Signed, Sealed, Delivered

We took Abbey to meet her mother. We stopped here:The kids checked out the gardens (in the 95+ degree heat):They checked out the model train. (The one in Helen, Ga is much better)Ate some lunch and sent Abbey on her way.Made a stop at Chickamauga and drove a bit. (going to head back when we have more time and less heat) It was such a beautiful and serene place. Hard to visualize the sadness that was once here.
That's all. Now we 'recover'. Randy has been up every day this past week going to work. Then, he and Judson would head to Scout camp from about 4:15 til almost 10. He's ready for a rest.

Last Day of Captivity

For all of those
(you know who you are )
who are saying to yourself
She is too hard on that girl

She shouldn't force
her to hike up a mountain.
(most folks would agree it is more of a big hill)

Be it known
She is a 9 year old
Healthy girl
Who is able to walk
UP
and
DOWN
the mall
TWICE
(it's not a small mall)
looking for just the right
cell phone holder.
IN FLIP FLOPS!

She survived
Stricklin Boot Camp!
The burning question:
Will she return for the next installment in 2011?

By the way, how do you feed four kids 2 meals for $10 and have leftovers?
Little Caesar's!!!
Judson doesn't count as he is a picky eater.

Day 6 of Captivity

ARE YOU SITTING DOWN???

Abbey hiked UP
Stone Mountain
Today!!!!
Randy took
Abbey, Ansley and Judson
UP
Stone Mountain
While
I
took
Sawyer and Turner
AROUND
Stone Mountain
on a Train!
He said the girls
COMPLAINED
the whole way!!!
Ansley's Brain was hot
Abbey was hot all over
They both were DRAGGING

Finally
Judson told Abbey
People from Georgia
could beat
People from Tennessee.

At that,
she sprinted the last 200 feet.

They road the sky lift down. I think if we wanted to exploit the situation we could have told Abbey she could hike down OR pay $50 to ride the sky lift. We did not.

Final analysis:
Abbey said that pulling weeds was preferable
to Hiking Stone Mountain.
Obviously, I did not give them enough weeds to pull.

On a different note:
If you get bottles like the one on the right,READ the instructions.
If it says HAND WASH,
Just Do It.
Otherwise:

Day 5 of Captivity

What's that light at the end of the tunnel?
Is it THE END
Is it a TRAIN

Today, I overheard Ansley ask Abbey when she was going home
Abbey said: "Friday"
Sadly, I had to inform her "Nope, Saturday"

She took it well enough
I mean, she didn't jump off a bridge or anything

The kids have been begging me
To get the sprinkle ball out
I have tried to avoid it
You see, the water from our house is VERY COLD
I know they will NOT spend much time in the water
Alas
I could no longer avoid it
So the sprinkle ball was setup
(Thanks, Dear)
He even set up the kiddie pool

How long, you ask
Did they enjoy this activity?

Let's just say,
It took longer to setup and take down
Than to actually enjoy it.

This is what my kitchen floor looked like after said 'enjoyment'

It was a good day.
No tears.

Day 4 of Captivity

Today, I made Abbey cry.

Don't worry.
She is alright.
Just pointed out
that maybe there were things
about her
that were more like Ansley
than she might think.

Just part of Stricklin Boot Camp
Tough Love Series.
I designed it to help them
come home
with more appreciation
for their own parents.

They come home saying:
"Thank you God for giving me
the parents you did
and NOT the parents
Judson/Ansley/Sawyer/Turner
Have."

Day 3 of Captivity

One thing Abbey's Mom wanted was for Abbey to get the FULL Stricklin experience. She wanted Abbey to know what it is like being a member of a large family and how much sharing and compromise goes on.

This is Abbey's take so far:

Ansley: In Abbey's own words: " Oh my goodness, she's the worst". Paraphrased: She HAS to be the center of attention. It is all about her. She whines all of the time. She needs more punishment. She also told me there might be hope that she'll grow out of it. Apparently, Abbey used to be this way but has grown out of it. So it might be that Ansley will grow out of it before she turns 9. However, if she hasn't done so by the age of 9, there really is no hope.

Turner: Paraphrased: He is probably the 2nd worst. He also needs to be the center of attention which is why he and Ansley have such a love - hate relationship. He's also mean. He hit Ansley with a hard object for no reason. Since he is young, there really is more hope that he will grow out of it.

