Wedding

We went to a wedding yesterday and had a blast. It got me thinking how short of a time we really have to raise up and enjoy these little guys. We were sharing a table with a single dad who has 2 children who have just left the nest. He was saying that he had to put a boom box in his sons' room and play it continuously so as to distract his brain from the hole they left. How he absentmindedly makes meals for more than one and then realizes that it will only be him in the dining room. How his house is quiet as he comes through the door. He's having a difficult time.

This morning Micah and I woke up to boys laughing, little feet jumping on the couch, a baby pleading for his sippy of milk, a boy who needed help getting a bowl, another who had a dream he wanted to share with us. We hit the ground running (when they finally pry us loose) and get so busy that I forget they will spend the majority of their lives away from me. I'm going to approach today with joy and gratitude for my little guys. It's easy to do when they're THIS cute, though:

Thank you, Lord.

Busy, Busy, Busy...

So, if anybody even comes around here anymore (I've been so lazy about sitting down and posting since the weather has been so awesome!) Here are the end-of-summer-ish updates, in chronological order :)

It got to be REALLY hot for us Oregonians - 107 degrees! The sun chased us to the beach where we enjoyed time with Nana, overcast but warm conditions and just a perfect day in general. The waves were georgous, the boys played and then Nana treated us all to lunch at The Spouting Horn, right on the world's smallest bay. We watched the boats come in and ate bacon cheeseburgers until our hearts were content.

The kids are great and we're gearing up for another year of homeschool. All their curriculum came in the mail and supplies are bought. Levi will be starting Pre-School this year and I'm excited to see how quickly he picks things up!

On the Zephan front - the adoption still isn't finalized (I WOULD post that, no matter how nice the weather!) and his caseworker told us that there was a little legal issue they had to clear up but they didn't want to worry us as it's not a big deal. Hmmmmm. This beautiful pic was taken after he fell and broke his lip open. We e-mailed the worker to let her know what happened and she mentioned the amount of supervision he requires. We'reconsidering having him evaluated to see if he would be elligible for the next higher bracket of benefits, for kiddos who require more assistance. I think this guy would qualify, but I don't want it to bite us in the butt when we apply for a new little one. Will they think we have enough as it is and not place with us? I don't think so, but we need to think a bit more about it....

Let's see. What else. Oh, our pigeons didn't waste any time "getting to know" one another and produced these 2 lovely eggs. Of course, because they're fertile, this means that we don't have all females (duh). And, of course, we can't have this going on continually, but it's a cool life-cycles lesson for my boys and I was thrilled to get the 3 eldest out of bed last night so they could watch the babies hatch. Congrats, Moo & Mr. Grey!

Solomon tested and passed for his yellow belt! We're so proud!

I tried my hand at cornrowing Levi's hair, and I think I could become proficient at it. I missed the curls, though, and lamented the fact that it made him look older, so I soon took them out. He really liked them, though, so we'll maybe experiment some more.

Micah is building the boys a clubhouse! He's trying to get it all up before school starts...we'll see. They're already having fun with it! Micah was able to find cheap windows and even a skylight from a place that sells things that are still usable from tear-downs and slightly irregular building supplies. The clubhouse is the big topic of conversation around here and discussions are being had concerning exterior paint color, flooring options, and if we'll be able to find a small section of kitchen cabinets to install inside. They're happy as clams about it.

Well, soon school will start and we'll have more structure and with more structure will come more posts, but until then....I'm off to finish enjoying the sun!