Christmas Time.....

So here is a picture from the courthouse when we finalized the girl's adoptions! It was such a great day! One of the other things we had REALLY wanted to do & haven't been able to is pierce the girls' ears! I had mine done as a baby & I think the younger the better. So as soon as we left the courthouse we headed to get their ears pierced! Both of the girls did really well. Everly was surprised by the first one, but she REALLY wanted it so she held still & let them do the second one. Delilah cried, but only because she was MAD! Also I had custom  shirts made for all 3 kids, they came out really adorable & we got TONS of compliments on them, I ordered them from The Lion & The Unicorn.

 

We barely had time to let the adoption sink in & Christmas was here! The kids were so excited & it was a really special day. We got up early & opened presents. We had a great lunch & then we took a 3 hour nap! It was amazing! You can't tell from the picture below, but the kids were excited.... Just not excited to take a picture!!

In the pictures below Lyla was devastated I took her new baby from her so Daddy could cut it out of the plastic. Then the world was right again because Daddy gave it back!

Everly really "got" Christmas this year! She was so excited to open gifts, she even climbed on top of them! She was a beast!

Tuck obviously gets Christmas! We got him a Kindle Fire & he really loved it! I know a lot of people think its crazy for a 6 year old to own a tablet but it costs the same as a Nintendo DS & the games are cheaper! He can also have books & kids magazines to read all the time!

Overall it was a really great day. I'm not sure it has all sunk in really, its just been such a long road! We're just really enjoying these days!

Meet our daughters!!

We are over the moon to have finalized the adoption of our daughters today. They have been the biggest blessing we could imagine in our lives. I am not sure there are words that could describe what it feels like to finally be "done" and a forever family! Even though I've done this all before I am still amazed at the work God can do in our lives. Just one year ago our lives and our daughter's lives were so far apart. We were preparing for Christmas and finishing up our license. It was a bittersweet holiday season. (You can see it in my blog posts from that time). Our girls were in yet another home that made a promise to them they couldn't keep. Our ladies would soon know yet another loss in their short lives. We were set on doing legal risk & straight adopt placements only and we were NOT willing to do emergency, or foster to adopt placements. We wanted one little girl, but decided to consider siblings. I have NO idea what made me say yes when our agency called except I knew deep down God had a plan for us, if we were only willing to listen and trust in him. When they selected another family for the girls that Friday I was so disappointed. I had thought for sure then that they were "ours". I usually take this stuff in stride and don't really get attached to any of the kids we submitted for, this time was just, different. I felt such a loss. I spent the weekend pouting & sulking over it. So when they called back Monday & said that the other family changed their minds after taking the girls home & realizing they weren't able to care for their needs, I just knew we had to bring them home. I don't know if terrified even starts to describe how we felt that first few weeks and months. They had already been through so much, and were hurting so badly.  Here we were, not knowing if we would even get to keep them! I wasn't sure if we were strong enough to make it through the wait, or to provide them with everything they needed to get "better". We knew full well the huge risk we were taking, and that it could possibly end in the greatest heartbreak we had ever known. I can't tell you how many tears I cried worried, terrified and just sick that we may have to say goodbye to our daughters. Not only was I afraid for me & my husband, but also our son and our family that were forced into this with us. They didn't sign up for this or agree to take the risk. They welcomed the girls with open arms and took the chance in loving them also. The saddest points were usually in the car to & from work when I was alone & had time to really think about our situation. But 11 months later, all of our prayers have been answered and our patience and faith rewarded. It wasn't all rainbows & unicorns. It took work, therapy, tears, dozens of workers, at least 5 attorneys, many sleepless nights & thousands of prayers to get us here. This was a giant corn maze & we walked into it blind. We stumbled our way through it and we just crossed the finish line. I hope everyday this is our legacy as people, parents and as a couple. We love them with our whole heart, and I am so proud of what me & my husband were able to weather side by side & hand in hand. He is the best partner I could ever imagine and we wouldn't be here without him. So please meet our daughters. 

