, hardest, most frustrating job on the planet, but also the most beautiful, most rewarding, best job ever!

Happy Mother's Day! Have a wonderful weekend!

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Find more Friday Fragments here.

Sanity Saving Shelves!

2013-05-07T19:55:00.000-07:00

I posted a long time ago about our new shoe/coat/backpack shelves. But, I thought I'd give a little update because that post gets a lot of traffic from Pinterest. You won't find a lot Pinterest-worthy here on this blog, but these shelves? Really are awesome.

They may not look super stylish and I know a few commenters have sweetly suggested I could add some crown molding to make the shelves look built in, which sounds great to me, only way, way beyond the zone of my abilities! But, these shelves really preserve the little bit of sanity I have left here mothering 4 children in the midst of the busy May-end-of-school-year season!

Here are the shelves as they look today (I cheated and took this while the kids were at school so they are not as cluttered without the backpacks.):

Remember the issue? We needed a spot near the backdoor to house the things our 4 children needed each day for school and other activities. We needed mudroom shelves!

But, alas, our house was built in the 1980s before builders realized that people like big laundry rooms! So, our laundry room is exactly big enough for a washer and a dryer, nothing else! My husband offered to hire someone to add on a mudroom to our house. But, I am cheap and also don't prefer living in a construction zone for any amount of time, so we got creative.

We bought 4 Ikea narrow Billy bookcases, screwed them together, left off the middle shelf, and added hooks. (We also attached the whole unit to the wall because I have no idea what age you stop worrying about your children climbing the furniture, but we are not there yet!) And we put the shelving unit/mudroom lockers IN OUR BREAKFAST ROOM! I know! It's pretty crazy! But, we don't actually use the room for breakfast because we eat all our meals at the only table big enough to hold all 6 of us -- the dining room one. So the breakfast room is really more of a work/game/craft zone for the kids anyway.

You can find out more details about how we did the shelves and the 4 red canvas totes I made here.

Back to the shelves in action now 18 months after we got them:

From the top, the grey buckets were a cheap find at Target and they house things like winter gloves (that my kids need all of 2 days each year), swim goggles, ballet shoes and sunglasses.

Next shelf down are plain white boxes that perfectly hold 8.5 by 11 inch papers, so that's where my kids keep homework packets they are to work on over the course of several days before returning to school or instructions about projects, etc. It's a work-in-progress type of box! And when the kids remember to put their work in their box then it doesn't get colored on by a sibling or lost.

Next, is the shelf with the red totes that I made. The black chalkboard label has each child's name written in chalk-ink but I smeared the names out for displaying on the blog. However, the very visible names has made it so our 4 year old little girl can now write the names of her brothers and sister. Even while she was at preschool today she made a note for her sister and because she's seen her name so often was able to pretty correctly imitate the letters all on her own! The totes hold random treasures the kids want to keep but I'd rather toss, like party favors, prizes from school, etc!

Then there are the hooks for backpacks, jackets, and hats. And then the shoe shelves -- obviously my girls have more shoes than the boys!

These shelves definitely work for us! The kids can nearly always find what they need and we are not tripping over 8 different shoes each afternoon. Although, I do still have to remind the kids of the shelf when the shoes somehow land 6 inches AWAY from the shelf! I usually tell them their shoes are crying, "Please put us on the shelf! We are not where we belong!"

Find more Works for Me Wednesday here.

We have not forgotten . . .

2013-05-06T21:50:00.002-07:00

As we celebrate the wonder of every day, ordinary, blessed life in America with our 4 children, including our Little Girl adopted from Ethiopia 16 months ago, we always remember the faces of those we left behind. The children of Ethiopia that we met, fell in love with, ached over the hardships they endure, and marveled at their ability to have joy even in the midst of terrible circumstances!

We have been involved in the work of a few different organizations to help these children, but recently we began something new. Something we are really excited about! I'll share the details soon, and a way you can help, too, change the lives of Ethiopian children.

When we look at the faces of those precious children and then into the face of our Little Girl, we cannot help the realization that they could be our sons and daughters. They are God's children!

Find more Wordful Wednesday here.

Wacky!

