"'Ello, my name is Kristin, and I like to do drarings.."

I admit, because of Kristin's speech delays (which have worsened with the summer break from speech therapy), I often expect less from her on all aspects of development. Combined with a head in the clouds personality, and really, I am shocked when she is doodling and comes out with this:





Aren't they the cutest little faces?

My sweet Kristin. She is my giant adorable baby.

This morning she asked, "Mommy, play pahpeeza* wi' me?"
How can I resist?
My darling, darling daughter.

*translation: puzzles

Side note: the title of the post is in reference to an old SNL sketch with Mike Myers where he was a little boy named Simon, in case you are too old or too young to know this...

Stunt Man

Daniel wants to be a stunt man.
He is my first to climb, jump, fling, catapult, launch, etc.
Most of the time, he laughs about it all.
But every once in a while, and injury will result in a few tears,
and a request for "Mommy's lap," "bank bank" (his blanket), and
"booboo hurt, ice."





I think he might need this shirt... so so cute.

Just thoughts. Nothing more.

I admit, I'm hormonal right now. Hormones make me overly sentimental and a bit crazy, with a touch of homicidal urges (that I wouldn't actually act on, tempting as they may be).

I hate waiting. I am a driven person, which I am sure is a God given idiosyncrasy. I thrive on change. There is no real "status quo" in my life... I am always looking for the next BIG thing.

My desire is to adopt another child. NOW. But God is saying "no." And that makes me bonkers. So, I wait. I realize that the last 3 sentences would make my high school English teacher bonkers, starting with "but," "and," and "so."

Every child I have inquired about on the NC kids website has come to a swift dead end. I am thankful for obvious closed doors. They are a blessing. But, I want an OPEN door!

We have opened our hearts to the idea of fostering again. It would be hard. However, we want to leave that option open in case God has plans to bring us another son or daughter through the foster care system.

I ran into a neighbor at Wal-mart with their foster baby. She is beautiful and it appears adoption is on the horizon. I am so happy for them... this will be their first child.

On a side note, I can't shake the image of my cat dieing. I came home from Wal-mart tonight fully expecting to see another one of our cats in dire straits. The hormones mixed with the trauma of losing a pet in an unpleasant manner has me on edge. Tears could flow at any moment.

I swear the other cats are sad. They are always out front now, as if they are waiting for Abby to come home. Before I would mostly see them at meal time, but now they sit in the driveway. All day long. It makes me want to cry. Death is so painful... even the death of a simple cat.

That got me thinking earlier today about photography, and how strange an invention it truly is. You are able to capture an image in time. Before cameras, people really had nothing to remember a person (or animal) by except memories. And those memories died when the following generation passed on. Sort of makes you feel like a nothing. Just a fallen leaf in autumn. Once beautiful, and then no more. Sorry, I'm being depressing.

On another train of thought, I am missing my horses. I miss riding. I really miss that part of myself. I dream of having time to ride. Having money to ride. But mostly time. What a blessing to have all those years in the saddle! I hope I can share that love with my kids, somehow someway. Either I hope to have a horse again before I'm to stiff to get in the saddle, or I REALLY hope I get to have horses in heaven. As far as I'm concerned, riding horses is the closest thing to heaven on earth ;-)

The end.

Sad.

Last night, one of our cats died. While I admit, the cat adopted us (against our choice), she has loyally stayed around the front of our house for about the last 5 years. Abby, I came to learn, was her name. She belonged to our former neighbors, and when they moved, Abby made the trek across the neighborhood to come back to what she thought was her home.

Abby was a semi-friendly cat. She was always close, and I could easily find her snoozing whenever I went outside. If it was meal time, you could see her waiting intently, and she greeted you with happy meows. Her brown fur always blended in with the pine straw or dirt... I called her the "camo cat."

Last night, I came home from Wal-mart, and immediately noticed Abby was in our neighbor's driveway, yowling in pain. She couldn't get up. I ran to get Noah... I knew she was going to have to be put out of her unexplained agony. God, in His mercy, allowed her life to end seconds later, as she was dead by the time I ran back outside.