        Our oldest who I've been referring to as Sissy is 2, she will be 3 in January, meet Everly Tabor or Ever for short. We picked her first name because its original yet sweet, her middle was to honor someone that was so important in my husbands life. She was a person he could trust, who always saw the good in him, showed him what unconditional love REALLY means, and helped him become the man he is today. She always saw him for who he really was, and not who she wanted him to be. I will forever be grateful for her being in his life. I don't know where he would be without her, though she's gone I see the results of her selfless love in my husband every single day. It was a no-brainer to name our little spitfire in that woman's honor. She is sassy and spunky & full of life. I see so much of myself in her. She has a huge heart but the strongest will I've ever seen in a child.  Everly is as smart as they come, but she has a serious side. She is a fighter and she can overcome anything! I am in humbled by her every single day, for her strength, and love, her fight, what shes been through and overcome, and the person she is becoming. I see her giving us a run for our money! She is the first to snuggle up on the couch, or put her big brother in his place with one hand on her hip!

Our little princess turned 1 in July, and is now 17 months old. Previously known as Dee, is our little Delilah Carson or Lyla. We selected her first name after a little girl that changed my view on adoption. A child who's spirit was so unbreakable and who helped me to realize that our kids aren't lucky to have us. We're the lucky ones to get to walk beside them in their lives and on their journey. Adoption is about them, not us. When people tell us how lucky our kids are to have us, I think of that little girl. It was the name I have had picked for my daughter for years. Daddy picked her middle name because that's what he does and he fell in love with the name! She is the little nugget or peanut as we call her! She left the hospital without a name at all, and had a rough start! She was born 4 weeks early & was under the 10th percentile in size. She has overcome THAT title to become quite the meaty lady! She has met every one of her milestones and is advanced for her age. She is happy, healthy and has the brightest of futures ahead of her. She takes a little bit to warm up to you but, once she does, watch out! She is silly and such a ham. She loves to make people laugh especially her big brother and sister. She will use her charm at any chance to get what she wants. Lyla doesn't have a serious bone in her body, and if you try to be serious with her, she's going to make you laugh! If you scold her she will try to kiss you, and if that doesn't work, she will give you the stink eye just out of spite! She can keep up with the big kids just fine and usually bosses them around too!

 For now we're just enjoying the moment, which will undoubtedly be the happiest in our lives! There were many times we couldn't understand the plan that was laid out for us, but for everything God takes, he replaces it with something BETTER, our daughters couldn't have made that any more clear! This has been such a lesson for us, if you spend your whole life staring at the door that God closed, you will NEVER see the new one he opened. So, we're just looking towards those new doors, and not wasting a second looking back at closed doors or our past. The present has never felt so happy, and the future has never looked better! Enjoy the video below (sorry about the quality, its the best blogger would let me upload. To watch in full resolution visit http://youtu.be/7Y2zPkpIqjY ).

2 Days & Tattoos!

So we are just 2 days away from finalizing! We are really excited to be finishing up our adoption of the girls. To celebrate we have been thinking about getting tattoos & that's just what we did! We went last night & me & my husband both got new tattoos. I got a yarn style bow on my left wrist. Our kids have been the biggest gift in my life. No gift is complete until there is a bow on top, and so that why I got the little bow.  Its just a symbol of the perfect package we have.

 

My husband had been wanting to get a band around is forearm of our kids' names. I can't show all of it because it has the girls' new names. This is how it looks on the arm from far away.

This is a close up of our son Tucker's name. It came out really beautiful and looks so much better in person.

We were supposed to go do our new family pictures today, but when we woke up it was pouring down rain, so that will have to wait! We have one more visit tomorrow night by our worker from our agency. Then we will finalize Tuesday. This will be my last post before we finalize. I will publish a post as soon as we get out of court on Tuesday where I will introduce our beautiful daughters! We just can't really believe we are so close & coming up on the end.

Twelve Days....