Judson: He's pretty good. Only the 3rd worst. He pretty much does his own thing most of the time. He's super smart. He does not need to be the center of attention. He does sometimes get angry with Ansley. Unlike Abbey who just gets away from Ansley, Judson will hit Ansley. So he apparently needs to learn to just go somewhere else.

Sawyer: He is the best! He just does his own thing. He isn't constantly wanting to be sitting in Abbey's lap or annoying her. He likes to just listen to music and just exist in his own little world. So he gets the Abbey Seal of Approval.

These are Abbey's musings. She also stated she was EXTREMELY happy being an only child and does NOT want any siblings. She used to want to adopt Turner. She no longer does.

So I think my job is done. Abbey has gotten the full Stricklin experience. Now she must survive the rest of the week. Hopefully, she has the fortitude!

Day 2 of Captivity

You see

This is how it is
They seemed to have too much time on their hands yesterday
So
I decided to let them start the day in meditation
Meditate on Good Decisions vs. Bad Decisions
What better way to Meditate
Than getting Back to Nature


What better way to get back to nature
than to pull weeds
My back is out
So I cannot do it
As I see it
It is community service
We all win!

Day 1 of Abbey's Captivity (AKA Stricklin Boot Camp)

Cousin Abbey is staying with us this week. She's an ONLY child forced to live in a house with FOUR other children. No late nights. No TVs in her room. This is the story of her week from hell at Stricklin Boot Camp. Watch for us on Reality TV.

Climbing to the TOP of the Mountain.

Finally, at the TOP of the Mountain.
Adrenaline Pumping!
Descent Down The Mountain
Fear is in the air!


Delirium


Trying to Escape

Calling for HELP!


All survived, TODAY!!!

Vacation 2010

We've been to Pigeon Forge, TN!!!
(be sure to click on photos to see them up close and personal)

Number 3!!!

Happy Birthday, Little T

You're getting so big. We're celebrating over several days. On Saturday, the kids made you a birthday cake and drew you pictures. You got to play outside and get some new mosquito bites. Sunday, you get to go eat out at the restaurant of your choice (except that restaurant is closed on Sundays, so Mom and Dad get to choose) Next week you get to celebrate with cousins. It's good to be a T!

Why?

Because she is THE POOH. That's just how Pooh's roll!

The Mother of Invention

What do you do when you need some throw pillows for your sofa that are: comfortable, washable, cheap (because sometimes washable doesn't get it done), and functional?

You go to Walmart. Buy 2 travel pillows for $3 each. Buy 2 pillow cases at $3/pair. Double the cases over and sew them up on the sides. Then squish the pillow in there. Voila. Throw pillows for 4 children, 2 adults, and 1 cat. (the dogs don't get them)

Wednesday

Par-Tay

Two parties. Same time. What do you do? Divide and Conquer!

Party #1

Pretty fun until you stop and realize you have welts and bruises and scratches all over your body. After a bath and good nights sleep, they are planning on what they will do at next year's party!

Party #2

Much more reserved but equally as fun for the participants.


Turner got to sing.
Sawyer got to play drums.
(no pic of drum playing)

Race

Judson's first race.



3K in 20minutes and change.

This is what happens WHEN

You go from Tiger to Wolf!!!!

Judson's Blog

http://judsonstories.blogspot.com/2010/05/scout-camp-spring.html

What We've Learned

You know they say, Kids are great teachers. Boy, is that the case in our house.

Take #1 for instance:He's the first. He taught us to see life through a child's eyes. He taught us to look at what we thought we knew and believed and PROVE it. Awesome. BUT he almost killed me those 1st 6-8 months! I didn't think I'd survive. I mean, he was collicky. He would only breast feed. He ate EVERY 2 hours. I didn't think I would make it. Little did we know he was preparing us for
This guy.

#2

You know, you think you can prepare for birth but then things sneak up on you and make you have to do more prep. We knew he had Down Syndrome and we knew he had a heart condition. We prepared for those as best we could. We did NOT know he had Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension until maybe 3-4 weeks after he was born. We did NOT know PAH has a very slim survival rate and he was given no chance of survival. (probably best we did not know that, huh?) So we had a year of around the clock feedings and medicines through a feeding tube, that I had to insert regularly through his nose because the stinker kept pulling it out. We had multiple doctors visits per month. We kept busy trying to balance his health with #1's need for support and attention.

