What a great day today is turning out to be....

I am a firm believer in letting kids explore themselves and their surroundings and to try new things until they find what makes them happy. What an awesome surprise to down load our vacation pictures and find these beautiful pictures of nature taken by an 8 year old. Yes, these were taken by Treyton. He asked if he could take some pictures. So of course, I handed him the camera and away he went.

Who knew that Dandelions could look so pretty! I just figured that I would have to delete most of them, but instead I kept them all!! All 20 something of them!! They're fabulous!!

The best part of it is that he just thinks he was having fun.

I can't wait to see what's to come!

Jamestown Settlement, Virginia

We took the boys to Virginia a couple of weeks ago and I'm a little behind on getting some pictures posted of our trip. We went to visit my cousin, Rick, in Mechanicsville. He lives in a development that was built on the Cold Harbor battlefield. How cool is that!? I've never been a huge history buff, but I have to admit that this trip was a lot of fun. We went to the Jamestown Settlement (the first English settlement in America) and road on a ferry. There was so much to take in that is was overwhelming!! It was nice to get away even if it was only for the weekend. The boys miss their cousin Alyssa and it gave them a chance to spend some time with her.

Holy, moly it's finally done!!!!!

Just a quick note before we head out for Richmond, VA today. Our home study is done and was emailed to Dillon (and us) today for review. YEAH!!!!!!! Hopefully everything looks good to Dillon and we can get our dossier in the mail when we get back. We'll take a copy with us to look at and double check spellings and birthdates, ect. and let our SW know if we feel any changes are necessary. Pray that everything works out (and that the weather is nice for the weekend!). I'll post more when I know more!! :)

Treyton is doing great!! The surgery was a piece of cake!! He complained of a headache when he first woke up but that was it. He couldn't believe that he could breathe through his nose again!! We came home about 11-11:30 yesterday morning and he slept for a couple of hours. By 3:30 he was ready to do something. Austin stayed after school yesterday with a friend for "fun night" so we went early to pick him up. Treyton talked about it all week but I didn't know what to expect from the surgery so he didn't plan to go. They had little activities planned around the school. You would've never known that he had had surgery that morning. He knew that he couldn't do any physical activities like soccer or floor hockey, but I think just seeing his friends reactions to being there was worth the trip down. His classmates had been worrying about him all day- that was so sweet to hear. Taylor and Sydney gave him a big hug and told him how glad they were that he was OK. (and yes... they are both girls... :) a little lady's man!) . The only thing that he has complained about is a dry throat!! Amazing isn't it?! Thanks Mama Dee and Grandma Alice for the Italian Ice and Popscicles!! Thanks for everyone's thoughts and prayers.

Treyton is nervous...

Treyton is having his adenoids removed on Wednesday. He's a little anxious, as to be expected, but is "looking forward to breathing again" he says. I'm sure things will go well but he's going to have a few rough days following the surgery. This is a very common procedure and many children go through it. Surgery was the last resort. We knew it was just a matter of time. We tried many things hoping his adenoids would shrink but instead they got bigger. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers.

CIS Fingerprints done...

Shad and I finally made it to Buffalo to have our fingerprints done today!! Yeah!! Seemed like everytime we tried to get there something came up. I picked him up from work after I got the boys off to school and away we went. We were in and out in about 20 minutes or so, maybe not even. We both were craving Indian food so we figured we'd celebrate the next step of the process and went to lunch at The India Gate. We are sloooowly making progress. But... we are still waiting for our homestudy. So... we wait some more!

Cooper is 7 !!!!

My darling baby boy is now 7. March 26, 2001 at 4:18 pm my chubby little 9 lb 1 oz Cooper brightened my world. He is the heartbreaker of the family and a true "mama's boy". I feel bad because he wanted to go to Darien Lake so bad for his birthday but it's not open yet. The Easter Bunny brought season passes to Darien Lake this year so he thought we could use them now. Not to mention Cooper's day started out crappy because he thought that Shad forgot his birthday. This is because he didn't wake him up before he went to work (mind you, Shad goes to work at 5 am, sometimes earlier). Needless to say, he was kinda cross all morning to everyone. We went to Applebee's for dinner to celebrate and he got his presents when we got home. He got a DS game, PJ's, a treasure hunt book and a new bike! He's been riding a two wheeler since he was 2 and always got the hand-me-downs. Now the hand-me-downs are extra in case a friend comes over or something :). Coop's day turned around when Shad surprised him and was home from work when he got off the bus.