  We are now 12 days from finalizing and counting. No, seriously, I count it down every single day! Things are really quiet around here. We haven't really had any visits, we haven't even heard from the girls' worker since the week we did the adoptive placement paperwork. We got in the final draft of the adoption paperwork. These documents included the information for the girls' new birth certificates etc. We did decide to change both girls full names. We have two reasons for this. One of the times we went to court one of the attorneys said our last name out loud in front of their biological father, she said it in the context "Mrs. XxXx" I think without realizing it. The girls original names would have been pretty easily identified. With today's social media etc. we decided it was safer due to the girls' families having some violent pasts. Another reason we wanted to change their names is, names are a very personal thing. Each of the girls new names were picked for a very special reasons and they have a lot of meaning to us. I know this subject can be very controversial to many people. I know if you don't really have knowledge of name changing you may imagine them just waking up one day & we call them a different name, but it doesn't work like that. We faded in their new names with the old names. Sometimes chaining them together, other times calling them just the old ones, or just the new ones. Now we are at the point where we use their new names alone about 75% of the time. Its just like people calling their kids nicknames, or referring to an older brother as "bubba" once they have a new little sibling. Your child learns to respond to that name & it becomes a new part of their identity. This past weekend it was a GORGEOUS 78 degrees so we decided to pack up the family and head to the beach. We had an amazing water front lunch, Dee loves crab. The girls had never seen the ocean so I was happy we could take them. The water was pretty chilly, I mean it is December. Sissy loved it, but didn't like the way the water came up to the shore & chased her. She ran away from it every time crying. by the time we left she was letting the water touch her feet a little. Dee HATED the water, it was probably the temperature. She also wasn't a huge fan of the sand & the way it stuck to all her little fat parts. Of course Tuck loved it & jumped right in, freezing water and all. Its days like that we feel so blessed. It was just so beautiful and perfect. God has definitely blessed us with 3 beautiful healthy children. I know some people pray for God to change situations in their lives, or to change PEOPLE in their lives, our prayers are consumed by our lovely children and their futures. What else could you ask for?

Christmas Traditions ***Guest Post***

       Hello, for those who do not know me my name is Chris. Crystal and I have been married for 10 years in February. Since our first Christmas we have always put up our Christmas tree the weekend after Thanksgiving. It has always been a live tree. The one above is alive, even if it does not look it. We all go to the tree lot and all look for the perfect tree. Last year it was Tuck that found the tree, and he still talks about how he was the one to find the perfect one. And this year it was Crystal, she fell in love with this flocked Charlie Brown tree. Christmas has always been our favorite holiday and even more so now that we have our 3 wonderful kids. We love this time of year and cant wait to get everything up and decorated. But by the time Christmas is over I am also the first on the block to haul our tree to the curb after Christmas morning is over. When I was growing up we moved a lot and there was never any consistency with the holidays. We never knew where we would be. If we would be in a new house or different town. (And no it was not a military family we just moved a lot.) So I always knew when I had a family there would be consistency with the holidays. I want them to carry them on with when they grow up. With 3 kids that spent the first parts of their lives growing up with out consistency I find traditions very important. I always want them to know what to expect and to look forward to every Christmas.  With this being the girls' first Christmas with our family we started a new one this year. This year we introduced the kids to the Elf on the shelf. And they love it. Every morning Tuck and Sissy get up and try to find Archie (this is what the kids named our elf) and see what he has gotten into over night. Dee is a little young for it this year but I want her to know she was a part of this tradition from its start. (The photo above is me reading them the story after we put up our tree & the first night Archie came to visit this year, Below are some photos from where Archie has turned up this year).

-Chris

Black Friday?, No, Gray Thursday....

I really hate to call it Black Friday. By Friday I was sleeping in my bed at home, shopping all done! We ALWAYS hit up Toys'R'Us. They have the best deals around and are always very organized. They only allow in a certain number of people & regulate the flow in according to how many people leave. This way it never gets too crowded. They also always have tons of the sale items. This year we had the biggest list EVER! We have a very strategic plan going in. We use those little sticky flags to mark all the pages in the ad we need toys from, then we circle all the toys on that page along with how many we need of each. We always bring someone just to stay with the cart (this year my 15 year old brother got that job), that way we can run & grab things & just throw them in the cart & go back out. Once we got an item we marked it out in the ad & removed the flag. This year went really well. We got there about 4:45, I took this photo when we first arrived.