What did he teach us? (and continues to teach us) Enjoy every moment because you never know if it will be your last. Enjoy the small things and don't worry if it takes longer to get the big things. They will come in due time. You know what else? He taught us we could handle more in our lives than we ever thought. He taught us how much time we wasted on unimportant things. We knew once #2 was out of the woods, we could adopt and handle whatever came our way.

So then came

#3:OH MY. What has she taught us? Let's see. For starters, don't take yourself too seriously. Don't think you are ready for Parent of the Year award, cause you are going to have to prove it daily. She challenges you in ways that make you feel uncomfortable. She makes you work for it. And you know what, that's okay. She has helped us become better parents. I don't think she'd award us Parent of the Year yet. She still has a lot of work left to smooth our rough edges.

Because of our first adoption experience, we felt we could handle another one. That led us to:

#4OMG, he may have taught us the most important life lessons. "Don't Worry, Be Happy" Seize the Moment. It's okay to laugh a LOT. It's okay to sing whenever you feel like it. (this has a secondary benefit of angering #3 who does not like perkiness) It's okay to dance (using your shoulders like they do in Ethiopia) even if the music you are dancing to is inside your head and no one else can hear it. If you are super happy, the best thing to do is the Ethiopian click with your tongue. Basically, just enjoy what life has to offer you. Don't spend too much time planning, just enjoy!

So that is what we are doing. ENJOYING!
Thankful for each day and each child and the lessons they teach us!

Swimming @ Wee-wah's House!

This is Wee-Wah (aka Olivia)

No Pics of Sawyer. He was at school.

Blessed

This was taken before we went out to eat breakfast on Mother's Day. The kids had a great time at the restaurant and did very well. To top it off, someone paid part of our restaurant bill, anonymously. How nice was that!!!

Just so you know. This was like the 900th picture Randy took. In each of them, one or more people might be smiling but not all 5 of us were looking at the camera at the same time. It's tough getting all 4 kiddos looking and smiling at the same time.

Mother's Day *edited*

From my Tamirat! (Yes, I cried)

I am blessed enough cus I have mother.
I am greatful cus you are my mom.

A mother understand what achild doesnot say.
The heart of a mother is a deep abyss at the bottom of which you will
always find forgiveness.

No body know of the work it makes /to keep the home together. No body
know of the steps it takes\ no body know but mother.Being a mom is a
bless thing.

Before I got you mom, I had no idea getting mom again cus I lost my
mom and I was blieve there is no way getting mom again. But a God will
he give me, he change mybelieve, he give what I lost through you. And
thank's for being my mom.

Happy mother's day mom your son !!!!!!!!!!!

A Day at the Park

We met Sawyer's class at the park for an end of year picnic. Boy was it hot!!!
I had one mom argue with me that Ansley was from Korea. (Umm...I am pretty sure my husband went to Taiwan) Check out Sawyer's freckles. (Where does he get those)
Click on the picture and then click again to enlarge it.

And So it Goes

Mom: Ansley, that dress looks nice on you.

Ansley: Thanks. It also looks good on me.

Mom: Yes. Yes, it does.

Re-Cap

Busy weekend. Can you believe I didn't even take a picture? I'm slipping!

FRIDAY

Nana and Pop came for a visit. Hooray!!! Tea parties and playing outside and stories and all sorts of fun stuff. Of course, Nana always brings stuff. This time she brought Judson some new books. One of the books was HG Wells, The Time Machine. (Young Readers version) Judson started on that Friday night and was finished with it on Saturday. Ahhh...he is a chip off the old block. I love reading. Randy loves reading. Both grandmothers love reading.

SATURDAY

Randy ran in his first 5K race. His goal was to run in less than 30 minutes. His time was less than 27 minutes!!! His new goal (because he is hooked) is to run it in less than 25 minutes. He also wants to run a 10K.

Sawyer had a baseball game, so Nana and Pop got to see him play. ("play" being a relative term)

Then Nana and I got to go shopping. I mean, really, did any of my millions of readers think it wasn't going to happen?

SUNDAY

Nana and Pop had to leave today. We spent the better part of lunch trying to decide which one missed them most. Not sure who won that game.

We had a great weekend! Now back to reality.....