2013-05-02T21:43:00.002-07:00

You'll never guess what my newly turned 6 year old wanted for his birthday dinner -- sushi!

I'm not sure if that makes him wacky or sophisticated, but actually three-fourths of my kids really like sushi!

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Earlier this week as I was reading the book Wacky Wednesday (You know the one about the boy's day with all the crazy things that happen? It starts out, "It all began with that shoe on the wall.") to my kids, it's one of their favorites, I commented to my little guy that his birthday was going to be on Wednesday, Wacky Wednesday. So, we not only decorated his bedroom with balloons while he slept, but also taped a shoe on the wall! Actually, I failed several times at getting that shoe to stay up there, but thankfully my husband's engineering degree came through and he was able to attach the shoe to the wall!

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Now, 2 days later, it's Friday and the shoe is still there on the wall; plus the front entryway to my house looks like this:

I think our life is not just reserved to one day of the week for being wacky!

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Also, this wackiness started this week:

My oldest was chosen as safety patrol for his elementary school for the remainder of this year and next school year.

He was super happy that I tracked him down while he was on duty and snapped some pictures of him patrolling the hallway -- made his 4th grade self look really cool in front of the 5th grade girl who is training him! What are moms for? I am contractually obligated to embarrass him!

But, really, how can he be old enough for this? When the letter came home I had to ask my friend who has a son who was also chosen but had an older son do it a couple years ago, "Are they really old enough for this? I mean I'm not totally sure my son can safely cross the street by himself and now he's going to be helping younger children cross the street?!!" A fourth grader, going into fifth, seemed a lot older before I had a child that age!

I know. I know. It's going to be a great opportunity for him to experience responsibility. At least that's what I keep repeating to myself as we get him to school 30 minutes early every day and stay 15 minutes late, meaning two different trips to the same elementary school each day because I feel bad making my 2 younger kids go so early to school! At least it's only a 3 minute drive away!

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As wacky as it is keeping up with 4 different kids worth of activities and events, I can't help but feel blessed to be a part. Tonight was our 3rd school musical of the year (one for each grade we have a child in). Kindergarteners dressed like various animals, singing and dancing -- there is no greater show on earth!

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Have a wonderfully wacky weekend!

Find more Friday Fragments here.

May Is Already Eating My Lunch!

2013-05-01T20:58:00.001-07:00

I wrote this a few years ago, it absolutely still applies today (only now with 4 kids worth of activities to juggle instead of 3), so I'm re-posting it with just a few changes to make it current:

It started a few weeks ago, the gradual bombarding.

Everywhere I went with my kids there was a flyer with specific instructions about where to be and when and sometimes what to dress my child in or bake and bring, and of course the numerous ways I could volunteer to help out with the upcoming big event.

A field trip, an open house, an art fair, 3 different elementary school musicals (because I have kids in 3 different grades!), a preschool water day, a choir concert, a field day, a friend's birthday party, another friend's birthday party, a baseball end of the season party, my child's birthday, the beginning of swim team season, a dance recital, planning for an upcoming VBS, the end of school party, the teacher gifts . . .

and on it goes. . .

I've seen other bloggers post on this so I know I'm not alone in thinking the busyness of the pre-Christmas season is nothing compared to the April/May of a mom!

Here are 13 ways I've attempted to manage it in years past (and I'm not doing very well so far this year, thus I need the reminding):

1. I will volunteer to help with some things, but quietly pass on the sign-up sheet without writing down my name for other things (For example: yes, I will chaperone the field trip, but I will let someone else bake cookies for the open house)!

2. I will write everything down on my calendar and check it daily!

3. I will use my crock pot, nearly every night.

4. I have cooked ahead some freezer meals.

5. I have lowered my expectations about exactly how clean my house will be during this season.

6. But, will be extra-diligent about keeping up the organization systems that make things run more smoothly, like kids putting their shoes on the shoe shelf, baseball hat always on the same hook, and laundry done often before it becomes too overwhelming!

7. Nearly all the things crammed on my calendar are truly fun things, so I will attempt to live in the moment of each one, and enjoy it without worrying about what is next on the agenda.

8. For every crazy, frenzied, jam-packed day we have these next couple of months, we will have at least one day of absolutely nothing planned over the summer!