By the time the store opened at 8 the line was around the side of the building & well around the back & cars were still POURING in. You can always tell the people who haven't come out before by their face, utter shock & disbelief at the line! It was really tame & everyone was really polite, no pushing or anything.

We got inside with the first batch of people. We were able to get all of the items at the top of our list. The only things we didn't get were things that were VERY last and they only had a few of them to begin with! We got to checkout within 35 minutes. By 9, we were through the checkout & on our way to the car! This is what our car looked like, the seats were folded down & it was full all the way to the front seats! There was LOTS of pink this year!

 

This left the most interesting subject of where to HIDE all this stuff! We have a storage unit, so it will probably get moved there but for now we couldn't leave it in the car, so it ended up in our master bath. The kids NEVER go in our bathroom, and even if they do, they would never move back the shower curtain. The shopping was a huge success. We saved over 60% & got the kids pretty much everything for Christmas. We usually buy one large gift, or two smaller gifts that are from Santa. We also usually give the kids 3 decent sized gifts from us, just like the wise men gave baby Jesus. Also, we do a couple of smaller stocking stuffer type gifts or smaller presents from Santa. We didn't really try to spend the same amount of money on each child, its pointless. With our son being so much older, his gifts are just more costly, hands down.

Tomorrow we will decorate the house & buy our Christmas tree. We decided to change our decorations & really go with a traditional Christmas this year. We have a tradition in our family where we rotate who hosts. The rule is, if someone has a new baby, they automatically get Christmas for that year. So we get Christmas this year & we really wanted our kids to have a traditional, timeless Christmas the first year we were together as a family! We are now just 3 1/2 weeks away from finalizing, but who's counting? There is really NOTHING going on. We don't have anything to do at all, it is VERY weird to just be patiently waiting on December 18th. I know it doesn't seem like long, but it is CRAWLING by, every day is just killing me! Also, in other news, I asked my lovely husband to do a guest post of my blog! Hopefully the next post will be written by him, so check back next week for that one! If you have any topics you would like to hear from a mans point of view, feel free to leave a comment!

The New Normal....

   So we are just a few days away from Thanksgiving, and it will officially be the start of our first Holiday season with our girls! This time of year will be special because we are finalizing our daughters' adoptions, but also because it was the same time of year we brought our son home. Our son came home the weekend before Thanksgiving 4 years ago. He will always hold a most special place in my heart. He was my first baby, my oldest, my son, the one who made me a Mommy my husband a Daddy, and he made us a family. He will forever be my little ladies' big brother. He will be the one to protect them, the one to show them how to get their way with us and the one to watch over them hopefully long after we're gone. He will be the first of my kids to learn to drive, and the first to go to college. I can't imagine any other child having been my oldest baby but him. Out of all the families out there I can't believe he came to us. He spoke only Spanish & we didn't speak any! He was used to having lots of siblings, and he wouldn't have any. A million little miracles brought us together all those years ago. I don't know how, or why, I just know it was perfect. A few weeks ago we went to a ranch by our house & the older kids did the zip line. Tuck was afraid so Sissy went first, she's fearless! After she went, he couldn't be shown up, so he went! The kids had lots of fun feeding the animals and playing on the ranch. Also my favorite holiday is coming up, no, not Thanksgiving, Black Friday. No, I don't go to wal-mart. The way they handle Black Friday is dangerous & ridiculous. I refuse to give them a penny of my business. I always go to Toys'R'Us. They regulate the line in & out and always have PLENTY of the advertised items. They also hand out coupons for all the big ticket items. They start at the beginning of the line & ask if you want that item, if so you get a coupon, if not they go to the next person, and when they run out of coupons, that's it. There is no fighting. The worst part is just waiting in the lines. But we have 3 kids to shop for now, plus my niece & my nephew. We usually save about 60-70% on the items we buy that day, so its worth the few hours of waiting outside. I'll do a little post with some photos of the madness out there!

A Little Adult Time....

