I'm not quite sure how this post is going to turn out... lots of thoughts and little organization...
Today Chuck, who is superdad, took all three boys to the aquarium in Virginia Beach while I was at my mommy group. (I don't have the guts for such outings, but Chuck does!) Noah and Samuel LOVED it. Chuck said that they were totally into everything, but when they got to the sharks they were bouncing-off-the-walls excited. And they called all the fish Dory. They love the movie "Finding Nemo." Dory is obviously their favorite. Chuck bought a family membership so we will definitely be going there again soon. Chuck learned that we can watch them feed the sharks and he is looking forward to taking the boys to see that.
I have been struggling lately with a few things. The first is this general sense of not having much to look forward to. I am an introvert, so I get energized by being alone. Completely alone. In the quiet. With no TV or radio or noise of any sort. When I'm in the car by myself I like to have the radio off. I do get out of the house a number of times during the week, but it is always for group gatherings. I feel like I need a specific time alone that I can look forward to during the week. The other thing I'm trying to figure out is when I can shower. The obvious times - early morning and late at night - don't work for me. I'm still nursing so I need to feed Tristan before I shower in the morning or I'm a mess and it's really no use that I just showered. I can't shower before bed because I can't sleep with wet hair (and our house is too small for me to use my hair dryer that late). So, I grab showers when I can and just quickly wash my hair on the days I don't shower. It's not that I can't shower during the day - it's just hard to fit in. Yes, we are home all day, but between nursing Tristan and meals and snacks and naps it is just hard to fit in. I'm just not sure what to do. If anyone has suggestions, I'd love to hear them.
Another thing I'd like to add to my days is exercise. We joined the YMCA, but I've since cancelled our membership because the boys won't stay in childwatch. They did for about 2 weeks and then they decided they were done with it. Samuel would say "no joue" (no play) as soon as we pulled up and then would freak out once inside. So, I'm also trying to figure out when I can exercise. I can't wake up before the kids to do it for the same reason I can't shower before nursing Tristan. I think I can do this at about 8:00 a.m. with all three kids awake. Tristan hangs out in the Jumperoo and the boys do the video with me. They are funny to watch.
The boys' English just keeps exploding. They truly understand everything we say. And they are speaking it! There are still some things they say in Creole, but they know the English words, too. Often they are just too tired or excited to use the English. They surprise us everyday with how they are using the language. They make us laugh a lot, too.
I started to gather up our tax stuff to send to the accountant. I'm way late on this - mainly because I've been dreading getting all the documents together. I made a good dent in it today and with a little more time by myself I'll have it all together soon.
Last weekend some friends from church came and helped us put up a fence and they got our swingset started. We are so grateful for that help! Chuck was out in the rain today working on the swingset. I can't wait for it to be completed and for the boys to be able to play out there.
Tristan is sitting up like a champ and army crawling all over the place. It is just so amazing to watch as a newborn grows and develops. We missed all of this with Noah and Samuel and I'm amazed every day by how quickly a baby grows, develops, and learns. It's just incredible.
That's all for now...
This blog was created to share information about bringing our boys home from Haiti. Now that they are home and we've had a baby, we share the day to day craziness that we now call life.
About Us
- Juli
- Mom to three fantastic little boys: Noah and Samuel, 6 year old twins, born in Haiti, who've been with our family since 9/08 and Tristan, our 4 year old handful! God's moved us all over the country and continues to move in our hearts.
Not a Surprise...
Chuck and I have noticed that most people make the assumption that Tristan was a surprise. You know, the idea of, "adopt a child and you'll end up pregnant." While that may be true for some, that is not the case for us. Believe it or not, Tristan was planned. At the time of his conception we were unsure our adoption would ever complete and we decided to stop putting our family on hold. God saw fit to bless us with Tristan, Noah and Samuel all at the same time! While the transition into parenthood was not easy for us, we trust that God knew what He was doing!
April 21, 2009
Brothers
Noah and Samuel, 3 years old
Samuel and Noah at 2 years old
Tristan, 5 months
Tristan, 5 weeks old
Noah and Samuel at 21 months.
Noah at 19 months.
Samuel at 19 months.
Samuel and Noah at 11 months old.
Our Timeline
May 2005 - God began speaking to us individually about adoption.
July 2005 - Decided to move forward with adopting from Haiti.
October 2005 - Applied to adopt through an orphanage.
November 8, 2005 - Approved to adopt through chosen orphanage.
January 19, 2006 - Committed to adopt the boys.
May 15, 2006 - Dossier arrived in Haiti.
July 14, 2006 - Dossier submitted to IBESR.
January 23, 2007 - Dossier exited IBESR.
September 21, 2007 - Exited Parquet.
October 2007 - Received Judgment Granted.
December 2007 - 2nd Legalization completed, which means Noah and Samuel's adoptions are complete. They are ours!!
March 2008 - Finally receive all needed documents from Archives.
March 13, 2008 - Birth parent interview completed.
Late March, 2008 - Submitted to MOI.
May 20, 2008 - Confirmed that our updated fingerprints have reached the USCIS office in Port au Prince.
May 20, 2008 - Received word that our MOI long form has been completed.
June 24, 2008 - Received MOI approval.
July 10, 2008 - Received word that Samuel's passport has been printed.
July 16, 2008 - Received word that Noah's passport has been printed.
July 25, 2008- Confirmed that our passports were presented to the USCIS office in Port au Prince and that out I-600 file has been approved.
July 26, 2008 - Emailed our request for the boys' visa appointment.
