TNA

Anderson underwent tonsilectomy and adenoidectomy (or whatever) on 7/13/2010. He had to spend the night so that his sleep apnea can be monitored. He did really bad overnight and had to be given morphine but now we are home and he is doing great. He ate and drank today and I only had to give him motrin and not the tylenol with codeine medicine that I have to force him to take because it is so nasty tasting. He had the procedure done to help the sleep apnea and also hopefully help him not wake up so much and rock and bang his head to go back to sleep.
On another note, we will be going to St George Utah to vacation for a week, we got a 2 br condo for $100 for the week. It is a timeshare that a friend has that he is not able to use. Also we are going to Disneyland around Roman's 3rd birthday so the kids are really excited about that too. We also went to San Diego for my birthday this year and went to Sea World, the kids had a blast. It was their first time to California. We also like to do camping trips but have only been on one this year. Rose had a distal femal buckler fracture and had to have a cast for three weeks so that set us back a bit but we are looking forward to lots of fun this summer before the girls start school in August.

The Decision

Everything worked out perfect with Christopher. As it turns out, we decided that we would not keep him because it was too hard on us and not fair to any five of the kids. We were so torn because we also did not want him to not be able to grow up with his siblings. I had a friend that was in the process of getting her foster license and offered to take him. It was a struggle to get it to actually happen but as of 6/24/2010, Christopher went to live with another foster family. They are a great family and will adopt him if it gets to that point. It is so nice that the kids will still be able to maintain a relationship with him. We have already gone out to dinner with them as well as Christopher spent the night one weekend so it is great so far. Anderson had the hardest time when he left. He was holding his bottle one day and told me "I hold the baby's bottle for when he comes back" Another night he started crying and saying he wanted the baby to come back. All of the kids are really excited when they see him and they know he is special to them. I feel confident that we made the right decision. Even when he slept over for one night it was rough. Our kids are at such a different level right now because of that and the multiples of them, it is too hard to add a baby to the mix but we love Christopher so much. I met with Danielle at one of the visits and explained our decision to her and she understood. She asked how Alice and Anderson were doing and told me to give them a big hug and kiss for her.

Baby Boys

So a couple of weeks ago we heard from the kids GAL that Rose and Roman's bio mom had another baby on 4/30/10, Julian, and that he was in CPS custody. We were concerned about his well being so I called his caseworker and she advised me that he tested positive for meth at birth and that his mom was going to prison for a probation violation so that is why he was in CPS custody. The paternal grandparents are doing what they have to do to get custody of him and he is staying with a family friend right now. We felt at peace that he is going to go into a good home and also relieved because we had to think about the posibility of taking him if they asked and we are just not ready for it right now. Then on Friday 5/28/10, we got a call from a caseworker that she was at Alice and Anderson's bio mom's house and was removing a six month old baby boy, Christopher. Danielle asked the caseworker to call us since we had the siblings until she can find someone else to take him. It was so hard for us to decide to take him. HE was removed because the bio father shook him and threw him into Danielle's lap at a Dr appt and they also found meth on them. Our thoughts when we were called were that it would be too much to have five kids under the age of four, that we wouldn't want to take him temporarily and get attached, etc. but we decided to take him as a nonrelative placement temporarily until the team decision meeting on Wednesday 6/2/10. We figured at the very least, Alice and Anderson would have a chance to spend time with him and get some pictures. We got him at about midnight that night, he had no clothes, a few diapers and some formula with one bottle. He is so cute, blond hair, bright blue eyes, and he is bonding with us all very well. It is very hard on me because he constantly wants to be held and the other kids require so much of my attention. I also feel guilty like I am taking away from the other kids or neglecting them. At this point the boys just got out of diapers, we have lots of camping trips planned, a disneyland trip planned and everything is finally getting easier now that the kids are more self sufficient and Alice will be starting kindergarden next year. With that said, we are thinking that we will probably not keep him. We have to draw the line somewhere, as we are sure more babies will be born and we can't take them all. I feel terrible that Alice and Anderson will not have their brother to grow up with and Christopher as well but also it could be the opposite effect. No one knows what the future will hold and we can't make a decision on the future, only what we know now. I am writing this for the future because I want everyone to know how hard of a decision this is for us and to understand the backbone to whatever our decision may be. I will write in a few days to update what is going on with the case.