              For the last 10 months we haven't really been out without the kids. We really aren't allowed to leave the girls with anyone that isn't a licensed caregiver, so going out after work or after daycare hours was pretty much impossible. Now that we're an adoptive placement we are able to leave them with any of our "frequent visitors" that underwent a background check in the beginning of this process. I planned a little night out as a surprise for my wonderful husband. We went out with our closest couple friends & had a great time. We went to a place in Houston called Prohibition. They are a speakeasy type of club & have a great burlesque show on Friday & Saturday nights. The club itself has a great vibe & the show was really first class. It was really nice to spend a little time just the two of us again! We're very excited about the upcoming holidays. We consider Christmas a big deal in our house & there's always LOTS of fun going on. The other night as we all sat around the table eating dinner I asked the kids what they wanted Santa to bring them. Tuck said he wanted a game system, when I reminded him Santa brought him an X Box 360 last year & he never plays it, he said he wants new games for it. So I asked Sissy what she wanted Santa to bring her & she just looked at me a little crazy. So I asked what kind of presents she wanted, and she just repeated she wanted presents. I realized there's a very good chance she never had an opportunity to pick a gift or celebrate a birthday, that she can remember. When we were given photos of her from her previous foster home where she spent her 2nd birthday, there weren't any of her birthday or the girls opening presents at Christmas. So I asked what type of presents, then she got it & said "I want a kitchen, and food, and to bake cookies and a kitchen!". I instantly realized what she was talking about, about a month ago I was at a children's resale store & they had a gorgeous 3 piece solid wood toy kitchen set, it had the little sink, the stove & a mini fridge. It was made by Pottery Barn, and baby pink, in a 50's theme. Sissy sat & played with it & begged me to buy it, "Please mommy! I want to make cookies, please, please Mommy!". I can't believe we didn't leave with it right then but it was HUGE & we have no where to put it, not to mention it was $200! So this year for Christmas I have a feeling Santa will be bringing her a little kitchen. As far as the adoption goes, it looks like we will be finalizing this year! We have a court date of December 18th to finalize. This road has been so rocky, so tough, and so rewarding. Everyday I debate whether we can EVER do this again. Could we tempt fate and try for a fourth? Right now I don't think I could. But when I watch my babies play together, or just listen to the 3 of them giggle & laugh hysterically together in the next room, I can't imagine not being a Mommy another time. When I watch my husband play with our kids or them run to him when he gets home from work, I can't imagine him never being a Daddy again either. I guess time will tell. We've decided to leave our license open, but inactive, for one year. If no biological siblings come into custody we will close our home. I think we have a great balance right now, but as far as more kids in the future, never say never! Our hearts will always be open to what God has in store for us. We have trusted him with our whole hearts this whole journey and he hasn't steered us wrong.

Today was the day......

     Today was the day! We finally signed adoptive placement paperwork for the girls! Their redacted file came in on Halloween & we read it over the weekend. I won't go into details because I think they're private but I was very surprised. We were under the impression our older girl was removed because of general neglect, not straight physical abuse. We were wrong. Apparently she was removed for significant physical & emotional abuse at the hands of her biological mother. The baby was removed at birth due to drug exposure & that fact her sister was already in custody. For the last 10 months I felt a little bitter sweet for the girls' biological family. I felt sorry for them, I mean their parents were both raised by abusive drug addicts themselves & just repeated the pattern. I felt sorry for their extended family, it wasn't THEIR fault the girls' parents were addicts & they ended up losing their nieces, granddaughters, cousins etc. But after reading their file & waiting the last 10 months, I still feel sorry for them, but I'm starting to realize we deserve this. Their biological family could have stepped up, they could have fought for the girls,but they didn't. We did. We fought for them, we advocated for them, we put our lives on hold for them, we worked through their emotional problems, we did the visits, took the classes & made the sacrifice, we took the biggest risk of our lives & our son's young life. If they wanted what we have now, they should have fought for the girls like we did. We deserve this, our family deserves this & most important, our GIRLS deserve this. They deserve a family that will always be there to fight for them. So I just hope I can stop myself from letting my sympathy for them overshadow the happiest time in our lives.  This was the last BIG step before we finalize. We should still have time to finalize this year. Our attorney is ready with the paperwork & assuming the court can get their end completed in time, we should be completely final before Christmas. (The photo above is our pack heading out to trick or treat, Sissy was a witch, Dee was a ladybug & Tuck was an alien!).