July 31, 2008 - Emailed 2nd request for boys' visa appointment.
August 4, 2008 - Spoke with the Embassy, awaiting email confirmation of visa appointment.
August 5, 2008 - Email confirmation of visa appointment received. Our appointment is scheduled for 9:00 a.m. on Tuesday, August 12th.
August 12, 2008 - The visa appointment went well! Visas should be ready tomorrow.
August 13, 2008 - The visas are in hand and the boys CAN COME HOME!!
August 15, 2008 - Baby brother Tristan was born.
September 1, 2008 - Flew to Miami and spent the night.
September 2, 2008 - Woke very early only to learn that our flight to Haiti was cancelled due to Hurricane Hanna hitting Haiti. We spent the next few days visiting friends and family in Florida.
September 5, 2008 - The boys are HOME!! However, we are stuck in Miami for the night because Hurricane Hanna hit Virginia, too, and our flight home was cancelled. Hoping to get home tomorrow.
September 6, 2008 - We are FINALLY home. To God be all the glory!
July 2005 - Decided to move forward with adopting from Haiti.
October 2005 - Applied to adopt through an orphanage.
November 8, 2005 - Approved to adopt through chosen orphanage.
January 19, 2006 - Committed to adopt the boys.
May 15, 2006 - Dossier arrived in Haiti.
July 14, 2006 - Dossier submitted to IBESR.
January 23, 2007 - Dossier exited IBESR.
September 21, 2007 - Exited Parquet.
October 2007 - Received Judgment Granted.
December 2007 - 2nd Legalization completed, which means Noah and Samuel's adoptions are complete. They are ours!!
March 2008 - Finally receive all needed documents from Archives.
March 13, 2008 - Birth parent interview completed.
Late March, 2008 - Submitted to MOI.
May 20, 2008 - Confirmed that our updated fingerprints have reached the USCIS office in Port au Prince.
May 20, 2008 - Received word that our MOI long form has been completed.
June 24, 2008 - Received MOI approval.
July 10, 2008 - Received word that Samuel's passport has been printed.
July 16, 2008 - Received word that Noah's passport has been printed.
July 25, 2008- Confirmed that our passports were presented to the USCIS office in Port au Prince and that out I-600 file has been approved.
July 26, 2008 - Emailed our request for the boys' visa appointment.
July 31, 2008 - Emailed 2nd request for boys' visa appointment.
August 4, 2008 - Spoke with the Embassy, awaiting email confirmation of visa appointment.
August 5, 2008 - Email confirmation of visa appointment received. Our appointment is scheduled for 9:00 a.m. on Tuesday, August 12th.
August 12, 2008 - The visa appointment went well! Visas should be ready tomorrow.
August 13, 2008 - The visas are in hand and the boys CAN COME HOME!!
August 15, 2008 - Baby brother Tristan was born.
September 1, 2008 - Flew to Miami and spent the night.
September 2, 2008 - Woke very early only to learn that our flight to Haiti was cancelled due to Hurricane Hanna hitting Haiti. We spent the next few days visiting friends and family in Florida.
September 5, 2008 - The boys are HOME!! However, we are stuck in Miami for the night because Hurricane Hanna hit Virginia, too, and our flight home was cancelled. Hoping to get home tomorrow.
September 6, 2008 - We are FINALLY home. To God be all the glory!
Labels
- Pregnancy (40)
2 comments:
No thoughts on how to fit it all in...I can't get it all in and I've just got one. I think those struggles with time for me and time to do the things we want and need to do like exercise are just part of Mommyhood. Yep, you're home all day and you're exhausted at the end of the day but as my friend Laura put it, "Don't ask me what I did all day because I honestly couldn't tell you." So much of my days feel unproductive even though I feel like I'm always on the go. And I'm the opposite of you in that I need people around. Not all the time but I have that need for conversation and company or I start to go a little nutty. Right now D's coaching so he usually has games 2-3 nights a week so he doesn't get home until after Kenson's bedtime and that makes me a single parent on those nights. And he has practice too so he doesn't usually get home until after six most nights. So the things we usually do together like our small group are out. Kenson and I try to go the games if they get over at a decent time and the weather isn't too bad but it's not the same as hanging out with my normal groups. Plus, I'm a go go go person so this slow down in life, the rearranging of life if you will, has been, at times, hard to get used to. Anyway, I didn't want to write all that just to complain. I just wanted to let you know from one newbie to another, you're not alone in struggling to sort out all those eelings. Wouldn't trade my time at home for anything, but it does take some adjusting and some navigating as you try to get it all done.
I think most Moms struggle with the shower issue (especially new Moms), but hang in there, things will get better. If they all take a nap at the same time, my suggestion would be to take that time to have your alone time and shower. It may not be a "typical" time of day, but right now you just need to find what works for you. Maybe when Chuck gets home would work better, if it's not dinner/bath/bed time. Or even sometimes if it is... If I haven't had a shower all day (and that does still happen some), when Roger comes home, I'll sometimes say, I'm sorry, you'll have to eat dinner without me tonight, but I HAVE to take a shower now. And he understands that I just need a little time to myself, so I don't pull all my hair out. Just remind yourself that it is only for a very short time. I know it doesn't seem like that when you're in the middle of it, but believe me it's a blink of an eye! I'll talk to you soon about when we can get together. Looks like it will be after the 15th. By the way, make sure you get all your adoption credits--you guys should have a HUGE deduction for that. Not to mention the regular child credits. :)
Love, Aimee Brown
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