9. I will keep my camera charged.

10. I will prioritize a quiet time each day and exercise, too!

11. I will not stress that this blog post is not formatted quite as perfectly as I'd like.

12. I will lay-out clothes and pack bags the night before.

13. I will thank God for the privilege of a front-row seat to my kids' lives!

So how do you do it? Any good survival tips to share?

Baby Boy Turns Six!

2013-04-30T21:34:00.001-07:00

Two days before his sixth birthday he lost his first tooth!

Tomorrow my 3rd child, the one who was supposed to stay a baby forever, will turn 6!

How can that be?

I feel certain he should still look like this:

And spend all of his time doing things like this:

NOT losing teeth, riding a bike without training wheels, and reading!!

At least he still gives the BEST hugs, always has!

In fact, just tonight he thought we all needed hugging lessons from him the expert hugger.

Big brother's lesson:

Sweet, sweet Six Year Old, never forget how loved you are

and that you'll ALWAYS be MY baby no matter how big you get!

Find more Wordful Wednesday here.

Getting My Kids to Declutter

2013-04-29T22:21:00.001-07:00

Each of my 4 kids has a fabric tote/bucket on a shelf in our breakfast room (that we don't actually use for breakfast). The buckets are to hold whatever treasures the child wants to hang on to, but I don't want to find all over the house -- think small prize trinkets, birthday party favors, crafts. The shelf is in a prominent spot in our house and I walk by it a thousand times each day (to and from the laundry room and kitchen), so it bugs me when the kids' buckets become so full that I can see stuff coming up over the tops.

My solution?

Cookies.

I bake some homemade chocolate chip cookies for the kids and give them each one for an after school snack. Then I ask them if they'd like a 2nd cookie. Their eyes get wide. I NEVER offer a 2nd cookie!

Yes! Yes, they DO want another cookie!

"Okay," I say getting each of their buckets down and putting them onto the table, "Then bring me some trash! Cut down what is in your bucket by half (I use the term "50%" for my math-oriented kids) and I'll give you another cookie."

It worked! No whining, no complaining, just trash bag filling!

It took my sentimental, pack-rattish child a rather long time to whittle her treasures down, but even she came through and earned that 2nd cookie!

A cookie for their trash? Works for Me!

And don't go sending me your trash to get a cookie. You only get a cookie for throwing away large amounts of stuff from MY house!

Find more Works for Me Wednesday here.

Saying It Again and Again and Again

2013-04-25T21:00:00.002-07:00

Last Friday, I had the post, We do not need another pet! Then, Saturday morning a bird flew right smack into our back window. I heard it hit and looked outside and sure enough, there he was lying on the patio just outside the back door. He was breathing, but otherwise pretty motionless. The kids came running to see and insisted that I needed to help the bird. "Bring him inside, Mama!"

I do what I always do in these types of situations, I consulted my good friend, Google. I typed "bird flew into window" and instantly had all kinds of advice! I decided to go with the easiest option, "Observe the bird for a few minutes and keep predators away, it may just be stunned." We watched and watched. Two children grew tired of watching (one was away at a friend's house where he'd spent the night) but one child set up vigil just inside the window for the bird, and I began to worry that she was just going to watch the bird die. I prayed for healing for the bird, got tired of watching it myself, and set to unloading the dishwasher. Lo and behold a few minutes later, the bird was standing up!

It was a little miracle! That poor bird just stood there for a good 15 minutes still trying to recover from the impact with the window and finally he started hopping around and hopped off into the yard. We watched him until he hopped out of sight, hopefully he was able to fly again. And I reiterate that we do NOT need another pet! Besides, Google informed me that it's illegal to keep a wild bird as a pet, now the kids can't argue with that reason!

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Monday at noon I picked up Little Girl from preschool and the whole way home she jabbered on about her class guinea pig and how cute it was and how much she liked it. I knew it was coming, and sure enough, she said, "Mama, I'm going to ask for a guinea pig for my birfday. A guinea pig and that's all. That's all I want for my birfday!"

Good thing her birthday is not until October! Here's to hoping she forgets about the guinea pig because if I've said it once, I've said it a hundred times, "We do not need another pet!"