No, it's not a mistake! You are not misreading. Austin's birthday was on Tuesday and Cooper's was Wednesday. What were we thinking...

March is a crazy month for our family...............

one more birthday wish goes out today to my cousin Wendy's little girl............

Happy 6th Birthday Alyssa Joy Schultz!!!

So, that's Alana and Aliya on the 18th, Easter on the 23rd, Austin on the 25th, Coop on the 26th, and Alyssa on the 27th. We've had a busy week... a little breather and then we do it all over again in August!!! Hahahahahaha!!!! Can't wait!!!

Austin is 11!!!!!!

March 25, 1997 at 7:10 pm I held Austin for the first time!! It's so hard to believe that he is 11 already. Where does the time go?! I am so proud to be his mom!! My mom took him to lunch a couple of weeks ago and the waitress commented on how kind and polite he was. "No thank you, mam." "Yes, please, if it's not too much trouble." She told my mom that she could tell that he was going to make someone a nice husband someday because of how he treats others now. Awww... that was so sweet!!

He's never been that hard to please. He's pretty laid back and easy going for the most part. Everytime we go to the mall he wants to get a cookie from the Cookie Co. so this year, I dropped the boys off at school and scooted off to the mall to get him the cookie of all cookies (and a few other things of course!)!! Can you believe the balloon is from Valentine's Day?! Needless to say he was estatic with all of his gifts this year.

Austin: "Oh, my gosh! You drove 2 hours just to get me a cookie?"

Me: "Yes, yes, I did. Why is that so hard to believe?"

Austin: "Wow! You're awesome! Thanks!"

Me: "Mom's do crazy things when they love their children."

Austin: "2 hours for a cookie?! Wow!" (Still not knowing what to think)

Some time goes by... we eat some cookie and laugh, he opens his gifts from us...PSP game, book, and a GAP box...

Austin: "Hey, mom, isn't GAP in the mall?" (with a devilish look)

OK, OK... so I didn't go just for a cookie... how nutty do you think I am... don't answer that!!! You all know I'm a push over when it comes to my kids!!

He still thinks I'm cool though and that's all that matters!!!

Not much is new with the adoption. I spoke to our Social Worker today and she still is not done with our homestudy!!! It's taking way longer than I had expected it to. Passports are here and we're having our fingerprints done (hopefully) on Monday. It depends on Shad's work schedule. By the way, did I mention I found another gray hair?! A little humor helps keep me sane!! I think anyways!!! Hahahahahaha!!!!!!

If you get a minute check out http://www.glenncolton.com/ . Glenn Colton travels around to schools and puts on a fun family concert for Pre-school trough 6th graders. He comes to our school every year and the kids really get a kick out of him. He's a little on the goofy side, but a hoot!

Two of our nieces share a birthday. Happy Birthday girls!! Alana (my sister's little one) and Aliya (Shad's brother's little girl) both turned 3 on March 18th.

Home Study is done!!!

...and on we go!! Our final home study visit was completed today!! YEAH!!!! Our social worker thought that she would have it to us by the end of next week. Next step, the Dossier!! Things seem to be moving rather quickly for us, I think. The hard part is going to be the wait for a referral. We received notice earlier this week from Dillon, that they've increased their wait times to 18-24 months for a referral. I was prepared for the 12 month wait time that was estimated when we started but the new wait time put a stab right into my heart!! I have to believe that God will bless us sooner than that! I'm going to stay positive! Our social worker assured us that these increased wait times are happening across the board. Please pray that things go smoothly for us and that we don't have to wait very long for a referral.