Family

As I sit here tonight I am in a reflective mood. This past week has brought so many thoughts into my head. It is truly overwhelming.

Riley and I went to Kindergarten Round Up on Tuesday night. This was for all incoming Kindergarten students this coming Fall. Wow! How did we get to this point. It seems like it was just yesterday when we first saw his beautiful little face in a referral picture. Now, he is ready for Kindergarten. He truly is ready. He has all of the academic and social skills he should have. I am in awe.

When Riley came home from China he was 28 months old. He had many delays. He did not speak Chinese at all during his 11 months in foster care. He was silent. He did not know how to take off his own socks. His meals consisted of 5 bottles a day and one bowl of noodles. His walking was still a little awkward. His attention span was almost nonexistent. We were sure he would not be ready to enter Kindergarten on time. Now, his receptive language is on target. His expressive language still has some delays, but not like we imagined. He carries on conversations.... actually he talks NONSTOP! I remember worrying that he would not be able to just chat with people. I worried that his speech would not improve to the point where others could understand him. Now, he can be understood by just about anyone about 75% of the time. That is huge. On May 10th it will be three years since Riley was placed in my arms. Whew... WOW.... unreal. It just doesn't seem possible. He has just grown and changed so much. He has overcome unbelievable obstacles. He is just so smart!! Now, the biggest worry about Kindergarten is whether I will have an emotional breakdown because my BABY is ready for Kindergarten! He is ready.... but I am not sure I am!

Also this week we had our social worker visit for our 6 month post placement report for CCAA. Madeline was placed in my arms over 4 months ago. She is a different little girl. Madeline has gained 4 pounds, cut 6 teeth, learned to say over 10 words. She has gone from 9 month size clothing to 18 month size shirts and 12 month shorts! She understands just about everything we say to her. She gives spontaneous kisses and runs to greet us when we get home. She laughs, plays, loves her blankie. Madeline loves her big brothers as much as they love her. She wags her finger at them disapprovingly when she doesn't like what they do. She eats just about anything you put in front of her... as long as it isn't green. She drinks out of a sippy cup almost exclusively... except for that snuggle time bottle before bed. She is practicing using a spoon at most meals. Madeline is developmentally right on target. TaiHe SWI was truly the best possible place for her to be in if she had to be institutionalized. Obviously they did everything they could for the babies.

Also this week we were very busy with James. He had a chorus performance on Monday and sang at Relay for Life on Friday. We walked in the Relay for Life for a few hours Friday night, lit a luminary in his grandmother's name and took in the amazing efforts of those working to raise money to fight cancer. It was really a fantastic experience. We went to Relay for Life... just the two of us. He sang at 8pm so that was a little late for Miss M. It was so special to share that time doing something so important and worthwhile. One on one time spent was made even more special because we were doing something... good. It was a very moving experience for us both.

When Jerry and I decided to get married.... a million years ago, we knew we wanted children. In fact, we wanted as many children as God would provide. He has provided. We didn't know all those years ago that our children would come to us in such profound ways. We also had no idea just how special our children would be. Jerry and I will lay in bed at night and talk. We can't believe we have been together almost 21 years. We can't believe we have been married almost 17 years. We can't believe we went through fertility treatments to bring James into our lives. We can't believe we went to China TWICE to bring home our other two children. We are just normal, boring people. We just can't begin to wrap our brains around why we have been so blessed. We shake our heads at each other in amazement. We never knew the plan for our lives would be so great. Family has and will always come first with us. We realize our blessings and rejoice in them daily.

"When it comes to understanding God, we are all children. Our brains are limited to finite time and space, and God is beyond all that. Once in a while, we allow God to break through and we experience the awesomeness of the divine. This is where we discover clues to the mystery of God."

from Bringing Home the Gospel: A Weekly Journal for Catholic Parents—The Year of Luke