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Tuesday afternoon the kids caught a love bug and the 7 year old named him "Bobby". I had a time explaining exactly why it was called a "love bug".

I had to Google "What do love bugs eat" and then the kids stuffed the bug habitat with leaves and flowers.

Bobby was with us a whole 24 hours until I suggested he should probably be set free because, "You know he'll be happier if he's free," I told the kids while I secretly thought to myself, "We do not need another pet!"

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Want to know why we do not need another pet?

Because there is plenty of chaos with just the one dog we have! Here's a glimpse of one morning this week:

What is going on there?

The kids are brushing their teeth in the half-bath that is just before they head out the backdoor for school. Only Madeline the Goldendoodle LOVES to drink water fresh from the faucet. She jumps up with her front paws on the sink and someone helps her drink by cupping their hand under the stream of water!

But, seriously, the chaos! Let me zoom out and just give you another perspective of the scene in this tiny bathroom:

And yes, the 5 year old is standing on the toilet lid. I keep a set of kid toothbrushes in the cabinet over the toilet so they don't have to run back upstairs after breakfast. The little kids climb up to get their toothbrushes down, which explains why there are often shoe prints on my toilet!

Clearly, we do not need another pet of any kind, but at least the dog we have can read (if you missed the video here's a link)!

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Happy Friday! And I'd love to hear about the strangest pet you've had.

Find more Friday Fragments here.

What The Chick-Fil-A Cow Says About Our Life

2013-04-24T20:53:00.001-07:00

This picture was taken last year, when Little Girl had only been home from Ethiopia 3 months and she met the Chick-Fil-A cow for the 1st time:

She really loved the cow, but see that look on her face? That look on her face as she took in yet another new and strange thing about her new life in America, and the question she must have asked in her mind a billion times that first year -- is this good or bad? Am I safe or not safe?

It is 16 months, exactly today, since we brought home a 27 lb. non-English speaking Ethiopian 3 year old as our daughter. We've watched her blossom into a 35 lb very fluent, talkative, English speaking Ethiopian/American 4 year old! The past 16 months have been such a whirlwind of joy, pain, laughter, tears, new experiences, screaming, tremendous blessing and hard work. Really, it has been a privilege to walk this road, but honestly, most days I'm just exhausted! Between our new Little Girl and the other 3 children, there's been little margin of time to reflect, which is a huge reason I keep up this little blog, to process my life as it unfolds so fast. But, it's impossible to adequately capture all that has happened from that moment we stepped off an airplane from Ethiopia with our Little Girl until now. However, I think these cow pictures illustrate a bit of what I'm talking about.

Here is the one year later, just a couple weeks ago, when she met the cow again (he changed shirts and added a hat) at the same annual event:

She loved him this year, too. But, look at her face here -- confidence!

We've learned in our adoption classes that when children feel safe they begin to blossom -- socially, mentally, physically. If they know that their world is safe, everything can build on top of that.

This time they even danced!

Is all this to say that things are perfect now? That all the hard work is done? Not a chance, but we've come a long way, Baby!

We are continually in awe of the work that God has done in the life our Little Girl!

She taught our dog how to read!

2013-04-23T20:57:00.001-07:00

Recently my 7 year old daughter taught our dog how to read! I know, I didn't believe she could do it either!

But watch the video to see Madeline The Goldendoodle read each letter of an alphabet book:

Madeline The Dog Reads! from It Feels Like Chaos on Vimeo.

Find more Wordful Wednesday here.

Yes, a vacuum cleaner is my best friend.

2013-04-22T22:12:00.000-07:00

The entire 1st floor of our house is hard floor, either tile or hard wood. Between the crumbs spilled by the kids and yard debris brought in by our super furry dog, the floor needs to be vacuumed daily. I do not usually actually vacuum it every day, I just wear shoes inside the house (my "inside shoes") to avoid stepping on grit -- I hate the feel of grit under my bare feet!

We have a central vac. system that I use to do a thorough vacuum once or twice a week, but to haul out the long hose more often than that was troublesome and not happening. Over the years I bought many different lightweight cordless, stick vacuums to use for quick clean-ups, but I've found their batteries stop holding charge after about a year and I got really tired of buying new ones or using one with a weak battery!