Some Bumps.....

Well....things aren't going quite as planned. We found out late last week that we are not going to be allowed to sign the waiver for reading the girls' redacted files. Apparently only relative or kinship placements are allowed to waive their rights to read the file. We have to wait for the file to come in. So at this point we are at a standstill until the file gets in & we can get down to the CPS office to read it. Everything else we need to complete has been done & everyone is waiting on the word that this has been completed, then we will sign our placement paperwork & our attorney will file the petitions. So, I guess its just a little more wait & see. All 3 kids are doing really well. They are looking forward to Halloween this week (well not D as much as Tuck & Sissy).The baby is finally old enough to really sit in the room with the bigger kids & play with what they're playing with & she is really happy about it! (The photo above is Tuck & Sissy, this is what happens late at night at Walmart).

New Things.....

     I really wish I could blog a little more often than I have been! I always swear I'm going to do updates weekly, next thing I know its been a month or so. At this point the girls have been home just a few days shy of 9 months. There are a lot of changes coming up. We have set the date to sign our adoptive placement paperwork! We are scheduled to sign on Halloween. We're very excited because as soon as we sign those our attorney will file the documents with the court so we can finalize on December 18th, one week before Christmas. There were 3 things we needed to do before we could sign the placement paperwork. One of them was to negotiate subsidy. We got those documents turned in & they have been accepted & should be coming to us in the mail any day. The other thing we were waiting on was the girls' developmental assessments. I took the girls for these this past week. The process they use is very interesting, they do things like see if the baby can stack blocks when prompted, or get a raisin from a jar with a narrow opening (too narrow to put a finger in). For Sissy they asked her questions like "what do you do when you're hungry?", or "what do you do with a bed?". They also did physical tests to see their motor skills etc. Both girls were well above their target levels (which I expected). The last thing we are waiting on that is NOT done yet is reading the girls' de-identified files. They requested redacted copies of the case file last month but it still hasn't come in. If we do not get this in before Halloween we have to either put off signing the placement paperwork which means we likely won't finalize this year, or we have to sign a waiver saying we agreed not to read the file before the placement. At this point there is nothing in the file that would change our minds so we would gladly sign the waiver so we can continue the placement. The only thing that worries me is if we sign the waiver for the file they won't EVER send it to us. I really want that file for our girls. It tells them the story of their life from a third party, not us and not their biological family. I want them to read what the state said happened, not what we TOLD them happened. If they ever find their biological family, I want to prepare them with the facts of their actions. They deserve it. I also took Sissy to see the ballet today. I think she liked it, she behaved very well & I couldn't have asked for her to act more "proper" at 2 years old. A couple of other things is I recently got a new job (I know, again!). The school I started out at the beginning of the year was an hour drive away & didn't have the training & room for advancement I had hoped for. Next Monday I will be starting at another autism school as a behavior therapist in their ABA program. Its a great position with an amazing structured training program to help me progress in my therapist levels. (The picture above is Daddy painting D's nails & then playing Hide & Seek with Sissy. )

Signing on the dotted line....

   Things have changed so much and then again they haven't. We have been getting everything lined up to signed the adoption paperwork for the girls. The documents we signed previously were just for foster & these will state our intent to adopt with the court. There are a few things we still have to do before we can sign the adoption placement paperwork. One of the things we have to do is take the girls in for their psychological evaluations. We have those scheduled for next week. We also still need to read the girls' file & negotiate subsidy. Our case worker is confident we will get it all done in the next 2 weeks so we are set to sign the paperwork on October 31st. They usually try to change the placement types on the last day of the month for accounting purposes. This way starting November 1st we would get adoption subsidy instead of foster stipend etc. As soon as we sign the paperwork our attorney will file the documents to finalize with the court. He said we should finalize at the December 18th court date already set up for adoptions. October 31st was pretty much the last date to sign our paperwork & still be able to finalize this year! We are so excited to introduce our girls to the world and get on with living happily ever after with our two little princesses.

