November? Are You Kidding Me?

My little Supermen and Ninjas:

Happy NOVEMBER! Can you even believe it? We're officially into the holiday season. I'm in shock. October went super fast and ended with the Pumpkin Party at church. My guys had a blast and this was the aftermath:
What was that? You want a closer look?

I seriously don't understand how they sleep like this! Levi is usually cuddled up on the foot of the bed with the dog. Lately they've been asking for Zephan to join the mix, but he tends to get Levi riled up and subsequently ends up back in his crib. Maybe someday we'll need the crib for somebody else, then we can debate the pros and cons of the dog pile sleeping arrangement with yet another brother.
Speaking of baby, I'm once again pining. Zephan is waaaay too big and is more enthused about playing (even cooperatively - gasp!) with his brothers than he is about being my baby.

Micah is still in the "rolling his eyes stage" of our discussion about another placement.

I say, "I know you, you old softie. You'll fall in love with a new one just as quickly as you did with our sons." to which he says, "Yeah, like I did for our daughters, too. Remember them? Rayna? Savannah? Secilia? Selina?"

Sigh. I remember. All to well. And I don't blame him for wanting to shield us all from the pain of loss. Especially Solomon who has such a soft heart and tender spirit. It would be really difficult for him to lose a child who he had come to view as a sibling. And, hey, we've attained permanency twice in a row - we're due for a good old fashioned heart-break, right?
Sigh.
It's hard to know what to do.
So, I'm praying for wisdom AND PATIENCE. When it's time we'll BOTH know. In the meantime I'm finishing up some projects. Pre-nesting, you might say. The boys decided on a color scheme for the Cluhouse (with surprisingly little input from the Mama) and we ended up with this Americana-type look:

We stuck some hay bales and ropes inside and threw together some super-easy festive curtains. You know, the kind that only need a tension rod, a yard of fabric and a package of plastic rings. We'll make some for Christmas, too. It's just too cute of a detail to pass up :)Micah just needs to put in the door and steps and we'll be all set! He's also talking about finishing the inside, but we'll see. For now they're having fun graffiti-ing the walls with their crayons. It makes me smile.