So, this time I decided to go with a corded vacuum, but stole a tip I learned from a beach house we stayed at last summer -- I hooked up an extension cord to the vacuum to make it a longer distance without unplugging/replugging.

And it works great! The cord does not even bother me and it is so easy to whip out and do a quick vacuum or hand to a kid who is acting annoying and therefore earned some vacuum time!

Here it is, my new best friend:

See the extension cord in the background?

Here's the vacuum again:

Only don't buy it on Amazon, because it's $19.88 at Walmart . I know, I know, I don't really like going to Walmart either (Target is my happy place but Walmart is too dark and crowded with stuff or something; it makes me feel claustrophobic) but it's worth it to save nearly $12.00!

***This is not a paid endorsement. I paid for the item with my own money and truly do love it. If you purchase it through my Amazon.com link, I will receive a very small advertising fee.***

Find more Works For Me Wednesday here.

We do not need another pet!

2013-04-18T23:01:00.000-07:00

The Christmas stuffed dog bone met it's demise this week . . .

Madeline puts on her innocent face and says, "What? I don't know who made that mess!"

And her guilty face, "Okay, it was me. But, I didn't mean to, I just got a little carried away playing!"

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Apparently Madeline the dog is not pet enough around this house. My 7 year old daughter insists she wants her very own dog, a little dog! And she'll pay for it with her own money and take care of it and train it . . .

I casually mentioned the vet bills and cost to board the extra dog every time we go out of town. I may have even had a vet receipt handy from a recent boarding and showed it to her. That pretty well ended the asking for her own dog!

But, then there's my 4 year old daughter that has decided she really wants a little pet turtle! Where she got that, I have no idea. We do not have any friends with turtle pets. Honestly as a former scientist, the Salmonella aspect scares me! But, I just said we'd talk about it when she was old enough to clean out the turtle tank by herself (which I think will conveniently be the same age she can go away to college). Little Girl has still added the turtle to her birthday list which grows longer each day and her birthday is not until October! I finally did have to burst that bubble today and inform her that, "You know, just because something is on your 'birthday list' doesn't mean you'll definitely get it."

It's all about setting expectations! And not getting a turtle as a pet.

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Remember when I told you that my 5 year old son blows me a kiss after he crosses homeplate in his T-ball games? Well, I now have photographic evidence:

Good thing he's not asking for another dog or a turtle because I just might cave under the pressure of that sweetness!

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Happy Friday!

Find more Friday Fragments here.

Sometimes it just is about the hair.

2013-04-17T22:14:00.001-07:00

Today I sent Little Girl (who we adopted from Ethiopia) into her gymnastics class and watched through the glass viewing window as her teacher greeted her. Little Girl's hair was fixed in the same style as the picture below, with 2 little puffs with bows in the front and free hair in the back (the last 2 weeks we've had braids, so it's not always free hair):

Her gymnastics teacher is African-American and she said to Little Girl, "I like your afro hair! It's cute!" To which Little Girl replied, "It's not my afro hair, it's just my hair!" Her teacher smiled at her.

But, I just knew she was thinking, "Poor little girl with a white mama."

Just being real here. And sharing a glimpse into the world of being a multiracial family. Obviously we are so thankful for how God built our family, and the blessings dramatically counter-balance the hard parts, but there are challenges. Often, I am sure I create many of the difficulties within my own mind. In all likelihood the very sweet gymnastics teacher probably wasn't feeling sorry for Little Girl having a white mother. And Little Girl only began learning English 16 months ago, so the fact that at 4 years old she didn't know the word "afro" is probably no indication that I have failed to properly educate her about and expose her to her birth culture. But still, the insecurities are there. And I know they are there for many other adoptive families. The voice that whispers, "You are not equipped to raise this child well." When I sense that voice, I remind myself that I am ill-equipped to raise any of my children well, no matter if they are genetically related to me or joined our family through adoption, and I am relying on all-mighty God, the creator of the universe, to fill-in where I fall short.

That being said, on the car ride home I did explain to Little Girl what an afro, or "afro hair" is. And then spent nearly 2 hours washing, detangling, conditioning, and putting twists in her hair because today was already planned to be a hair-wash, style day.