I bawled.

Poor kitty. It was so sudden. And mysterious. And worst of all, it was not a peaceful death.

I hate not knowing what happened. I'm fairly sure trauma of some kind was involved. Maybe a car hit her. Her belly was enlarged and I didn't want to inspect further because I was so upset.

Noah isn't one to investigate, but he did kindly bury her. And he didn't make fun of me for bawling my eyes out over a cat.

So, now we have two cats. The two girls (Emmy and Mama Cat) were so sad as they came and sniffed at Abby's body. They knew something had happened. They knew their friend was gone.

I have a photo of her somewhere... I'll have to see if I can find it.

It's weird how the death of a cat can be so hard. Mostly because it is a slap in the face. We are mortal. Our world is broken. Everything dies, and death is the enemy.

It makes me cling to Jesus just a little more. It brings hope of heaven. Even though we don't know if our pets will be in heaven (scripture doesn't say one way or another), I think it's okay to be hopeful. Here is a brief article on the topic.



Also, with my sweet Jezebel turning 12 this month (she looks so tired and old in the above photo... I can relate), I can't stand to think of her ever leaving us for good. It's so painful. The Fall is so evident to me, which make the Gospel of Salvation so precious.



I yearn for the day there will be no more tears and death will no longer have victory.

And I really do hope when that day comes, I have some of my furry friends rejoicing right along side me.

New Favorite

I have a new favorite blog...

It's Almost Naptime!! written by a young lady named, Missy.

She is smart.

She is funny.

She has a passion for Jesus.

She has a passion for orphans.

I love this blog.

Read THIS post. I want to shout "Amen!" from my rooftop.

But then I learned her four kids are the same age (almost) and gender line up as mine!

She is in the process of adopting from Ethiopia.

Then I clicked on her "what I believe" tab, and low and behold she simply quotes the Apostles Creed. And she links the Westminster Confession of Faith.

I think I like this lady :-)

Operation Diaper Deletion

It is happening! Daniel is in the process of being potty trained.
I know he just turned 2, but he is ready.
Summer is the only time I am willing to potty train.
Winter clothes make for frustration, and it's too cold to let them run naked.

I can't believe it. The Haut House will be {temporarily} done with diapers!
I say temporarily as I hope God will bless us with another baby or two in the future...
... we shall wait and see.

But in the mean time, a diaper free house! CRAZY!
Over 7 years straight of diapers.



How do I potty train?
Each kid is different, but I have learned the best way is to go cold turkey.
I have to be mentally committed.
The first week is the hardest.



Keys to success:
Naked teaches quickest, but does require some clean up work.
Lots and lots of liquids... juice, lemonade, anything they will drink a lot of.
Find a reward that works. All my kids love sugar.
Chocolate chips are currently what I'm using.
Treats are only for successful trips to the potty.
I also sing a song and my version of a cheer-leading routine for success.
We have a little potty, but try to teach our kids to go on the real deal from day 1.
We have a built in toddler toilet seat, worth every penny we spent on it.
Take a deep breath. Accidents happen.
The goal is for the child to WANT to use the bathroom.
Bladder/bowel control will come in time.



In the above photo, Daniel sports some boxer briefs with all his favorite balls on them...
he's drinking a juice box and pondering the little potty.
He has only used the little potty twice, but used the real toilet about a half a dozen times so far today! Yay, Daniel!

Back to School

Year round school just makes sense.
We are two days into our new school year.
Technically, Isaac is in 2nd grade.
Lauralyn starts kindergarten.



In reality, Lauralyn is going to be on a first grade level in a few months.
But that is why homeschooling is great.
I can move her along at whatever pace keeps her interest.

I am going to do preschool with Kristin, who does pretty well with basic workbooks.
She is so proud of herself.

Daniel, who is never one to be left out, will make do with Color Wonder markers and crayons.