Just Days Away.....

The girls have been home for 8 months now, it has gone by so fast but I can't even remember our life before them. We are just a few days away from the 90 day waiting period being over. This upcoming week the 90 day period for family members to appeal will be over & the girls will be completely & forever legally free for adoption. We are so relieved, excited, relieved, overjoyed, did I say relieved? This is the point where we can see the finish line, and we are in the final push. We got moved to the DFPS adoption unit & the girls have an "adoption" worker. They have requested the girls deidentified files & we are negotiating subsidy (there really isn't any negotiating, its a set package in Texas), the most notable part of the state subsidy is free college tuition at any public Texas university. The girls automatically qualify for subsidy because they are a sibling group. We also are lining up our attorney & getting the adoption paperwork ready to file. The hardest part of that is settling on names. We have 2 names picked & are pretty set, but its such a big decision! A couple of weeks ago we went back to court to the judge an update. For the first time I was allowed to speak at the hearing. She asked how the girls are doing, whether we plan to adopt or not as well as some basic questions. Now we are just counting the days & waiting some more! (The picture above is from last Sunday, I took Tuck out for brunch at The Cheesecake Factory & for a little shopping. The picture below is him inside Abercrombie for kids, he was very excited that he is finally big enough to shop there!).

The End to the Summer.....

The end of this summer has been very bittersweet. I spent this summer staying at home with the kids. It was nice but I'm excited to get back to work. I took a position with one of the best special needs schools in the Houston area as an Assistant Teacher. It was a hard decision, but the experience I will gain there is so priceless. I am working one on one with students in their ABA program for children with autism. Its a great program that I feel so lucky to be a part of. I don't have my teaching certificate just yet but am able to teach because we have a certified teacher who is the "lead" teacher. Since we work one on one with students the tuition would be insane for each student to work with a certified teacher. Its already been such a learning experience & I'm really excited to see what this year has in store for us. Another big change is our file recently went before the permanency committee & we were referred to the adoption unit at DFPS. We still haven't heard from our new adoption worker, but small steps I guess! Though the school I work at is back in session already (we only take a 3 week summer break), regular schools aren't. Tomorrow Tuck starts the first grade & I also go back to class working towards my degree. The girls are both doing so well. D is such a little lady & is growing into quite the ham. At the dinner table every night she sees who she can make laugh. Sissy is growing so fast too & has probably made the most progress. Not too long ago I realized the worker in her daycare class has been babying her. By babying her I mean, holding her when she cries because she doesn't get her way (the toy she wants, or 3rd servings of every meal). I also caught her teaching her to pout out her bottom lip when she's upset. Things kinda came to a head when one day when I was dropping her off she started crying because I got on to her for throwing an open drink in the car. When I had Sissy sitting on the floor until she could stop crying, her teacher walked up & tried to pick her up off the floor & take her from me. After a nice little talk with their Director I am happy to say we have seen a HUGE improvement in her behavior. We were being so consistent & we were having trouble understanding why she was still throwing such huge fits every time she didn't get her way. Now I realize it was because those fits were working at daycare. They were reinforcing her negative behaviors with positive consequences (being held or coddled). She has really started coming into her own & even her personality is brighter & happier. Now when she doesn't get her way, she realizes a fit & pouting won't work & she just goes about her business! Before it would turn into a meltdown, punishment & pouting. The picture above was taken last Sunday, we had a big crawfish & shrimp boil for my 30th Birthday. We all had a really great time & I couldn't ask for better friends or family!

Birthdays!

The kids had their birthday last weekend & everything went great! I was a little stirred up just because

the party was at my parents lake house & the drive was pretty far if we forgot anything at our house. Tuck had a great time & I hope his friends did too. All the kids "camped", well they stayed in the tents for 2 hours then slept inside. We also celebrated little D's first birthday. Shes walking so well now & her personality is developing also. We are still in limbo & there hasn't really been any movement on the adoption front. We are just waiting to get moved to the adoption unit at DFPS (Department of Family & Protective Services). There are lots of big changes coming up for us in the next few months & we're pretty excited. The photos below are of Tuck's party & a little sneak peak of D's birthday also. I obviously can't post much of hers since she is still in protective custody.