Find more Thoughtful Thursday here and Thriving Thursdays here.

Great Joke to Play On Your Kids

2013-04-16T19:20:00.001-07:00

Want to know a super funny, harmless joke to play on your kids?

Pick them up from school and tell them you have a special treat for them -- Brown E's. Of course they will hear "brownies" and be so excited. When you get home, make a big production of slowly opening the foil lid you've put on a baking pan, then bring out a brown letter E! "Here's your brown E!"

Oh, it is so funny! Just hilarious! Because a few of my kids were slow coming out of the car and one detoured to play on the swings in the backyard before coming in for snack, I managed to one-by-one do the joke to each of my 4 children last Friday. It was really funny to see each of their individual reactions! And the kids that were now in on the joke had fun watching their siblings fall for it!

My 10 year old son thought it was the funniest thing ever!

My 7 year old daughter was the most mad:

The 7 year old: "Hey! You said you had brownies, THAT'S NOT A BROWNIE!"

Me: "Well, what color is it?"

The 7 year old: "brown."

Me: "And what letter is it?"

The 7 year old reluctantly, "E".

Me: "So it is a BROWN E!"

She did come around and saw the humor, though!

Because I'm not a totally mean mom, I did really have a pan of brownies hidden away ready to offer them once the Brown E fun died down!

On Monday, I packed each of the 3 kids that go to big school, a construction paper brown E in their lunch box because they wanted to play the little joke on their friends at lunch, "Hey do you want my brown E?"

They had fun playing the joke on their friends! My kindergartener said one of the cafeteria workers saw him do the joke to his friend and she started laughing! And my brave 4th grader played the Brown E joke on his teacher, luckily she thought it was funny, too!

So, spread the laughter -- who could you play the brown E joke on?

Do you know of any other good jokes/pranks we could enjoy -- good clean fun where nobody gets hurt?

Find more Works for Me Wednesday here and Wordful Wednesday here.

When Life Is Not Unicorns and Rainbows

2013-04-15T21:54:00.001-07:00

I sat on the rug today in the elementary school library with 24 kindergarteners. The librarian had just read a story about Jane Goodall. The book was Me . . . Jane by Patrick Mcdonnell and it is told from the perspective of Jane Goodall as a little girl with her toy chimpanzee and describes her dream of "living with and helping all animals," Then one day she finds that her dream has come true and the book then shows a picture of the grown-up Jane with a real chimpanzee in Africa. Our wonderful librarian then held up a book she had made about herself as a child. It depicted her life as the 2nd oldest of 5 girls and on one page it mentioned her dream of becoming a librarian someday. The now grown-up librarian said to the kids, "And now look at me!" She motioned around the room and said, "My dream came true!"

Then she asked, "I wonder if any one of you has a dream for your future?"

A few of the kids said they wanted to work with animals one day, but I was amazed at some of the answers! One little girl raised her hand high and when called on said in a strong voice, "I want to ride a unicorn someday!"

"Whoa!" I thought, "Now THAT'S a dream!"

Then another little girl just couldn't wait to share her answer, "I want to slide down a rainbow!" she said.

"Me, too! I want to slide down a rainbow, too!" said the the little girl sitting next to her.

As I smiled at their cuteness, I also marveled at the innocence of these public school 5 and 6 year olds! "Thank you, God, for that. Thank you that their dreams are about unicorns and rainbows!" I silently prayed.

I helped the kids find and check-out books, then helped another class when the kindergarteners left, ran an errand, picked my 4 year old up from preschool, had lunch with her, played a round of the game Guess Who where I always end up letting her win, read her a story, and settled her into bed for some rest-time (which she never uses to actually rest, but it's quiet time for us both any way).

Then my husband stopped by home during his work day to pick up something tax-related to take by the post office (yes, we are last-minute like that) and he asked if I'd heard about what happened in Boston. I hadn't. I opened up my computer and read a couple articles and my heart sank.

Evil had struck again.

"Why, God? Why can't this world be unicorns and rainbows for our kindergarten kids to grow up in?"

Of course, I know a lot of reasons why life here on this earth is not going to be easy. And senseless tragedies, like today in Boston, remind me so clearly that we are not home yet! This world is not our home! Here on earth the battle is on -- good versus evil!