OH MY GOSH

I just need to force myself on here and start writing because if I don't then I won't ever write because I am overwhelmed with all that I have to write about since I last wrote. Anyway, Roman and Anderson are now potty trained, they are both in underwear, no more diapers, yipee. Anderson still thinks it is funny every now and then to pee on himself so we are working out the kinks but I am so proud of them. Alice will be graduating from Pre K in a few weeks and then will be starting advanced kindergarden and Rose will be starting half day kindergarden this school year. Anderson will start preschool in Aug two days a week four hours total a week. We went to New Orleans at the end of January 2010. We had a great visit, we got to see everyone and the kids had a blast. They love their maw maw, paw paw, granny, and mimi as well as their aunts, uncles, and cousins. We plan to do a lot of camping trips this summer. The kids love to go camping so they will have a lot of fun. They also love to ride their bikes and go swimming. They all can ride a small bike with training wheels. One cute thing that Anderson says when we go swimming is "Moma, get me and Roman a shirt so nobody sees our tatas" Alice still loves Hello Kitty, Rose princess, Anderson Spiderman and Toy Story, Roman doesn't really stick to one theme. I am working on getting the boys in the bigger bedroom to share and then will get the girls in their own bedroom so they won't have to share anymore. I am hoping Rose will sleep later, she is an early riser and wakes everybody up when she gets up. Anderson will be getting surgery in a couple of months to get his tonsils and adnoids out and Rose will probably get her adnoids out. Otherwise they are really healthy. I have been diagnosed with valley fever and am on medication for that right now.
To my beautiful children= I love each and everyone of you so very much. You brighten up my day every single day and I am so blessed to be your mother. You all make me so happy!!!!! Never doubt my love for you! I love you, I love you, I love you!!!!

Day 10/365 Photo

January 10, 2010

Goodness, where does the time go? We had a very productive couple of months so life has not been dull to saw the least. Thanksgiving was really nice. My brother Randy, niece Samantha, and nephew Landon came in town for the whole week. The kids were so excited to see them. We did so much stuff including going to the zoo, rainforest cafe, dolly steamboat (canyon lake), ghosttown , desert botanical garden, etc. We got to do a lot of things in one week that we had not done with the kids since we lived here. It was also nice to have other family here for Thanksgiving for the first time since we moved here. I also started working seasonally at bath and body works which has been a lot of fun but really hard to leave the kids with a justified reason. I am now done with the seasonal work and will stay on with them to do floorsets once a month. December 8, Maw Maw Emily passed away and I flew into NOLA to help Paula with housework, errands, and go to the funeral. I miss the kids and Mike while I was away for 5 days but at the same time, I am glad I was able to be there to grieve and saw goodbye. I also got to spend some quality time with my Dad which I had not done in a while. We went to Academy and bought tons of LSU and Saints gear (Saints 14-3 right now and playing cardinals next weekend in playoffs), we also went out to lunch and then I went with him to help him buy a new suit. It rained so much the last night I was there that my dad's whole street flooded and I was not able to go meet my mom for dinner. Christmas was very relaxing this year, we just stayed home on Eve and Day and hung out, cooked, and let the kids enjoy their gifts. Alice is doing so well in Prek, Rose is in preschool doing well, and Anderson and Roman are boys :) We just registered Anderson for soccer to start in February and we plan to start the girls in dancing school again in July. My friend Terry was in a terrible car accident yesterday with her family. A drunk driver ran a red light, thank god they are okay. We are going to NOLA at the end of the month for Mike's 15 year highschool reunion. We can't believe it has been that long already. The kids are all excited to see everyone, it has been a year since they have been there. Other than that, I am so excited for the new year. I look forward to continually get the house organized as well as start to do a little sewing on my sewing machine. I got it right before I started working and haven't really used it yet.