So, so, much!

It seems that things are so busy these days! Yesterday was the last day for the girls' parents to file their appeal with the courts. Yesterday came & went with no appeals filed. The girls are both wards of the state with no legal parents & we are one step closer to finalizing their adoption. Tomorrow will be 6 months since we brought our daughters home & the time has gone by so fast. I can't believe the baby will be celebrating her first birthday this week. Its been such a crazy time & I knew it would be over fast but I couldn't imagine how it would fly by. The baby is walking already & talks so much. Our "baby" is turning into such a little lady! We are celebrating her first birthday & our sons 6th birthday this weekend together since their birthdays are only 10 days apart. Tuck is having a camping themed birthday party & he is very excited! In other news I recently signed a lease on a little space at a co-op boutique by our home & will be opening August 1st. It will be nice because I can do everything in my spare time & spend more time with our kids. I will mainly be selling girls hair bows, tutus & kids high end items. I am just so excited to be moving forward with our lives & our beautiful kids. Six months ago I couldn't imagine how far we would come & grow. I'm grateful every day for the strength to do this & take such a risk with our girls.

Trial Date

       Well last week we went to court for the trial to terminate our girls' parental rights. The best part was during cross examination they basically got one of the biological parents to admit they were unable to care for the girls' needs. This is the same parent that has attended every hearing, the other hasn't shown up since last year even though they are apparently living together. The parent that isn't showing up currently has a warrant out for their arrest. Well when it was all said & done the judge terminated their parental rights. The order is scheduled to be entered at the begining of July. The parents each have 20 days from that date to file an appeal. Once we left the court room the girls' CASA worker went & spoke with the bio parent who attended & they asked if we would send updates on the girls, we agreed. The CASA workers seem to think they won't be filing an appeal. For one, they realize they didn't complete the case plan & the appeal would be denied, but also they would have to raise the money to pay their own attorney this time. The state has been supplying them with an attorney up until this point. Now basically what will happen is CPS will assign us an adoption worker & that person will prepare the girls' redacted or "de-identified" files. These are the big files of everything that led to the girls being in care, along with everything that happened since. There are many things about their past we just don't know & now we will hopefully be able to find out a little more about their parents' past also. Once we read the file & agree to the adoption, we are just waiting for the 90 day period to be over. Once a parents rights are terminated in Texas, there is a 90 day period before that child can be legally adopted. We have an attorney lined up & names picked out. So we're really excited to just breathe that giant sigh of relief & start living our lives with our daughters! (The picture above is my little Tuck showing off a fish he caught with his Daddy!).

So Much Going On...

So much has been going on getting time to post updates is pretty much impossible! I had finals for school, along with everything with the kids its been crazy! The last 2 days have been so busy! That little guy right there graduated from Kindergarten yesterday. He makes me so proud every single day. He is such a free spirit & walks to the beat of his own drum. I hope he never changes who he is for anyone. I try to remember everyday that its a BLESSING to be a parent, not a job. He is a gift to me from God, not my possession to try & control. I hope he always knows I love him for who he is, regardless of his choices, and my love is never conditional on him pleasing me. Then today was my wonderful husbands 31st Birthday. We've been together over 10 years and I couldn't imagine spending my life with anyone else! He still makes me laugh until I snort & is the best daddy I could imagine for our 3 kids. Speaking of our kids, everyone is doing really well. Tuck is turning into such a sweet brother. I catch him doing little things like holding Sissy's spare hand in the parking lot or brushing her hair for her after bath time. Sissy is doing well & is still making so much progress. She is becoming much more talkative, she has always talked REALLY well, but now she holds conversations & is more expressive. She is bonding well and is potty trained. Dee is doing good. She is nearly walking & is 10 1/2 months old already. We have court in 2 weeks for the trial to terminate parental rights & we are so ready! We have names picked out for the girls and just want our family to be final!