But we are assured in Revelation 21 that one day God will dwell with us and, "He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away.”

Until then, may I live like I believe that and teach my children the same. This world is not my home and He is coming back!

One Big Life

2013-04-11T21:25:00.000-07:00

Tonight we had my 2nd grade daughter's school musical, it was very cute. I've loved seeing my shy girl blossom and branch out of her comfort zone some this school year. Aside from the musical, this week she also did the announcements over the loud speaker in the morning at her school along with 2 other classmates. Last year she didn't volunteer when given the opportunity. This year her teacher didn't give her a choice (which I'm so happy about), and my girl ended up having fun doing it. She said next year she'd willingly volunteer!

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When my 4 year old little girl goes to a party, she does it up big, I tell you! Here she is post-party last weekend:

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We've had some strange weather lately with some near-summer-like days right next to still-need-your-coat kind of days. Sometimes all in the same day! Yesterday the temperature dropped 20 degrees right at mid-day, which meant my kids were sent to school in shorts and needed coats (which they didn't have) at pick-up time!

But we are enjoying the pretty, spring days when we get them. Some reading and writing at the outside table:

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Last Saturday night we camped in our local city park for the annual "Tents in Town" night. It's like camping without all the work plus a mega-party. You still have to set up your tent, but then you get everything else provided to you! For dinner, breakfast and even smore's and ice cream you go through a buffet line. Then there are jumpy things, a live band, games, nature demonstrations, and star gazing through telescopes -- the kids have a blast!

My 5 year old son loved this activity and spent so much time there. In fact it was quite a hit with many of the boys. Cars and tracks. Pretty simple, really, but huge entertainment!

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I am hoping for a bit more rest this weekend. Although with a swim meet, a t-ball game, and an adoption class, all in addition to church, that's not likely!

Happy Friday, Friends!

Find more Friday Fragments here.

With Friends Like That, Who Needs Enemies?

2013-04-10T20:52:00.000-07:00

Did you know that as Judas was betraying Jesus by turning him over to the chief priests who arrested him and crucified Him, that Jesus called Judas, "Friend"?!!

And he came up to Jesus at once and said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” And he kissed him. Jesus said to him, “Friend, do what you came to do.” Then they came up and laid hands on Jesus and seized him. Matthew 26:49-50 (ESV)

If Jesus saw Judas as his "friend" at that point, who else does Jesus see as his friend?

And just who should we as followers of Jesus see as our friends?

Best Cream for Dry Skin

2013-04-09T22:26:00.001-07:00

Skincare can be a big topic in transracial adoption, because you are caring for a child that may need a different skin care regime than you would do for your own skin and there is a learning curve to figure out what works. I have had other moms ask me what I use to moisturize Little Girl's skin, so I thought I'd share what we use here.

What I've found that works best to keep my black daughter's skin from getting too dry or ashy are the same 2 creams that work best for my white daughter's eczema-prone skin, only with my Ethiopian child, the lotion needs to be put on twice a day, with my other daughter we can get away with once a day.

The 2 creams are Vanicream and CeraVe Cream.

Now if anyone has any hair product recommendations, I'm all ears! We have tons we've tried but the one we loved most -- Curls By Sisters Smith is no longer being sold on the Internet and I haven't found anything even close as our new go-to leave-in conditioner!

Find more Works for Me Wednesday here.

The things we do for our kids!

2013-04-08T20:57:00.001-07:00

What is my husband doing in this picture?

He's digging for a homework packet for a certain oldest child who lost it! We were trying to get out of town for Easter weekend when the packet was discovered missing. We looked everywhere for it and couldn't find it. The 10 year old was in tears! My husband thought it may have been thrown away. His trash can digging didn't unearth the missing homework, either.

My son found the homework packet the following Monday when he when back to school. Turns out even though it was supposed to stay home and be worked on little by little over a few weeks, he'd put it back in his backpack after doing some work one night and then took it to school the next day and left it in his desk at school.

Ha!

I'm so glad I snapped that picture, though, because it sums up what parenthood is often like - sacrificial and messy!

Find more Wordful Wednesday here.