We Plan, God Laughs

I remember when I used to plan my life. I knew how everything was going to turn out, and I was in complete control of what happened to me. Or so I thought. Each step of my life has taught me that plans do not always work, and the key to happiness is learning to appreciate the blessings in each situation we find ourselves in.

This summer we decided that our family was complete, and that we wouldn't be adopting anymore. Our family felt complete, and we were so happy with our two boys and baby girl. Then at the end of August our adoption lawyer called to tell us that Clara's birth mom was pregnant, and invited us to adopt the baby girl due to be born in early December. We hadn't financially planned for a fourth adoption and we had already gotten rid of most of our baby stuff, but Tyler and I both felt like it was the right thing for our family. We're now less than six weeks away from the baby's due date, and I'm still in shock that we have another baby on the way! There was a time when I didn't know if we would ever have children, and now we are about to have four children under the age of four. The noise and chaos level in our house is about to reach a new level of crazy!

*Random pictures because it's been so long since I've posted. :)

I try my best to enjoy all of the little moments of raising my kids, but it makes me sad when I realize how much I'll forget. I take more pictures and videos than I probably need to, but I want to really remember some of the little details of everyday life. A few months ago I started writing down funny things the kids say or do, or the little quirky things, and I've already got over three pages. It's been funny recording them, and hopefully I can keep it up.

 - Tyler made up a new verse for The Wheels on the Bus when the boys were babies. After the baby on the bus cries and the mommy says shhh,  “The Daddy on the bus says ‘Stop that racket!” While driving Isaac to preschool the other day we were singing the song. When he got to the last verse he sang “The Daddy on the bus says ‘Stop that rabbit!’”

- During bathtime I put Clara’s hair into a tall spike on top of her head. Isaac said, “Clara’s a temple!”

-  When the boys were supposed to be going to bed I could hear Hunter screaming and crying. I went into their room and Isaac was sitting on top of Hunter. He said, “Mommy, Hunter needs to calm down!”

-       When helping the boys brush their teeth, Hunter asks us to brush his teeth in very creative ways. Elmo dinosaur, dinosaur train, Hunter’s Buzz, Buzz and Woody fly, and we have to guess how he wants us to do it.

- For about a month, at the end of each family prayer Hunter would ask that Daddy not be sad. I guess he was grumpy or sad one day and it stuck?

- My kids are obsessed with birthdays. Any time there is a birthday in the family, for months afterward the boys sing Happy Birthday, and anything that resembles a birthday candle gets "blown out".

Isaac

Isaac turned three at the end of last month. Each birthday brings back so many memories of when he was born. The stress of finding out that his birth mom had gone into labor without telling us, franctically making our way down to Arkansas, meeting baby Isaac for the first time, so many strong memories. It felt like such a long, frustrating road to parenthood, it was surreal when we actually held him in our arms.

Isaac is not a toddler any more, he's definitely a little boy. He is so clever and funny, and he cracks me up even when he's being naughty. He's the most charming at 9:30 at night when he's supposed to be asleep and he's sweet-talked his way out of bed.

He loves his siblings so fiercely. The boys rarely fight these days, and they play the most elaborate and imaginative games. I know I'm biased, but I also think he's pretty smart. He can say the whole alphabet, and can identify most of the letters. He knows most of his colors, can count to 30 or so, and has several of his favorite books memorized.

He is pretty independent and gets plenty frustrated when he doesn't get his way, but he has also learned the value of bargaining, which comes in handy when we want him to do something. :)

We love Isaac so so much, and can't imagine our life without him.

Through the Eyes of a Child

Parenting three kids under three is hard. Very hard. I have great kids, but I feel completely overwhelmed at least once a day. I consider it a good day if I make it to bedtime without completely losing my cool. Lately I've been trying to remind myself of things that matter and things that don't matter. Does it really matter if the boys have a nap? It certainly helps the rest of the day go better, but if they miss one every once in a while it's no big deal. Does it matter that my kids have fun playing with each other? Absolutely. Does it matter if we are a few minutes late to something because Isaac wants to put his own pants on? Not really. Does it matter if I encourage his independence in a constructive way? Definitely. I am naturally a very controlling person, so these kids are teaching me a great deal of patience and are helping me to let go of things that don't really matter.

I've also been trying to see each day through the eyes of my kids. Sometimes I'm frustrated because I don't accomplish everything I want to in a day. If I review the day through their eyes, though, it helps me change my perspective.

Through my eyes: The boys wouldn't nap. Frustrating! Then we had so much time to burn that we drove around for a while even though we didn't have any errands that needed to be done.

Through their eyes: We had so much fun playing with each other during nap time! We pulled Isaac's mattress off of the bed, had a picnic on it, then played under his bed like a fort. Once mom gave up on nap time we drove around looking for tractors. It was awesome! Then we found a train and chased it all over town. Best day ever!

I don't know if that's what they really think, but it helps. :)