Here's to a new school year!
And soon enough, we will be officially "Cornerstone Academy."
I plan to register our homeschool with the state tomorrow.
(It isn't required until the eldest student is 7.)
*And as you can see, we have a very loose dress code.

Swim 2010

This is Isaac's 4th season on our pool's swim team, and Lauralyn's 1st year.
The season is about 8 weeks long, which is perfect for our summer break from school.



Swim team gives us a nice routine during those two months.
Practice every morning and meets on Tuesdays.



Although, I admit, the meets can be long, somewhat boring, and extremely hot.
Granny is a huge help, watching the younger two, so I don't have to bring them along.





This year, Isaac swims the maximum of 5 events, so there isn't quite as much waiting around.





This has been a great season, and we are almost finished!
All we have left is the County Meet in 10 days.

Below is Coach Robin telling Isaac how awesome he swam... it looks like he is sad, but he isn't.



I couldn't be more pleased with how much Isaac and Lauralyn have improved this year.
Isaac has competed all 4 strokes and has finished in the top 5 consistently.
His ribbon collection has tripled this summer, and he is so proud of this fact.



Lauralyn went from swimming timidly with a float vest to help and being scared to jump in...





... to "diving" in (more of a jump than a dive), and swimming across with no help and no stopping to rest!







The above photo shows Lauralyn with Blythe, who Lauralyn thinks is the BEST.
Blythe has been helping Lauralyn gain confidence this summer, and what a difference she has made!
AND Lauralyn got a ribbon at the last meet (3rd for a relay)!
She was thrilled!



I recently learned of a home school swim team that practices in High Point during the school year...
I'm going to see if we can work in a once a week practice for P.E. since they won't be in any winter sports.





Way to go, Isaac and Lauralyn! Congratulations on a successful season!

Randoms

Today's post is a laundry list of random things floating about my head.

~Long weekend! Yay! Maybe it will stay cool and we can get a bunch of stuff accomplished.

~ Photo shoot tonight with good friends. Should be fun. Then tomorrow we get together with them again to let the kids swim. Fun, fun!

~ I bought Adobe Lightroom 2 off of Craigslist for $50. It's legit, too. That means I saved a whopping $250 because someone didn't use their expensive software and wanted to unload it. Happy dance!

~ I might be taking a free class on "Extreme Couponing." The thought of couponing being "extreme" makes me laugh.

~ Isaac and Lauralyn are doing awesome on swim team this year and I have yet to post on it... although I will soon. Only one more regular meet and the county meet. Lauralyn can officially swim across the length of the pool without stopping, so we are super happy about that.

~ My thyroid meds were doubled by my dear Dr. Ben, so I am hoping to have my metabolism pumping soon.

~ I have scheduled a photo shoot for my family with a wedding photographer I admire. The shoot is in Sept. and will take place in Uptown L-town. I have spent hours trying to figure out what our family will wear. I think it's all sorted out, and my awesome MIL will be sewing adorable coordinating dresses for the girls (and maybe ties for the boys). We are going all out formal (suits and dresses) since the photographer is best with formal situations. I am so excited.

~ I am getting more and more motivated to potty train Daniel. It's set on my calendar for July 26. I think candy will be a big motivator for this kiddo.

~ Which makes me remember, Lauralyn does not like it when I call them "kiddos." She thinks it's like I'm calling them a mean name. Funny girl.

~ This break from the heat is a little peace of heaven. A bunch of Beavers are coming over to play in a bit and I couldn't have better weather for outside play.

~ Speaking of a large family, I have seen a sibling set on adoptuskids.org that I want to adopt. I told Noah to not be surprised if there are 3 more kids in our family when he gets home from work. I'm kidding of course. But only because DSS won't let me go get them today. My heart aches knowing these kids don't have the permanent security of parents that love them and a home that is theirs, really theirs.

~ I am aware most people think I'm nuts. Most people should be aware that I don't care that they think that ;-)

~ I just realized today is July 2nd! Two years ago, we got "the call" and I rushed to go meet my baby boy in the NICU! Happy "Gotcha Day," my sweet Daniel!